Ropewalk – A Fenwick Island Oyster House

Was very excited when it opened within walking distance of our spot. Great place to watch any of the summer baseball games, and even early fall’s first taste of football. Clearly the owners are making money, because they opened another location in OC.
I’m giving it four stars (rounding up from the non-​existent 3.5) because I’m not often ordering chicken wings, but theirs are excellent. Old Bay variety is the top selection. Usually love that they have Dos Equis Lager on tap (surprisingly rare), but the last visit of the season (weekend before Labor Day) resulted in a glass of flat-​tapped-​out junk. Bar partially redeemed itself with its cocktail creativity.
My buddies enjoyed their selection of oysters, which were $ 1 to $ 2 a piece.

Great place to eat. Our waitress was really nice. I came on dollar oyster night (Weds) so I could not pass that up and I am glad I didn’t. They were great. Ended up getting the Nathan Hale and was not a great fan of that. Great atmosphere. Definitely coming back.

The food was delicious. We ordered: the seafood Mac and cheese, oyster tacos, and seafood chowder. Service was excellent and drinks came out fast. Not to mention the great atmosphere on the top deck. They ran out of king crab legs :(but you can’t blame them after a busy holiday weekend.

They changed the short rib to a spicy Asian dish… Not nearly as good as the brown gravy it used to be: (
Fried clams at the bar are pretty tasty and large not like you get out of a frozen box. Oysters are fresh shucked and cold.

Food over priced!!! Ordered Alaskan King Crab $ 36 to find out that’s all I got was one pound crab legs and that’s it! No side, nothing! Told the waitress I didn’t want and the manager offered 2 sides at no charge. I decided to keep the dinner and try the sides.

Frying oil needs to be changed. Food tasted dirty. Crabcake was extremely fishy tasting. After the better reviews not sure if it was a bad night or if this place just stinks.

Let me start by saying we had a party of ten so I knew going in that there was going to be a wait for the table to be ready. I explained to the hostess that my mother in law is handicapped when I requested the table. 45min later they tried to seat us upstairs. Hello? Upstairs? So we waited another 20min for a table downstairs. Finally :-) at this point I am hoping that the service is going to be good and the food great. Let’s just say we got our appetizers before the silverware and I wasn’t asked what I wanted to drink until it was time to order my dinner. Net, net, one star for the service and if I could I would do three stars for the food.

We were attracted to Ropewalk because we knew it would be child friendly. The playground was cute but was outside of sight of most tables. Additionally the kids menu is horrible. Mac and cheese was from a box everything else was fried and there was not a vegetable in sight. The only «healthy» option was to substitute applesauce for fries. Disappointing

Great atmosphere. Love the wide open doors to the bar. I was actually looking for a place driving down coastal highway, and the perception of this place made me turn around. At first when I came in the bartender seemed like she was worried more about the turning on the tv then greeting herself. So I was a little skeptical. Turned out that she was a cool lady. Abby communicated with me and made me feel at home. She told me to get the Victorian wings. THEY WERE AMAZING! Not to much sugary sauce, and they were smoked, freakin awsome. Beer was good. definetly come back again, thanx for help me choose a good dish Abby and boosting my moral. Keep up the good work chefs remember all the extra steps to smoke wings and such is worth it. Only reason I did not give 5 stars is because I never give 5 because everything can be better!!!

When in Fenwick Island, head to Ropewalk and eat some oysters. This is a huge bar/​restaurant right on the main drag that offers great fresh cocktails and a menu to compliment them.
We started with some oyster shooters which were great and then got a dozen blue point oysters that were perfect. We washed all of that down with some «crushes» which are basically vodka and fresh squeezed juice.
Friendly service, good prices, great location. Definitely a must if you’re staying in Fenwick.

I came here with some friends for dinner while staying in South Bethany over the 4^th of July weekend since we were craving some seafood. It happened to be the night of the women’s World Cup final, so the place was packed, but we still got great service all things considered. My friends had been there before so pointed me towards oyster shooters and orange crushes at the bar, which were both delicious. We sat upstairs and got the oyster sampler and crab cake egg rolls as a starter. I went for the crab cake sandwich as my main and it was perfect! There was so much crab in the cake and I could tell that it was fresh. The waffle fries were also very good and I loved the tartar sauce that came with the burger as well. Great spot!

This is our favorite lunch spot in the greater O.C. area. The food is fantastic. The Mahi Mahi taco appetizer is delicious, as is the seafood mac and cheese (with large shrimp and discernible amounts on crab).
There is a full bar. The Ropewalk Summer Lager is light and refreshing as a summer brew should be.
The kids love the sandy playground area, as to we. Kids always seem to finish first. No worries, out to the playground they go. The front of the restaurant is open, which provides a clear view of the playground and a comfortable breeze.
The décor feels more Nantucket than O.C., but it is very well done.

A nice place right on the highway. Being a nice evening we decided to eat on the upstairs deck. Palm trees shield you from the traffic and there’s a nice ocean breeze. Genesis, our server, was very helpful and friendly. I had an oyster shooter (my first time), Angels on horseback (fried oysters on bacon appetizer), and we had crabcakes and an oyster po boy. All were excellent! There’s also an upstairs bar and for some reason a life size statue of Ronald Reagan! The restaurant is the second one, the original is in historic old Baltimore. Prices moderate and food was great!

I haven’t completely made up my mind about this place yet. We’ve visited twice so far– one great experience and one mediocre at best. I love the nautical atmosphere with the old wooden oyster signs, fish house ads and mounted fish on the wall. That’s what I want to see in a ocean resort restaurant. For a newer place it’s got a lot of authenticity. On the first trip, we ordered one of the steam pots which was fantastic. It was great to split for a light meal with a couple beers. I wish more places offered this. It was a weeknight and we sat upstairs near the bar. Very casual and relaxed. The second trip was quite a contrast. *Very* crowded. We were seated downstairs and felt packed in like sardines. There was a different menu in which the steam pots were considerably more expensive. I ordered the short rib mac & cheese which was rather disappointing. You needed a magnifying glass to see the pieces of meat in it. For the price, I actually expected a couple whole short ribs in it. I left feeling our check was way out of line.
I’m going to return. The place is very close to our beach house and I still have high hopes. My star may still move… up or down.

Came here for an intimate lunch wedding reception. The restaurant was closed for the private event and had a set buffet style menu so my review is only based on that.
The restaurant is a cozy two level spot with great natural lighting, large bar and television access for those who can’t miss a game! A little outdated décor but typical beach-​y vibe.
The servers were nice and attentive. The lunch buffet for the reception included frozen alcoholic cocktails; peach, orange creamsicle, strawberry lemonade and piña colada. I sampled the 3 out of 4 and all were good, but very light. The servers brought out appetizers while we waited for the food; seared ahi tuna and spicy beef on a stick. The beef was dry and over sauced but the ahi tuna was pretty good. The lunch consisted of a broiled pork dish as well as a baked chicken dish. It also featured seafood pasta salad and a spinach salad. Everything was decent. The chicken was super dry and flavorless. I didn’t try the pork because I don’t eat pork. The seafood salad was standard and the spinach salad was comparable to a out of a bag salad. The food was extremely disappointing. While I know the newlyweds chose the menu, it wasn’t the selections that were disappointing. But the way the selections were prepared and came out.
I will give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe their seafood selections are a winner here, but just based on selections I did try, I don’t plan on returning.
The restaurant itself is in a great location (a couple blocks to the beach) is a great venue for events. I just think they need to work on their food.
Parking is easy. They have additional parking few blocks down as well.

Great play area for kids. FREE valet. Came on a Saturday night. Food was great (deadly crab pot), waitress attentive and side staff helpful in clearing table and keeping drinks filled. Watched the game, ate and decided to have dessert (which was amazing)! Would come again!

Honestly, no fish/​oyster house is going to get much more than three stars from me and its because I am not a fan of seafood. That being said, I am happy to write that Ropewalk has a fantastic outdoor, sand play area for the kids that includes a pirate ship, almost no wait times, and a NY strip steak that was able to satisfy this meat-​eater.

Love this place!
From the extensive selection of oysters to imaginative cocktails to delicious food it’s a place not to be missed when visiting the area. Fried Calamari, Scallops, Crab Mac n Cheese, Lobster Pot pie and steamed king crab were dishes my party of 7 could not get enough of. If you can get there after 8 you will have an easier time getting a table, but we only had to wait 20 minutes at 7:30.

Got the Fenwick feast for 4 people, $ 100… Totally worth it & everyone left happy with satisfied bellies! Wings were great, vibe is cool & plenty of outdoor seating. This is the second summer they’re open and we will definitely be coming back!
The waitress was super friendly & there’s a sand playground for kids out front. For a beach vibe on the bay side with plenty of fresh air this is your place!

Cool atmosphere for a bar/​restaurant in DE!
Pretty noisy, but very kid friendly with the sand playground area in front.
I had the Chesapeake grilled cheese which is a crab cake on buttery Texas toast with fresh local tomatoes and provolone cheese. Also tried the shrimp appetizer which was interesting. Food was good, and I would definitely return, but nothing amazing.
Definitely a sports bar feel with all of the tv’s. Some of the waitresses had on shorts that were so tight that looked like uncomfy permanent wedgies, but some of the sports bar type crowd may love that look.