Restaurant reviews: Six of the best waterfront spots for seafood in Sarasota, Bradenton

While I struggle with the summer heat like everyone else, this is still my favorite time of the year for visiting destinations like the Sarasota-Manatee gem, Anna Maria Island, with its abundance of charming restaurants. Now that the snowbirds and tourists have mostly left the region, it's an especially good time for visiting the island's popular waterfront restaurants.

In this collection of mini-reviews, I focus on the very best for enjoying seafood, as even the most impressive view can't salvage a meal consisting of poorly prepared frozen fish of suspect origin — unless, of course, the restaurant is visited by a pod of playful dolphins. A smiling dolphin can make even the most woeful meal a joyous occasion.

But there's no guarantee of dolphins, so here are my picks for the six best waterfront restaurants for fresh, locally sourced seafood on Anna Maria Island. Presented in alphabetical order, the reviews are based on my recent visits, mostly taking place in June.

Anna Maria Oyster Bar

200 Bridge St., Bradenton Beach; 941-778-2662; oysterbar.net

If you're craving fresh oysters with a fabulous view, there's no better place to be on Anna Maria Island than the restaurant most locals just call "AMOB." Located at the base of Bradenton Beach Pier, it offers indoor and covered outdoor seating, as well as a full-liquor bar, all with beautiful vistas of the Intracoastal Waterway.

The oysters are billed as arriving daily from the Gulf of Mexico, making them ideal for enjoying iced on the half-shell. However, I would also recommend trying the "build your own dozen" option, where you can customize a sampler platter with four of AMOB's styles ($29.99). For years, my favorite has been Grandma Georgie's Chipotle, which features a spicy sauce balanced by Parmesan cheese and garlic butter.

I still love Grandma Georgie's but during my visit last month, and thanks to the sampler option, I discovered a new favorite: "tequila lime." The combination of salt and citrus notes proved to be the perfect flavoring for the fresh oysters. I enjoyed it so much that I ordered another half-dozen ($18.99) and, yes, they were exceptional a second time, devoured all on their own with an ice-cold beer. AMOB also offers a selection of fresh catch specials, including their best-selling fish-n-chips featuring North Atlantic pollock deep-fried to a crispy golden brown ($17.99).

Additionally, it's worth noting that the locally owned restaurant has recently opened a location in the University Town Center district. It's the fifth location for AMOB, which already has establishments in west Bradenton, Ellenton and "Landside" near Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport. Plus, AMOB just announced it has begun construction at its North Port restaurant, which is expected to open in early November and will mark the business's first Sarasota County location.

Beach Bistro

6600 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach; 941-778-6444; beachbistro.com

First things first, Beach Bistro is still among the best restaurants in the region, offering world-class cuisine right on the sugary white sands of Anna Maria Island. However, if you haven't been since the pre-pandemic days, there has been at least one notable change. The sale in early 2022 to a group led by local developer Shawn Kaleta made the headlines, of course, but months before finalizing the deal, Bistro founder Sean Murphy had already switched the menu from à la carte to prix fixe, which is how it remains today.

The featured presentation costs $135 and includes four courses in addition to a "first taste," which is an impressive opening salvo. It consists of a "little cocktail" made with blueberry-infused Ketel One, St-Germain, and fresh lime juice, served in a shot glass. You will also be served a mini-serving of the Bistro's irresistible praline Alexandra, which features vanilla bean ice cream laced with pecan praline and Frangelico. This pre-meal sweet is followed by a savory serving of house-made focaccia topped with pesto, tapenade, and confit tomato, served with a "soup shooter" of blue cheese tomato bisque.

For the first course, you will have a choice of several salads, a smoked salmon presentation, shrimp & lobster cocktail, and the Bistro Paté of duckling liver and foie gras topped with port wine jelly. I indulged in the latter, which was wonderfully rich and decadent, before moving on to my two seafood courses. The most popular second course option is undoubtedly the Bistro classic Lobstercargots, which consist of Maine lobster bites, herbed spinach bites, and seasoned garlic butter. However, I would also highly recommend the pair of pan-seared scallops served with succotash, featuring a colorful medley of fresh and flavorful veggies.

The Bistro's renowned bouillabaisse maintains the spotlight among the third course selections, while other enticing options include the beef tenderloin, duckling breast, and domestic lamb. Additionally, two grouper entrees grace the menu: the celebrated Floribbean variation featuring a coconut and cashew crust, and the grouper grenobloise. Opting for the latter, I found the simple French-style preparation to be the ideal way to assess the fish's quality. The thick cut of grouper, skillfully seared in a cast iron pan, possessed all the characteristic traits of fresh grouper — its firm yet moist texture and delicate flavor perfectly complemented by the Key lime, dill, butter, and capers. To conclude my regal feast, I ordered the Key lime pie that comes with marshmallows toasted tableside, making each bite to a truly special experience, even for a longtime Floridian like me who has eaten countless Key lime pies over the years.

Seeking a more affordable experience at Beach Bistro? The restaurant recently unveiled its Summer Sunset Bar Menu. Available Sunday through Thursday after 7:30 p.m., it offers a drink of choice and an appetizer or dessert for $45 per person. For example, you could order the "New Fashion," the Bistro's slow-drip Maker's Mark bourbon-infused cocktail finished barside with a spectacular display of smoked cherry wood. Pair it with the Lobstercargots, the Bistro Paté, or perhaps the "Stairway To Heaven" prime tenderloin and foie gras slider that I must return to try. If you're craving something sweet, the bar menu also includes the Bistro's Bee's Knees cocktail made with Hendrick's Gin, fresh lemon, and lavender-infused local honey. It's an ideal match for the praline Alexandra that has lingered in my thoughts since I savored the sample last month!

Beach House

200 Gulf Drive N., Bradenton Beach; 941-779-2222; beachhousedining.com

After opening the nearby Sandbar in Anna Maria (continue reading) and then the waterfront Mar Vista on Longboat Key, Ed Chiles purchased the Harbor House restaurant in 1993 and opened the Beach House. I've been visiting the Beach House since relocating to the area about two decades ago and have always loved the setting right on the soft white sands of Bradenton Beach, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. A series of renovations completed in 2017 transformed the Beach House into a chic, tropical resort-style dining destination — replete with indoor and covered outdoor dining tables and bar areas — unlike anything else in Manatee County. However, the greatest change I've witnessed at the Beach House during the past 20 years has been the appointment of Thomas Villetto as the restaurant's new executive chef.

Villetto, whose resume includes Clásico Italian Chophouse and Cafe L’Europe in Sarasota, as well as The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Boston, unveiled his new Beach House menu in January. New dishes included burrata, crudo, capellini, pan-seared grouper, skirt steak, and duck, incorporating items from the Chiles Hospitality group's Anna Maria Bake House and Gamble Creek Farms as well as other local vendors, which are advertised at the entrance to the restaurant. I have visited Beach House three times since Villetto took over the kitchen, and each visit has been a delightful experience featuring the best cuisine the restaurant has served in two decades.

Perhaps most exciting is the quality seafood that Beach House has been procuring. The $33 grouper sandwich, served blackened with lemon aioli, lettuce, tomato, and onion on a freshly baked bun, is now easily among the best grouper sandwiches around. I was equally impressed during a recent dinner visit with the $36 mahi-mahi entrée featuring a beautiful piece of locally sourced fish pan-seared and accompanied by a brilliant sweet corn pudding with squash, zucchini, and tomato "hash." Oh, and for appetizers, you must consider the plump, pan-seared scallops served with a parsnip purée, confit radicchio, and a deftly balanced tarragon crème fra?che.

Rod & Reel Pier

875 N. Shore Drive, Anna Maria; 941-778-1885; rodreelpier.com

For an authentic, super casual Old Florida experience, Rod & Reel Pier easily ranks among the best restaurants in the state. Open since 1947, the two-story structure sits at the end of the pier out on the Gulf of Mexico. Over the years, my visits to Rod & Reel have included sightings of numerous dolphins (I saw a bunch again in late June), a shark, manatees, and a loggerhead turtle the size of a Tesla. You can dine at the table upstairs, but I've always preferred grabbing a stool downstairs at the bar and gazing out at all the folks fishing off the dock overlooking Tampa Bay and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. In fact, my post-meal tradition is always taking a seat out there myself, enjoying an ice cold draft beer (a mere $2.50 on a recent Saturday) and admiring the view, which more often than not includes a sea creature.

Rod & Reel Pier serves breakfast, lunch and dinner while remaining most famous for its fresh grouper sandwiches, including their grouper Reuben. In fact, the first grouper Reuben sandwich I ever tasted was at Rod & Reel about two decades ago and the memory still makes me smile. The one I ordered a few weeks ago also proved memorable: the fresh piece of fish topped by a hot pile of sauerkraut, melted Swiss and Thousand Island dressing on buttery pieces of toasted marble rye ($26.95 with fries). I also love the more basic, blackened grouper sandwich with lettuce, tomato and big slices of pickle that Rod & Reel serves (also $26.95 with fries).

Rod & Reel Pier offers more sophisticated seafood dishes, such as their popular Mexican grouper entree that comes blackened and served over rice with grilled onions, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, and salsa; as well as various fresh catch specials. However, for me, the best way to experience Rod & Reel is with a grouper sandwich, fries, and a cold beer — followed by quality time on the dock overlooking Tampa Bay, hopefully with some dolphins!

Sandbar Seafood & Spirits

100 Spring Ave., Anna Maria; 941-778-0444; sandbardining.com

Sandbar has been a special destination for more than a century, with Ed Chiles purchasing the place in 1979 and building its reputation as one of the most popular restaurants on Anna Maria Island and in Manatee County in general. The views are among the best in Florida. There's indoor seating with window vistas of the Gulf, as well as outdoor tables that place guests right on the soft white sands within earshot of the waves. However, Sandbar would not be on this list if Chiles' team did not also serve fresh and tasty seafood.

Every meal should begin with a glass of delicious LOLA wine — from Napa Valley by way of the local Cripe family —and Sandbar's smartly seasoned smoked fish dip ($16). The dip is made with local catch, possibly including some salmon, and is served with the classic accompaniments of red onions and capers. Additionally, it is complemented by a heaping pile of highly addictive hemp crackers that are thin, crispy, and singularly tasty. These delightful crackers are freshly made at Chiles' Anna Maria Bake House. Another appetizer that I recommend is the Crispy Brussels Sprouts, which are served with a sweet ginger soy sauce. Lastly, consider indulging in a serving of burrata, which I recently enjoyed at their sister restaurant, Beach House.

About a year ago at Sandbar, I had what I described in my notes as "blackened grouper sandwich perfection." When I visited Sandbar again in mid-June, they were out of grouper, which is fine. In fact, it's something that only happens at restaurants that take pride in serving fresh fish. Instead, I had a blackened mahi-mahi sandwich, which was elevated by their house-made bun ($25 with fries), and the fish tacos were even more impressive. A fresh piece of blackened cobia, which is slightly sweeter and buttery compared to grouper, proved to be the ideal fit for the white tortilla with chow chow slaw, pico de gallo, lima crema, and cilantro ($21 with Bahamian rice).

The Waterfront Restaurant

111 S. Bay Blvd., Anna Maria; 941-778-1515; thewaterfrontrestaurant.net

Located just across narrow Bay Boulevard from the Gulf of Mexico and Anna Maria City Pier, The Waterfront is another restaurant with a rich history. The cottage was built in 1922 as one of the island's original homes, and the Suzor family has operated The Waterfront Restaurant since purchasing the place in 2002. They overcame a major fire, and it underwent a near-complete rebuild a couple of years later while still retaining its Old Florida charm. Today, guests can enjoy seating options such as the front covered patio with waterfront views or the back patio that offers a tropical garden feel. Inside, you can sit at a table or perhaps grab a coveted stool at the bar, where the mixologists craft some of the best cocktails in town.

The Waterfront serves an array of seafood dishes, occasionally incorporating global flavors. The highlight of my recent dinner visit was the fresh catch entree — a perfectly moist and flaky piece of mahi-mahi, judiciously complemented by a vibrant tomato fennel sauce ($33). Additionally, the scallops were a true delight, served alongside thick and savory slabs of gochujang-marinated pork belly and house-made kimchi with jasmine fried rice ($36).

Keep in mind that The Waterfront Restaurant accepts reservations on holidays only. However, they do offer a waitlist at the door if you prefer to arrive early and take a walk along the beach, enjoy a cocktail, or visit Anna Maria City Pier. Speaking of the pier, it is also home to Mote's new Marine Education and Outreach Center, which offers free admission. Moreover, the pier hosts live music and boasts a concession stand serving beer, wine, and one of the area's best burgers and hand-cut fries.

Wade Tatangelo is Ticket Editor for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, and Florida Regional Dining and Entertainment Editor for the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. He can be reached by email at [email protected]. Support local journalism by subscribing.??????

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Best waterfront restaurants for seafood Sarasota, Bradenton