Waterfront Pine Island restaurant reopens to this food critic's delight — JLB
Welcome to The Waterfront 2.0, as owner Declan Kiely affectionately calls it.
A long 17 months after taking a beating from Hurricane Ian, the iconic waterfront restaurant in St. James City reopened March 9.
“It’s been bonkers,” said Kiely, who co-owns this gem with his wife, Nicki Fleming. “The word is out and people are coming back. I’m feeling fantastic again.”
That certainly wasn’t the case back in September 2022.
Ian pounded the historic restaurant — on Monroe Canal, an oyster’s throw from San Carlos Bay — from all angles.
“When the storm came, it ripped everything out,” Kiely said. “There was water coming in from above and below.”
Boats were left stranded on the dock.
“At first we were relieved when we heard it was still standing since it’s the oldest building on the island,” Fleming said. “Then shock set in when we saw it. The structure remained but there had been feet of water in it. It was really hard. We couldn’t save anything.”
“It’s totally redone now,” Kiely added. “We had to because the storm ravaged it. Tore the guts out of it.”
I tentatively swung The Waterfront’s cleated, portholed and familiar front door open, wondering if the restaurant’s charm had washed away too.
When I lived on Pine Island two decades ago, the historic restaurant was a favorite of mine. The chaotically cluttered bar area — originally the second school in St. James City when it was built in 1912 — was a go-to for cold beer, fresh seafood and leisurely island escapes. The heavy, sand-dollar accented bartop, ridiculously small bathrooms and randomly strung lights solidified the vibe.
“We tried up to the last minute to save that bar,” Fleming said.
“This place had great character which is why we fell in love with it and knew we had to buy it,” said Kiely, who purchased it in October 2019.
The couple was afraid of what customers would think about the changes.
“But we were excited with the chance to make it ours,” said Fleming who redesigned it all, from the color scheme to the tables and chairs.
The carpet, dark ceilings and hectic walls are gone, replaced with wood flooring, shiny white ceilings and turquoise walls with bright yellow accents. It’s light, bright and airy.
The new bar sports a cool blue epoxy top with a live edge slab pattern atop a corrugated metal base. It’s clean, comfortable and roomy.
And speaking about roomy — the restrooms are huge compared to what they were.
“The bathroom is the hot topic of conversation,” Kiely said, smiling. “It was the talking point for days.”
When it comes to seating, options abound. Low-top tables of four and two seats fill the dining room, while a few high-tops and one low-top are available in the bar area. Spots on the spacious waterfront deck out back are coveted these cooler(ish) winter months.
“Customers have been commenting on how fantastic it looks,” Kiely said. “It’s the same, yet different.”
And while the interior has been completely overhauled except for the front and back doors, the staff is mostly the same.
“All of the front house came back,” Kiely said. “They were doing different things, waiting for The Waterfront to reopen.”
The menu is 99.9 percent the same too.
“One thing we said was we wouldn’t change the food,” Kiely said.
And that’s an excellent call.
The house-made, locally sourced, seafood-heavy menu begins with a selection of apps, including our favorite smoked fish dip — creamy rich goodness on homemade tortilla chips.
You can’t go wrong with the soup of the day either. While we were hoping for the ever-popular New England clam chowder, we happily slurped up and scarfed down every drop of the hearty shrimp and corn chowder on our latest visit.
The grouper Reuben (on marble rye with sauerkraut and a delightful homemade Thousand Island dressing) is a star among the burgers, wraps, tacos and sandwiches.
We first stumbled across it at the restaurant’s food truck, which was parked out front, serving a limited but magical menu while the restaurant was closed.
“It was born at the food truck and is now on the menu,” Kiely said. “We call the corned beef Reuben our other Reuben.”
It’s an early best-seller along with the food-truck-perfected tacos and the pot pie.
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The latter was chock full of tender shrimp and sweet scallops sauteed with cream, veggies and sherry. It’s topped with a fabulously flakey puff pastry Kiely made fresh that morning.
Grouper in all its wonderful forms (in tacos, sandwiches and baskets, added to salads or as an entrée) is "on just about every order placed," according to Kiely.
“We sell an amazing amount of it,” he said. “About 500 pounds a week."
Another surprising favorite is the Sunday special sweet tea fried chicken.
“It was the most asked-for item at the food truck where we couldn’t do it,” Fleming said. “On Facebook too. It's legendary. Everyone wanted to know if it would be back and it is.”
While other specials — shrimp on Tuesday, wings Wednesday, burger Thursday and all-you-can-eat fish fry Friday ― are back, oyster Saturday isn’t just yet.
“We will try to do it again,” Fleming said, “but it’s on hold for now.”
While it’s easy to forget The Waterfront just reopened with all the goodness coming out of the small, open kitchen, please keep it in mind. Go easy on them if, for example, they’re out of their beloved homemade coleslaw as they were on our last visit. It just gives us another reason to go again soon.
“Comments have been overwhelmingly positive,” Kiely said. “We’re seeing old faces and new faces. It brings it all back as to why we bought it in the first place. We are humbled to be so busy. Long may it last.”
Welcome back Waterfront 2.0.
The Waterfront Restaurant & Marina
2131 Oleander St., St. James City
Price: $$-$$$
Call: (239) 966-5026
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily
Web: Waterfrontrestaurantmarina.com of follow on Facebook
Sample menu
Calamari, $13.99
Buffalo chicken salad, $14.99
Waterfront tacos, $13.99-$19.99
Fish & chips, $16.99
Mediterranean chicken, $17.95
Shrimp & scallop pot pie, $23.99
*Menu, hours and prices subject to change
What the symbols mean
$: Average entree is less than $15
$$: $15-$25
$$$: $25-$35
$$$$: $35-$45
$$$$$: $45 and up
Jean Le Boeuf is the brand under which our restaurant critics have written for more than 40 years. This article came from staff writer Robyn George. Connect: [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: The Waterfront Restaurant reopens on Pine Island much to our delight
