I just moved to Okeechobee and decided to try Lightsey's. The restaurant is a really cool vibe, very representative of Okeechobee, and it is popular. We had to wait 40 minutes for a table on a Monday, but it was worth it. The drinks were delicious. They say they make the juices every day, and they tasted very fresh. The food was good, but they do have a lot of fried food offerings. Their hush puppies were the best I have ever had. I really enjoyed my meal, but I did think the prices were a little steep for fried seafood, but that may be because it is well prepared and very fresh. It was a high quality meal, but $100 for two people (we did have drinks, premium sides and a dessert) seems a little high for Okeechobee. read more

No AYCE snow crab legs on the Sunday Seafood Buffet! How can they have a seafood buffet without snow crab legs!

Caught a booth at this wonderful restaurant a day before the Covid 19 shutdown - fabulous seafood - attention to detail service - just wish on our stay at Silver Palms that we would have had the chance to visit more often! read more

So I'll start with positive the food was very good and the service was great. The atmosphere is cute and we had a nice time. Now that being said the prices are crazy expensive. We spent $120 on dinner for two people with no drinks. Yes we had a Oysters six of them and they were fresh juicy. And delish! I had fried rice with gator and he had Shrimp and fries. It seems a bit much too me. I've gone to far nicer places and had much more seafood and not paid as much. It's good but take your wallet! read more

We stopped by while exploring the area. The food was DELICIOUS! I had the grouper sandwich, yummy!!!! My husband had the grouper special, also amazing. The fried food was so light and actually non-greasy. Great job to everyone in the kitchen! The ambiance is very laid back, but at the same time, the restaurant is trendy, modern, clean and well kept. Our waitress, Maria, was very sweet, attentive and knowledgeable. She was able to make excellent recommendations. If we are ever in the area, we will be back. Note: We did find it a little overpriced, but the food was so good we can overlook that fact. We highly recommend the restaurant. read more

The best environment. Waitress and hostess are so friendly. Food is amazing! Sunday hot bar is a great after service meal. Never disappointed!! read more

The prime rib was amazing. Unless you're really hungry you can definitely order one to serve two .

The seafood was delicious and fresh. Tried the blue crab and the broiled scallops. Definitely recommend and could eat here everyday. Drinks are very tasty as well. read more

Lightsey's Restaurant - Broiled scallops - Seafood Near Me - Okeechobee, Florida

Service and food were fantastic! Started with the trio of smoked fish dips. Our group then had sweet potato encrusted scallops, blackened snapper with key lime sauce, gator and catfish bites, and fried catfish (freshly caught not farm raised.) Ended with key lime pie, which was different than any I have ever had, but it was delicious. read more

Lightsey's Restaurant - Our Mains. - Seafood Near Me - Okeechobee, Florida

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Came her based on previous yelp reviews and this place didn't disappoint. From our server Joanna to our delicious meal it was a fantastic experience. The staff was welcoming and the outdoor and indoor eating of the restaurant had a great atmosphere. We had scallops, crab legs and and a crab cake. Food had great portions and good value. read more

The scallops in the blackened plantain salad I had were probably the best scallops I've ever had...so tender they practically melted in my mouth! The catnips were also very good. The Gouda mashed potatoes were delicious as well. I'd definitely come back again. read more

We've just moved here and we're making an effort to try the local places. Our hope is that we'll find some great local spots and make them our go-to spots. Unfortunately, this probably won't be on the list. It was super busy which wasn't a problem because they were making great effort to accommodate everyone. The problem was that the food prices did not match the food quality. After discussing our meal (as we do) we decided that of all the things we tried that the sauce and the soup were the best part of our meal. The catfish was a close second. The steak was over salted, the gator and turtle were mediocre and the oysters were tasty but gritty. Maybe we had a less than ideal experience but we'd be more inclined to try again if the prices matched the menu. read more

Lightsey"s seafood is excellent, the oysters were perfect and the sampler of all the different types of seafood was excellent as well. It is vital to any business to have good people and Kelly made our visit to Lightsey a very memorable one. She knows the food and drink menu very well and has a very refreshing personality. Thank you Kelly for all your hard work, you did great, we will be back. read more

Food can sometimes be hit or miss on portions and flavor but the service and ambiance is great.

Great little known seafood spot. Awesome ambience with huge trophy fish all over the walls and a fresh seafood shop with 30 day aged ribeye available. All local and sustainable fare. Great service with a bit of a wait during rush hours. A once in a while visit as it's a little pricey. Had the gumbo with gator and cooter to start. Didn't even know what cooter was so I had to ask. Not what I thought it was. Turned out to be soft shell turtle. That was a first for me. Had the AUCE catfish which about busted my gut. Delicious! Made myself miserable. Would recommend to anybody. read more

Saw the great reviews and decided to try the Okeechobee sampler. Placed my order over the phone and the lady (Jessica?) was super sweet so a star for her! When I got there the parking lot was empty even though it was lunchtime, warning sign. It's probably because they had upped their prices. The sampler was 24$!! A huge raise from the 19$ I saw on the menu on Yelp. It's also a tiny amount, and the taste was really average. Would not come back. read more

This is a great environment with amazing food. The service was equally amazing! A foodie must!

Good atmosphere, with bar top tables-very clean, good food. Server nice a friendly ! My husband was pleased with his catfish and said it was very good , I had the ribs that were very good A+ for food and portion/price! We are in the area temporarily for work not locals. read more

Made an impromptu lunch stop while driving through Okeechobee today and had an amazing lunch here. The Gouda bacon burger was cooked perfectly and seasoned to perfection. My husband got the fried catfish lunch with fries and loved it! We took the peach cobbler home because we ran out of room but it was pretty darn good too! Our waitress, Justice, was on top of everything and took time to explain everything on the the menu. read more

Great little place to dine! I'd recommend you try it out. Indoor or outdoor seating, and delicious food.

The food was excellent although do not get the ribs. They were tough and dry. Everything else was delish though. We had a cheeseburger, grilled grouper sandwich, trout dip and the pumpkin bread. Would definitely come back! read more

For over 30 years this establishment has consistently provided delicious food and good memories. They had farm (lake) to table mastered before it was a trendy catch phrase. The fish is fresh, shrimp firm, and beef straight from Florida farms. Make sure and order some smoked fish dip and sweet tea while waiting for your meal. read more

We had 3 adults and 3 children. Bill was 350.00 No alcohol. The Prices are high. Food definitely not worth the price. Under seasoned and by the time we were all served half of the food was cold. Not recommending... read more

The Gouda mashed potatoes is to die for! I love that on Fridays that they offer a shrimp deal! The oysters are always so fresh!

Great restaurant. Outdoor and inside seating. Service and food were great. Something for everyone.

Looked like most of the food had been on the buffet for way to long. Mostly fried. Oysters were good. Definitely not worth the price. First and last time visitor. read more

Over priced tourist trap 96 $ for dinner tonight, Gator I could not chew, catfish bites so over cooked my wife could not eat them. I miss the old location I grew up going to they actually cared about the food they put out and did not try to rob your wallet with over priced frozen crap. read more

this is a great example of what a divey florida seafood joint should be. lots of dead animals on the walls, slow service, sweet tea, everything fried, and t-shirts that say "i got cooter at lightsey's." what else could you possibly ask for? the food is better than you'd expect, especially if you're coming here looking for something like cooter, catfish, or gator. i got the catfish, and it was actually quite good. and the hushpuppies were some of the better ones i've ever had. oh, and please do not leave without seeing the cobra/mongoose taxidermy piece on the front counter. read more

Lightsey's Restaurant - when you see this when you walk in the front door, you know you're in for a treat. - Seafood Near Me - Okeechobee, Florida

It is nice to have a seafood places in this town, but I think both take advantage of it. The food is descent, but the quantity is not reflective of the cost. They recently changed from plates to a tin sheet and it blatantly shows the lack of food given at each meal. My advice, go back to the smaller plates to trick the eyes. read more

Monday afternoon and very slow was Norma to return with our drinks. But the food shined as our Crab cake/fried green tomato app was great with 2 very large cakes and 2 slices of tomato on a sweet sauce. Fried catfish with fry's, hush puppies, slaw and an extra side of collards were loved by my southern food loving wife. She said all was outstanding! Looking for something a little different I had the BLT salad. It was a chopped salad with shrimp & bacon mixed in and was outstanding. Large portions of everything and we brought plenty home. Location is scenic and out in the middle of nowhere, nice ride on the Harley there. read more

Terrible!!!! The hush puppies were dripping with oil! The fries were terrible! The fish was soggy ! I had a hair in my slaw and told the waitress, she acted like it was a common occurrence. Terrible all around! We were there on the night of this review about 1/2 before the post read more

I have been here several times before. The food is pretty good. However, I was very disappointed this time by their blatant lack of COVID precautions. None of the staff wore a mask (the only mask in sight was on a bison head mounted on the wall). The tables had seasoning bottles on them for everyone to use. They brought a rack of sauces from out of the frig in a rack for your use. But none of these items seemed to be getting cleaned between customers. I would advise if you are concerned about being exposed to the virus you should probably eat somewhere else. read more

This used to be a favorite past time when going to Okeechobee to fish or gator hunt. However, it was very overpriced, a lot of empty tables. All the food is fried in the same batter. Bathrooms old, outdated and not that clean. Positives were that the place itself appears to be updated , friendly wait staff. It was overall .... Just OK read more

A amazing place . Staff is very loving and welcoming . I love the deco and it's really true , if it swims crawls or jumps they serve it 10/10 recommended read more

One of the culinary universal truths is that the worst thing you can do to a steak is to overcook it. One of the most culinary universal ignorances is that that same thing is also true of fish. People tend to overcook fish, and then almost all fish tastes like dry chicken breast (except Chilean Sea Bass, which a monkey can cook to perfection). I ordered one of the fish of the day - pompano - and it was overcooked and dry. Horrible. The flavoring was ok. The sides were actually ok - two different kinds of fries and mashed potatoes. But the main dish was overcooked. People need to be far more conscious about not overcooking fish. I know - first world problem. But Yelp is a first world service. read more

After waiting more than an hour, we started to worry. The food finally arrived and we dove in with powerful hunger. The first bite I took was grotesque. The person across from me cringed in disgust. My mother looked at her shrimp and asked how it was possible to overcook a shrimp to the point of coal and shouted for the waiter. The waiter looked at the shrimp and asked if she would like more. The nice ladies behind us took one glance at this price of this shrimp and hobbled out complaining about a change of ownership. As we gnawed at our blackened crisps of meat, we wondered why we did not just go to Mcdonalds. The film of grease left in our mouths is haunting and disturbing. The expired cole slaw was clearly regurgitated by the catfish in the back they tried feeding it to. The po-boy was ok. At least that's what my uncle said. read more

Lightsey's Restaurant - Lightsey catfish pond - Seafood Near Me - Okeechobee, Florida

All the food was so good and Scott was just wonderful! Will most definitely be back next time I'm in town for OMF

What a nice lunch experience I had here with my son. They surprised me, been driving past them for years. It was Sunday and on Sundays they offer a buffet with great fresh seafood. They had Cobia, Sheepshead and other species of fish on the menu. Loved everything I tried on the buffet but the ribs were too die for. My son had the burger and fries. I took a bite and it was season and fresh cooked char ground beef, delicious. I can't wait to go back. My son loved the place. Road trippers don't pass this place. read more

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Was in town for work and stumbled across this place for a work lunch. Not disappointed, especially since it's so hard to find a "local" place to eat in Okeechobee. There was too much on the menu to sample during a work lunch. I settled for locally-caught catfish fingers and the plate came with fresh homemade fries, homemade coleslaw and hush puppies. All were fantastic. We dined after the traditional lunch rush, but they were still quite busy. The manager (owner?) made the rounds, stopping to talk to every table before stopping at ours. He spent a few minutes telling us how they prepare everything fresh, detailing how they take pride in preparing 150# of potatoes each day to make fries. Glad I found this place. Can't wait until the next time work bring me to Okeechobee so I can try other menu items. read more

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In any major metropolitan area, this would get 2 stars, one for Cajun ambiance and one for decent food.... but this is Okeechobee. Before eating here tonight, we stopped and asked 2 locals for a good place to eat. Both said "there ain't nowhere good to eat... but Lightsey's is the best we have." I concur. Don't be in a hurry, the folks running the place are trying hard and the waterfront atmosphere on the screen porch is pleasant. The oysters and sweet potato fries were great. The gator and other things on the fried sampler platter were pretty chewy. With tip, it was $36 for the sampler and a coke. Expensive? Yes. Slow service without much smiling? Yes. Would I go back? Probably, where else are you going to eat in town, the Golden Corral, Popeyes or Burger King? read more