Least Favorite Restaurants

**Inlet Visitor** · 10-07-2007, 03:57 PM

We are down here for two weeks, so we read much of the "favorite restaurants" thread and compiled a list of places to try. One week into our vacation we have tried several which were listed - and some which weren't. It occurred to us that it might be just as helpful to have a thread addressing restaurants people might want to avoid and why. So, here goes:

The Old Florida Fish House was mentioned by some folks on the "favorite" thread and it was closest to our house, so we went Friday night, October 5, 2007. It was very crowded. After waiting a reasonable time for a table - probably 20 minutes - we were seated in the back next to the kitchen doors. While we were being shown the table a waiter came crashing through the doors and hit my husband causing dishes to crash. (They have two sets of double swinging doors going into the kitchen. There is a perpetual flow of waiters going in and out and the doors "wop-wop" with each one of them. To make matters worse, on their way out of the kitchen, laden with their trays, the waiters KICK the heavy doors to open them adding a loud "crack" to the "wop-wop.") We were four adults and a 2 year old. At first I thought they have sat us here because we have a baby and they think he will be noisy, but then I remembered that there were numerous children in the place and I also realized it was already so loud that there was no way a child, no matter how noisy, could cause a disruption.

We sat there for 10 minutes before a waiter ever showed up. By that time our nerves were ragged from the "wop-wop-crack-wop-wop" so when the waiter did come, we told him we wanted to move. He got the manager (I presume that is who this man was) to come over and this man told us that this was the most quiet table they had and they had seated us there because it was so loud in the rest of the restaurant, but, OK, he was going to move us next to the water wall. Great. It certainly looked better than the view of the black, industrial swinging kitchen doors.

We were immediately served water and absolutely delicious bread. We ordered our meals. The choice of salad was either a lettuce wedge or mixed greens. I chose mixed greens with blue cheese dressing. Well, mixed greens are just torn pieces of green leaf lettuce. There was one slice of a purple onion and I think I saw a pale tomato in there. It was really hard to tell because the plate was absolutely drowned in dressing. I had just managed to scrape a great deal of it off to render the salad edible when all of a sudden from the direction of the bar came a great, loud "thrummm" of an electric guitar and the ear splitting amplification of that fine dinner accompaniment music, "Brick House." This was quickly followed by rounds of the oft-repeated high pitched squeals which indicate the presence of drunken sorority girls. It was 8:00 p.m.

My dinner company and I had to sit in "silence" because it was so loud that there was no use in attempting to speak to one another. This began to wear away at what appetite I had remaining. One of the members of our party asked to speak to the manager again. He was stunned that we were not ecstatic with the atmosphere. (Another couple sitting next to us had already asked to move so I am pretty sure the manager's shock was feigned.) He took that opportunity for a well-timed, "I told you so." "I told you that table by the swinging kitchen doors was the best in the house." "It's a wedding party; there's nothing I can do about it." "It's this loud because we do a good job here."

We asked for our food to be packed to go rather than leaving without eating only because by this time we were starving and didn't have anything to eat back at the house. I am bitter about paying for that meal but we just needed OUT quickly. Sitting around the peaceful kitchen table back at the house and eating from Styrofoam containers was one hundred thousand times better than being in that restaurant.

The food itself: It was good, but heavy-handed. I enjoyed the flavor of my fish (pompano), but the sauce was very heavy and I scraped what I could off of it. My husband had the scamp and the sauce and breading on it was very heavy also and it really masked the flavor of the fish. I prefer seafood treated delicately so as to enhance the flavor rather than totally overwhelm it. There were no vegetables or starches. The fish, the lettuce and the very good bread were all you got for something like $28-$30 per entree.

For the reasons stated above I place The Old Florida Fish House at the top of my "Least Favorite Restaurant" list.

**Minnie** · 10-07-2007, 05:09 PM

Reviews on Restaurants are to me very much like giving a review of a person.

Everyone has their off days, and therefore until a restuarant repeatedly gives me bad service consistently, I am always willing to give it another chance.

I would hate for anyone to judge me on a one time meeting. I might be having an off day.

**SWGB** · 10-07-2007, 06:02 PM

OFFH has definitely been consistent on being off. However, we normally have a good time at the sushi bar. The rest of the menu can easily be described as "tourist food" and is often recommended to tourists as a great place to go. Keeps them out of our favorite haunts. Although we are courteous enough to tell them first the service will be a 50/50 shot.

**seacrestkristi** · 10-07-2007, 06:33 PM

Inlet Visitor

Hubba and I were at that same table. We didn't move, just didn't go back.

It's all dark and fancy then you get the kitchen door swingin'.

**Teresa** · 10-07-2007, 09:13 PM

thanks for your review Inlet V. we've had very mixed reviews of OFFH on this board. I've never been. would like to try the sushi bar, but the rest of it doesn't interest me in the least...

**mrs.rocket** · 10-07-2007, 09:29 PM

Sushi bar and immediate surrounding seating area is the only way to go. One of the sushi chefs is formerly from 331 and in my opinion, one of the best around. You can also order from the regular menu as well, although my husband ordered one of the most expensive entrees the evening we went and was not impressed.

**30A Skunkape** · 10-07-2007, 10:02 PM

We just came back from the sushi bar. The place was slammed busy (

owner's weekend) and one of the sushi guys was actually doing double duty as a waiter at a few of the tables around the bar. The sushi was great, really. We did laugh at the chaos in the dining room;there was a humongous crash as an unseen waiter deposited a tray of food to the ground in one of the back dining areas

. I can't stress it enough...never, ever sit anywhere but the sushi bar!

**Jdarg** · 10-07-2007, 11:27 PM

We have been to the OFFH several times. Terrible every time- bad attitude bartenders, terrible front staff, terrible front staff. Food was marginal. I have refrained from saying anything about this place, but there is nothing about it that would make me recommend it or make me go back. If anybody is ever dazzled, please let me know.

**Paula** · 10-08-2007, 05:48 AM

We've been there a couple of times and both times it was OK - Sounds like the sushi bar and tables with view of lake, ideally during sunset, are the best options. Our meals were good overall, we went during quiet times (we're pretty good at figuring out when to avoid crowds), but the salads were mediocre at best both times. To be honest, I can't remember the rest of the food at the meal (not one savory memory about the meal comes to mind), though the company I was with was great. The location and sushi bar are their strengths and it sounds like OFFH could be a real success if they got the problems/inconsistencies under control.

Other than sushi, does OFFH have some signature dishes, something people go to OFFH to get? Seems like the most successful restaurants have some signature dishes that people go back for again and again - and their quality/service is consistent.

**30A Skunkape** · 10-08-2007, 06:09 AM

Paula-I don't know about signature dishes, but at the sushi bar last night a gorgeous fried soft shell crab was brought from the kitchen and put on the counter to be shuttled to a table. It sat there...and sat...and sat. After 5 minutes I was really tempted to ask somebody where that crab was going and I would bring it myself

After about 10 minutes a server finally got the thing and I watched it go to a table literally over my right shoulder. The diner ate the crab, but he had no clue how much better it could have been

Jenny, if you don't do sushi you might as well avoid it

**scooterbug44** · 10-08-2007, 11:57 AM

OFFH doesn't so much have signature dishes, just signature bad service! I don't know if it's a management/kitchen issue or what, as the servers seem busy, but it is absolutely comical sometimes. Noise can be a definite issue between the loud kitchen doors, the rumbling carts they move stuff on, and dropped tray stands etc.

An out of town friend wanted to eat there this weekend, so we humored him and decided to see if it had improved in the many months since we had last eaten there. Food was okay (many of their sauces seem to come from a packet mix and food is heavy on oil/grease), prices have increased a bit and seemed a little nickel & dime. I personally love that you pay $12+ for a cheeseburger, then get charged extra for lettuce and tomato.

We had a nice waiter who was trying to provide great service and seemed to be hampered by the bar & kitchen. Drink orders took forever and we weren't ordering anything special - just basic beers and wine. I ordered sushi and got it before the other people at my table got their salads. When we noticed that other tables had bread baskets, we asked for some - they had to cook more bread, so server had waited because he wanted to bring us the "full" basket of bread & muffins ........... by the time they had fresh bread, we were almost done w/ our meals and they were out of muffins. I can't comment on the desserts because they aren't listed on the menu and we weren't told about them.

The sushi is good and is pretty much the only way to go if you want consistency and decent food (just be prepared to wait). I think the local band they have is a lot of fun and they have some great folks working there who do a good job of remembering locals & their preferences, but basically there are just so many other places on 30-A to eat that have consistently better food & service.

**Minnie** · 10-08-2007, 12:17 PM

As I stated I am willing to give any restaurant a second chance, in case they are having a bad night.

But based on the other reviews of this particular place; what is it that is making everyone go back when you don't seem pleased with it.

Is it for the sushi, only?

**NotDeadYet** · 10-08-2007, 02:54 PM

**SWGB** · 10-08-2007, 03:17 PM

The sushi is wonderful, the sushi chefs were trained by Yoshi (I hope I spelled that right cause I don't want the sushi gods to punish me) of Harbor Docks fame. So essentially if you don't mind the noise and bad service your getting Harbor Docks sushi in Seagrove. Everything else can probably be prepared with a generic order from Sysco or other food service company.