Fresh Catch Bistro — Restaurant in Fort Myers Beach

One star is too much!

My husband and I stayed at fort Myers from Miami only to head over to camping world to purchase an RV. We are from Miami, we know how to dress up VERY nicely when we go out but as regular campers and only going to fort Myers for one thing, we were dressed in sneakers, shorts and T-shirts. Automatically, we were judged physically because of how we were dressed. We’ve happily spent hundreds of bucks at restaurants before, so expensive restaurants aren’t intimidating. If anything, seeing every one else dressed extravagant for such a low class restaurant like this one was a joke.

They sat us near the kitchen, this picture was taken AFTER they removed a mountain of rags from that was overflowing the hamper. Not classy at all. The hamper was so disgustingly full, it was hard to miss every time I looked at my husband.

Ordered an oj and pineapple juice. I used to bartend, I knew that the pineapple they gave me was the pineapple canned juice they use to make drinks, it tasted so unnatural I couldn’t drink it. The oj was SO sour and acidic, I almost wondered if it was expired. Told the server to take it back and she gave me a look like idk what I was talking about.

They brought us out the bread uncut, cold, and flat meanwhile EVERYONE else’s bread was stacked beautifully and cut individually for the guest.

We ordered our plates…again, we’ve spent hundreds on a single dish before..here, they charged $30 I think? for a small chunk of steak, and gladly my husband was paying for it until it made it to the table. He asked for a medium rare steak and they served him a rubber well done steak. We do not like sending food back into the kitchen so although he was unsatisfied, he ate the whole thing.

I only ordered a lobster bisque which took me forever to eat because I am a slow eater (which Publix lobster bisque tastes better), the server came to our table and instead of asking if we were okay, or if we want dessert, or to refill our water, she offered us a box to go! My husband still trying to finish his steak, we said “no”.

Afterwards, my husband finished his steak he asked for the check (I was still eating my bisque), she immediately whips out the check and took his plate, took my plate, took everything from the table. I WASNT EVEN DONE WITH MY BISQUE! I was SO shocked, I didn’t have the time to tell her I wasn’t done. At that point I just wanted to leave. We are AMAZING tippers, again, I used to bartend so I respect the restaurant industry but for the first time we tipped 15%. This place needs to humble themselves entirely. Starting from the workers to the prices because that rubber steak was NOT worth that price. We left EXTREMELY...

Review:

My recent experience at Fresh Catch Bistro left me utterly disappointed and frustrated. After carefully selecting a restaurant with minimal walking distance from the drop-off point for my mother, who has difficulty walking, we arrived with hopeful anticipation. Upon entering, my mother was pleased to find that she could easily walk to the elevator, and there was a seat conveniently located just outside on the 2nd floor in the lobby of the restaurant.

However, our expectations quickly turned to disbelief and dismay when we encountered resistance from the hostess. Despite explaining our situation and my mother's mobility issues, we were met with indifference. The hostess suggested seating around the bar, which had steps, and mentioned a lift halfway through the building. I pointed out that even if my mother managed to reach the lift, only high-top tables were available there.

Frustrated by the lack of understanding, I requested to speak with a manager. What followed was not just disappointing but downright appalling. The manager flatly refused to accommodate my mother's handicap, citing the absurd reason that allowing her to sit there would set a precedent for everyone else. His response was not only insensitive but also blatantly rude.

Feeling outraged and insulted by his callous attitude, I expressed my frustration, which unfortunately led to a heated exchange. The manager's unprofessional behavior escalated to the point where he confronted me aggressively, yelling at me in my face, inciting a scene in front of other customers and staff.

What made the situation even more bewildering was the fact that there were 30-plus empty tables just a few feet away. It was incomprehensible why the manager adamantly refused to accommodate my mother when there were plenty of available options nearby.

It's disheartening to witness such a lack of empathy and basic management skills, especially when dealing with a handicapped person. The manager's power trip overshadowed any chance of resolving the situation amicably. Instead of finding a simple solution and ensuring customer satisfaction, he chose to engage in a needless confrontation.

In conclusion, my experience at Fresh Catch Bistro was marred by the manager's inability to handle a straightforward request with tact and professionalism. It's evident that there are significant shortcomings in the management of this establishment, and I hope they take steps to rectify such behavior...

After 3 years in the area and looking forward to finally going to Fresh Catch Bistro with a group of friends, we were very surprised that we could get a last-minute reservation for 7 people during the high season. I am usually very complimentary with my reviews and try to be very forgiving with insignificant issues. Rudeness, however, is NOT something I can overlook in a server. From the beginning, our server was extremely curt and rude, expecting quick decisions after we had just been seated. After she delivered our drinks, my vodka and tonic tasted like vodka and club soda. I told her and she did not apologize, just wisked it away in a rude manner and came back with another...again, no apology or any explanation, but when I tasted it, it was exactly the same...club soda and tonic. I had others at the table taste it to be sure I was correct. She was ignoring us, and so my husband called her over, and she rudely told me that I was wrong...that she had tasted the tonic water, and it was fine. I asked her to please take the drink away. She did take it away after making a scene. This was very embarrassing for me. I had started to explain what had happened to Jerry (manager?) when the server came back and explained then that there was indeed something wrong with the tonic, and they were trying to fix it. It was very troubling to me that she had embarrassed me in front of the group, never apologized, and it set a bad tone for our entire evening. Jerry did change servers for us, but I have to say that I have never before had an experience quite like this. I certainly expected much better from Fresh Catch Bistro. I am very disappointed and saddened! We really love Junkanoo Below Deck and had a terrific meal and great service there. The bill at Junkanoo's was not nearly the price that we paid at Fresh Catch Bistro for inferior service and 2 bad drinks, and an embarrassing situation...there were other issues as well, but we could overlook them. I just needed to bring this...