Tarpon Turtle Waterfront Grill & Marina — Restaurant in Tarpon Springs

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐲 𝐎𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬

Review: Tarpon Turtle Waterfront Grill – Tarpon Springs, Florida

I have been a frequent diner at the Tarpon Turtle in Tarpon Springs. I love that it’s a local Marina Bar and Grill field on beautiful Lake Tarpon. In the past, their menu has been very well developed and designed, catering to all food options.

In September, for health reasons, I decided to do a Vegetarian diet for 6 months. It simply means cutting out all meats, chicken and fish. I recently met some good friends at Tarpon Turtle for lunch, and to my displeasure and dismay, they have no good vegetarian options. Our waiter Jason B – who was amazing AND who happens to be Vegan- told me they recently got rid of the Beyond burger, and for an entrée, it was limited to salads. He did mention two vegetarian appetizers, but they were Fried. (really healthy)

As a home chef, I took offense to the idea of a lack of vegetable dish options. For someone like me who strives to make ethical and health-conscious choices, the absence of any vegetarian dishes was disappointing and downright infuriating.

I’m baffled by this. Why? Do you know what the most expensive food cost to a dish is? Meat, Chicken, and Fish. You could easily offer things like their Turtle Bowls with Tofu, Mushrooms, or Squash. I know they have mushrooms because it’s all over the menu. There are also many dishes on the menu; you can make vegetarian alternatives without having to change much of your menu.

Instead, the owner, who clearly has no clue, is not offering anything. Again, this is surprising because the cost of a vegetarian dish is generally much less than that of a meat dish. You can still charge a similar price.

I did end up having a salad, and after replacing the meat on the salad with other vegetables, it came out fine. But it certainly still gave me a bad taste in the mouth. With plenty of other restaurant options becoming available within the Tarpon area, I recommend exploring food options catering to all types of people.

It’s sad – I used to love going there. Jason – If you read this, hit me up. As you have the ability to bring excellence in customer service, there are plenty of options out there that also support your lifestyle. I have a lot of...

I was taking a friend out for a belated birthday dinner and she found this restaurant on Google. We arrived after lunch time, walked in and there was a bit of confusion at the front desk but we were seated on the deck under the shady area. The waitress came over after a bit, and got us drinks, we said we had never been there before and she said okay and walked away. When she brought the tea and water back, again I mentioned we hadn't been there before so we needed a few minutes. She left and came back a while later. I ordered she crab soup (a personal favorite of mine) and the grouper dinner and my friend ordered the black and blue burger with broccolini instead of fries. The waitress left with the order and then we waited. Now we understand that the view was amazing over the lake and that this might be one of those laid back places, but she came by at least 4 or 5 times and never looked our way. Finally another server brought the food, specifically saying it was a burger and "some sort of fish". We asked where the soup was and she said there was soup ordered? She said she would come back with it but I refused, it would not have been good to have food and the appetizer at the same time. She left and the waitress wandered back after we had eaten some and asked if we are still doing okay? The grouper was acceptable, a nice sized piece, the broccolini was okay, the tartar sauce on the side was nasty ( I would not have put that on any fish ), my friends burger was cooked to her satisfaction, but our waitress never apologized that she didn't bring the soup. We did ask that she make sure we weren't charged for the soup. She finally noticed we had finished and came over and we asked for the check. She kept asking if it was together or separate but I had already said together. She picked up one plate and left the other sitting there. If it had been busy, I give more leaway. But forgetting the soup and otherwise lackluster service, the person who delivered the food not knowing what they brought out, just makes us unwilling to come back. Too bad, we like...

This was our second time in less than a week to visit Tarpon Turtle.

The first time we were there, (last Thursday) we and other patrons were told there was a 30-35 minute wait. After waiting 65 minutes, I asked the young man at the host booth what was taking so long and informed him that the 35 minutes had turned into 65 minutes. He apologized and said I was the next on the list. I corrected him and said that others were there before me and were waiting. These patrons also spoke with him after I spoke with him.

Today, we went again with our daughter and her family from out of state. The food was delivered to the table 30+ minutes after ordering the food. My grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce, pickle, tomato, and cheese... ended up as a chicken with spicy sauce. The server said she would take it off. We waited for a long time for the server to come back to the table. She was seen walking around the side of the building and didn't see her again for quite some time.

It's important to know that while waiting for us to be called for seating, a server said, "I'm bored, I wish they would give me tables." This makes one think there is an issue with the kitchen if there are vacant tables and lots of patrons waiting. The incorrect food should have also been checked by the staff who delivered the food.

Needless to say, the waterfront is the only thing going for this restaurant.

I recommend going to RUSTY BELLIES instead of Tarpon Turtle. You will have a wait to be seated BUT they give a good conservative number for wait time rather than exaggerating the minutes. RUSTY BELLIES also had friendly staff and they want to make sure you have the right food. They only reason why we came to Tarpon Turtle is because RUSTY BELLIES is closed on Mondays.

I may try Tarpon Turtle a third time BUT the strikes...