Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant

Reviews 6

HE

heather farley

Had a family friend recommend this place. We preferred a table close to the water, which we could see many tables available...we were told that it would be about a 30 minute wait, since we had my 92 year old grandmother with us, we opted for seating that was right up against the indoor area. People that came right after us were seated where we preferred to be seated. It took almost 20 minutes before or server came over to get our drink order, which was crazy, as several wait staff walked by several times. I ordered an unsweet tea being told that they did have my sweetener, which after it was brought out she said they didnt have it and so I ended up trading with my husband. My husband asked for lemons twice..finally received them. The Calamari was really good and we were grateful that we had ordered it because it took another 45 minutes before we received our food, which was 2 steaks, Ahi Poke and a sampler. The steaks lacked flavor, although they were cooked correctly. We had to ask our waitress to bring out a side that she had forgot about. The restaurant itself had a wonderful concept, but unfortunately there was a huge group of loud and abnoxious locals, making it hard to hear our own conversations. Our waitress was nice and when we asked where our food was, her response was that they were so busy....but within minutes of asking, she finally brought it out. We noticed people that came after us leaving way before us, and were not pleased with our overall experience. Im sure that this was an off night since there are so many awesome reviews. After spending over 2 hours, and over $150, missing a sunset... We will go back to the Lazy Lobster and skip Mar Vista on next years visit... I hate giving poor reviews, hence giving this place a 3 instead of a 1!

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RI

Rick Fornataro

I would not recommend this establishment. Mar Vista restaurant was suggested as a dining experience during our visit to adjacent Anna Maria Island. I anticipated the long wait for seating during this time of year but I am severely disappointed with the experience that followed. The food was not commensurate with the quality, quantity and taste I expected irrespective of the tourist traffic. I have no problem paying for $30+ entrees but I expect a better quality experience for that price. Our server was very friendly. The salad was unimaginative at best. The dinner rolls were straight from a grocery store freezer. My entrée, $32 Grouper, appeared lost on the plate adjacent to the four diminutive stalks of plain asparagus that accompanied the meal. If this is what the average vacationers to this reputable area find acceptable while in Florida then so be it. This establishment would not survive it’s first season in the northeast as a restaurant. I have honestly purchased much better fare from a food truck. If you want to take a chance at the limited possibility of a scenic experience, be adventurous but dont expect good food despite the other reviews that seem to be satisfied. More than likely, youll be seated in the inner area which leads you to hope that the food will make up for the dinghy accommodations. Even the menus were disgustingly dirty. Sorry but thats just an honest opinion. Very, very disappointed.

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PH

philip massam

The view is excellent, and the tables under the trees on the shore of the waterway are nicely located in the trees and under strands of lights, but our latest visit to this restaurant left us disappointed compared to previous visits in previous years. It was not busy when we arrived and we said wed like to sit on a table by the water under the lights. The host led us to a table and chairs that were quite wet, remarked that it had just been raining and asked if wed like him to dry them off. Should not have been a question. Our server was efficient, but not friendly. Adequate, but not making the experience memorable in any way. The food was OK. Another reviewer remarked that the rolls seemed like they were from a store, and yes, it did feel that way. Also felt like the coleslaw was the same way, bland, and spooned from a large container. The portions were adequate, but the food itself was not exciting. Neither or us were excited by our meals which is unusual. Additionally I would suggest that serving the food as isolated islands on huge plates is probably giving some diners the feeling that the portions are small. In conclusion, we did have a disappointing experience at this restaurant on this occasion. It feels like some attention to quality control is lacking in the kitchen, presentation and service. The excellent view is not enough in itself to overcome the deficiencies.

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A

A Private User

I was at this restaurant yesterday - ordered the crab salad. It was a pasta with small bits of crab, and some sweet red pepper. The flavor was good, but as opposed to just tossing the crab and pasta with some of the tasty dressing, it was saturated - literally swimming in a sea of dressing - making a very nasty, gloppy, texture. There was a side of fruit - there was so much may dressing that it got onto the fruit. The fruit was tasteless, commercial purchased melon. As the server took away my nearly untouched plate, she asked if I was full - did I want dessert - yeah right! I think she knew I did not like the dish - a good server would have asked if all was well. The sad thing is that this dish could be really good - just dont overdress a salad! I have eaten at this place twice before and had good results - bathrooms were clean where it counts, but quite a bit of mold in the vanity area - 2 shots of bleach would take care of this!

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JO

Joe Allen

First off. It was my first-time,, I was not impressed with the look of the place but I was with a wedding and thats where the bride wanted to go. We had a group of about 20 people and where seated at different tables. We asked if we could put the tables together the allowed us to do so. We had to attends. They seem like they were mad with each other. The female that we had was great the guy we had was horrible. His drinks came out very slow and you could tell he was upset about something. At the end when we went to pay the bill we got some story about how the bill could not be split because it would be to time consuming and because the reservation did not say anything about separate bills it would take about 15 to 20 minutes to figure it out. The bride ended up putting it on her card just so we could leave. At the end of the day, the perfect day she had planned was ruined. Thanks.

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KY

Kyle Taylor

First of all Im not a judge of a restaurant on the 1st or 2nd visit. Im a local and have gave MarVista plenty of chances, each time stating I would not return but I feel everyone has an off day or two. After multiple visit with the same subpar service and overpriced food I had it. No more return visits for me and my family. The food is good but, in my opinion overpriced for what it is. There are plenty of other restaurants near AMI that offer straight of the boat seafood at a more reasonable price. The service is what really has me over the edge. Most of the time we dine early and the place is not even busy, but it takes the wait staff anywhere from 5-10mins before anyone even acknowledges that you have sat down. The last time no one even came after 10mins of siting down to ask what we wanted to drink, so we just got up and left... For the last time.

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