We were seated quickly and sat outside in the garden which was beautiful at night time with the string lights. It was fun to hear the sounds of the city and the live music happening around town, but if you're looking for a quiet space I wouldn't recommend sitting outside. Our waiter, Logan, was wonderful and made sure to ask if we had any questions or concerns about the menu. After reading several other posts, we must have gone on a lucky night because we did not wait long for our food and drinks to arrive. We ordered the shrimp & grits and the pimento smash burger and they were delicious. The fried okra was just okay. If you can hit them up later in the evening after the dinner rush, would definitely recommend! read more

Fancy's Southern Cafe - Fried okra, pimento smash burger and shrimp & grits - Southern Near Me - Fort Myers, Florida

Went to the new location (2nd), downtown Ft Myers and they knocked it out of the park. Beautiful place. Menu is the same as the original location featuring southern style "comfort" food. Very good food and service...very good. Atmosphere is outta sight cool! Place was so cool, we hung around at the bar after dinner. read more

I have dined there before and brought 2 couples with me for a Birthday dinner. They will NEVER GO THERE AGAIN! and I will not bring anyone there. Our server, Luciuos(?) was bordering on rude. It was Sunday at 6 pm, there were 2 other tables and maybe 4 at the bar. We were party of 5 and only ones seated in the back room with loud music, too bright lights and no one seemed to care about remedying any of it for a long time. We ordered some wines, sodas and cocktails which arrived 25 minutes later, at the same time as some shared appetizers. Food was fine. If you don't want to work there, stay home as you ruined my celebration. Whomever is managing---pay attention. read more

Went with a bunch of friends and NO ONE was at all happy with slow service - we were the only group. One other table with two. Food wasn't edible. Cold. Slow service. Won't be back. Even our driver begged us NOT to go back. read more

There was a group of St Louisans in town, so we got together at Fancy's. I chose the place based on Yelp and their recommendations. The place lives up to the name Fancy. The decor was very pleasing to the eye. It reminded me of a high-end casino; the decor was perfect. There were really two options for lunch. The fried chicken is either spicy or non-spicy. The other was the meatloaf sandwich. I went with the spicy chicken. It is spicy, not prohibitive, but you know it has a kick. The sides were huge. I had coleslaw and greens. The coleslaw had an interesting, spicy flavor. I enjoyed the coleslaw. The greens had no meat, i.e., bacon, pork fat, nothing. I like greens, but these were very bland. We ate after 1 pm, so we had the place to ourselves. The server was doing double duty as bartender and server. He did fine, just not the best. We were sitting at the table, and it was rocking. A person came up and took it upon himself to fix the table. He was the sous chef and was off duty at the time. Obviously, this employee is proud of where he works. read more

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Visited Fancy's new downtown location before watching a show at the Florida Repertory Theatre on a busy Saturday night. Their new restaurant is modern and spacious. We sat in a four top near the bar area and enjoyed the comfortable atmosphere of the restaurant and friendly servers and host. Our food came out quickly and was hot and fresh. We had to order Fancy's signature chicken-n-waffles, and also ordered the chicken pot pie and tomato soup. 2/3 dishes were great. The chicken-n-waffles lived up to the hype and our last memories of the dish. It features a crispy waffle with strong notes of vanilla, sweet housemade buttermilk syrup, and savory chicken deep fried in beef tallow. Both the chicken and waffles were cooked perfectly. The tomato soup was also very good, with a strong tomato and basil flavor and chunky pieces of tomato in the soup. Although the chicken pot pie looked great, it was unfortunately extremely salty. I believe that Southern food is generally on the saltier side, but not to the point where the only ingredient you can taste is salt. Hopefully this was just a mistake that night and it is normally not made this way. We overall enjoyed the experience, and will give Fancy's downtown another try some day. read more

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Open for a little over 10 weeks, they appear to be getting it together. Service was prompt and courteous. Atmosphere was quiet. Much different than the Daniels Pkwy location. Food was excellent! Portions are large. Come hungry or plan on a doggy bag. This location is a little fancier Fancy's. Definitely a must try. read more

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I was here for dinner a couple years ago & keep forgetting about this place, ended up here for breakfast with 10 girls & they took a reservation for us. Everyone's food looked wonderful, a couple of them had mimosas. I had the veggie omelette with fruit & everyone's breakfast comes with homemade biscuits. The interior is charming, food is great, just a really good place! read more

Fancy's Southern Cafe - One side of the dining room with a bar - Southern Near Me - Fort Myers, Florida

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Fancy dinner at Fancy's Southern Cafe , imagine that ... ) I found this place on Yelp and it looked very nice. Came to give it a try and the photos do it Justice. It is very nice place with a cute Bar in the center of the restaurant. There is also a small intimate dining room with its own Bar adjacent to the main room. The food was delicious, the setting and ambiance somewhat intimate , but the patrons were somewhat loud making it difficult to hear. Kay was our server and she was very sweet , just like our tea ... But all in all Fancy's is a Fancy place to dine and an enjoyable dining experience was had by all. Fancy that lol. read more

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Went for breakfast on a Sunday morning, They open at 9:00am on weekends, making them one of the few places downtown open that early. The service and food were excellent. The menu is on the heavy side, but their portions are reasonable. read more

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Fancy's Downtown Fort Myers We took the opportunity last night to visit Fancy's second location in downtown Fort Myers. We've been longtime fans of Fancy's since the original opened in 2012--especially for staples like the frog legs, deviled eggs, okra, chicken and waffles, and chicken fried steak. Those dishes are what keep us coming back. The downtown location is still getting settled, and while they're working through a few growing pains that feel more like a startup than a seasoned restaurant, the charm and signature flavors are still there. The menu is nearly identical to the original, with a couple of new additions. We began with drinks from the bar, which took longer than expected, and shared our favorite appetizers--okra and deviled eggs--which were as delicious as ever. For mains, my wife ordered an off-menu New York strip steak cooked to perfection, paired with coleslaw (advertised as spicy, though it wasn't) and cheddar grits. I went with the smashed burger topped with bacon and their in-house pimento cheese--rich, flavorful, and perfectly cooked. The fries, however, were just average. We skipped dessert, but enjoyed another round of drinks before heading out. The highlight of the night, was running into our friend Marcus, who we knew from another restaurant. It was great to reconnect. Overall, Fancy's downtown is still finding its rhythm, but the core flavors and friendly atmosphere that made the original a local favorite are very much alive. read more

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We had heard a lot of good things about Fancy's, so when our friends made reservations for the 6 of us, we were excited to try a new local restaurant. My husband and I got there early and sat at the bar waiting for them. Greg, the bartender was great, attentive, warm and accommodating, fast service. Our friends arrived and we were sat in the back room about 7pm. We had noticed a very large party of women being seated back there about 30 minutes before we were. We sat down at a nice table and our waiter, Lucious, came over and asked if we all wanted waters. Yes, and then he disappeared for about 20 minutes. Now aside from the large table of women that already had drinks going, there were two other table of people being served by other waiters. Finally he brings back our waters and we all ordered drinks, nothing fancy (no pun intended). About 20 minutes later we are all wondering where the drinks were and wished we had also put in our dinner orders. Lucious returns with one drink, and iced tea and leaves again for another 15 minutes with the rest. We decide to order and get 2 orders of the cornbread to hold us over. it took about 20 minutes and a reminder of "where is the cornbread order" to finally get it. Now we are looking at past 8:30pm and we still haven't received the dinner order. One of our friends went to speak to the owner who happened to be there. He came over to our table and said that due to the large party of women our order was delayed, however they were clearing out and finished long before then, and another table that came in after us was already eating dinner. No apology, or even empathy for our situation, he simply walked away. Then the waiter comes back and says your dinner will be coming out soon, do you want another drink, so we suggested maybe they can pay for one since we have been waiting so long. He offered to buy us drinks on his own dime, but the owner may no attempt to please us AT ALL. It was then we declined and decided to leave and asked for the bill for the cornbread and drinks. When they brought back the bill it had a 25% gratuity added on! Outrageous for the horrible service of the waiter and the owner. We were very disappointed in everything EXCEPT for the great bar service and the best cornbread we've ever tasted. The owner saw us leaving and made no attempt to come back to speak to us. We are all local business people and I believe every place can have a "bad" day, but this was the worst experience in a long time. Stunned and starving we ended up going to the Downtown house of pizza and had fast service and great food around 9:30pm. read more

Jose our bartender was amazing! Chef Roman and Mama D made sure we were taken care of. Filet and pot roast were the best we have eaten. Great experience. We will be back read more

Downtown Fort Myers , it's charming when you walk in has exposed brick. Rustic chic decor and warm lighting. The service was excellent we walked in around lunch time it was packed ! It cleared out shortly after and the three of us really enjoyed our food. I enjoyed the Fried green tomatoes and they enjoyed the frog legs. The grits the po boy the sides was all delicious. We ended up having a cocktail from the bar which was fantastic too ! read more

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Fancy FAILURE How do I begin, we walk in with no reservation.... 7:32 PM The restaurant has lots of seating. Keep reading you'll see why. We wait 15 mins. To get water. A waiter approaches the table next to us and totally ignores us. After 15 more mins Liz walks past and offers help says she is not our waitress but saw us sitting there.... She Takes our order we wait another 20 mins chicken and waffles come out. So not the entire order just chicken and waffles. 15 more mins my dinner date literally goes to find the waitress to ask where my food is at this point his food is rock cold. Liz finds my food lamb chops they were completely Unseasoned! * no sour cream no salt no pepper YUCK!!!! She offered to bring both but only provided sour cream. I eat one of the horrible chops then ask for the bill! She sends over the manager Lucious the inexperienced and overwhelmed manger... guess what guys. He waited on the table next to us.... But walked past my table like we were invisible.....Lucious provided an insincere apology and says he will see what he can do billing wise. Says he will be back in a minute.... He walks past us 4 times no eye contact. Finally Liz comes with the bill. See attached**** I call Lucious and ask why didn't come back to address our concern "I got busy". Ummmm this place is empty and he is reason why! Moving on I pay the bill but can't help but wonder why they wouldn't provide service to our table. See the bill!! They planned on charging me $65 for these nasty chops... OMG!!! In the case Fancy's restaurant downtown Fort Myers is an absolute FAILURE of a restaurant. SEATED. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE RESTAURANT... IGNORED NO SERVICE NO FOOD***Sorry to deliver this news Dear owners the staff has no idea how to deliver food service. Please evaluate P&L with Lucious as the manager this location will be closed in no time. THIS IS LITERALLY ONE OF THE WORST RESTAURANTS I HAVE EVER VISITED !!! Guess what leadership people do not care about your attempt to get settled or in your grove we are paying for dinner!! read more

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I so want to really like this new downtown restaurant. It is so well built out, with a really great atmosphere that varies throughout the building. We went for Sunday breakfast and got an appetizer relatively quick. It was then an hour and fifteen minutes before our main meals came and they were only luke warm. The chicken and waffles were good, but everything disappointed a little more because of the delays. We are hoping it's just growing pains (though being a second location we hoped they would know how to operate vs someone starting something very new for the first time). We will give it another try and are excited about the drinks and live music. read more

Fancy's Southern Cafe - Southern Near Me - Fort Myers, Florida

I'm thrilled that Fancy's has opened a second location downtown. Their chicken and waffles remain the perfect cure for when the corporate man is trying to keep me down. This location has a noticeably different vibe from the Daniel's spot. It's, well, fancier. Think chandeliers, chic velvet and leather chairs, and wait staff in bow ties. The hostess greeted me with genuine excitement. I wondered if radiate Southern charm is part of the official training manual. The lunch menu is affordable and mirrors Daniel's with a few tweaks. The biggest change? No more seed oils. Everything is cooked in beef tallow. I tried to detect the difference, but my beef-tallow radar must be weak. I ordered the lunch-sized chicken and waffles. One perfectly cooked piece of chicken between two waffles, topped with a crunchy sweet potato garnish. The waffles were a bit chewier than ideal, but the flavors still hit. The only thing missing was the signature steak knife, likely just a second-day-after-opening oversight. A heads-up: voices carry in this space. Not in a noisy way, but in a crisp, clear, you can hear exactly what they're saying way. If you're nosy, this is prime territory for solo dining and eavesdropping. If you value privacy, Fancy's doesn't keep secrets. Bottom line: Fancy's Downtown is destined to be a hit. The decor, food and service make it a must try for any downtown dining list. Bonus tip: If it's muggy and drizzling, resist the urge to pay for parking from inside the restaurant. My parking ticket was timestamped two minutes before the time on my parking app started. read more

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First off, the service was great. Food was lack luster in all 4 meals. $18 for a small espresso martini in a diner type experience was a bit much (although good) . Hubby's grouper was grayish and NOT fresh ,pot roast was a sparse portion , grits and shrimp ....just poor and a few small rubbery shrimp . Chicken pie was like dishwater with ample chicken and anemic pastry pillow on top. All in all , very poor. BUT, the cornbread with honey was 5 star. We really looked forward to the restaurant but so disappointed in the fact that everything is al alcart.....very expensive for such poor quality. read more

Walked in and was sat by hostess. Twenty minutes later we left after moving from table to bar. No service - not even a be right with you - no waters from hostess so moved to bar where after 5 minutes we're told will be right with you then nothing. We were so looking forward to trying this place - what a huge disappointment. Wasted 20 minutes of our time. Oh well - we were immediately greeted at Fords who apparently were interested in our business! read more

I went with a friend as she recommended the happy hour was great. Get there 2 whites on happy hour we order Chardonnay for the 7 dollars and get and appetizer for 7 dollars. We each have 2 glasses and it comes to $71 dollars not the $35 we expected. Why he heard pino Grigio $15 dollars a pour. Sorry but not going back will I recommend not read more

Amazing addition to Downtown! I used to frequent the Daniel's location when I lived in Estero. Now that I live Downtown I couldn't be happier. They are open and I stopped in and was blown away again. Corn-beef and hash was amazing today!! Welcome to Downtown, Fort Myers. read more

Fancy's Southern Cafe - Southern Near Me - Fort Myers, Florida

Atmosphere, service and food was on point! The design selections and installations are stunning! read more

Said they were too busy to seat us or put us on a list because they just sat a large party of 8 and the kitchen will be backed up. read more

Fancy's Southern Cafe - "Too busy" to seat people. If you want. - Southern Near Me - Fort Myers, Florida

We stopped in and couldn't be HAPPIER. The staff was attentive. The restaurant is clean. Food was top notch. And cocktails to accompany were amazing. Will be back! read more

Beautiful place from the tables, bar to the decor. I was amazed and loved this place. I am also in love with their chicken and waffles. They are huge and delicious! The mimosas with the meal were a hit. You have to visit. Our server was sweet and service was good. I enjoyed Fancy's! read more

Fancy's Southern Cafe - Chicken and Waffles - Southern Near Me - Fort Myers, Florida

The Decor is really nice, the food was REALLY GOOD. I had chicken fried steak and eggs, home made, the steak was tender and it was obviously hand battered and much lighter than I usually get at almost all other restaurants. We were not allowed to bring our dog in, but the wait staff allowed us to put her outside and they continually went to see her, pet her and provide her snacks. Went with a group of 6 total people and everyone had a good time and good food at very affordable prices. We stayed for about 2 hours and there was no rush to get us out. read more

Wow, what an amazing experience!! We have been long time patrons of the Fancy's off Daniels. This new location is next level amazing! It is so gratifying to go to a restaurant time after time and have the same amazing quality in food, atmosphere and service. And what a beautiful atmosphere!! Thoroughly enjoyed it. Not to be missed! Food: A+ Atmosphere: A+ Staff: A+ They nailed it!! read more

Surprised at the mixed reviews for this place but can't say I've never experienced that. Luckily my gf and I had a great time. Our server was great I think his name was Jared. My order got mixed up and our server kept asking if I was happy until I caved and asked for what I originally wanted. I'm glad he pushed me bc it was night and day. I had just went to a "nice" steakhouse last week and the server couldn't have cared less that I was happy so I appreciate our server here flipped that around for me. The inside was very cute and the perfect amount of people and live music but we went on a Thursday so I'm sure that affected our experience for the best as well. Would definitely eat here again the ribeye rare was excellent and I'm very picky read more

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Decor is lovely! That's my only positive comment. The restaurant was freezing cold... uncomfortably cold. Wait staff did adjust AC after a while. Service was slow. It seemed odd that our Cocktails weren't delivered at the same time. Two of three Entrees were lukewarm and the third entree was flavorless. We had to remind our server to bring our side dishes. We were halfway through our dinner before they arrived. Our server knew we were displeased. She mentioned they were getting the "kinks worked out".We asked when Fancys downtown opened. She told us in August 2025. I would think that 6 months in business should be more than enough time to get the "kinks worked out". I politely mentioned this to the owner at the end of our dinner so hopefully this will be rectified. It will be a while before we give them another try. read more

When the second fancy's was opened downtown they changed menu and it costs much more. Instead of sides included the sides are extra and some cost $12 or more. Downtown is lovely but with huge menu changes, Just not the place for me to go. read more

We have been here a number of times since they opened their 2nd location in downtown Fort Myers and love the vibe!There are 2 amazing sides to this place - 1 is the bar/restaurant the 2nd is a bar/lounge with music. Both bar vibes are great and the cocktails-delicious! 2 caveats, cocktail service is way too slow in the lounge and what food we and our friends have had was not very good. Really wish I could say otherwise. I chose 4 stars vs. 3 because everything else is top notch. read more

HANDS DOWN THE WORST DINING EXPERIENCE WE HAVE EVER HAD ! We sat here an hour and watched two tables finish their food and we still had no food we were then told they still had 5 tables in front of us after an hour So we asked for a manager and she came over and she was a complete B ( with a capital B) and had the audacity to say you weren't told this was a two hour dining experience ? I said NO and that's ridiculous when all you ordered is an entree my wife had a salad and I had chicken and waffles those are both simple items what a ridiculous thing to claim when a table orders simple entrees this isn't a five course dining menu we didn't even order an appetizer and she walked away brought us our full ticket. This place is complete trash and this women had to be ownership no hired manager would ever dare act like this, she should fire herself and do her business a favor she has no customer service skills and was yelling at her employee that took care of us as well horrible. read more

Honestly, it was a great experience. I went for dinner and had Nathan as our server, and he was fantastic. He gave excellent recommendations on the specials and did a great job engaging with our group without being overbearing. The service really elevated the entire meal. I would definitely recommend this restaurant--and if you go, make sure to request Nathan. read more

Worst service and manager I have ever experienced. After being seated they quickly took our order. One hour later we still had no food dropped off. We asked for the manager and she argued that we should have known it would be a 2 hour dining experience. No apology. Just excuses. So rude. Never again. I've never been treated so terribly at a restaurant. read more

Beginning with the good: ambience (very lovely decor) and staff. Greg, our server (as well as the bartender), was very nice and personable. The disappointments: the food and the long wait for food. Six of us for dinner. One ordered meatloaf, one ordered snapper, four ordered grouper. À la cart (shareable) sides: mashed potatoes (overly salted), sweet potatoes, green beans (overcooked...unless you like mushy), & collard greens (fine, middle of the road). The snapper dish was seemingly forgotten...very late, but ended up being the best taste of the night. The meatloaf was a bit overcooked and very under seasoned. The four grouper dishes were inconsistent. One was very overcooked (with a burned crust) & very dry and tough. Sent back & did not get anything else. Of the other three groupers, one was cooked fine (tender) and the other two were a little overcooked. Overall, the atmosphere is lovely, but the kitchen needs A LOT of fine tuning. It's too bad. We were looking forward to trying Fancy's, as this was our first time. We will likely not return. Too many other options. Step it up if you want to survive. read more

What went well was Darian our table server. For that reason a 4/5 score. Food 1/5. Darian came to the table, presented herself, very professionally and showed us her sense of humor. Truly a breath of fresh air as she made our dinner experience very enjoyable. We truly enjoyed her company. She greeted us with a beautiful smile and charmed us. Darian was very helpful in what we were choosing to eat and very patient giving us enough time to decide. As attentive as a server could be, Darian came by often to make sure we were satisfied and questioned if we needed anything. Again, Darian was exceptional as we have ever experienced. For that reason as a table server, her detail to service greatly overshadowed the quality of the food we were given. It would not surprise me if she was as incredible as a human being. As someone in our party mentioned "I would hire her in a heartbeat ". That came from a family member who is a department director at a globally known hospitality/hotel company. Let me be very clear. This is a first time experience writing a review on how a table server overwhelmingly overshadowed the food. I refuse to use YELP to destroy a business, some cherish to do, but will gladly speak of our 1/5 food experience to a manager. My tertiary email to contact me rickalfonsoprivate@yahoo.com read more

The place itself is really cute. Love the decor. That's where the good part ends. We took my Mother in law here for dinner on Mother's Day. It was not a good experience. This is a restaurant that prides themselves on Southern food & tell me why, at the BEGINNING of dinner service, they were out of mashed potatoes??? It was not crowded either. They were fairly dead when we walked in. They were out of the coconut crème to make the drink my MIL wanted. When they told her they couldn't make her drink, they didn't offer to make it without the coconut or make another suggestion. Just, brought everyone else's drinks & said "oh we're out of the coconut crème, so we can't make your drink, bye." lol The service was some of the worst I've ever experienced. I also had 1 glass of Chardonnay & it was $20 a glass! I am by no means cheap, but $20 for a single pour of mediocre wine is absurd! That needs to be adjusted, because this is not a Michelin star restaurant. The food was ok, but my dinner came out well after the rest of the table & the crab cakes were gummy. It was obvious that someone forgot & they had to make them as fast as they could. Tried to make it better with hot sauce, but guess what? They were out! The server was like in another world or something. She was SO SLOW. I went up to the bar to cancel my second drink, because I didn't want to sit there drinking well after everyone was done with their meal. I was actually embarrassed that we took her to this place. We've had brunch at the other location & liked it & thought it was a safe pic. I was wrong. We actually saw one table get up & leave due to poor service & honestly, we should've followed suit. We love to go out to nice places & run up a tab on good food & drinks, but this place will not be one we take friends/family to again. Sad, because we wanted to love it. read more

Amazing meal, service, and atmosphere every time. We always take family and friends to Fancy's when they are in town. Both locations have such a great vibes. The music is a plus! read more

My husband and I were familiar with this establishment before Hurricane Ian it was Twisted Vine-we loved it-separate room that featured a jazz band-Food was always good as well as service-As Fancy's I gave four star's due to the same complaint's that I read, we thought we'd try it any way-2 of the repeated complaints happened to us-First we sat at the bar for a while before we were even greeted-I will give the bartender credit when she did come to us she was apologetic and friendly-our drinks were good- 4 of us, my husband's food came much later, waitress did apologize. I had crab cakes, pretty decent-my husband had pot roast mostly a bowl of gravy-friends had shrimp and grits no complaints-we will return due to the familiarity, bartender's apology and friendliness-nice waitress and Jaz Band Please correct bringing all parties food out at the same time The hostess, the young Black lady ( description bcs I want her to get credit) was incredible read more

The food was very good. We particularly liked the pot roast. The only issue was deciding on what to order since many items looked appealing. The service staff also did a very good job. We will be returning for sure. read more