Only for the view! The breakfast is not prepared correctly, asked for crispy bacon not crispy, grits not done and cold, pancakes tough and tasteless. Service excellent View is beautiful. Expensive for mediocre food. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - View of beach from my table. - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

We spent about $100 at the bar in roughly 30 minutes for two burgers and two glasses of wine. Afterward, our server told us we could sit outside under the umbrellas and finish our drinks. Then the owner came over and told us we had to pay another $20 just to sit under an umbrella and finish the drinks we had already purchased. On top of that, he initially wanted $30 for parking. Everything here seems to come with another charge. The food was nothing special and definitely not worth the price, the drinks were extremely overpriced, and the service was only average. What bothered us most was the owner's attitude. Instead of making paying customers feel welcome, it felt like he was constantly looking for another way to charge us. We had already spent $100 and simply wanted to sit down for a few minutes and finish our drinks. There are plenty of restaurants where customers are actually appreciated. We will not be coming back and cannot recommend this place. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Bar - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

Date of Visit: Nov. 15, 2025 The wife and I were on another road trip from the other side of the Skyway. We had stopped at another place for a beverage but were not hungry at the time. We did a little bit of shopping and worked up an appetite and wanted to stop by this burger joint I had visited a few months back but the lot was full and no place to park, we kept going down the boulevard. We weren't sure if we wanted to give this another try but we did, mainly because they had spots open in their parking lot. We made our way across the street and entered the cafe. Lucky there were two openings at the bar. We sit at the bar usually cause the service is better. And this where it was dejavu all over again. We had been here several before and really had good service. Took a while the get the bar tenders attention, again. We finally did and ordered a couple beers, then he disappeared when we were ready to order and the other people behind the bar ignored us till we spoke up, "We're ready to order" and the one girl looked at us like deer in the headlights. She had to go and get her gadget to place the order. The menu had several good choices but I wasn't taking any chances, I ordered the double smash-burger with fries and the wife the classic club with slaw. After ordering I could see they were still working on the place after last years storms, the kitchen was set-up in front out of a big trailer and for as many people this place can seat at least 200, there were only two unisex bathrooms, wow. The food arrived and it looked pretty good. I liked the burger, not the best I had but fair. The fries were average as well. My wife's club was huge, she could only eat half of it and she said it was good as well. The best part was the slaw, she had me taste it and it was very good. Once again, when we were ready for our check the bartender was more interested in the college football game on the TV, that took a moment to get his attention. If you can look past the below average service and just above average food, the ambiance is the best part of this place. Right on the shores of the Gulf of MEXICO...Peace. read more

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We had such a good time here. Torre, the waitress let us sit there for hours and it was so lovely, as I was with my grandma. The food was excellent, very fast, and the vibe here is always a blast. We have not been doing brunch or dinner here in quite some time, even though we live across the way, but we will be back now that we had an amazing experience. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

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Great food, awesome vibe, ocean views and superb service. We will be back for sure!!! Cold drinks and awesome views. Staff was great since the rain kept switching direction, they helped us move our seating three times. Live music was a plus. read more

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Fun & casual place to eat or drink and have a wonderful beach view. Pet friendly as I brought Lucy & Ethel in their stroller. Building looks like a large tiki hut, open air. Lots of TVs to watch any game. Very friendly staff. Nice beer options. read more

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Everyone is very friendly here and happy to please. We sat at a high top in the bar area in the sun overlooking the ocean from 4:30-5:30pm and the drinks were very reasonable. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - The outdoor dining area. - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

What a view for lunch! Front row to the Gulf of America! Ordered a spicy margarita and calamari my wife had clam chowder. Both were very good. Drink prices a bit steep but I guess it's all about location! The service is good crowded place so expect a little bit of a wait read more

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Very nice ambiance! Right on the beautiful Gulf of America ! Food was good and so we're the Drinks read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Clam chowder, margarita, calamari - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

The bartender disappears with your money and you need to hunt him down for your change. I read other comments from people that this has happened to and one customer complained and the manager just shrugged it off. It is probably his usual " thing". Condoned by management. read more

DONT go here! The $25 pina coladas (in the coconuts) we were told were over 12 ounces, they were less than 5 ounces. Spoke to the manager and she had a horrible attitude and only took half off the price instead of giving us a 12 ounce drink like promised. They also charged us for a bottle of water! $4 for a small cup of black coffee. $60 breakfast for two people. Would NOT recommend- save your money and go somewhere else. read more

Saw low reviews but gave it a shot and loved this place. The view of the ocean is fantastic! Great if you have kids that want to play or walk on the beach while waiting for your food because you have an unblocked view of them. Food and service were excellent! read more

i ordered a cobb salad with dill dressing which was delicious. The dressing was great. Big portion which was great to share. everything else was good. slow service though maybe it was just busy read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - view - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

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Lots of good places to eat on the island. This isn't it. Staff are nice but food isn't good.

Great location with parking. We sat right on the beach and enjoyed our first breakfast during our vacation. Delicious Bloody Mary's were a perfect start to our trip. Service was great. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Bloody Mary - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

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Great food! Great view! Great company! Great service! If you're nearby, be sure to stop!

The view is lovely, but the service was horrible; the waiter never showed up. We asked the hostess about the waiter--we saw her speak to one guy, but he walked away; then she spoke to another, and he left too. No one ever came, so we had to get up and leave. It was a terrible experience in that regard; we never even got to try the food. Just imagine arriving at such a beautiful spot--right on the water's edge--only to find that the waiters simply don't care and don't want to serve you. That was it for me; I'm never going back. read more

Service was great. Chris was the man. Food and coffee both tasted great and it was right on the beach!

Food was yummy! Maddison is a terrific waitress! Great ocean view! God willing, we will be back again! read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

The atmosphere was just awesome, and Mike, our server, made everything feel so homey. After the updates to the location, the whole place feels even more warm and inviting. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

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Our server, Amanda was amazing! The shrimp Diablo pasta was absolutely delicious. I will be dreaming about it. They took care of our group of six and were very welcoming. It is a beautiful location. I recommend going at sunset. read more

We showed up at Gulf Drive Cafe and the sign out front said "Seat Yourself." My husband and I chose a table in front of the beach, especially since another couple before us had done the same thing, so we assumed it was perfectly okay. We sat there for about 10 minutes and nobody came to greet us, bring menus, or even ask for drink orders. Meanwhile, the couple beside us was being attended to, and other customers who came in after us were also getting menus and drinks while we continued to be ignored. At that point, we decided to leave due to the lack of customer service and poor attitude. As we walked out, nobody acknowledged us or said a word. Then we noticed an employee turn the sign around to "Please Wait to Be Seated." That was NOT what the sign said when we arrived, or we never would have seated ourselves in the first place. I've been a waitress before, so I understand how restaurants work. The issue wasn't confusion -- it was the complete lack of communication and customer service. The beach view may be amazing, but the service to paying customers was completely unacceptable. The restaurant wasn't even busy, which made the experience even more disappointing. read more

We stumbled upon this gulf front restaurant for brunch after my husband's open water swim. What a fantastic location with a view that can't be beat! The service was friendly and the food was great. read more

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So we were meeting friends and family at this location.. I checked the reviews and was rolling my eyes at low marks and was wondering what we were going to get . So we sat on the beach portion to watch the sunset.. view was terrific!! Drinks were okay. It's a beach bar!!! My margarita was good as were the run runners and other drinks. Food wise we ordered a variety of appetizers. The peel and eat shrimp were perfect not over cooked and seemingly fresh! The grouper bites were good also a long with the smoked mahi mahi fish spread with capers. These were all very good and surprisingly tasty. Main course wise.--many items ordered-- I will highlight a few..- the avacado salad with grilled grouper and mango was terrific. Well cooked and tasty with fresh avocado and fresh mango ( note: I tried this and I normally don't care for mango but this was perfectly ripe!). The fish tacos is a very large portion of three fried white fish tacos. These were all good tasting fish and so big--- that I ate it as an open faced fish sandwich. The Cobb salad was large and enjoyed to a clean plate! Along with the turkey club sandwich! Overall everyone enjoyed this and our server Brandon was very kind and efficient and effective. We would totally go back!. I personally think some of the other reviews we're a bit harsh. read more

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Don't recommend unless you want to pay for Sam's Club food. Highly recommend Beach House right down the street.

Fantastic food, great atmosphere, Cailyn is amazing!! We enjoyed bacon scallops, wings, grouper bites, and much more!

The last time I visited was 2014 so yes many years ago but.... I visited last week they allow you to park there for 90 mins while eating I spent 170.00 On food and drinks the first day and had to pay an additional $40.00 For parking and I kept getting drinks from there which I didn't mind but it's ridiculous to spend that much money and still Have to pay for parking . The 2nd day I spent well over 250.00 for food and drinks and had to pay 80.00 for parking on top of that . It's a scam !!!!! I feel like if you are spending that much money on food and drink you should not have to pay additional for parking . I get the parking fee for folks who are not spending at the restaurant for food and drink but not a customer spending that much ! read more

We had super Fast service. Lively staff. Great drinks and Beautiful view. Live band. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Beach bar - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

As I was leaving Anna Maria island I stumbled on this gem of a restaurant that is located right on Bradenton beach with gorgeous views. The restaurant and large bar were both busy. I was lucky to get a table and watch the sunset. Despite the busy time the service was very good, timely and pleasant. I enjoyed my coconut shrimp and the grouper sandwich. The place is very lively with people enjoying their time with friends and families. read more

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AJ was the best bartender! Great smile, friendly, helpful with the recommendations. She was quick too. You gotta try the Brussel Sprouts appetizer! read more

Mediocre food Table service was Poor - prefer the bar. Ambiance- the only good thing last time we were there. My fish and chips were pretty bad. More batter than fish. read more

AJ is a star! this is our favorite bar on AMI. the Brussels sprout app and coconut shrimp are incredible. We Will keep coming back!

Dined here on June 23 with family. One star is for the exceptional view. We all ordered grouper, which was overcooked and too salty. For the $$$ expected this to be on point. They do not offer ice water to drink. The worst part were the racial expletives shouted at my cousin as we went to walk the beach after the meal - including threats to have my SUV towed unless $40.00 was paid in addition to the patronage just conducted. Spend your money elsewhere. As a Bradenton native this was extremely disappointing. read more

My husband and I recently visited this place. The food was good and our waitress was excellent. However, the owner has serious anger issues and lacks basic customer service skills. We paid $55 for parking and beach access, spent $177.80 on food and drinks, and paid an additional $50 to use the tiki area on the beach. We also bought two more drinks and a get a cup of water. At one point, my husband poured the water on his jetty, which infuriated the owner. He stormed over to the tiki, insulted my husband, and told us to leave. I was at the beach at the time and came over when I saw what was happening. I showed the owner the $50 charge from the bar, but he refused to listen. Our waitress even tried to advocate for us, but the owner instructed all staff not to speak to us. During the dispute, the bartender offered to refund the $50 charge. However, somehow we ended up being charged another $50. The owner then barred us from returning to the bar to resolve the issue and we had to leave the premise. read more

While waiting for their overpriced food and drinks, we asked for a glass of water. The server said "we stopped giving out glasses of water after the hurricane". It was 90 degrees outside and we were sitting in the sun. Seriously? On top of that, we ordered a Tito's and water (for our liquor drinks) and they were able to put water into THAT glass, but couldn't bring us a separate glass of water? This place is a money grab and on top of that, the food was only so-so. We won't be back. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

I had a meal there and then went for a walk on the beach. When I went back to my friend's car to get my swim trunks one of the owners yelled at me that it was private property. After the customary Bronx greeting I told him that I had just eaten there. He asked to see my receipt. He then threatened to have the car towed if I didn't pay an extra $40. I told him that it wasn't my car and went to the beach. My wife (who is white, I am Black) hearing this went into the place with the receipt. He said, I wasn't saying that to you. Hmmm. So the grouper was ok, the racism not so good. read more

I really enjoyed my visit here each time, and am not sure why the star rating is so low on Yelp. Quick seating, consistently friendly service, & beautiful beach front view. The only downside is the seagulls are cutthroat and may snatch off your plate. Breakfast is top notch. The cheesy grits are so rich and flavorful. For lunch, the seafood is fresh and nicely portioned. There is something for everyone here. read more

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Nice spot on the gulf side beach. Cold beer on ice, decent food, friendly servers and a terrific view of the ocean sunset. Really doesn't get too much better. Music was a bit loud, but that was balanced with the amusing view of folks of all ages dancing in the sand. Nearby parking pretty much sucks. read more

Gulf Drive Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Bradenton Beach, Florida

The service from Aaron and Angelina was great! The food was amazing! We will come back again

BREAKFAST til 11:00am Awesome place for a late breakfast under the tiki bar area looking out over white sand and the clear aqua waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Ordered the bacon, tomato and cheese omelet with home fries crispy. As good of a breakfast as you can get anywhere on the island and one of the best views. Speedy and friendly service. I highly recommend this place for a beachfront breakfast. read more

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