Legal Sea Foods

I unfortunately can’t even leave a review for the food considering I didn’t get past my RUDE and unenlightened server. WARNING: Don’t come here if you have any food allergies. I informed my male server that I couldn’t have gluten, dairy or soy.
He then proceeded to tell me that since the friers were gluten free, they were also soy free because soy is gluten. I tried explaining that they were different and I needed to know what their «vegetable oil» was, soy? canola? etc. He got really angry when I insisted that he check. He left and so did I. It’s clearly not a safe place to eat with allergies with such rude and misinformed servers.

3.5. I think LSF as a place for tourists which could be wrong. The seafood here to me is in a sense similar to the chinese food at PFChang, where one can expect consistently prepped food but somehow the food don’t have distinct characteristics that make people remember and want to come back. Decent food and decent service. The price is probably around the average.

Just had dinner here. The waiter was slow, I did not get what I ordered and the waiter argued with me on what I ordered. We ordered a second bottle of wine that was brought to our table when everybody was done eating. We did not get bread at our table with our dinner… Stay away.

So disappointed! Took a colleague for a farewell lunch. Food was fine, not great, just fine. The problem was service! With a reservation the six of us were seated quickly although the guest of honor was shown to a chair so rickety that it was unsafe! After switching out chairs the real trouble began. While seemingly knowledgeable and attentive the servers foul odor was simply awful — no personal hygiene requirements? At Legals? Asked for rolls, never saw them — asked for dessert menus, didn’t see the server for 20 minutes. Time to go! Come on Legals, step it up!

Upscale place for a nice dinner (came here for a friend’s birthday) and good for groups — it’s larger than the one in Harvard square. However, the food is average, def not worth the high price…
Apps: We got the steamers (best one, imo), some other shellfish dish (forgot, not memorable at all), and fried calamari (just OK). Portions were HUGE though — would caution against getting 3 apps for 4 people!
Entrees: After trying each other’s dishes, we all liked the Signature Crab Cake Combo best — a ton of food, and the crab cakes packed a lot of flavor.
We didn’t really enjoy the Nutty Faroe Salmon — bland yet super heavy, could taste the butter in the sauce. The spinach was also really salty. They did accommodate my request to swap the ravioli for brown rice though.
The Wood Grilled Assortment was also kinda bland, but a good dish to order if you want variety. Also a ton of food. Overall don’t think the meal was worth it, but still a standard place for a nice dinner.

I thought it was pretty good. Pretty fancy as well. Super nice place.
Good warm lobster roll. Didn’t like the fries but loved the sautéed muahrooms. Sauteed spinach was weak at best. Combod with an excellent lobster bias for lunch.
Fisherman platter was excellent. Lots of food. Also had the lobster spinach baked oysters. Now that was tastee.

I have celiac disease and I must say I had the BEST meal I’ve had outside my home in years! The gluten free bread was soft, warm and delicious. The clam chowder had an abundance of clams in a wonderful broth. And, because I have not had fish and fries since being diagnosed with celiac disease I was intrigued by the option of having spicy fish and fries. It was AMAZING! They also had a wonderful German Reisling that was sweet and the perfect companion to the meal. We will return — the service was great and the fish was moist on the inside and wonderfully crispy on the outside. We truly enjoyed our dining experience. Thank you Legal Seafood Boston!

Visited on a Thursday evening around 6:45 pm. We were seated quickly but it took about 45 minutes for them to bring a child’s mac & cheese dinner. They are not going to win any awards from Captain Kangaroo, especially since the mac & cheese did not look very different from Kraft. A grown-up’s grilled chicken was reasonably good, though she said that she makes it better at home. My stuffed flounder was dry, as though it had been prepared about 30 minutes earlier and then left to sit under a warming lamp until the chicken and mac/​cheese were done. The waiter left us alone for the entire 45-​minute wait, never stopping by to ask if there was anything that we needed.
(I should add that typically I am kind of a fan of Legal’s.)

Props to these guys. They turn out a consistent product at moderate prices. There are interesting wines and beers — something for everyone.
My review is based mainly on a recent visit to this Legal Sea Foods. But I’m sure that I had been to this location three or four times in the past for MIT-​related dinners. On this occasion, I ordered the shrimp wanton plate (steamed, not fried) and a grilled bluefish, cooked cajun style. The fish and the skin of the baked potato that came as one of the sides were both extremely salty. For the baked potato, no big deal — I refrained from skin eating. The saltiness of the fish was a real problem.
I liked my beer, a fairly light ale that was featured on the guest tap. Also on the table was a flight of three sauvignon blancs, which we enjoyed while sitting back, relaxed. I’d come again without hesitation.

I am disappointed with my salmon burger which is burned and different than the one I got last week. Last week they put the actual meat and this time it was made of minced meat. I do not recommend the salmon burger. The service was fine they gave me a clam chowder soup for the extra wait but I wish I had looked inside the burger before I took the to go order.

I’ve had mixed experiences at this Legal.
Both times I’ve visited it has been a Saturday night, and not overly busy. The first time, we had extremely slow service and we had to keep seeking out the waitress. The second was better, but we still had to ask for the lobster tools before we could eat.
The oysters are always really fresh. We always get a variety, but I feel like they could do a better job of writing the raw bar menu each day — there’s usually one that doesn’t quite match what we expected.
The first time, I ordered salmon medium rare. The waitress checked twice that this is what I wanted, but it still came out well done. It tasted fine, but could have been so much better if they’d just listened.
The second time we got the lobster bake. It was a good sized meal, but the mussels were overdone. The lobster made up for it though.
Overall, I much prefer the other Legal locations. Given the price you’re paying, and the high standards they claim to have (and do have at other locations), I expect much more from them.

Yes– this food is fantastic! the platter will grilled Tuna– scallops-​shrimp-​salmon was the best grilled fish I have ever had. Guiness on tap and a grand assortment of other fish items. Cassandra was our waitress– ask for her– she was excellent and very friendly and helpful. Great place. I will be coming back.

This is a great Legal located in Cambridge and right on the MIT campus. This is a pretty significant chain out in Boston and their seafood is pretty delicious, somewhat small portion sand pricey but really tasty. Got a lobster bake, lobster roll and some oysters, all tasted awesome but potions left a bit more to be desired. This particular location has a small outdoor patio which is great for a nice sunny day. Overall, a solid 4 stars for this particular Legal.
Pros–
Food
Taste
Location
Restaurant size
Beer/​wine selection
Outdoor seating
Cons–
Pricey
Portions
Somewhat clueless server

We enjoyed catching up with some old friends here but honestly if it wasn’t for the good company this would probably be more like a 2 star review.
Highlight of the meal was the amazingly fresh oysters. My husband had a piece of fish he said was overcooked. Other things we had were ok.
The worst thing about it was the service. We had a waiter who at first was rude (when asked for guidance on the oysters he said «it’s all right there m’am», pointing to the oyster menu. um, yeah, just thought you might have an opinion). Then he disappeared for a rather long while, eventually someone else came by and said he had stepped outside as he wasn’t feeling well.
Another highlight with this location is that we arrived early and wandered around the MIT campus for a while, which was really cool. A di Suvero sculpture, great art in the Bill Gates building and the Frank Gehry designed Stata Building. Sorry we missed visiting the Koch Institute Public Galleries which had just closed for the day.

We did not have such a god experience. Legal’s chain is one of my favorites and when I’m in the mood, I like to splurge! First, the roadwork was a hassle. If you miss the turn, you have to loop around the bridge and it is more than stressful. Make sure you turn onto ames from main and do not go straight. (GPS will tell you to go straight).
We walked in, were seated at a SMALL corner table. There were SEVERAL booths available– and my fiancé is not a small man. We asked to be seated elsewhere, and the hostess began seating us in what looked like a more comfortable and spacious area (a booth) and ANOTHER staff member stopped her, waved her finger in a «no» motion and rolled her eyes.(She apologized to us and informed us that she was new and needed to follow the lead of her colleagues. She was sweet and definitely tried to accommodate us!) So, we went back to the original table.
Our server– was incredibly overwhelmed. It was not overly busy. It was saturday night, approx. 8 or 9pm. There were people in the restaurant, but a lot of tables were open. We watched a table sit after us and eat their appetizers and start on their main course– and our server hadn’t taken our order yet.
When our appetizers arrived, the calamari did not come as we ordered it. We waited several minutes before flagging down another staff member to replace them. We were told it would take 3 minutes– it took 10. We ordered a refill on one of the sodas twice, and never got it. The third time was the charm. We ordered A1 sauce with the steak and melted butter on the rice– it never came. We had to sit patiently while we waited for the server so we could re-​order both of those items, and our food got cold. Then, he told us he did not understand what A1 sauce was, or hear that we requested it. I find that bizarre, because he nodded and said he’d bring it with the meal when we asked for it.
The server was friendly, but either inexperienced, or overwhelmed, or maybe tired. We watched 3 tables around us get excellent service and attention and we were neglected.
The crab cakes were excellent. The oysters were fresh, as usual. The calamari had flavorful batter and the macchiato was great. The steak could’ve been better. I don’t think we’ll be back to this location. We’ll stick to burlington and boston.

After entering Legal Seafoods, we headed for the bar area but were redirected to the hostess stand because we wanted a table in the bar area. As you enter the bar area, there’s a decently sized fish tank. In the bar area, there’s a large boat shaped light hanging from the ceiling. At the bar, there are two large televisions with news channels on. Along the wall of the bar, there were potted plants and metal fish displays. For drinks, we ordered a Strawberry Sangria, Spotlight Draft, St. Pauli Girl Non-​Alcoholic, and iced waters. The Strawberry Sangria was stronger, bolder, less sweet taste compared to the one I had at Legal C Bar — Dedham. After ordering our appetizers, our server brought us warm dinner rolls served with prepackaged Cabot salted butter. For appetizers, we ordered half dozen of Merry Raw Oysters, half dozen of Littlenecks Clams, and half dozen of Cherrystones Clams. We felt like we got a taste of the sea. We loved how the raw oysters and clams were fresh and thoroughly cleaned. The Raw Oysters & Clams were served over ice on a silver platter with cocktail sauce with horseradish, two kinds of mignonette (one with onion, garlic, and peppercorn and the other with pickled relish), and lemon wedges. The only thing I’d complain about is our server overcharged us by $ 2 (the price of dozen clams vs the price of two half dozen clams).

I’ve always been a fan of Legal’s, their clam chowder takes a lot of beating, and fish and shellfish is usually outstanding, this location needs special mention in regards to one of the managers, Billy.
This guy is an incredibly alert and observant manager and knows just how long to stay at your table to be helpful and yet unobtrusive, a real talent. Also being cognoscente of his diners needs and requests, and taking care of any issues immediately, not that we really had any, good job Billy!

Living in a tourist town where the service often does not justify the prices, I think Legal Seafood is an excellent example of getting what you pay for. I had a late lunch on a Saturday and my meal (fried Ipswich clams) was excellent but the service was what really made it special.
The servers and also the manager checked in regularly but unobtrusively. In general I hate soundtracks in restaurants (call me quirky, but I would prefer to choose the music I listen to) but Legal’s was just right, some bluesy jazz played at a low volume as if someone was going crazy in an adjacent room and you could listen or not.
And what I found a nice touch: after lunch my paper place mat (which as I recall is a history of Legal along with a map of sources) and replaced with a fresh one offering their Pledge to quality service and ingredients. Corny, but it worked for me.

I’ve only been to the Legal Seafood at BOS, and was super excited to learn that there was one a block from my hotel! This was my first dinner upon arriving in Boston (Cambridge to be exact, on the outskirts of MIT campus).
I started with their New England Clam Chowder. It was the white variety — smooth, creamy, and good amount of clams. I was hoping for a bit of a spicy kick like they do at Ivar’s, but no luck.
My entrée was the wood-​grilled combo, which is a definitely five-​star dish. At under $ 30 a bargain — three types of grilled fish all perfectly seasoned and cooked to have a nice outer crust and soft interior. I had salmon, tuna, and one other type of white fish. Add to that four large seared scallops and four pieces of grilled shrimp as well — they were also cooked perfectly. Nice seared crust, soft and juicy core. For sides, I chose broccoli and cheese and jalapeño polenta.
To end the meal, it was a difficult decision between their Boston Cream Pie (rum caramel sauce and almond toffee!) and their special pumpkin pie cheesecake special. My waitress recommended the latter which turned out to be a great choice. It was a lighter cheesecake where the pumpkin flavor really came through but you don’t get a sense of the dessert being too rich. There was just enough cream and sauce to impart just enough sweetness to tie it all together.

Had it once on a rainy cold October day, service was great, atmosphere was chill for a bigger group gathering (not cramped, not too noisy). Managed to get a table without reservation so that was convenient. Would give it about 3.5 stars.
Food was okay — fresh, though relatively pricey for portions served. We had lobster, shrimps, fish fillet (a little bland), scallops, white wine, and the chocolate cake dessert. It was satisfying but nothing mind blowing considering all the great seafood options in Boston. The warm chocolate cake was a nice way to end the meal — rich, moist, and not crumbly.

Visit Date: August 31, 2014
Hubby and I made reservations to eat here because he remembered the original one and wanted to eat at this one. I’m not sure if all legal sea foods are like this but we didn’t like this one all that much.
They gave us reservations at 7:15 and when we walked in very starving it seemed they had tables they could have given us if we just walked in a few hours earlier.
Our server was very nice and we didn’t have a problem with her, we just didn’t dig the food unfortunately.
I got the spinach artichoke dip appetizer and the Vegetable box. Hubby got Salmon and clam chowder. The clam chowder and the spinach artichoke dip were very oily, and the whole wheat pita was burnt and not really toasted to dip into the spinach artichoke dip. My vegetable box was literally a box that they cooked various vegetables and lo mein or rice in. When our meals came hubby’s salmon looked burnt not seared. We became very full about one third into our dinner so we were convinced they added something in the food to fill you up quicker because we were ready to knaw our hands off when we walked in.
So the service was good here, but we weren’t happy with the food and we may not visit any legal sea foods in the future.