Cool’a Fishbar

3^rd time to this restaurant… First two visits, food was spectacular.
This last time, I ordered Mahi and the piece of fish I received was so awful that, as hungry as I was, I left ¹⁄₃ of it on my plate.
When our waiter came by to collect our plates, I explained how unfortunate the less than appetizing fish was, he sympathized and then took my food away with no offer to correct or adjust my bill.
(Cool’A is not an inexpensive restaurant so when you pay top dollar for a small piece of fish, you expect high quality)
When it came time for desert, they had run out of a number of items so I ended up taking my wife out for desert somewhere else.
Paid my bill and left with limited ambition to return.
Lots of competition here in Palm Beach County… At this price point, more customer oriented practices may prove beneficial to achieving a lasting presence here.
By the way, this was a dinner to celebrate an important date and that just makes the less than stellar experience even more memorable.

The crusted sword fish was best fish I have eaten in this area for some time. Comfortable surroundings with excellent wait staff. A must place to dine.

Ben and Jessica go above and beyond to make everyone happy! Awesome happy hour! My only request would be to switch up the vegetables. Please:)

SUMMATION: Very Good and interesting seafood. Some of the décor is nice, some strange. Large, busy, crowded place with excellent service. Seafood stranded inland in a mall.
NAME: Cool’a Fishbar
CHAIN: Several restaurants are owned by the parent company.
TITLE: «Great Seafood» [Yelp, Parguera Pirate review #513 [1], submitted 31 January 2016]
PANAMA CANAL TRIP REVIEW NUMBER: 41
MY RATING: (4.2÷5)
WEB PAGE:
TELEPHONE: (561) 622‑2227; FAX: 561−622−3511
RESERVATIONS: no; TAKE OUT: yes; DELIVERY: no; CATERING: yes
HOURS OF OPERATION: 5 – 9 pm Sunday-​Thursday, 5 – 10 Friday-​Saturday
CHEF: Ben Francis
MANAGER: Vincent Mellon
LOCALITY: 11 340 Legacy Avenue E-​100, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33 410
LATITUDE, LONGITUDE: 26°50’37.19“N, 80°5’23.90“W
DIFFICULTY LOCATING: easy
DIRECTIONS: on their web page
PARKING: mall
SUGGESTED ATTIRE: casual
AIR-​CONDITIONED: comfortable
OUTSIDE SEATING: no
LAYOUT: 23 booths, 2 of the booths were strangely very long, 4 tables, long bar with 18 stools on left, ceiling fans
DÉCOR: Hanging art, plants, and a large surfboard; TV in far left front corner, 3 TVs total; large mounted Yellowtail Snapper, Black Grouper, Spiny Lobster, Yellowfin Tuna, Hogfish, Red Snapper on one wall, and very large Redfish on wall over bar; wood tables and chairs, chairs with wicker seats and backs; cloth napkins, but no table cloths;
INTERNET: free WiFi, ask for code
SPECIALS: daily dishes; Sunset Specials 5 – 6 pm
DISCOUNTS: Happy Hour 5 – 6:30 pm with half price cocktails, beers, and house wine (no longer only at the bar)
DRINKS: good wine list
BAR: full service

WATER: A water glass was chipped, but quickly replaced.
CUISINE: seafood
FLATWARE: matched, heavy stainless and large, shallow, square plates
MENU ITEMS: on their web page, not extensive
WAITSTAFF: Excellent
APPETIZERS: «Conch Fritters with Creole Dipping Sauce» was tender, excellent Queen Conch and enough for 3.
SALAD: green salad unmemorable
ENTRÉES: Two Lobster Tails special; «Wasabi Drizz Blackened Ahi Tuna»; and «Toasted Coconut Shrimp with Mustard Sauce» was 5 giant Tiger Shrimp [A]; each was excellent, well presented (photos), and in adequate amounts.
SIDES: A friend recommended «Cool’a Potatoes». They were very good and sort of like twice-​baked potatoes, with cheese sauce, without the shells, and in a generous serving. Long green beans were good, if ordinary (photos)
SALT AND PEPPER: on table
SERVING TIME: good
DESERT: Key Lime Pie was excellent.
BATHROOMS: Separate, individual male and female, paper towels, liquid soap, small, clean.
AWARDS: #1 Restaurant in Palm Beach Gardens (2015, TripAdvisor); Certificate of Excellence (2015, TripAdvisor)
REVIEWS: rated Very, Very Good, 4.56÷5, 274 reviews (TripAdvisor); Excellent, 4.9÷5, 83 reviews (FaceBook); Very Good, 4/​5, 66 reviews ( Unilocal); Very Good, 4.1÷5, 17 reviews, 299 votes (Zomato); Very Good, 3.9÷5, 12 reviews (Google); Good, 7/​10, 27 mini-​reviews and 9 votes (FourSquare) [2]
HISTORY: Opened in 2006
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Plus thousands of unnumbered, critical article and book reviews for hundreds of journals.
[2] FaceBook badly over-​rates it and FourSquare under-​rates it.
SPECIES:
[A] Giant Tiger Shrimp, Penaeus monodon, is the second most important cultured shrimp species. Most of the very large shrimp served in restaurants belong to this species. It is firmer and slight less flavorful than other penaeids.

Popular place. Decent food. BUT: several reviewers complained about deceptions
regarding the two-​for-​one special. I was told on the Sunset Menu that all drinks
were two-​for-​one. I ordered the Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, and later found out
with the check (after I looked) that «that didn’t count,» even though I checked it with my server.
The manager later came by and corrected it, but if you look carefully at the below
entries this is not an uncommon problem here. The bill still seemed high. Personally,
the food isn’t that great, so if you are looking for good seafood I would go elsewhere.

We have eaten here several times and took advantage of the Sunset menu, offereing 20% off meals from 5:00 — 6:00 PM. We went there tonight and ordered more than we would otherwise order assuming we would get the discount. When our waiter brought our bill there was no discount. When I asked our waiter about it he said the menu we had was the discounted menu and there was another menu for those coming in after 6:00. Meanwhile, I heard our same waiter tell the couple behind us (who came in after us) that the prices would be 20% less since they were there during the Sunset Menu time. We didn’t order drinks and perhaps that is the reason we didn’t get the discount but that had not been the case in previous visits.
When we left at 6:20 I checked the menus and they were the exact same ones we had been given at 5:00.
It’s their restaurant and they can charge what they want, but because they blatantly lied to us — WE WON’T BE GOING BACK!

Got there early. Got the happy hour message. When the bill came, what a mess! We were early, so entitled to 20% off. They used to take 20% off entire bill. Now computer fouls every thing up. Some get reduced, some don’t. Food was okay, but three checks to get it right. Can’t they add a little something to field greens? Coola potato is delish! If u like fish, go, but do check your check!

a great find. Came to Cool a fish for flavor of palm beach when Capital grille changed the rules and did not allow a Saturday to dine. Plan B worked out much better
a great find.
they will definitely see us again food and serve was wonderful.

Had the macadamia encrusted snapper tonight, it was delicious and expertly prepared!!! The bartender Jessica also did a fantastic job as usual! The dish and this restaurant are a must try!!! I’m betting it’s hard to get into during the season.

I had the sweet potato crusted fish.DELICIOUS. My partner had fish as well but the highlight was his cool’a potato. A total calorie bomb but delicious. LOTS of cheese.

Had the calamari appetizer and for dinner the honey salmon. It was very good but not 4 or 5 star like the other reviews. The calamari was not crispy but the sauce was very good. Their cool potato was excellent. Salmon was good but not great. Bid piece though.

I’ve been to this place a few times and to me it’s just ok. I have co-​workers who come into town and love it, but it’s never made me want to jump over the moon. The customer service is good, the ambiance is cool. But the food needs to be elevated. It’s not bad, but there is a lot of competition in the area. I know a fan favorite is the potato au gratin. The prices are $$. Not a place I volunteer to go, but if the crowd wants to go I won’t pout to much :).

This is a great place and they offer a great menu with lots to choose from, seafood to steak and they all taste great. Great service lots of charm and we had a very enjoyable experience every time we have eaten there.

I always enjoy this restaurant. The food is great. I love the atmosphere. It’s a great place for a date or to hang with the girls. They make good drinks as well.

OVERALL EXPERIENCE: Started excellent, ended poor
CUISINE: Seafood
ATMOSPHERE: relaxed, casual
SERVICE: excellent
SOUND LEVEL: Medium, conversation level
CLEANLINESS: Excellent
RECOMMENDED: My spouse and I both ordered the Chilean Sea Bass with a ginger soy glaze. It tasted excellent, seemed outstanding but unfortunately both ended up extremely sick, she ended up throwing up he entire meal, I have not been so fortunate and continue to suffer.
CLOSING COMMENTS: unfortunate that seafood is so hard to judge for quality and freshness after cooked, also unfortunate to give what seemed an excellent restaurant a poor rating

My husband and I had the lobster tails and filet and coconut shrimp. Everything on our plate was perfectly cooked and tasted wonderful. First time diners and hope to go back the next time we’re in the area.

The coola potato was very creamy and baked to perfection. I had the Filet Mignon with Coconut Shrimp combination. Everything was prepared with excellent taste.

My wife, a good friend, and I dined here and just by chance, ordered the same meal, Caribbean Seafood Bowl. All thought it was excellent but I don’t give five stars for just one entrée. I’d like to come back soon but I don’t live anywhere close. Based on what I saw on the menu, my next visit would have a five star rating.

What a great place to eat and drink. Happy hour drinks at 50% off until 6:30 pm and 20% off dinners if seated by 6 pm. The service is great and the food some of the best in the area. We love the sweet potato encrusted Hog Fish and the Cool’A potato is so good We go back anytime we are here in the Palm Beaches area. Be prepared for a bit of a wait but with the drinks half off who cares!
This is part of a group of restaurants owned by the same people and all are very good. But this is our favorite.

Amazing dinner once again with delightful service from Rissa. The smiling manager was present checking on tables to make sure everything was perfect. Excellent value for delicious fresh food. I can’t recommend highly enough!