This used to be one of my favorite restaurants in the area. Unfortunately, it has slipped way down my list over the last couple years. It’s been well over a year since we were there last, so I thought we should check it out. Bad idea. No better than the last time. Actually, it’s arguably worse in some ways. With all the new restaurants opening up in the area over the last couple years, Sailors Return stands out in a bad way. It’s old and really needs a thorough renovation. The dining room is small and poorly laid out, and the entrance and hostess station is terribly cramped. They offer three options for dining; indoor dining, patio, and tiki. I was intrigued by the tiki option but as it turns out, there is no actual “tiki” hut or anything. They just hung some sail cloth shades over the end of the outdoor patio and called it a “tiki”. That area has it’s own bar, and a band stand so plan on it being the noisy area, and likely the warmest area. I made a reservation and we were seated right on time. After that, it was downhill. We sat at our table being ignored for 10 minutes before my Wife waved the hostess down as she walked by with other customers. After a bit of conversation between a couple employees, a server finally showed up at the table. She took a drink order and that was the last time we saw her for a while. Thought for sure she would stop back at the table to tell us the drinks were coming and ask if we wanted an appetizer but, no. We actually saw her just standing around a few times. That coupled with the fact that the table behind us (also her table), were getting vocal about the slow/poor service, I started thinking that maybe the kitchen was backed up and they were just trying to slow things down? Our drinks came fairly quickly but weren’t very good. We changed to drinks that were more basic for our second round and that worked out better. Our appetizers were a little slow but not terrible, especially considering that the table behind us were there before us and still didn’t have any food yet. This was about 45 minutes after we arrived. While we were waiting for our entrees, we flagged our server down to ask for some bread. At this point, we were there almost an hour. Our server seemed confused by the request. At first asking if my Wife was asking for “a piece of bread”. My Wife answered, no, I mean like a basket of bread. Our server said she would get us some. When she came back, I happened to notice she brought a basket of bread for the table behind us as well. Interestingly, the table on the other side of us, that had a different server, and arrived several minutes after us, had bread right away and appetizers before we even got our drinks! This told me that the real issue was our server. I really don’t mind when a restaurant institutes a mandatory 18% service fee, as long as the service is good. Frankly, I usually tip more than that anyway. But I do have a problem with being stuck with the mandatory fee and poor service. Between the old establishment, poor service, mediocre food and drink, very small menu, and a mandatory 18% service fee, we decided to bid farewell to Sailors Return until it gets bought by someone that renovates the place and steps up the menu and service.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 2
Chris Karavoulias (BostonGreekGeek)
My wife's parents took us there for dinner. While the food wasn't exceptional it was good, you won't be disappointed, but what is exceptional is the service.
Not only do they bring you water as soon as you sit, which is always something to look out for at any restaurant you go to, they make sure to always have your glass full and they were doing the same with my soda.
The waiter even asked me to make sure the meat was medium as I had requested so he could tell the kitchen if not. Very friendly and always around and easy to find if you ever need anything.
Very large restaurant and for parking I would recommend to use their valet parking as it is quite busy if your go for dinner (Florida hours . So early dinner because by 730 the restaurant had plenty of seats).
They also had live music and plenty of outdoor and indoor seating. If you are from colder environments like I am from Massachusetts, you will feel ok outdoors, but if you are used to Florida weather, you may think sitting outdoors is cold for you :).
I honestly was impressed by how good the service is and at some point I saw a little sign saying how they pay their servers fair wages with a 401k and proper insurance and that 18% is already included in the price so tipping more is optional, and then it made sense to me. That's what you get when employees like where they work. I was a waiter for years and can attest to this.
I would go back there when we come back to visit my wife's parents.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Greg Ewing
Piper was excellent!! Always had a smile and was very good at checking with us.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Chris Lewis
Came for the porkchop 🥩 and the porkchop was removed from the menu. That was disappointing to me. The waitress did a very good job for her only being on her 3rd night. Ended up eating the salmon and it was good but I probably won't return unless the porkchop returns.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Brooke M
Something has changed at sailor's return. I have gone there every year for a birthday lunch with my dad and his wife. It used to be reliably delicious. The restaurant used to be packed. What happened? The place was near empty. I ordered a chicken salad on toasted croissant. There was nothing salad about this chicken. It was indistinguishable from a tuna sandwich prepared in an elementary school cafeteria. Very disappointing. Plus the 18% gratuity included on your bill is just over the top outrageous. It's as if they are trying to go from being Sailor's Return to becoming No-one Returns.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 4
Thomas Kenney
Noisy, bad parking. Too many people. Fair food. Not cheap however. Better places to go in Stuart in my opinion.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 3
Lisa Liscio
Came here for my birthday & it was fantastic! I got the wagyu, partner got salmon, mom got filet & dad got crab cakes & we all enjoyed our meals!! Of course we got dessert, the creme brulee was amazing & folks said the peanut butter pie was very good. We definitely enjoyed the food & atmosphere.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crab Cakes, Baked Four Cheese Escargot, Risotto
Bob Burbic
Good food, excellent service, great setting. Plus live band to dance to after dinner. What's not to like.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jane Doe
I almost don’t want to write this because I don’t want competition for a reservation next holiday party! We had a party of 22 for brunch on a Sunday. Tracy the catering manager was great. We’ve been having these parties at a restaurant for many years. The prices and gratuities were in line with what we paid in the past. The service was amazing we had 2 very seasoned servers and Tracy over seeing the party she even thought to provide a gift table even though I totally forgot to ask. The food was impeccable everyone loved everything thing we had from appetizers and salad to the entrees everything was perfect. We never felt rushed or that we had to find someone when anyone wanted anything. I realize I might sound like I know someone there lol but I don’t. They were really that good. The caliber of the service and the food is what one would hope for at a restaurant like the sailor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Skip Kaczynski
The food is never a disappointment. The service is always excellent. You cant go wrong, dining inside or outside. The valets are careful with your vehicle. Be careful of the the speed bumps in the parking lot. They are the size of Mt. Fuji.
Sat on the patio today for lunch with a friend. The service was excellent as expected. Never really had to ask for anything. The black and blue burger is good as always. Just ask, they will make it for you. For a higher end restaurant you need to order the wings as an app. They are absolutely phenomenal. (6) good sized, crispy and full of flavor meaty wings in their homemade sauce. Not just greasy wings smothered in some bottled sauce. They are well worth the effort and the extra napkins you will be needing.
Amazing flavors! Indian dishes are warm, comforting, and full of delicious spices
H.M Hridoy Khan
This app exceeded my expectations. The interface is clean, and all features work smoothly. Definitely recommending to friends!
scott beutler
Great views of the marina and sunset. Sometimes dolphin swim by too. The food is good and portions are large. They bring out fresh, hot rolls and butter before the meal. They have a happy hour menu and seasonal specials. Valet parking is available.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
ms White
Our server was exceptional. A little disappointed w $65 ny strip, but the eggplant app was fabulous!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Jeffrey Pedersen
Always a great place to catch the sunset and listen to a live band. The food is great!
This used to be one of my favorite restaurants in the area. Unfortunately, it has slipped way down my list over the last couple years. It’s been well over a year since we were there last, so I thought we should check it out. Bad idea. No better than the last time. Actually, it’s arguably worse in some ways. With all the new restaurants opening up in the area over the last couple years, Sailors Return stands out in a bad way. It’s old and really needs a thorough renovation. The dining room is small and poorly laid out, and the entrance and hostess station is terribly cramped.
They offer three options for dining; indoor dining, patio, and tiki. I was intrigued by the tiki option but as it turns out, there is no actual “tiki” hut or anything. They just hung some sail cloth shades over the end of the outdoor patio and called it a “tiki”. That area has it’s own bar, and a band stand so plan on it being the noisy area, and likely the warmest area.
I made a reservation and we were seated right on time. After that, it was downhill. We sat at our table being ignored for 10 minutes before my Wife waved the hostess down as she walked by with other customers. After a bit of conversation between a couple employees, a server finally showed up at the table. She took a drink order and that was the last time we saw her for a while. Thought for sure she would stop back at the table to tell us the drinks were coming and ask if we wanted an appetizer but, no. We actually saw her just standing around a few times. That coupled with the fact that the table behind us (also her table), were getting vocal about the slow/poor service, I started thinking that maybe the kitchen was backed up and they were just trying to slow things down? Our drinks came fairly quickly but weren’t very good. We changed to drinks that were more basic for our second round and that worked out better.
Our appetizers were a little slow but not terrible, especially considering that the table behind us were there before us and still didn’t have any food yet. This was about 45 minutes after we arrived. While we were waiting for our entrees, we flagged our server down to ask for some bread. At this point, we were there almost an hour. Our server seemed confused by the request. At first asking if my Wife was asking for “a piece of bread”. My Wife answered, no, I mean like a basket of bread. Our server said she would get us some. When she came back, I happened to notice she brought a basket of bread for the table behind us as well. Interestingly, the table on the other side of us, that had a different server, and arrived several minutes after us, had bread right away and appetizers before we even got our drinks!
This told me that the real issue was our server. I really don’t mind when a restaurant institutes a mandatory 18% service fee, as long as the service is good. Frankly, I usually tip more than that anyway. But I do have a problem with being stuck with the mandatory fee and poor service.
Between the old establishment, poor service, mediocre food and drink, very small menu, and a mandatory 18% service fee, we decided to bid farewell to Sailors Return until it gets bought by someone that renovates the place and steps up the menu and service.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 2
My wife's parents took us there for dinner. While the food wasn't exceptional it was good, you won't be disappointed, but what is exceptional is the service.
Not only do they bring you water as soon as you sit, which is always something to look out for at any restaurant you go to, they make sure to always have your glass full and they were doing the same with my soda.
The waiter even asked me to make sure the meat was medium as I had requested so he could tell the kitchen if not. Very friendly and always around and easy to find if you ever need anything.
Very large restaurant and for parking I would recommend to use their valet parking as it is quite busy if your go for dinner (Florida hours
. So early dinner because by 730 the restaurant had plenty of seats).
They also had live music and plenty of outdoor and indoor seating. If you are from colder environments like I am from Massachusetts, you will feel ok outdoors, but if you are used to Florida weather, you may think sitting outdoors is cold for you :).
I honestly was impressed by how good the service is and at some point I saw a little sign saying how they pay their servers fair wages with a 401k and proper insurance and that 18% is already included in the price so tipping more is optional, and then it made sense to me. That's what you get when employees like where they work. I was a waiter for years and can attest to this.
I would go back there when we come back to visit my wife's parents.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Piper was excellent!! Always had a smile and was very good at checking with us.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Came for the porkchop 🥩 and the porkchop was removed from the menu. That was disappointing to me. The waitress did a very good job for her only being on her 3rd night. Ended up eating the salmon and it was good but I probably won't return unless the porkchop returns.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Something has changed at sailor's return. I have gone there every year for a birthday lunch with my dad and his wife. It used to be reliably delicious. The restaurant used to be packed. What happened? The place was near empty. I ordered a chicken salad on toasted croissant. There was nothing salad about this chicken. It was indistinguishable from a tuna sandwich prepared in an elementary school cafeteria. Very disappointing. Plus the 18% gratuity included on your bill is just over the top outrageous. It's as if they are trying to go from being Sailor's Return to becoming No-one Returns.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 4
Noisy, bad parking. Too many people. Fair food. Not cheap however. Better places to go in Stuart in my opinion.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 3
Came here for my birthday & it was fantastic! I got the wagyu, partner got salmon, mom got filet & dad got crab cakes & we all enjoyed our meals!! Of course we got dessert, the creme brulee was amazing & folks said the peanut butter pie was very good. We definitely enjoyed the food & atmosphere.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crab Cakes, Baked Four Cheese Escargot, Risotto
Good food, excellent service, great setting. Plus live band to dance to after dinner. What's not to like.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I almost don’t want to write this because I don’t want competition for a reservation next holiday party! We had a party of 22 for brunch on a Sunday. Tracy the catering manager was great. We’ve been having these parties at a restaurant for many years. The prices and gratuities were in line with what we paid in the past. The service was amazing we had 2 very seasoned servers and Tracy over seeing the party she even thought to provide a gift table even though I totally forgot to ask. The food was impeccable everyone loved everything thing we had from appetizers and salad to the entrees everything was perfect. We never felt rushed or that we had to find someone when anyone wanted anything. I realize I might sound like I know someone there lol but I don’t. They were really that good. The caliber of the service and the food is what one would hope for at a restaurant like the sailor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food is never a disappointment. The service is always excellent. You cant go wrong, dining inside or outside. The valets are careful with your vehicle. Be careful of the the speed bumps in the parking lot. They are the size of Mt. Fuji.
Sat on the patio today for lunch with a friend. The service was excellent as expected. Never really had to ask for anything. The black and blue burger is good as always. Just ask, they will make it for you. For a higher end restaurant you need to order the wings as an app. They are absolutely phenomenal. (6) good sized, crispy and full of flavor meaty wings in their homemade sauce. Not just greasy wings smothered in some bottled sauce. They are well worth the effort and the extra napkins you will be needing.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Amazing flavors! Indian dishes are warm, comforting, and full of delicious spices
This app exceeded my expectations. The interface is clean, and all features work smoothly. Definitely recommending to friends!
Great views of the marina and sunset. Sometimes dolphin swim by too. The food is good and portions are large. They bring out fresh, hot rolls and butter before the meal. They have a happy hour menu and seasonal specials. Valet parking is available.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Our server was exceptional. A little disappointed w $65 ny strip, but the eggplant app was fabulous!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Always a great place to catch the sunset and listen to a live band. The food is great!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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