nick's boathouse

good view bad food. i've waited some time to write this review thinking time would have dulled my experience. myself and 3 others dined here on 4/27/13 after hearing a mutual friend talk up this restaurant. like other reviewers we questioned our choice when we pulled up to a near empty parking lot. we hoped the parking lot was empty because it was early (before 6) and everyone seemed to be at the beach.
we asked to sit outside for the view because the restaurant sits on the bay. the view was the only good thing about this restaurant. we ordered cheese fries while we decided what we wanted as our main course. the fries came out in what can only be called white cheese sauce. there were a few bacon bits and green onions scattered about. the cheese sauce was edible or we may have just been that hungry! we ordered 3 meals and 1 appetizer as a meal. the fried grouper was crusted in i don't know what but the crust was incredibly hard. my girlfriend ordered fish tacos but could not eat them as tacos because they were so soggy the tortillas fell apart when picked up. we both choose cole slaw as our side and almost spit it out because it had soured. one of our friends ordered the crab claw appetizer. i kid you not, there were five claws on the plate. that was as surprising as the size of the crab claws were huge, huge with flour coating! the other friend ordered friedshrimpand fries which was sub par at best.
finally, the music or what they called music. there was a live band that reminded me of a backyard gathering. you know those with enough talent to entertain those that love them. this band tried hard to impress the diners which was far more than the restaurant did.

we passed by earlier and were surprised to see nick's where the crab trap used to be. we decided to stop in and take a look around, since we always enjoyed the view from crab trap. it was more beautiful than ever. we decided to give it a try and eat overlooking the water. our server was helpful and the food was great. we ordered a southwestshrimpflatbread to start after being told that they were half price until the end of may. the ribeye and garlic grouper were tender and served in a very interesting like-fine-dining-but-half-the-price way. the view sold us but the food will have us back for more.

ate there tonight and was very impressed! my fiancé and i were at the wahoos baseball game when it started pouring!! i guess we had the same idea as others because we went to grab some food and they were packed! when we waited over 20 minutes for a table-- i was very irritated and hungry... but the hostess was very friendly and eager to assist us, when the server came to our table he was helpful and knowledgable, then when our server was busy-- another girl (who seemed to be a server) promptly refilled our drinks and asked if we needed anything. i wasn't as i impressed on my first visit, but the food has improved greatly since then and our experience last night was much better! we will definitely be back before, especially when we go to a game!


-----24 apr, 2012-----

i visited nick's boathouse for the first time this week and was very impressed! there were 4 of us on what you could call a "double date" and it was the perfect place! i had theshrimpand grits and my date had the bacon wrapped filet... we were both very satisfied! the couple we were with really liked their flatbread and pecan crusted grouper, too! the service was great and very friendly, the view is beautiful, and the live band really allowed us to enjoy ourselves! we will definitely be back with more friends!

first time at nick's boathouse as part of our annual vacation in the area. started with the boom boomshrimpappetizer, which was good - a nice sized helping that wasn't too spicy and that had plenty of sauce. the basket of hush puppies that came with it were mediocre, as they weren't very warm and tasted as if they had been sitting around a while. so, starters were +1/-1.

the family selected a variety of entrees from the lighthouse platter to the caribbean amberjack to the surf & turf. our meals were good but not spectacular. my wife and kids enjoyed their fish, steak, chicken, and shrimp. the lighthouse platter was decent except i was pretty disappointed in the lobster tail as it was obviously frozen and the meat was tightly adhered to the shell, resulting in some loss from trying to get it out. the sides were hit and miss - the sweet potato fries got rave reviews while the grilled asparagus stalks were pretty small (in diameter not portion size) and were overdone.

the scenery was nice out on the patio by the water, and our server was friendly and attentive. however, the food quality didn't match the cost. we enjoyed our first visit but i can't say that we will be back again.

i will not be going back. the staff seemed miserable and they all seemed not to want to be there.
the fried pickles were delicious, but unfortunately one good appetizer a restaurant does not make.
our waitresses seemed absent minded and must have forgotten that we ordered drinks bc i had to remind her twice to please grab our drinks.
when our food finally came out, i was immediately disappointed. we ordered the fish and grits, and theshrimpwere over cooked, the onion straws were soggy, and the grits flavorless. the plus was the sauce that went over it, it was tasty but i couldn't continue eating this dish just based on the sauce.

last time we came here, we brought my parents here and had a great dinner. decided to go back for a couples dinner last thurs. there may have been on table taken inside and one outside. we went outside to enjoy the fall weather. soshrimpcrab dip was ok. a little heavy but ok. food came, on the dish that was steak and fish; the twice baked potatoe was literally still frozen inside, the steak as overcooked and just tasted like a cheap frozen steak that came out of a box, the fish was way over seasons with blackened spice that we just fed it to the cat that was hanging out on the patio there (nice kitty). our server said the kitchen said they were backed up that's why the potato was frozen (restaurant was dead that night so not sure if they only had one person in the kitchen or what), so he got us some hot fries to replace the potato.
the seafood platter was good; theshrimpwere big and cooked just right, scallops not bad either! the side dishes i had were cold, but not frozen though. hubby said for $70 +tip he expects more. doubtful we will return for dining but nice to go for drinks with friends

the good:

the location on the bay, the server (attitude only). the rest calls under the bad department.

the bad:

my wife has a food allergy to seafood (we came for people out of town). she wanted to get a burger, but asked to get the cooks to please sperate it in the grill. i'm an industrial hygienist, i know it's not hard to do. it takes a lemon, a scrubber, and a wet rag, plus two minutes.

the server came back and said the cooks would not be able to do it. all i heard was sorry, a minute of my time is not worth the effort. seriously? it takes a minute and minuscule effort. i think it's worth it for $10.99.

also, the other food orders were jacked up. theshrimpi had hadn't been "deturded", so that ruined my dish. the steak someone ordered was suppose to be medium rare, but it was well done. the kid's hamburger was suppose to be a cheeseburger. we also ordered an appetizer we never received. all in all, if you order $100 worth of food, it should at least be half right.

i am guessing i won't be back again. the server, while nice, was not good at her job. the food was extremely sub par. not a good experience at all.

pass this place until they get their stuff straight, or at the very least, "deturd" the shrimp.

we drove for 12 hours from texas to get to the gulf. all we wanted was fresh seafood and this was our first restaurant. we so picked the right place. sat out on the patio and enjoyed the breeze. seafood gumbo and blackened grouper sandwich were both excellent. my wife had blackened and coconutshrimpand left very satisfied.

friendly service, good menu, listed gluten free items, theshrimpboom boom and jumbalia was good. nice atmosphere. decent price for the area. service was fast, complementary corn bread was ok.

my husband and i always enjoy nicks boathouse. the food is good and so is the service. we generally get the broiled seafood platter which is very filling. my husband sometimes gets theshrimpand grits. theshrimpare huge. i am not a grit eater but hubby says they are delicious.

don't waste your time or money! . the short story: spend the same amount of $$ and go to atlas or fish house for better food, better service, and better atmosphere!! seriously, this place was no good! items on there menu we're knock offs of menu items from successful reataurants with all the same ingredients but just tasted crappy to say the least ie boom boomshrimpinstead of bang bangshrimp(bonefish),shrimpand grits instead of grits a yaya (atlas)

my husband, mother in law, my 5 year old, and myself had dinner there on october 6, 2014. we went to maritime park to see the clidesdales and hopped over for dinner afterwards. the place wasn't busy at all. about 6 tables were full inside with a handful full outside. service was snails pace slow, kitchen was even slower. our food came out with the plates scolding hot and lukewarm food.(dead give away that it was sitting in the hot window of the kitchen for entirely too long!!) all of us commented that our food wasnt even hot and we all had ordered the gouda grits. grits all came out the way grits get when they have been sitting for a long while. like a skin on them. gross to say the least. mother in law ordered a beer with dinner and never received it. after we sat down, a large family had gotten up and left. their table was left dirty (plates of half eaten food. far from appetizing!) the entire time we were there and we were directly across from it. i could touch it we were so close to it. i ordered the mahi and shrimp. the fish fillet was very thin. like very very thin. we get mahi frequently from the fish market and it appeared as if they filleted the fillet. i was very disappointed with the food. especially since everything is $20+!! they didn't have a kids menu. but then said they did?! had to hunt the waitress down to get the check because we hadn't seen her since we got our food and we had been done eating for atleast 10 minutes. waitress apologized saying she had tables both inside and outside and they didn't think they were going to get busy with stuff going on at the stadium. but anyone in their right mind could assume that a restaurant visable and accessible from the stadium parking lot would maybe possibly get a few of the several hundreds of people that came to the stadium stop in for dinner. but maybe that's me....

seriously, go to fish house or atlas and get the same style of food that is so much better

went for 1st time, now think bad reviews are suspicious. went for sunday brunch & found both the service & food to be excellent. even when overwhelmed by a rush of people who poured in unexpectedly to watch the boat races in the bay, the staff worked very hard to accommodate everyone.

our server was katie and even though she had full tables to take care of she always had a smile on her face & paid close attention to our needs. several of our group had the mahi, grilled & blackened, while others enjoyed crab meat & gouda cheese stuffed omelettes. everything was cooked to perfection & delicious. theshrimp& lobster bisque was also very tasty.

i will bring my family back to enjoy dining there again. between the fabulous view of the bay & the great food, i highly recommend this eatery & welcome another great place to dine in downtown pensacola!

wonderful, scrumptious food and quick service!. we took a party of 8 to nick's boathouse and loved it! all of our food was yummy. the waitress was quick, funny, and pleasant. theshrimpand lump crab appetizer was great and key lime pie was the best! all 8 of us loved it!

very good!!!!. some of these folks must have dined in a different place then my wife and i did. the food was generous and excellent. collard greens were cooked perfectly and the garlic mashed potatoes were actually garlicky!! my wife got the coconutshrimpwhich again, was cooked perfectly, came with two dipping sauces, sweet& spice. i had the surf&turf which is mahi-mahi and new york stripe steak.yes, cooked perfectly. prices are reasonable and the quality of the food exceeds the price. we have paid more and gotten less in quality and portions. only one downside and we did let our server know about it........terrible coffee but she said that would improve next time, and we are going back tonite!!

first time. ate here for the first time today for lunch. i was a little nervous having read some of the reviews, but our experience was fine. i ordered theshrimpetouffee which was really good. my daughter ordered the blackened mahi, and it was good, too. my wife had the grilledshrimpsalad and enjoyed it as well. we sat outside and had a great view of the bay. service was ok, but i thought they could have been a little faster with the food, refills, etc. i also thought the prices were very reasonable - especially for seafood with a view. we will definitely go back.