Amazing sea bass the best I had hands down! Not a lot of fine dining in Polk county so this place is definitely a gem!
Justin Ervin
So I'm going to be a little harder on this place than usual. The restaurant is very small and crowded. To the point that it's uncomfortable. The food is pretty expensive for the quality and the location. I had the pork shank and it was good, but not $55 good. Let's be honest pork isn't very expensive. My friend had the beef Wellington that's $75. It was hardly touched. The bill for two dinners and 4 drinks was over $200. You could go to Eddie vs or the council oaks steak house in Tampa and eat for that price. You could eat at 1961 a better restaurant in my opinion, you could feed 3 or 4 at Harry's which is easily as good for that price. That's my biggest issue with the place. It was only worth about $100. But there were a lot of servers and support staff to tend to the customers. Which is really nice. Also I don't believe they had cocktails. But I may be wrong.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
April
Disappointed. Heard good things and was expecting a much different experience. First, it is crowded, a lot tables are crammed in a small space, as soon as you walk in the front door there is a table. Second, we were not greeted by anyone, we had to walk toward the kitchen area to find someone. It was very loud, definitely not a spot to go if you're looking for a quiet romantic evening like we were. We were immediately told they were understaffed by the owner so we expected a wait for the food. I ordered the $70 filet mignon entree and was served the tenderloin tip which was extremely disappointing, it was extremely overcooked, even for well done. It was hard as a rock and inedible, and my side of risotto was cold. My husband liked his sea bass but not enough to finish the whole dish. The owner did take the filet dish off our bill, but I left hungry and had to stop on the way home to get something to eat. Overall, we were looking for a romantic quaint French restaurant and this was not that place for us unfortunately.
Rhonda Lindner
Sweet and savory in every way! Not from the area and OMG! This restaurant is a place you don’t want to miss! You’re worth it’
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Beef Wellington
Kari Atcosta
This is one of my favorite places. One of the few places to order beef Wellington. Food is always delicious. Staff is super friendly and attentive. Make sure to make reservations as they usually book up quickly.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
David Schaal
Hidden gem in downtown Lakeland; everything exceeded our expatations.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
MeredithG
The food was delicious, and service was perfect. We drove in for the night to go to a concert and were worried about leaving leftovers in the car during the show. Our server filled a bag with ice and wrapped everything up for us - above and beyond! We will definitely return.
H H.
Very average food at a very high price. Lack luster atmosphere and food. Service was excellent. Will not be returning.
NelsonG
Went with my wife for Valentine weekend and we were not disappointed. I am not an expert, but I do have culinary training and experience. This place is special. It was one of the best dining experiences we have had. Service was great, everyone was friendly and knowledgeable. Food was outstanding! There are some touches and techniques that show mastery of a craft, only skilled individual would appreciate. Throughout our dinner there were many moments like that. For instance, the bread... perfect crust, but once cracked open exposes a fluffy warm interior. The butter, fluffy and flavorful. Not hard and salty. The mussels, giving a hint of seafood but perfectly complementing the umami in the creamy garlic sauce. Filet precisely cooked to temp still maintaining a crust.... and fluffy little creamy nuggets of lobster, without being rubbery. Asparagus, cooked through but still snappy with velvety mashed potatoes. Only thing I regret is not leaving room for dessert. Next time. "Perfection is many little things all done correctly." - Marco P. White
Joe Shaner
I recently dined at this restaurant, and unfortunately, my experience left much to be desired. While the service was satisfactory, the offerings were severely lacking. Let's start with the bread—only two measly pieces were provided, which hardly felt sufficient.Moving on to the appetizer, we opted for oysters, expecting a delightful start to our meal. However, to our dismay, we were served only one oyster per person. This was a major disappointment.Next, the soup or salad option was presented, but if you have a strawberry allergy, tough luck—soup it is. And let me tell you, the soup tasted like it came straight from a can, lacking any semblance of freshness or flavor.Finally, onto the main course—the lobster Thermidor. Imagine our surprise when we were each served a mere half of a lobster. All this for the exorbitant price tag of $250.00 plus tax, this was utterly unacceptable.This supposed "Valentine's Day special" was anything but romantic. Save your money and look elsewhere for a memorable dining experience. I'm generously awarding this establishment 5 stars—for what I consider the worst Valentine's Day dinner I've ever had the misfortune of enduring.
If I could give a Zero I would. The supervisors take no criticism. The food was awful and tried to explain what was wrong with both me and my partners food. They forced us to pay 217 dollars just for bread/butter a salad and a soup. They only took off 50 dollars from the original 267 price. Not helpful what do ever and were
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
There are too many things and not enough space. We were very disappointed in the experience. The food tasted good but came out cold. The cost was really high for the lack of detail. When we mentioned the cold food we were blown off and no one apologized for it. The owner was too busy with one table the entire time we were there. Must have been someone important. We have eaten there many times in the past but this may be the last.
Stardust
Bay Street Bistro is romantic and charming! The perfect place for an anniversary or romantic evening. Food is superb!! Top notch gourmet, and service is perfect! Everything you'd want in a French restaurant
CarolPms
For a small place it is very very efficient & attentive & unlike any other place we have recently visited. Management obviously made good decisions hiring. We loved our meals -- the Beef Wellington & the filet Oscar special. Tried a glass of a new wine (to me.) It was accurately described to me. Appreciate the meal comes with a soup or salad & just enough accompaniments -- we still took home leftovers !
I ordered the ribeye. Medium rare, It came extremely rare. I sent it back and all they tried to do was warm it up a little bit and send it back and it was extremely rare, still. Nobody from the back ever came out to talk to us. I told Our waitress, that I was done with the steak. And I did not want it. The house salad was very bland with no real flavor. I was kind of disappointed. The fact that a stick cost $75, If it was sent back, all they did was try to warm it up a little more.. I was very disappointed. I have been to a number of steakhouses around the Bay area. And if I ever had a problem, they always gave me a new stake. Freshly cooked, I'm not really sure why they did it this way. No one ever came out and talked to us, very disappointed.
Amazing sea bass the best I had hands down! Not a lot of fine dining in Polk county so this place is definitely a gem!
So I'm going to be a little harder on this place than usual. The restaurant is very small and crowded. To the point that it's uncomfortable. The food is pretty expensive for the quality and the location. I had the pork shank and it was good, but not $55 good. Let's be honest pork isn't very expensive. My friend had the beef Wellington that's $75. It was hardly touched. The bill for two dinners and 4 drinks was over $200. You could go to Eddie vs or the council oaks steak house in Tampa and eat for that price. You could eat at 1961 a better restaurant in my opinion, you could feed 3 or 4 at Harry's which is easily as good for that price. That's my biggest issue with the place. It was only worth about $100. But there were a lot of servers and support staff to tend to the customers. Which is really nice. Also I don't believe they had cocktails. But I may be wrong.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Disappointed. Heard good things and was expecting a much different experience. First, it is crowded, a lot tables are crammed in a small space, as soon as you walk in the front door there is a table. Second, we were not greeted by anyone, we had to walk toward the kitchen area to find someone. It was very loud, definitely not a spot to go if you're looking for a quiet romantic evening like we were. We were immediately told they were understaffed by the owner so we expected a wait for the food. I ordered the $70 filet mignon entree and was served the tenderloin tip which was extremely disappointing, it was extremely overcooked, even for well done. It was hard as a rock and inedible, and my side of risotto was cold. My husband liked his sea bass but not enough to finish the whole dish. The owner did take the filet dish off our bill, but I left hungry and had to stop on the way home to get something to eat. Overall, we were looking for a romantic quaint French restaurant and this was not that place for us unfortunately.
Sweet and savory in every way! Not from the area and OMG! This restaurant is a place you don’t want to miss! You’re worth it’
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Beef Wellington
This is one of my favorite places. One of the few places to order beef Wellington. Food is always delicious. Staff is super friendly and attentive. Make sure to make reservations as they usually book up quickly.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Hidden gem in downtown Lakeland; everything exceeded our expatations.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was delicious, and service was perfect. We drove in for the night to go to a concert and were worried about leaving leftovers in the car during the show. Our server filled a bag with ice and wrapped everything up for us - above and beyond! We will definitely return.
Very average food at a very high price. Lack luster atmosphere and food. Service was excellent. Will not be returning.
Went with my wife for Valentine weekend and we were not disappointed. I am not an expert, but I do have culinary training and experience. This place is special. It was one of the best dining experiences we have had. Service was great, everyone was friendly and knowledgeable. Food was outstanding! There are some touches and techniques that show mastery of a craft, only skilled individual would appreciate. Throughout our dinner there were many moments like that. For instance, the bread... perfect crust, but once cracked open exposes a fluffy warm interior. The butter, fluffy and flavorful. Not hard and salty. The mussels, giving a hint of seafood but perfectly complementing the umami in the creamy garlic sauce. Filet precisely cooked to temp still maintaining a crust.... and fluffy little creamy nuggets of lobster, without being rubbery. Asparagus, cooked through but still snappy with velvety mashed potatoes. Only thing I regret is not leaving room for dessert. Next time. "Perfection is many little things all done correctly." - Marco P. White
I recently dined at this restaurant, and unfortunately, my experience left much to be desired. While the service was satisfactory, the offerings were severely lacking. Let's start with the bread—only two measly pieces were provided, which hardly felt sufficient.Moving on to the appetizer, we opted for oysters, expecting a delightful start to our meal. However, to our dismay, we were served only one oyster per person. This was a major disappointment.Next, the soup or salad option was presented, but if you have a strawberry allergy, tough luck—soup it is. And let me tell you, the soup tasted like it came straight from a can, lacking any semblance of freshness or flavor.Finally, onto the main course—the lobster Thermidor. Imagine our surprise when we were each served a mere half of a lobster. All this for the exorbitant price tag of $250.00 plus tax, this was utterly unacceptable.This supposed "Valentine's Day special" was anything but romantic. Save your money and look elsewhere for a memorable dining experience. I'm generously awarding this establishment 5 stars—for what I consider the worst Valentine's Day dinner I've ever had the misfortune of enduring.
Restaurantji Recommends
If I could give a Zero I would. The supervisors take no criticism. The food was awful and tried to explain what was wrong with both me and my partners food. They forced us to pay 217 dollars just for bread/butter a salad and a soup. They only took off 50 dollars from the original 267 price. Not helpful what do ever and were
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
There are too many things and not enough space. We were very disappointed in the experience. The food tasted good but came out cold. The cost was really high for the lack of detail. When we mentioned the cold food we were blown off and no one apologized for it. The owner was too busy with one table the entire time we were there. Must have been someone important. We have eaten there many times in the past but this may be the last.
Bay Street Bistro is romantic and charming! The perfect place for an anniversary or romantic evening. Food is superb!! Top notch gourmet, and service is perfect! Everything you'd want in a French restaurant
For a small place it is very very efficient & attentive & unlike any other place we have recently visited. Management obviously made good decisions hiring. We loved our meals -- the Beef Wellington & the filet Oscar special. Tried a glass of a new wine (to me.) It was accurately described to me. Appreciate the meal comes with a soup or salad & just enough accompaniments -- we still took home leftovers !
I ordered the ribeye. Medium rare, It came extremely rare. I sent it back and all they tried to do was warm it up a little bit and send it back and it was extremely rare, still. Nobody from the back ever came out to talk to us. I told Our waitress, that I was done with the steak. And I did not want it. The house salad was very bland with no real flavor. I was kind of disappointed. The fact that a stick cost $75, If it was sent back, all they did was try to warm it up a little more.. I was very disappointed. I have been to a number of steakhouses around the Bay area. And if I ever had a problem, they always gave me a new stake. Freshly cooked, I'm not really sure why they did it this way. No one ever came out and talked to us, very disappointed.