Rod and Reel Pier — Restaurant in Anna Maria island

It pains me to give a one star review of this place, because as return guests for the past 4 years (we visit Florida every January) we have grown fond of it and look forward to visiting during our stay. But, sentimentality alone can't save our experience there today. In the spirit of generosity, positives first: the waitress was wonderful. Helpful, friendly, accommodating, with a warmth and talent perhaps better suited for a different restaurant. The 4 stars I gave for service goes to her. Secondly, the location is beautiful, and the restaurant has that old style Florida timeless feel that we find so attractive (and hard to find in the midst of so much tourism and modernity). Unfortunately, that leaves us with the food, which is ultimately the reason to visit a food establishment. First, the prices. They have risen here to the point of absurdity. I understand inflationary pressures on the food business- I used to be in it. But the prices at this place simply don't match the rise in prices I have seen at other (nicer, more professional) restaurants. We got 3 hot dogs, fish & chips, a bowl of gumbo, and a crab cake platter, (with waters all around) and our bill, including an automatic 18% gratuity, was $105. It doesn't take a genius to understand how ridiculous this is. Adding pain to injury, the food itself was shameful. The hot dogs were good, as far as hot dogs go. So were the fries. But the crab cake was barely edible. It tasted like crackers and old bread with a pinch of crab thrown in. Not what I expected for $25. The $10 bowl of gumbo was oversalted to the point where I couldn't really taste much except that. I ate half and brought the rest back to our rental, which I will choke down tomorrow with a cold beer to mask the taste. I'm annoyed that this was what we got for $105. As for the other personnel, there is a host on staff that appears lazy and incompetent and looks like he would rather be anywhere but at work. If there is an actual manager in charge here, I would love to understand the rationale with hiring/retaining an employee with this aura about him. I'm not the only one who noticed this- another table left soon after being seated, partially due to what they called "a bad attitude." Their words, not mine. But I agree. With high prices, food that clearly needs major attention, and a host who doesn't seem to like people very much, there are zero reasons to continue our patronage of this place. It simply isn't worth the hard...

My husband enjoyed being able to fish right off the pier while waiting to be called, and be sure to pack stuff to do because there will always be a wait in excess of 45 minutes. Which we thought was because the food was so good, after eating there we determined it was because there are only about 8 tables inside, and about 7 outside. Most of them are set to accommodate large groups, but if all they have available is a 6 top, they will seat 2 or 3 people there because it's just what they have available. It is clear this place was never intended to become somewhere a lot of people came to eat at, at once. Everything was all mismatched and not in the kind of way that made it seem intentional, more like they just picked up stuff off the street. Our waitress was very short with us, and wasn't very helpful when my husband had questions about the menu or about market price, she also refused to split how how the fish and clams were cooked. What I mean is he wanted fried fish, and steamed clams and the waitress said no. If this was a hard and fast rule they held then fine, but she said usually they would, but right now they would not because they were busy. So busy in fact that when our food did arrive, my husband was given the wrong sides, and despite not actually wanting them, and voicing that to the waitress, she just shrugged and brought out the correct sides and then left the original sides. Which on the tiny table we were seated at in the middle of the also tiny dining space was more than annoying. Over all the novelty is there, fish right off the pier, just not in the back because you won't hear them call your name, but the food was over priced and average, and the waitress was rude...

We visited Ana Maria Island, what was supposed to have been for the week but weather conditions made my mother and I leave Tuesday. Our first night on the island, we visited The Rod and Reel. We read all the reviews on it, which were positive and ensuring. We didn't wait long to be seated and we chose to eat outside on the deck so we could see the ocean and sunset. I ordered a fried grouper sandwhich, which I have not had since I was a kid. Mom had the fish n chips. Both dishes looked good and I couldn't wait to dive into that grouper sandwhich. Boy was I disappointed. There was no seasoning, the grouper tasted bland, off. Mom said her fish tasted weird too. I do not know how much the fish n chips were, but my sandwhich was 28 bucks, it did not taste like a 28 dollar dish. I tasted the grouper without the breading and discovered that it was the breading that was the issue. The grouper itself was still bland. There were no seasonings added to the fish before or after breading. I left there thinking, a McDonalds Filet O Fish tastes way better....and it does. So if you are thinking of eating at The Rod n Reel, keep this review in mind. Save yourself 20 dollars and get an 8 dollar Filet O Fish...