This spot has the lore behind it, and the fresh catches to keep it relevant in the present! The dynamite shrimp was TO DIE FOR starters, and we also got the sweet fritters to make a dynamic duo of sweet and spicy. The fritters were soft and squishy, and felt like sneaking dessert before dinner. The fresh catches mahi mahi was ordered around the table. We tried both Cajun fried and Blackened. We should have asked if Cajun fried was pan fried or fully chicken tender level fried because it was in fact the latter - but the flavor in it was great. The sweet potato was by far the best side to order ! Creamy and nearly melting in your mouth. The mashed potatoes were a close second. Holds up to the legends, and you can watch the dolphins from the boardwalk and browse some shops. Worth a gander! read more

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Full disclosure, our bill was comped 50% & the salad was removed from our bill completely. So, here's how that happened: We were all excited to eat at Friendly Fisherman after our 1.5 hour wait (this wait time was average for a Friday night in John's Pass), however, the excitement was short lived. It was a cold night in March but the restaurant was uncomfortably warm. After a few minutes our waitress came to the table to take drink orders, but she seemed to be on a different planet. We all had to repeat ourselves & had a difficult time understanding her. Only 3 beers on draft, Modelo, Mic Ultra, & something I don't remember. No Miller Lite , but this disappointment was nothing compared to the rest of our dinner. First up, the onion rings appetizer. It looked good, but was mostly just thick batter that was a little underdone. Next, peel & eat shrimp. No complaints, aside from that we asked for cocktail sauce & never received it. Then we all received our meals. My friend ordered a salad with chicken tenders, immediately once cutting into her salad she finds a frozen crinkle fry in the salad. Take note, the restaurant does NOT have crinkle fries (check everyone else's photos to confirm!). My husband ordered Mahi but received Wahoo, said it was very overcooked, and his potato was so overcooked it was too hard to stick a fork in. My other friend & I ordered grouper platters. His was fried, the shrimp friend with the shell still on which was odd. Mine was blackened & it was just OK until both my shrimp had something super hard in it & then my very next bite of fish had a bone in it . We had the manager come over & expressed our concerns, she didn't seem to sure what to do but said this is not the norm & requested the kitchen manager come out. The salad & potato were replaced & she took 50% off the bill. The kitchen manager also kinda seemed like he wasn't sure what to do either. Offered to remake food but by this point we weren't up for it. Waitress wasn't around during this & wasn't even aware our bill was half comped. It was a very off experience & given the other reviews it can't be their norm, but we won't be able to give them another try. read more

My family and I love coming here when we go to John's Pass. Super cute Florida vibes. Whatever you do, make sure to try the corn fritters. I got the lunch menu fresh catch grouper which is pretty solid, and the onion rings are big and beautiful. We also love the spicy shrimp tacos. Our server was Kam, he was great and had good recommendations. read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Spicy fried grouper with onion rings and blue margarita - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

Nice view from the boardwalk of Gulf of America at Johns Pass, FL. We enjoy coming here all the way from Omaha, Nebraska! Nice selection of appetizers, entrées and specials. all of our food and drink specials have been delicious, and corn fritters are excellent Very friendly staff. Parking can be a challenge--parking garage and street parking by the hour. read more

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We enjoyed a one night staycation in John's Pass with another couple recently. After several recommendations, we decided to try Friendly Fisherman Restaurant for dinner. It proved to be an excellent choice. We were greeted with a smiling host and seated by a window which overlooked a breathtaking view of the sunset. Our server, Delaney, made our experience even more enjoyable. She was very personable and attentive. Her recommendations were spot on! Our meal was presented very nicely and served hot. The restaurant is located steps from John's Pass Hotel where we stayed. We enjoyed a quiet stroll on the boardwalk afterwards. I look forward to returning to John's Pass and dining at Friendly Fisherman Restaurant in the near future. I highly recommend it. Ask for Delaney. read more

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Don't recommend, but nice size cocktail. Fisherman's platter: Fried fish was good. Shrimp, small but tasty. Jumbo fried scallops (which is why I ordered this platter) looked like giant balls. When I cut it, water poured out and the scallop was as naked as... in a big separate cocoon. Not what I was looking forward to and what a shame. Could have been beautiful. If the rice/veg side looks like last night's, trade it in. Small side of coleslaw seemed like yesterday's as well. No excuse. (We ate early.) Tartar sauce good, service good, view great. Bill $52, Parking $11. read more

Friendly service, but pretty outdated ambiance and mediocre food. Our server was thorough and attentive, but forgot a few things like I asked for no rice etc. food was bland and basic, which in a special spot like Madeira boardwalk and for the prices you expect to be wowed. read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Blackened shrimp platter - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

Landed here because it was the only show in town that you can bring fish you caught, and they will cook it how you want it. That's right, you catch it, clean it, and bring them exactly what you want cooked and Friendly Fisherman will do the rest and allow you to choose from grilled, blackened or fried for $12.95 per person that wants in on it! Each person will get their own plate of fries, corn fritters and slaw to accompany their fresh catch of the day. This was a spectacular deal for us as we were a bit tired from a late afternoon fishing trip which we decided to keep 3 large sea trout. We opted for Friendly Fisherman to fry the filets for us and they turned out perfect! Couldn't have done it better myself. Our waitress Ashtyn was also excellent which rounded this experience out into an easy 5 stars! Menu prices on other items are very well priced compared to similar options in the area. Had I known just how great F.F. was, we would have dined here many moons ago. As an added bonus, they're located right on the boardwalk at John's Pass so there's so many other things to do before/after your meal....highly recommend! read more

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Food was good, the scenery was awesome and the location was convenient. It gave old school fish house vibes

I wish I could give this place negative stars for the rudeness from both the staff and the management. The waitress Melanie was beyond rude to me because my 3 year asked to stick her fake fishing rod off the pier. A fake fishing rod with no hook. She told me that there's no fishing off the dock even though three feet away there were people fishing. She proceeded to raise her tone at me as she walked away and I immediately for her manager and general manager because I didn't want her waiting on us anymore. I explained what happened and told them I wanted a new waitress. They said she's the only one working and I would have to move upstairs to have a different waitress. So no staff and only one rude waitress. When the food came the fries were mashed and there were bugs crawling out of the chicken tenders. Absolutely disgusting!!!! read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

The restaurant is nice right now the dock. Seeing the boats come in and out and people watch. The food was just okay. I believe that the service is what hinder us from really enjoying the restaurant and food. The waitress was NOT the friendliest. It was just my fiancée and I so it wasn't as if we were a big party tonight. She just was extremely annoyed to come and take our drink order, then when I asked a question about the menu she was like "that doesn't apply now" my question was "I see you have crab legs at lunch, do you have them for dinner because I'm interested in getting them" she was extremely rude in her tone when responding. She was annoyed that I asked for a Togo box for my left over meal. I wish we were treated better as paying patrons. read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Shrimp Alfredo - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

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Wonderful! Good food, service and atmosphere. The food is amazing and the view of Treasure Island is awesome. A perfect beach day! read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Awesome dining with a view and a great bar! Fun at night too! - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

We had crab cake and calamari and potato skins for appetizers. The crab cake seemed to be just breading with a piece of crab here and there, calamari same deal over breaded and the potato's seemed to be over cooked, Salad was plain the dressing honey mustard was over powering to say it best.the baked potatoes seem to be similar to a twice baked because I think we was giving potatoes from the day before the kids chicken tenders again seemed to be more breading then meat, onion rings seem to be the same so that the breading fell off as soon as you picked one up , we had 2 orders of crab legs and they must have been from the bottom of the barrel they seem to be pitifu looking. We was not giving any utensils to get the legs open and being that they was so small every piece of crab was a precious delight or surprise to get l. The shrimp on the rice the shrimp was good and seasoned well the steamed vegetables was zucchini that's it and over steamed the rice eh plain Jane and that's it. we seen our server at the beginning and end and seeing they added 20% gratuity off the jump seeing as my party was 8 people 5 kids and 3 adults so that can make sense for the terrible service seeing as they knew they was getting a nice tip any way but a 250$ dollar bill is not worth the food and service we received the decor was pretty outdated same fish l, same tables I think since I first visited the area I just can't even justify giving it another chance after this go Good luck on your visit but I can't see coming back the only plus we got seated right away but I'm pretty sure that's anywhere in the area at this time of year... good luck read more

Went there for lunch my sister and myself she was visiting from Ireland. She ordered grilled shrimp and I ordered fish and chips day shrimp the shrimp were not divine That was disgusting. No, they did take that off our bill but nonetheless, it should have not happened with regards to the fish and chips. The fish was not bad, but the batter was like rubber not a crispy rubber and the French fries were saggy. I will never go back there. That's the worst meal I have ever taste. read more

So disappointed. I had the grilled platter. The mahi was overcooked and tough. The 2 shrimp were fine. The 2 scallops were cold in the middle and had the texture of jello. They brought me two more scallops, freshly seared, they were warm in the middle but the Jell-O texture was nauseating. One bite and I was done. Everything looked good when serve served and smelled delicious & the salad was fresh. Service was excellent. We were the first customers for lunch on a Monday afternoon so they were not busy at all. I won't be back. read more

Tourist location, many restaurants to choose from in the area. Service had a lot to be desired, waited almost 10 mins before a server came. Very friendly but very slow. You are surrounded by pigeons while you eat with bird droppings everywhere. The food was overpriced small portions and not a lot of flavor. If you're going to the area, eat before you go to the boardwalk. read more

If you're looking for a good seafood restaurant- I would pass. Seafood was not fresh, overcooked and flavor less - our baked potato was at least a day old and the first one wasn't hot, the second was hot, but still not fresh. The waitress picked up plates that were barely touched but didn't ask if it was ok. She tried her best to make it right, but it was a big disappointment. read more

Friday night in January, still fairly busy. Seated right away. Served was attentive and quick, the only reason I'm giving 2. However, it took ankle between taking out plates and bringing our check. My cocktail tastes like "jungle punch/ trash can punch", kids liquid medication... fruit juice and rum. It's gross. I do not care for seafood so really the bar was pretty low for me, my husband does like it. I ordered the fried chicken tenders with fries. My fries taste like re-fried McDonald's fries and they're chewy. The chicken is fine, not a lot of flavor and not terrible. The corn fritters look and taste like corn-meal funnel cake complete with powdered sugar. It's like biting into corn flavored dessert. Soft and fluffy but actual corn. My husband ordered a sea food medley which was served in a small dish over rice, edible but not special. read more

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Good service. Friendly and responsive wait staff. We had a group of 5, and ordered gator bites, corn fritters, and fish spread for appetizers, mahi platter, red fish platter, shrimp tacos, and the shrimp boat for entrees. The fish spread was fantastic. The only complaint was we could have used some more crackers, or better make some toast to go with it. Corn fritters I'm told by someone who loves them that they were the best she's ever had. Coming from my picky niece that's an impressive compliment. The gator bites were just ok. Though they were well cooked, they would have benefitted from some seasoning. Those with a shrimp entree really enjoyed them. The one with the redfish was disappointed and to be fair it was under seasoned compared to the blackened mahi mahi which was outstanding. All in all we spent 200$ which makes it a bit pricy for what we got. Though better than average for the area. Loved the fire lights and the big fishing boat, and the outdoor seating. read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Ambiance - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

We enjoyed a one night staycation in John's Pass with another couple recently. After several recommendations, we decided to try Friendly Fisherman Restaurant for dinner. It proved to be an excellent choice. We were greeted with a smiling host and seated by a window which overlooked a breathtaking view of the sunset. Our server, Delaney, made our experience even more enjoyable. She was very personable and attentive. Her recommendations were spot on! Our meal was presented very nicely and served hot. The restaurant is located steps from John's Pass Hotel where we stayed. We enjoyed a quiet stroll on the boardwalk afterwards. I look forward to returning to John's Pass and dining at Friendly Fisherman Restaurant in the near future. I highly recommend it. Ask for Delaney. read more

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This is your typical shore seafood place you can find up and down the coast. Menu is filled with fish and sandwiches and tacos and burgers. And then a ton of tropical drinks. Overall the place was a bit worn inside but nothing bad. Food was to be expected and real solid overall. Service was great. And the corn fritters were on point! Yeah, it's a tourist trap but you're probably at John's Pass because you're a tourist. So sit down, drink, eat, and enjoy. read more

Best clam chowder creamy delicious good portion of clams. 10/10 Really enjoyed the grouper sandwich i ordered it fried. The batter was perfect. I got it with a side if baked potato with butter and sour cream. Absolutely recommend. My friend enjoyed her blackened grouper sandwich with fries too. We also tried some cocktails. Bahamas mama and margaritas. They were both good. If you are on vacation get the souvenir cup. We decided to sit on the first level deck great view of the water and pirate ship disembarking. Excellent service. Our waiter made sure we had everything we wanted. read more

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Cool old restaurant with lots of history posted along the walls. Food was pretty good. Shrimp tacos were very good. Service was great!

Located in John's Pass, this tourist spot was recommended by a friend of mine. Wanting fresh seafood, we decided to try this place. While it appeared busy at first glance, we were told it would be approximately a 20 min wait for two; however, it was around 10 min and upon being seated it really wasn't that busy (must be staffing issues). We were promptly greeted by our server Aubree whom was very friendly and delightful. We started off with a cup of their fresh New England clam chowder (yum!) followed by our main entrees: I ordered the captain's platter which included scallops, grouper (skinless filet), and tail on shrimp, cooked in any one of the following styles: blackened, fried, or broiled (I opted for broiled) along with a side of your choice and includes a small salad. The seafood was fresh, tasty, and light! I opted for a baked potato as my side and it also came with a small serving of rice. My friend had the fried scallops which he said were good but a tad disappointed as he felt they were just lightly breaded and not deep fried (the breading came off loosely). Ambience felt like you were on a dock (enclosed of course) or on a giant fishing boat with a view of the ocean and pier. Overall, an excellent meal and not bad pricing to boot! read more

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We eat here everytime we come to this area of Florida. It is usually very good and consistent. However, the last recent visit was not. I would rate that visit as a two. The waitress forgot our drinks. I was supposed to get a cup with my drink, didn't happen. The salads had brown lettuce. Service slow and really bad! Every other time we have been here it's been on the money. I am hoping this was just a one off. Our fish and other sides were good. Hopefully our next visit is better! read more

as usual the selection and entrees were tasty and well presented. Heather, our server was one of the best and made our visit comfortable and enjoyable read more

We ordered the gator bites and I had a chicken sandwich for dinner and those things were fried to all get out. Poor little gator. I would not recommend. Then the hostess came over awkwardly questioning my son if he's feeding the birds? We're not tourists trust me he knows not to feed the birds. So my 5 year old is looking at me confused like "did I do something wrong?" in the middle of dinner. Like are you a restaurant cop? You want to take him to friendly fisherman jail? What are you doing my guy? Definitely walking past this place next time. read more

Amazing table service by Heather! She was very informative about the menu. She took great care of our party of 5. She was sweet as apple pie. Everything was delicious! We will be back. read more

Katie was our waiter and I can never express my gratitude towards her for the service she provided to us and the full effort of customer relations she gave will bring me back to this location everytime. Ask for Katie if you have any questions with fishing or tours around st johns pass read more

Not sure where to start. Bacon wrapped scallops special was horrible. Deep fried, overcooked and chewy.....Fish and chips was sub par, glob of batter, cold fries and chewy over fried hush puppies. Now to the clam chowder, soup was so dehydrated it stuck to the spoon in a glob and was inedible. I'll spare you the details of the other item we ordered. The best thing at the table was the kids hamburger and apple sauce. read more

Food was cold. Over cooked crab legs, cold fish and chips, cold French fries. Waiter asked if it was good ! I replied " well""" and said I'm glad and walked off. Had some dirty dish's. It seem not to be a problem.. I have eaten seafood all over the plant and I would not recommend this place. Save your money. Mike N read more

My family and I visited friendly fisherman to have a Sunday dinner. I am residence of the area and we were here a little over a year ago and it was mediocre at best but I wanted to give a second chance. I'll say this the inmates at alligator alley get a better meal than what we received. I ordered a mixed grill. It was absolutely awful two pieces of shrimp two scallops both overcooked then mahi-mahi on a bed rice of , It was more like a spoonful of rice with soupy vegetables. I ordered mahi-mahi blackened,it came grilled and it was the worst tasting fish I've ever had. I had use a knife to cut it, and it broke apart like chunks of concrete. My wife had clam chowder. The base was pretty tasty, but no clams the pieces we did fine. You couldn't put on a hook and catch a pinfish with. My kids had cheese burgers you would think for the price l paid for them I would get a nice thick juicy cheeseburger hamburger, but these were hockey pucks , thin, overcooked hamburgers with zero condiments came with them,the fries were soggy, and sloppy. Believe me You would get a better meal at a little league concession stand. this place is nothing but a tourist trap. Don't waste your money. There's too many other good restaurants in the area. I live in this area so take it from me. Avoid it with all possibilities. This whole disgusting meal cost me $75. We had walked the boardwalk get ice cream to get the nasty taste out of my mouth. The only reason I didn't send the food back because I didn't feel like waiting another hour to get some food and I didn't wanna get spit on my food when if I did,so chalk it up spoken from a Florida resident that lives in this area who won't be going back to the friendly fisherman restaurant. read more

Second time here in last 30 days. Sat in the open air downstairs area which is waterfront. Service was outstanding along with seafood, better than Sculleys which we will not be back to. If your looking for a view, seagulls, pelicans and dolphins were all seen. Highly recommend. read more

12/12/2025 Thank you for the wonderful dining experience. Carmen took care of our table. She was so attentive and made sure the whole dining experience was positive. Friendly Fisherman is our favorite restaurant when we visit Madeira Beach, FL. read more

The host had no personality. Not a hello, nothing. I said table for 1. She grabbed a menu and stared walking. I want to feel welcomed. It wasn't the case. The food was ok nothing special. Got the chicken lunch special. The veggies were bland. No taste. The rice cold. I had to wave the waiter for a refill. He never once checked on me til the end when I asked for the check. Repeat? Nah. I'll pass. read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Chicken, bacon, fries, hush puppies, rice and veggies. - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

We stopped for lunch and Chris our server was awesome! He recommended a great local beer compared to another one they didn't have and nailed it! The gator bites were so fresh and while we didn't order the Fish n Chips we saw a ton being served and they were the biggest I have ever seen! Sitting on the water and watching the Pelicans float around and the boats come on and out just made our day! We will be back!! read more

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Nice view on the water. Food was ok but not great. I specifically said I don't eat scallops and the dish came out with scallops and over cooked fish. read more

Came here to try a new place since we usually go down in St Pete. Food was okay. We got the inland platter, snow crab legs, gator bites and corn fritters app. We did not realize corn fritters come with every meal, if we had we would not have ordered them separate. The popcorn shrimp, clams and grouper on the platter were pretty good. The tartar was bland. The crab legs were okay, not the best I have had. A little hard to crack and some were spongy. Gator bites were good. Our server was very quiet and got our order wrong a few times but we caught it when ordering. I don't think she smiled once. The place could use a good scrub. Fun to try but likely will stick with our old faithful when we come back. read more

Simply a stating my experience: the vibe here sucked. We only got as far as ordering an app and some drinks, but I probably wouldn't be back here. I believe there is a water or sewage problem, because there is a terrible smell outside the building - right in the area the outside seating is located. I ordered the firecracker shrimp, which was definitely frozen and tasted pretty shrimpy.. I didn't waste anymore money after ordering appetizers as the first 20 minutes of my experience wasn't the greatest, and just continued walking down the boardwalk to check out some other restaurants. read more

Friendly Fisherman Restaurant - Firecracker shrimp - Seafood Near Me - Madeira Beach, Florida

Disappointing. Grouper Bites were good...fish and chips awful. Very small portion of extremely greasy cod. And the fritters/hush puppies (?) were tough and flavorless. French fries and coleslaw were decent. Our server Heather was great though, very nice and attentive. read more