13 Menu Items You Should Never Order At Red Lobster, According To Reviews

Red Lobster is an eatery that is known for its seafood as well as its Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Interestingly enough, the famous biscuits weren't actually added to the menu until 24 years after the restaurant chain was started and now there are even grocery stores that sell frozen Red Lobster cheddar bay biscuits. The seafood establishment originated in Lakeland, Florida in 1968 and has since grown to 568 locations around the globe.

However, Red Lobster has been struggling recently. After considering filing for bankruptcy to stay afloat in April 2024, the chain ended up filing for voluntary chapter 11 bankruptcy in May. Just like any other restaurant — struggling or not — Red Lobster has menu items that customers love as well as ones that are not as popular and diners should probably steer clear of. We determined what these items are by examining reviews from customers and employees found on discussion forums and review sites. To learn more about our evaluation and process, you can find our full methodology at the end of the article.

Shockingly, despite the crustacean being part of the restaurant's namesake, the establishment's Lobster Roll — which was introduced as part of Red Lobster's 2025 Lobsterfest — has not received overly positive reactions from reviewers. The sandwich is made up of warm lobster meat that's covered in melted butter and put into a toasted sweet Hawaiian roll then served with Chesapeake fries.

A redditor who ordered the roll — and claimed to pay $38 for it — stated that in the picture of the roll the meat looks like Maine lobster but what actually comes in the sandwich is more like "cheap spiny frozen langostino." A YouTuber who reviewed the roll stated that right from the beginning the price was a red flag, noting they felt they could get a better roll for cheaper at a food truck. The diner then went on to describe the sandwich as a hot mess, not aesthetically pleasing, and containing too much bread and not enough lobster for the price. A writer with The Lo Times even went as far as decreeing the lobster roll "a crime against shellfish."

In 2023, Red Lobster lost a lot of money on its Endless Shrimp promotion. In fact, at the time the restaurant chain anticipated that it would lose $20 million due to the promotion. One of the shrimp options introduced in the same year as the promotion — that has somehow survived — is the Crispy Dragon Shrimp. The shrimp are breaded, fried, and covered in a sweet yet slightly spicy chili sauce.

There were multiple customers on Red Lobster's Facebook who complained about the shrimp's preparation being inconsistent and coming with very little sauce. Meanwhile, a reviewer on Yelp claimed that the shrimp they received appears to come from a bag of breaded shrimp, implying they didn't seem fresh. Another diner on Yelp complained about the shrimp being over breaded and not tasting very good. A writer with HubPages stated that they felt the Crispy Dragon Shrimp were a rip off after they ordered them and received only a small portion of the shellfish.

If you visited Red Lobster with a fairly large appetite you might be tempted to order the Admiral's Feast as it comes with a large variety of options. However, diner response to the meal would suggest it should be avoided. The menu item comes with a myriad of fried seafood including Walt's Favorite Shrimp, flounder, clam strips, and bay scallops which are served with cocktail sauce, tartar sauce, and the customer's choice of two sides.

A customer on ConsumerAffairs subbed one of the items in the Admiral's Feast for lobster which they complained was falling apart when they received it — adding that it was mushy, soggy, and had the texture of grits. Another diner on ConsumerAffairs stated that the dish was served cold and the fish tasted as if it was leftover. In addition, a writer with the New York Times reviewed the Admiral's Feast and compared its flavor to Kentucky Fried Chicken before also describing the taste as baked, microwaved, reheated, and overcooked. A review from Tasting Table even compared the dish to a plate of barely seasoned bread crumbs, adding that the dish was underwhelming and didn't taste fresh.

The way that diners start their meal at a restaurant can be fairly important as it sets the tone for the entire dining experience. For some, that means the appetizer. Red Lobster has a few different starters including the Seafood-Stuffed Mushrooms which is described on their website as having the restaurant's signature seafood topping and Monterey Jack cheese.

The Try Guys on YouTube ate everything on Red Lobster's menu, including the mushrooms, and when they first saw the starter they said that they looked more like chicken meatballs covered in cheese. After actually trying them, they described the mushrooms as gooey and having a flat monotone flavor — one of them even went as far as calling them unpleasant. A diner on Yelp stated that the stuffed mushrooms were filled with just as much grease as they were filling — not the most appetizing thought. Another Yelp reviewer described the starter as tasting extremely fishy and consisting of more cheese than mushroom.

Red Lobster offers a variety of sides for customers to have with their meal from seasoned broccoli to bacon mac and cheese. The chain even brought back hush puppies to its menu in November 2024. Another one of the restaurant's sides are the Creamy Lobster Mashed Potatoes which are mashed potatoes topped with lobster meat and a creamy lobster beurre blanc sauce. They sound delicious, but unfortunately, they are not a hit with some diners.

The quality of the crustacean was criticized, with a redditor stating that the cheese and potatoes were fine but the lobster on top was disgusting — not the most positive considering that is the staple of the dish. A different diner questioned the price on Yelp and noted that it contained mostly langostino — they stressed that langostino is not lobster. There were also complaints about the portion sizes. One customer took to the comment section of a Facebook post to complain about the dish, stating that it was lacking in actual lobster. Keith from the Try Guys on YouTube even compared the mashed potatoes to an elementary school's attempt at seafood, noting it tasted too much like fake butter and there were only tiny bites of lobster.

Mozzarella sticks are a fairly popular food item in the United States. In fact, a 2025 report from Statista showed that in 2000 the consumption of mozzarella per capita was just over nine pounds per person and in 2022 that grew to 12.6 pounds per person. Red Lobster has its own version of Mozzarella Cheesesticks which are served with marinara sauce, but they aren't impressing many customers.

A writer with Business Insider described the chain's mozzarella sticks as overpriced, saying they lacked flavor and the marinara sauce was engulfed in the flavor of tomato. The preparation also seems to be inconsistent as one customer on TripAdvisor said they received mozzarella sticks that were undercooked, meanwhile diners on Facebook complained about being served ones that were overcooked and had no cheese in the middle. Red Lobster's Mozzarella Cheesesticks even earned last place when Mashed ranked chain restaurants' mozzarella sticks from worst to best.

Fish and Chips are what some would consider a seafood staple. Due to the fried fish dish's popularity in England it is often thought that's where it originated, however, it was actually created by Jewish people who then brought it to the country when they returned to it in the late 1600s. Red Lobster's version of the seafood item includes fried beer-battered cod served with Chesapeake fries, coleslaw, and hush puppies but, unfortunately, is not well-liked by customers.

Diners on Reddit complained about Red Lobster's fish and chips being a small portion size for the price. Yelp reviewers also raised issues with the quality of the fish being inedible as well as it tasting frozen and making them sick to their stomachs. In a different Reddit thread, where a redditor from the UK asked about the fish and chips from Red Lobster, commenters advised the poster not to go to the restaurant as the quality is not up to pay and would probably be disappointing. A diner on Facebook proved this point when they wrote that the fish they received was extremely greasy, almost all batter and barely any fish, the fries were soggy, and the coleslaw warm — adding that they barely ate any of it.

Red Lobster has had a few different versions of its calamari starter over the years. The chain's most recent adaptation of the fried squid appetizer is served with a jalapeño ranch and marinara, but it has failed to win over customers. 

Reviewers on Yelp described the calamari as being bland, tough, over-breaded, greasy, and one even claimed it made them and their family sick. A different Yelper even swears that the calamari they received was raw. Under a Facebook post where the chain announced the return of the starter, multiple diners shared their disappointment with the new version of the calamari and asked for the return of the old one. Another customer on Yelp stated the quality of the restaurant's hand-breaded calamari has declined and is now "disgusting fishy cheap squid" that comes with half the portion it used to. Keith from the Try Guys on YouTube had the calamari starter and stated that his only issue with it was that it wasn't as crunchy as he would have liked.

Red Lobster as a chain only offers two soups for diners to choose from: the somewhat expected New England Clam Chowder and a Lobster Bisque. On the restaurant's website it described the lobster based soup as rich and creamy which some customers' reactions disagree with.

Reviewers on Yelp had multiple complaints about the Lobster Bisque from Red Lobster regarding the soup having an extremely thin consistency and being barely warm. Another diner on Yelp described the bisque as tasting like a pound of butter and lacking any lobster flavor. A different Yelp reviewer expressed their disappointment with the soup and the fact that it was overly salty. When Keith from the Try Guys tasted the Lobster Bisque in a review video, he immediately had a visceral reaction stating that it burned, was revolting, gross, and decreed it the worst soup he had ever had — noting that he wouldn't even be able to interact with his server after receiving a soup that bad.

Caesar salad is a fairly popular dish in the United States. In fact, YouGov data — which it obtains through active sampling with online public opinion surveys — has it ranked as the ninth most popular Italian dish and the 16th most popular dish in general with it having a 73% popularity.

In theory a Caesar salad should be a relatively simple food item to make, however, the restaurant's version of the salad has received complaints. Red Lobster's is made with romaine lettuce, shaved Parmesan, the chain's Caesar dressing, and toasted brioche croutons. A reviewer on Yelp complained about the salad being extremely salty — which doesn't sound the most appetizing. Other diners on Yelp had issues with the salad's inconsistent preparation. While one customer stated that their Caesar was overdressed causing it to be soggy, another said the one they received had little sauce, was very small, and didn't have Parmesan like it's supposed to.

Despite being known for its seafood, Red Lobster does have a variety of pasta dishes on offer. These pastas include Creamy Crab Carbonara, Lobster & Shrimp Linguini, Lobster Pappardelle Pasta, Bar Harbor Lobster Bake, Shrimp Linguini Alfredo, and Cajun Chicken Linguini Alfredo. However, reactions from customers who have ordered the pasta as well as information that an alleged employee posted online might make diners think twice before ordering one of these dishes.

The employee took to Reddit to share that the noodles for the chain's pasta dishes are microwaved in plastic bags and the sauce in plastic cups. They noted that this caused them to need to pick pieces of the plastic out with their fingers. Besides the preparation being questionable, a diner on Facebook described the lobster and shrimp pasta as being almost flavorless besides the lobster bits which were acrid in taste. Reviewers on Yelp also complained about the chain restaurant's pasta being bland, flat, watery, and lacking sauce.

Shrimp scampi is a dish that has been around since the 14th century and originated in Genoa, Italy. Interestingly enough, the original dish was actually made with crayfish and it's unclear whether or not the crustacean in the dish was switched in Italy or when it made its way to the United States. Red Lobster's, of course, is made with shrimp that is baked in garlic sauce and served with lemon.

A reviewer on Yelp ordered the Garlic Shrimp Scampi as part of the endless shrimp promotion and felt they were middling. Other customers on Yelp were displeased with the sauce that the shrimp was served in: one compared it to a lemon oil that poured over the shrimp and another stated that instead of getting any hint of the garlic the shellfish is supposed to have, it only tasted of butter. A diner on SiteJabber described the scampi as tasting like it was made with cheap garlic powder instead of real garlic, adding that the shrimp were also fairly small.

Let's wrap this up the same way a diner might wrap up dinner at Red Lobster, with dessert. The chain restaurant offers a variety of sweet treats including its Key Lime Pie which on its website is described as having a "sweet and tart key lime custard on a graham cracker crust with whipped cream." Unfortunately, it seems the pie is not as sweet of an ending as some customers might have hoped.

A YouTube reviewer tried the Key Lime Pie and was not impressed. He stated that there was a film on the piece of pie and that it didn't taste fresh but as if it had been in the freezer for weeks and then thrown in the microwave to defrost. The YouTuber also went on to say that the pie was tart but not a proper citrus tart, it was more fake and synthetic. There was a customer on Tumblr who enjoyed the filling of the pie but stated that the crust was overly sweet and packed with sugar. A review of the pie on rockinrs.com also compared the pie to being more like a cheesecake which isn't necessarily bad but also isn't the desire when ordering a pie. In addition, a writer on Mashed reviewed the Key Lime Pie from Red Lobster and Joe's Crab Shack and found the lime flavor in Red Lobster's to be overly potent and stated it was overwhelming.

Customer opinions of restaurant menu items can vary — especially due to the fact that everyone's taste preference varies. So in order to create this list of which menu items to avoid at Red Lobster we visited discussion forums like Reddit and review sites like Yelp and TripAdvisor and reviewed customer opinions of the eatery's menu items. We then looked for food items that received negative reviews from diners on their taste, quality, and preparation. We also looked for any reviews from writers with local or national publications.

Static Media owns and operates The Takeout, Mashed, and Tasting Table.