Jacksonville Beach seafood restaurant named one of best in U.S. by Yelp

Gary T. Mills, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union
Updated ·2 min read

When it comes to seafood restaurants in Jacksonville and at the Beaches, diners looking for a good meal have plenty of options, including several waterfront restaurants and others tucked away in one of the area’s surplus of strip malls.

But for those looking for a recommendation, Yelp has a suggestion.

In its just-released list of the Top 100 Seafood Spots 2024, the popular crowd-sourced review site named Jacksonville Beach’s Dockside Seafood Restaurant among the nation’s best.

Just missing the Top 10, the seafood spot from restaurateurs Ben and Liza Groshell ranked No. 11 on the list based on factors including the total volume and ratings of reviews between Jan. 1, 2001 and Dec. 13, 2023.

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Fresh snapper and scallop basket on the intracoastal waterway at Dockside Seafood.
Fresh snapper and scallop basket on the intracoastal waterway at Dockside Seafood.

Located on the Intracoastal Waterway at 2510 2nd Ave. N., Dockside Seafood opened as Safe Harbor Seafood Restaurant in 2016 and changed its name to Dockside in 2020.

The restaurant is just one of several seafood concepts from the Groshells, whose Southern Table Hospitality group includes the landmark Marker 32 and the popular fish camp restaurants at Julington Creek, North Beach, Palm Valley and St. Augustine as well as Valley Smoke, AB Kitchen and soon-to-open Billy Jack’s BBQ.

According to Yelp, Dockside Seafood Restaurant boasts a 4.6 rating among more than 1,450 reviews.

Here’s what Yelpers have to say about the restaurant:

  • “Best quality for the price range ... and boy is it quality!”

  • “Ya'll this place was great! The second you walk in you know the food will be so fresh!”

  • “Absolutely phenomenal! I can't explain how much I love it here!”

  • “It's a rarity that I dish out a five-star review but I could give it 10 stars if that was available.”

The restaurant’s menu features a large selection of baskets and combos with shrimp, fried deviled crab, fried clam strips, fried oysters and more, served with fries, slaw and hush puppies. There’s also oysters and steamed peel-and-eat shrimp, clam chowder, seafood Po’ Boys sandwiches and tacos.

Yelp users recommend Dockside’s grilled Mahi Mahi, Tuna Poke, Crab Savannah Soup, Mayport shrimp, grilled Basa basket, baked scallops, blackened trigger fish, fried grouper and more.

Florida restaurants named to Yelp’s Top 100 Seafood Spots 2024

  • Happy Snapper Seafood, Orlando (No. 6)

  • J Crab House, Kissimmee (No. 7)

  • Dockside Seafood Restaurant, Jacksonville Beach (No. 11)

  • FreshCo Fish Market & Grill, Miami (No. 13)

  • Indialantic Seafood Company, Indialantic (No. 17)

  • Scooter’s Fish House, Navarre (No. 18)

  • Stewby’s Seafood Shanty, Fort Walton Beach (No. 21)

  • Mad Crab Seafood, Orlando (No. 28)

  • Macker Seafood, Daytona Beach (No. 31)

  • Dry Dock Waterfront Grill, Longboat Key (No. 32)

  • Cape Cod Fish, Fort Myers (No. 38)

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Dockside Seafood in Jax Beach named to Yelp's Top 100 Seafood Spots