I was pretty stoked to go to the Half Shell when I first saw the sign go up in front of the flat patch of earth where it now stands. Being a seafood place only minutes away from my house, I was happy to know that I had another good dining option close by.
My wife and I went the week that Half Shell opened and we haven't been back. The main reason was the food. I enjoy good seafood, and freshness is certainly a key element to good quality. The seafood here was the antithesis of fresh, and that was right after the place opened! To compensate, the cooks saturated the food with salt. The entire meal was absolutely terrible.
We also gave the bar/lounge area a shot and our disappointment only continued. My wife asked for a key lime martini and the three bartenders did not know how to make it. She eventually told them all of the ingredients, and not surprisingly it came out terrible. Sure, I'll bet these guys are experts at serving Bud Lights all night long, but outside of that they weren't very good and had poor attitudes to boot.
I gave the place an extra star for the great view of the city. Other than that, I don't have anything positive to say about the Half Shell. Perhaps one of these days if we're bored and out of options we'll give it a second chance and see if anything has improved.