13th Annual Dive N Surf Redondo Beach Lobster Festival

I purchased the ticket online. I recommend people do this if they can as there are long lines at the event. They have free parking with shuttles but I opted to park nearby at Ruby’s diners.
I really enjoyed my lobster meal but it left me wanting more. I was still hungry afterwards. They have a lot of food options there. I was very excited to try their Bistro but I was extremely disappointed. We tried the Lobster Corn Chowder and the Lobster roll. The chowder was overly salty. I could not eat it. The Lobster roll was skimpy and dry. It was not worth the $ 12. I feel bad for the employees preparing them because they were sweating. My husband made a comment on how they wore no hair nets. I felt like our food was prepared by inexperience teenagers not a real chef.
I did not like how they organized the food. When you enter, everything is to your right. Imagine the many lines veering towards the right and navigating with platefuls of food on a hot day. It was not fun. I also didn’t like how you had to wait in line to purchase tickets to buy your drinks and food from the bistro. I saw some people who over bought their tickets and were trying to sell them to the people in line.

This review gets 1 star because of how disgusting the lobster was presented. They weren’t cleaned at all! Not to mention, I came to found that my lobster was pregnant! I cut out this red thing in the tail area and eggs exploded out. My boyfriend and I were so grossed out, that we left immediately after. Definitely a waste of $ 33. Will not come here again.

I came here over the weekend with my friends for some lobsterrrrrr!
Well, as for the lobster food options I give it 4 stars because it was pretty darn good. The lobster dinner $ 30 was really good! Full of a lot of meat and favor. It comes with Coke slaw, a yummy butter sauce, and some bread. The lobster clam chowder is another fantastic one and same with the tacos.
As for the entertainment I would say 2 stars. As soon as you finish eating there’s nothing else to do there. We walked and realized there’s nothing else to do and well we were stuffed so we did not want more food. I think it’s worth coming of you want to eat lobster and then hang at the beach.

Went to this event with family and friends.
First, we got Goldstar discounted tickets rather than the regular entrance of $ 20.
The event is located in a small section (nearest to the Seaside Lagoon) in Redondo Beach. The event is set up by purchasing tickets that can then we traded for event food. The great thing about it is that they accepted paper and plastic as payment so didn’t need to get cash out. The lines were fair during the time we were there which was great.
The food was not bad at all. I figured some lobster sitting in some hot water for hours would end up tasting not as good but the taste of the lobster we got was fresh and still warm. We also got the taco combo which was real good and to top it off their lobster corn chowder was the best part. I was happy to see they were not shy with the lobster in both those orders so I felt I got my moneys worth.
Their was plenty of security and people/​staff to ask questions and get you help. At times a little crazy and unorganized but I understand how difficult these types of events can be. I would definitely come back to this event in the future.

Very unorganized, lines everywhere, small area, no walking space, junk sold be merchants. Not to mention $ 15 parking! If you want to have lobster go to a nice place and have it served on a plate with cloth a napkin not on plastic with paper napkin. In the end it’s the same price $ 15 pp to get in $ 15 parking $ 30 or $ 50 for a meal.
Not recommended!

Came from Guam and was excited to experience a Lobster Festival for the first time. We love Redondo Beach so it was easy to get us down there. We knew in advance of the $ 2.00 discounted entrance fee if purchased online as well as the meals that get you in free with a free t-​shirt and a choice of meal. Decided the price was too high so we were willing to pay the $ 12.00 entrance fee (x3 = $ 36.00). When we got there, it wasn’t as big as expected or as described on the website. The parking was $ 20.00 so that immediately turned us off. Instead we decided to go to the pier and were glad we did! There was an antique car show with 40+ cars and that in itself was an amazing experience. We walked the pier, shops, restaurants, etc. and had a wonderful time. Glad we did make it down there after all!

I already knew I was going to get a raw deal but hanging with friends was a priority that night.
It was a rip from the beginning. Starting with $ 5 parking. $ 6 entrance into the lagoon. $ 25 for 1.25lb lobster that was Luke warm. The three russet potatoes were hard as a rock.
I don’t believe the lobster was from Maine. Everybody was asked where them Lobsters came from and nobody there knew. An acquaintance in the group went last week to San Pedro and another Unilocaler friend told me The San Pedro Lobster fest was much better and cheaper.
After I grubbed I was still hungry and I ended up getting a Chicken skewer from one of the other vendors that came with rice and BBQ sauce for $ 10. There was a live band and some people selling junk but nothing worth my $ 6 entrance fee.
This Dive N’ Surf Redondo Beach Lobster Festival was a joke!

First Lobster Festival of my life and it’s the most disappointing thing I’ve ever experienced. I was excited because I heard they were serving NY Strip Steak too. I was drooling even thinking about it. The weather was nice, but just couldn’t bring up the mood that the festival gave out. It was like a grandmother version of county fairs or something.
EVENT: The admission was $ 12 per person, I don’t know why but it seemed a bit steep especially after I found out how small the event really was and how overly expensive the food meals were seeing as the amount they were serving. There was three of us so that was $ 36 gone from the wallet. The atmosphere was aiite… If not a little weak. I expected them to be in full swing and upbeat, but all there was was a few chunks of people meandering about in the hazy arrays of booths. The only thing worth commenting was that I actually liked the imitation Beatles band that was performing tonight
. They had some stores and games more down the stretch of beach, but nothing worth playing as everything was heavily overpriced, but we attempted at one just for the sake of having fun. The man running it was rude and gruff. He sounded highly irritated when my sister’s friend was just asking if she wanted in on it. Ugh, so not appealing. A few feet up was a tent selling tickets for lobster meals, there was three sets and nothing was under $ 20. The first one was around $ 20 (small lobster), then $ 28 (bigger oz lobster), finally $ 35 (a strip of NY steak and one lobster tail). They sold out of the first two sets, so we ended up with the third. Which brings me to the food department.
FOOD: If the food was f*cuking awesome, then I would understand charging that $ 35, but when you’re serving me food that looks and taste so mediocre, then we’ve got a problem. At $ 35, there was only one small red potato, one square of Hawaiian bread, an overcooked, lukewarm (the meat was all cooked to the center and slightly dry and honestly, felt like it was cooked hours ago), but well seasoned NY Strip Steak, a rather small lobster tail (cold, by the way)
, and a tiny serving of cole slaw
. I can’t believe we just paid $ 35 for this, can we get at least get another potato? I’m shakin’ my head. Plus, you don’t really see the lobsters cooking, they all in pots– what a bummer I expected them to put on a process show or something. :-/​But I will admit, the small lobster tail was still pretty decent dipped in garlic butter! The meat tender and it had a lot of flavor, so it wasn’t all bad, I just wished it was a hot lobster and not a cold one. I also had some pad thai
from one of the booths and let me tell ya, it ain’t good. Stick to local Thai places to get yooo fix, cause this joint is gonna give you some good ol’ fashion restroom bonding time. It was REALLY sour to a point I actually puckered my face. WTF. Pad thai is not supposed to be or taste like that. STAY AWAY! (My stomach is still making painful noises as I type this)
All in all it was a $ 80+ day with the miscellaneous foods, drinks, one game, and random hats that we bought. I didn’t think it was worth it, the experience was MEH at best and I went home rushin’ to the toilet. If I really want lobster, a NY Steak, or pad thai, I think I’m sticking to an actual established restaurant from now on. But, I had me some good and productive day with my sister and her friend!
Oh, they didn’t have forks or napkins at the meal stations. Which begs the question: How do I eat my steak? (We ate with two knives today, very difficult I might add… LOL)

The parking is a lot closer and easier than the Port of LA lobster fest… The food and miscellaneous vendors area were separated by the stage… No carnival game booths (not that I care). I don’t like the setup there. About ¹⁄₃ of the foods you can find at Port of LA is not found here (no garlic shrimps… whaaa!!!). We had no trouble getting our lobsters though, unlike San Pedro, we waited for an hour and some… Alcohol line was kinda long, people were slow making the drinks. The seating area by the lobster tent was on sand… I got sand in my shoes… no bueno.
Overall I think the San Pedro one (port of LA) is cheaper and the atmosphere is better (although kinda ghetto). Oh, forgot to mention that I was here a few years ago and they ran out of lobsters when we got there! Next one to check out would be the Long Beach one, which is the most expensive of all…

Pretty sure I missed the greatness of this event. Maybe it’s just me.

Never been and never going. Think it is silly that they ship in lobsters from somewhere else when we have our very own spiney lobster! Eat LOCAL foods.

Lobster Fest Redondo Beach $ 12 admission: Waiting in line at the DMV for a small very unimpressive lobster dinner, waiting in line for every $ 5 Budweiser beer and some annoying guy who doesn’t stop talking on the PA. The lobster cracking station is to be avoided at all costs, if you value your health. The workers wearing wet dirty construction gloves crack your micro lobster… No thank you. Never again.

first off, you can’t beat free. so after getting two free admission tickets for a friend and myself, all we had to do was pony up the $ 20 for the 1.25 lb. lobster. thanks Unilocal!and also thanks to barbara who was working the will call booth. she straightened out some miscommunication about the Unilocal tickets.
once inside, the lobster line was short because it was still relatively early. we went from that line where we picked up our crustaceans on flimsy plastic plates to the «lobster cracking» line. i have to agree with another Unilocaler who discribed the manner in which these crustaceans were cracked. lobster juice was flying everywhere and into folks’ hair. did you not notice that the men were using the same towels to wipe the tables AND the cutting boards in which they cracked your lobsters? ick. by the time we sat down with our food, the lobster was cold. *shrug* ghetto chic.
the rest of the festival was alright. it’s fairly small and it would have been nice if there were more booths: food, arts and crafts, whatevers to retain you at the festival. the fashion show and the wakeboarding was alright too, but did not peak my interest. after the lobster and some fried clams (that’s right, the lobster was not enough for my belly), we got some kettle corn and left.
overall, it was a nice opportunity to check out this festival, but i wouldn’t come back again. i prefer eating my lobster on a real dinner plate, preferably with a violinist playing next to me. kidding. i definitely didn’t expect cold lobster and flying lobster juice. i was not wowed by this experience at all.

My first food festival experience!
I got super excited, thinking of those huge lobsters. Yes we were going crazy moving all weekend, but this was a must go, since we got a free admission ticket through Unilocal. (Thanks Sarah!) So Sunday afternoon we finally found time to catch the last of the festival. The good part of going at the last minute is that you get discounted shirts. 2 for $ 10. =D
1^st, you pick up those steamed lobsters. Then you take those lobsters to the other booth to have pros crack them for ya. The lady who cracked ours was awesome. I was in awe watching her doing it.
The plate also has a roll of bread, a container full of melted butter, lemon wedges, and cole slaw. You are also provided with a napkin and a fork. A wet towel would’ve been nice. I am bringing wet towels next time I check out another festival like this.
The hotdogs were awesome too. (Yeah, after eating 2 lbs of lobster we still had to share those hotdogs. That’s how hungry we were after all that moving fiasco.) We asked for lots of sauerkraut and she gave us tons.
The downside of catching the end of a festival like this is that they run out of stuff. When we finally got down to the corn booth, they had just run out of corn. We had to to watch other people enjoying their corn. (and corn on the cob is me and my guy’s fav stuff. *sniff*)
Pretty cheerful atomosphere and lots of families. The live band music was nice. I’ve never been to seaside lagoon before so it was great to see what is around in the hood. Overall, I think there could’ve been more vendors and more entertainment. It was still cool tho =)

I scored free admission to the Lobster Festival (THANKS Unilocal). I was looking forward to a delicious lobster dinner, but instead I left feeling disgusted to my gut.
I witnessed the most revolting thing I’ve ever laid eyes on in my life at this festival and yet I’ve taken forensics and crime analysis classes where I’ve seen pictures of morbid crime scenes, severed bodies and splattered brain matter.
What was the most revolting and disturbing thing that left me traumatized and disgusted? The booth where the lobsters were being slaughtered and massacred.
Picture it, people lined up with their sacrificial lobsters on a tray slowly approaching the booth of doom where the executioners were waiting to decapitate and mame the already boiled to death sea creatures. I can appreciate that these guys were just trying to help us crack our lobsters, but I don’t even know how to describe to you what they looked like, they were covered head to toe in lobster guts. There was a bald executioner and his bald head had lobster guts all over it, the other dude had lobster guts on his forehead, chin and cheek… Did I mention their shirts were soaking wet from the water the lobstered had been boiled in? Imagine handing over your clean plate to one of these guys & getting it back a disgusting plate filled with lobster juice, dismembered lobster and lobster guts. SOOOOO GROSS! My appetite vanished and I was sick to my stomach.
We found a place to sit and struggled with our lobsters. It wasn’t until I had made some headway that I realized my lobster was filled with more guts! (apparently not all of it had managed to splatter all over the executioner) When it comes to food, I will dig in to my peel and eat shrimp and de-​bone my fish at the Ports O’Call, but when it comes to lobster, apparently I’m prissy! I don’t want to see pooey lobster guts touching every part of the lobster which I’m supposed to eat… I prefer to pay an extra $ 10-​$ 20 and not have to deal with lobster guts!
Did I mention the «sides» consisted of ONE measly red potato, a serving of Hawaiian sweet bread and cole slaw? I hate cole slaw and even if I wanted that potato I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot pole after it came out of that slaughter booth & my Hawaiian sweet bread was drenched too!
The rest of the food vendors were mostly the same ones you see at Fiesta Hermosa Festivals. Walking home from this festival with smelly hands after what I had just witnessed and endured was one of the most depressing walks of my life.

I went there for the first time. I guess I was usually out-​of-​town or country in the past and did not have a chance to come.
My friends were kind enough to book and buy tix online for me — the $ 30 tix includes (1) admission cost, (2) T-​shirt, and (3) small (1.25lb) lobster meal.
The meal consists of lobster, coleslaw, a piece of potato, a piece of bread, lemon, and melted butter sauce. Yes, it was good! See the photos…
Before getting my plate, I was wondering how we were supposed to crack lobster shells to eat. My concerns disappeared when I saw these nice folks who do that for you! Man, that would be a tough job — bits of lobster shells/​meat flying all over you… on your face, head, everywhere… but they were just heads down kept working.
I thanked them well and received my plate. :)

This one is hard to rate, if I had not gone to the San Pedro lobster festival, the event would have been a solid ¾. However San Pedro was noticeably better. It was cheaper and bigger. I still had a good time though, I was with the dude in the lobster hat *hangs head in shame* and we didnt get a lobster meal. I had the hot dog and corn, both were very good. The venue is cool, I liked the band that was playing, they seemed to be a cover band, I left when they played a collective soul song which I like. The wakeboard thing they had on the lagoon was fun to watch.
If you have nothing to do with a few hours to waste it might be fun to swing by.

Went here earlier today too. and i did NOT buy a lobster. main reason I went was because I got the free admission from Unilocal (THANKS!) for me and my buddy. and I wanted to compare to last weeks Pedro event. btw, i was the one wearing the lobster hat. i had several ppl ask me where if they were selling them there and unfortunately no other hats, just necklaces and stuff toys were for sale.
compared to Pedro, the event was definitely more expensive. BUT, you had the option to get one 2lber, but again for $ 40! it certainly looked good, but im glad i didnt spend the money on it. i did ask others how their lobster was and they also said it was cold by the time they got it and sat down.
i actually just had the turkey sausage, and it really was spicy. $ 7. plus a lemonade which i paid $ 4 for a large but probably could have gotten cheaper at the roasted corn booth for $ 3. corn was $ 4 and again great.
the venue was not so big, not so many booths, or space for more. however it was cool to see the wakeboard demo. probably a good decision for the sponsors to have it there at the lagoon.
very well organized! nice atmosphere with the band in the background and decent amount of seating.

Yeah there was lobster, but I prefer the San Pedro one at the Port of LA. This was small, and not as many vendors as San Pedro. The music was okay, I just wanted to eat and go after taking a walk around.
I purchased the VIP ticket which was $ 25 for a small lobster meal online. They also had $ 2 coupons for just admission if you printed off the internet. I think I’ll pass on this one for the next year.

I come to this event in September every year. It is casual flip flops, shorts and t-​shirts are all you need. Last year they charge $ 10 admission and the lobster meal were
$ 18.00 for 1.25 lb
$ 40.00 for 2.25 lb
The lobsters are incredible and they do have special prepaid packages that end up costing around $ 50 and it gets you the lobster dinner, admission and a t-​shirt. There are always live bands performing and a dance area as well as a variety of food stands and craft type tables as well as beer and wine stands.
I will update this when I get more info.
This year they are adding something the Dolphins will Dash Sept. 24
SAVE THE DATE! DOLPHINS WILL DASH AT LOBSTER FESTIVAL
There will be something new at the annual Lobster Festival this year: Dolphins! Hundreds of small rubber dolphins will be dropped into the water off the Redondo Beach Pier at 4:30 PM on Sunday, September 24, as part of the first ever «Dolphin Dash» a fundraiser benefiting the Redondo Beach Library Foundation Campaign to build a new, state-​of-​the-​art North Branch Library. Prizes will be awarded to the dolphins that arrive ashore first, and the race could be close!
Make sure your dolphin is part of this exciting race! Dolphin sponsorships are available for $ 10.00 each and can be purchased at the Redondo Beach Main Library (303 N. Pacific Coast Highway, Redondo Beach), and at the Cotton Shop (1922 Artesia Blvd., Redondo Beach). They can also be purchased by contacting the Redondo Beach Library Foundation at (310) 937‑6676.
Business sponsorships for specially-​colored dolphins are also available, starting at $ 100 each. Additional sponsorship levels are available as follows: $ 500 (Huntington Level), $ 1000 (Rockefeller Level), $ 2500 (Carnegie Level) and $ 5000 (Vanderbilt Level).
To learn more, call the Library Foundation Office at (310) 937‑6676. Plan on joining us in supporting your Redondo Beach libraries!