Swordfish Grill
You're here for waterfront dining that feels earned rather than designed, where the seafood arrives daily and the happy hour (4–6 pm, Monday–Saturday) includes $3 Busch Lite and $5 house wine. The live music from local musicians and the outdoor atmosphere are the point; this is casual Florida, not coastal theme-park Florida. Best for people who want to eat well without the fuss.
Map & parking
Grouper Reuben from a Cortez dock on Sarasota Bay
It sits in Cortez, one of Florida's last working commercial fishing villages — so the seafood really does come off boats docked nearby.
A dockside seafood joint and tiki bar in the historic Cortez fishing village — fresh Gulf catch, live music on the deck, and water views over Sarasota Bay. Casual, salty, and genuinely on the working waterfront.
Food: The grouper sandwich is the move — grilled, blackened, or fried, at market price ($$–$$$); the blackened fish tacos with pineapple slaw are the lighter pick ($$).
Drink: Time it for the waterfront happy hour, Monday–Saturday 4–6pm, with drinks overlooking Sarasota Bay ($–$$).
4–6 pm on a weekday, when happy hour pricing kicks in and the deck is less crowded but still lively with the bay light.
Order the fish tacos—the official site doesn't oversell them, but the community does, repeatedly, and they're made from the daily fresh catch.
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