With almost a week on a Florida barrier island where the Tampa Bay meets the Gulf of Mexico, you are bound to have amazing seafood.
During the week, we ate our fair share. Here are a few of the places we checked out on Anna Maria Island.
Located at 5406 Marina Drive in Holmes Beach, The Feast Restaurant is located in Island Shopping Center, we passed by here on our way to our rental and decided it was the place for our first dinner.
We enjoyed it so much that Chuck and I went back for a date night on our last night on the island.
It’s on the smallish side with maybe a dozen or so tables divided between two rooms, so be sure to make a reservation. We didn’t on our first night and had an hour wait. (be sure to check out our blog post on The Doctors Office where we went during our wait.)
The Cracklin’ Calamari, flash-fried with sweet Thai chili sauce was crunchy, well-seasoned, and delicious.
We also shared an appetizer sampler special with Conch Fritters, Coconut Shrimp, and Shrimp Wraps. They were all crispy and flavorful, each had a unique texture, and it was perfect for sharing.
On my first visit, I tried the American Red Snapper Captiva, a good portion of red snapper with gulf shrimp, lump crabmeat, and a garlic cream sauce.
My second visit I tried Hog Fish Provencal, a popular gulf fish typically caught by spearfishing. I was light and meaty and topped with two jumbo gulf shrimp and a seared scallop.
Chuck, to my surprise, ordered their White Pizza with Garlic, olive oil, ricotta cheese, feta cheese, and mozzarella. I’m the pizza junky, and he’ll eat it if I order it, and he RAVED about this one.
Anna Maria Oyster Bar on the Pier
We were wandering around Bradenton Beach and exploring the shops on Historic Bridge Street when we decided to stop in for a few beers. The Oyster Bar sits at the far end of the pier with a large outdoor patio as well as a bar and tables inside.
One of our friends and I decided to each order a half dozen raw oysters. They were fresh and sweet, served with lemon, very fresh horseradish, saltines and bottles of their own hot sauce.
In addition to an extensive menu, they offer oysters steamed, fried, Rockefeller, Tequila Lime, and Grandma Georgie’s Chipotle oysters.
With several locations, we’ll make the trip from St Pete.
Located on Marina Drive, we passed this place all the time, and they are always packed.
They offer outdoor seating serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a full bar, specialty drinks, beer, and wine.
Known for their giant grouper sculpture made from recycled car and motorcycle parts, they offer a lot of merchandise with this iconic metal sculpture.
I went for the Grouper Taco, two flour tortillas filled with blackened gulf grouper. The tacos have a lining of melted cheese that forms a ‘skirt,’ that crispy hard cheese edge, and a filled with shredded cabbage and salsa.
This place is the place to go for sunset. They have both inside and outside seating with great views of the gulf. Unfortunately, the night we were there it was cloudy, and we didn’t see much of a sunset, but it was a beautiful night.
They offer an appetizer of local Tampa Bay Clams; Gulf Shrimp steamed with kale, garlic, wild boar sausage, garlic, and white wine. The clams were light and fresh, and the dish was well prepared.
I skipped a seafood entrée and tried their Wild Boar Sausage Pizza with Peppers and Onions. It had a thin, crispy crust and was packed with sausage.
It seemed like everywhere we turned, there were restaurants with incredibly fresh seafood. Anna Maria Island is absolutely a seafood lovers paradise.
