Ski Beach Bar and Grill — Restaurant in Leesburg

We are new to this area. As we were headed home from one of the natural springs, we saw this place and felt it looked worthy of a try. This afternoon we decided to give it a go! My initial impression walking in was this; the greeting could have been much more welcoming (makes all the difference!!!). Looking past that, because the lake view and surrounding venetian bridges were going to be a major bonus to walk off dinner, we were escorted out to the deck area which overlooked the beautiful lake. Firstly, the view was very nice. We could hear the wildlife and boaters and really enjoyed the business of that! Moving onto the service. We could have been asked what we'd like to drink much sooner, after 10-15 minutes we did get a nice greeting from our server, she was very sweet, and we did get our drinks ordered and to the table about 10 minutes after that. She offered to let us take our time ordering entrees (menu was impressive) and place the saltshaker at the end of the table when we were ready to order our entree, so not being rushed was very nice. Before I begin on the food, please for the love of God can I get a good G&T with bubbly tonic! It was perfect gin proportion but sadly the tonic was flat, ruining the experience of a light and bubbly afternoon drink on the lake! We started with the BBQ shrimp appetizer, which had excellent flavor. I would say this on a SERIOUS note to the chef- add a nicely sized rounded scoop of sticky rice in the middle of the dish with a garnish atop. Maybe showcase one small gator bite on top of the rice with a green garnish of parsley or chives (might sell a few more if one can sample it, I know I wanted to try just one as opposed to buying an entire dish). Also, consider adding spoons for 'slurping'. I felt the delicious juices of the appetizer were a total waste. Now you might say that is what the bread is for, however for those who don't do bread- spooning would have been wonderful and easy addition, especially with the rice (even my bread loving husband agreed with this). I ordered the crazy cajon pecan chicken salad, and out of curiosity I wanted to also sample a salad dressing that was not included (The Rio Pepe dressing). So, I carefully asked the waitress to place a sample of that 'on the side', just to give it a try. Unfortunately, I was brought the wrong salad. Being a first timer at Ski Beach, I didn't realize it was the wrong salad until I took a few bites and tasted an olive. By this point I didn't see a reason to send it back. It was VERY good despite being a mistake, overall, I did enjoy my salad. I can see how the mistake was made; I was brought the Rio Pepe salad on accident because I requested to sample the Rio Pepe dressing (innocent mistake). My husband ordered a burger, he said it was cooked perfectly and well-seasoned. I sampled his fries, and they were great! I would say to make this a 5 star review I would be sure the greeters at least appear genuinely interested in this being a great lake front eating experience for you. I would also advise, don't serve anything that requires tonic from the bar if it is flat, only offer club soda if that is the case and dress it up with fresh lime or bitters (makes all the difference). Trust me your Gin & tonic customers will be thankful for the swap! The food was good, the service could be improved but was ok. The view was great, the venetian gardens adjacent were truly a wonderful experience to take in after dinner. We'll be returning to try another meal and drink! If I could do a 3.5...

After working all day I decided to treat myself to a Jazz burger and a margarita, after all it is Mother's Day. I entered about 8:25pm and was standing at the hostess area for a couple of minutes, a few employees had went by, a young girl about 5"6 with blonde hair passed through and went to the Togo area grabbed some rolled silverware and came back through, putting the silverware in the top drawer. I was never acknowledged. It only takes 30 seconds to say hi, someone will be right with you. I then went to the right where the small booths are in the bar area and sat at the 3rd one, which is usually were they have Sat me a few times in the last couple of weeks. Anyways, I decided to set my stopwatch, due to not being acknowledged. While sitting there a man with dark hair, beard, a black hat, red shirt, that works there Sat at the first booth and he was facing me for maybe 2-3 minutes then he got. Meanwhile the bartender, female, 30's, brown hair that was pulled back, red v-cut t-shirt, maybe 5'6, 170 lbs, was chatting with 3 young men sitting at the bar. One of the men may have been an employee, but not sure, he had long dirty blonde hair, blk pants, aqua blue polo shirt and a white towel hanging out of his back pocket, possibly a busser. The men asked for another fireball and the bartender replied that she had to go a get some more. I looked at the stopwatch and it was at 5 mins + and that's when I got up and went to the Togo area and asked for the manager. A young man with wavy brown hair jumped off the side counter where he was sitting and came over to me. I explained my experience and showed him the stopwatch. He offered to sit me and take my order, but at this point I was frustrated, aggravated, and down right pissed off. I said no thanks I would go somewhere else. I also took pictures of what was going on. I am in this line of work also. I work at a Country Club in The Villages and this kind of service is unacceptable!!!!!! I know it was slow, but that should be an opportunity to build your clientele. The manager should have been doing his job walking around speaking with the guests to ensure that customer satisfaction was being meet and following up and directing employees so that goal...

I was visiting my hometown, and had a friend with me who wanted something local. After a rocky first attempt at Ski Beach on my last trip, I decided to give it another shot. Last time, food was great, and service was the issue. This time, we were there around 3 pm, so I figured service staff would be less pressed. Jeremy was our server, and took great care of everything HE could. We started with some fried green tomatoes, and tried to order two catfish po boys. A few minutes later, poor Jeremy has to tell us they're out of catfish. Back to the drawing board... Can we get fried redfish po boys? Yes, great! A few minutes later, poor Jeremy has to tell us that would be $25 per sandwich. We end up deciding to get shrimp and oyster po boys so we can try both. By this point, the tomatoes have arrived. We dig in, and find the tomatoes themselves are pale and HARD, not green and firm, and the batter/breading is just - there. Not bad, just bland. On top of the almost flavorless tomatoes, we're talking a mouthful of meh. The remoulade was the only thing tasty on the plate. Our sandwiches come, and fries are hot and crisp, coleslaw is good, but oysters and shrimp were, respectfully, disappointment on a bun. Tiny kids meal shrimp, but a fair amount of them, overcooked oysters, and a slice of red tomato thick enough to use as a door stop. Out of one appetizer and two different sandwiches, the best things on the table were coleslaw, fries, and remoulade. Jeremy came to check on us, and asked if everything was ok. At this point, I'm just straight up with him. No, this is not great, but we're starving and have to get back on road. He insisted on having the app taken off our check, which I appreciate, but I really had two negative experiences here in two trips. I grew up in Leesburg, and I love to see something new helping revitalize the area, but if it was like this on both trips, both during slow periods, I can't imagine what the end of April is...