Recently my wife and family when to Doc Ford's Rum Bar and…read moreGrille, on Sanibel Island. This restaurant is simply an institution on the island. It is without question a must do, when you're here. My family and I have been coming here for many years, and it only has gotten better each time. This location has two floors of seating, more importantly two bars you can sit at. After checking in with the hostess, our wait was only about twenty minutes. Once seated at our table all of us were ready to order. For drinks we ordered two rounds I got the Dark and Stormy for both rounds(Gosling's Black Seal Rum mixed with Gosling's Ginger Beer & a squeeze of lime) my ordered a mango and coconut mojito; my sister in law ordered a rum runner. We all loved our drinks. Drinks here are always made perfect. For an appetizer we shared the calamari. The breading was light and the calamari was tender. For entrees my sister in law and I ordered the Deep Water Mahi Mahi(Hand-cut mahi-mahi seared in sweet soy sauce, placed on a jasmine rice stir fry with a tropical vinaigrette) This dish is my favorite meal here. The mahi was tender, the sweet soy sauce and the tropical vinaigrette ties everything together. My wife ordered the Yucatan Shrimp with a side of jalapeño cheese grits. She gave me two thumbs up. My father in law Grouper Sandwich (Fresh grouper grilled, blackened, or fried. Served with Doc's tartar sauce on a freshly baked roll) He ordered his fried. He loves the grouper sandwich here and usually gets it. Again, this is another place we will always comeback to.

Before I get into the entrees that were great, let me first acknowledge MARK our server. The four…read moreof us were here 4/21/26 on Table 105/1 for Lunch. MARK was very professional, personable, brought everything over in a timely manner, helpful with the menu choices and a great sense of humor. He's a great asset to the restaurant. Once again, thanks Mark! Great talking with you as well...... Doc Ford's is always great over the many years and comfortable sitting outside on the patio. We all enjoyed everything we had. Will be more descriptive later but wanted to get this review on time as I promised it to be.

Such a amazing experience at the blue giraffe restaurant. I ordered the taco salad and it was…read moredelicious. You could tell it was made with care. All of the staff here is always so so so friendly and that is the reason why me and my family keep coming back. Thanks for the amazing time!

What a difference a year makes! Excellent service, great…read moredrinks with quick food delivery. The menu was extensive and all of our meals were delicious Glad they figured it out

servers are so sweet!! definitely recommend hayley she was the sweetest. food was so good. and the…read morevibes and atmosphere were so hype!

Went for lunch and we ordered the calamari and the grouper sandwich. The calamari was very good,…read morethey had the bottoms of the squid too which were yummy. The grouper sandwich was excellent, best I have had, although my grouper portion was pretty small for the price (~$27). I think they gave me blackened and I ordered mesquite but idec. Service was good and draft beer price was lower than id seen anywhere else on the island. Overall worth a visit, and maybe a second

We enjoyed our experience at the Sanibel Cafe. Staff were very friendly and attentive. We tried the…read morebreakfast quesadilla and steak omelet. The jams are fresh and they sell them at the counter too. The restaurant was clean with cute local decor. Overall I would recommend!

Local diner. Great for breakfast. Food and service A+. Tried the crunchy French Toast. Yum.read more

We had a fabulous experience at BRGR Kitchen & Bar! I ordered the Mahi Mahi burger with truffle…read morefries, and it was phenomenal! The fish was fresh and didn't have that overly "fishy" taste that can sometimes come with seafood. The portion was large and the price was a pleasant surprise, about half of what many other restaurants charge for Mahi Mahi. Our waitress was friendly and genuinely sweet. The restaurant itself was spotless, vibrant, and had a welcoming atmosphere. It is just a short walk to the beach, making it the perfect spot for lunch or dinner after enjoying the ocean.

The restaurant had a casual laid back inviting vibe. The food was excellent! The flavors were very…read morecreative! I order grilled shrimp tacos which had jalapeños for heat, special jelly for sweetness, and a special sauce. Shrimp was grilled to perfection and the taste of it all was wonderful. Husband ordered a burger over a salad. The salad had so many ingredients I can't even remember but the flavor of everything came together beautifully, culinary magic. I would describe this restaurant as stale casual. Was excellent and we will definitely return again.

As good as it gets, & our best meal & drinks on the island!…read more We had expert server Nick & were so happy with him! He was extremely personable, fun, & sooo efficient at his job! He treated us like family, & took such good care of us. We started with cocktails: Miami Vice, Pina Colada, & a Pain Killer at Nicks suggestion. They were all delicious. Next up shared appetizers of smoked fish dip & crab cakes. I usually dislike crab cakes, but I wanted to eat all of them. The smoked fish dip was delicious too & whoever thought of frying the saltines is a genius! For our meals we each got a lunch for dinner platter which was plenty of food with the accompanying house made chips & super ripe fruit. Two of us got the coconut shrimp. They were large, fresh & delicious, very heavy on the batter. The pineapple dipping sauce was perfect with them. Two in our party got salmon & said it was excellent. They ate every bite of it. One of us devoured his lobster roll with great enjoyment. The only non- seafood eater had what he described as a really good burger. He's like Mikey from Life cereal, he hates everything...so that's very high praise for the burger. For dessert we shared both the chocolate cake & key lime pie. I usually don't like Key Lime pie because it's almost always too sweet. But theirs is amazing. Dense, creamy & very tangy, with grated lime zest all throughout the pie. The cake was delicious too. There wasn't a bite of anything left. The ambience is great. Very nautical with lovely views. The exterior is very pretty, & inside it is cozy, casual & approachable. The a/c works really well too. The servers were all cheerful & the other diners seemed to be enjoying themselves. It was such a great overall experience. Highly recommend!

Great marina setting for this top notch seafood restaurant on Sanibel Island…read more You won't regret if you choose any of the fresh seafood entrees on the menu including either Mahi-Mahi or Grouper. I like that you can also order from the lunch menu while adding an appetizer to enjoy for dinner. Ample parking adjacent to the restaurant is plentiful and convenient.

One of the must go to restaurants on the island! The food is excellent! My sea bass was cooked…read moreperfectly! My wife's meal was just as good. Caleb our server was very knowledgeable and gave great recommendations. We have visited this restaurant twice and were never disappointed. We always make an effort to go here when we visit the island for a family vacation! 5/5 stars! Must go!

Pros: Best seafood pasta I had ever had. Like, amazing and huge portions!…read more Cons: overpriced. So so so overpriced.

If you're looking for breakfast on Sanibel, Lighthouse Cafe absolutely deserves a visit. We love…read morebreakfast, and after trying so many places over the years, it can start to feel like every menu offers the same dishes prepared the same way. Lighthouse Cafe managed to make a classic breakfast memorable. We ordered the French toast, and the portion was huge and easy to split. More importantly, it was absolutely delicious. The eggs we ordered were cooked exactly as needed, the bacon was perfectly crisp, and the cheese grits were rich, creamy, and full of flavor. We literally cleaned our plates and ate every bite despite our intentions to simple stop by for a taste. One of the biggest surprises was adding fish to breakfast. It's not something I would have ever thought to eat for breakfast, but it ended up being one of the highlights of the meal. The fish was incredibly tender and paired surprisingly well with the rest of the meal. It was such a unique addition that it changed the way I think about breakfast. We intentionally ordered some standard breakfast items because we believe that's the best way to judge a breakfast restaurant. If a place can make the classics exceptionally well, that's usually a great sign. Lighthouse Cafe exceeded our expectations across the board with their delicious plates and service. Not to mention it is nice to visit a locally owned restaurant whose owner is present and working alongside their staff. From the quality of the food to the generous portions, everything was excellent. If you're on Sanibel and want a breakfast that goes beyond the ordinary while still nailing all the classics, Lighthouse Cafe is a great place to visit.

This establishment is definitely one of the better places on the island for a great breakfast…read more Dailey specials like crab cake & spinach Benedict, stuffed French toast along with typical American breakfast offerings are available. The owner, Dan greets each and everyone that walks in the door. The coffee is robust and they are quick to refill your cup. Definitely a place where you feel welcome and the service is great.

We went with friends to one of their favorite restaurants in the area. We were lucky to get a a…read moretable for four on the Saturday sometime late in the evening after 9:30pm. The bistro was bustling with full tables. The place has a great vibe and is comfortable and very pleasantly decorated. It reminded us of some of the places we frequented when we lived in Paris. The owner is French as was our waitress, Angelika. We shared two orders of Escargots which were excellent. Salads were served between the courses as a palette cleanser. And then on to two Boeuf Bourguignons for the ladies. My friend had a medium-rare Filet de Boeuf and I had a Canard a l'Orange (one of my favorite dishes) also medium-rare. Each of the dishes was exceptional. For drinks we had sparkling water and a decent house Pinot Noir. My friend took a nonalcoholic wine and a beer. We ended up with an excellent Lemon Cream and I had to have an espresso. The meal was expensive ($332 to which I added a $70 tip) but it was all well worth it. We were visiting from the Boston area, and if we lived in the vicinity we would undoubtedly be regular patrons. I seldom give a restaurant five stars but this one deserves it. I will recommend highly the place. It was one of the best French meals and restaurants at which we have dined in the States.

By far best restaurant in Captiva or Sanibel, food is fresh, staff so friendly, helpful. Must do!read more

We had visited this restaurant over ten years ago and we're excited to see they reopened after the…read morehurricane. With reservations for a birthday dinner we were a little early but seated right away in a busy dining room. I ordered a Shrimp Livornaise with housemade pasta. The dish was tasty and the shrimp were large but the pasta was minimal and just ok. We split a Cedar salad and saw a $5 charge on our bill for the kitchen splitting the salad, of which we were not informed when ordering. Also our bill included a 3% "COST OF DOING BUSINESS" charge when first presented, not knowing if we were paying by Cash or Credit card. Not the same experience as our first visit.

We had a decent dinner here. They've remodeled since we were here last -- over 10 years ago…read more Luckily, they didn't suffer much damage at all from Hurricane Ian. But as we left, we both said to each other that something was off and we wouldn't be back. I can't put my finger on it exactly. It didn't help that they charge an extra fee for doing business (!) that was on the bill presented to us --even before they knew whether we were going to pay with cash or a credit card -- and that they had a splitting dish charge of $5 (which I had them remove; as it was never explained, only offered). Or that they never acknowledged my husband's birthday. But they did have our reservation correctly and we were seated immediately. The room is large and airy and open. But it's also without any warmth or personality. The large loud table of young couples seated next to us -- who didn't know what most of the menu items were -- didn't help. Our service was okay, too. But here again something felt a tad off and fake. We started by sharing a caprese salad. We added extra balsamic glaze. For our main dishes, my husband had the shrimp Livornese. Large shrimp served with olives and capers in a tomato sauce. The pasta was skimpy and he doubted that it was housemade. I had their salmon. It came with mashed potatoes and a couple asparagus spears. It was good. For dessert, we had the berry cobbler without the ice cream. It was disappointing. And would have been better served hot -- not barely lukewarm. I'm glad we came back to try them. Now we know.