the grand marlin of pensacola beach

great food and people. i am a regular customer at the grand marlin. my husband and i love going there for lunch, brunch and dinner. i think the grandmarlinis one of the best restraurants in the area. i have never had a bad meal there and the servers are always super nice. i will say that we always go at odd times so we don't have to wait. there can be a long wait depending on the time you go. i think this alone shows you how popular the place is. i read one review that said they had a better meal at flounders. i guess if you are a tourist and don't know the difference between frozen food and mass market food and the real deal then yes, i guess it wouldn't matter. but, since we have lived here for over 40 years and we fish the area, i can tell you the food at the grandmarlinis top notch! not frozen pre-battered junk thrown in a deep fryer!

service was unreal for p cola. i have been to the grandmarlinseveral times and found the service hands down the best this town has to offer.
i used to go to the fish house but the food at the grandmarlinand the fact that server tony remembered my entire tables first names gave me that comforatable feel good that the rest of pensacolas spots could not match.
a toast to pensacola...bout darn time!!!!

new favorite. we dined at grandmarlintonight, an early mother's day, as we don't care to fight the crowds. beautiful view, attentive but not intrusive service and simply wonderful food. i love a good presentation, though i won't avoid a place if presentation is the only thing lacking. grand marlin's food is as gorgeous as it is tasty. we had an all-seafood night - bbq'd shrimp and oyster rockefeller for appetizers, and four different kinds of fish, all cooked to perfection. while many restaurants use accompaniments to fill a plate, the sides here were a perfect compliment to the main dishes. i have a feeling i'll be dreaming about the grouper piccata - i must figure out how to do that to capers!

i'd heard great things about the praline basket, so we ordered one and four spoons. it wasn't the typical heavy praline (which i love), but a light, delicate thing, filled with berries and a fabulous vanilla ice cream. truly a revelation, and a perfect end to the meal. the waiter says the bread pudding is even better, so i guess we'll have to go back for that!

more a factory than a restaurant. the grandmarlinis nothing if not "grand." the word only applies to the size of this restaurant. it certainly doesn't apply to customer service at all and only tangentially to the food.

when i asked to be seated outside, i wasn't prepared for the 20 knot wind that blew across my table constantly. the server tried to be helpful, but said the place couldn't close the wind screen and he couldn't move my table or offer me another table. the manager was of little more help. just trying to keep the silverware on the table was a chore, even as the hot food rapidly cooled.

as to the food, nothing special here. the kitchen just seems to churn out the overpriced entrees with little regard to presentation or taste.

you may want to try any of the smaller, much more genuine, seafood restaurants that abound nearby. the grandmarlinis a factory or at best a mess hall. but a fine seafood restaurant it isn't.

after eyeing the pensacola beach location, i finally made it to the grand marlin. the greeting upon arrival is always warm and welcoming. the staff does everything they can to make your dining experience beyond exceptional.

once seated, my marvelous server ramon, helped me decide on several things and described the food and drinks with clear detail to help me find exactly what i was looking for. with so many tasty options to choose from, i finally decided on the blackberry mojito and bbq shrimp to start with. for the main course i just had to have the sunday special of prime rib with whipped potatoes and seasonal vegetables (string beans). everything was exceptional!

when visiting pensacola beach be sure to swing by the grandmarlinfor great customer service, wonderful wait staff, extremely tasty food, and a good drink!

*this is not a sponsored review.

my wife and i went to eat at the grandmarlinaround 7:00 without reservations. we we seated quickly and received quick service. it was nov 3 but they had good crowd. the restaurant has a fantastic view on the bay and is a nice big restaurant. we both had a drink and shared an appetizer of smoked tuna dip. it was good. we both ordered one of the fish specials. the triple tail served covered in browned butter. this was a great piece of fish. it has a sweet flavor and the first time i have tried it. the whipped potatoes were good as was the vegetable. our waiter was helpful and did a great job, the manager came by and ask how we were doing. it was a great meal experience, well worthy the money.

on the recommendation of a co-worker, i made my first visit to the grandmarlinwith some colleagues. we sat on the open patio with a beautiful view of the bay. this would prove to be the best part of the night.

the menu was impressive - printed daily with lots of fresh fish and other seafood options. i started with the sautéed blue crab claws. they were good but - i must admit - not $20 good considering the portion was on the small side. given another opportunity, i would choose a different appetizer.

the meal kind of went downhill from the appetizer course. one of my colleagues ordered a salad that never arrived before our entrees did. i ordered the grilled cobia, which arrived pan-seated and not fully cooked. the whipped potatoes were so salty i couldn't eat them. the best part of the entree was the broccoli side.

for dessert, i chose the caramel macchiato creme brûlée. the flavor was good and the sugar was perfectly caramelized. however, the custard was loose and borderline runny, indicating that it was a bit undercooked.

overall, i was unimpressed with the grand marlin. i suppose everyone has a bad day but at these prices, you can't afford to have them. the ambience was nice but it wasn't enough to drag me back for another mediocre, high-priced meal.

i visit pensacola often, including frequent saturday beach trips, and we get a room and stay overnight just so we can et brunch at the gransmarlinon sunday mornings. the brunch is awesome. the crab cakes benedict and shrimp and grits are excellent and flavorful. the chocolate croissant tastes just like the ones i had in paris, and they are baked fresh that morning too. the kids love it, and the bluemarlincocktail is now a tradition for every visit. the service is great most of the time. the restaurant is clean and so are the bathrooms. hemmingway's is good and was my favorite until i tried grand marlin. in my opinion it's the best restaurant on the island.

crispy lobster fingers. indulgent i wish there was a way to kick up the seasoning to include a spicy option.


-----05 oct, 2014-----

grilled lobster tail in a key lime butter sauce. flawless


-----05 oct, 2014-----

nice!. the grandmarlinexceeded our expectations. lobster was cooked well and kale caesar was good. gam served the children's dinner on frisbees (to keep). the lobster finger appetizer was delicious also. service was above average.

favorite spot. the grandmarlinis our of favorite spots to dine in the pensacola area. the location is great and views at sunset are second to none. the service is great, brunch, lunch, or dinner. we like that their menu changes often. we have tried a variety items on the menu and have liked almost all of them. i have come to find out that grouper is just not a fish that i like. their brunch is great, the french toast is huge and very tasty.

bottom line - perfect place for special occasions, come to beach and have a romantic dinner with your special someone.

dissapointing. first impression was pretty rough. hostess took 20 minutes to find a table for my party with an empty restaurant. the table only needed cutlery placed.

the wait for food wasn't unpleasant. the waiter was polite and almost compensated for the management's inadequate service from the hostess until the main course arrived. "the santa rosa skillet" was two poached eggs, some garnish, maybe half a potato with cheese, and two pieces of bacon measuring at 1 inch each. the management's decision of portioning is so alarmingly cheap that an establishment should be ashamed to call this a skillet. it was more likely to pass as a hors d'oeuvre that cost an over exorbitant price.

oh, and i saw some unfortunate man changing his child in the sink in the men's restroom. great job, grandmarlinmanagement....

these shortfalls coupled with no child changing station in the restroom makes this coastal crass establishment a pretentious gathering ground for people who have no concept of money to part ways with it for substandard food and service. stop by the grandmarlinfor a terrible time.

grandmarlin"outside seating" disappointing. our grandmarlinfood experience was good. eight in a party and appetizers and entrees all prepared well--tasty! we called a day ahead for outside reservations and were disappointed to be seated in a cabana like area curtained; could not even see the ocean because a huge imposing bar obstructs. we asked about being moved and were told at 5:30 seating there was nowhere to move. manager told me later we should have been able to get a window view at that time. just know that you need to ask for window seating by the rail. we walked on the pier outside after dinner, and it was lovely. our dinner setting, however, was a bit sweltering (no ac and high fans did not help). high prices without a pleasant atmosphere outside. we're leaving pensacola, so can't re-do.

favorite beach restaurant. the grandmarlinis my favorite beach restaurants, they have been consistently good with food prep and the northdrop bar is just fabulous. four years i chose this as my birthday dinner location. i am lucky that my birthday falls around cobia season and tgm prepares a delicious cobia. portions could be just a tad bigger, especially for the price, but i am not disappointed with what i get. and on your birthday you get a free dessert that is just scrumptious. it is a nice upscale casual beach place.

delicious! fun atmosphere! great view! friendly wait staff! fresh ingredients! what more could you want? i think grandmarlinwill be our new favorite place.

wonderful place to eat. after reading some of the over the top negative reviews, i wondered where the other grandmarlinwas located? this place, the one on earth, has a great menu, fantastic food, even better service and reasonable pricing for the fantastic food that we received. the swordfish and ribeye were our choices and we thoroughly enjoyed both. it is a beautiful location and the inside looks terrific. the grandmarlinwas very clean and the place is beautiful inside. the owners are local and this is not a chain restaurant run by college students. love this place and we will be going back. this is one of the top restaurants in northwest florida. maybe the others who have complained arrived when it was busy, which is understandable, but, i suggest you give it a try.