Originally walked up to the main entrance. Didn't even get on the ramp when an aggravated man yelled out...."the wait is over an hour and its a $5 cover". We had no idea that it was their wing night! We are locals who work in the industry......and I know its summer and employees wear thin, but I will never go back after that rude encounter. This would give this place a 1 star rating! HOWEVER.....just around the corner is a restaurant inside the Windrift called RESTAURANT 105! We were greeted by Kate who was bubbly and friendly. She seated us at a great corner table! Our waiter appeared and his name was Harry! He was helpful with the menu and informative. He was efficient and very friendly as well! The food and drinks were amazing! We got the cheese plate, the lobster guacamole and several types of sushi......I will definitely go back to this place! read more

We decided to eat outside because it was a beautiful sunshiny morning. The hostess sat us immediately. That was the best part of our visit. After sitting down for over 10 minutes I a sparsely crowded room we had no water offered or any attention by the wait staff. I asked another server and he said he'd send our waitress out. Another 5 minutes and no sightings. There were a few more tables seated and received almost immediate service. The hostess sat down a table next to us and I asked for our waitress. Another 5 minutes passed and the waitress came and offered no apology for the wait. She finally asked us if we'd like something to eat. I ordered the eggs Benedict that was correctly defined on the menu as served with Canadian bacon. When it arrived it appears the eggs were not poached they were fried and served on top of country ham but not the country of choice. Now the worst part, while we were eating there was a sewage smell. We were hoping it wasn't the ocean. We looked down and the hotel employees were fussing with garbage cans below. The waitress was fast to bring the check and taking our money. What a poorly trained and supervised w Kudos to Anne from the Windrift. She took the time to research the issue and provide a satisfactory resolution. Any business that has management that pays attention to customers is a business worth patronizing. Thank you A I was told they'd send a complimentary meal and never sent. Poor management. read more

Food was pretty tasty albeit overpriced. Cool place but a bit dishonest on their descriptions. The Tiki bar is just a tiny bar on the patio. The piano bar is a bar with a few too many tables crammed together on the lower level with a guy playing a keyboard. Both spots are good but not what they are calling them. read more

Stopped in last night after dinner out and had a great time with Jim Bannach in the lounge. Cocktails were outstanding. Service and quality were also. Enjoyed the entire experience. read more

Great food, great views, so many different parts of the restaurant from causal to dressy, beachy to sit down dinner. Great spot for sushi too which you can never get down the shore. read more

Windrift Restaurant - Scallop Lobster Risotto - American Near Me - Avalon, New Jersey

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Since I was last here in 2012, I am very pleased to see that the Windrift has made a lot of improvements in the quality of their food, drinks and service. I have been to the restaurant about five times this summer and I've enjoyed every visit so far. The sushi, sandwiches, appetizers, and wings were all delicious for the most part. The waiters and waitresses that have been serving them have been friendly, prompt and professional. Prices are still high, but not as outrageous as previously thought now that the all around quality has improved. Mexican Monday, the famous Tuesday Wing Night, and discounted pizzas on Wednesday night are all good deals. I always recommend getting one or more of their sushi dishes each visit, as I feel this is the best part of their menu. After nearly 35 summers at the 80th Street Avalon beach, I finally went to their wing night and was happy we did. Three of us split the large wings order ($26 for about 50 wings). There were about 8 remaining since we had to have a couple sushi rolls too. I will continue to frequent the Windrift this summer and I look forward to enjoying them again next summer...assuming they can keep up the good work. read more

Sadly the only pizza place open in Anglesea when the bars close. When the lines are long the pizza is been consistently undercooked because they're trying to sell for quantity not quality. Coupled with watching the owner argue with customers I do not recommend this place. Sad because I love pizza! read more

We ate in the casual part of the restaurant. Recommend not ordering the guacamole app. It was store bought, and mediocre. Main meals were meh. Crab cake, meh. Chicken sandwich, meh. Chicken cheesesteak needs onions/peppers according to my friend. There are so many darling restaurants in stone harbor/Avalon- try somewhere else. read more

We've always loved coming here, but it has definitely changed and not for the good. Cosmo was warm. Wings were microwaved. Service was ok. The place was dead for a Tuesday night at 6. Miss wing night. read more

The wife and I came here the other week. We visit down this area for occasions. The food was not very good for how much it was. The burger was under cooked and the nachos were soggy and not that great. The service was lacking but understandable for a busy venue. Very good looking place but could use some help within staff and kitchen. read more

Might be the best cheesesteak in Avalon/Stone harbor. Wish it was on the takeout menu!! Always come here for the entertainment and pleasant venue with great views. Never disappointed by either the fine dining, or upbeat upstairs food. Great family fun at the Windrift and their servers are excellent!! read more

I don't even know where to begin to describe the marvelous experience we had at the Windrift Restaurant. First of all, the view when you sit on the outdoor patio is worth the price of the entire meal. It's a beautiful, unobstructed ocean view and the decor on the patio is high class. I didn't really pay attention to the inside decor because I requested an outdoor table and I knew we were going outside. All of the staff was super nice - they were very accommodating and polite. We were seated right away seeing as we were there for lunch and it wasn't overly crowded. The restaurant has wonderful specials and tons of options for everyone. For lunch I ordered a special - the watermelon feta salad, and I added grilled chicken to the meal. The salad was out of this world. It was probably the best salad I have had recently. The chicken was so fresh and full of flavor. The watermelon added a refreshing element to the entree and overall the salad was huge. The only drawback to this place was that after checking on how was liked the meal our waitress literally disappeared. She wasn't even inside. So ultimately I had to go into the bar to get my own refill. I overheard that there were no bartenders or bar backs so I assumed it was just really busy and I let it go. I highly recommend this spot and I'm hoping the salad is definitely on the specials menu next time! read more

Great restaurant! I very much enjoyed my lunch! Got California Rolls (as usual without avocado or cucumber--I always order it that way) and loved them! Also got French fries and loved them! Thanks! read more

Windrift Restaurant - American Near Me - Avalon, New Jersey

The waiter told us there was no Sushi because the "people" making it have all gone back to their country however, half of their menu had Sushi dishes ‍ Although there were only like 5 customers dining, we had to wait extremely long periods to get anything including water...not sure why. While the restaurant is right on the beach, your view from inside is nothing but walls or tall grass unless you can manage to grab one of the 10 first come first serve chairs on the extremely small rooftop bar. The food was ok, nothing to really brag about. I would not recommend this place to any travelers. read more

Amazing experiences at the Windrift. In the early summer we came in with a party of 22 (yes, we are CRAZY) and we were quickly sat and taken care of all by one waitress. Bless her heart we had her running all over. She was so attentive and also had the hugest heart speaking about her dreams of becoming a nurse and working as much as she can to help pay for school. Tonight, we came in to eat at their other restaurant down stairs and had her AGAIN, but this time we came only as a party of 5 (we assume she was thankful). Expecting she wouldn't remember us, she greeted our table with warm bread and a huge smiling saying "oh my gosh are we celebrating another birthday again"!? She remembered us and the conversations we had 2 MONTHS AGO. She remembered the passing of our dear Richard, which meant a lot to us. The most beautiful, well spoken young women with a bright future ahead. Now on to the restaurant! We were recommend the scallops and short ribs, which were nothing slight of exquisite. Kudos chef! The boy who brought us our food was also very kind and spoke a little with us. The drink selection was on point, especially the "wines by the glass" section. Nothing but good things to say about the Windrift this year, especially with the uncertainty of its future following the purchase by the ICONA. read more

Extremely overpriced bad tasting drinks served in plastic cups. Ordered a Paloma which cost $15 and it tasted horrible. Have been common to SH for 25 years but will not return to the Windrift. read more

I've been here a few times and only sat in their loud boisterous section. This last time I sat in their fine dining section. Menu is very different as is the service. All very high end. 2of us ordered the seabass, 1 chicken dish and one scallops. All excellent. The prices are very expensive but compared to the amount of food you get, I felt like it was a bargain. read more

Went for dinner around 6 with my family. The wait to sit in the restaurant was a little long for my 3 year old so we ordered from the food truck outside and sat at the picnic tables. We had the bbq chicken pizza and regular margharita with mushrooms... BEST PIZZA I've ever had on the island by FAR. We will definitely be back to eat and for takeout! read more

Good music, very casual scene for the end of the day, even better scene for the end of the weekend on Sunday nights. Wed night wing night offers great wing and beer specials. read more

First started coming here about 20 years ago when it was a smaller place. They added a second level, and then a third. No longer a cool seaside bar. A couple of oddities. I ordered the wings and then some sushi. Others in my party ordered a burger and steak Sandwich. I'd say despite an updated look, it's almost morphed into catering style food. It was Wing Night So I ordered a big plate of wings for the table, and then sushi as an entree. Strike one. So they deliver all the sushi way before anything else. Like really? Lesser restaurants have figured this out despite the argument that the sushi bar is on its own schedule. The worst was the wings, absolutely F'ing vile. Like imagine Kentucky Fried Chicken leftovers frozen, and then re-warmed in the toaster oven, then pouring on some no-name buffalo sauce purchased from the 7-11, then serving it. The blue cheese dressing was also horrible The rest of the food was ok, but nothing was overly good or outstanding. Well, for 3 people with drinks the bill was only $98. read more

My friends and I come here every night during our trip to Stone Harbor! It's such a fun spot that I would definitely say is more of a younger crowd most of the time. Windrift is ensuring that every individual who enters is wearing a masks and encourage us to wear them as we walk around. I will say though, most of the people we ran into during the night were not wearing masks near the bar area so it felt like things were back to normal. The food and drinks are very over priced. If you order a green tea shot, just know you are being gypped of your money. There is hardly any alcohol in it and it's like $7 or $8, even our waiter didn't recommend we get it. We did however order their truffle fries and pretzel apps and they were good. I would say this restaurant is more along the nicer side but you can definitely go casual if you want! read more

The view at this restaurant is great. My brother knows several of the people that work here so our service was friendly and okay. But the food was just average at best. If you want a nice view and are not in a hurry, then you might want to visit. But this would not be my first choice to go for the food. 4 star for the view. 2 star for the food. read more

We were seated almost immediately and outside per our request. The four of us ordered drinks and a few appetizers. My drink did not come out correctly- this is always disappointing. But our waitress quickly fixed it. But we had waited awhile for it. We ordered the edamame which were done perfectly and came out pretty quickly. We also ordered deviled eggs. There were four in the order and they were amazing!! A nice touch was a strip of hot sauce on the plate- this allowed those who like hot sauce to include it and those that don't to avoid it. There was live music. This is a cool and casual place to hang. read more

Windrift Restaurant - Edamame appetizer - American Near Me - Avalon, New Jersey

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If you're going to eat here in a good amount of time, try some place else. We got Into town late on a Friday and went to grab dinner. We had to pay $5 cover for the band which wasn't a big deal...but the band didn't play for over an hour. We finally got drinks 30 minutes after sitting down and it took our waitress another 20 minutes or so to come and take our order. 45ish minutes later some at our table still didn't have their food. Also, there were plenty of empty tables too. It was not busy. Once the food did come it was good, just takes an hour and a half to get. We spoke to the manager who didn't care and their customer service isn't the best to say the least. Which is such a shame because we did have good experiences at wing nights in the past. All in all, want to listen to music fine, but avoid it for food service. My rating is literally just for the bands that come in. Go to the Concord and get a pizza. read more

I love the Avalon area and the fact that it's right next to the beach is a plus, but I was not impressed. I went to eat here with my parents, and we sat upstairs. We sat indoors because it was a scorcher and had a view of their pool (would've needed to be outside to see the beach). Ambiance was nice, but service was super slow. The restaurant wasn't even half full upstairs, and it literally took over 15 minutes for our waitress to see us. At one point, someone else took a drink order for us because we waved her down. I get that the beach can get crazy, but it really wasn't all that crowded. I will say that once our waitress finally arrived, our food came out very quickly (saved it from a 1 star review), but this was probably due to the fact that my dad had mentioned we were on a time crunch. My caesar salad wrap was fine (is it possible to mess that up though? perhaps), and the fruit bowl was a nice added touch. My dad's sangria was probably the worst sangria I've ever tasted in my life. It tasted like watered-down juice. Not only was there almost no alcohol, but it wasn't even masked with a sugary, sweet taste. I'm willing to overlook "beach food" for quick service or I'm even willing to be understanding of slower service when people are running around slammed..but I didn't seem to see either of these things happening. read more

Very good pizza, and the combo was a good deal with chicken strips and mozzarella sticks. I wouldn't hesitate to go back again.

Best ocean front restaurant in Stone Harbor. Very happy with sushi, old bay fries, cheesesteak egg rolls, cheesesteaks and pizzas. Best onto dine on second or third level if you want to take in the ocean. Always a must to dine here. read more

Such a beautiful place with great sushi! Make sure to get there early as there might be a wait and they don't take reservations

In addition to their terrific location, the Lobster mac and cheese is terrific, adult beverages are excellent, and bartender Debbie is great fun to talk to. I'll be back again and again! read more

Oh boy, where do I begin...I have gone to the Windrift for 30 years with always a great experience. Had family in from Colorado and thought that this would be a great choice to do their fine dining for last night of vacation. The server had a disheveled unironed shirt, second drinks never offered, water glasses dry most of meal. The worst was the food; my crab cakes were horrible and I am not that picky. My family had steaks that were fatty and cooked totally wrong. When trying to correct a steak, they brought one that was totally tan and microwaved... ugh. No effort for service recovery. I know now why it was empty at 7:30 on a Friday. Will never go back and this does not reflect well on Icona. Oh, we paid $80 a piece and not everyone had alcohol. Only one drink for a few. The good: my Negroni was perfectly delicious once the located Campari and the diners who had soup and sushi reported it being delicious. I was very embarrassed that I took my guests here. read more

Great service by John at the semi-hidden 3rd floor bar! Good apps inside at dinnertime. Great views of the beach...

This place is a family institution. In my 30+ years of going there, tonight was a dealbreaker though. We showed up and knew something was up. Took forever to get a table, our table then wasn't wiped down, no waters (asked and never got them), never given utensils (had to grab them from another table) and the food was downright disgusting. Shrimp cocktail was returned. cold and hard. Felt like it was sitting out and then microwaved. $22 for that garbage too. I never return food but it was truly unacceptable. Bun on crab cake was seriously stale and falling apart. Partners sushi was gross. This place has really hit rock bottom. It literally makes me sad to post this but hope mgmt sees this and changes course quick because it's gonna be a while until I trust this place again. read more

Great view of the ocean and we really liked our bartender. The food, however, was a HUGE disappointment. The wings were tiny and very fatty and the pizza lacked taste. Not too much else on the menu to choose from (as least on the main restaurant side). read more

This place has really gone down hill. Incredibly loud in the whole restaurant. I ordered a grilled chicken Caesar salad and this is what I was served. Couldn't even chop up the lettuce or mix it themselves read more

Windrift Restaurant - American Near Me - Avalon, New Jersey

I believe that the Windrift is a great place to grab a drink and some not bad food. Right by the beach, I have always gone to the Windrift for almost 6 years! Finally, I shall give it a comprehensive review. I got the chicken and fries as a starter and was delighted by how warm it was. Then, I had the oysters which were absolutely amazing. Thank you for the great memories Windrift! Just my one problem is the wait. Spoiler, it isn't great. ~wk read more

Beautiful bar and restaurant. Average food but, with that view of the ocean, does it really matter?

Good news is Windrift is set to reopen some time in April. Always reliable for good food that is reasonably priced along with the drinks. The bad news is it was just purchased by the owner of the Icona across the street which does a terrible job on food and beverage from a quality, pricing and delivery standpoint. Many of those who stay at the Icona patronize the Windrift due to the poor food and beverage at the former. Perhaps they will have the good sense to leave the Windrift as is or use it as a guide to improve the Icona. read more

Won't be back. After years of dining here, I am going to have to find a new go-to spot. We pulled together a few tables on the completely EMPTY patio (for our party of 10) and were quickly informed that it was absolutely unacceptable to move movable tables at the Windrift. Why? Because of the umbrellas. Ok, but the umbrellas were all down because of the storm, and there was not a logical alternative reason. The staff quickly made sure we moved back the tables to the way they liked them. I mean it was a really BIG deal about these tables. Apparently they are only able to accommodate groups of 4 or smaller...??? Food was fine and service was speedy. But overpriced for what it is. When we asked for the checks, the server said it would all be on one check. Which was puzzling since we were clearly three separate unmoved tables. Disappointing customer service that seemed totally unnecessary and made the experience less than enjoyable. read more

While the food (other than the burgers) was good, the waitress we had was inexperienced and inattentive. The restaurant was not overcrowded, but we saw her three times (seating, orders, and check). Someone else brought out the food, and we were not able to tell her that the burgers were not good at all. At the end of the meal, we tried to dispute the burgers, which were eventually removed from the check, but not until the manager accusingly asked us "if you didn't like the burger, why didn't you tell the waitress?" We would have, but we never saw her! After returning home, I found that they charged my card again - for $50. Yes, I paid for my meal, and there was a second $50 charge. I have been disputing this for nearly a month and still haven't had the issue resolved. FIND SOMEPLACE ELSE! read more

The beach and dune view from the second floor from the outside bar is very nice - 4 stars The beer selection is decent, but at the outdoor bar drinks are served in plastic cups. I guess some drunken losers tossed some glass over the side in the past. So a decent beer selection served in plastic - 2.5 stars The bar menu looked good and the chicken sandwich with provolone and roasted peppers was OK, I've had better, but this was half-decent - 3 stars. The beach fries laced with old bay AND additional salt, served with a side of tasteless cheese, was horrendous. Soggy french fries laced in sodium do not "do it" for me. - 1 star Service at the bar was "there". But the attitude was like "ok the summer is almost over, get me out of this place". - 2 stars I am not saying I won't go back, it's the shore, it's not your neighborhood go-to place at home, but they serve alcohol and food with a nice view, necessary sustenance while you are enjoying the shore. read more