Sunset Cafe Waterfront Grill & Bar 500 W. Cocoa Beach Cswy., Cocoa Beach, FL 32931
3 Stars
When dining anywhere in the Sunshine State, it's hard to avoid tourist clip joints, especially where Jeannie resides, Cocoa Beach, FL. And so it was with slight trepidation that I headed north. Don't get me wrong, I love Cocoa Beach; I just detest tourist traps, and the place is littered with them.
Upon entering the Sunset Care Waterfront Grill & Bar, I paused as my eyes took in the scene. I glanced at my watch to make sure it wasn't the 3:30 geriatric dinner crowd as at 58; I was the youngest human in here by a decade. It wasn't that early, but it wasn't late either...is this how it begins?
Tamara was my server for the meal and while she started out with a bang, she ended with a whimper. The charm was there, as well as the skill, maybe the desire checked out half-way through my meal. I asked Tamara for an order of the Sunset Seafood Combo along with some Fries.
Taking in the atmosphere along with the view, I wondered what it was about a great view and average food. Is the rent on the location so high that it affects the ability to procure quality ingredients? Or maybe the owner thinks that the view will obscure all else and is trying to make as much off of each patron as possible? I don't have any answers, all I know is experience and experience suggests one of those, at the very least, must be true.
If you take a moment to toss your peepers at the accompanying pictures, you will see that everything certainly looked good, if not delicious. The Sunset Seafood Combo consisted of a filet of grouper, shrimp, and a crab cake grilled or blackened served with your choice of sweet potato fries, French fries, or rice pilaf and homemade slaw. As one can tell, I went with the blackened.
Nothing was ocean fresh, or even close to it, but everything was seasoned well. I found the shrimp to be above what one normally finds in a joint like this; the grouper and crab cake were not.
The Big Boy says, "better than most places with a view, but still average." read more
