Harry T's Lighthouse — Restaurant in Destin

Just average to me.

Pros Location of the restaurant by the water and Harbor Walk. Excellent service.

Cons Price vs quality - Had better seafood at places that are way cheaper. Ordered shrimp and grits for $27. I've had way better shrimp & grits for a lot better price than Harry T's. Restrooms are upstairs. Kids menu - Whomever came up with the price need to have their head checked! The grill cheese is $10 and the popcorn shrimp is also $10. Why would anyone pay $10 for a kids grill cheese? Draft beer - $6 plus dollars depending on what brand. Prices not listed. Look at your receipt - They charge extra fee for being on the Harbor Walk and then tax extra on top of that. (Not the fault of the restaurant)

Final thought - I came to try because of the popularity of the restaurant. I can say that we came, we ate, and got the T-shirt. I am not WOW by my experience or the price. A check off the box for me. That's all.

Update 7/28/22 (reply to HT comment) -

Fees: I understand about the extra fees, but that does not mean I should like it. No one, including you, likes to pay tax to earn money, pay tax to spend your hard earned money, and now pay extra tax for the location you are spending your money on. I am going to clarify that the extra fee statement is not the fault of the restaurant. I completely understand your statement about your charge because you must.

Restroom: Yes, to each their own. I do feel that the restroom is out of the way. My honest opinion as everything else I submit a review on.

Kids menu: Most of your business is from adults and / or parents. I bet your get way more adult orders than kids. I still feel that a $10 grill cheese is absurd. The statement that you have a finite amount of space on your flattop and cannot afford to have $5 grill cheese taking up space does not make sense, because the parents will still have to order a meal for their child / children. If they don't order a grill cheese, they will order something else, which will still take up room on your flattop. $5 grill cheese (your words, not mine) for $10 is 100% mark up, not 15 to 20%.

The price of everything going up: Yes everything cost more, but I was also comparing the quality of the food and price point to other restaurants. My family was in the restaurant business their entire life and we are foodies. I would drive 2 hrs to eat good food. The grits was just ok to me. On a positive note, the shrimp was great! Kudos on that. Since we are on the topic of inflation, this brings up the price of beer. I was at another restaurant last night and ordered a draft beer. It was $4.25.

I would also emphasize again that the service was excellent. Our server was courteous, fast, and on top it. Seemed like a hard worker. HT is lucky to have such...

My family and I visited Harry T's on 6 May 23 after a 6hour fishing outing. This was a birthday trip for myself that included my 9y/o son and 66 y/o mother in law, wife, daughter and sister (excluding myself, all first time fishing). We took our catch to Harry T's as it was recommended. 1st we were told it would be an hour wait (explainable for a Saturday night). After walking around the restaurant we noticed quite a few open tables we could've been sitting. We asked for one of those tables and were obliged..?? That began our bad experience! We then made our order for our catch from the trip along with other items from the menu. We received the other menu items first. After about 30 min after, our waiter approached the table to inquire about our fish we were desperately looking to eat especially my 9y/o. He asked what type of fish we had which was very, very ODD!! About 20 min later, he came back with a plate of fish clearly not my fish! He continued on as usual with no intention on telling us that it wasn't ours UNTIL I ASKED HIM, "is this our fish" he answered unfortunately not...HIGHLY UNACCEPTABLE! Not one time during the wait did he mention that it was a mixup with the fish. He was going to sell us off with totally different fish. His excuse was that the kitchen mixed it up and instructed him to bring us this mystery, not freshly caught catch. After an angry but controlled, disappointed, surprised, confused exchange along with 100 excuses as to what happened we were done with Harry T's at this point. The Manager tried to settle it by taking the charges away and cooking extra fish but the damage was done!!!! The trip total was appx $2100 (not including tip and total trip cost) however the experience/occasion for my family and the tears my 9 y/o shed after learning of the mixup can't be replaced or a price put on it. Zero stars x 2 if possible. This may have to go up to Corporate as this has so many wrongs to...

I recently visited this seafood restaurant that had a lot of promise but didn’t quite deliver the experience I was hoping for. The location and ambiance were undeniably top-notch—the view was breathtaking, and the atmosphere set the stage for what I anticipated would be a memorable meal. Unfortunately, the food and overall value left much to be desired.

Despite being a seafood spot, I opted for the 14oz steak, ordered medium rare. What arrived was correct but tasted just okay. For the price I paid, I could have enjoyed a better-cooked steak with larger portions at a dedicated steakhouse and for half the cost. The food, in general, leaned toward average, which didn’t justify the high price tag.

That said, one aspect I deeply appreciated was their pet-friendly policy. We brought our beloved dog along for one of her last meals, and the staff was accommodating and kind. It means so much to find a place that welcomes furry family members, especially during such meaningful moments. This thoughtful touch left a lasting positive impression on me.

Service was decent—no major complaints there. The staff was attentive enough, though the experience lacked any standout moments of warmth or excellence. While I appreciated the visual appeal of the venue, it felt like the restaurant was banking heavily on its location rather than delivering a culinary experience that matched the price point.

Overall, this is the kind of place that might impress for the view and its pet-friendly nature, but if you’re seeking exceptional food or a good value for your money, you may want to explore...