baleen naples

baleen is the restaurant in the la p laya resort on gulf s hore dr. in north naples.   of all the waterfront venues to dine at, this is hands down the best in naples. the view and gulf breezes from the outside dining patio area are what really sets this restaurant apart from most others whether it be for lunch or for dinner on this day, my dining companion and i decided to go there for lunch. they have a very nice lunch menu . if you look to the left of the menu (click on the photo to enlarge) they are promoting a daily 3 course prix f ixe dinner menu as a summer special for $38.00, a tremendous value.  for those residents that are perennials, summer is the best time to be in town in part because of all the dining specials available . i will talk about some of th ese in later posts. after a couple of p ie ces of very nice ciabatta b read each , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ciabatta   my dining companion decided on the roasted salmon nicoise salad,   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/niçoi

cold food. the service was excellent but our breakfast was served cold.. the waffles were not tender. even the coffee was cold. waitress handled the problem, but never expected that at la playa

your staff needs diversity training. it’s unfortunate because your valet, your hostess and your waiter i encountered were all disrespectful and elitist. that was my entire experience. i may come back just to take note of their names and get clips of their behavior. i’m considering doing a write up and making it a case study next time i guest lecture. i’ll send you a copy. classic elitism and racism at this restaurant.

the view was great, service was good, but the food was terrible! the blackened grouper was not edible and was so tough it could not be cut with a knife. the manager was apologetic about the fish and said it shouldn’t have been brought the table, so we ordered a filet mignon and “lamb” instead. the filet was ok but the “lamb” was lousy and a joke at $38; it only had tiny bits of lamb mixed in with a tomato based sauce on pasta. the setting was great but not relaxing due to a play area being situated between our table and the beach which had numerous children jumping right in front of the us, doing cartwheels in the grass. the kettle one martinis were very good and pricey at $17 each. baleen also charges $5.00 plus tip for valet parking (there is no self-parking), which should be complementary when spending a few hundred dollars for dinner. we'd consider going back for drinks sometime because the view is very nice, but we will never return for a meal again. this meal was a second chance given to la playa after a disappointing meal last year.

overall liked it but service needs work. to be honest, we probably would not have gone here except for its beautiful location on the beach. the atmosphere was lovely, the sunset everything we had hoped for, and the food was actually better than we had expected. i especially liked the lobster bisque; the ceviche, beef carpaccio, and crab cake were not incredible but still interesting and enjoyable. the weakest part of the evening was clearly the service. for a restaurant of this level we would expect better than to have to wait an hour for our reserved table to be available, missing a bread plate, having to ask for spoons after the soup was served, etc. not big things but for a restaurant of this level and with this price tag below expectations.

lobster risotto was just awful !!! the tuna tartare was great . server was validimir no character or friendliness but present

wow. went here with the wife for an anniversary dinner. great drinks and service. if you can get a seat outside during sundown, good for you! they save seats for guests who are staying at the hotel, so if you call and they say they are booked try showing up anyway. we went on a friday at sunset, and got a table outside!
the lobster risotto is one of the 3 best dishes i have ever had in my life, no joke! if your looking for a great meal with a view in naples, hard to beat this place.

we spent our 10th anniversary last friday night (sept 6th) at baleen's. i had originally booked a table on the main level however got a call from the restaurant two weeks before our visit to naples advising that they will be closing the downstairs for renovations for a couple of weeks. they offered the upstairs patio as an alternative option however i was set on wiggling our toes in the sand while enjoying our romantic dinner. i cancelled the reservation and called option 2 (the turtle club) only to find out they were completely closed for renovations during the time we were on naples hey it's low season in florida). so i scrambled to call baleen back to rebook. yikes!
checked the weather report before we left. thunderstorms everyday all day for the 4 nights we were there. double yikes.
it turned out friday was a beautiful day. we arrived at the restaurant early (600) and sat down to enjoy a drink and the ocean view. the restaurant was pretty quiet when we arrived but got really busy as the sun started to set. the second floor area was really nice. we had a table overlooking the beautiful beach.
the server was really attentive, friendly and non-intrusive. he told us not to rush and just sit back and enjoy.
i did call him over and asked him if they mentioned that it was our 10th anniversary. i was a little disappointed to learn that they didn't let him know even though i mentioned it twice when booking the reservation. no harm done as chris suddenly arrived with a beautiful red rise for my wife.

we order a salad and truffle french fries as our apps. mmmm both were yummy.
as the beautiful sun was setting we ordered our main course. my wife had a new item on the menu salmon on very tasty rice medley. i had the streak with horseradish mashed potatoes (to die for) along with a side of peppercorn gravy/sauce.

dinner was amazing! we watched the sun set while thoroughly enjoying our dinner.
the whole evening was spectacular and very romantic. chris came back to let us know that dessert was on them given it was our anniversary. we were stuffed at that point so he packed us up a couple of delicious pieces of key lime pie for later. very nice touch for sure.

baleen's will also provide a private beach dinner. they put a table on the beach and surround it with umbrellas to block any sand from flying. they have lit torches all around for wonderful ambience. a couple who were just married had a private beach dinner while we were there. very beautiful (but not cheap).

our dinner with apps and drinks came to $125.00. we thought this was more than reasonable for the great dinner and beautiful ocean side dinner.
we highly recommend this amazing restaurant and look forward to visiting again when we return in february.

a favorite. amazing views, great food, wonderful ambiance, southern hospitality.

phenomenal sunset view. first things first, the valets were just great. i can't say that i've ever had a really memorable valet experience but i did at la playa beach resort upon arriving for dinner at baleen. same on the exit. my wife and i were both impressed.

i'm going to call the dinner as i saw it. the sunset view totally made the experience, absolutely the highlight of the meal. we had snooty snobs seated at tables at both sides. one returned their grouper because it wasn't medallions, it was cubed...which means it wasnt "succulent". good lord.

i found the food a little pricy for the plating. our server was decent, but not above average. i noticed two other servers who were out of this world good. i would have loved to have their recommendations on the menu. my wife ordered lobster tail and i ordered scallops. we both felt they were good, but not great. so there's that.

but....that damn sunset made it worth every penny. truuuuuuuust me, if you like sunsets you're all good. if you love them, a trip to baleen is a no brainer!

great food and a great view! my wife and i enjoyed our anniversary dinner here at sunset. we couldn't have asked for a better experience. the food was prepared perfectly!

great sunday brunch!. i'd have to say this is a great spot for brunch. i cannot comment on evening dining (yet) but i plan to go back. beautiful views of the beach, and excellent staff. my biggest complaint (and baleen's cannot really help this) is brunch time occurs right around the same time as checkout for the hotel. so it was a bit crowded in the lobby area. i will go back once naple's "in season" dies down probably for another brunch experience and dinner. beautiful setting, amazing food, and great staff.

great food and view! all of the food was expertly prepared and served by a remarkable staff.

atmosphere tough to beat.... this place is romantic at sunset! you'll probably fight over the last of the monkey bread in a playful way. excellent wine selections. delightful entrees! i love baleen.

food and view could have not been better!