State Street Eating House + Cocktails — Restaurant in Sarasota

Wow! What an impressive evening at every level. Do not hesitate and book this restaurant for your next food adventure. The moment you walk into this establishment, you know the vibe is cool and these people know their food and spirits.

The food is incredible, different than the typical Sarasota restaurant that has the same boring food offerings. I was impressed with the Iberico pork dish and unusually amazingly flavored vegetables and spices that accented the smoky tender pork. The yuca in the pork dish was similar to a potato but more flavorful and crispier. I haven't found a dish that impressed me more in recent years. The crispy salmon was a "Wow" moment for my friend, who hails from the Pacific Northwest as do I, where Washingtonians know a thing or two about salmon.

This restaurant provides your palate something different and if you're a veteran of dining out constantly, this is a welcomed change from the ordinary. The New York steak included an amazing demi glaze exploding with flavor and had the perfect consistency which can be a challenge to make right but State Street Eatinghouse + Cocktails got it right. I highly recommend the fried Brussell sprouts as they were an orgasm explosion in our mouths, the bacon amplified it with the accompaniment of the balsamic glaze. My friend's husband and mine, who usually don't like this vegetable, were pleasantly surprised and ate more than the obligatory "try one" portion.

The owners of this restaurant own Beso, which I recently tried, and awarded it my "Best Restaurant in Sarasota" award. This restaurant belongs in the "Restaurant Hall of Fame" of Sarasota or even US restaurants. I love it! My waiter, Dana, was super attentive and impressive. His vast knowledge of the drink and food menu was spot-on and his candor and expertise added to the whole evening's experience. What an amazing restaurant! I can't wait to book my next reservation and I'm kicking myself for not trying it...

The tale of 2 restaurants.: in one location!

1st. restaurant: Ive eaten lunches here often which usually are great. Creative, small portions but unique & homey. 2nd. restaurant: The dinners, not so much. Firstly, their chairs are awful! Hard on the seat & uncomfortably open in the back. Not conducive to a leisurely, quality restaurant. But I am writing this mostly, as my meal last evening was simply awful. I don't know what's wrong with this place lately.

I couldn't wait to get back to have their burger which I had for lunch a few weeks ago. I could swear I was eating in a different restaurant. My burger arrived on a bun that looked fabulous. WRONG! The bottom of the bread was so hard & stale it tasted & crunched like it was a cracker. The 'special' sauce (very unusual) was so lacking I think it was less than 1/2 a teaspoon. The cucumbers were tasteless by comparison to last time. But it was the burger that was the worst part. MAYBE literally 1/4 to 3/8" thick, I ordered medium but there's no way to have cooked this without it coming out almost exactly with the texture of a McDonalds burger as it must have been cooked through in 3 minutes. Dry, tough, no juice, & tasteless, at $17. I felt ripped off & stupid for ordering it. The fries were 1/2 a 'bag' full & more cold than warm & they had no iced tea???? They said they had a party going on next door or something like that.

I can't describe how embarrassed I was bringing friends there & how disappointed I was personally.

The waitress, although nice, was totally unfamiliar with her menu (even suggesting a dish that had rhubarb in it when in fact the veggie was rutabaga. Not even close).

I would have given this pricey place 1 star but my previous lunches there would never have suggested I could have such an awful dinner.

So, $130. later it left me wondering why I didn't go elsewhere as there are so many great choices...

This is one of those places that locals love to share with out-of-towners for a reason. We arrived at dinner time without reservations and a teenager in our party of five. The manager had seating at the bar, but Florida law prohibits seating anyone under 21 at the bar. The manager took us next door to the lounge area that had an empty table near the back. He apologized because we would have to order our food at the bar instead of the table, but we didn't mind since we had a seat. Our local host ordered a Bramble for my wife (it's a featured cocktail there that was perfectly balanced with blackberries, lemon juice with gin and blackberry liqueur) that she said was "dangerous" because it tasted so good that you might drink two or three when your limit is one or two.

For dinner we ordered burgers and fries, and our teenager saw that the clam chowder, featured on the specials board, included bacon. What a revelation: The chef presented the soup with seven mussels, two slices of thick cut bacon, and garnished with a sprinkling of fresh herbs. The burgers and fries were good, but that special chowder was the star of the evening.

Our teenager noticed that one of the desserts was called "Cookies + Creams," which we ordered. The plate came with several cookies, a serving of strawberry ice cream, and two flavors of whipped cream.

To top the experience off, the bartender was incredibly attentive though he was slammed. Great service from the staff as well. Can't recommend this...