firefly

best dining. i do not know where to begin with firefly... my husband and i went there for a nice dinner during our honeymoon (april 2010) and it was the best dining experience we have ever had. from the waiter lance, to the desert we can't begin to explain how great everything was! we started with an order of edamame, then i had one roll ofsushi(rainbow roll) and the minute you put it in your mouth it melts! my husband had the she crab soup to begin and it was so rich and full of flavor. then for our entrees i had the italian sausage pasta which was seasoned very well and he had the carpet bagger which is steak stuffed with crab meat and sauce. the flavor of everything was the best we ever had. then dessert we had the cheesecake and the chocolate rum cake and each was great but the cheesecake was the best! the wines were excellent also. for all of this and the bottle of wine we bought the price was very very reasonable and next time we travel to florida, even if we don't stay in panama i will drive the extra to eat here at firefly!!!

try the sushi!. i'm a frequent diner at firefly and have never been disappointed! i usually venture to firefly when i am feeling especially in the mood for good sushi. i usually sit in the bar area and always experience quick, courteous service. the "3 crab roll, "devil's advocate", and "rude roll" are my favorites. it is always fresh-tasting, inventive, and delicious!

on monday through thursday from 5-7 they have a great buy-one-get-one-halfsushispecial, along with great drink specials.

if you find firefly to be a bit too pricey as far as dinner is concerned, try asushidate in the bar area. you don't be disappointed!

first, skip the early bird dining specials! i've ordered from this menu a few times and have been let down by the flavor and quality each time. order from the main menu if you're wanting to experience firefly at its finest!

now you may be surprised to find that firefly also has asushibar. a superbsushibar at that! here lately, the only thing i order is a nice chardonnay (laguna is fab!), a bowl of she crab soup, and the devils advocate. the spicy tuna is a simple roll, but even that one is amazing. do yourself a favor and plan on a fireflysushinight! you won't spend as much as you typically would in the main dining room, but you will leave fat and happy!

their menu is set--if you're into substituting things constantly because you don't like the side, you wont be pleased. however, if you have an open mind about food and are willing to try what the chefs have prepared and paired perfectly together, you'll love this.
thesushiis amazing. you must try one when you go there. this goes for their martinis as well, delicious!

this place is amazing!!!!!! best place we ate in pcb. i can't say it enough this place is amazing. you have to be willing to spend a little more because it is fine dining but it was well worth it. the best food while we were in pcb. i had the grilled grouper and my fiance had the mahi mahi with cajun rice, which was the special of the day. we also hadsushias an appetizer, which was incredible. the drinks were good and strong, i had the lemon drop martini. the bread and salads were very good as well. we will definitely be back when we are in pcb again. our waiter was attentive and even put congrats on our receipt because we were celebrating our engagement.

this by far was our best meal here. we are from nc so we are used to excellent sushi. we were very pleased with bothsushichefs ..excellent! we did not order from the menu it looked way over priced for the type of restaurant it was ..the atmosphere was nice. will go back for thesushimost definitely.

"... i googled you and couldn't find anything. do you have some sort of id?" if the owner had spoken those words before we were served, i would have happily left. since it was after we had paid for our meal, i chuckled and just handed it over. was the food and atmosphere amazing? yep, some of the best we've had. yet, it was still a dining experience we would never repeat. this is my best attempt at a fair analysis of firefly.

we made reservations for 8pm at one of the trendiest and most popular restaurants in pcb - firefly. this is, after all, a beach vacation, so we wanted to have at least one romantic and upscale evening out. we married one month ago today and this was our 'mini honeymoon' (we'll take a real honeymoon after my deployment, i promise).

the hostess sat us at a rectangular table right along a major server path. before even sitting, i asked her if it was possible to get one of the three open square tables that were a little more romantic. she said to ask the waiter. while waiting for him to arrive, we tried a couple seating options to make the best of our draw. i tried sitting across from her and then beside her, but neither option felt very romantic.

our waiter arrived shortly thereafter and i stood, shook his hand, and asked i we could possibly move. (should i have mentioned this was kind of a honeymoon date for us? i honestly didn't think it was necessary.) our waiter smugly assured me that all the tables are the same size. although i told him that it was more about the shape of the table (square = romantic and quaint), he said "this is the best table you're gonna get". the waiter left. we sat, and it took a few seconds to process. i decided i would rather eat somewhere else. i wasn't angry...yet, just disappointed in the service.

as i approached the waiter prep area to let him know that we'll dine somewhere else, i overhear him tell another waiter, "this f%#%ing guy..." as he nods to where we had been seated (now obscured from his view). i asked for his name and let him know i will be blogging about firefly. (mainly i just wanted his name for the owner/managers sake and have no intent of releasing it further).

before we made it out the door, both the owner and manager stopped us and asked what happened. i explained the situation and both assured us there had been some kind of misunderstanding (although they had the bouncer standing close by - just in case).

they sat us at beautiful table on the dais and we were determined not to let this ruin a great start to our vacation. the manger apologized again, and offered to comp our first round of drinks. all is well and we're over it.

now let's get to the dining!

we chose a nice malbec from an extensive wine list (not too pricey since we weren't sure how we would split the cost with the house and didn't want to take advantage). the wine service was great and the waiter seemed very knowledgable.

we started with the she-crab soup and like another reviewer pointed out - it is truly impeccable. rich, creamy and with fair amount of crab meat. for entrees, i ordered the peppered filet and my wife ordered the hombresushiroll. the steak was delivered a perfect medium rare and was likely the best steak i've had in months. the side vegetables were a little mushy, but the hollandaise sauce ensured they quickly followed the steak. the roll was a little too dried out on top, but otherwise very good. we were both very pleased with the food and would easily give it five stars.

our check was brought and there was no charge for the bottle of wine. i felt a little guilty (never my intent to bilk them), but i also understood they want happy customers that will return, and tell other pcb visitors of the 'must eat' restaurant.

upon bringing back my bank card, the waiter informed me that the bottle of wine had been added and the card run. huh?!? a mistake i'm sure. i let him know that manager wanted to get our first round and he went to get him.
while chatting about where to go for nightlife, the owner sat at our table and asked, "what do you want from me?"

honesty, we were both a little shocked. what happened. he seemed upset that i took pictures of our tables (i also took photos of our food and the dining area). i explained about the offer from the manager, and that i wasn't trying to cheat them or take advantage. that's when he said he had googled me and wanted to see some id. i made the mistake of including my rank when i originally introduced myself and he felt i was an imposter i suppose.

i won't make a long story that much longer, but he sat for 10 to 15 minutes at our table. he wanted me to know that he got a different version from his waiter on 'the table incident'. .... okay. what do you say? his best waiter was smug, dismissive and then was talking about us when he thought we couldn't hear.

we left with an unspoken cease fire that we would agree to disagree. the card had been run and there was no offer to credit back our account, although we did get a $25 gift card.

will we go back? probably not. although the food was amazing, that was easily one of the worst dining experiences we've had.

wow! this is good stuff!. a fantastic evening meal came from firefly. i was intrigued by a discription of the owner as a “rock ‘n’ roller turned foodie”. needless to say, i just knew this was my kind of place.

as it turned out, david trepanier had worked with many of the ‘80’s rock groups that i had known while working in music radio. bon jovi, motley crue, kiss and more to name a few. as expected, this lead to a lively discussion of the good old days!

dave, from san franciso, met his wife, an aspiring actress, at a nascar race and the rest was history. he was out of rock “n” roll and back to her home town of panama city beach.

dave always wanted to own a restaurant and this was his chance to change the dining scene in northwest florida.

firefly is located in the middle of the shoppes at edgewater shopping center. don’t let the unassuming façade fool you, this is some mighty fine fine dining. urban spoon ranks firefly as one of “america’s most popular high-end restaurants”. dave, and his staff, have earned wine spectator’s award of excellence for five years running for their 1800+ bottle wine cellar.they also have a private locker service where you can store your favorite vintage in ther cellar. firefly has also earned florida trend magazine’s golden spoon award for three years in a row. i know there will be many more accolades in the years to come.

as you enter firelfy you find yourself in a very comfortable bar area. dark hardwoods and mood lighting instantly make you feel right at home. as you head into the restaurant you will pass through a large room with a romantic fireplace, comfortable couches, overstuffed chairs and a large flat screen tv descreetlty placed amongst the hardwood bookcases. i felt like this was somewhere between a private country club and perhaps a european library. this is the perfect place to relax with a cocktail before your dinner.

the main dining room surrounds a large oak tree enhanced with miniture leds that randomly blink to simulate fireflys. you will find yourself fascinated with this “natural” ambience as you dine. by this point in time i realized this would not just be a good dinner, but rather, a true dining experience.

fresh seafood at firefly is totally fresh and includes an excellentsushimenu. chef paul stellato was recently chosen to serve team usa’s athletes, families and dignitaries at the the london olympics through bp’s “spirit of the gulf” program.

our dinner started with the she-crab soup. this alone is worth a trip to florida! it was served with a shot of sherry at the table and was absolute perfection! we also had the crab en croute, jumbo lump crab meat in a puff pastry shell and a sherry cream sauce. once again, perfection. others in our group had sesame tempura shrimp, and cracked pepper crusted tuna. all were well presented and very tastey.

i chose chef stellato’s featured dish at the olympics for my entrée. sauteed gulf grouper, served with shallots, fresh corn, grape tomatoes,sherry cream and jumbo lump crab meat, all topped with a haystack of potaoes. this was an amazing combination of flavors, textures, and visual stimulation. this dish was ten out of ten on my rating scale.
sue decided on a daily special of grilled filet mignon with a red-wine demiglace sauce and seared sea scallops. this aged steak was precisely grilled to medium-rare and the scallops were very tender and moist, yet fully cooked. the presentation included seasonal vegetables of asparagus, carrots and garlic mashed potatoes. this was a griiled work of culinary art.
our next visit to firefly may well include rosemay crusted rack of lamb, five spiced seared duck or perhaps the espresso & tomato braised free-range texas boar shank!

hand made pasta and artisan pizza along with a variety of salads offer something for every taste.

sue had home-made strawberry sorbet for dessert. as you may have realized by now, i can’t pass-up a bread pudding so the seasonal warm bread pudding was a must. i have never had a german chocolate bread pudding before, but needless to say, it was great. the home-made vanilla icecream was a perfect addition. classic crème brulee, triple chocolate bombe and more are the artisinal efforts of pastry chef josh rochill. specialty coffees and a selection of port, dessert wines, scotch, cordials and cognacs will complete your dining experience.

it’s often said that a meal is “fit for a king”. a meal at firefly is definitely fit for a president. when president obama visited the gulf region to promte the safety of gulf seafood after the infamous oil spill, he and his family chose to dine at firefly. the prez had a new york strip steak, but the first lady did have lobster.

the president and family’s security was assured by being seated in one of firefly’s private dining rooms.

panama city’s firefly restaurant was decidely one of the best meals i’ve had. great food, superb service and a classy, yet comfortable ambience. if you are anywhere in the gulf area, it willl behoove you to make a trip to firefly.

and who is dave’s favorite rock band....kiss, ofcourse!
information and reservations are available at www.fireflypcb.com or call 850-249-ffly (3359)

· address:
535 richard jackson blvd.
panama city beach, fl 32407
neighborhood:
panama city beach - bay point

don't miss the opportunity!. if you miss this restaurant, you made a big mistake.
lately, when you visit a restaurant, you very rarely get great service and great food.
well, you will here.
the price a a tad high but i would pay it again to be satisfied. the price reflects the quality of food and the quality of service you will receive.
i can't remember a time i had this type of food and service.
the food presentation made you just want to devoure it but the taste made you slow down to take it all in. we also ordered asushiroll which was very tasty.
don't make a mistake and not dine at the firefly. best restaurant i promise!

this restaurant is hit or miss. watered-down alcoholic drinks, wonderfulsushi(when it's available), okay service, and select items on the menu are delicious. i would never choose to eat here. i'll only go if i'm attending a get-together.

tuesday night specials. visited on a tuesday night for martini andsushispecials at the bar. both were excellent! thesushiis pricey, but the portions are large and the taste is excellent; another example of you get what you pay for!

martinis were large and well prepared from a extensive martini menu. the bartender (richard) was very attentive and seemed genuinely interested in making the bar customers happy. well done!

great place for a drink and food at the bar.

we had an all around fabulous meal. thesushiwas fantastic, as was the she crab soup. my husband had the boar and i had the snapper and they were both wonderful. the service was good as well. i would definitely return to this restaurant.

terrible service.. my family (of five) waited to be seated for approx. 2 hours (this was in feb with no crowd!). i had asked for asushimenu when we first arrived. during the wait i reviewed the menu and choose what i wanted to have. when we were finally seated we were told they were out of most of their specials and completely out of sushi. please tell me how you are completely out of all* sushi? needless to say we left, hungry and unhappy, we headed over to our always reliable pompano's restaurant.

great food, atmosphere. my husband and i tried to find something to go to without the kids. found this from a website and were quite happy. we ate in the main dining that gives you an outdoor feel but with air conditioning and no bugs!! we want to go back to sit in the front of the restaurant where they servesushiand appetizers. the she-crab soup is just amazing. i am going back this week while i am down here w/sister to have the soup and sushi. the dining room was so nice with the big tree (that you will swear it is real) in the middle. both entrees were fabulous. service was great. wish it was in atlanta. but it is nice to have a place that i want to go back to when i come to panama.

another great find. we went on our last night down in pcb. from the time we walked in until we walked out, the staff was friendly and great service. we started with the ahi poke from thesushimenu. great way to start. we had the hyrdoponic salad, the lettuce melted in your mouth with a warm toasted pecan dressing. the bacon wrapped shrimp with the smoked gouda cheese was excellent. the star night was the braised boar shank. the meat was so tender, no knife needed, it was served with a wild mushroom risotto cake. needless to say when we come back to pcb, will be having dinner here again.