Marica Seafood Restaurant
| Address: | 5301 College Ave, Oakland, CA 94618, USA |
| Phone: | +1 510-985-8388 |
| Site: | maricaoakland.com |
| Rating: | 4.5 |
| Working: | 5:30–9:15PM 5:30–9:15PM 5:30–9:15PM 5:30–9:15PM 5:30–9:45PM 5:30–9:45PM 5:30–9:15PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 7
NO
Noelle Ham
These stars are well deserved. Reservations are done through email. I contacted them Friday morning and was able to get a spot for 2 at 8:15. The restaurant is pretty small, and therell most likely be a wait when you come. We only had to wait about 10 min until we were seated. We started off with their $6 happy hour drinks: a gin martini with a twist for me and a manhattan for him. Im always apprehensive ordering happy hour drinks cause theyre diluted and usually taste blah. But these babies were STRONG. Cant complain there. We decided to do a few appetizers and split an entree. We ordered half a dozen of the oysters, calamari, and mussels. We split the seafood stew for our main course. Oh! And put in an order for the dark chocolate soufflé. The oysters were delicious, a bit on the smaller side but for $1 its worth it. I was a bit disappointed when I took a bite of the calamari and it wasnt crispy (I didnt read the menu description, just ordered based on what the yelpers said) but the flavors were PHENOMENAL. So tender and flavorful. I was sorry within the second bite that I was initially disappointed in this dish. Then the mussels. YUM. Have you ever has $5 bowl of mussels?! Yea, me either. I loved the sauce. It went perfectlyyyy with the bread. Even when we were done our server knew to keep the bowl at the table so we could still use it for dipping. Good woman right there. Then the seafood stew came out. Ugh. So. Freaking. Delicious. The bf didnt even speak the entire meal, he was too focused on eating. Now for the finale, the soufflé. The last chocolate soufflé we had was at Gary Dankos, and that was also the bfs first time having soufflé, ever. So we had high expectations. Oh my. They were definetly exceeded. He even liked this soufflé more than Dankos! Im not sure if I would go that far....but it was different in itself and the ice cream just added that special something something. Before our dessert came in, bf wanted to try the basil gimlet. Bad idea. Obviously the sweetness from the soufflé outshined the refreshing drink, making it taste bitter. But thats his fault =P Service was friendly and attentive. Even though our server was also the bartender , she made sure we were taken care of. Tip: bring cash!! You get 10% off. I completely forgot. But I wont for next time! Do yourself a favor, come here and eat!!! Youll be happy you did!
NH
Nhung Kim Phan
I had dinner here on a Saturday night with my two fav. girlfriends, spending the day in Oakland. This local seafood place is right at the border of north oakland and berkeley area. It was in a quaint downtown area, with lots of shops and bars. We quickly found parking a block away (watch out, the sidewalks are HIGH!!!) - scrapped my door twice getting in and out ~ HIGHLY RECOMMEND RESERVATIONS!! You can do it very simply by emailing them, your total no. of party, date and time. They are quick to respond and very accommodating. We arrived early, check in and because it is a very SMALL space, there is a limited bar area (3-4 seatings only) - we ended up going across the street to the indian restaurant/bar to hang out until our reservation. Inside, it is a small space, with about 2 dozen tables only. The back-area toward the kitchen and restroom hallway is very small, bad in case of a line for the restroom. We waited about an additional 10 min for our table, and were seated in the middle. They brought bread and water to the table promptly. The bread was good. We ordered a bottle of wine and multiple dishes to share: oysters - $2 each - was a great deal, very fresh w/ a champagne vignnette. clams - great, smooth and slightly creamy sauce. Lots of flavor. Good amount for appz. especially to share. Seafood Stew: Lots of fish and a few shrimp. Strong tomato broth. Fish was very good. Soft-Shell crab - I think this was my fav! Perfectly fried, the shell chewable w/o sticking to you. The sauces (an orange and green sauce) was fab. w/ a little mixed rice and veggy. Lobster - great sauce, but very hard to eat - I would think they would pre-break specific spots for you - so it would be easier to get out, but the flavor was wonderful. Wished we had more veggy besides sugar snap pea that were in all the dishes to eat w/ it. Another starch side would have gone wonderfully well with this since the sauce was so good! Service - We had a great waitress who was attentive, despite a busy Saturday. Line out the door when we arrived at 7, and came back at 7:30, there was still a lot of people waiting! A great experience, and great seafood. Everything was fresh, and the attention of the staff was really good.
JO
Johanes Sunarto
If any restaurant deserves a 5 star, this one certainly does. Everything about this place is perfect to me. From the $1.50 oysters (which was the reason I chose to ate here at first) to the warm, welcoming service, and most importantly the delicious, on point food. Marica has become my go to spot for a nice-but-wont-break-the-bank meal (~$65 after appetizer, entree, dessert, beer, tax, and tip). It has a great ambiance for a date night, but can also accommodate larger parties for birthdays. If you just want to come for a snack, sit at the bar, order a couple dozen oysters and enjoy very well made cocktails. If you just want to try out this place without spending too much, they may have some entrees that can be ordered appetizer sized (bbq ribs at the time of this review). Go here for dinner this week, you wont regret it.
AM
Amanda Cripps
Not only was the food spectacular and elevated, but the service was out of this world. I came in on a whim with my boyfriend just a few hours before our flight back to Boston. The kitchen was able to expedite our order, still allowing for customizations, and the staff was warm and welcoming even knowing we likely wouldnt be able to make it back any time soon. You dont see hospitality embodied like this often these days, and it truly makes a difference. Ill be recommending them to everyone I know, and if they werent now a 3000 mile flight away Id be headed there for some steak tonight!
DE
Debbie Lee
Really solid French seafood spot with surprisingly fair prices. I had the opportunity to try their off-menu chefs tasting and was completely blown away. They do both surf and turf well, have a great wine list, fantastic cocktails and their dessert... Oh, their dessert. Be sure to put in an order for their German chocolate souffle when you initially put in your food order (since it takes a while to bake). Served with a generous scoop of gourmet vanilla ice cream when the chocolate souffle is fresh out of the oven... You wouldnt regret it.
HE
helen christensen
Absolutely wonderful.... could not have been better food...delicious, presentation excellent, shared entree served on two separate plates, ambiance...very good for conversation,not too noisy even though the restaurant was full oysters on the half shell cold, fresh, perfectly shucked with no shell remnants fish stew, flavorful excellent Party of four and entertaining visitors from Brazil who thought it was outstanding as well. Cant wait to go again for the early bird 3 course dinner...a good value
HE
henry yim
This place is on the the way to my school and i pass by it everyday. Always wanted to try it but never had the chance to until school ended. I went in with expectations fairly high and Marica met it. The food great and the ambiance was mellow and cozy. The waitresses were very helpful with our food selection. When my friends parents came up for his graduation they wanted sea food and i recommended Marica. They were pleased with the recommendation.
