Yelp is often fake news. They had a reputation for harassing business owners to become paid account holders. Supposedly, those that did pay got suppression of bad reviews and elevation of good ones. Vice versa for businesses that refused to pay up. If you Google this topic, you will see lots of accusations, which (disclaimer) they of course denied.

That’s interesting - all I know, is that I have been pleased and have mostly agreed with their restaurant ratings for well over a decade - it has served me well and greatly helped me seek out hidden gems of good local and authentic ethnic places in cities when I travel.

Add Blue Fin & Costa del Mar to the list...

The Fish & Chips in the "Food Court" were light years better... One of the few reasons (besides golf) that we ever venture down to Sawgrass...

We enjoy Ipanema Brazilian Steakhouse too. Ocala is our go to when we want to dine out. It has much more variety than the bubble.

McGrady's
 

Went over a year ago, flies were all over our table and food, a drink was 18.00 food was overpriced. Looking forward to the change.

The continual expansion of FMK is an expansion of mediocrity.

A friend of mine who owned a restaurant told me, "every single person who walks in the door thinks they know how to run a restaurant." And none of them ever had the guts to do it.

Sounds like they learned from the Rainbow Coalition...

FMK is expanding g
 

Not sure what your point is relative to my post, but my grandparents and then my parents ran a restaurant for over 50 so I know enuf about them to be smart enuf not to open one.

Harvest is very good. IMHO

Fore warned is fore armed.
Thanks for the warning.

Too lazy to walk up and get their drink?

Yep, you got it. Sysco Institutional menus all.

As long as they make money, they couldn't care less. It's all about the bottom line.

Grady’s was awful
Terrible menu and incredibly rude bartender the last time I was there about a year ago we said we would never go back
I like FMK I’ll give them a try😎

We love the burgers at Willie Jewels in Magnolia Plaza, but will definitely try Bonefish.

I was there less than a year ago. I really like the menu and will miss it if it changes much.

When I was there the bartender politely asked me if I could wait before ordering my meal. It was three minutes to the end of happy hour and he was trying to make sure anyone who wanted to order before it ended was able to. I really appreciate that in a bartender.

Too Generous
 

Really, I think you are giving them too much credit. Get ready to be bedazzled by reheated heavy sodium based blah. Is it warm food, maybe? But that’s about it. Overpriced substance for your taking. Don’t get me wrong, the group is OK if you don’t have fresh food taste buds.

Looks like the "Regular Group of Food Snobs" has taken over the thread...

I guess that their history of dining at Michelin restaurants has spoiled them....

:1rotfl::1rotfl:

good luck

Everyone is talking about McGradys but I'm curious about The Show Kitchen. Shelling out 65 dollars a person to watch someone cook seemed a bit high to us so we never went. You think they might change it so it's mire affordable and interesting?

The few times we went service was extremely slow even with tons of empty tables. The bar was always busy though
Maybe they should make it just bar food and expand the bar...

Having owned a food service business i learned one very important thing. Listen to your customers and keep your ear on the community chatter. So many restaurants fail because they don't hire the right staff and have an additude regarding customer service. McGradys had a stale menu that many complained about. The tables in the squares were part of their table count and they didn't enforce this. I wasn't the least bit surprised they sold. Fmk I'm sure is going to use some sort of proven boring menu and esthetic it's a shame it could be an interesting excited spot

I am a big fan of mediocrity. I like to eat out a lot and I can't afford Michelin-rated restaurants if I even knew where to find one.

The whole Scottish pub concept seemed like something that no one asked for or wanted.

The outdoor tables seemed to be mostly empty even during sunny afternoons. Most country clubs at the same time have packed patios. I think part of the difference is that McGradys was almost double the price of most country clubs for food and drinks.

just came back from Boosters.

Meh, a typical retiree menu, lots of burger options, decent appitizers list,
a couple of salad options, a couple of entree options, mostly beef, 2 fish, two chicken sandwiches/entrees,

that's it. .

a typical bubble retirees menu:
cheap,
nothing fancy or out of the ordinary,
beef, chicken, pasta, maybe a fish, but that's a specialty item and spotty demand
plus mac and cheese for the 65+ y/o kids
love the 1/2 off beer/wine prices.

when people ask for a good restaurant, why are the most suggestions outside the bubble?

Booster is a bar/grill. Menu defiantly fits sports bar. Nobody goes to a restaurant with 30 TVs to have conversations and 3 courses.

When we all went out to eat at our pre villages home, retirees on a fixed income was probably 10 to 15% of the population the restaurant had to cater to.
There were families with young kids, single people, couples working with busy kids, etc.
Here, 90-95% of the the customers are retirees on a fixed income. Restuarants dont have the luxury of a broad mix of customers. So the restaurants will all be similar.

I highly doubt the number of those on fixed income here is anywhere close to 90%. I'm certain that at least 20% of the people in at least my village act like money is burning a hole in their pocket. Constantly looking for things to upgrade in their home or getting a new car or golf cart every 4 years.

I also highly doubt that 90% of people in TV are retirees. I'm on a street of 12 homes and 2 of them in total are owned by retirees. Fairly typical in my Village south of 44.

Sounds like Hooters.......................30 TV's and 30 B____s.

That’s absolutely the truth. It’s 55+. Retirement age is 67. I know lots of people who live here that aren’t retired. I also know lots of people who’d like to have a higher end place to go other than Anglers. There isn’t one place here I crave to go back to. Even for a cocktail. I’d drive to Mathers in Orlando for a great HH and great drink. If there was a smaller establishment with a fantastic drink/food menu, I’d happily pay extra for that.

67 is a number the Social Security Administration defines as full retirement age. The SSA definition applies to the SSA, not to whether one can retire from employment. I know there are lots of people who retire at 55.

LOL!

from one extreme to the other?? having more than 1 chicken/fish sandwich offering is too much? Like a reuben, pastrami, or a rachel? 1 pasta offering for adult kidz?

Most restaurants here have their strategic customer as:

I have been to plenty of sports bars with a better menu! geez, you have to get out more often. The best one I ever ate at was called "The Sports Theatre" on the west side of Broward County. Closed over a decade ago as a casualty of the great financial crises. .

Nobody is arguing that. I for one, don’t plan on retiring. I love my job and plan on working well into my 70’s I can’t imagine retiring at 55 unless I’ve got at least several million in the bank.

OK, here’s my restaurant rant. Florida is a freaking peninsula, surrounded on three sides by ocean. Where is the fresh local seafood? I’m not talking about stuff one can get just about anyplace like Salmon, Cod, Haddock, Shrimp, Tuna, or Swordfish. Where is the good seafood, caught in local waters, like Red Snapper, Grouper, Red Fish, Mahi Mahi, Rock Lobster, or Sea Bass? The few seafood places in the bubble (Costal Del Mar, BlueFin, Bonefish) have the usual stuff on the daily menu, and if you’re lucky, they sometimes have one local fish as a special (and they typically run out of it before closing). And why do most places have to fry their very limited seafood selection.

Most restaurants in the bubble try to carb load their patrons with cheap and unhealthy garbage. How about a place that serves fresh local seafood that is broiled and served with a fresh salad and some multi grain rice? I don’t want my meal with carb loaded fillers like bread, Mac and Cheese, potatoes, grits or biscuits with gravy, or anything deep fried.

Would love to see a Greek or German restaurant here. We are going to Leesburg or Ocala more often for good restaurants but they dont have those either

From FMK Facebook:

Log into Facebook


📣 Exciting Updates About Sawgrass Tavern!

We’ve had some great questions, so here are a few clarifications:
✅ Georgia is staying on with us!
✅ We will be able to serve guests outside the restaurant, but unfortunately alcohol won’t be available from us when the bar hut is open.
✅ Entertainment is still run by The Villages Entertainment.
✅ The kitchen inside the food hall will continue—more details coming!
✅ A new expanded menu is launching shortly. Stay tuned for the reveal!
✅ All McGradys employees were given the option to stay on with us and go through our standard hiring process.
✅ McGrady’s gift cards will be honored by Sawgrass Tavern.

We’re thrilled to welcome you soon! 🎉

Perfect Response
 

Absolutely! We eat a variety of local cuisine from the very basic places like The Freezer in Homosassa to much fancier places in Orlando and Ocala. It’s nice to have a broad swath of choices. If I was sitting down to eat at Sawgrass after golf, the last thing that comes to mind is classy. So why try to pass off food that isn’t with exorbitant prices? The ambience matches middle of the road food, not the sticker shock with average foods. We ate there last week and I remember getting a side pretzel that cost $14. The one thing I do favor in the whole retail area is the Walleye across the way in the Little Fin.

I nice local variety would be welcome to the area. Shrimp, scallops, chowder and grouper would be a great start.