Boatyard

My friend from Fort lauderdale told me about this place recently and raved about it. So I took him on the recommendation and went for the experience. Boy I’m glad I did! It is a very energizing place, situated in a great location. Made the mistake of sitting too close to the bar which was louder than I could handle, and the friendly staff was there to accommodate my request to a new table. The food was finger-​licking good at an affordable price. Will definitely return in the future

The atmosphere is amazing! If you choose to sit at the bar, patio or inside you can’t go wrong. Perfect for date night or with friends.
The happy hour is great! Bartenders are quick and accommodating. Their Minty Melon martini is refreshing and comes with a frozen watermelon cube which is ½ priced during happy hour.
Appetizers are large and plenty to share. I ordered the Octopus and Tuna Tacos. Both were were delicious and a good portion.
Each time I have eaten here for dinner I order something new. The Grouper Piccata is my go to but the Grilled Beef Fillet with porcini sauce is like none other and comes with TRUFFLE mash!
If you want to create your own entrée you can choose from a selection of fish or steak and a sauce like chimichurri or maytag blue butter.
Don’t skip the dessert! A group of us ordered a couple of their desserts to try. Peanut Butter & Jelly is a peanut butter mousse with raspberry jam and vanilla bean ice cream, it was delicious! The Key Lime donut holes were the favorite of the table. Key lime custard filled and coconut glaze… YUM!

Beautiful place! Love how they renovated it! Outside bar and large patio on the intercostal with fire pits and lights on the trees, very romantic! Been for dinner couple of times and had no complain besides they close too early ;) Grilled tuna was delicious, brussels sprouts and honey bread too, don’t remember what else we ate. Went to their happy hour last Thursday with girlfriends and have few complains. Was quite crowded which was expected, the valet was full and no parking around, we were trying to get a table so we can eat something before our boat ride and there were 2 clean tables and one more waiting to be cleaned outside, the hostess kept insisting that they were taken and people are coming! Well the tables were vacant for some time but I didn’t want to argue and a nice gentlemen got us some seats at the bar, the bartenders had hard time getting orders out so service was very slow. Octopus was a little chewy but besides those little things I would always recommend this place and come back! :)

Went to Boatyard for Sunday Brunch. Started off with a well flavored Bloody Mary. I am a vegetarian and I felt I had many choices. My meal was the Huevos Rancheros, which I ordered without the chorizo. It was very flavorful, bold, satisfying. The room is beautiful, airy, and you could hold a conversation.

Finally made it back for dinner, and I definitely walked away pleased!
After picking up my friend from the airport at ~8:30pm we headed over to Boatyard since I knew they served food later than most in Broward. Thursday is their new ladies night, and the bar area packed! The hostess told us our table would be about 15 minutes, so we headed to the bar to grab a cocktail before waiting. I was going to try one of the cocktails I loved last time I was here, but Jasmine clued me into some of the free offerings for Ladies Night, and I went with wine (a very large pour btw). Ladies night is from 7−10pm and features free drinks for women including Grey Goose cocktails, M&R Prosecco, house wine and domestic beer.
We then headed to the table and ordered a few snacks while waiting on another friend. Our server Christine was awesome and stopped by at all the right moments, and was able to answer all of our questions.
To start we shared some oysters and the seacuterie plate (which I’ve had my eye on since they first opened). The oysters were delicious and very large, and the seacuterie plate was very elegant. Perhaps a bit too salty for my taste, but I’m glad I finally tried it. The seafood sausage was the best bite for me.
Once our friend arrived we opted to share the tuna tacos, the octopus, the crab cake, and the fried broccoli. The fried broccoli wasn’t my favorite and tasted a bit too much of oil and not much else, but all the others were winners! The octopus was extremely tasty, as was the crab cake. The tacos were also amazing, to the point where I was kind of mad I had to share lol.
Overall, another great night, and my friends were impressed with the place. Can’t wait to come back for their brunch (once they get all the kinks worked out) and of course to come for a Ladies Night!
PS See my previous review for more on drinks and ambiance :)

Arrived for a late dinner. Beautiful setting, I would love to hang out there on any weekend. Ordered the bone in rib eye, cooked perfect. I think the bread should be FREE and offered at every table. Had a great dinner, very pricy but once you see the venue you will understand. Next time in town, I’ll be there longer.
Was this useful???

January 30^th, party of 6 for 7:45pm
We arrived just before 7:45 and provided our name. While waiting for the rest of our party, we went to the bar. We order calamari and a glass of wine. They were out of Moscato so I had to order something else. The bartender was great. His name was Nick.
We sat at our table and had to wait a few minutes to be approached. We were told they were out of Bimini Bread — major let down. So we ordered our food. A few minutes later I’m told that they are out of their special which I’d ordered. We ask for the manager and he informs us that there are no potatoes. NO potatoes! He says it’s a busy night and they didn’t know they’d run out… BUT looking at the other reviews, I now know this is a common error on their part. So he tells us he will give us an appetizer and 2 desserts for free which we appreciate.
My dad gets the soup which is supposed to be a coconut curry conch chowder but its loaded with curry. Tastes like an Indian dish.
Our dinner arrives. I ended up with a side of tomatoes and blue cheese with my steak since I had to choose a different dinner than I originally wanted. Everyone eats, no real complaints other than that the prices seem way too high for the quality of food and simplicity behind it.
We have our dessert, also which is okay. We get our bills and we pay. The server was nice enough to split our checks.
So I come home and am horribly sick. My stomach is killing me. The next morning (today), I find out that two others in the party also were sick… one way worse than me. Another had really bad heart burn, stomach pains but not like the other 3.
I call and ask for the manager. He asks if we had ate together earlier — asks if maybe we have the flu. I’m SHOCKED that he would try to place blame elsewhere, especially when he admitted to being on shift last night and KNOWS of many of the issues we’d already experienced.
He tells me that I can email him and he’ll hook us up next time. NEXT TIME?! There will NOT be a next time. Shame on you for not taking ownership or offering an acceptable apology.
I used to come here a lot but never again. You lost 6 customers and all our friends that night because you know that I’m telling everyone how you made us sick and didn’t even care.

Eaten there twice in the last month, the décor and views are great and the happy hour crowd has always been solid. The food has been amazing so far, octopus, tuna tacos, Brussel sprouts, as well as several of the beef and fish choices. Amazing steak on New Years, and the ambiance was perfect.
They don’t blare music and the open kitchen/​expo line style wasn’t loud or abrasive, really enjoyed it. And the rolling raw bar w/​$ 3 Blue Points — cannot beat that! Oh, and all that free, ample 17^th st parking is a breath of fresh air.
The ONLY thing I could have asked for was either smoother, or more professional waitstaff service, but that didn’t take away one single bit of enjoyment from my experience.

We love Yolo and S3, so figured we’d give this place a shot. They were out of Bimini bread (main reason to go) salmon (which 7 out of our party of 8 were ordering) and calamari, which was another favorite among our table. We were forced to then order something we didn’t love that was twice the price. They really didn’t seem to be bothered by it. First and last time going. Bartender, however, made a fantastic drink!

Honestly, I was expecting worse based on the reviews but we were all super impressed!
Went to dinner with my husband, parents and parents in law. We’re all big foodies from NYC, Boston and Philly.
I loved the décor and lighting. We were first sat down at a table near a door which kept opening and was incredibly drafty, but we asked to be moved and they found a different table closer to the open kitchen.
We started with the Bimini bread which was heavenly but was a little sweet and I almost wished we had it for dessert instead.
I got the Asian style tuna which was to die for. It was one of the best meals I’ve had in a really long time. My parents got the octopus as part of their meal which was delicious and not rubbery at all. Everyone else enjoyed their meals (Grouper piccata, grilled grouper).
My husband and I ordered a last minute stone crab claw just to try it but it never came. Our waiter was very apologetic and appropriately gave us a dessert on the house. We opted for the key lime donut holes and they gave us 6 instead of the usual 5 to accommodate our party size. Very yummy and a perfect bite to end the meal.
Few imperfections but service was amazing and food was really delicious. I would definitely go back.

Go for brunch! Came with a group of friends to check it out after the BB revamp. The Belgian waffle was delicious, definitely recommend. Our table also ordered the huevos rancheros which were plated beautifully and looked tasty too. Can’t wait to try this place by boat or for a girls night for drinks!

The scenery is what saves this place. I enjoyed a December evening outdoors in the patio by the dock. We were a part of a very large party but the meal took forever which was a let down. We were seated quickly and had wine and appetizers but it took over 30 minutes for the waiter to return to take our order. When we finally put our order in many of the dishes came without sides or put together poorly.
To be fair, they only gave us one server which I feel is way too challenging for anyone. He struggled to keep on top of things or our water and drinks full. I hate that this cheapened the experience. The dishes themselves weren’t bad, but nothing to write home about. Overall if you’re in the area and want to eat near boats and water, I’d pass on this and head towards the beach. My thoughts are you’ll have better food, people watching and fun.

The restaurant in itself is stunning, if you can sit outside you’ll be treated with a gorgeous view and nice atmosphere.
Our night was a little strange from the start though.
I called to ask how long the wait time would be for a table of 4, as my family and I were about 5 minutes from the restaurant. The woman who answered said there wasn’t a wait time at the moment, so I said we’ll be right in. We get there and are shocked when the hostess tells us there is a 45 minute wait time and she was perplexed when i told her I just called and was told there wasn’t a wait time. We checked the phone number I called and sure enough I did call the right place, but she insisted she was the only one at the phone all night and she never told anyone there wasn’t a wait time. Weird.
She suggests we grab a seat at the outside bar while we wait. So we do, and we order drinks. Before the drinks even come out miraculously our table is ready– so we try to track down the bar waitress to tell her we’ll take the drinks at the table and close out the bar tab, but we couldn’t find her. So we went to our table, and the hostess said she would sort it out. 10 minutes later the waitress ends up trying to sort it out– it was just highly disorganized from the get go.
We ordered the calamari and Brussels for an appetizer– the Brussels weren’t anything to write home about– very greasy.
My dad got the paella which he said he would’ve enjoyed so much more if there wasn’t an entire stick of butter in it– it was so rich he couldn’t finish it. My mom and I both ordered the salmon salad– and it was nicely cooked but nothing special, not anything I couldn’t find elsewhere and not something I’d order again.
My boyfriend got the tuna tacos from the appetizer menu as his meal and those were actually really realllyyyyy delicious. The only thing I would actually rave about.
If you’re going here it’s because the atmosphere is outstanding, the food is a little better than average. But it’s definitely not outstanding by any means.

Pretty happy with this place. Amazing Omelet bar. Wish I was feeling better cause the Bloody Mary bar looked great… lots of ingredients. Atmosphere was nice also– nice view of the boats. And, outdoor seating available!

This review is just for the lounge and bar area.
We didn’t get to dine here but we did meet up with some friends of friends that did.
Location and restaurant was incredibly spacious, the amount of rooms seemed to never end! The décor played in with the themed of Boat related — obvi because it’s called the Boat yard. They were super clever to incorporate oars and windows and make it into chandlers and art pieces!
So right outside of the restaurant is where all the million dollar yachts resides. Its literally a docking station for all the beautiful yachts! I love that they have lights in the water to make it stand out!
The drinks itself was delicious, i had a watermelon drink and they added a Watermelon ice cube in the middle of my drink and it was not only a wow factor but it didn’t cost an arm and a leg for this amazing craft drinks!

It was a dark and stormy night…
No really, it was pouring! Took me over an hour to get there. Plus, it’s December so by 6pm it’s already dark.
Any other day I would have postponed/​canceled but I was super excited to try Boatyard. So glad I stuck to our plans.
As soon as I arrived, I pulled in to Valet. The guy tells me it’s full but, since it’s raining he will still park it for me and bring me the key back, if I didn’t mind waiting for 2 minutes. (Of course I don’t mind waiting! Thank you so much for that. A girl, in heels, with hair done, and makeup, will always appreciate such a gesture).
So, even without entering the restaurant, my experience at Boatyard was excellent!
But, of course I’ll tell you more… I did go inside :p
Place is beautiful. Spacious, the decoration is simple and subtly consistent with the boat theme. You will see a canoe on the ceiling, the glass that separates the rooms have ships wheels on them, even the Christmas tree did.
Floor is all wood, perfectly polished (careful, is very slippery but gives the feeling of a boat), tables and bar are in a dark wood, making it very elegant, and the open kitchen is something I’ve always loved.
I found my friends at the bar, and after a little chit chat we went to the hostess to get our table (I had reservations).
Service here is great! The hostess was really nice, and our server was too… friendly, attentive, happy to make recommendations, and always making sure we enjoyed everything we ordered.
Our server took our drinks order, told us about some specials and about their «shellfish cart». This is a cart filled with shrimp, lobster, oysters, stone crabs, and more. They roll the cart to every table to see if you would like to order from it for appetizers. Everything is fresh and looks amazing!
Once our drinks arrived, we placed our appetizers order. As if there was any doubt we would like this place, as soon as we started eating we loved it even more. We shared:
Calamari — perfectly breaded, with a little bit of heat. Delicious.
Brussels Sprouts — this is my first time having them… why had I not tried this before?!? Amazing!
Bimini Bread — you must, no, you will order this. Trust me. This bread is perfection. The Honey butter is something you’ll want to go back for over and over again.
Our server allowed us to take our time and enjoy our appetizers. As soon as he saw we were done, her removed the plates and our entrees were brought out. I had the Grilled Beef Steak from their «Favorites» portion of the menu. Comes with truffle mashed potatoes, asparagus and porcini sauce. I order my steaks medium well, always. Yes, most places tend to dry it, not Boatyard. This steak was like butter. The knife went right through it, without any effort, and it was so juicy and flavorful. The mash potatoes are divine, creamy and the truffle flavor really comes through. I also ordered the side of mushrooms that went perfectly with the steak.
We were all really full but, we did not come all the way here, under that awful rain, and not have dessert. So, we had the Key Lime Donut Holes to share. Comes in a skillet with a sweet Cream Cheese sauce and some type of ginger cookies that were my favorite part of this dessert.
Between the laughs, amazing food, and friendly service, our night there came to an end.
We could not leave without some pictures at this lovely place and again, friendly staff jumped right in to take them for us.
I can’t wait to go back, sit outside and enjoy that part of the restaurant.
Oh, and they also do Brunch… They have everything! Totally in love with this place right now, definitely recommend it.

Open for a month now, Andrew and I had the new and improved Boatyard on our list of places to try. I’m not familiar with the previous restaurant Bimini Boatyard, so I have nothing to really compare this visit to. A really nice restaurant with high ceilings and overlooking the water. Beautiful interior and décor, but that’s as good as it got for us.
We came in to check out the Brunch menu. During brunch, the restaurant has a bottomless mimosa, Bellini, and bloody bar for $ 20. There is also an omelette station, not all you can eat.. but you can build your own. As well as a benedict bar where you have an option of crab cakes, salmon, or classic and either on an English muffin or biscuit. No extra toppings besides the egg or a sauce. Again not all you can eat. Then an extended menu of starters, sandwiches, and restaurant favorites.
FOOD
Here is what we had.
–Crab Benedict: mini crab cakes, eggs, chipotle hollandaise sauce
***It was a nice idea to have an omelette station but for me it didn’t make such sense to have a benedict bar. After all it was not like the stations were self serve or had a ton of options to choose from. Andrew decided to get a crab cake benedict, he was given a chip and escorted to the bar to make his selections. Now he has a thing with his eggs and prefers them to be scrambled. He hands the employee his chip at the benedict bar and asks for scrambled eggs instead of poached. The guy tells him that he can’t give him scrambled eggs because apparently all of the eggs are pre poached and kept in a sterno for easier service. He is then sent to the omelette station to get his eggs. But then the omelette guys asks him for a chip and he tells him that it was given to the guy at the benedict bar. The guy refuses to give him his scrambled eggs without this very important chip… Andrew continues to explain that the benedict guy sent him over but still no eggs. A manager is then called over to resolve the issue of scrambled eggs… it was pretty ridiculous. Meanwhile my food was sitting on the table getting cold waiting for him. No exaggerating, he was gone for a good amount of time… I would say at least 20mns trying to get his scrambled eggs! He finally gets to the table and the benedict was not even good. The crab cakes were very tough to eat, thin and over cooked from sitting in another sterno and was topped with this very thick gloppy cheez whiz looking sauce. Definitely not worth the time he spent trying to get his eggs. Nothing at the benedict bar was made to order, it was basically like going in a prison lunch line and having your food plopped onto your plate and get sent on your way.***
–Huevos Rancheros: refried black beans, tomatillo mole, tortilla, chorizo, pico de gallo, avocado salsa, fried eggs
***Nice big portion, wasn’t bad but with ingredients like mole and chorizo, I was hoping for more kick and flavor.***
–Chocolate Cherry Banana bread
***Sounds interesting, right? so we ordered it since the benedict was a bust. But when we asked our server for it he had no clue on what it was. he had to go get a menu and ask us what we were talking about. Whether it was a new item or what. I couldn’t tell you. I thought that it was funny that our server had no clue that it even existed… but wait, it gets better… A few minutes later, we are brought out a plate with about 6 slices of the bread and accompanied with a thing of butter. We pick up a piece and the bread is cold, like right out of the fridge after its been sitting there for a few hours cold. We then ask the server if it was supposed to be served cold. His response was «I would think that it would be warm». He then tells us that he will warm it up and we see him going up to different employees asking how it was supposed to be served. He comes back and tells us that its supposed to be served at room temp. room temp? it was way colder than that. The dish is brought back to our table as quickly as he had gone to heat it up. Not even 2 mns later. We grab another piece and found the bread still cold in some places and warn at other spots. The kitchen had just placed the dish under a heat lamp for a few seconds and sent it right back out. It was just hard to eat at that point and we asked for the check.
People seem to have better luck coming for dinner, but definitely not the place for brunch. We just weren’t very impressed with the food during our visit and especially after the scrambled eggs fiasco… we aren’t planning to come back any time soon.

As I had heard that a new restaurant, Boatyard, just opened in what was formerly the location of Bimini Boatyard I was eager to give it a try but somewhat hesitant in that in that, if you know Fort Lauderdale, new restaurants around here are notorious for having «soft openings.» If you’re not acquainted with soft openings it’s when restaurants open prematurely using you, the customer, to be a part of their staff training but charging full prices. It’s generally a horrible idea as nothing from the food to the staff services are up to par ending up with you, the customer becoming annoyed, disgruntled, most likely never returning, and ultimately leading to a very quick demise of the business. Fortunately with Boatyard, my fears of a soft opening were totally unfounded. As soon as I walked in I could feel the energy of the place, everything was clicking, everybody knew what they were doing and they were all doing it well.
The interior décor of Boatyard is luxurious, everything about it well planned out and top of the line. It’s a huge, really a tremendous improvement over what was Bimini Boatyard. Best off, particularly for me is that Boatyard has boat docking, as when I go out for dinner, especially when taking a group along with me, much prefer captaining my boat to the destinations than driving my car. Though the prior business occupant, Bimini Boatyard used to advertise that they had boat docking, such was a flat out prevarication in that though they had the docks, they rented them seasonally so there were in fact never any slips available for restaurant customers.
After reading my menu my waiter, Moses came over, a person of pleasing demeanor, introduced himself, explained the menu offerings to me and asked if I had any questions. I did and was surprised to discover that Moses not only knew the entire menu inside and out, but also had a thorough understanding of each item offered, the ingredients of the items as well as insightful suggestions.
I started off ordering one of their signature drinks, a «Monaca Mule,» being sort of a take-​off of the rather famous Moscow Mule drinks you’ll find served in any number of the Low Country restaurants in Charlestown, South Carolina. The differences being that their Monaca Mule is Bourbon with vermouth and ginger beer rather than Vodka, but served up in the same traditional manor within a copper mug along with a good sprig and hint of mint. For a drink, I found it totally delightful as well as refreshing.
Along with my drink, I also ordered their Secuterie, a dish of house made seafood which changes daily based upon ingredient availability and sold at «market» rather than set price. When it arrived at my table I was really taken back, some aghast not only at the general beauty but the nifty novelty of the presentation. It arrived on what was about a 4 or five inch block of frozen Himalayan salt containing delicious tender slices of octopus, what clearly tasted and had the texture of belly cuts of wild caught, not farm raised, salmon and other fish; a totally delicious dish as well as an innovative presentation of it.
For my main I went for their flat iron steak along with a side of Brussel sprout hash. My steak came perfectly prepared as order in a cast iron skillet sided with a roasted garlic which garlic I squeezed over my meat. The meat had the full flavor of a flat iron cut, couldn’t have been better prepared as was my side of nicely roasted Brussel sprouts, being of the actual Brassica oleracea types, perfectly trimmed to the heart of each sprout with a nice flavor of bacon and a slightly pan seared potato.
I really enjoyed everything about the food as well as the restaurant and the restaurant facilities, even the men’s room which above each urinal has flat screen television so if you are watching a game you needn’t miss a thing when going to the bathroom.
Overall Boatyard is a real winner in my book with superior foods, dinning environment, services and facilities. As it doesn’t get much better than this, Five Stars.

The Boatyard is a culinary improvement over the former «Bimini» Boat Yard. But, misses the mark in other ways.
The cooking has improved (seafood not over cooked) and the staff is still amazing.
Inside is a bit sparse — looks sleek and modern — but gets very noisy with the lack of soft surfaces. They should have (or need to) address this.
Please, please, please serve calamari with tentacles!
We asked for a reservation on the dock and were told they no longer accept reservations on the dock — that it is first come first served — bummer — but, being local we would go on week nights when will most likely not be an issue.
Told them were were there for a birthday. The hostess greeted us with a happy birthday salutation. However, after a $ 200 dinner for two, you’d think they could bring out a small something with a candle.
A bit disappointed with that.
No more shade on the dock (for daytime dinning) and the dockside bar that was once a happening happy hour place is now gentrified and boring in the afternoons.

Ducked in to see the new layout and all the changes and the remodel and check the vibe and it was a great time, here’s why:
* Met famous artist Cindy Podgorski there, and she’s a talented hottie!
* Awesome décor-​the oar chandelier hanging over the main bar is strong!
* Old Schoolers will be happy to hear that the storied Bimini Bread is still on the menu at $ 4
* Great service, albeit they are still working out the kinks. The place was very busy, despite the rain.
We enjoyed a couple of cocktails, premium pricing, but tasty yet. And these menu items:
* Brussels Sprouts for $ 9 bucks were very tasty, a little too sweet on the sauce, but had Bonito Flakes within which were undulating and waving hypnotically upon presentation at the table. Cool! Cindy dug it. Me too.
* Seacuterie at «market price» which tonight was $ 19.95, it was served on a Himalayan Salt Block (see photo). It as good but lacking. One of the 3 types of seafood was not appealing from a texture standpoint in my opinion.
* Beets and so forth had goat cheese and other tasty, healthy stuff.
The re-​make and remodel looks good, especially the back, waterside patio. The outside bar looks about the same. The place is more open and the décor is distinctive. Nicely done.
Looks like they are growing some basil or other microgreens on property, so that rocks. Locally sourced is the right way.
So they may have scored 5 Stars tonight, except we had a seating mix up and they dropped the ball. I chalk that up to working out the bugs. I will be back to give them another chance. I have no doubt this place will be a hit.
Chock full of hotties, by the way.
Cabeza Impressed!