BLUFIN Waterfront Grill — Restaurant in Tampa

Not a fan at all! I work in the airline industry (the #1 domestic carrier in America). I have stayed at this hotel at least one time prior to tonight. One employee, an Hispanic female, was phenomenal! In fact, my crew arrived too late to visit the hotel restaurant or bar so I purchased some snacks and beverages from the market. This employee was fantastic. Tonight, however, is the exact opposite. When I arrived at the hotel bar, I encountered an employee with the disposition and personality of corpse. She was clearly unhappy and unwelcoming. Nonetheless, I regrettably ordered the burger and fries. My price with the airline discount was a little over $13. I gave her a $20. She said that she could not give me any change. An almost $7 tip on a $13 bill!!! Nice try! I used my debit card instead. The burger arrived. I left to eat it in my room. The positive is that it was somewhat rare. I like ALL of my red meat served rare. However, it was soaked in cooking oil, the onions were awful and the precooked cold fries were inedible. I figured that I got dissed because I didn't tip her almost $7! The airline I work for puts me at this hotel. But... I won't ever visit this bar again. I should have just eaten my cookie and avoided this place. Hopefully, my cigars will remove the cooking oil taste from my mouth. UPDATE: This morning I decided to try the buffet breakfast. Upon entering this bar/restaurant, I was immediately greeted by a very friendly and professional employee named Sandy K. Sandy is incredible! She is polite and attentive. The breakfast buffet was also incredible. Sandy should work both mornings and evenings. She represents everything that is right about customer service. Sandy also explained that they had gone cashless. That is why I couldn't pay with a $20 bill. I will indeed visit this place so long as Sandy is present. 5 stars for breakfast and 10 stars...

The service was absolutely terrible. The hostess was saying it was going to take 20-30 minutes for reservations to be sat which is absurd. This makes sense after the amount of time it took for the food to get to the table. They obviously shouldn’t have taken that many walk-ins or reservations because the kitchen couldn’t handle it. We eventually got sat after the hostess went to talk to a manager after someone said they could seat us now. Many many tables were open. Once we sat down, the server was very welcoming and apologized for the hostess not bringing any menus. There weren’t enough menus to the point they had to print and staple some together. Someone nearby us even asked to borrow ours. Everyone was bonding about how long the food was taking and we were all laughing together trying to pass the time. Eventually, people started just leaving. After an hour of sitting in an uncomfortable chair, we decided to move to a nearby booth, the best decision ever made. We got appetizers at 7:30. Keep in mind our reservation was at 6:30. Food came out at 8 p.m. Then it took another 30 minutes to get our check after we were done eating. I had asked someone to get our check and he mumbled and then proceeded over to the computer. Does absolutely nothing and makes a drink, we decided we were done and got up and asked again for our check. The waitress acted like nothing was wrong and said “Are you ready for your check?” I’ve been ready for the past 30 minutes thanks though. We left and won’t be coming back again. Don’t go to this restaurant unless you want to be here for three hours or until they learn their lesson and hire more...

If I could give less than one star, I would. We had a 7:45 PM reservation on a Friday night and informed the restaurant that we were running slightly late. They assured us it was not an issue, as their reservations were already behind schedule.

Upon arrival, we waited in line at the hostess stand for approximately 15 minutes alongside several other parties. During this time, there was no visible staff presence aside from the bartenders. Unexpectedly, a guest from inside the restaurant came out to inform everyone that the kitchen had been out of food for over an hour and likely wouldn’t be able to serve anything for at least another hour. Shortly after, another group exited, sharing a similar experience and expressing frustration that the restaurant had made no effort to accommodate those already seated.

Despite the growing confusion, no hostess, manager, or staff member addressed the situation or even acknowledged the waiting guests. While we understand delays happen and were prepared to wait given our late arrival, this crucial information could have been communicated when we called, saving us the unnecessary trip.

This restaurant proudly advertises that it was nominated for Best of the Bay, but if they are going to showcase that on their website, they should uphold the level of service and professionalism that such a distinction implies. Regardless of whether a restaurant operates within a hotel or as a standalone establishment, managing reservations and anticipating walk-ins should be standard practice. However, the most disappointing aspect of this experience was the complete lack of communication and...