Had a really great experience tonight at Sunfish Grill for a Special Birthday celebration. . First of all, Joe, our server, was over the top fantastic and went above and beyond .He anticipated our every need and was very helpful and friendly.(even with a groupon).Thanks Joe! Really appreciate the fabulous service. In fact, everyone was really nice. Their food was excellent. Highlights were the tuna sliders, smoked fish appetizer, Pan seared Diver Scallops with Bacon & Herb Spaetzle, Brussels Sprouts with Cider Sauce and the delicious "NOT THE USUAL" KEY LIME PIE with Burnt Meringue. The Coconut Sorbet no longer comes with the key lime pie but it's homemade and worth ordering. All the desserts are made in House.The atmosphere is nice and a giant improvement from their previous location. A beautiful meal! A real find!
(5)
Tiffany G.
Though I have had great experiences here, I was very disappointed on my last visit. We were celebrating a special occasion and came here. We had brought out of town guests and had a large party. We were here for at least 2 and a half- 3 hours.. Everything took a long time to come out. The appetizers of calamari, soups, and the salads were great. However my entree was disappointing. I had the grouper special and found the grouper to be very tough, and the Brussels sprouts it came with lacking flavor. My brother in law's grouper came out raw. Literally raw in the middle, and had to be sent back, and did not come back till far after everyone was done eating. Now, the server teased us by bringing up a special dessert on the house, since we were a very large party and celebrating, however since my husband and I were sick and leaving a little before everyone (and it was our event we were celebrating) he told the server him and I wouldn't be having any. When the server returned, he passed out menus since people did want dessert, and no longer offered the on the house dessert. I honestly thought it was tacky that they still did not bring out the on the house dessert for everyone. Especially knowing it was celebratory, regardless of celebrating who, since we weren't even paying ourselves, it was my mother in law's treat, and since the dinner had been messed up with my brother in law not even eating. I have had 5 star experiences at this restaurant, and perhaps I will give them another chance in the future and change my review, but no more celebrating anything here and I am in no rush to return. I am removing my 5 star review, but will leave 3 up since they have done well in the past and I hope my next visit is of that caliber.
(3)
Pam J.
Sunfish Grill has always been among our favorite seafood restaurants in Ft. Lauderdale, but after last night, we won't be going back. The prices, which were already high, have increased, the portions have decreased, and the food was mediocre at best. I had a half order of pasta which was just okay and came with nothing. My husband had the fish and chips, no chips, three small pieces of grouper that were dry and not very tasty. The side order of spinach looked like it was dumped from a can, was warm on the edges and stone cold in the middle. We were the only two people in the restaurant at 7 pm, now we know why.
(2)
Suzanne W.
By far the single WORST experience we have ever had at a restaurant in Fort Lauderdale. After explaining to them (and showing them proof of failed attempts on my phone) that I had attempted to reach them 6 different times that day for a reservation to which I was met by a "busy signal" we (3 of us) intentionally showed up at 5:30 to be courteous. We were rudely told that we would "not be seated without a reservation any time of day during season" to which we replied "Ok, that is fine, we will just have dinner at the bar" to which the manager quickly intercepted our plan by claiming that "we don't serve dinner at the bar" Well as soon as he turned his back I asked the bartender if these seats were "first come first serve"? and "do they serve dinner at the bar"? she replied "yes" to both inquiries so I ordered a glass of wine. As soon as the manager came back to tell me the owner, Erika, someone I've known and have been dining with for 13 years, when she was married to Tony and they started their business in Pompano Beach, allegedly did not "know or recognize" me after supposedly "sticking her head out of the kitchen door to get a glimpse" I simply stated-albeit in disbelief that I was being treated so unkindly- that the bartender said the seats at the bar were in fact first come first serve and that yes, they do serve dinner. His response..? "she is misinformed" ???????? Seriously? Here's a recap: "We do not serve dinner at the bar during season" - Manager "My mother just drove her from Delray Beach and I would appreciate if you could simply accommodate us at the bar (WHICH WAS COMPLETELY EMPTY AT 5:45 NOW)" - Me Manager: "No, I'm very sorry. We will not be serving you dinner at the bar tonight (he also turned to the bartender and whispered "only ONE glass of wine" after ordering a glass while awaiting my girlfriend. AGAIN..ARE YOU SERIOUS? I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO THIS RESTAURANT AGAIN AFTER BEING TREATED SO RUDELY, UNKIND AND UNFAIRLY by the manager as well as Erika, the owner. To hold yourselves in such a high regard as to turn away long time local customers simply trying to have an early dinner at the bar is beyond belief. The SNOB factor is OFF THE CHARTS. This review is being circulated via Facebook, Yelp, City Search, Twitter and any other publication who will post it.
(1)
Kristin W.
Great place! Very cozy but great! I got the fish special and it was amazing. It came with some risotto which was one of the best I had. I also liked that they let you choose your vegetable. Can't wait to go back!
(5)
Kathleen Hunter H.
I used to go to this restaurant when it was on Atlantic. The new location has the same chef, is a bit bigger and is very elegantly decorated. The "lite bites" from 5 to 7 are really good value. The main menu is not extensive but this means that all entrees are prepared from scratch when ordered and all are perfectly prepared and presented. The wait staff are well trained. We sent back a glass of wine from the early evening when there are $5.00 glasses - this was a bit "old". It was exchanged very pleasantly. Desserts are all made on site. The blueberry cobbler was served warm topped with white chocolate ice cream. Two at our table shared it. I had coconut sorbet - unusual and delicious. This restaurant is in a plaza on Oakland - not a prepossessing location but that doesn't matter when the restaurant itself is so pleasant and the food is so exquisite and so nicely served.
(5)
Mark H.
Food outstanding - desert white chocolate ice cream unbeleiveable - service terriffic
(5)
Jennifer B.
What a surprise for South Florida. Intimate setting with incredible attention to detail...NOT a disgruntled twenty-something making ends meet until a better job comes along, but a professional, dedicated staff that genuinely wants you to enjoy your meal. Chip was our server and he was great. He made good suggestions and was not intrusive. What was unique about this restaurant was that the entire staff seemed to help us at one point or another during our meal - to freshen water glasses, take away plates, bring out our meal, replace silverware, etc. Once you're inside you'd never know that you are in a strip shopping center on Oakland Park Blvd. The lighting is dim, tables are covered with tablecloths, and it's just very cozy. Everything was delicious but my favorite dish of the evening was tuna tartare. You won't e disappointed. I look forward to going back to Sunfish Grill!
(5)
P G.
Very warm, inviting and nicely decorated indoors and they have outdoor seating in the side alleyway. Food was great esp the pizza bread served at the beginning, the appetizer clams, seared tuna dish and ice cream. Service was slow, our servers switched a few times without warning and we had to ask multiple times for things like our drinks.
(3)
Ryan S.
Great food. Awesome staff. Beautiful presentations. This is a great date spot for a nice evening out. You can expect inventive food with extremely well-crafted flavors. Will be back for sure. Their house salad is amazing.
(4)
Mike C.
My wife and I went here for our valentines day dinner, waiter was excellent but my problem came with the bill. They charged my wife's card 3 times, I understand if there is a mistake when they ran the card, but please contact us before charging again. They charged the card, made a mistake and refunded it, then charged it for 10 dollars more, cancelled that and then ran it finally for the correct amount. Since it takes 3 days or so to post refund to bank account, it sent my wife's card into overdraft and was charged an additional 30 dollars from bank. We called the owner, She suggested it may have been fraud! Of course it wasn't! The amounts were exactly 10 dollars more each time. Then she told us that that was a very busy night and the tickets didn't get settled until a day or two later. I explained that we were charged 3 times by her and that drained all the money plus some out of my wife's checking account. She began to get rude and didn't offer any apologies or solution. Just an array of excuses. I don't do business like this and I wouldn't expect it from a high end restaurant. I will not be going back to this place. It was nice but overpriced for the food we got and their management is pathetic!
(1)
S H.
Don't waste your time. Food was average and service was bad. Our waitress was fine, but the host was rude. Made us feel like we were disturbing him that we were there. I won't be back.
(2)
Mindy S.
Great place great food ! Love their lobster mac & cheese although I have never had a dish I didn't like . Save room for dessert as they are the best !! The make theyr own ice cream and it is delicious !!
(5)
B W.
An absolutely perfect meal! Beautiful, classy decor. Terrific service. And everything we ordered - salad, wine, entrees, dessert - was all fabulous. Can't wait to go again.
(5)
Jennie J.
The food here is spectacular. We especially love the spaetzle and the key lime pie. I gothere to get that pie for my mom anytime we do something special. So delicious.
(5)
Jared M.
We ate here on a Saturday. Pretty nice atmosphere even though it was in a strip mall. The food was very good; it seemed like a seafood restaurant with Italian mixed in. The hot bread was also very good. The only thing is the menu does not give you a lot of choices. We happened to call up and they had fish for everyone that was not on the menu or even as a special. They are very accommodating. We would definitely go back.
(4)
michael w.
The place is way to too expensive. Went there with in-laws from the midwest and they were shocked at the bill. The food was OK!
(2)
Carrie M.
Hubby and I had a groupon for this restaurant and went on 12/6/12. The maitre'd was understanding when we showed up a good five minutes late (traffic is awful everywhere in Lauderdale) and seated us immediately. We were then given a foccacia bread with an eggplant spread, which was DELICIOUS. Once the bread was gone, I was eating the spread plain when no one was looking! The groupon was for a four course dinner, which you customized from a menu made just for the groupon deal. Both of us selected the shrimp bisque as our first course, which was great. I'm not a shrimp person, so I didn't care about that, but the broth was amazing! Next we had salads. Hubby selected the Caesar and I got the Romaine for the sake of diversity. I'm not a salad person either, so I mainly just picked the pine nuts out and ate those. :) Finally we got to the main course. I selected the Scottish salmon and hubby got the mahi mahi with risotto. At this point I was stuffed to the gills (no pun intended) so I could barely eat any of it - but it was delicious! The salmon rested atop an island of sticky coconut rice and calamari, surrounded by a moat of broth. My ONE gripe about the whole experience is that the salmon was quite raw. I was told it would be medium-well or medium-rare, but this seemed pretty far to the rare side to me. Nevertheless, it was delicious, especially the moat of broth. Hubby was very pleased as well. What really blew our minds, though, was dessert. Hubby got the eggnog creme brulee, which came with a large sugar cookie, and it seemed to border on being a religious experience for him! I got the "Symphony of Chocolate". I didn't expect much - the description made me think it would be some cake and mousse with some chocolate shavings as garnish. NO. What I got was cake and mousse surrounded on all sides by HUGE spikes of milk and white chocolate mixed together to look like giraffe print, enough to equal 1-2 chocolate bars! I still have these leftover. Hubby also took advantage of the offer of cappucino, which came with an adorable wooden stirrer coated in sugar crystals. Great presentation. Our waitress was a delight throughout. One of the most friendly members of waitstaff I've ever encountered. She explained everything about the food, offered us ground pepper on everything, told us how things were made, and seemed to genuinely love doing her job, which she did brilliantly.
(5)
Ashi M.
The service was amazing, the wait staff anticipated our thoughts before we even had a chance to fully formulate them in our head. The food was delicious and presentation was great as you can see from the photo. On a side note this is nice restaurant that treats their staff good, I'm not familiar with too many restaurants that retain staff and give them benefits that's definitely a nice perk.
(5)
Jennifer F.
yeah review #100! Sunfiish grill is a great place to take those you want to impress but not break the bank. Fresh seafood, delicious pasta nice wine list. We had the pasta special shirmp and lamb sausage as well as Pan Roasted Snapper Livornaise with Penne : Olives/Capers/Mushrooms/ Marinara/Shaved Garlic /White Wine which was supposed to come with foccacia bread and eggplant spread and a bottle of wine. both delicious, although im pretty sure that the dip comes with all meals so....... Other couple had the Key West Shrimp Charlotte : Avocado Jam / Cucumbers / Sweet Chili Sauce WOW! and Asian Pear Salad : Arugula & Endive/Apples/Grapes/Spicy Pecans/Truffle oil Vinaigrette no room for desert, we will return soon
(5)
Lindsay G.
Honestly haven't experienced better service in most of south florida. It was about 15 minutes away from closing time when my hubby and I were desperate to eat something (think I am 8 months pregnant desperate to eat) when we were willing to walk in and beg them to let us sit in the bar and eat whatever they had. These guys didn't blink an eye told us not to worry led us to the table and immediately exchanged our white linen napkins for black. Classy move, Sunfish, classy move. They brought water and my hubby a coffee immediately and explained the specials. Within less than 5 minutes warm complimentary pizza bread with some sort of herb butter dip was on the table and was delicious. Water glasses were kept refilled throughout out the night. Did I mention they even brewed a fresh pot of coffee for my husband? My husband who is not a great pasta lover decided to order the past shrimp basil pesto special and ate almost the whole thing. It was creamy with great grated fresh cheese and basil and warm-this wasn't sitting under a heating lamp. My grilled paprika shrimp with polenta were perfectly spiced and proportioned. Another party of four walked in after us and they sat them with no problem as well. They basically stayed open until 11:30 to accommodate us all which is what I like to call great service and a restaurant that will be getting my business over and over again. At the end of dinner they bring everyone a white woman and/or male on a date a white rose. Again, a classy move. Not sure if this is just Friday nights are always but I loved looking at my white rose in full bloom this morning.
(5)
Kathi C.
I have only been once, but it made a great impression on me. The shopping center is boring, and parking is limited, but the food is delicious, and I can't wait to go back and try something else. The arugula with beets and goat cheese salad was just right- not too acidic, not too much of one ingredient to overpower another. The scallops were seared perfectly, and the sweet pea spaetzle was new to me but fun to bite into. There was a prix fixe menu that night, and I tried the black and white cakes for dessert. So good! This places reminds me of a neighborhood restaurant where the locals go for a pleasant Saturday night out with dependably good food and service.
(4)
Darren P.
I was at Sunfish Grill on Tuesday for the 4th time. This is always a favorite for me when celebrating a special occasion. As usuall, the staff was extremely friendly. It's been the same staff since I started going 3 years ago, saying a lot about how their management must treat them. We were celebrating a birthday and had a great time. The food is fantastic! Parking not so great, but worth it.
(5)
Mimi R.
For the price of the meals here i would expect better quality food. We ordered the calamari appetizer and received some kind of calamari soup without anything else.Just a bowl of red liquid and calamari. It was actually closer to a sauce than a soup. The calamari was cooked as if the chef had a grudge against all things tentacled. For the main course we had the seared tuna and salmon .The seared tuna was (and Im guessing) their take on tuna tataki, served on white rice. it was nothing like the picture on their website.The salmon plate was served on lovely mashed potatoes but the salmon itself was nothing special. I have no idea how a place with great reviews and named after a fish could be so bad at making seafood. The only thing that was worth the prices we paid was the chocolate dessert & it was amazing, but I didn't go there for cake. I went there for seafood. Avoid this nautical nightmare.
(2)
Bruce H.
Took my sister here for her birthday. Being quite budget conscious, we split an excellent arugala goat cheese salad, and then each ordered a salmon dish on a bed of calamari, shitaki mushrooms, and savory rice in an Asian spiced sauce. This dish was nothing short of heavenly! We ate it slowly, savoring every bite. We're both watching our waist lines, so we waived off the delicious selection of deserts. Service was friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. Without a doubt, we'll be back to Sunfish Grill!
(5)
Myra S.
One of my favorite restaurants in South Florida-we have become very happy and satisfied regular patrons! Food is inventive and delicious and the staff really does remember your name......the rose at the end of the meal is special and just a plain nice touch. Would recommend this restaurant highly to all :-)
(5)
Fred Z.
Great menu and service. Nice wine list. Fish dishes were all fresh and rissotto cooked to perfection. Tasty home made breads and delicious desserts...a very nice restaurant close to the beach......
(5)
Amy C.
Wow, incredible!! Such great seafood. We did the Dine Out Lauderdale menu, which is 4 courses prix fixe for $35. I started with Crab and corn cakes - best I've ever eaten. My husband had Bahamian seafood stew. Salads were great. My entree was salmon over sticky rice in a coconut broth - wow! My husband had mahi with the an amazing butternut squash risotto. We had to take the desserts home. I look forward to enjoying them tomorrow. One bit of advice - make a reservation. We did not and were lucky to get a table.
(5)
Katie R.
My husband and I had been meaning to try this little restaurant for quite some time. We decided to try the tasting menu, which was a very good deal. It included a salad, entree and bottle of wine for two, and was maybe $35 per person. We both chose the pasta special, which was linguini with lamb sausage and shrimp, in a light white wine sauce. It was okay...I wasn't so much of a fan of the lamb sausage, so maybe a bad pick on my part, but the rest was pretty good. We finished with their key lime pie, which was excellent. Overall it was a good experience, but nothing that particularly stood out for us.
(3)
Native H.
I was not a huge fan of Sunfish Grill until recently... I am obsessed now. They are by far the most innovative restaurant in the Fort Lauderdale area when it comes to fish. They are right up there with 3030 Ocean, Especially when it comes to the ambiance. The prices are fair and the portions are perfect. It is my "go-to" girls nite out spot for delicious food and wine... The shrimp bruschetta is amazing. It contains huge, fresh grilled shrimp on top of garlic crostini, tomatoes, white beans and rapini. The broth that develops on the bottom of the plate begs for you to sop it up with their homemade foccacia bread. (They serve foccacia bread with an eggplant spread that melts my heart!) My girlfriend had the Black Grouper special that was over the top. It had a lump crab topping, buttered green beans and a stuffing that I can't do justice with words... I had the special 3-course pre fix dinner. $39.00 and you choose one of each from the following... a soup or salad, 3 entrees, and 2 desserts. I had their house caesar that is served with maytag blue cheese crumbles , homemade croutons and the best dressing I believe is served in fort lauderdale. It's made with anchovies...The way it is meant to be served!!!! I went on to have the pan seared mahi with a red wine cremini mushroom risotto and asparagus. I finished with the creme brulee that came with two delicious coconut macaroons dipped in chocolate. The owner is super friendly as well as the entire staff. I will be back again and again!!!
(5)
Jim B.
We ate here last night with another couple. While it is in a strip mall, the restaurant is warm and inviting. We walked in at 6:45 and were seated immediately. Unfortunately for them, it was not crowded, but we loved not having to wait in line. They have "Lite Bites"/"Happy Hour" from 4:00 - 7:00 and a nice variety of wines were offered for $5.00. Beer $4.00. Two of us ordered the seared scallops with lobster spaetzle. The scallops were cooked perfectly and the was spaetzle quite tasty. The other two (men) ordered Key West shrimp with pink cream sauce served over linguine. They both raved over it. BTW, they ordered the small plate and neither could eat it all. The chef apparently has been an accomplished pastry chef for 15 years and all of the desserts are made fresh daily. While only one person in our party had dessert - key lime pie with sorbet - he said it was "to die for". This was a very good restaurant, with very nice service, great food, in a serene environment. Avoid the large crowds and go here! You will enjoy it.
(5)
Lisa F.
Just OK..the rude service put a bad taste in my mouth. We had to argue with the server about being seated at a table by the restroom...When asked to be moved, we were told that all the other tables were reserved. When finally we moved, he muttered that the people who had reserved the table we were moved to would have to sit there(by the restroom). Ridiculous! The place was only half full on a Saturday evening and we had reservations! We were there for nearly 2 hours..the place never got full. The nerve of him! The rest of the waitstaff was attentive and more pleasant. For a small place, they have many busboys and servers. The food was good..I had a small arugula and goat cheese salad to start ($11) and the special red snapper over truffled mashed potatoes with asparagus a bit overpriced ($31)..but being only half full, I suppose they have to pay the rent somehow. They try to cover the drop ceiling with swags of white fabric, but the Ambiance is still just mediocre. For the 4 of us the bill was $225 ($260 with tip) Not worth it. We will l not be back.
(2)
Ben M.
Nice ambience, lovely presentation, excellent service. I spent a Saturday evening at this lovely place with two friends. It was about half full much of the time we were there. While we waited for a friend to show up for our reservation, one friend and I sat at the bar. We were so impressed with the charm and attentiveness of the bartender that we chose to sit at one of the tables in the lounge area so that he could be our waiter throughout dinner. Menu choices were limited to a several fish dishes, a couple of pasta dishes, and even two steak choices. I get the sense that the management prefers a few well-prepared choices to an overly ambitious menu. The three entrees we ordered seemed to confirm this. We had the Chilean sea bas, scallops, and rigatoni with shrimp. All dishes were prepared well and presented well. Desert was an interesting key lime pie with sorbet. This place was elegant, yet relaxed. Service was excellent and unintrusive. Nicely done all around.
(4)
C P.
note: sunfish grill is the highest zagat rated restaurant in ft lauderdale....WHO CARES! yeah its great food.. but the portions were small and that sucks. they put me at a table that should be in a cafeteria. the fish is very good..but for some reason it didn't make the "cp" top 5 list. but yeah..i'll go again...just because some people say its so so so great.
(4)
Denise R.
This is one of those fabulous finds tucked in a strip center in Ft. Lauderdale on East Oakland Blvd. My friend and I stopped in on a Thursday evening around 7pm and the place was nearly full, always a good sign. Shortly after being shown to our table, our server, Nicole came by to greet us. Nicole was an amazing server; she was warm and personable and had a great welcoming smile. She was also very knowledgeable about the menu items. Her assistant server (although we never got his name) was exceptional as well. One more thing about the service: our waters were never less than half full and the staff were extremely attentive without being over bearing in your face. The food was exceptional as well. The wine list, although quite extensive, had a limited selection by the glass. We started with the crispy goat cheese salad with roasted red & golden beets and micro greens. It was tossed in a nice light vinaigrette. We both gave it a thumbs up. Next we tried the bacon wrapped mahi on a crispy polenta cake with sauteed rapini and a "Tomato Fondue" (which gave the polenta cake a burst of additional flavors once the polenta absorbed this tomatoey broth). We next had their veal & wild mushroom ragout pappardelle, which was made with red wine, shaved garlic, herbs and extra virgin olive oil. This dish deserves an "OMG, Deelish! award. lol I think this is one of the best dishes I've had in a very long time. It is one of those that I will now hold all other veal & wild mushroom pappardelles to measure up to. Not that I had any more room for dessert, but because we heard the owner is also a pastry chef and that the desserts were made on site from scratch, we had to try the mango sorbet and the key lime pie. Both were outstanding. We are looking forward to go back again and highly recommend the place. I will be contacting the owner myself to see about doing one of my foodie events there. To get on my mailing list to find out what events I do have coming, go to facebook.com/denisesfood… or send me a note or email me at DenisesFoodieEvents@gmai… .
(5)
Ri C.
Reservation required. We use a Groupon for the visit and were seats at Groupon-seats... worst seats in the room when there're many other good seats available. The service is fine, the dishes look great, but the portion is small and the taste is average. We did not enjoy it too much. For the same money, we could have 2 nice dinners somewhere else.
(2)
Burj S.
Dinner with the Orphans 4 and their better halves was a very pleasurable experience in this nice cozy little restaurant known for it's great seafood dishes and we were not disappointed. The meal started off with the best Cheese Bread that I have eaten in a long time. For an appetizer most of us had a salad and some had the soup and it was very good. I had the Fish Bolognese served over pasta and it was very tasty though I found it a bit salty, the rest of the gang had grilled pork chops (yes there is always one in a crowd who will go to a sea food restaurant to order pork chops) but it looked amazing and the taste was also good...I snuck a piece off his plate when he was looking the other way! The wifey had the grilled shrimp and finished it off completely ..... Dessert was outstanding! The service was amazing and our server Nicole was friendly and most helpful. Will definitely make it back when in the area some day.
(4)
Amanda C.
After reading the reviews I was very excited to eat here. I would agree that parking is a little weird but adequate. We had reservations and got seated right away. The server was a little annoying with his initial speech about how great everything was but service was iffy. I could overlook this although most nice places we eat at don't have any spiel like this. Bread was ok. Very heavy like eating a pizza. The hummus it was served with was yummy. We got our wine and placed our orders. The conch fritters came out very quickly. My mom was very excited for these until we ate them. They must have been over done because texturally they were very rubbery. Not the best start. Then we waited, and waited, and waited for the 3 fish dishes. The server came by and said it was coming right out. I expect that to be 5 minutes or so. No it was another 30 minutes until they came out. We waited over 45 minutes for our entrees. He did apologize but said that none of their dishes are premade. I wouldn't expect any nice restaurant to have premade dishes. We watched the server make multiple trips to a 6 top table instead of finding our food. He said the kitchen was slammed but the restaurant was only half full at best. My dad and I got the mahi mahi and the fish was hot and tasty. The risotto was very heavy. My mom got the scallops and the spaetzle was cold but did have a nice taste. The scallops were hot but had enough grit and sand in them to be nearly inedible. For dessert we had the key lime pie and it was good but not extraordinary. The meringue was the best part. Overall I was very disappointed in our meal after reading such great reviews.
(2)
Sharon B.
Went to Sunfish Grill tonight with a Groupon. This was the BEST restaurant that I have ever bought a Groupon for. Our waitress was excellent ...I believe her name was Deanna. She helped us pick out a great bottle of wine..."Flirt". She explained the four course dinner options to us and how some different dishes were prepared. I made the mistake of eating the warm foccacia bread. As good as the bread is do yourself a favor and don't touch it!. We both had the Crab Cake Appetizer and Caesar Salad. I had the Salmon and husband had the Mahi Mahi. The Salmon was perfectly cooked medium rare. The rest of my dish which included Seaweed Salad, Coconut Rice, Calamari and a Lemongrass Broth was very tasty. The risotto which came with the Mahi Mahi was to die for. We had half of our dinners boxed to take home (darn tasty bread filled us up!). We each had a cappuccino (it came with the Groupon...can't turn that down!). We made our dessert choices which Deanna bought to our table. The key lime pie and the chocolate mousse cake were both to die for. We had one bite of each and had to get Deanna to box our desserts also. I am already looking forward to leftovers tomorrow. We will definitely be going back to Sunfish Grill. Sunfish Grill has great tasting food and a wonderfully friendly wait staff.
(5)
Lauren M.
Amazing restaurant!!! We celebrated my dad's birthday and not only did they set up a beautiful table but they also accommodated all of our special requests, including bringing in special fish that was not on the menu. We highly recommend this restaurant - all around 5 stars! We will definitely be back!
(5)
H. R.
The food is amazing....must try! (Good way to start a review?) Walked in....greeted at the door. Service was absolutely flawless throughout the evening. Fair choice of Wine/Champagne....they don't offer a full bar....but a nice bottle of Moet was exactly what we needed. Caesar Salad was a nice start. They didn't have anchovies, but the dressing had alot of flavor. Appetizers: They were offering a scallop appetizer which the waiter recommended.....we gave it a try...and (drumroll please) Oh So Amazing!!!! ....the "homemade" sauce was spectacular....rich and flavorful. Do yourself a favor...order it....you can thank me later. Main Course: Shrimp with Pasta for me and Lobster for my wife. In most restaurants....a lobster is a lobster....just need melted butter right? Well....whoever is creating the sauces in the kitchen....is a master....a culinary genius! Both dishes.... (yes I tasted the Lobster too) were so amazing....we didn't know which one we actually liked more..which is a good problem to have. Sunfish Grill is easily a 5-Star Restaurant when it comes to food. The Service too is outstanding. The only reason for 4 stars is I have to save that last star for the ambience and fine decor. Don't get me wrong.....Sunfish Grill is beautiful inside as well. You just have to get over the Plaza Strip exterior....but once you are inside....the food is easily 5 Star Quality. ***We didn't save room....but next time.....we would love to try the Blueberry and "home made" white chocolate desert. A must try!
(4)
Tracy W.
What a fantastic dining experience. The tuna tartare appetizer was excellent. The plates were blended perfectly for the desired palate. The smoked paprika shrimp dish was a tremendous blend of flavors. There was a lovely gift at the end of dinner for the ladies.
(5)
David B.
My wife and I went here for Dinner tonight. The facility is dated. The furniture looks like something that you be in your Grandma's house, only hers would be cleaner. The bartender came over and took our drink order, then a waiter came and took our food order. I ordered fish and chips (Grouper) and my wife had Salmon. My fish arrived as very thick fried bread around the tiny fish pieces. Some of the fried bread was so hard and greasy that I couldn't break it with my hands. I was unable to eat this. The fish inside was raw. My wife's Salmon was also raw. The food here is no better than bar food. I'd say it's not even that good. I showed the waiter ( who somehow became the bartender again) the food and all she did was give my wife a flower? This was the worst restaurant we went to while in Ft Lauderdale.
(1)
Steven M.
The sunfish grill is up for sale; I think they're just keeping it open so they can get something for whatever assets are left. They're still charging as if they have some sort of great chef, even though everyone who knows how to make the original chef's food is gone.
(1)
Gustav S.
I thought the place was pretty good. I had the shrimp mac 'n cheese. Taken separately, the macaroni and cheese was great, as were the huge wood-fired shrimps that topped it. Combining the two did not have any real synergistic effect for me, however, but the food was good nonetheless. Since I am not a real fish eater, I probably can't speak to how this place stacks up in that regard so I'll defer to others on that point.
This place has a nice feel, when you walk through the door, you feel like your in another country.... can't quite put a name on the country, but you definitely feel the vibe. Great date spot. Food took a long time but was excellent when it came . Ordered the crab Charlotte which was prepared beautifully but ate it to fast to take a pic. Ordered spaghetti tuna bolognaise......half portion was plenty
(4)
Scott G.
Outstanding service and food. Make sure you order the littleneck clams and save your bread to dip into the broth. Salmon Wellington was superb.
(5)
Daniel K.
We had a GROUPON and wanted to see the "new" place. The restaurant is very nicely decorated, the service is excellent but, the Calamari we ordered was just about as chewy as I have ever had...like chewing rubber bands, when I complained to the waiter he said he'd notify the kitchen....still waiting for their answer....NOT GOOD.... Still overpriced...there are better options.
(3)
Acelyn B.
All right, I have a confession to make. Sunfish Grill was NOT our #1 choice when looking at the Dine Out restaurants list. Mark A. wanted to go elsewhere, but alas, that place didn't offer the Dine Out menu on the weekends. So fate brought us here, pretty much confirming that everything happens for a reason. From the very beginning when I called to make the reservation, I already was feeling the good vibes. Joe chuckled with me when I made the mistake of thinking the day was Friday, when it was really Thursday, and agreed that it should be Friday already anyway. Our reservation was for 6pm on Saturday since you must be seated before 6:30pm for the Dine Out menu. As Mark A pointed out, we weren't too impressed with its location. We were expecting something flashy and outstanding, not a strip mall that reminded me of those along the beach. Boy, were we fooled! Walk in, and it's definitely not what you would expect from the outside. Small, but elegant. I almost felt a little too dressed down in my flip flops. Joe remembered me from when I called the reservation, and we were quickly seated at our table, the first in the soon-to-be packed restaurant. Let's talk food first. Four courses: soup, appetizer of choice, entree, dessert. I think the courses should build upon each other, one slightly better than the one before; everything satisfying the taste buds, but leaving them craving more. This is exactly what Sunfish Grill did for me. Broccoli soup with a cheese croquette - large portion, great way to start, especially with that cheese. Unfortunately, I had to abandon some of it so that I could have room for what was yet to come. Crab cake appetizer - presentation was beautiful! So much so that I didn't want to touch it. They weren't making it pretty to make up for ugly taste, though. The crab was fresh, perfect with the avocado. Jumbo shrimp with truffled mac & cheese - amazing! Funny that the menu listed jumbo shrimp first, though. I was under the impression that it would be more shrimp than mac, but there were only two. NOT complaining, though. That was the best mac & cheese I've had! The panko crusted top gave it the perfect texture and tied it all together. Oh, heavens. Symphony of chocolate - They probably named it this because you may literally hear a symphony when you take your first bite of this chocolate cake and chocolate mousse. WOW. That's all I really have to say. WOW. My compliments don't even stop there! Throughout the meal, service was impeccable. Joe happened to also be our server and took care of us until the very end, along with the rest of the wait staff. They all made sure our utensils were replaced after each course. Our waters were never even half empty. We were even asked if we wanted to have the rest of our soup to take home! When have you ever been asked that?! Here's the kicker: I was given a rose at the end of the night! I don't even like flowers, but I was floored! I'm sorry this is so long, but I am just that impressed with Sunfish Grill. HIGHLY recommend it!
(5)
Lena L.
Great seafood. Would stay away frontage meats for the price. Amazing staff!!!! Joe was awesome. Tasty pastries. Not a younger crowd. More like 40-60s
(3)
Dino P.
What an absolute delight and another great find in Fort Lauderdale! My friend and owner of Cafe Seville, which is right across the street from the Sunfish Grill, recommended we come here. What a great suggestion!! As you walk in, there is a beautiful wine bar and the decor throughout the restaurant is very warm and inviting. It's got a good feel! We were asked if we wished to sit in the main room or in a more private area and were promptly escorted to our table. Rick was our waiter and he did a great job. We had a blast with him - he was engaging and fun. He let us know right from the start that he would take our entire order at once since preparation of our entire meal would take some time and he didn't want us waiting too long between courses. I appreciated his advice. We started with a wonderful bottle of Malbec and apps of tuna tartare with avocado and a caramelized onion flatbread followed by an encrusted goat cheese and arugula salad. AMAZING!! Wow what a combination of flavors. When our entrees arrived they were stylish - a wonderful presentation. We had veal & mushroom pappardelle and spaghetti tuna bolognaise. The taste and flavors of both dishes were out of this world! Just fabulous!! Finally, we ended the evening with espresso and two to-die-for desserts. The "not the usual key lime pie" was mouthwatering and breathtaking. I wish I'd taken a picture. It was incredible to look at AND better to eat! For those that live for chocolate, the symphony of chocolate is a must. Soooo good - chocolate raspberry mousse and cake with decadent thin wedges of dark chocolate! Are you kidding me!! Lastly, and most importantly, Chef Erika came out on the floor and stopped at our table. That speaks volumes to me of the passion and the success she has with her business. Congrats to you Erika and thank you for a wonderful experience!!
(5)
Francis C.
I popped in just in time to get the tapas specials (from 5-7pm), which I fully enjoyed. Several excellent dishes, all about $5, and full, heartily poured glasses of wine for about the same price. You can make a fantastic meal out of a few tapas and a few glasses of wine, which is exactly what I did. Gratis were some breadsticks baked lightly with marinara and cheese, along with a light condiment for dipping. The smoked fish napoleon was a clever presentation, three pieces of crispy thinbread forming a small structure by sandwiching tasty spheres of smoked fish, three columns with two rows. Some sliced jalapeno gave a lovely kick. The crab charlotte came out next - a tower of crab with avocado and lime ensconced in a vertical crown of cucumbers. I'll have to remember that presentation for a future meal that I cook. Last was the shrimp risotto suppli (or aranchini) - essentially, fried risotto balls with a light red sauce. All was taken down with two glasses of a Rosemount Shiraz, I believe. The food was solid, the wine was decent, the presentation was fast, the price was great...so, why did I not give this five stars? Perhaps it's my general reluctance to give out five stars, but in this case, I just didn't feel a "connection" to the restaurant. An ephemeral, imprecise statement, you might say, but I feel that the best experiences I have had were those where the staff and I ended up with a rapport by the end of the evening. This is not to say that the staff was not friendly, far from it. As always, "a chaque son gout," and although my preference may be for a slightly more relaxed meal when I'm dining on my own, some might prefer the formality of presentation and service.
(4)
Mark A.
Acelyn B & I decided to check out the Dine Out menu when we learned about the promo. So we made our reservations & looked forward to the experience. Little did we know, it was going to be a real treat. However, we didn't necessarily have a great first impression with Sunfish. Located in a strip mall, we immediately became disappointed as we spotted the restaurant off Oakland Park Blvd. Let's face it, I don't exactly picture great restaurants to be located in a strip mall. Take my word for it though, Sunfish will NOT disappoint. We were seated early to partake in the Dine Out menu - tables must be seated by 630p on the weekends to take it for a spin. Our waiter, Joe, was friendly & informative about the menu. His service, along with the rest of the waitstaff was quite attentive to the point that they would make sure our silverware was adequate for the upcoming course & even in its proper setting on the table. The food. Oh the food. We both started with the soup - mainly to warm us up as we were a little chilly in the empty restaurant (It did start to fill around 7p just as Joe had mentioned to us). It was good, however the portion was so large & I'm not really much a fan of soup to begin with that I stranded a lot of it. The second course came out. Get the crab cake. Just do it. Presentation, plating, & flavors spot on! For our third course, the girlfriend ordered the mac & cheese while I went with the salmon. Both entrees were "just wow." The mac & cheese has to be the best truffled mac & cheese I've had the pleasure of experiencing. The salmon with its balsamic soy was also just as delightful! Unfortunately, I was so stuffed from the prior two courses that I maybe had 3 or 4 bites from my meal before I decided to give up & save room for dessert. To close, we chose the Chocolate Symphony. A symphony it was. Cake with mousse surrounded by dark chocolate triangles. Oh what a perfect way to close such a wonderful dining experience. The ambiance inside the restaurant is fairly romantic as it's a quaint establishment. The lighting & drapes around the ceiling are simply the perfect decor to set the right mood for the journey your taste buds are going to experience. It's a great place to bring your date (ask Acelyn, I'm sure her reviews will be glowing as well). Or you can bring your family or meet up with friends. Either way, prepare to enjoy the magical adventure they have to offer at Sunfish Grill. Cheers!
(5)
Bob O.
Great seafood but they have the best deserts in town! They make them on premise including the ice cream. Soo good!!
(5)
Shira S.
I had been here several years ago with my parents (I don't live in the area) and my mom thought to return when we were down visiting my grandmother this past weekend. I am so happy that we found this restaurant again. This time, I went with my mom, brother, grandmother, and my aunt and uncle. We had a made a reservation (highly recommend doing) and when I called to let them know we were running a few minutes late due to traffic, they had no problem accommodating us. We were seated immediately and quickly greeted by a server. I have no idea why, but our server changed after a few minutes, but I don't feel that it interrupted the flow or the service. Our waiter was fantastic, very attentive to all of us, and was able to accommodate a variety of requests (ie. half an order). Their wine list was quite varied in both style and price, which I appreciate. We ordered the Super Tuscan, which was "super yum" for a great price. Our food was also fantastic. I can't remember what everyone ordered, but no one was disappointed. My grandmother's conch fritters had whole pieces of conch inside, which is always a delightful surprise. My mom, brother, and I split a variety of items. We started with the "Crispy Shrimp & Spicy Crab Roll" which was huge as well as the "Calamari Saute". The calamari was ah-mazing! I could have kept eating that all night!! For dinner, we split the "Sunfish Linguine with Clams in Natural Broth", "Seared Rare Yellow Fin Tuna", and one of their specials that I did not try but my mom and brother said was great. I have got to figure out how to make the clam broth. The broth was so light and without any extra oils added. It also had a lot of whole clams, still in their shells, on it. The tuna was cooked perfectly and the sauce had a lot of flavor without being heavy. I really felt that overall the chef let the seafood stand on its own, while preparing it in a way that really enhanced the natural flavor of the fish or seafood. Several desserts were shared including the crème brulee, the key lime pie, and the chocolate symphony. My uncle finished the chocolate symphony so fast, no one even had a chance to try it. The key lime pie was full of flavor and the meringue on top was the perfect accompaniment. The crème brulee was huge! Three different "pots", each a different flavor and the perfect dessert to share. I would highly recommend Sunfish Grill for family events or a romantic date. The whole experience was wonderful and the delightful surprise with your check is just ice cream on the cake. Although expensive, my family and I will definitely be returning.
(5)
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Address :2775 E Oakland Park Blvd
Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33306
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Street, Private Lot Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : No Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Intimate Noise Level : Quiet Alcohol : Beer & Wine Only Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : No Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Debbie B.
Had a really great experience tonight at Sunfish Grill for a Special Birthday celebration. . First of all, Joe, our server, was over the top fantastic and went above and beyond .He anticipated our every need and was very helpful and friendly.(even with a groupon).Thanks Joe! Really appreciate the fabulous service. In fact, everyone was really nice. Their food was excellent. Highlights were the tuna sliders, smoked fish appetizer, Pan seared Diver Scallops with Bacon & Herb Spaetzle, Brussels Sprouts with Cider Sauce and the delicious "NOT THE USUAL" KEY LIME PIE with Burnt Meringue. The Coconut Sorbet no longer comes with the key lime pie but it's homemade and worth ordering. All the desserts are made in House.The atmosphere is nice and a giant improvement from their previous location. A beautiful meal! A real find!
(5)Tiffany G.
Though I have had great experiences here, I was very disappointed on my last visit. We were celebrating a special occasion and came here. We had brought out of town guests and had a large party. We were here for at least 2 and a half- 3 hours.. Everything took a long time to come out. The appetizers of calamari, soups, and the salads were great. However my entree was disappointing. I had the grouper special and found the grouper to be very tough, and the Brussels sprouts it came with lacking flavor. My brother in law's grouper came out raw. Literally raw in the middle, and had to be sent back, and did not come back till far after everyone was done eating. Now, the server teased us by bringing up a special dessert on the house, since we were a very large party and celebrating, however since my husband and I were sick and leaving a little before everyone (and it was our event we were celebrating) he told the server him and I wouldn't be having any. When the server returned, he passed out menus since people did want dessert, and no longer offered the on the house dessert. I honestly thought it was tacky that they still did not bring out the on the house dessert for everyone. Especially knowing it was celebratory, regardless of celebrating who, since we weren't even paying ourselves, it was my mother in law's treat, and since the dinner had been messed up with my brother in law not even eating. I have had 5 star experiences at this restaurant, and perhaps I will give them another chance in the future and change my review, but no more celebrating anything here and I am in no rush to return. I am removing my 5 star review, but will leave 3 up since they have done well in the past and I hope my next visit is of that caliber.
(3)Pam J.
Sunfish Grill has always been among our favorite seafood restaurants in Ft. Lauderdale, but after last night, we won't be going back. The prices, which were already high, have increased, the portions have decreased, and the food was mediocre at best. I had a half order of pasta which was just okay and came with nothing. My husband had the fish and chips, no chips, three small pieces of grouper that were dry and not very tasty. The side order of spinach looked like it was dumped from a can, was warm on the edges and stone cold in the middle. We were the only two people in the restaurant at 7 pm, now we know why.
(2)Suzanne W.
By far the single WORST experience we have ever had at a restaurant in Fort Lauderdale. After explaining to them (and showing them proof of failed attempts on my phone) that I had attempted to reach them 6 different times that day for a reservation to which I was met by a "busy signal" we (3 of us) intentionally showed up at 5:30 to be courteous. We were rudely told that we would "not be seated without a reservation any time of day during season" to which we replied "Ok, that is fine, we will just have dinner at the bar" to which the manager quickly intercepted our plan by claiming that "we don't serve dinner at the bar" Well as soon as he turned his back I asked the bartender if these seats were "first come first serve"? and "do they serve dinner at the bar"? she replied "yes" to both inquiries so I ordered a glass of wine. As soon as the manager came back to tell me the owner, Erika, someone I've known and have been dining with for 13 years, when she was married to Tony and they started their business in Pompano Beach, allegedly did not "know or recognize" me after supposedly "sticking her head out of the kitchen door to get a glimpse" I simply stated-albeit in disbelief that I was being treated so unkindly- that the bartender said the seats at the bar were in fact first come first serve and that yes, they do serve dinner. His response..? "she is misinformed" ???????? Seriously? Here's a recap: "We do not serve dinner at the bar during season" - Manager "My mother just drove her from Delray Beach and I would appreciate if you could simply accommodate us at the bar (WHICH WAS COMPLETELY EMPTY AT 5:45 NOW)" - Me Manager: "No, I'm very sorry. We will not be serving you dinner at the bar tonight (he also turned to the bartender and whispered "only ONE glass of wine" after ordering a glass while awaiting my girlfriend. AGAIN..ARE YOU SERIOUS? I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO THIS RESTAURANT AGAIN AFTER BEING TREATED SO RUDELY, UNKIND AND UNFAIRLY by the manager as well as Erika, the owner. To hold yourselves in such a high regard as to turn away long time local customers simply trying to have an early dinner at the bar is beyond belief. The SNOB factor is OFF THE CHARTS. This review is being circulated via Facebook, Yelp, City Search, Twitter and any other publication who will post it.
(1)Kristin W.
Great place! Very cozy but great! I got the fish special and it was amazing. It came with some risotto which was one of the best I had. I also liked that they let you choose your vegetable. Can't wait to go back!
(5)Kathleen Hunter H.
I used to go to this restaurant when it was on Atlantic. The new location has the same chef, is a bit bigger and is very elegantly decorated. The "lite bites" from 5 to 7 are really good value. The main menu is not extensive but this means that all entrees are prepared from scratch when ordered and all are perfectly prepared and presented. The wait staff are well trained. We sent back a glass of wine from the early evening when there are $5.00 glasses - this was a bit "old". It was exchanged very pleasantly. Desserts are all made on site. The blueberry cobbler was served warm topped with white chocolate ice cream. Two at our table shared it. I had coconut sorbet - unusual and delicious. This restaurant is in a plaza on Oakland - not a prepossessing location but that doesn't matter when the restaurant itself is so pleasant and the food is so exquisite and so nicely served.
(5)Mark H.
Food outstanding - desert white chocolate ice cream unbeleiveable - service terriffic
(5)Jennifer B.
What a surprise for South Florida. Intimate setting with incredible attention to detail...NOT a disgruntled twenty-something making ends meet until a better job comes along, but a professional, dedicated staff that genuinely wants you to enjoy your meal. Chip was our server and he was great. He made good suggestions and was not intrusive. What was unique about this restaurant was that the entire staff seemed to help us at one point or another during our meal - to freshen water glasses, take away plates, bring out our meal, replace silverware, etc. Once you're inside you'd never know that you are in a strip shopping center on Oakland Park Blvd. The lighting is dim, tables are covered with tablecloths, and it's just very cozy. Everything was delicious but my favorite dish of the evening was tuna tartare. You won't e disappointed. I look forward to going back to Sunfish Grill!
(5)P G.
Very warm, inviting and nicely decorated indoors and they have outdoor seating in the side alleyway. Food was great esp the pizza bread served at the beginning, the appetizer clams, seared tuna dish and ice cream. Service was slow, our servers switched a few times without warning and we had to ask multiple times for things like our drinks.
(3)Ryan S.
Great food. Awesome staff. Beautiful presentations. This is a great date spot for a nice evening out. You can expect inventive food with extremely well-crafted flavors. Will be back for sure. Their house salad is amazing.
(4)Mike C.
My wife and I went here for our valentines day dinner, waiter was excellent but my problem came with the bill. They charged my wife's card 3 times, I understand if there is a mistake when they ran the card, but please contact us before charging again. They charged the card, made a mistake and refunded it, then charged it for 10 dollars more, cancelled that and then ran it finally for the correct amount. Since it takes 3 days or so to post refund to bank account, it sent my wife's card into overdraft and was charged an additional 30 dollars from bank. We called the owner, She suggested it may have been fraud! Of course it wasn't! The amounts were exactly 10 dollars more each time. Then she told us that that was a very busy night and the tickets didn't get settled until a day or two later. I explained that we were charged 3 times by her and that drained all the money plus some out of my wife's checking account. She began to get rude and didn't offer any apologies or solution. Just an array of excuses. I don't do business like this and I wouldn't expect it from a high end restaurant. I will not be going back to this place. It was nice but overpriced for the food we got and their management is pathetic!
(1)S H.
Don't waste your time. Food was average and service was bad. Our waitress was fine, but the host was rude. Made us feel like we were disturbing him that we were there. I won't be back.
(2)Mindy S.
Great place great food ! Love their lobster mac & cheese although I have never had a dish I didn't like . Save room for dessert as they are the best !! The make theyr own ice cream and it is delicious !!
(5)B W.
An absolutely perfect meal! Beautiful, classy decor. Terrific service. And everything we ordered - salad, wine, entrees, dessert - was all fabulous. Can't wait to go again.
(5)Jennie J.
The food here is spectacular. We especially love the spaetzle and the key lime pie. I gothere to get that pie for my mom anytime we do something special. So delicious.
(5)Jared M.
We ate here on a Saturday. Pretty nice atmosphere even though it was in a strip mall. The food was very good; it seemed like a seafood restaurant with Italian mixed in. The hot bread was also very good. The only thing is the menu does not give you a lot of choices. We happened to call up and they had fish for everyone that was not on the menu or even as a special. They are very accommodating. We would definitely go back.
(4)michael w.
The place is way to too expensive. Went there with in-laws from the midwest and they were shocked at the bill. The food was OK!
(2)Carrie M.
Hubby and I had a groupon for this restaurant and went on 12/6/12. The maitre'd was understanding when we showed up a good five minutes late (traffic is awful everywhere in Lauderdale) and seated us immediately. We were then given a foccacia bread with an eggplant spread, which was DELICIOUS. Once the bread was gone, I was eating the spread plain when no one was looking! The groupon was for a four course dinner, which you customized from a menu made just for the groupon deal. Both of us selected the shrimp bisque as our first course, which was great. I'm not a shrimp person, so I didn't care about that, but the broth was amazing! Next we had salads. Hubby selected the Caesar and I got the Romaine for the sake of diversity. I'm not a salad person either, so I mainly just picked the pine nuts out and ate those. :) Finally we got to the main course. I selected the Scottish salmon and hubby got the mahi mahi with risotto. At this point I was stuffed to the gills (no pun intended) so I could barely eat any of it - but it was delicious! The salmon rested atop an island of sticky coconut rice and calamari, surrounded by a moat of broth. My ONE gripe about the whole experience is that the salmon was quite raw. I was told it would be medium-well or medium-rare, but this seemed pretty far to the rare side to me. Nevertheless, it was delicious, especially the moat of broth. Hubby was very pleased as well. What really blew our minds, though, was dessert. Hubby got the eggnog creme brulee, which came with a large sugar cookie, and it seemed to border on being a religious experience for him! I got the "Symphony of Chocolate". I didn't expect much - the description made me think it would be some cake and mousse with some chocolate shavings as garnish. NO. What I got was cake and mousse surrounded on all sides by HUGE spikes of milk and white chocolate mixed together to look like giraffe print, enough to equal 1-2 chocolate bars! I still have these leftover. Hubby also took advantage of the offer of cappucino, which came with an adorable wooden stirrer coated in sugar crystals. Great presentation. Our waitress was a delight throughout. One of the most friendly members of waitstaff I've ever encountered. She explained everything about the food, offered us ground pepper on everything, told us how things were made, and seemed to genuinely love doing her job, which she did brilliantly.
(5)Ashi M.
The service was amazing, the wait staff anticipated our thoughts before we even had a chance to fully formulate them in our head. The food was delicious and presentation was great as you can see from the photo. On a side note this is nice restaurant that treats their staff good, I'm not familiar with too many restaurants that retain staff and give them benefits that's definitely a nice perk.
(5)Jennifer F.
yeah review #100! Sunfiish grill is a great place to take those you want to impress but not break the bank. Fresh seafood, delicious pasta nice wine list. We had the pasta special shirmp and lamb sausage as well as Pan Roasted Snapper Livornaise with Penne : Olives/Capers/Mushrooms/ Marinara/Shaved Garlic /White Wine which was supposed to come with foccacia bread and eggplant spread and a bottle of wine. both delicious, although im pretty sure that the dip comes with all meals so....... Other couple had the Key West Shrimp Charlotte : Avocado Jam / Cucumbers / Sweet Chili Sauce WOW! and Asian Pear Salad : Arugula & Endive/Apples/Grapes/Spicy Pecans/Truffle oil Vinaigrette no room for desert, we will return soon
(5)Lindsay G.
Honestly haven't experienced better service in most of south florida. It was about 15 minutes away from closing time when my hubby and I were desperate to eat something (think I am 8 months pregnant desperate to eat) when we were willing to walk in and beg them to let us sit in the bar and eat whatever they had. These guys didn't blink an eye told us not to worry led us to the table and immediately exchanged our white linen napkins for black. Classy move, Sunfish, classy move. They brought water and my hubby a coffee immediately and explained the specials. Within less than 5 minutes warm complimentary pizza bread with some sort of herb butter dip was on the table and was delicious. Water glasses were kept refilled throughout out the night. Did I mention they even brewed a fresh pot of coffee for my husband? My husband who is not a great pasta lover decided to order the past shrimp basil pesto special and ate almost the whole thing. It was creamy with great grated fresh cheese and basil and warm-this wasn't sitting under a heating lamp. My grilled paprika shrimp with polenta were perfectly spiced and proportioned. Another party of four walked in after us and they sat them with no problem as well. They basically stayed open until 11:30 to accommodate us all which is what I like to call great service and a restaurant that will be getting my business over and over again. At the end of dinner they bring everyone a white woman and/or male on a date a white rose. Again, a classy move. Not sure if this is just Friday nights are always but I loved looking at my white rose in full bloom this morning.
(5)Kathi C.
I have only been once, but it made a great impression on me. The shopping center is boring, and parking is limited, but the food is delicious, and I can't wait to go back and try something else. The arugula with beets and goat cheese salad was just right- not too acidic, not too much of one ingredient to overpower another. The scallops were seared perfectly, and the sweet pea spaetzle was new to me but fun to bite into. There was a prix fixe menu that night, and I tried the black and white cakes for dessert. So good! This places reminds me of a neighborhood restaurant where the locals go for a pleasant Saturday night out with dependably good food and service.
(4)Darren P.
I was at Sunfish Grill on Tuesday for the 4th time. This is always a favorite for me when celebrating a special occasion. As usuall, the staff was extremely friendly. It's been the same staff since I started going 3 years ago, saying a lot about how their management must treat them. We were celebrating a birthday and had a great time. The food is fantastic! Parking not so great, but worth it.
(5)Mimi R.
For the price of the meals here i would expect better quality food. We ordered the calamari appetizer and received some kind of calamari soup without anything else.Just a bowl of red liquid and calamari. It was actually closer to a sauce than a soup. The calamari was cooked as if the chef had a grudge against all things tentacled. For the main course we had the seared tuna and salmon .The seared tuna was (and Im guessing) their take on tuna tataki, served on white rice. it was nothing like the picture on their website.The salmon plate was served on lovely mashed potatoes but the salmon itself was nothing special. I have no idea how a place with great reviews and named after a fish could be so bad at making seafood. The only thing that was worth the prices we paid was the chocolate dessert & it was amazing, but I didn't go there for cake. I went there for seafood. Avoid this nautical nightmare.
(2)Bruce H.
Took my sister here for her birthday. Being quite budget conscious, we split an excellent arugala goat cheese salad, and then each ordered a salmon dish on a bed of calamari, shitaki mushrooms, and savory rice in an Asian spiced sauce. This dish was nothing short of heavenly! We ate it slowly, savoring every bite. We're both watching our waist lines, so we waived off the delicious selection of deserts. Service was friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. Without a doubt, we'll be back to Sunfish Grill!
(5)Myra S.
One of my favorite restaurants in South Florida-we have become very happy and satisfied regular patrons! Food is inventive and delicious and the staff really does remember your name......the rose at the end of the meal is special and just a plain nice touch. Would recommend this restaurant highly to all :-)
(5)Fred Z.
Great menu and service. Nice wine list. Fish dishes were all fresh and rissotto cooked to perfection. Tasty home made breads and delicious desserts...a very nice restaurant close to the beach......
(5)Amy C.
Wow, incredible!! Such great seafood. We did the Dine Out Lauderdale menu, which is 4 courses prix fixe for $35. I started with Crab and corn cakes - best I've ever eaten. My husband had Bahamian seafood stew. Salads were great. My entree was salmon over sticky rice in a coconut broth - wow! My husband had mahi with the an amazing butternut squash risotto. We had to take the desserts home. I look forward to enjoying them tomorrow. One bit of advice - make a reservation. We did not and were lucky to get a table.
(5)Katie R.
My husband and I had been meaning to try this little restaurant for quite some time. We decided to try the tasting menu, which was a very good deal. It included a salad, entree and bottle of wine for two, and was maybe $35 per person. We both chose the pasta special, which was linguini with lamb sausage and shrimp, in a light white wine sauce. It was okay...I wasn't so much of a fan of the lamb sausage, so maybe a bad pick on my part, but the rest was pretty good. We finished with their key lime pie, which was excellent. Overall it was a good experience, but nothing that particularly stood out for us.
(3)Native H.
I was not a huge fan of Sunfish Grill until recently... I am obsessed now. They are by far the most innovative restaurant in the Fort Lauderdale area when it comes to fish. They are right up there with 3030 Ocean, Especially when it comes to the ambiance. The prices are fair and the portions are perfect. It is my "go-to" girls nite out spot for delicious food and wine... The shrimp bruschetta is amazing. It contains huge, fresh grilled shrimp on top of garlic crostini, tomatoes, white beans and rapini. The broth that develops on the bottom of the plate begs for you to sop it up with their homemade foccacia bread. (They serve foccacia bread with an eggplant spread that melts my heart!) My girlfriend had the Black Grouper special that was over the top. It had a lump crab topping, buttered green beans and a stuffing that I can't do justice with words... I had the special 3-course pre fix dinner. $39.00 and you choose one of each from the following... a soup or salad, 3 entrees, and 2 desserts. I had their house caesar that is served with maytag blue cheese crumbles , homemade croutons and the best dressing I believe is served in fort lauderdale. It's made with anchovies...The way it is meant to be served!!!! I went on to have the pan seared mahi with a red wine cremini mushroom risotto and asparagus. I finished with the creme brulee that came with two delicious coconut macaroons dipped in chocolate. The owner is super friendly as well as the entire staff. I will be back again and again!!!
(5)Jim B.
We ate here last night with another couple. While it is in a strip mall, the restaurant is warm and inviting. We walked in at 6:45 and were seated immediately. Unfortunately for them, it was not crowded, but we loved not having to wait in line. They have "Lite Bites"/"Happy Hour" from 4:00 - 7:00 and a nice variety of wines were offered for $5.00. Beer $4.00. Two of us ordered the seared scallops with lobster spaetzle. The scallops were cooked perfectly and the was spaetzle quite tasty. The other two (men) ordered Key West shrimp with pink cream sauce served over linguine. They both raved over it. BTW, they ordered the small plate and neither could eat it all. The chef apparently has been an accomplished pastry chef for 15 years and all of the desserts are made fresh daily. While only one person in our party had dessert - key lime pie with sorbet - he said it was "to die for". This was a very good restaurant, with very nice service, great food, in a serene environment. Avoid the large crowds and go here! You will enjoy it.
(5)Lisa F.
Just OK..the rude service put a bad taste in my mouth. We had to argue with the server about being seated at a table by the restroom...When asked to be moved, we were told that all the other tables were reserved. When finally we moved, he muttered that the people who had reserved the table we were moved to would have to sit there(by the restroom). Ridiculous! The place was only half full on a Saturday evening and we had reservations! We were there for nearly 2 hours..the place never got full. The nerve of him! The rest of the waitstaff was attentive and more pleasant. For a small place, they have many busboys and servers. The food was good..I had a small arugula and goat cheese salad to start ($11) and the special red snapper over truffled mashed potatoes with asparagus a bit overpriced ($31)..but being only half full, I suppose they have to pay the rent somehow. They try to cover the drop ceiling with swags of white fabric, but the Ambiance is still just mediocre. For the 4 of us the bill was $225 ($260 with tip) Not worth it. We will l not be back.
(2)Ben M.
Nice ambience, lovely presentation, excellent service. I spent a Saturday evening at this lovely place with two friends. It was about half full much of the time we were there. While we waited for a friend to show up for our reservation, one friend and I sat at the bar. We were so impressed with the charm and attentiveness of the bartender that we chose to sit at one of the tables in the lounge area so that he could be our waiter throughout dinner. Menu choices were limited to a several fish dishes, a couple of pasta dishes, and even two steak choices. I get the sense that the management prefers a few well-prepared choices to an overly ambitious menu. The three entrees we ordered seemed to confirm this. We had the Chilean sea bas, scallops, and rigatoni with shrimp. All dishes were prepared well and presented well. Desert was an interesting key lime pie with sorbet. This place was elegant, yet relaxed. Service was excellent and unintrusive. Nicely done all around.
(4)C P.
note: sunfish grill is the highest zagat rated restaurant in ft lauderdale....WHO CARES! yeah its great food.. but the portions were small and that sucks. they put me at a table that should be in a cafeteria. the fish is very good..but for some reason it didn't make the "cp" top 5 list. but yeah..i'll go again...just because some people say its so so so great.
(4)Denise R.
This is one of those fabulous finds tucked in a strip center in Ft. Lauderdale on East Oakland Blvd. My friend and I stopped in on a Thursday evening around 7pm and the place was nearly full, always a good sign. Shortly after being shown to our table, our server, Nicole came by to greet us. Nicole was an amazing server; she was warm and personable and had a great welcoming smile. She was also very knowledgeable about the menu items. Her assistant server (although we never got his name) was exceptional as well. One more thing about the service: our waters were never less than half full and the staff were extremely attentive without being over bearing in your face. The food was exceptional as well. The wine list, although quite extensive, had a limited selection by the glass. We started with the crispy goat cheese salad with roasted red & golden beets and micro greens. It was tossed in a nice light vinaigrette. We both gave it a thumbs up. Next we tried the bacon wrapped mahi on a crispy polenta cake with sauteed rapini and a "Tomato Fondue" (which gave the polenta cake a burst of additional flavors once the polenta absorbed this tomatoey broth). We next had their veal & wild mushroom ragout pappardelle, which was made with red wine, shaved garlic, herbs and extra virgin olive oil. This dish deserves an "OMG, Deelish! award. lol I think this is one of the best dishes I've had in a very long time. It is one of those that I will now hold all other veal & wild mushroom pappardelles to measure up to. Not that I had any more room for dessert, but because we heard the owner is also a pastry chef and that the desserts were made on site from scratch, we had to try the mango sorbet and the key lime pie. Both were outstanding. We are looking forward to go back again and highly recommend the place. I will be contacting the owner myself to see about doing one of my foodie events there. To get on my mailing list to find out what events I do have coming, go to facebook.com/denisesfood… or send me a note or email me at DenisesFoodieEvents@gmai… .
(5)Ri C.
Reservation required. We use a Groupon for the visit and were seats at Groupon-seats... worst seats in the room when there're many other good seats available. The service is fine, the dishes look great, but the portion is small and the taste is average. We did not enjoy it too much. For the same money, we could have 2 nice dinners somewhere else.
(2)Burj S.
Dinner with the Orphans 4 and their better halves was a very pleasurable experience in this nice cozy little restaurant known for it's great seafood dishes and we were not disappointed. The meal started off with the best Cheese Bread that I have eaten in a long time. For an appetizer most of us had a salad and some had the soup and it was very good. I had the Fish Bolognese served over pasta and it was very tasty though I found it a bit salty, the rest of the gang had grilled pork chops (yes there is always one in a crowd who will go to a sea food restaurant to order pork chops) but it looked amazing and the taste was also good...I snuck a piece off his plate when he was looking the other way! The wifey had the grilled shrimp and finished it off completely ..... Dessert was outstanding! The service was amazing and our server Nicole was friendly and most helpful. Will definitely make it back when in the area some day.
(4)Amanda C.
After reading the reviews I was very excited to eat here. I would agree that parking is a little weird but adequate. We had reservations and got seated right away. The server was a little annoying with his initial speech about how great everything was but service was iffy. I could overlook this although most nice places we eat at don't have any spiel like this. Bread was ok. Very heavy like eating a pizza. The hummus it was served with was yummy. We got our wine and placed our orders. The conch fritters came out very quickly. My mom was very excited for these until we ate them. They must have been over done because texturally they were very rubbery. Not the best start. Then we waited, and waited, and waited for the 3 fish dishes. The server came by and said it was coming right out. I expect that to be 5 minutes or so. No it was another 30 minutes until they came out. We waited over 45 minutes for our entrees. He did apologize but said that none of their dishes are premade. I wouldn't expect any nice restaurant to have premade dishes. We watched the server make multiple trips to a 6 top table instead of finding our food. He said the kitchen was slammed but the restaurant was only half full at best. My dad and I got the mahi mahi and the fish was hot and tasty. The risotto was very heavy. My mom got the scallops and the spaetzle was cold but did have a nice taste. The scallops were hot but had enough grit and sand in them to be nearly inedible. For dessert we had the key lime pie and it was good but not extraordinary. The meringue was the best part. Overall I was very disappointed in our meal after reading such great reviews.
(2)Sharon B.
Went to Sunfish Grill tonight with a Groupon. This was the BEST restaurant that I have ever bought a Groupon for. Our waitress was excellent ...I believe her name was Deanna. She helped us pick out a great bottle of wine..."Flirt". She explained the four course dinner options to us and how some different dishes were prepared. I made the mistake of eating the warm foccacia bread. As good as the bread is do yourself a favor and don't touch it!. We both had the Crab Cake Appetizer and Caesar Salad. I had the Salmon and husband had the Mahi Mahi. The Salmon was perfectly cooked medium rare. The rest of my dish which included Seaweed Salad, Coconut Rice, Calamari and a Lemongrass Broth was very tasty. The risotto which came with the Mahi Mahi was to die for. We had half of our dinners boxed to take home (darn tasty bread filled us up!). We each had a cappuccino (it came with the Groupon...can't turn that down!). We made our dessert choices which Deanna bought to our table. The key lime pie and the chocolate mousse cake were both to die for. We had one bite of each and had to get Deanna to box our desserts also. I am already looking forward to leftovers tomorrow. We will definitely be going back to Sunfish Grill. Sunfish Grill has great tasting food and a wonderfully friendly wait staff.
(5)Lauren M.
Amazing restaurant!!! We celebrated my dad's birthday and not only did they set up a beautiful table but they also accommodated all of our special requests, including bringing in special fish that was not on the menu. We highly recommend this restaurant - all around 5 stars! We will definitely be back!
(5)H. R.
The food is amazing....must try! (Good way to start a review?) Walked in....greeted at the door. Service was absolutely flawless throughout the evening. Fair choice of Wine/Champagne....they don't offer a full bar....but a nice bottle of Moet was exactly what we needed. Caesar Salad was a nice start. They didn't have anchovies, but the dressing had alot of flavor. Appetizers: They were offering a scallop appetizer which the waiter recommended.....we gave it a try...and (drumroll please) Oh So Amazing!!!! ....the "homemade" sauce was spectacular....rich and flavorful. Do yourself a favor...order it....you can thank me later. Main Course: Shrimp with Pasta for me and Lobster for my wife. In most restaurants....a lobster is a lobster....just need melted butter right? Well....whoever is creating the sauces in the kitchen....is a master....a culinary genius! Both dishes.... (yes I tasted the Lobster too) were so amazing....we didn't know which one we actually liked more..which is a good problem to have. Sunfish Grill is easily a 5-Star Restaurant when it comes to food. The Service too is outstanding. The only reason for 4 stars is I have to save that last star for the ambience and fine decor. Don't get me wrong.....Sunfish Grill is beautiful inside as well. You just have to get over the Plaza Strip exterior....but once you are inside....the food is easily 5 Star Quality. ***We didn't save room....but next time.....we would love to try the Blueberry and "home made" white chocolate desert. A must try!
(4)Tracy W.
What a fantastic dining experience. The tuna tartare appetizer was excellent. The plates were blended perfectly for the desired palate. The smoked paprika shrimp dish was a tremendous blend of flavors. There was a lovely gift at the end of dinner for the ladies.
(5)David B.
My wife and I went here for Dinner tonight. The facility is dated. The furniture looks like something that you be in your Grandma's house, only hers would be cleaner. The bartender came over and took our drink order, then a waiter came and took our food order. I ordered fish and chips (Grouper) and my wife had Salmon. My fish arrived as very thick fried bread around the tiny fish pieces. Some of the fried bread was so hard and greasy that I couldn't break it with my hands. I was unable to eat this. The fish inside was raw. My wife's Salmon was also raw. The food here is no better than bar food. I'd say it's not even that good. I showed the waiter ( who somehow became the bartender again) the food and all she did was give my wife a flower? This was the worst restaurant we went to while in Ft Lauderdale.
(1)Steven M.
The sunfish grill is up for sale; I think they're just keeping it open so they can get something for whatever assets are left. They're still charging as if they have some sort of great chef, even though everyone who knows how to make the original chef's food is gone.
(1)Gustav S.
I thought the place was pretty good. I had the shrimp mac 'n cheese. Taken separately, the macaroni and cheese was great, as were the huge wood-fired shrimps that topped it. Combining the two did not have any real synergistic effect for me, however, but the food was good nonetheless. Since I am not a real fish eater, I probably can't speak to how this place stacks up in that regard so I'll defer to others on that point.
(3)Marqus R.
I frequented and remember Sunfish Grill when it was located on Atlantic Avenue in Pompano. It was a favorite of mine. It had some of the most creative and unique preparations of the area. However, without laboring on the details of it, the owners got into a nasty tiff with one now owner of Sunfish Grill on Oakland Park and the other Sea restaurant located on Commercial in Lauderdale by the Sea. Hence, I can't help but compare the food offerings of the two. Sunfish Grill is a darn good restaurant. For my most recent meal I started off with a mushroom soup. It was loaded with a mushroom combination having a wonderful overtone of shitake with a perfect base undertone of portobello. For a salad I went for the hearts of romaine with applewood smoked bacon, which from the distinctive heavy smoke taste I would say was Neuske, gorgonzola cheese, pine nuts and a lemon pepper vinaigrette. For my entrée I order the pan seared diver scallops with herb spaetzle, lobster and English peas beurre blanc, but I didn't get them. Instead what arrived was their crab crusted Scottish Salmon. And no, I know I didn't make a mistake since I recorded myself when I placed the order. However, being hungry and since it looked pretty good, ate it anyway. Indeed it was very good, however, not all that creative and the rather flat taste of the crab did little to enhance the fish. As I had mentioned, I can't help but compare Sunfish Grill to that of Sea restaurant. They are both very good, no doubt about that, but from the dishes I've had at Sea, I've found them by far more creative, far more unique and innovative; hence the restaurant I would favor. But as far as ambiance, atmosphere and overall professionalism of wait staff are concerned, I'd have to give Sunfish Grill my nod as being the better.
(4)Moe M.
This place has a nice feel, when you walk through the door, you feel like your in another country.... can't quite put a name on the country, but you definitely feel the vibe. Great date spot. Food took a long time but was excellent when it came . Ordered the crab Charlotte which was prepared beautifully but ate it to fast to take a pic. Ordered spaghetti tuna bolognaise......half portion was plenty
(4)Scott G.
Outstanding service and food. Make sure you order the littleneck clams and save your bread to dip into the broth. Salmon Wellington was superb.
(5)Daniel K.
We had a GROUPON and wanted to see the "new" place. The restaurant is very nicely decorated, the service is excellent but, the Calamari we ordered was just about as chewy as I have ever had...like chewing rubber bands, when I complained to the waiter he said he'd notify the kitchen....still waiting for their answer....NOT GOOD.... Still overpriced...there are better options.
(3)Acelyn B.
All right, I have a confession to make. Sunfish Grill was NOT our #1 choice when looking at the Dine Out restaurants list. Mark A. wanted to go elsewhere, but alas, that place didn't offer the Dine Out menu on the weekends. So fate brought us here, pretty much confirming that everything happens for a reason. From the very beginning when I called to make the reservation, I already was feeling the good vibes. Joe chuckled with me when I made the mistake of thinking the day was Friday, when it was really Thursday, and agreed that it should be Friday already anyway. Our reservation was for 6pm on Saturday since you must be seated before 6:30pm for the Dine Out menu. As Mark A pointed out, we weren't too impressed with its location. We were expecting something flashy and outstanding, not a strip mall that reminded me of those along the beach. Boy, were we fooled! Walk in, and it's definitely not what you would expect from the outside. Small, but elegant. I almost felt a little too dressed down in my flip flops. Joe remembered me from when I called the reservation, and we were quickly seated at our table, the first in the soon-to-be packed restaurant. Let's talk food first. Four courses: soup, appetizer of choice, entree, dessert. I think the courses should build upon each other, one slightly better than the one before; everything satisfying the taste buds, but leaving them craving more. This is exactly what Sunfish Grill did for me. Broccoli soup with a cheese croquette - large portion, great way to start, especially with that cheese. Unfortunately, I had to abandon some of it so that I could have room for what was yet to come. Crab cake appetizer - presentation was beautiful! So much so that I didn't want to touch it. They weren't making it pretty to make up for ugly taste, though. The crab was fresh, perfect with the avocado. Jumbo shrimp with truffled mac & cheese - amazing! Funny that the menu listed jumbo shrimp first, though. I was under the impression that it would be more shrimp than mac, but there were only two. NOT complaining, though. That was the best mac & cheese I've had! The panko crusted top gave it the perfect texture and tied it all together. Oh, heavens. Symphony of chocolate - They probably named it this because you may literally hear a symphony when you take your first bite of this chocolate cake and chocolate mousse. WOW. That's all I really have to say. WOW. My compliments don't even stop there! Throughout the meal, service was impeccable. Joe happened to also be our server and took care of us until the very end, along with the rest of the wait staff. They all made sure our utensils were replaced after each course. Our waters were never even half empty. We were even asked if we wanted to have the rest of our soup to take home! When have you ever been asked that?! Here's the kicker: I was given a rose at the end of the night! I don't even like flowers, but I was floored! I'm sorry this is so long, but I am just that impressed with Sunfish Grill. HIGHLY recommend it!
(5)Lena L.
Great seafood. Would stay away frontage meats for the price. Amazing staff!!!! Joe was awesome. Tasty pastries. Not a younger crowd. More like 40-60s
(3)Dino P.
What an absolute delight and another great find in Fort Lauderdale! My friend and owner of Cafe Seville, which is right across the street from the Sunfish Grill, recommended we come here. What a great suggestion!! As you walk in, there is a beautiful wine bar and the decor throughout the restaurant is very warm and inviting. It's got a good feel! We were asked if we wished to sit in the main room or in a more private area and were promptly escorted to our table. Rick was our waiter and he did a great job. We had a blast with him - he was engaging and fun. He let us know right from the start that he would take our entire order at once since preparation of our entire meal would take some time and he didn't want us waiting too long between courses. I appreciated his advice. We started with a wonderful bottle of Malbec and apps of tuna tartare with avocado and a caramelized onion flatbread followed by an encrusted goat cheese and arugula salad. AMAZING!! Wow what a combination of flavors. When our entrees arrived they were stylish - a wonderful presentation. We had veal & mushroom pappardelle and spaghetti tuna bolognaise. The taste and flavors of both dishes were out of this world! Just fabulous!! Finally, we ended the evening with espresso and two to-die-for desserts. The "not the usual key lime pie" was mouthwatering and breathtaking. I wish I'd taken a picture. It was incredible to look at AND better to eat! For those that live for chocolate, the symphony of chocolate is a must. Soooo good - chocolate raspberry mousse and cake with decadent thin wedges of dark chocolate! Are you kidding me!! Lastly, and most importantly, Chef Erika came out on the floor and stopped at our table. That speaks volumes to me of the passion and the success she has with her business. Congrats to you Erika and thank you for a wonderful experience!!
(5)Francis C.
I popped in just in time to get the tapas specials (from 5-7pm), which I fully enjoyed. Several excellent dishes, all about $5, and full, heartily poured glasses of wine for about the same price. You can make a fantastic meal out of a few tapas and a few glasses of wine, which is exactly what I did. Gratis were some breadsticks baked lightly with marinara and cheese, along with a light condiment for dipping. The smoked fish napoleon was a clever presentation, three pieces of crispy thinbread forming a small structure by sandwiching tasty spheres of smoked fish, three columns with two rows. Some sliced jalapeno gave a lovely kick. The crab charlotte came out next - a tower of crab with avocado and lime ensconced in a vertical crown of cucumbers. I'll have to remember that presentation for a future meal that I cook. Last was the shrimp risotto suppli (or aranchini) - essentially, fried risotto balls with a light red sauce. All was taken down with two glasses of a Rosemount Shiraz, I believe. The food was solid, the wine was decent, the presentation was fast, the price was great...so, why did I not give this five stars? Perhaps it's my general reluctance to give out five stars, but in this case, I just didn't feel a "connection" to the restaurant. An ephemeral, imprecise statement, you might say, but I feel that the best experiences I have had were those where the staff and I ended up with a rapport by the end of the evening. This is not to say that the staff was not friendly, far from it. As always, "a chaque son gout," and although my preference may be for a slightly more relaxed meal when I'm dining on my own, some might prefer the formality of presentation and service.
(4)Mark A.
Acelyn B & I decided to check out the Dine Out menu when we learned about the promo. So we made our reservations & looked forward to the experience. Little did we know, it was going to be a real treat. However, we didn't necessarily have a great first impression with Sunfish. Located in a strip mall, we immediately became disappointed as we spotted the restaurant off Oakland Park Blvd. Let's face it, I don't exactly picture great restaurants to be located in a strip mall. Take my word for it though, Sunfish will NOT disappoint. We were seated early to partake in the Dine Out menu - tables must be seated by 630p on the weekends to take it for a spin. Our waiter, Joe, was friendly & informative about the menu. His service, along with the rest of the waitstaff was quite attentive to the point that they would make sure our silverware was adequate for the upcoming course & even in its proper setting on the table. The food. Oh the food. We both started with the soup - mainly to warm us up as we were a little chilly in the empty restaurant (It did start to fill around 7p just as Joe had mentioned to us). It was good, however the portion was so large & I'm not really much a fan of soup to begin with that I stranded a lot of it. The second course came out. Get the crab cake. Just do it. Presentation, plating, & flavors spot on! For our third course, the girlfriend ordered the mac & cheese while I went with the salmon. Both entrees were "just wow." The mac & cheese has to be the best truffled mac & cheese I've had the pleasure of experiencing. The salmon with its balsamic soy was also just as delightful! Unfortunately, I was so stuffed from the prior two courses that I maybe had 3 or 4 bites from my meal before I decided to give up & save room for dessert. To close, we chose the Chocolate Symphony. A symphony it was. Cake with mousse surrounded by dark chocolate triangles. Oh what a perfect way to close such a wonderful dining experience. The ambiance inside the restaurant is fairly romantic as it's a quaint establishment. The lighting & drapes around the ceiling are simply the perfect decor to set the right mood for the journey your taste buds are going to experience. It's a great place to bring your date (ask Acelyn, I'm sure her reviews will be glowing as well). Or you can bring your family or meet up with friends. Either way, prepare to enjoy the magical adventure they have to offer at Sunfish Grill. Cheers!
(5)Bob O.
Great seafood but they have the best deserts in town! They make them on premise including the ice cream. Soo good!!
(5)Shira S.
I had been here several years ago with my parents (I don't live in the area) and my mom thought to return when we were down visiting my grandmother this past weekend. I am so happy that we found this restaurant again. This time, I went with my mom, brother, grandmother, and my aunt and uncle. We had a made a reservation (highly recommend doing) and when I called to let them know we were running a few minutes late due to traffic, they had no problem accommodating us. We were seated immediately and quickly greeted by a server. I have no idea why, but our server changed after a few minutes, but I don't feel that it interrupted the flow or the service. Our waiter was fantastic, very attentive to all of us, and was able to accommodate a variety of requests (ie. half an order). Their wine list was quite varied in both style and price, which I appreciate. We ordered the Super Tuscan, which was "super yum" for a great price. Our food was also fantastic. I can't remember what everyone ordered, but no one was disappointed. My grandmother's conch fritters had whole pieces of conch inside, which is always a delightful surprise. My mom, brother, and I split a variety of items. We started with the "Crispy Shrimp & Spicy Crab Roll" which was huge as well as the "Calamari Saute". The calamari was ah-mazing! I could have kept eating that all night!! For dinner, we split the "Sunfish Linguine with Clams in Natural Broth", "Seared Rare Yellow Fin Tuna", and one of their specials that I did not try but my mom and brother said was great. I have got to figure out how to make the clam broth. The broth was so light and without any extra oils added. It also had a lot of whole clams, still in their shells, on it. The tuna was cooked perfectly and the sauce had a lot of flavor without being heavy. I really felt that overall the chef let the seafood stand on its own, while preparing it in a way that really enhanced the natural flavor of the fish or seafood. Several desserts were shared including the crème brulee, the key lime pie, and the chocolate symphony. My uncle finished the chocolate symphony so fast, no one even had a chance to try it. The key lime pie was full of flavor and the meringue on top was the perfect accompaniment. The crème brulee was huge! Three different "pots", each a different flavor and the perfect dessert to share. I would highly recommend Sunfish Grill for family events or a romantic date. The whole experience was wonderful and the delightful surprise with your check is just ice cream on the cake. Although expensive, my family and I will definitely be returning.
(5)