Inlet Harbor Restaurant & Marina

Service was good but my 1/2 lb. steamed shrimp appetizer were so overcooked they were tasteless.  Others in the party complained the fried shrimp was overcooked also.  Expected better.

As yearly Florida vacationers, my family and I are accustomed to the normal situations that arise when you are in Florida trying to get a table for dinner while on vacation- long wait, busy restaurants, somewhat lacking service.  I would call myself incredibly patient when these sort of events occur.  Unfortunately, on the night we went there, I almost lost that patience that I so proudly claim to have.

First, the restaurant takes reservations on Opentable, which I took advantage of, but as it turns out... it didn't matter one bit.  We ended up waiting another 30 minutes AFTER my reservation to get a table. If you are going to use Opentable and take reservations, you MUST honor them and be prepared for what honoring reservations means.  Not the greatest start.

Next, we're placed at a table and our server, Mary, came and took our drink orders and food orders very quickly.  She is the reason this restaurant is getting the one star it is getting, as she was the only positive experience we had at this restaurant.  She warned us ahead of time that the kitchen was backed up and put our orders in asap, while checking in on us and keeping our water glasses full and updating us on the status of our food every 15 minutes or so.

...fast forward about 80 minutes from when we sat down. We are still waiting, quietly but hungrily, and there are multiple conflicts surrounding us.  First, there were tons of tables that were not bussed- just sitting there, with dirty dishes, while families with small children had been waiting outside for over an hour.  We watched a family with small children wait for over 40 minutes just for salad and bread, and by the time it came out, they got up and left the restaurant because their children were so miserable and hungry.  Second, there was a situation at a table behind us where a woman was infuriated with the bus boy and waitress (for reasons I know nothing about) and called the seat manager over to complain.  Instead of then taking the bus boys and waitress away from the public eye to have the discussion, he decided to chastise them on the spot!  Never, EVER, would I consider this a good idea.  Now mind you, this lady was very loud and I would even say a little over the top with her frustration, but that is no way to treat your employees.

Finally, we do get our food, but when we do, my mother's fish is bone dry and my crabcakes were at least 50% filler. I think I'll stick to my native Virginia for the crabcakes from now on. Our waitress was incredibly apologetic and offered us key lime pie on the house to take home, which we gladly accepted. We still gave her a 20% tip since it was not her fault, but we bolted out of there as fast as possible, never getting a single apology from the management for the situation at hand. We got there at 7pm... and did not leave until about 9:45pm.

To top it all off, I got sick off my meal.  I threw it up about 90 minutes after I ate it. The toilet and I were friends all night long.

Not a great experience at all, and I would say during the entirety of my week in Daytona Beach, it was the worst restaurant my family and I visited.

Excellent location and great live bands... Unfortunately, the food wasn't good at all. Kinda expensive.