Jack Dusty

The view out on the deck is beautiful. There are some interesting drinks to try, which are pretty good. The food is consistently good, not excellent, but always enjoyable. This is a great place to do a fun double date or bring visitors.

You walk into the restaurant and it’s got a great bar, and beautiful setting.
I love the decorations around the restaurant. The place settings were perfect for the theme — fish silverware and hand-​kiln, odd size dishes. I especially enjoyed the sayings on the coasters. I included a photo of the place setting.
Then there’s the food – so good!
We had swordfish, yellowtail snapper, mussels, oysters, calamari, clam chowder and scallops. Most of the meals were accompanied with a beautiful side of vegetables.
All of the food was amazingly good.
Oh, and the service was perfect.

I was alittle intimidated eating at a restaurant in the Ritz but this place delivered on all fronts. Craft cocktails were tasty (I had a Paloma and my hubby had a Princeton). Oysters and Ahi Tuna Poke were super fresh. Calamari was crispy and delicious and the donut hole dessert made you feel like a kid again. Brown bread in a can is very creative and tasty with the rum butter. Also surprisingly reasonably priced.

Update: steamed clams had been removed from the menu. If you like, you can still request for it. All the rest dishes are still fabulous!

Jack Dusty’s was wonderful. We were in Sarasota this weekend and really enjoyed eating dinner outside. Our oysters were delicious and was the seafood platter. We had a terrific server — Nicola — who steered me to the Siren drink which was incredible. Would recall recommend making reservations though. It was extremely crowded but it was a great place to eat!

What can be said besides 5 star food, service and view. Lyle was our server and was spectacular. Great recommendations and timing all night. The view is nice we were in at night and had very cool energy. Started with the big eye tuna sashimi and jacks oysters. Both were great and size/​presentation equaled. For entrée I had grilled lobster and my gf had the beef tenderloin. Fresh mash potatoes and vegetables. Recommend the Siren cocktail and mud pie sundae. When it comes to Ritz Carlton restaurants and service the bar is set high and Jack Dusty goes above and beyond. Will be back soon.

I’m surprised Jack Dusty’s doesn’t have a solid 5 stars!
Ventured here about 10 times with a month and a half and tried almost everything from the delicious soups to the fresh salads (Hydroponic Lettuce FTW) to the tasty sashimi and fantastic steak. Did I mention the Lobster? And… The bread? I can’t imagine a better way to start the dinner.
Amazing drinks/​cocktails including a smokey bourbon drink.
Definitely recommend trying this place out for brunch — French toast and the grits were memorable.

I’m in seafood business and let me tell you I know seafood. I eat the worst old and dead oyster and clams
At this place… What a surprise!

Atmosphere is wonderful!
Staff friendly and fun!
Food is delicious!
We have had breakfast, lunch and dinner here. It never disappoints.
This year we had:
Shrimp ceviche ⁵⁄₅ stars — sooooo good! A lot of shrimp!
Calamari — ⁵⁄₅ — tender. Delish!
Peel n Eat shrimp — ⁴⁄₅. good but served cold. I prefer my peel n eat shrimp to be served hot.
Mussels — ³⁄₅. Good but not our fav
Sarasota Cioppino — ⁵⁄₅. Light meal. Very good
Shrimp n grits — ⁵⁄₅. Served with Andouille sausage. So yummy but a very heavy meal. Don’t eat too many apps if you want to be able to eat all of this.
If you’ve never been here you must try!

Loved it. My wife and I stayed over at the ritz and were debating on whether or not to leave the property for dinner. So glad we didn’t. Food was phenomenal. Had the calamari, Manhattan clam chowder, hydro salad, and crab cake. Finished it off with the donuts and Mississippi mud sundae. Cocktails were spot on as well. Can’t say enough about the service… waitress, bartenders, hostess… can’t ask for more. Returned for lunch the next day too. See ya next time Jack d. Can’t wait to return.

Great bartenders… great cocktails! Perfect place to stop at when in Sarasota! Ask for Nick… he will make you an excellent grapefruit martini!

Excellent place excellent Service!
The Ritz just does it right, this property is youthful and not stuffy at all, Jack Dusty is cool trendy, great drinks and food!

I’ve been to Jack Dusty multiple times and I would say that I’ve been consistently happy with both the food and service. My most recent experience was when my sister had her wedding reception at the hotel and the restaurant was able to accommodate our large party the night before at very last minute.
To start, I always order their speciality cocktail– the man up. It’s delicious and unique.
I’ve had an array of their appetizers. I would say the best value is in the seafood tower. Everything tastes fresh and the portion is sizable. I really enjoy the ceviche. The signature bread is a nice touch and has a nice molasses flavor.
I’ve had quite a few of the entrée options. The steak is always done well. I’ve also enjoyed fish specials which have never disappointed.
The desserts are solid. The best one I’ve had was the pavlova which was on special.
Service is usually very good. Looking forward to my next visit.

Great place for a late night getaway to escape the crowded bars downtown. The ambience is busily noisy while not overbearing. The staff is courteous & efficient. Jack dusty is not recommended if you are in a hurry. The servers & bar staff are accommodating, while service is subdued & aimed at keeping you in place for a while; like on a Sunday afternoon, when there is no where to be or to go; they are consummate professionals.
I recommend Jack dusty as a place to unwind after a hectic work week, or a slow moving Sunday.

Went to dinner there on a Wednesday night with friends. It was fantastic. We had clams, mussels, tomato and watermelon salad, and the ceviche for appetizers. All were fantastic. Kale salad and gazpacho for second course. Tasty and light and refreshing. Filet for entrees and cooked perfectly. We had ice cream cookie sandwiches, bread pudding and the most unbelievable donuts on the planet for dessert. Cocktails were perfectly made, service was attentive, and the chef came to the table multiple times to deliver food and check on us. Fabulous time.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND. When I make it back to Sarasota this is where I’m going. Great ambience, good views, great food, great service. Yes please.
I’d been to Sarasota several times for work and had been out to eat numerous times to numerous restaurants. This place is my favorite. My client, a local, recommended this place and we hung out here, just the two of us, out on the patio overlooking the water one evening. We shut it down actually. So much fun!
AMBIANCE
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The main entrance has a grand feel mainly due to the fact you have to walk through the Ritz Carlton lobby. The interior is large, was tastefully decorated and had a modern steakhouse sort of feel with dark wood and low lighting. It definitely had a newish feel to it. The bar is at the center of the restaurant. They can easily fit large groups as well as small if needed.
For the exterior you get to overlook a nice harbor and the Hyatt Regency. They bring out these cool, modern flame heaters. If it’s not too hot during the day, I recommend sitting outside. Definitely recommend it at night.
RATING: ⁵⁄₅
FOOD
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CIOPPINO
Large portion and savory. Chunky high quality meats.
Rating: ⁵⁄₅
BREAD
Don’t normally put the bread down here, but it’s certainly noteworthy here. There is a story that goes along with the bread that is baked in a tin can. Have your waiter give it to you.
It’s good bread, served with a cutting board, a large knife and a selection of warm butters.
Rating: ⁵⁄₅
OYSTERS
Got a sampler. Numerous and good. Not very large and not very meaty.
Rating: ³⁄₅
PRICE /​VALUE
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Large dinner for two with one person drinking was around $ 200 USD. About as expected.
Rating: ³⁄₅
SERVICE
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Excellent Service. We had two waiters, both of them were excellent.
Rating: ⁵⁄₅
PRO TIP
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— Don’t expect a fancy restaurant despite the high Unilocal rating.

Can’t go wrong here on a Saturday night. Put on your best cocktail attire or a smart casual piece and enjoy some of the best cocktail creations of sarasota! The bartenders are award winning and for an added bonus, there is always a live mermaid for viewing. Be sure to get there between 9 – 10 and you’ll meet some of the «who’s who» of the Sarasota social scene!

Had a great dinner here a couple weeks back. I had been telling my man about it for months and when we decided to do a weekend getaway I knew a dinner here had to be included (we stayed across the marina at the Hyatt)
I made a reservation well ahead of time and when arrived they asked if we were staying at the hotel. when I said no they stated they had a nice table outside saved for me. OUtSIDE? in what were literally 40mph wind gusts and about 45degree temp. That got a quick NO. Ok, well we can sit you by the bar at the window, umm, ok, turns out its basically a bar shelf with stools around it and right next to the door. Now I will say, once the crowd thinned, very soon thereafter, we were moved to the other end of the «shelf» with more room.
They also graciously brought us an order of fried green tomatoes with crab as an apology for our inconvenience. (a $ 19 value) Very courteous!
Under orders to try a crafted drink my man got the Zaya daiquiri and loved it.($ 12) I got the siren ($ 23) and loved it. Why was a drink $ 23 you ask? Well it was vodka, st germain, fresh lemon juice and prosecco served over grapefruit ice, cranberry ice, and flower ice. So as it melted it became a different flavor. Really good. A great experience to try once.
For food we had the clams with Andouille sausage and a chardonnay sauce ($ 17) really good. the combinations of flavors was spot on. We also had the local caviar, they get it from Mote marine and serve it traditionally with belini, egg whites and yolks, onion and crème freche. Very very good. Also very pricey. Don’t ask how much.
We then had the Kale and white cheddar salad ($ 16) kale, bacon, white cheddar, blackberries and almonds. That was one good salad. I’ll be stealing that recipe.
Being somewhat full we opted to split the cioppino for «dinner» ($ 28) came with shrimp, scallops, clams, mussels, grouper served with orange peel and tomato broth. to die for! The grouper was so good I kept picking it out and let the man have the other seafood.
We also tried a couple of their other housemade drinks and had a wonderful oakey chardonnay as well. (Drinks and wine are pricey, but well worth the splurge, you wont find this quality in the tampa area)
So yes, it was another $ 350 dinner but well worth every penny of it! Service was impeccable. There’s valet parking which was a blessing on a cold windy night and even with a HUGE event going on it was ran smoothly and promptly,

A nice renovation from the previous restaurant. It’s so beautiful, contemporary, and chic. Ritz Sarasota really needed this upgrade. The menu, however, is still very similar to the old restaurant. Not that it’s a bad thing, just not a whole newness to the wow factor in food. The crab cakes have improved though. It was fishy the first time I had it there and now it’s just right. The bread in the can is a favorite for everyone.
The drinks are always great though, and service is attentive. The view is awesome. I love the patio, but what has turned me off was the attack of fire ants on the patio. I am still swollen and itchy from this weekend’s attack. I understand it’s part of Florida life, but they need to treat the area on occasion to avoid these attacks on diners. We let them know and they brought out an ice pack and capsules of some sort to treat the bites, but half a dozen bites later and I’m still turned off and in fear of attack. Ouch, ouch, itch.

This is the dining room of the Ritz, renamed and remodeled from yesteryear.
Still, a high level of service and quality of food, as you’d expect, even though it’s a more casual setup.
Lot’s of options on salads makes it easy to order your greens.
One diner enjoyed their cioppino, while two loved the grouper étouffée. The 4^th diner ordered half plates. Great selections of wines by the glass, and I know we all enjoyed sharing the pudding.
PS. Live mermaid on display on weekends!!!