Servandos

Food was delicious! Atmosphere fun! Music amazing! Most items on menu I probably wouldn’t eat (that’s just me) but definitely heading back. Good night with friends.

Went here Friday night… the band was great! It was cool to see artists painting while dining… we had ceviche which was good, short ribs, chicken shawarma and grandmas eggplant… they are tapas style plates but we think the waiter forgot about the chicken… it took a long time to come out! Also the service was slow in getting drinks and servers kept coming to our table with food that wasn’t ours… other than those few minor things it was a great experience and we will surely be back to try other selections!

What can I say about servandos that hasn’t been said about darwins, mad crow, and whatever else was located in this beautiful building. According to all the other reviews, it seems to be a temperamental crowd that comes here in their eyes for such wavering opinions. It’s obvious this is a music establishment first, and a dining establishment second. Much like its neighbor, Blue Rooster, the idea is to serve the entertainment with dinner, not separately. I for one am in favor of this approach. While we didn’t fully dine, the drinks and tapas we had were exceptional (charcuterie, old fashioned, vodka/​cran) were on the money. Hopefully this place hangs around and the owner doesn’t make lame excuses to shut down a successful business like the last guy.

We had dinner last night and everything was great! The charcuteri plate was very good as well as the Caesar Salad. Our dinner was the Tomahawk prime rib eye. It really was delicious! The music was very enjoyable but I have to agree with some of the other reviews. It was a bit loud for dinner conversation.

If you read through the other reviews it seems like there are some contradictions between them and I have to say I felt the same way trying Servandos for the first time. There are some things that were really good and some things that drove me and my DC crazy while eating here.
We tried 4 tapas, the caprese with burrata, mixed beets and prime tomatoes came out first. This was good, and even my DC liked it and she is not a burrata fan. So a good first start. Grandma’s eggplant was very very good. It was almost more like an eggplant lasagna with the eggplant taking the place of the pasta. You must eat it on the seasoned bread that comes with it to get the full yumminess. Highly recommended. Like wise the Kofta kabobs were very tasty and something to get again. We really enjoyed the short ribs. They are very reminiscent to Korean Gal-​bi in flavor but thinly sliced and tender. I know another reviewer said these were not their favorite, but that could be an uneven issue due to only being running for a few weeks or maybe just something else, but we thought the short ribs sliced thin was nicely done. So yummy I forgot to take a picture! Also, the tomato con pane was an interesting version of this dish. Tons of nicely seasoned tomatoes and a lovely garlic hit. The bread was crunchy and tasty as well.
So sounds great right? And the food was great, we really enjoyed it. But I have to agree with other reviewers that this place is super loud and that can be off putting. Between the band and all the hard surfaces it can be hard to hear people at your table. And we were in the main room away from the band. Live music can be cool and add flavor but this time it just seemed to be a distraction. Maybe try the band in different parts of the restaurant? A few odd service things as well were frustrating. Some of it you can chalk up to the newness but better training would help tons. For example, A table near us got something interesting but we couldn’t really see it. We asked our waiter about it, he didn’t know what it was, so he asked another waiter, who didn’t know either and said they wold have to look at the menu. Just gives an odd impression when the staff doesn’t know the menu items yet. Also, as we were leaving we heard another waiter telling a table about specials. Which we never heard about. Training on the front end, makes me tempted to give them fewer stars, but the food did really shine so I’m going with 4 and hope they get the front of the house figured out.

Very noisy and difficult to talk to table mates.
We ordered several dishes of which 2 of 7 were very good. Rest were adequate. Don’t plan a return visit.

Our first visit so I’ll be fair in my review. Very cool atmosphere, band in one room and actual working artist in the other dining room. There is also dining space around the kitchen, will sit there next time. Service is tops, finished dishes remove quickly, bus and wait staff very well trained. No for the food. We ordered four different tapas. The first was a cheese and meat tray that was very tasty no complaints. The next was scallops in a sweet dressing that were sautéed perfectly, would recommend. The next was short ribs. Now here is the bad part, it looked more like jerky and the same texture, way overcooked. The last tapas was Kobe beef sliders. I think the same person cooked this and the short ribs. Way overcooked with no flavor of beef. Now to be fair we seen other dinners that looked very good, so maybe it deserves another chance.

Loved the drinks. An artist painting live on stage was cool. Saw one sold. Yay! Live music, loud but not bad in main dining room. Food wasn’t good. Had the chopped salad for $ 12.00, no flavor. Had to ask for salt. We should have stopped there and ordered another drink and just enjoy the Art. But we didn’t. $ 122.00 later for 4 people. Won’t return until I see great reviews.

Really disappointing experience. We loved the restaurant that was here before, Darwin’s, and had high hopes that this would be equal. The menu looks amazing and we were super excited to order. Then we were hit with a really strong odor of gas. We asked two different people if there was some sort of gas leak and was told no. So that was reassuring — until they said it’s probably just the sewage smell from the rain. Apparently that’s a problem even though the rain was 3 days prior. Not sure what they’ve done differently in the re-​modeling but I can tell you there was never any smell like this in the previous incarnation. We debated whether to stay or not but decided to give it a shot. Although, as I mentioned, the menu sounded great, the food was just average. The garlicky shrimp were subpar. The crabmeat salad was quite delicious. The tacos were much better when you removed one of the tortillas — putting two tortillas around the Mahi made the fish seem bland and dry. All in all, a great concept poorly executed. I do hope that they get it together and improve, but sadly I will never know.

An absolutely wonderful dining experience all around! We saw them in the food & wine section of the newspaper & thought we’d give them a try. So glad we did! From the hostess to the server, runner, band & food. Even the valet. Everything was great. They couldn’t improve on anything. If you like the tapas menu, this one has a great variety. The eggplant is a must taste. The best I’ve had. Traditional menu available as well. We will definitely be back!

Arrived 730, sat at bar, nice, guitarist started playing, nice as well, they brought us to an upstairs table at 830, the band played and you couldn’t even talk to your table, way too loud, switched to downstairs table, noise level not as bad, but still LOUD
The food was Pretty good, there seems to be a good late night crowd, but we left feeling we prob wouldn’t go back, otherwise I’d go with 4.5 stars

Well, the building has hosted several restaurants that couldn’t make it but I sure hope this one can. Chef Joe DiMaggio is larger than life in personality and can cook like Bruce Springsteen can play guitar.
Steak lovers should get the tomahawk for two. Grilled and brushed with some wonderful seasonings at $ 65.00 for two people you can’t go wrong.
Outstanding grilled octopus and lemon poppyseed cake — a true taste of fresh Meyer lemon.
Artists paint in front of you in the main dining space. Sit at the chef counter and let the chef set 6 plates for you.
If you want another entrée suggestion, go with the raw sugar and Miao Chilean sea bass. Melt in your mouth.

The type of restaurant we’ve been searching for since moving to Sarasota. Delicious food, hip atmosphere, great location — a true dining experience. Seriously, this place is really great and we’ll be back many times.

Lori Collins and I celebrated our 32^nd anniversary in Servandos last night. The place was well decorated — for New Years Eve — thanks to Lori Davis — Just a Basket Case. The food was cooked by Chef Joe Demaggio. Yes, the nephew of the great Yankees center fielder. So if you’re hungry and you’d like to say hello to Joe stop in and eat. The food is fantastic!!!