Swordfish Grill — Restaurant in South Bradenton

If you are looking for a great place to grab a bite to eat near the Bradenton Beach area, here's a wonderful place to go! It's back off Cortez next to the bridge on the mainland side and bayward on the ICW. It's right next to a seafood processing plant with a few net trawlers docked (at least on the day and time we were there, your scenery may vary!). Sitting outside under the palapa (e.g. Tiki Hut) not in 90+ degree weather is very relaxing and they generally have someone playing a tune or two at lunchtime. I had the Shrimp and Grits and Fried Green Tomatoes. Here goes... The Shrimp and Grits WOULD have been the best I have ever had... BUT... It was too salty. FOR ME, I love salt, I crave it, and I eat it pretty liberally as I have a very low (1 point under normal last test) blood sodium level, so I need it. And this was too salty for me, so that's saying a lot. I think a normal person would have probably sent it back. But, I'm just OK with it, as I tolerate it much better than most because of my needs. The grits were SOOOoooo Creamy, they were past perfect (besides the salt) ! And the shrimp were very fresh, local and tender (again with the salt). A good dish that was held back from being the best by someone being too hard on the salt shaker. Now, the Fried Green Tomatoes. They were also good. But this dish is a SOUTHERN favorite dish and you messed it all up with the silly breading. You take a green beefsteak tomato, you slice it into about 1/4" slices (not thin, stop trying to stretch them!) and then salt and pepper them, put them in the flour that is seasoned with salt and pepper too, and then drop them in the frying oil. That's it, that's all there is to it folks. This is not Tempura, it's not Calimari. It's a fried green tomato. And yes, you did serve it correctly, pipping hot right out of the Frier! This is a VERY Southern accoutrement to any seafood dish, but with Shrimp and Grits? It's the masterpiece of the show. And sorry, but it failed pretty hard with all that crazy breading on the thing. This proves only that whoever the Chef is, isn't a Southern one. But the atmosphere? 100% correct for the area! Bravo on that! And my companions LOVED their food. Everyone ate everything with gusto! They had Peel 'n Eat shrimp, Grilled Shrimp, and a Fried Grouper Fillet Sandwich (which I have to admit, looked crazy good!!!). I will try the Shrimp and Grits again when I return, and if it's still too salty even for me, then I WILL give them a hard strike for this. I'm hoping it was just a once off with the seasoning. It happens. And with everyone else's lunch...

Casual Tiki With Great Calamari and Shrimp Nachos My son and girlfriend have been here several times and have raved about the seafood, the service, the deck and view, so my wife and I hooked up with him and visited this place on the July 4 weekend. We found plenty of parking for cars and there’s some dock space for boats to come by water. The Tiki roof covers an expansive deck that has great views of Sarasota Bay. We were fortunate to have T.C. (Tim Chandler) providing live entertainment on the deck, singing and playing his guitar. Lots of outdoor seating on the deck and we were seated immediately. We placed our drink order - Heineken 0.0 cans ($5.00), Busch Light 12 oz cans ($4.00), Diet Coke fountain ($3.75). We went with a couple appetizers instead of meals. The Calamari appetizer ($15) is excellent. The rings and tentacles have a very thin batter, then flash fried, topped with cabbage, mint, cilantro and green onions, then drizzled with Thai chili sauce. This is one hefty platter of calamari – easily shared by three people. No rubbery chew here and the chili sauce was an excellent alternative to the typical marinara or cocktail sauce most places provide. No problem getting more chili sauce as we dipped every piece. We also got the Loaded Nachos ($11) and added shrimp ($7 add-on). Now these are LOADED NACHOS!!!! Look at my pic. A massive pile of tortilla chips topped with an impressive quantity of grilled shrimp topped with diced fresh tomatoes and scallions. Small side containers had a very fresh tasting pico and sour cream. The three of us also shared this and I do believe there are enough shrimp to have one on every chip. No doubt, one of the best nacho dishes we’ve ever had. Our server never made us feel rushed to open our table so we sat and gabbed, listened to the music and had a few more cold ones. We will be...

Swordfish Grill is a casual seafood restaurant located on the water in Cortez Village. The restaurant has a tiki hut with live music, and the views of the bay are amazing. We went there on a Tuesday night at about 7:30 p.m., and the staff was super friendly and got us seated quickly. I highly recommend reserving a table online., You can even request a certain area online! We reserved the tiki deck.

We ordered the seafood platter (blackened), the lobster mac and cheese, wings, Caesar salads, chicken tenders, and also cheese sticks. Everything was super fresh, and the seafood platter was especially good. It came with a variety of fish, including swordfish, mahi-mahi, and shrimp, and it was all cooked perfectly. The lobster mac and cheese was also delicious, and the wings were crispy and flavorful.

The prices at Swordfish Grill are reasonable, and everything we ordered was about $20 to $30 per person. Even though Swordfish Grill is known for its seafood, they also offer a variety of land options, such as steak, chicken fingers, and stir fry. These options are just as fresh and delicious as the seafood, so there's something for everyone at Swordfish Grill. very family friendly!

Overall, we had a great experience at Swordfish Grill, and we would definitely recommend it to others. The food was fresh and delicious, the service was friendly, and the atmosphere was fun and lively. If you're looking for a great seafood restaurant in Cortez Village, Swordfish Grill is a great option.

Here are some pros and cons of Swordfish Grill:

Pros:

Family Friendly Fresh seafood Great views Live music Friendly staff Reasonable prices Variety of land options

Cons:

The restaurant can get crowded, especially on weekends. There is...