Marcus at Baha Mar Fish + Chop House — Restaurant in New Providence

I'll only share MY experience today. It wasn't pleasant overall, in truth, I'd never return.

I began happily and excited to once again enjoy a birthday at one of Chef Marcus's restaurants. I was greeted positively by a hostess and shown to our seat. Thereafter, it all went terribly wrong. We waited for 10 minutes for an any service, I went to the same pleasant hostess to bring same to her attention and she called the waitress. The waitress never came and so another came 3 minutes later. We knew what we wanted and did so. After that first interaction, there was no interaction for 50 minutes- no follow-up, no check-in, nothing. I watched as others were served and actually waited upon, but nothing.

Within that 50 minutes- after the first 20, we received our starter (the very delicious corn bread and butter). Then, at 12:37pm, we received our entrees after I watched our dishes go outside and returned to the back as there was no one to guide the hands that had it; it was at that point that I returned to the hostess desk and saw the waitress who was to initially provide service walking with them. We received our food and while it was still very hot, it was incorrect.

At this juncture, after having no service - food being incorrect - and waiting 1 hour, I was over it. I alerted the hostess that the food was incorrect because of course, there was no one available to assist our table. She beckoned for the 1st waiter to assist, he apologized and said that the meal would be fixed and removed from our bill [which it was not, a discount was provided instead when we received the bill at 20%].

At 1255 I received my "fixed" food, at that point I told them I didn't want anything and if they insisted, to please package as my date had to leave. They didn't package so i sat and ate and quickly had to leave. Frankly, I left with a jaded experience and my date wasn't pleased by the taste of his meal (had no flavor, as was the case with my meal), though it looked rather tasty.

Overall, presentation of food was lovely but no flavor and when it did happen, service was pleasant. I'd never return to a marcus property for a special occasion or anything that actually matters as I only need 1...

I'm usually a little skeptical of restaurants opened by celebrity chefs, but this one was a pleasant surprise. The food was great and the service unbeatable--I would recommend it to anyone.

What we devoured: -- Cornbread with Hot Buttered Rum: A must. Our waiter did us a great service by suggesting it almost as soon as our butts hit the seats. He also suggested trying it with and without the butter and telling him what we preferred. Spoiler: there's really no comparison.

-- Ms G's Conch Salad: Conch is one of those things you have to eat at least once if you're in the Bahamas. It was good, but I'd skip it if you're not that into conch (in other words, don't feel obligated to order it just because).

-- Grilled Red Snapper: I was debating between this and the Miso-Glazed Halibut (I have a thing for anything miso). But I am so glad I got this. The portion of fish is sizable, but not overwhelming. The coconut curry wasn't soup, but rather blended in with the rich (more like a sauce than what you might think of when you think of curry). The fish was tasty on its own but even more so with the rice. I cleaned my plate.

-- Island Grilled Pork Chop: My boyfriend got this and pretty much couldn't stop thinking about it later. I tried a small piece and wow-oh-wow was it marvelous.

We both agreed it was one of the best restaurants at Bahamar. Also loved that we could see the food being prepared in the open kitchen.

Over the course of the evening, we spotted 2-3 people in fancy jackets (think disco-style rhinestones and glitter) and quite a few women in stilettos. Not sure if it was just that night (there was a big event happening in the back room and a few people wearing lanyards), but in any case, you won't feel out of place dressed to the nines here.

A note about the excellent service: Our waiter was brimming with energy and joy. It was really delightful. I also asked one of the passing servers for hand sanitizer and was quickly presented with both a bottle and a wipe. Options --...

We looked forward to celebrating my sons 40th birthday with our family that flew in from all over. We requested the patio well in advance but when arrived was informed that it was reserved for larger parties (we were 10)

We had brought the remainder of a special bottle of wine that we opened in our suite but was told that it would be $50 to pour it (about 2 glasses left) we declined. We brought our 4 and 5 year old water bottles as EVERY other restaurant in property allowed (bottle water is $15-18) due to medical concerns they did not drink the tap water. We were told that the water bottles were not permitted as it doesn't fit the ambiance of the restaurant. (We were seated on the sand and ordered $150 fried chicken!!). We obliged and removed the 'cheap' water bottles.

Throughout dinner a party of about 14 people (6 adults) allowed their children to scream, fight, and throw sand. Not one manager walked over to ask the parents to get up and help manage the kids. (Kids are kids but parents could have controlled some of the situation.

When I found the manager who approached us about the water bottles, I calmly addressed the fact that there was a disparity between their wanting decorum and elegance in a restaurant. Instead of addressing our feelings a manager addressed the other party and said that we complained about their kids!! (We did not- we complained about their management!) They put us in an awful situation that when we sang happy birthday to our son they booed and jeered at him.

I know this is long but for a dinner in excess of $1000 despite the good food this restaurant failed in so many ways. I have been to many of Chef Marcussens restaurants and do believe he would have cringed at the way we were treated. Terribly...