12 best restaurants near Sarasota for Florida stone crab and fresh Gulf seafood
While Florida's busy snowbird and tourist season lurks around the corner, our state's beloved stone crab season kicked off this past Sunday, Oct. 15, and the following day I secured a table at one of my favorite waterfront restaurants.
Located in the historic commercial fishing village of Cortez, nestled along north Sarasota Bay, we had returned to Swordfish Grill, taking our seats beneath the new thatched roof that towers over the back patio and tiki bar, offering spectacular views. As we marveled at the cool, October breeze and enjoyed the Steel Vibes duo's tropical renditions of classic rock and pop tunes, we were treated to the delightful sight of a pod of playful dolphins. Not long after, the sunset splashed vibrant orange across tranquil bay waters and surrounding mangroves.
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Indeed, Swordfish Grill offers an ideal Old Florida setting for savoring one of the Sunshine State's most iconic dishes. On Monday, the claws were available as either appetizers or entrees, in medium, large, and jumbo sizes, served in half or whole pound portions. We opted for the appetizer consisting of two large claws for $25. Served slightly chilled, the sweet, tender meat carried a hint of brine, reminiscent of its recent adventures in the Gulf of Mexico. The delicate meat paired wonderfully with Swordfish's deliciously tangy homemade mustard sauce, which would later enhance the French fries accompanying a fresh and expertly seasoned blackened grouper sandwich.
Yes, I plan to revisit Swordfish Grill before the end of stone crab season on May 1. I also have hopes of enjoying some claws at neighboring Cortez Kitchen, which is also owned by Cortezian John Banyas. Although temporarily closed in August for renovations, I'm told this open-air waterfront restaurant is expected to welcome guests back just in time for the 11th annual Cortez Stone Crab & Music Festival scheduled for Nov. 11-12.
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Best restaurants for Florida stone crab and more fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood in Sarasota and Bradenton area
Swordfish Grill is one of a dozen restaurants in Sarasota and Manatee counties that I recommend for Florida stone crab, as well as other fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood. Presented in alphabetical order, here are my favorite seafood places that I have confirmed are serving stone crab.
Beach House
200 Gulf Drive N., Bradenton Beach; 941-779-2222; beachhousedining.com
The only thing better than treating yourself to succulent morsels of stone crab is to have that experience with your toes in the sand while gazing out at the Gulf of Mexico. That’s what you’ll find at Beach House, where stone crab is served with an exceptional mustard sauce.
Owner Ed Chiles learned all about claws while working at world-famous Joe’s Stone Crab on Miami Beach and uses the original Joe’s recipe for the mustard sauce served at all three of his restaurants (continue reading).
Beach House is currently celebrating its 30th anniversary, so in addition to claws, consider a dish off their 1990s-inspired “throwback” menu. A selection of guests’ all-time favorite dishes, these include coconut shrimp, a barbecue platter, pan-seared crab cakes, steak tacos, and beechnut grouper.
Blue Marlin
121 Bridge St., Bradenton Beach; 941-896-9737; bluemarlinami.com
"Open Stone Crab Day was a success for our crab boat!," Blue Marlin posted to social media on Sunday. "Captain Mike Greig (and Blue Marlin owner Adam Ellis) will have it ready for your dinner tomorrow night!"
In addition to Blue Marlin's signature stone crab specials, some other highly recommended dishes include the clams steamed in white wine and garlic butter, the grouper sandwich featuring the fish fillet egg-washed "Fulford" style, and the grouper entrée coated with a crushed pretzel and pecan crust, and finished with honey butter.
Captain Brian’s Seafood Market & Restaurant
8421 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; 941-351-4492; captainbrians.com
Captain Brian’s is where locals in the know have been procuring their stone crab claws and other fresh seafood for dining in or taking out since the 1980s. Credit Captain Brian Bochan, a graduate of Sarasota's Riverview High, and a former commercial fisherman and skipper, who opened his namesake market and later expanded to include a restaurant.
Also, be sure to consider the lightly fried, fresh Gulf oysters, also known as Capt’s Famous Fried Oysters. If you're not in the mood for shellfish or mollusks, you can't go wrong with any of the freshly caught fish, including personal favorites like the red snapper or tripletail.
Columbia Restaurant
411 St. Armands Circle, Sarasota; 941-388-3987; columbiarestaurant.com
Sarasota's oldest full-service restaurant, the family-owned Columbia serves its claws chilled (unless requested heated) with a smartly balanced mustard sauce as well as drawn butter kept warm by a strategically placed candle. Other acclaimed seafood dishes at this iconic restaurant include paella, made with a long list of mouthwatering ingredients such as clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops, and calamari.
I've also enjoyed their Snapper "Adelita," Salmon Almeria, and Scallops "Casimiro." Of course, the Columbia's most famous dishes are the Cuban sandwich and the Original "1905" Salad, both prepared tableside. These, too, make for a fine feast when accompanied by an appetizer of stone crab claws.
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Dry Dock Waterfront Grill
412 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key; 941-383-0102; drydockwaterfrontgrill.com
Dry Dock recommends starting with a platter of fresh stone crab claws and pairing them with their spinach salad, adorned with strawberries, glazed pecans, and dried cranberries. For the main course, I totally agree with their recommendation of the Citrus Grouper. Lightly breaded and sautéed, and prepared with a citrus cream sauce that evokes the flavors of liquified Key lime pie, it’s undoubtedly one of the finest ways to consume Florida’s most famous fish.
Included on OpenTable's 2023 list of the 100 Most Popular Restaurants for Outdoor Dining, Dry Dock offers covered outdoor seating and elevated indoor seating, all of which provide stunning views of Sarasota Bay.
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Fresh Catch Fish Market & Grill
7119 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; 941-413-7133; freshcatchfishmarketandgrill.com
"Stone season is back!" Fresh Catch posted to social media on Monday along with a photo featuring some most impressive claws.
Located on Tamiami Trail just south of Gulf Gate, Fresh Catch has established itself as one of Sarasota's best seafood destinations since opening in 2017. A casual sit-down restaurant and popular market, it's also one of the region's top purveyors of stone crab, with co-owner Bob Provost proudly offering a full array of the prized claws.
Provost recommends dining in and enjoying the claws at room temperature with butter and perhaps a cold beer or a glass of chardonnay or pinot grigio, which they also serve. In addition, consider trying their mahi-mahi fish spread, homemade fish stew, or ahi tuna served with watermelon salsa.
Harry's Continental Kitchens
525 St. Judes Drive, Longboat Key; 941-383-0777; harryskitchen.com
If you're seeking a white-tablecloth experience, visit Harry's Continental Kitchens, a Longboat Key landmark established in 1979 that includes a deli and corner store. The upscale Harry's Restaurant offers posh indoor seating along with more casual patio front tables. The stone crab claws are available by the pound and half-pound. On Wednesday (Oct. 18), we ordered a half-pound serving. The two large claws were accompanied by a side of mustard sauce and a ramekin filled with their beloved corn salad, making for a delectable appetizer that costs $39, which I'm pretty sure is the most I have ever paid for a pair of stone crab claws.
Yes, you will spend more at Harry's than, let's say, in Cortez, but the Longboat Key restaurant offers luxury dining, including the seafood options we recently tried. For instance, the half-dozen Oysters Rockefeller, priced at $20, were elevated by thick, crispy cuts of candied bacon and anisette. Meanwhile, the perfectly pan-seared quartet of scallops, at $46, arrived covered in crushed pecans and accompanied by celery root puree and amaretto cream, with the sweetness balanced by roasted fresh asparagus. I also enjoyed the $44 red snapper special this week. It's worth noting that one of the best grouper sandwiches I've had in recent memory was at Harry's during lunch there back in July. While it did cost $30, it featured a large fillet of fish on a delicious Kaiser-style roll from their onsite bakery, and it's hard to put a price tag on a sandwich I'm still savoring three months later.
Mar Vista Dockside
760 Broadway St., Longboat Key; 941-383-2391; marvistadining.com
On the Manatee County side of Longboat Key overlooking the bay near Anna Maria Island and the other Chiles Restaurant Group businesses Beach House and Sandbar (keep reading), Mar Vista occupies a wooded, waterfront setting that turns every visit into a tropical vacation. You'll find outdoor tables shaded by a canopy of buttonwood trees, additional seating on the covered deck facing the water, and a newer indoor dining area and bar for those seeking air conditioning.
In addition to the stone crab claws, you'll definitely want to save room for a bowl of plump Gulf shrimp poached in beer, Old Bay, and garlic butter. And I must admit, I've never visited Mar Vista without indulging in way too many of the tots, covered in onion and pepper jack cheese and served with chipotle honey mustard.
Sandbar
100 Spring Ave., Anna Maria; 941-778-0444; sandbardining.com
"Stone Crab season officially kicked off yesterday, on October 15th," Sandbar posted to social media. "And we're thrilled to announce that thanks to local fishermen we're bringing these local delicacies to your plate TONIGHT!"
The oldest and probably the most famous of Ed Chiles’ trio of postcard-perfect restaurants, the beachfront Sandbar on the north end of Anna Maria Island offers guests fabulous al fresco beach seating as well as indoor seating with wonderful window views. In addition to the stone crab claws, be sure to explore their selection of fresh catches, which can be enjoyed as entrees, sandwiches, or tacos. Also, don't forget to treat yourself to a basket of artisanal bread from Chiles' Anna Maria Bake House.
Star Fish Company Market & Restaurant
12306 46th Ave. W., Cortez; 941-794-1243; starfishcompany.com
While there are many places serving fresh Florida stone crab, Star Fish Co. in Cortez also offers a highly addictive bowl of stone crab chowder. And while claw prices continue to rise — Star Fish's range from $21.95 (appetizer of four medium) to the equally fair $43.95 (two-three jumbo) — you can still enjoy a bowl of their delicious and chunky chowder for under 10 bucks while seated right on the working docks of this historic commercial fishing village.
What else should you consider ordering at the ultra-casual, cash-only Star Fish? Well, the Cortez Special Highliner with sautéed scallops and blackened grouper we had the other evening, along with the chowder, always hits the spot. However, my personal favorite remains the blackened mullet with a side of cheese grits. It’s a true taste of Old Florida, and I’m pretty sure it's owner Karen Bell’s preferred dish too, if she were ever forced to choose among her menu, which also includes items such as the shrimp and oyster po' boy, soft shell crabs, and fried shrimp that were thoroughly enjoyed in 2016 by Emeril Lagasse.
Swordfish Grill
4628 119th St. W., Cortez; 941-798-2035; swordfishgrillcortez.com
In addition to the previously mentioned stone crab claws, Swordfish Grill recently unveiled my new favorite appetizer: Nashville Hot Grouper Bites ($27). These are chunks of grouper fried and tossed in a spicy blend of seasonings, resulting in a flavor bomb that adds a satisfying kick and crunch to the fresh, tender pieces of fish. The dish is then finished with honey and house-made pickles for the win. It was listed as a special when we visited on Monday (Oct. 16), but I'm hoping it becomes a regular fixture. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if Nashville Hot-style grouper bites soon rival my other local favorite, the Thai chili grouper bites, in popularity.
What else to order at Swordfish? Daily catches, like grouper, red snapper, and mahi-mahi are always recommended. I also love their baked bacon jalapeno oysters, and the bacon-wrapped scallops that come with a sweet-heat apricot-horseradish dipping sauce. Yes, when feasting on fresh seafood, I like to throw in some bacon for good measure.
Walt's Fish Market Restaurant & Tiki Bar
4144 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; 941-921-4605; waltsfishmarketrestaurant.com
It's sure to be another busy season at the century-plus-old Walt's, with fourth-generation owner and fisherman Brett Wallin recommending pairing stone crab with their Linda’s Margarita or perhaps a locally brewed beer. He insists on eating the claw meat cold, perhaps with hot drawn butter and his restaurant’s signature mustard sauce, and trust me, nobody in Sarasota knows stone crab better than Wallin.
Walt's also serves an outstanding Square Grouper Sandwich, along with other favorites of mine, including the Firecracker Grouper Bites and Snapper Melt. Really, though, the best way to experience Walt's is probably just to get an order of claws followed by an entrée from their market (red snapper, grouper, mahi-mahi or tripletail) and have it flame-broiled with a side of house-made lemon cream sauce.
Wade Tatangelo is Ticket Editor for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, and Florida Regional Dining and Entertainment Editor for the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. He can be reached by email at wade.tatangelo@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Best Sarasota, Bradenton restaurants for Florida stone crab, seafood
