The 10 best seafood restaurants in Chicago

Chicago is a long way from any ocean, but the city has a deep bench of seafood spots, from Great Lakes smokehouses to white-tablecloth crab houses. This list ranks the 10 best seafood restaurants in Chicago, plus one suburb, for locals and visitors deciding where to pick up smoked fish, split a crab platter or book a birthday dinner around a seafood tower.

The list favors places with long track records and steady praise from local critics, and it mixes takeout counters, oyster bars, Mexican mariscos and big-ticket dining rooms. Prices run from a $5.20 fish taco in West Town to a $265 seafood tower on the Chicago River. A few spots are cash only or BYOB, noted in each entry.

How we chose

The list is ranked. Each pick is recommended by more than one independent outlet, among them the Infatuation’s seafood guide (updated July 28, 2025), Time Out Chicago’s seafood guide (updated October 10, 2025), WTTW’s Check, Please! and the Michelin Guide. Named, dated honors decided the top two spots. After that, the order reflects how widely a place is recommended and how long the place has held up, with critic scores breaking close calls, which is why a fish market founded in 1946 outranks a riverfront dining room with $265 towers. Every pick was checked against the business’s own website in September 2026.

Hours and prices below come from each business and change without notice. Call ahead if you are making a special trip.

Calumet Fisheries

Where 95th Street crosses the Calumet River on the Far South Side, Calumet Fisheries still brines fish overnight and smokes it over oak logs in a shack with no dining room. Order smoked shrimp and pepper-and-garlic salmon by the pound, then add a bag of fried shrimp for the ride home. No other place here pairs a national award with decades under one family and praise from every seafood roundup we checked, so the smokehouse takes the top spot. Eat in the car or at one of two outdoor tables, and bring cash.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 3259 E 95th St, Chicago, IL 60617

Why they made the list

• The James Beard Foundation named Calumet Fisheries one of its America’s Classics in 2010.
• The Kotlick family has owned the smokehouse since 1948, and co-owner Mark Kotlick carries on the business today.
• An electrical fire closed the shop in November 2023, and the doors reopened on June 8, 2024, ABC7 Chicago reported.
• The shack sits beside the 95th Street drawbridge that appears in the 1980 film The Blues Brothers.

See the full directory listing

mfk.

Named for food writer M.F.K. Fisher, mfk. cooks the coastal food of Spain in a small dining room set below street level on Diversey Parkway in Lakeview. Plates come in several sizes, so two people can cover boquerones, seafood fideos, a crudo and the whole fish of the night. A Michelin Bib Gourmand, the guide’s nod to good cooking at fair prices, puts mfk. second, behind only the James Beard-honored smokehouse. Book a table online ahead of time, or come on a Monday for $10 martinis.

Hours: Mon-Sat from 5 p.m., last seating 9:30 p.m.; Sat daytime pintxos service 1 to 4 p.m.; Sun from 4 p.m., last seating 8:30 p.m.

Address: 432 W Diversey Pkwy, Chicago, IL 60614

Why they made the list

• Scott and Sari Worsham opened the restaurant on July 3, 2014, which was M.F.K. Fisher’s birthday.
• In spring 2026 the founders passed mfk. to the existing management team of Neal, Taryn and chef Matt, who has cooked there since 2019.
• The Michelin Guide’s 2024 Chicago Bib Gourmand list includes mfk., and the restaurant counts 10 years of Bib Gourmand awards.
• A 20% service fee is added to every check, which the restaurant says pays for higher hourly wages for kitchen and floor staff.

See the full directory listing

Shaw’s Crab House

Two restaurants share one roof at Shaw’s Crab House in River North: a lively oyster bar with booths and high-tops, and a white-tablecloth dining room done up in 1940s style. Six oyster varieties rotate daily, and the signature chopped seafood salad ($39) mixes crab, shrimp, lobster, hearts of palm and avocado. Open since 1984 and recommended by the Infatuation, Time Out and WTTW’s Check, Please!, Shaw’s is the strongest downtown pick and lands third. For a cheaper visit, sit in the oyster bar between 3 and 5 p.m. on weekdays, when select oysters are half price.

Hours: Oyster Bar: Sun-Thu 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Main dining room: lunch daily 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.; dinner Sun-Thu 5 to 9 p.m., Fri-Sat 5 to 10 p.m.

Address: 21 E Hubbard St, Chicago, IL 60611

Why they made the list

• Live bands play the oyster bar every Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m.
• A three-course lunch with white-tablecloth service costs $40.
• The Grand Seafood Tower, with oysters, shrimp cocktail, Maine lobster tails, golden king crab and tuna tartare, is $197.
• Valet parking is available, and tables can be reserved online.

See the full directory listing

Hagen’s Fish Market

Two Scandinavian brothers from Washington Island, Wisconsin, opened Hagen’s Fish Market at Montrose and Central avenues in 1946, and the third generation still smokes salmon, trout, chubs and whitefish over a hardwood fire. The fried counter is the other draw: jumbo shrimp are $26 a pound, and a shrimp po’ boy is $14. Eighty years on one Portage Park corner, picks from the Infatuation and Time Out and a 2025 WTTW profile put Hagen’s fourth. Anglers can bring in their own catch and have the shop smoke it.

Hours: Sun-Thu 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Fri-Sat 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Address: 5635 W Montrose Ave, Chicago, IL 60634

Why they made the list

• WTTW reported in August 2025 that Hagen’s and Calumet Fisheries are the last two traditional hardwood-burning smokehouses in Chicago.
• The custom smoking service costs $2.50 a pound, plus $2 for cleaning.
• Lake perch sells for $22 a pound, and a crispy fish fillet sandwich is $8.
• Third-generation owner Tammy Jesse runs the market without advertising and relies on word of mouth, according to WTTW.

See the full directory listing

Mariscos San Pedro

Pilsen’s Mariscos San Pedro cooks Mexican seafood in two wood-burning ovens on 18th Street, with a chef’s counter facing the fire. Start with the tostada mixta called La Chingona ($26), then split the whole dorade in red and green adobo ($45) or the bacon-wrapped octopus Sonoran dog ($26). The Infatuation gave the restaurant a 9.3 rating in a review published in August 2024, and a shorter track record than the places above is all that keeps Mariscos San Pedro at No. 5. Mondays bring $2 cold oysters, with a six-oyster minimum.

Hours: Mon-Thu 5 to 9 p.m.; Fri 5 to 10 p.m.; Sat brunch 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and dinner 5 to 10 p.m.; Sun brunch 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and dinner 5 to 9 p.m.

Address: 1227 W 18th St, Chicago, IL 60608

Why they made the list

• The restaurant is a partnership of chefs Oliver Poilevey and Marcos Ascencio with pastry chef Antonio Incandela.
• Weekend brunch includes bottomless mimosas for $35, with a two-hour limit.
• The torre de mariscos, a $95 tower, stacks tuna, octopus, shrimp and scallop with three salsas and tostadas.
• Online reservations are available, and a 4% surcharge is added to all checks.

See the full directory listing

Lawrence’s Fish & Shrimp

Since 1950, Lawrence’s Fish & Shrimp has fried shrimp beside the Canal Street bridge on the edge of Chinatown, and the original storefront never closes. Founder Lawrence Schweig started with four fried items (shrimp, perch, frog legs and chicken), and all four remain on the menu. Go on a Tuesday, when a pound of large shrimp is $15.99. Seventy-six years in business, most of them around the clock, plus nods from the Infatuation and WTTW’s Check, Please!, place Lawrence’s sixth. The family also runs three newer locations, but Canal Street is the one to visit.

Hours: Open 24 hours daily.

Address: 2120 S Canal St, Chicago, IL 60616

Why they made the list

• Kurt Schweig, the founder’s grandson, owned the business when ABC7 Chicago covered the restaurant’s 70th anniversary in 2020.
• Mondays bring a pound of whitefish bites for $12.99, and Fridays bring a full order of ocean perch for $13.99.
• An early-1980s remodel added a dining area, so there is room to eat inside.
• The shop moved to 24-hour service early on to feed shift workers in the area.

See the full directory listing

Half Shell

Down in a basement on Diversey Parkway, Half Shell is the crab house that Danny Denizman opened in 1968 and his grandson Anthony has owned since 2019. The move is a heap of king or snow crab legs over fries with garlic butter, priced at market, or the Thirty Two Pointer ($26.95), a fried platter of shrimp, frog legs, smelts, lake perch and clams. Nearly six decades in one spot and picks from the Infatuation and Time Out put Half Shell seventh. Bring cash; the restaurant takes no reservations.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 676 W Diversey Pkwy, Chicago, IL 60614

Why they made the list

• Six oysters with house cocktail sauce, lemon and saltines cost $13.90.
• Lightly battered frog legs are $22.90 as an entree with fries.
• Denizman, an engineer by trade, bought the building with money saved from night shifts at a State Street club.
• Parties of five or more have a 20% gratuity added to the check.

See the full directory listing

Bob Chinn’s Crab House

The one suburban pick, Bob Chinn’s Crab House in Wheeling, opened two days before Christmas in 1982 with 175 seats and has since grown to 650. King crab is the top seller, served steamed, chilled or tossed in garlic as bite-size pieces. The house original is crabmeat vermicelli ($27), lump crab stir-fried with glass noodles, bacon, onion and egg. A 44-year run and recommendations from Time Out and WTTW’s Check, Please! earn the eighth spot, ahead of younger city restaurants. Book a table online before making the drive.

Hours: Mon-Thu noon to 8 p.m.; Fri-Sat noon to 9 p.m.; Sun noon to 8 p.m.

Address: 393 S Milwaukee Ave, Wheeling, IL 60090

Why they made the list

• Bob Chinn and his daughter, Marilyn, spent several years touring seafood restaurants across the country before buying a shuttered building on Milwaukee Avenue.
• A 16-ounce order of Alaskan king crab legs is $200, and 20 ounces of Bairdi snow crab is $74.
• By the restaurant’s own count, Bob Chinn’s serves close to a million guests a year and ranks among the 100 highest-grossing restaurants in the country.
• The signature Mai Tai comes in a limited-edition Tiki Bob mug for $12.

See the full directory listing

Alegrias Seafood

Nayarit-style Mexican seafood is the draw at Alegrias Seafood, a family-run BYOB on Ashland Avenue in West Town that has been cooking for more than a decade. Critics point to the prawns in Nayarit sauce and the stuffed lobster, and groups can order the Famosa Mariscada, a platter for four to six. Lighter appetites can stop at a $5.20 fish taco or a $23.05 bowl of Caldo 7 Mares, the seven-seas soup. Picks from the Infatuation and Time Out, plus a menu built for sharing, land Alegrias ninth. Bring tequila or beer; the kitchen makes the mixers.

Hours: Sun-Thu 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Address: 1024 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60622

Why they made the list

• Time Out Chicago’s October 2025 guide notes that meals start with complimentary ceviche tostadas.
• A half dozen raw oysters is $18.38, and the baked Ostiones Gratinados with octopus, shrimp and crab are $26.20 a half dozen.
• The Copa Alegrias cocktail mixes shrimp, octopus, raw oyster, clam, scallop and fish ceviche for $23.

See the full directory listing

RPM Seafood

Floor-to-ceiling windows look out on the Chicago River at RPM Seafood, the priciest room on this list and the one to book for a big occasion. The Grand Seafood Tower ($265) stacks Maine lobster, Alaskan king crab, colossal shrimp and oysters, and Time Out singles out the miso black cod ($44). Strong reviews from the Infatuation and Time Out are offset by the shortest history of the downtown dining rooms here and the highest prices, which puts RPM Seafood 10th. For the view at a lower price, try the $39 Lunch with a View menu, Thursday through Sunday from noon to 3 p.m.

Hours: Mon-Wed 4 to 9:30 p.m.; Thu noon to 9:30 p.m.; Fri-Sat noon to 10 p.m.; Sun noon to 9:30 p.m.

Address: 317 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654

Why they made the list

• Bill and Giuliana Rancic own the RPM restaurants with siblings R.J., Jerrod and Molly Melman.
• The bar’s happy hour runs Monday through Friday from 4 to 5:30 p.m., with $10 maki rolls and $5 nigiri.
• Valet parking is on James Tyree Way, and the restaurant is cash-free.
• The private-label RPM Prestige oysters come from a family-run farm on Washington’s Hood Canal.

See the full directory listing

Also worth knowing

Stone crab claws are the reason to book Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab at Rush Street and Grand Avenue, the Chicago branch of a Miami Beach stone crab tradition that dates to the early 1920s. A medium order runs $74.95, servers wear tuxedos, and a $42.95 three-course lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. With sister restaurants in Las Vegas and Washington, D.C., Joe’s fell outside a top 10 that favors independents.

Baja-style seafood from chef Stephen Sandoval, who grew up in San Diego, fills the menu at Diego on Ogden Avenue in West Town. Critics recommend the ceviche, fish tacos and tuna tostadas, and the kitchen runs a late-night menu until 12:30 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Diego opened in 2023, too recently to crack the top 10.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best seafood restaurants in Chicago?

Calumet Fisheries in South Deering tops this list of the best seafood restaurants in Chicago, followed by mfk. in Lakeview and Shaw’s Crab House in River North. Calumet won a James Beard America’s Classics award in 2010, and mfk. holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand.

Where can I find cheap oysters in Chicago?

Shaw’s Crab House cuts select oysters to half price in the oyster bar from 3 to 5 p.m. on weekdays, which brings a half dozen to $12. Mariscos San Pedro in Pilsen sells cold oysters for $2 each on Mondays with a six-oyster minimum, and Half Shell charges $13.90 for six.

Which Chicago seafood restaurant is open 24 hours?

Lawrence’s Fish & Shrimp at 2120 S Canal St, on the edge of Chinatown, is open 24 hours a day and has been frying shrimp there since 1950. Alegrias Seafood in West Town also keeps late hours, until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

See a place we missed or a detail that has changed? Send us a correction.