We went here for a birthday celebration and had a great dinner! Â We started off with the stone crab claws for an appetizer. Â While they're a lot of work, they were delicious. Â Everyone's dinner was great whether they ordered steak or seafood. Â The service was also very good. Â
As other reviewers commented, it's almost as if there are 2 different restaurants. Â The downstairs is definitely more casual than the upstairs. Â We ate upstairs where it was a little quieter.
My only complaint (although not a huge issue) is that because of their location, valet is your only option. Â We didn't have to wait very long for our car but it was a little chaotic with all of the people coming and going.
Pretty solid lunch place place with a great view of the intercoastal. Â As a local, I like places that deliver value. Â 15th St Fisheries really impressed me with the quality of food and atmosphere. Â Entrees were solid but i wish the fish dip had a little more smoke to it. Â I will definitely be back and bringing friends!
Review Source:Fun place to visit while making a stop on the Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi, which I recommend. Â The seafood is no-frills, fresh, and pretty decent, but not on the level of Captain Jim's, Garcia's, or Casablanca. Â You basically go here more for the atmosphere and views. Â The calamari was a good-sized portion, and the prices were decent. Â My fish was tender and juicy but I am surprised they can claim the title of the best seafood in Fort Lauderdale because if this is really the case, I feel bad for my fellow Broward County residents. Â Another thing they have going here is the novelty of the tarpon feeding and the ability to dock your boat. Â Unfortunately, the people coming here can be a bit on the sleazy side, especially the women, who are your typical half-drunk airheaded valley girl blondes walking around in bikinis and making a lot of noise as if they have never seen fish before...
Review Source:We started off to a little bit of a rocky start...when we made the reservation, it said plenty of self parking...only we could figure out where it was....it had complimentary valet...but we realized between the 2 of us we only has a dollar for tip and we felt cheap, but had to valet because we could find a place to park. Â
The restaurant was DEAD upstairs. Waiter said that  many snowbirds had not come in yet due to hurricane Sandy.
Service started a little slow.  Bread girl showed up once and it would have been nice to have a little more bread...mine was okay, but husband liked the jalapeño bread a lot.
We started with the citrus mussels.... Very good....missing some crusty bread though...oh where was the bread girl when you needed her? Â
I had the scallops...glad that the waiter recommended the sauce on the side...he said it was strong in flavor and might overpower the delicate scallops...he was right...scallops were cooked perfectly, as was the asparagus. Â I could have lived without the mashed potatoes...glad I ordered the fries!
Husband had the ciapanno...yummmmm.
We shared the key lime bar...could have been a little tangier...but the raspberry sorbet made up for it....yum!
A little pricy...but food and service was good....well all except the disappearing bread girl.
We dined at this fun place while we were waiting to board a cruise.
We were greeted by a very friendly lady who directed us up the stairs. Â We were met up the stairs while our reservation was sent up by a rope and pulley with a bell signalling its arrival. Fun!
We were seated by the window, but changed table so we could both see out. Â The waiter was happy to help.
The service was quick and friendly. Â We loved the bread lady who offered us four different breads. Â They were delicious especially the jalapeno cheese bread and the rum raisin bread.
We ordered Mahi-Mahi and Sea Bass. Â Both were cooked to perfection with tasty abundant sides.
The restaurant gave us a free dessert to help celebrate our special occasion. Â Nice touch!
It was not cheap, but was worth it.
We would strongly recommend this place.
Decided to try out this restaurant after it was suggested by our hotel and prior to taking our trip while searching online. I had read mixed reviews prior, but still wanted to give it a try. Overall, we had a good experience. We had the gator as an appetizar. It was good, but I've had better. Needed a little more seasoning if you ask me. Then proceeded to have the famoes Joes Skillet, while hubby had a mixed fried seafood dish. My dish was good, while hubbys could have been better. Not bad watching the fish and the yachts though.
Review Source:We really enjoyed our dinner. The Lobster Bisque was delicious: my husband was disappointed as there wasn't any lobster meat. But it was still great! I ordered the Salmon special & enjoyed it immensely. Though I can't remember what my hubby & daughter ordered, they were raving about them.
Review Source:My wife and I traveled to Ft. Lauderdale to do some scuba diving and we asked the locals for a great place to dine...not too fancy, not too casual. Â Four different people recommended the 15th Street Fisheries & Dockside cafe. We tried it and had a great time and a great meal.
The atmosphere is relaxing and "nautical", for lack of a better term. Â We dined at the Dockside Cafe and had a great view of the marina as the sun went down. Watching the boats come in and seeing people feed the Tarpon that swim up to the dock was an added bonus.
The meal...perfect! Â I started off with a cup of Bahamian Conch Chowder and some Cheesy Bread (recommended by the locals). My entree was a delicious pan-seared Mahi and plantain chips. Â Dessert was a generic piece of Key Lime Pie. I was hoping for something special, but the KLP was a bit disappointing.
Overall, the meal was great, the atmosphere was soooo relaxing. The perfect end to a great day of diving.
In my best Terminator voice... "I'll be back."
I went here for Dine Out. Ft. Lauderdale so I can only speak to that menu. Â However, the one thing that is out of control here is the breadgirl. Â Is this a rite of pasage position where one doesn't become hostess or server unless one first is the breadgirl? Â She introduced herself as the "breadgirl for the night" and showed up with a basket of different kinds of bread. Â The bread was good and I was hungry so that part I am not complaining about. Â But she showed up at the table like every five minutes asking if we wanted more bread. Â Was she watching us on a webcam? Â Maybe this place should make bread an entree and have the breadgirl do a song and dance as well? Â Maybe they can make her dress in a bread outfit? Â Getting back to the actual meal, I chose the mixed green salad, shrimp lo mein and the banana bread. Â Everything was really good although the lo mein was kind of the skimpy side portion-wise. Â I don't know if that is there normal portion size or they decreased it for the Dine Out menu which I know some places do. Â The lo mein was surpisingly good and that surprised me since I honestly don't ever recall seeing lo mein anywhere else other than at chinese restaurants. Â I just wish there had been more of it. Â The salad and dessert were excellent but I do have one issue with the banana bread. Â I have a feeling that it was made with some sort of dairy product b/c my stomach hurt immensely several hours later. Â I asked for no goat cheese on the salad and the ice cream that comes with the banana bread in a separate dish. Â Common sense indicates that I don't want/am allergic to dairy. Â I can't see the lo mein or salad being made with dairy so my guess was the banana bread. Â Wouldn't you tell me that the dessert has dairy in it and ask if I would like something else instead? Â The waiter was overall really good and did everything a waiter at this sort of establishment should do. Â But if someone ordered a salad with no cheese and ice cream on the side, I would ask them if they had a dairy allergy and I would proceed to tell them about the banana bread. Â But that's just me....
Overall, a good place and the food was good. Â I suggest trying this place out while Dine Out lasts and seeing if you like it or not.
Not an easy place to review because the upstairs is a more upscale restaurant while downstairs is more of a bar/family establishment. Â Being with a business group we opted for the downstairs environment overlooking the tarpon and the feeding frenzy. Â You can order the upstairs menu from the downstairs spots, so that leaves an extensive amount of options for dinner. Â
The wait staff was very friendly and efficient. Â They catered well to our group and gave good recommendations. Â The beer selection is a bit limited but a good place at a reasonable price.
I must have been there on a good day because I have to say both food and service were very good. It was my birthday and  they did make it very special. I had the seafood noodles & veg tables which were very good. The bloody Marys were large and spicy. We had the room with a view , upstairs. It was my 60th birthday and I cant think of a better place to have it. I would return again for my next birthday. I would also recommend the Pasta with shrimps.
Review Source:I'll preface this with the fact I'm from Philly, so am not familiar with the local scene, food standards, etc. Â But we have a damn good dining scene up here so know my way around a restaurant.
I also need to mention I was at 15th St Fisheries for a business dinner my company was hosting, so it was not a typical one-off dining experience.
What I can say though is that the service provided, from the bartender downstairs to the absolutely phenomenal Frank to the GM were the best I've ever seen. Â Made the entire process as easy as possible and allowed us to put our best food forward for our dinner meeting which was held in the semi-private room upstairs overlooking the waterway. Â We truly cannot say enough.
As for the food - it was a hit as well, overall. Â Was it the best seafood I've ever had? Â No. Â But everything from the ceviche to the Fisheries salad to the mahi to the key lime pie was above average, as were the apps that were brought for the group. Â Gator bites, calamari and the excellent Skippers were highlights.
The fish swimming under the docks and laid back atmosphere only added to the experience. Â Would recommend to anyone looking for a solid seafood option right on the water in Ft. Lauderdale.
This was a celebratory evening for my sister who achieved her doctorate at Nova Southeastern Univ... it was fabulous meal in great ssurroundings! Â We had dinner in the upstairs dining room on the porch. Â A great view of the inter-coastal waterway.
Shrimp & Grits  appetizer, with a Caribbean spinach salad, followed by key West Snapper on a bed of couscous was excellent! See the link to the Photo below!  The service was fantastic!  <a href="/redir?url=https%3A%2F%2Fs3-media2.ak.yelpcdn.com%2Fphoto%2FClJ6S0Ot0HpnasbPlsDlHA%2Fl.jpg&s=fe90bb52bfecd39cf8d0e7dccc296eaaae22ff84720204e69bf9bbfb5e1a069f" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">https://s3-media2.ak.yel…</a>
There is also Dockside cafe and indoor dining downstairs for more casual and I have been there as well! Â The Mahi-Mahi sandwich is delicious! Â No matter the time or circumstances 15th Street Fisheries is an excellent choice!
Prefacing this review with the fact that I am not a seafood fan, but I've been known to enjoy seafood every now and then. Â Unfortunately this restaurant's items didn't satisfy me, even with the meal being company-expensed.
Lobster bisque: The flavor lacked that of any lobster bisque I'm familiar with. Â It had a very fishy taste, and was unusually "heavy"
Crab cake: I had a mini version, and this may have been the best thing pre-dessert. Â Perfectly crisped.
Prime rib: No.No.No. Â It was humongous, which I'm sure most would appreciate - I just wasn't prepared for it. Aside from its size, it was way undercooked, and served semi-cold. Sad.
Lobster: Â Too rubbery, and even butter couldn't mask the disappointment.
Dessert! Now here we go - this is where the second star comes in... we got a trio, which included a brownie, sorbet with brittle, and lightly toasted-marshmallow-topped key lime pie (or maybe it was cheesecake). Â The latter two were outstanding, particularly the sorbet (1 mango, 1 coconut). Â Who thought something so "simple" could taste so dream-like? Â
Food aside, the server may have been new, I'm not sure. But he definitely didn't belong at an establishment like this. While friendly, he was the "I don't know and I'm not going to find out" type. Â In addition, there were a few mistakes made (wrong side, forgotten coffee, etc). Â
I wouldn't be back, but if I were forced - I'd stick with drinks and dessert.
We went here for my birthday dinner and the food was absolutely delicious! Â Our server was wonderful and very knowledgeable. Â While my husband and I waited for my in-laws we grabbed a drink from the bartender and waited outside on the dock. Â It was 2 for 1 drinks, which we didn't know, Â but the bartender wasn't forthcoming on what was 2 for 1 which surprised me. Â The only other issue was the attitude of the woman at the front. Â She was curt and didn't allow us to finish asking our question before she answered it. Â Immediate impression was sub par, but the food and our server made up for it! Â I would go eat upstairs there again on a special occasion.
Review Source:I really love this restaurant! Â I have had the pleasure of eating here twice now, and both experiences were very nice. Â They have some of the freshest seafood in South Florida! Â Also, the staff is incredibly polished and professional. Â The views from the upstairs dining room of the inter coastal waterway and yachts are unmatched! Â For an excellent meal with beautiful views as well as great service you can't go wrong.
Review Source:We had friends that come into town and wanted to eat upstairs. We had reservations and asked for a table near the window which we didn't get Until wemasked to move. The place wasn't crowded. Â We ordered our food and I asked if I could sub sweet potatoes instead of what the meal came with and the waiter said the chef wouldn't do it. We were paying a lot of money and couldn't have the food the way we wanted it. Also our friends salmon was over cooked and dried up. The rest of the meals was small and we all left hungry. I would never go back again ,it is not worth the money. Southport raw bar would of been better.
Review Source:First time here, and the last. The service was horrible! From the beginning to the end. Had to wait about 15 minutes just to get our first drink and I had to call out for a waiter. Another thing is that they rotate the waiters so you don't get the same one. Didn't matter cause they all sucked! The fish n chips I ate was no big deal and neither was the farm raised fl gators on the appetizer menu. Adding to that was the long wait for a waiter to get us another drink made it even worse. The dishes were left on the table after we finished eating for a long time, had to ask them to take it. Ruined my night out and almost complained to the manager(which I rarely do) but my wife talked me out of it. What also pissed me off was that they added an 18% tip automatically to the bill because we paid with a groupon. Lucky for them cause I was gonna leave a big fat 0!!
Review Source:yay for free domestic draft beer for checking in on yelp! ate at the casual dockside... calamari to start with, average at best, liked the wasabi ginger aoli, had the fresh mahi blackened ( super salty) and yuca fries(pollotropical is better) buddy had joes sizzler skillet which I snuck a bite of and was def tastier than mine. he ate it all up. perhaps a place to take outta towners with low expectations.
you can feed the tarpon here which i didnt get a chance to do
but I did see dolphin swimming in the intracoastal, super cool
I bought a LivingSocial coupon to have lunch here with my mom while she was visiting Fort Lauderdale. We went on Saturday afternoon and I will never be going back!
We had the conch fritters as a starter, they were gummy and hard. My mom had the salmon which was extremely bland and i had some fish skillet that supposed to be the most popular dish on the menu, puhleese!!!!!!
I am just glad I didn't pay full price. We had a better meal at Ruby Tuesday the next day!
The bartender on Saturday afternoon made this bar worth the drive. The food was very good, wish we were hungry, cause all we had was some appetizers. The food that the people next to us had looked damn good, and they recommended it. We ate downstairs, not the restaurant upstairs.
Once again that bartender was one great. Had Sierra Nevada Torpedo on tap.
This place teetered onto the 4th star just by the skin of it's fish. hahaha :-|. Free valet always gives the benefit of the doubt.
Sitting downstairs and watching the boats go by and people watching was the right choice. Â The waterfront dining was packed on a Monday night in the open air portion of the restaurant. Â
The conch chowder was the best I have ever had. Â The heavy and super thick chowder was packed with solid chunks of conch and other fish perhaps. Â Incredible flavor balanced with the sweet crustacean.
The grilled Mahi Mahi was a bit dry. Â Comes with two sides. Â The vegetable of the day was served cold and when asked for butter it wasn't melted butter. Â Hmm how does this work? Â Meal was satisfying. Â
Service was alright. Â A bit slow at first and not really there. Â Friendly though.
Free Miller Lite with 4square check in.
This place is stuck in the 70's, and some of the food seems like it's been here that long too. I was not expecting it to be great, but had no idea it would be quite this bad. Chef Ramsey could do an episode of Kitchen Nightmares here. And you know what? I wish he would, because that would save this place.
After seeing a coupon deal, I figured the kids would get a kick out of feeding the Tarpon out on the dock. Always looking to do something different! I thought they would at least be good for a couple of sandwiches. They were not. The place is a dump. It's completely unappetizing, and needs to be gutted and completely remodeled. Same goes for the menu.
I can't believe someone actually wrote a bad review for this place. Maybe I'm just a little sentimental about it. I've been coming here for over 10 years. My husband I used to come here when we were first dating to sit by the water, watch the boats and feed the tarpon.
I never noticed it being touristy until the time we just went. We noticed the water taxi stop - other than that it's kind of hard to find, down a back street. More of a locals place... You can pull up with your boat, fill up gas, get bait, have a meal, etc. It's kind of divey... The website makes it look a lot fancier than it is.
They have free valet if you're driving up, which helps because of the location with the limited parking.
The food is excellent! We've never been disappointed. I always get the crab cake sandwich. It comes with fries and a great dill sauce - So yum!
The Bloody Mary is to die for... Don't go without having one. It's like a meal in a glass and at $10 a piece I guess it should be! Â It's got the celery stalk... But also an olive, a pepperchini and a HUGE shrimp.... My mouth is officially watering.
The only thing bad I can say is that it gets super crowded when the weather is nice and can take a while to get a table... But well worth it once you do. Sit outside! You can also buy bait to feed the Tarpon with. Great for kids.
Also, I wish they would bring back the dungeness crabs. They were amazing... plates stacked high of crab.
One of my fave places... YUM!
I should always trust my Yelpy sense! Â I had put together a list of restaurants for my recent trip to Fort Lauderdale that were both Yelp and Tripadvisor approved, but when my husband asked the hotel staff for a recommendation and they came up with 15th Street Fisheries, I just went with the flow. Â I wish I realized at the time that we were being swept up into a hospitality services racket. Â
The hotel concierge told us to take the water taxi and made us a reservation at the restaurant for 90 minutes later because he said it would take 60 minutes by boat. Â We hadn't rented a car so we just went with it. Â Well, the water taxi was $10 each and did take quite a long time both to arrive and then to take us 4 stops to the restaurant. Â We found out the hard way that a regular taxi would have only cost $15, taken 10 minutes and kept us clean and dry. Â The water taxi "host" also kept suggesting the 15th Street Fisheries as "the best seafood restaurant in Fort Lauderdale," which is what leads me to believe there is some kind of reciprocity going on with these establishments.
None of this would have mattered if the food had been good, but it just wasn't. Â The bread was doughy and we had to wait forever for it. Â My snapper was fine but my husband's black grouper was inedible - so fishy that something was obviously wrong with it. Â This place is way overpriced and gets away with it because it gets touted as a great seafood restaurant. Â Even our cab driver was like "Oh you got tricked into eating there? Â Locals don't eat there. Â It's a B- at best." Â Oh, and at least one woman sent her food back immediately and requested something else, so I don't think our bad experience was a one-off.
Try Coconuts, Steak 954, Casablanca Cafe, all of which have better seafood.
Shrimp and Grits. Shrimp and Grits. Shrimp and Grits. That's all you need!
Okay, okay, you are probably hungrier than that, but if you forget everything else, remember the shrimp and grits!!!!
We came here on a water taxi for our 2 year anniversary. The water taxi was a blast and we can't wait to do it again with our little one!
Dinner was outstanding. We ate outside and it is a gorgeous view.
They gave us the fancy menu and the dockside menu. When I saw the shrimp and grits on the fancy menu, we knew we had to try them. Otherwise we ordered from the dockside menu.
Appetizers -
Sangria - $8 Delicious and fruity! Not too sweet. Would definitely get again!
Cheesy Bread - For 4 bucks it made a good sauce sponge, but wasn't a necessity.
Shrimp and grits - Â $14 very very smooth cheesy grits with a smoked bacon topping, huge grilled shrimp (with the heads on) and a maple reduction. We would have licked the plate, but luckily sopping it up with the bread helped us look a little more civilized ;)
Dinner -
Coconut shrimp with plantain chips - $13 6 nice size shrimp with a delicious dipping sauce. Plantain chips were ok, not too exciting but definitely freshly made.
Sizzling platter - $15 AMAZING. All kinds of fish, shrimp, scallops, tomatos, and artichokes in a light creamy alfredo-type sauce. Came with sourdough to sop up the goodness. It was awesome.
Dessert -
Molten lava cake n Ice Cream - Husband thought it was worth every penny of $10, I thought otherwise. It was GOOD but not GREAT. It did, however, have this little dollop of a marshmallow creme and dehydrated orange slice. This was the best part  - I could've eaten a whole plate of this!
Creme Brulee trio - $10 okay, everyone was trying this so we decided to as well. If I rated it alone, it would've gotten 1 star. It truly tasted like 3 vanilla puddings were dropped in bowls, covered in sugar, and torched for 3 seconds. I think my jello instant pudding comes out smoother and tastier! There were no real flavor differences and consistency was soooo off. I didn't even know one of them was supposed to be orange flavored until I read another persons review!
If you've gotten this far, I would like to add one more thing. This was a surprise date for me and therefore I did not YELP it (unbelieveable, I know). I YELP EVERYTHING. So, I was surprised by a few of the negative reviews, but I did notice that **most** of them came out around the time of a groupon, so I wonder if that was a factor.
The mojito was good, maybe too sweet..
I had the baby spinach with mahi added on, which was good..too much dressing
I tasted the crab sandwich which had crabcakes  I didn't like it much!
The lobster roll looked good!
The service was good, the valet guys were very nice and so was the hostess, she have me her sweater incase it got windy outside!! That's an extra step! They had a guy singing that I thought sounded like James Taylor but my brother said he sounded more like jimmy buffet!! Anyway he had a good voice and  made a good band with this guy on the keyboard!
Ooo the tarpon fishes were so cool to watch and feed:-) Amazingly big!!
If I lived here I would've taken a boat ride there or sure
Overall:
Everyone has to go there once to experience the fishes and feed the and maybe have some fish!
This place should rock. Â Great location, entertainment on the weekends, outdoor seating, decent food. Â But it doesn't. Â And you know why? Â Because the service is absolutely horrible. Â
I have come here the last two times I have been in Fort Lauderdale and each time I hope for the best and each time I leave wondering why I gave it another shot.
The last time I was here- I decided maybe it's because we always sit Dockside (the more casual part of the restaurant) so we made reservations to sit in the upstairs "nicer" dining area. Â Ugh! Â The place smells musty and the server was slow and kept forgetting to bring us our drinks. Â And when the bill came- we both felt it wasn't worth it.
The next time I came- I sat at the bar. Â One bartender- 20 people sitting around the bar and all the servers looking for drinks. Â One bartender! Â And the place was packed. Â Needless to say, Lela (sp?) was running around with her head cut off with patrons asking to change the station on the large TV's, get bread, get drinks, get bills, etc so the whole thing was pretty much a disaster. Â And the servers were comping drinks left and right just trying to make their tables happy. Â Where were the managers or anyone to help her? Â And why would you staff an entire bar with one person?
The people next to me had a coupon for two free appetizers that they had gotten from their hotel. Â But when they asked about it . . .they were told that the deal had changed and now they could have sorbet as a dessert. Â Really?
My best visit was when we went late on a Saturday night to grab a couple of beers and sit outside to listen to a very talented young man play the guitar and sing. Â Now that was worth it! Â I might be persuaded to do that again but I definitely won't be eating.
Oh sure- you can feed the tarpon that live in the water just off the dock (they'll sell you the food), valet parking is free (tips only) and the beer is always cold. Â But given every concierge in town sends their guests to this place- it's too bad- as there are much better places in town to get seafood and a view with service to match.
This place should rock. Â But it doesn't.
This place advertises all the time as it needs to lure in unsuspecting tourists as they have few repeat or regular local customers. The food is horrid, just plain and simply awful. The kitchen, floor and other areas don't appear to me to be exactly spotless either, and the orders from the kitchen seem to be overwhelming.
One thing about the place is that you need not bother ordering your food rare, medium, well done or otherwise because you'll end up getting what you get as there never seems to be any attention given to proper or prepared to order dishes. The one thing they do have, which is sort of a tourist attraction, are tarpon swimming around. I am of the belief that they must gather there because most of the patrons probably find their food more suitable for fish food than for eating.
The service is also lousy, with some of the longest, quickest disappearing acts I've ever witnessed.
After a ride up a tiny service elevator, we stepped out into a rustic, dark wood room with a vaulted ceiling and a gorgeous view of the intercoastal. The place was moderately busy at 7:30 on a Friday night, we arrived at our reservation time and were seated right away.
The food was quite good. The Seared Diver Scallops and Pan Seared Black Grouper were both delicious. Richly flavored and reasonably portioned. The bread pudding dessert was very good as well. At our table of four, one of the dishes was over-cooked and under-sauced, but the others were all spot on.
After we ordered our drinks, the service was friendly and timely. Before that, well, the waitress was a bit...standoffish about our using a groupon. Not trying to misuse it or anything, just use it according to the printed terms. I think she knew that she screwed up, because someone else covered our table the rest of the meal. He was very professional.
I'm kind of torn on what to take away from this visit. Sure the view was nice and my dinner was good, but the awkward starting service was off-putting and the prices were a bit on the high side.
I'd probably go again and hope for better.
I have lived in South Florida a long time and have only eaten here twice. Once many years ago because people raved. It was mediocre then when they only had "fine dining". The second time was this week with a Groupon deal.
If you have the Groupon deal...here are some tips.
1) Do not eat upstairs. This place is all about location, sitting outside and feeding the tarpon.
2) Get a basic fish dish like a mahi sandwich
3) Get a bloody mary
4) Do not expect great food
5) Our server was quick but generally they are slow
Just drink up, enjoy sitting outside and pretend like you are on vacation.