BONEFISH GRILL

Address: 447 State Route 35, Middletown, NJ 07748

A few nights ago, my family decided to head over to the new Bonefish Grill that recently set up in the Whole Foods shopping plaza. I have been really excited about this place since my friend Bryan told me about it back in October, mostly because of the great things I have heard about Bonefish Grill locations in other parts of the country. When we were down in Sarasota, Florida, one time, we were going to try the Bonefish Grill down there, but the wait was about an hour and a half long. Needless to say, we moved on to find another place to eat that night; however, I’m really glad that a Bonefish Grill opened up so close to home.

When you first walk in (there is a huge revolving door, by the way), it is impressive how much the decor really sets the tone for the restaurant. Dim lighting, selectively-placed wall art, and the LED candle at every table complimented the sand/black color theme that had the place feeling a little more upscale. Make no mistake, the prices on the menu do reflect that upscale factor a bit more, but the quality of the food makes up for it in every way.

On the Wednesday night that we went there, they have $5 Bang Bang Shrimp special, which is a discounted price off their normally $8.80 appetizer, which is a lightly breaded shrimp tossed in a spicy pepper sauce. I have to say that that was one of the best shrimp appetizers that I’ve had in quite a long time. The perfect blend of crispiness, heat, and flavor that really starts off the meal in a great way; I could order two of those and call it a meal. As for their other main courses, they do offer a wide variety of seafood-based dishes, utilizing salmon, tilapia, lobster, tuna, mahi mahi, and shrimp, to name a few. They also do offer up a selection of meat-based dishes such as steaks and chicken marsala (which is extremely delicious as well). I went with the Lobster Thermidor Dorado, which was a grilled mahi mahi served with lobster, crab, Florida rock shrimp, and a sherry sauce. The plate also came with two sides of some garlic whipped potatoes and herbed Jasmine rice, both of which paired well with the seafood entree. I was very impressed with how well the flavor of the sauce complimented the grilled flavors on the seafood items; the chefs in the kitchen really hit that spot on.

This new addition to the Middletown dining scene deserves a try by any seafood-loving resident in the area. They have fantastic food, great service, and a nice atmosphere, all packaged into a nifty space designed into the corner of the shopping plaza.

Here are my rankings for Bonefish Grill:

Food: 5 / 5
The flavors were absolutely excellent, the seafood tasted fresh, and the selection of seafood items to choose from was also outstanding.

Atmosphere: 5 / 5
Even though the inside seemed a bit dark at times, I think that overall the decor really brought out a nice upscale feel to the meal.

Service: 5 / 5
Our waitress Stephanie was really fantastic. She was really nice, came back to check on our table very frequently, and was extremely knowledgeable about many of the items on the menu when we asked her what she recommended. Even though the waitstaff should be able to describe dishes to the guests, she was even meticulous in being able to describe how each dish was prepared.

Price: 4 / 5
The price of the food is going to make your wallet unhappy and the portion sizes are a little smaller for how much you are paying. I think, however, that the quality of the food matches up to what you’re paying for.

Overall: 19 / 20 (95%)

Categories: New Jersey, Restaurants

Tagged as: bonefish grill, middletown, new jersey, restaurants, seafood