Pickled Restaurant & Bourbon Bar — Restaurant in Fort Pierce

It’s unfortunate that I feel compelled to write this, as I typically don’t leave negative reviews. I strongly believe in supporting small businesses and want to see them succeed. However, our recent experience on Mother’s Day was unacceptable and left us with no alternative but to speak out.

We made a reservation and arrived expecting a pleasant brunch, especially since this was once a spot we frequented and genuinely enjoyed under previous management. What we encountered instead was disorganized, unprofessional, and frankly, disappointing on every level.

To begin, our drink order was incorrect—not a major issue, but a sign of what was to come. The brunch menu was extremely limited (only five options), and by the time we ordered, only three were available due to the kitchen running out of ingredients. No pancakes, no omelets—hardly what one would call a brunch menu.

I ordered an iced coffee that contained actual coffee grounds. I ended up choking on it, which was both unpleasant. Even worse, my girlfriend slipped on the wet floor while heading to the restroom. Rather than offering assistance, the owner began taking photos of the area—presumably to protect himself legally—and later denied the incident entirely as if they didn’t believe her! We even told them a staff member asked if I was over. Still covered it up with a witness at hand .

Our child ordered a burger, which arrived with a burnt bun and an overcooked patty. At that point, the experience had gone from disappointing to absurd.

We asked to speak to the manager, and both the owner and hostess came over. The hostess did most of the talking—oddly defensive and unprofessional—and it became clear there was some sort of personal relationship between them. When I expressed concern about the limited menu and lack of kitchen preparedness, the owner claimed to be unaware of the issue and blamed it on an “unexpected rush.” It was Mother’s Day—how could that possibly be unexpected?

I told him, candidly, that he didn’t appear suited for restaurant ownership. Instead of addressing our concerns, the hostess asked me not to “attack him,” and they both walked away without offering any apology or resolution.

Before leaving, we spoke to another table who confirmed similar experiences and shared that the original owners had moved on, leaving the current owner—formerly a silent partner—running things. The difference in quality is glaring.

This restaurant used to be a local gem with creativity, good food, and a family-friendly atmosphere. It is now unrecognizable. We canceled our food, paid for our drinks, and left—disappointed, frustrated, and honestly saddened by what this...

My family and I were visiting Fort Pierce for Spring break with my in laws, who live in FP. My husband and I went for a walk in town and came across Pickled. We told my in laws we wanted to go there for dinner, so we did. We made reservations and got there about 20 min. early and waited about 5 min before anyone even greeted us... When we got sat, we ordered our drinks and an appetizer, the fried green tomatoes and bread. The tomatoes took awhile and came out way over cooked. To the point that mine tasted like grease and the tomato was super super little. The bread was hard as a rock, but my son was hungry, so he ate it. We ordered more bread and the 2nd order came out warm and soft. Don't know why the first order was hard, but oh well. Dinner.... I ordered the meatloaf. When it came out, I could already tell if was going to be dry by looking at it. Not only was it dry, but when we asked our waitress what ingredient was overpowering in it, she said "all I know is it is beef mixed with chorizo and they bind it together, so it's the spices in chorizo. Well... I didn't even know it was made with chorizo, or I wouldn't have ordered it. Not my cup of tea. That was not explained on the menu, that it was made with chorizo. Not only that, but it was so dry, I had to ask for extra peppercorn sauce just to get some down. The brussel sprouts needed to be cooked longer. The mashed potatoes were good and my son loved the truffle Mac n cheese. My husband ordered the pork chop. He said the same thing about his Brussels and that the pork chop was "ok".. my MIL liked her filet and my FIL.saod his was "ok" ... The service was very slow..when we got there, there were only a few at the bar, two tables were seated. Our waitress was nice, but we didn't see her much. It was just very slow. The good thing about this experience, is we don't live here, so we won't be back. However, my parents do, but they probably won't be back either, unless it's for a drink, not the food. It stinks because it has a really good atmosphere and it looks like it could have good potential, but we did not have a good...

Our baby turns one next month and we don't often have a "date night." We visited Pickled during our 3 year anniversary celebration just being toddler-less adults enjoying the atmosphere of downtown. I called 45 minutes ahead to ask if they could accommodate us. (Yes.) When we arrived, the host seemed to size us up.... very uncomfortable. His greeting was odd, as if he was waiting for us to realize we are in the wrong place. When my partner told him we had called, and that there was a reservation under his name, the host hastily told him, "No, there isn't. She didn't call here." He repeated his name and the time our table was reserved, and the host looked once more and said, "Oh, yes, there it is. Right this way," without an apology. Strike one. As we were seated, I informed the host that I have a dairy allergy and asked if he could let our server know. He told me that he would be our server. (Really?) But he didn't give me any help with menu options... a host/server that is unfamiliar with the menu?? Strike two. We ordered fried green tomatoes with arugula and he had a sangria. My entree was the swordfish with asparagus and he decided upon the filet with truffle Mac. He is a beef lover, hands down. He. HATED. The. Filet. He wasn't going to complain, we were just trying to enjoy our quality time. Our host asked specifically about his filet. He was honest about his discontent The host literally told him he had eaten the filet himself on multiple occasions and has NEVER found it subpar. Wow. Strike three my dude. My partner and I are working class, just like the host/server/waiter. I'm sure he could tell this from sizing us up. Tonight was a special occasion that had been accounted for, i.e. we did the research and knew that we are likely spending around 200 on dinner here and expecting to spend at least 50 on gratuity. While I actually quite loved the super-tender-melt-in-your-mouth-yet-delicately-crisp-outside swordfish, that remained to be the only upside to our visit. I believe another reviewer had a similar feeling as my partner on the filet (look...