Brianna Garcia
Our experience was decent. The hostess were very young, standing in front of waiting patrons, griping about work and waitresses. Bar tenders were the same way and had their bar rags in a pile on the floor visible to incoming patrons.
Loved being able to see the cleanliness of the kitchen and how the kitchen worked. Couldn’t figure out why the head of the kitchen and other kitchen staff were doing the running, the waitresses had plenty of time to also serve the food.
Calamari was good and tender, fire prawns were very tasty (there was no need for them to be drowning in this sweet chili sauce), we split the sirloin and prawns(sirloin was cooked perfect med/rare, prawns were huge, vegetables were a nice surprise, but they should definitely let people know the baked potato comes with sour cream and chives) over all was very good. Long Island ice tea, looked more like lemon aid, but it was strong and tasty. The rolls were a nice surprise after we were seated.
Waitress needs some training in how to respond to the customers, every time we said thank you for something her response was “uh huh”
We would return here again as the food was pretty good.
Jason Abraham (Jason Abraham Photography)
Drinks were great, oysters were great and fresh. The jambalaya was not that great. We arrived at night when it was dark, but I think this place would be great around sunset. We also had the tuna salad, it was ok.
Adina Pierce
I’ve been going here for years for lunch, and it was always a great experience. Good/fast service, friendly employees, and good food. Not sure what happened today, but the service was really bad, and it took over 1.5 hours to receive our lunch. I got the same thing I always get- Cioppino. The price was also sky high, so can’t say I’ll be back. That said, the Cioppino was good, but not much was in it - not generous like they usually are. .
Catalina Bustos
Nice view, friendly atmosphere but, We got 3 different plates and all 3 had no flavor. We were reaching for the salt and pepper for everything.
Amir Virani
We were celebrating our anniversary here again. It's a nice place to be for special occasions. Restaurant is located Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf and it's on the water. Food was delicious but the service was mediocre.
Margaret Lund
Well made cocktails.
The food was fabulous.
So beautifully presented and the flavors amazing. I had the 5 coarse special; crusted chicken over vegetables (cooked perfectly) delicous mashed potato. Good salad greens. The brownie with ice-cream and chocolate syrup was really yummy. This is my local #1 restaurant.
We had a window table, as we enjoyed the Ocean view.
I was disappointed in the service...
The service was very slow and we needed to ask for what we needed;
From another server than the server that was too take of us.
I will say this was the first time this has happened; normally average service
Lainey Cameron
Great fish and chips - I especially like the mixed seafood platter with fried prawns,scallops, calamari and fresh fish. Visit and say hi to the sea lions at the end of the wharf toowhile you’re there!
For the moment they have outdoor seating out front.
Accounting Department
Nice place and comfortable setting along the water. Quite pricey, but with covid it's understandable. The service was not so great for the amount of money spent for the basic menu entrees. Our table was served by a man named Elvis and we did not get any attention unless asked. The restaurant then included the gratuity in the bill. I felt that the cooks should have gotten the tip because all the server did was bring it to us. He didn't ask if we needed anything, anything at all. Perhaps Elvis needs some additional training, and may I suggest that customer service is everything. He didn't deserve the amount of tip charged and likely will not frequent this restaurant again.
Lynne Jennings
Nice view (got window table looking out on ocean) with grilled seafood available & nice waitress..I took a chance on grilled rock cod with lemon buerre sauce with capers despite waitress not really recommending it & so glad I did..so good!..mmmm....got excellent glass of Chilean cab for $4 with it so good value as well..and son in law loved Seafood Rockefeller..only shortfall was brownie & ice cream dessert came with his meal which waitress forgot & then it took forever to get it..no clue why it would take so long to put scoop of ice cream on brownie..��...overall nice evening tho & we would return..
Sami Rae Wallace
My boyfriend and I were visiting the area from Washington and decided to make a stop in Santa Cruz on our way to Monterey. I hadn't eaten much all day and it was well past dinner so I was anxious to find a place with a menu that fit what we were looking for. After walking the wharf we decided to stop at the FireFish Grill for dinner. After being seated we discussed the menu and decided what we wanted before we were greeted by our waitress. We waited patiently to receive any kind of service. Now, being a waitress I understand a busy night can lead to slow service. When we were finally greeted our waitress apologized and explained to us that they were in the middle of a section change due to a shift change. Once again being in the industry I sympathize; however, we put in our order quickly and she brought our water and DID NOT return to the table until I had walked to the front and requested a box from the hostess. Our food was delicious, better than I expected even. We were never checked on, my water was empty before the food came and I never recieved a refil. There were 2 other tables in her section as well, but their service did not suffer like ours did. She made it around to refill their drinks and check on them, but never came back to us until I requested the bill from a passing busser. The biggest disappointment was that I expressed my disappointment and there was no acknowledgment by anyone.
Matthew Quesada
My wife and I both had the Baby Spinach Salad and it was absolutely great! The view was great! The staff and service was great! Would recommend that you make this a must stop on the wharf!
Heather Mechling Eckels
The snapper was absolutely delicious and the service (Carmen) was fantastic. With a gorgeous view and full bar, this place is a must when visiting Santa Cruz.
Cassie Hart Arellano
I only go for the abalone � Their specials always sound so great! Because there was only 2 of us, we were seated right away. Last night, my boyfriend got the special Grilled Halibut, topped with prawns and lobster sauce! Both our meals were great! And our server, Leslie, was on the spot with our refills! Great food, service and view of a beautiful sunset �
Joan Stockholm
I had a cup of chowder and a green salad. A little overpriced ($15.50) for a salad that only had lettuce, cherry tomatoes, radish and a few carrot shavings. My son's Jambalaya was ok..he said the chicken was super dry and the noodles were undercooked. Under whelmed to say the least. Although it was nice that the server and manager did check on us throughout the meal. However, It's back to Gilda's for us.
Sharon Nystrom Watson
The Service was great, the food very good. I had Calamari Almondine. The Waitress even gave Our group separate tags. The view was superb and I recommend FireFish to everyone.
Cyn Graves
Excellent, friendly service and amazing food. I had scallops Monterey and the dish was to die for. My husband had he halibut and it looked delicious as well
Judy Busalacchi Bekker
My husband, father & I went for lunch today, The service and food were both excellent. I had the crab cakes which are the best I have ever had. My Husband & father both had the sea food platter and they both said it was great. This is the second time my husband & I have been there and we will definitely go back next time we are in the area!!
Nicholas Michael Ranger
My favorite seafood restaurant in Santa Cruz. They have always been great, the food is amazing, and they are nice to my kids. The Rockefeller is my favorite dish, but everything is fantastic.
Darren M. Kidd
Slow service over priced food not that great food was terrible for the price wound not recommend .
Theresa Wiles
Amazing crab cakes and risotto was absolutely delicious!!! From appetizer to cocktails to entree it was all magnificent! I used to live here I now reside in Austin when I come back this is my new go to no matter how far I have to come!
Jarrod Kane
Great company, Awesome weather, great view. During the week not so crowded and we got right in and had a cute waitress that was pretty attentive . Anyone who complains about pricing knows dam well that anything on the water (view) anywhere in the world will, be a little extra. So stop with the petty complaints.
Vince Tuzzi
Best place to have a romantic dinner in Santa Cruz. Food and service were excellent. Having the ocean as your backdrop made it even more appealing. Will defiantly go back again.
Andrea Stanik Campbell
Service was crazy slow and unattentive! It was not even busy and we waited over an hour for our food. Ordered the halibut and chips special and the halibut was mostly breading and no fish. Super disappointed! Frequent visitor to Santa Cruz but won’t be back here.
Kevin Johnson
We love this place when we are in Santa Cruz but the quality of the fish is starting to fall. Plus being sat behind a group of 14 with 4 very noisy, full of energy children was not pleasant. When the place is half empty at 430 on a Saturday DO NOT sit a small group of 3 in the kids room. It was nice to have a window on the water but couldn't enjoy it because of the noise and action running around us.
Mark Crutchfield
Best salmon dish (I'm pretty sure) I've ever had. Awesome service, great view of the ocean. Top notch!
Inna Nechypurenko
My husband and I were looking for this restaurant for one hour and nobody could help us. So, finally we are here and they did a good quick service. Delicious food and drinks � we like it and recommend
Bruce B
Awesome fish dishes of course Sand Dabs! Wonderfully accompanied with a Chardonnay caper sauce! I sit at the bar where the drinks come fast.
Glamagirl
Overall, we all liked it. We ordered Grilled Seabass topped with lobster sauce & served with mashed potatoes and spinach on bottom . We also ordered the seared mahi-mahi topped with teriyaki sauce n served w/rice pilaf and veggies. I felt like the teriyaki sauce is overpowering the fish. But overall, we r all happy with our food!! Waitress was helpful n friendly!! ❤️
Rmtuma1
Yuk. Everything ranged from just OK to gross. Bland no flavor and poor service. Price was way too high.
Bernice
Excellent food and service. My husband got fish stuff which he loves and I go chicken. Excellent on everything!
Angela
Pass By. Lesson One Don't go food shopping when you're hungry.<br/>Lesson Two Don't walk into a restaurant you'd otherwise pass when husband is "starving"<br/><br/>We failed to learn from past mistakes this restaurant is fine if you only want mediocre, mass produced food. staff are friendly and helpful not a bad location, you can actually see the water. Definitely for families, children do tend to drop lots of food on the floor when parents aren't paying attention which these days seems to be most of the time .... tekkie stuff takes priority ... I had a Ceasar Salad husband had batter and chips, no that's not a typo, batter (thick and undercooked) and chips, still looking for the fish. Asked to speak to Manager, he never appeared. We paid, left and grumbled all the way back to the car.
Kim B
The dinner specials were awesome. Mom had tender cooked albalone, big sis had a perfectly seared ahi, little sis a moist and flavorful stuffed salmon, and brother a well balanced jambalaya. Plates were generous and the sides complimented perfectly. I liked the atmosphere. If it hadn't been dark, we'd have had a good view.
Nick
Drunk waiter was insulting. We ate at Gilbert's Firefish Grill this weekend after Thanksgiving and the evening was spoiled by a drunk male waiter who was hammered while waiting on us. What kind of place do you operate ??
JB
Enjoyed our meals. My wife and I had lunch here at a recent trip. My wife is from the East coast, and rarely likes the Crab Cakes she gets in the west, but these were quite good. I don't like fried foods, so the waiter recommended the grilled kabobs. A variety of fish and vegetables, and it was very tasty, cooked right.<br/><br/>The service was good, our waiter gave us good recommendations and appropriate service.
Milly
BAD TASTE IN MY MOUTH. My family and I came to have a family dinner at Gilberts firefish Grill, the day after my daughter's college graduation. I have noticed through the years that the food quality has been going down , I visit SC often. But this was the worse dinner during my entire 3 day weekend. Bad service, Bad food, that tasted like TV dinners, (specially for the price) the Grad ordered the Crab dinner, BAD IDEA, It was terrible, old, and smelled funny, she tolerated it until I tasted it and told her not to eat it any more. She did not have the rest of the trimmings on her plate, we called the manager, who spoke to me with an attitude , to my understanding., he thought we were trying to cheat the restaurant. They made many mistakes with our dinners, did not explain to us that certain items were not available the way we were ordering them. They brought us , something different. They brought one guest the wrong meal. We tolerated it all, except when it came to the bad, old crab. I am a cook my self and know what crab should taste like. The plate was over $35.00 and for that price, one should have good crab, specially from a place that specializes in "seafood". To top it all off, my cousin and I got sick on their clam chowder soup. Which USED to be really good.
Bryan
Best on the Wharf!. Had the steak and rockafeller prawns, very good. Service was great and the place looks nice. The new kitchen was a cool idea. Way to go Jamal your doing a fine job.(he sat us at our window table) see you soon!
David Kilby
Frozen Fish. Calamari that tasted like chicken nuggets. Scallops in a cream sauce that had clearly been frozen in the cream sauce. Fish in the fish and chips that were clearly fried the year before and as a result when unfrozen were grey and slimey. Ketchup prawn cocktails. A server that forgot about us because she went to smoke a cigarette. Incredibly expensive. $50 for the worst meal I've ever had. Also, it's disgusting that a restaurant like this doesn't support their local economy. you should buy from local fresh fish places each day. You could still make loads of money off that. They are preying on one-time customers. Total rip off.
Ron
Early dinner. We dined at the Firefish on a Friday for an early dinner around 3:00 on way from Napa to San Jose to catch a flight home. Was promptly greeted and seated. View was great. Ordered ice tea, two dinners, and a salad to share. Waitress didn't bring teas until much later when she walked by the table then commented, "didn't I bring you your teas.?" Received the salad but didn't receive an extra dish even though we mentioned we were sharing it. Salad was very good. When we finished the salad the dishes were not cleared until our food was brought even though the waitress passed our table several times. One dish that was ordered was Seafood Saute comprised of prawns, scallops and crab in a butter garlic sauce in pasta. When we received the dish, the sauce was "soup" i.e., thin and watery and the butter garlic was predominately lemon. The dish was good (not great) but did not expect a soupy dish. However, it was served in a bowl with a spoon. Ate the seafood and some of the pasta. Left the rest. Maybe they should change the description of the dish on the menu. Noticed other tables had bread, but we did not receive any. I rate the restaurant, based on our experience, 3 stars out of 5. Need to gather some of the waitress staff and explain to them what quality customer service is. Could be they just don't care about service to non-locals.
Felicia
SAD Seafood Setting. What a great disappointment @ Gilbert's Fire Fish Grill June 27, 2010. The waitress was in a big hurry to get our order. No fresh calamari! We ordered, we waited and waited, bread came, waited, dinner was served, not hot! We had ordered another glass of wine with dinner; waited, waited she never came to see if our dinner was OK or bring our wine. Missing in action. Finally she came back to see if everything is good ( not good at all) and we asked what about our wine? Her reply is that the bar was working on it. I saw her rush over to the bar and call out to the bartender. Bottom line is the food was just bad and the server had a personality of a wet fish and disorganized. We had a better meal on the Board Walk with great price tag under $20.00.
Charlie
Loved it!!!!!!. My family and i enjoyed firefish!! chowder is the best!!! i had mesquite grilled salmon with hollandaise sauce.maybe the best i've had ? the special halibut with lobster sauce was just as good !! The staff was very friendly too,and the drinks what can i say? try the mai tai .can't wait for next visit
Lisacyork
Expected much more. I brought family from out of town expecting to feed them fresh fish. My friend had the fish and chips. They were watery and bland. She said they were the worst she has ever had. My son had the salmon. He thought the fish was microwaved by the taste. It was not even close to fresh. The hamburger was not even good. This is the second time I have been here and I thought I would give it a second chance. I will not be eating here again. The server was nice, but I had to ask for bread, refills, etc. The girl,maybe manager, was not nice and did not seem to care that we did not enjoy our meal.
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