Down Under Restaurant — Restaurant in Fernandina Beach

Sorry I hate that I have to leave this review. Last night my husband and I were going on a date night for my birthday. He said let’s go to Down Under! I said ok they pop up on my timeline 2 days ago I can’t believe it has been a year since we have been there! To be honest we have been sticking to our same old favorite places that don’t try and make us wear a mask. We walked in and greeted. I looked at the daily special ginger honey mahi. Yelp that’s what I want! The wait is 20-30 minutes. We said ok let’s go look at the patio. I came back to the front and let them know that we will have drinks and appetizer at the bar but would still like to be seated inside for our food. Without our 4 kids we had all the time! The bar experience was above and beyond! We fell in love with Phoebe. She was knowledgeable, polite and made some fantastic drinks for us! She was making more drinks for us when my text came in that our seats were available. I walked in and this time I was greeted with Hannah... do you have a mask? I said no! She said ok as she reached down to get one. I said I’m sorry we don’t wear mask. She said it’s only required to walk to your seat. If it wasn’t for Phoebe amazing drinks this would have become very ugly! 🤣 I still let the girls know that it was VERY DIRTY that they made us wait 25 minutes before telling us this was required when we were inside to be added to the waiting lis! Hostess table is not outside! THIS IS TRICKERY. I have not worn a mask in a year and I didn’t plan to start tonight. Almost a year in we are trying new places! I was then told that we can still eat outside and be segregated. Sure we will take your maskless money outside! This has not worked well for other business. I said we will see what my husband says as he was closing out at the bar and getting our drinks. We agreed that we wouldn’t have stayed but since we really liked Phoebe we would like for her to get all of our tip anyways. I am disgusted in Down Under’s owners and management of not telling people that a mask is required! It is not law this is a business decision to make people wait before telling them they need a mask! There was no problem walking though from bar to the front and from the front to the bar. My husband and I have left many places that have a sign that says mask must be worn no-exceptions. PLEASE CHANGE YOUR SIGNAGE OR PROTOCOL. IT IS MY RIGHT TO CHANGE MY REVIEW AND MAKE A REVIEW. I know you will not like my review because you don’t believe in my freedoms! VERY DIRTY OF YOU! STOP THE TRICKERY. *we hope to be able to...

At the time of this review, Down Under had 350 reviews at like a 4.6 rating, and that is why we chose to eat here.

The restaurant is literally under a bridge, hence the name. When driving to the restaurant, you will drive down a very long, very bumpy road. You will need to drive very slowly and carefully because there are some very large holes in the road. Honestly, the road REALLY needs to be fixed. Make sure you have an empty bladder before you go to the restaurant. But, it's honestly in a great location. You're in a secluded area right on the Amelia river. It has a large, open outside eating area, but we ate inside because it was air conditioned. They even have a dock if you want to get there via boat. There's also a place for the kids to play while you wait for a table. We went around 7pm on a Thursday, and it was a 30 minute wait, so the kids play area is a nice feature.

I got their Signature Grouper Monterey with cheese grits. The entree only came with one side--one more side or maybe some hush puppies would have been a nice addition. The menu didn't specify if the grouper was locally caught, nor did I ask. But mine was overcooked and dry. I ate locally caught grouper earlier in my trip so I had something to compare it to, and the grouper here tasted frozen. Maybe I'm wrong. My wife got the Fresh Local Shrimp with fries. She said it could have used an additional side and some more shrimp. I didn't take a picture of her plate, but she got about 8 shrimp. For the price of both entrees, I expected better.

They have a bar and their own signature cocktails. While my wife was outside with the kids, I went to the bar to order drinks while we waited for our table. The bartender would only let me order one drink, or my wife had to come in so they could "verify" I was buying drinks for two people. I didn't like that. I waited in line at the bar for about 10 minutes because it was busy--I wasn't going to make another trip to buy another drink. That made me mad.

So, 3 stars is what I would give this place. Food wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. And the bar area pissed me off. But it is in a great location. Maybe it will be better during my next visit to...

Good seafood spot in Fernandina that's worth the try! Standard service, and casual dining experience.

It's interesting driving up to the restaurant because it's under a bridge, kind of in the cut. But there's plenty of parking and seating.

We came for lunch on a Saturday, so they were busy but not jam packed. We were seated right away. While we chose to sit inside, there was plenty of outdoor seating available and there was even a live performer with a guitar. Even though we didn't hear him, that's always a nice touch during a dine-in experience.

The decor is very woody and rustic and gives a very old lake house or fish house feel. The service was standard. The hostess didn't greet us coming in or out, but our server was friendly.

The food was good! We started with appetizers, ordering the crab dip and jalapeño poppers. The crab dip was phenomenal, with both the chips and dip being seasoned to the gods! The jalapeño poppers were fried perfectly, but I didn't really like the raspberry soy dip. I could have did without the soy part. My sister ordered the chicken tenders and fries and my mom ordered the iron seared ahi tuna sandwich. They both enjoyed their meals.

I had the house salad and added blackened shrimp with the roasted shallot herb vinaigrette. It was so fresh and tasty with all the mix of greens from arugula to spinach, so good! I also ordered a side of baked potato with butter and some cream. I added some crab dip on top of that, and wow, delicious.

All-in-all it was a pleasant experience and yummy seafood lunch. I'd recommend this place and will hopefully be...