Oxbow Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Fort Myers

Good morning,

For the first time I visited the Oxbow Restaurant for my first mother’s day. My husband gave me a few options to choose from but your menu stood out to me the most. So I called and made a reservation at 7pm on May 11, 2025. As we sat outside and saw the wonderful view I knew I chose the correct restaurant, or so I thought. Noah was our server in my party of 4. He was pleasant at the beginning of service but as time went along you could see his energy change. The first incident was my friend ordering Chilled shrimp as an appetizer as she didn’t read it correctly that it would be served correctly. After on minute of us putting that order in we went to explain we didn’t want it and he said very rudely “we can’t cancel an order you have to take it”. Both me and my other party is pregnant so the thought of cold shrimp wasn’t in our plans so my husband ended up eating it and paying for it. So as the night went along both me and my other party drinks was empty so we both asked for a refill on coke. He took both of our glasses with straws(me assuming it was to put in the dishwashing room and to provide us with new glasses) nope he brought us both the same glasses and straws to the table. I then stated to my other party well how would he know who cup is whose he then stated while rolling his eyes “that’s what makes me a good server” the proceeds to open the employees only door aggressively and shake his head. As a former serve, bartender and restaurant manager I would have never said those words to any consumer. I have seen glasses being reused but one thing that I always see is them providing a new straw and you walk in an area we cannot see and the straw is contacting with all different types of air and contamination and as a first time pregnant mom I was uncomfortable using the straw so my husband offered his straw. Once our dinner arrived our food looked wonderful. I was happy with the way my Fish sandwich came out. I asked the server for some extra Aioli sauce. He then proceeds to walk away. All of my party is eating as I wait on the extra sauce, 5 minutes goes by and still no sauce. He then brings out another table appetizer to their table by then my husband and other parties are half way through their meal. My fish is now getting cold and he walks back in and then back out with my sauce. Which wasn’t the same sauce that was on my sandwich. I taste the sauce that was given and it tasted like Caesar dressing. So I asked for a manager and explained what happened and stated I no longer wanted the food. Noah was very rude, unpleasant and did not show us the correct type of service I expected. It was so bad that I will not be returning to Oxbow as I feel the manager didn’t even care to understand how and what I was feeling that evening. As a first mother’s day dinner, that is one I will...

Was really hoping this place was going to be better. We did not have a great experience for dinner on 4/12/21. First, they were out of the Snapper, which is what 2 in my party wanted. Second, they were out of okra as well. We were not told of that upon sitting down, only when we ordered it. Third, since they were out of okra, we opted for asparagus instead. They LITERALLY brought out a plate with ONE piece of asparagus on it. Yes, a single piece layed out over a large plate. We thought it was a joke actually. But unfortunately it wasn't. I called the manager over to show her (she wasn't even the normal Manger, was just filling in from another close by restaurant) and she told us the asparagus we got was the same weight as the okra we would have got. We explained that's not really how it should be addressed, to no avail. No more was brought to the table. We spent close to $300 with our party of 4. They should have brought us more than 1 small piece of asparagus out, especially considering they were the ones out of the okra. I can see why this place only has 3.5 stars... there were a couple other issues, but I'm tired of typing. Beautiful place though. Just wish they'd get their act together as a restaurant of that quality should. It really goes to show you how important the general manager is at a place like that, and this place could use a better one.

Oh!!! 1 more important thing: When I made reservations, I asked for a great seat outside as we were celebrating a birthday. Upon arrival they informed us all of the outdoor seating was closed "because they didn't have enough staff." Again, bad management. The weather was AMAZING and the temperature was perfect and we were all looking forward to being outside enjoying the beautiful view. (1 of the best features of the restaurant) yet they closed it down because they were short staffed?! Why couldn't the waitress we had just walk outside, which would have taken an extra 10 seconds. Overall, very...

We took a trip to downtown Fort Myers to taste the fairly new restaurant on the water during a warm clar sunset. We have our company' executive team meeting in June, and we're scoping out fine dining options that will spoil them with visual settings and tasteful menu options. The Oxbow Bar & Grill restaurant has a beautiful setting, backdrop of the SWFL Caloosahatchee River, cascades of sunsetting rays through the blue skies and few clouds. The server and hostess staff gave pleasant services with smiles the entire night. The raw Blu Pointe oysters tasted good with a solid texture, paired well with the fresh sourdough bread. The shrimp smelled good, and several of the pieces were plump and flavorful. The smaller ones were chewy though, a bit of a pull between my teeth to get it off the tail. One ordered a filet steak, fairly dry but not inedible. The mushroom risotto possessed good flavor, though a little mushy. The asparagus pleasantly was crunchy and mildly flavorful. The berry and goat cheese on Swiss chard salad had some interesting flavors, more bland than expected, but with the Mahi on top, it made for a nice visual presentation to make up for grand flavors. For what it was, there was an abundance of treasures in the swiss chard, blackberries, strawberries, candy nuts, and chunks of goat cheese. Though, the goat cheese was blander than other varieties. Still palatable, just not as sharp. The Mahi had moist insides, but I could see how the blackened outside could have been better with a little less cook time. The maple vinegrette salad dressing helped get it down, though maybe a thinner consistency to drizzle would be better. My company was delightful, as usual, but we will plan our company executive dinner elsewhere. There is value in the setting and good service to have a glass of wine or a bourbon with the large ice cubes, as they do at Oxbow Bar and Grill. I just cannot recommend the same for the food...