Hooks Waterfront Bar and Grill

Very disappointing. The food was mediocre and the inside seating was full of flies that was also in the kitchen. We had fish and chips and grouper sandwich. The grouper sandwich was very bland and small and only came with a few mushy, yet they charged a hefty $ 19. To top off our dinning experience, my wife watch as the server walked up to the kitchen window to pickup the order and took a French fry from the plate and ate it. The only good thing about the place is its boat accessible. We will not be back. It’s just a tourist trap.

I’ve enjoyed this place every time I’ve gone. Went recently went and sat on the patio. We watched a pod of dolphins fish and play in the Channel. We had the blue cheese chips for an appetizer which were delicious. I had the fish and chips and my wife had the flatbreads. The people next to us were eating a pizza which looked delicious.

The food doesn’t justify the prices. Fish and chips, hamburger/​fries with fired gator tail, one soda and one plastic cup of wine. How does that equal $ 53.61, before tip? If the food was good, no problem, but I felt like Chris Carter when they brought the food out, «Come on man?»
We tried it, not going back.

Cindy was our server today. She was super friendly and really knew how to sell the menu. She had great suggestions (try the sangria– it’s a secret recipe) and even showed us a picture of the grouper that was caught this morning and that we would be eating. If you want fresh, tasty fish, this is the place to go. It has an amazing view, a nice outdoor sitting area, and outside bar. We loved our visit.

It’s a pretty cool place because it’s easy to get to buy boat and they have lots of boat parking. You can also pull up on your waverunners. The hotel has a heated swimming pool that patrons of this restaurant are able to use if you want. Our kids like to swim while we get a drink and food service around the pool. It’s a fun stop during the day of boating. Service isn’t super good nor is the food but the atmosphere makes up for it. Try to the shark bites and or grouper bites in season

My sister and I went here on Sunday after renting kayaks at Little Harbor. We’ve been to Little Harbor often and didn’t even know this restaurant was here until we kayaked to the other side of the island, so we decided to eat here instead of Sunset Grill. First, the view was nice, except at eye level there is a huge piece of wood to keep folks from going over into the water. I can appreciate putting this here, but it was rather irritating that we had to either bend down or stand up to see the water. Second, there were very few people there when we got there, and the service was EXTREMELY slow… got worse when more folks started showing up. We waited almost 45 min just to get our food (which was mediocre)… then even more time to get the bill. We later found out the one waitress that was in the area was also responsible for all the folks by the pool. That is ridiculous! Not sure if we will ever be back when Sunset Grill is so much nicer.

Good food and very friendly service. Small place but loved the relaxed ambience. Definitely not pretentious. Not cheap but reasonable for the portion size and quality. Shared the grouper dinner with my wife with gator bites for an appetizer and fried coconut cheesecake for dessert. All was very good. Wonderful potato salad. Mango pina coladas were very good also (creamy). Had to wait a bit for the cheesecake but otherwise very good service. Rachel was a sweet and attentive server. Yes, the dining area is essentially a 3-​seasons room and the plates are plastic (very nice though) but that adds to the charm. Only negative was a couple of stray mosquitos.

Cozy lil place on the water that we were able to park our boat in a wet slip for some good food. The service was OK, and the place was busy, as it has a great view. Drinks were cold and kept full, food was hot and tested as expected. Nothing overly great about this place, its like many other on the water type lil eateries. Overall good food, service, and decent prices. Worth a stop by, enjoy the atmosphere and good times.

Absolutely terrible. The server was very nice but she obviously new and never served a day in her life. She messed up my food, and blamed me which in the service world is something you should not do. She then made us pay for a 2^nd one (again her mistake) and then we were over charged for something we did not get. It is off season so maybe they’re summer staff is better but the food was not very good. I would not recommend this place.

Everything was freshly made to order and the grouper sandwich was awesome, I only wish I lived closer. Oh yeah the service was friendly and quick

Well, when you are the only show in town, i guess you can serve whatever. Hooks is essentially a hotel restaurant, a separate building with a nice exterior deck and dining area right next to the water. The site is nice and the service was pretty good, but the food was not impressive. Standard bar fare, most of which is microwaved frozen items. They do have a couple of local specials such as fish and chips which are advertised as local fish, but the portions are mediocre and the chips were some sort of oily, tasteless potato chip item, not the standard chips you would expect. The wife got the house salad, which was «nothing spectacular, just ok.» Beware of the drink menu– they don’t have hard alcohol, just wine, so be sure to ask what is going into the drink if you order something normally not made with wine.

Great view of the water. Service very good. Typically water side food and it’s good. Fun place to come to. Also has a dock for boaters.

We were looking for somewhere different and decided to try Hooks. It’s a small place — 8 seats at tables inside, and several seats at the bar. Most of the seating is outside, overlooking the water. Lorraine was our server, and she was fantastic — attentive, knew the menu very well, made recommendations, and seemed genuinely happy to be working there. We had fish & chips and chicken fingers with fries. Both were fresh, not frozen. Hubby said the fish & chips were the best he’s ever had. Lorraine said the fish was Basa. I’m not a seafood eater (ever!), but I tried a bite of the fish and it wasn’t «fishy» at all. I actually thought it was pretty good! We will definitely be going back. :) PS — the sangria was delicious!

Overpriced but good. We got the alligator bites, fish tacos and blue bacon burger. Portions were good. Very nice view of the tributary. All outdoor eating.

There’s not many times I felt as a consumer that I have been ripped off. But Hook’s can make you feel that way. Cold food, very slow kitchen and they tried to give us cheap plastic forks to eat with and I paid $ 70 for that dinner for 2. Dinner consisted of 1 salad with salmon, 1 fish dinner special and 2 beers each. After waiting over an hour for the food, it comes stone cold. Skip this place and go enjoy a great meal for $ 70 in Sarasota.

We walked over here after witnessing a face-​melting sunset at The Sunset Grill because we wanted a change in atmosphere. Hooks is much smaller and much more relaxing. Nothing wrong with being low-​key!
We weren’t hungry, but we were so impressed with out server’s pitch on how the seafood is always fresh and never frozen that we decided to try the catch of the day; sheepshead fish. We ordered it blackened and in sandwich format, split it in 3 and found ourselves quite happy with our choice. The fish was pretty damn good, as was their potato salad and home made tarter sauce.
This is definitely a place of interest and I can very easily see myself returning. Only downside? Beer and wine only!

We had an excellent lunch. We thoroughly enjoyed the blackened grouper sandwich and Bahia club. Very fresh food. The service was outstanding. And it has an incredible view. A very relaxing setting and we can’t wait to return.

LOVE THE LOCATION!!! look out over the river to see boats, dolphins and birds passing by… kind of a dive, but truly the quintesential floridian dive!
their hamburgers are awesome! good smoky grill taste, large and very juicy.
fried pickles are good, a little on the peppery side, but good.
fish and chips don’t come with true «chips» (french fries) but potato chips. if you want fries, they’re extra.
sangria is good, servers are quick and friendly. some complain about their prices being a bit high, but you’re getting that view and location.
in the resort and condo area of little harbor off of w. shell road… worth the trip!
only serve wine, sangria and beer, no harder stuff.
really like the place! try it out, don’t be over critical and you’ll like it too!

My husband and I went here in feb of 2014. We both had burgers and it was great. The new owners were there and chatted with us. My in laws went here based on our recommendation in August of 2015. They had a different experience. The restaurant was under staffed. People were going inside for their own drink refills. They both ordered fish and chips. It took an hour and a half to come out. The oil probably was not hot because the fish was super soggy with oil. Will stick with the sunset grill in the same location.

Food is good and great location on the water too! Small place right now so can get busy and make it hard to find seating so call ahead. A bit slow on the table service but everything is made to order and you can swim in the pool next door!

Food is good and great location on the water too! Small place right now so can get busy and make it hard to find seating so call ahead.

Came here on a Friday for drinks. No liquor but draft beers and wine and delicious homemade sangria. We had the pickle chips for an appetizer and it was very tasty and the servers were incredibly friendly and fast. There is indoor seating, bar seating, and covered patio seating. There is also a dock you can pull up to and a large grassy area and adirondack chairs that you can also sit in with your drinks. All of this with a view of water and mangroves.
The restaurant is adjacent to a covered deck area with tables and chairs and a fenced in pool and jacuzzi which are also owned by the owners of the restaurants, and on weekends the pool area is also served by the waitresses so you can have drinks at the pool no need to be a guest to enjoy it just a paying customer :). All in all we loved it and will be back.

Good food and nice view. Great place to relax and grab a drink. Muost items on the menu are good and affordable. I haven’t had it but you can catch your own fish and bring it in for them to cook it.

A little tacky… No liquor license. Overall the food was good. I had a chicken club and the flavor was good on the chicken. Pickle was mushy. Fries were really crispy and yummy.

Grpuper was great! Very small place, cheap prices. Bar inside. Nice outdoor deck near water. Quiet and relaxing. Fresh seafood for cheap prices. Casual setting. Good beer selection. Def will return.

I resisted writing this because I thought the establishment was new but upon reading the other reviewers, it appears it’s been around for a while. My family and I were in Ruskin staying at The Resort and Club at Little Harbor and wanted to grab a quick dinner our first night nearby. We tried Sunsets but it was a long wait so we went to Hook’s by default. The place is small but cozy and we were happy to be able to sit outdoors despite the smokers nearby (I forget people can still smoke in public places!). Our waitress Kimberly was extremely friendly — she took our drink orders and all seemed fine until we ordered our food. My niece got a hamburger (incidentally the only order that was right). Below is what was ordered and what was received.
Order 1: fish of the day with green beans and potato salad
Received: fish of the day with green beans and broccoli
Order 2: fish of the day with green beans and potato salad
Received: fish of the day with broccoli and potato salad
Order 3: fish of the day with potato salad and side salad w/​blue cheese dressing
Received: side salad with balsamic dressing
Order 4: blackened fish tacos
Received: fried fish tacos
It was clear that my mom’s meal had not been made as she only received her salad which had to be sent back because the lettuce was slimy (seriously disgusting). The waitress was OK about it but felt that it was slimy from the balsamic which was not the case. Only because there were so many errors in the fish of the day orders we pointed out what was missing and my dad and sister did receive their sides, still before my mom received her meal which later arrived with coleslaw (also incorrect). Thankfully by the end of the meal the waitress brought out the «right» ranch dressing for my mom’s salad which had been sent back 20 minutes before (when she had ordered blue cheese).
The whole experience was ALMOST comical because so much was wrong. The waitress blamed the kitchen but truthfully, she should have checked our orders before bringing them out and at the very least, ensured that the replacement items were correct. Instead of bringing my mom out the correct side she comped one of our beers which, didn’t do a lot for the fact my mom paid $ 16 for a small piece of fish.
It was also noteworthy that we overheard her apologizing to another table and comping them drinks in what was a not very busy restaurant (I would estimate 12 people there at most).
My hope in writing this review is that the people of Hook’s will take note and make some improvements to their service but for those of you looking for a decent meal? I would probably venture elsewhere. I know we would never go back.

Great and friendly service, the food is good and the prices are reasonable. For sure a place to come back and enjoy the amazing view!

Stopped there last night to check out the place. Great views, but no service. Two employees sat inside playing on their phones while I waited. No one ever came out to welcome me or take my order. Got up and left. Took my business elsewhere.