InWeekly
columns
Outtakes
Winners & Losers
Rants & Raves
The Last Word
news
Cover Story
The Buzz
News
News of the Weird
a & e
A&E Features
Music
Hot Times
Community Outreach
monthly guides
Health & Wellness
Stay Local
blogs
Rick's Blog
extras
Best Of The Coast 2009
Power List 2010
Eat Guide 2010
Green Matters 2010
2010 Rising Stars
2010 Law Guide
Stay Local 2010
2010 Lush Guide
Restaurants
The Fish House
Winner: Best Restaurant Overall,
Best Seafood Restaurant, Best Restaurant with a View
Winner: The Deck -- Best Bar/Night Club
Top 3 Finishes: Best Tapas, Best Gumbo, Best Original Menu, Best Music Venue, Best Happy Hour, Best Bar to Watch People, Jim Shirley -- Best Chef
The Fish House is the best restaurant in Pensacola. It is a must-dine stop for all visitors to the Pensacola area. This great Southern restaurant is to seafood what McGuire's is to beef. Its signature dish is "Grits A YaYa"--sauted gulf shrimp, portabello mushrooms and spinach over Gouda grits. All seafood is fresh and hand-picked by Chef Jim Shirley. Fried, grilled, blackened and ginger-crusted are just a few ways Shirley and his chefs offer their seafood creations. This spring, The Fish House opened "The Deck," and this music venue has become one of the highest night spots in the area--winning Best Bar/Night Club and finishing in the Top 3 for Best Music Venue.
The Global Grill
Winner: Best Restaurant-Downtown Pensacola, Best Tapas, Best Selection of Wine by the Glass, Best Original Menu
Winner: Frank Taylor -- Best Chef
Top 3 Finishes: Best Restaurant Overall, Best Place to Splurge, Best Wait Staff with Personality, Best Place for a First Date, Best Desserts, Best Martini
With an excellent bar and one of the most unique menus in town, Global Grill is the drinks, tapas, dinner or dessert destination for anyone enjoying a good time downtown. Specials are added frequently. Chef/owner Frank Taylor's delectable creations have won him recognition as this year's Best Chef. A favorite tapa is the Applewood Bacon Wrapped Lobster Tail in smoked Gouda cheese sauce. We recommend sharing tapas over a bottle of wine from their extensive wine list or trying one of their delicious entres. Hint: The filet mignon with Taylor's homemade Worchestershire sauce is outstanding, but don't forget the gooey-centered Spanish chocolate cake for dessert.
Peg Leg Pete's
Winner: Best Restaurant-Pensacola Beach, Best Fish Sandwich, Best Oysters
Top 3 Finishes: Best Seafood Restaurant, Best Kid-Friendly Restaurant, Best Gumbo, Best Po-Boy
This relaxed family restaurant has been a favorite of IN readers since the first Best of the Coast poll in 2000. Peg Leg Pete's is a Pensacola Beach institution and widely known for its Spinach Artichoke Dip and Oysters Rockefeller. However, its oyster and shrimp po-boys also hit the spot, especially with a few cold ones. Find out why the locals named Peg Leg Pete's their favorite beach restaurant.
Sidelines Sports Bar and Restaurant
Winner: Best Wings, Best Place to Feed the Whole Family
Top 3 Finishes: Best Sports Bar
Sidelines got the attention of IN readers because it has all the ingredients for a great sports bar: televisions, wings, burgers and cold drinks. There are specials every night of the week, and you and your family can find your favorite teams on one of their 42 TV's, which include six 52-inch HDTV big screens . Sidelines is famous for its wings, served up at varying degrees of heat. They've got a mild version for the faint of heart, but real men (and women) go for the spice! Keep an ice-cold pitcher of beer at your side, cause water's not gonna put out the fire.
Dharma Blue
Winner: Best Outdoor Dining
Top 3 Finishes: Best Restaurant Overall, Best Restaurant-Downtown Pensacola, Best Sushi
There is no finer outdoor dining experience in Pensacola than Dharma Blue, which is located just off historic Seville Square. With a versatile menu from pastas to salads to sushi to fresh fish, Dharma's has it all. The lunch menu varies from soup to quiche to a daily pasta special. The dinner menu is a bit more elaborate, offering an extensive sushi menu, special entres and a fish of the day served grilled, blackened, or even tempura fried.
Horizen Restaurant
Winner: Best Japanese Restaurant, Best Sushi
Top 3 Finishes: Best Take Out
Horizen has won the hearts of IN readers and their votes for the Best Japanese Restaurant. If you like sushi, chances are you'll find what you're looking for here, along with some unique selections. There are the usual items, such as California and Veggie rolls, but the menu also features Tiger Rolls (snow crab, avocado, tempura flake) and Snapper Fusion. For the adventurous types, there are also giant clam, sea urchin, baby octopus and raw quail eggs.
Hunan Chinese Restaurant
Winner: Best Chinese Restaurant
Hunan has won this category for 7 consecutive years. Its freshly prepared buffet satisfies its regulars with more than 50 scrumptious dishes including General Tsao's chicken, sesame meatballs, shrimp tempura, egg foo yung and cashew chicken. The items are always hot and fresh. Another crowd pleaser is the noodle soup bar where customers create their own soups from an endless variety of ingredients and broth. There are also full salad and dessert bars. If you aren't fat and happy after eating at Hunan, then it's your own fault.
Tre Fratelli Ristorante
Winner: Best Italian Restaurant
As much as your bachelor pals will try to convince you otherwise, Chef Boyardee is not the epitome of Italian cuisine. The food at Tre Fratelli's, on the other hand, is delicious, authentic and imaginative, and it doesn't come in a can. With all breads, pizza dough and sauces made from scratch, Tre Fratelli will not disappoint. Start with the house bruschetta. Follow it with the rich pasta carbonara made to order, the diavola--a spicy marinara sauce with black olives and bacon--or a nightly special paired with Italian wine. And finish with the cannoli.
