I recently dined at The Sandbar, and while the ambiance and food were enjoyable, my experience was marred by a disappointing encounter with the manager. Despite his politeness, the request for us to vacate our seats abruptly due to a reservation just before a performance was unsettling seeing that I was still eating and drinking. We had arrived early enough to secure a table in the empty restaurant and were looking forward to our daughter's Irish dancing performance. However, being asked to leave left us feeling unwelcome and rushed, causing us to miss her performance as we were forced to stand in the back. It's understandable for restaurants with limited seating to manage reservations carefully, but the lack of flexibility in this situation was disheartening. While the manager was kind and polite, there was a lack of tact in handling the situation. In the future, it would be appreciated if the server could discreetly inquire if we would like our check rather than rushing us out.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
The Harvest Hunters
Love that the hotel as an option for a casual bar, but the service was very slow.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Karin K.
I so far have been ignored at the bar (3 different occasions)with the added slow rude service at the table. I give it a 3 because I have had friends tell me that it is getting better. Honestly, there are so many great places to eat in Canandaigua that have great service and food, that i have not yet tried a 4th attempt
I Dres
Average restaurant food at a premium restaurant price.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Lobster Roll
Sunsetwinewaves
We chose to eat lunch here out of convenience. We were staying at The Lake House and were headed out to do wine tastings so wanted something to eat prior to leaving. We had three cheeseburgers, a beet salad, and a grilled chicken sandwich. The beet salad was so small the person who ordered it left hungry. It was a small portion of beets and came with microgreens which were exactly that - micro! The chicken sandwich was dry, and the burgers were just ok. They were pitched the burgers to us as "smash burgers" which sounded so good but were very disappointing. The handhelds came with fries that were good. We also had one glass of wine and one Blue Moon. Total for lunch was $135 for five of us before tip. We ate outside which had a nice view of the water on a perfect fall weather day.
Becky Holbein
The atmosphere and drinks were great. For being such a nice place, the service was subpar and the food was very mediocre. We had a few dietary restrictions at our table, and our server acted very inconvenienced by them. Disappointed over all.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
DebJohn Schuyler
Fish fry was mushy cod with a greasy deep fried batter! very expensive.. not worth a trip back there from Naples!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 3
Michael Sortino
It is very peaceful to sit alongside the water in the Adirondack chairs. Also have fire pits for cooler days. Drinks are expensive.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
frank d
Worst $24 hamburger I ever had. been to the sandbar several times and always had a good time but last night was terrible the hamburger was nothing more than 2 very thin frozen patties cooked like a piece of leather. The meal was on a way too small rectangular plate as soon as I pulled my first French fry off the pile half of them ended up on the table. My wife had the fish fry the crust was very soggy the fish fry was placed on top of good French fries making them moist.
Kevin Markman
Beautiful spot along the lake. Nice walk on the boardwalk as we waited for a table at sunset. Food was decent and satisfying but not like wow this is good. Crab was really good in the crab cake. Bun was not.
I ordered a beet salad $18, salad was cut up beets and dressing with some micro greens sprinkled on top, dish was 2” round. Not enough to feed a fly. I also ordered a side of fries at a ridiculous price of $9. My husband order the chicken with avocado, at a ridiculous price of $22. Sandwich consisted of a dried piece of chicken placed in an ordinary roll with mashed avocado. Manager explained price of food was the way it was because they use fresh ingredients, well I bloody well hope they use fresh ingredients. What other type of ingredients would you expect from a restaurant? Way over priced for quality and quantity of food. I left hungry after paying a $77 bill. (2 drinks included)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 5
Emily Merrell
Had a reservation, waited for 30 minutes to be seated after the hostess said "oh, I don't even look at reservations. It'll be about 10 minutes." I told her that I requested a table in the shade because my kids and I are red heads and burn easily. After waiting 30 minutes, I walked back up to the hostess stand and a table was magically available but it was directly in the sun. I said, I'm sorry, but is there anything shaded? She laughed at us and said you'll have to wait again. Seriously, it shouldn't be this way when you have a reservation. We saw 4 older people walk up, without a reservation, and get seated instantly. If you don't look rich and entitled prepare to receive terrible service.
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
Carrie
I miss the old sand bar. This one is way too expensive. The food is awful and so is the menu. And the staff is rude. They treat you poorly.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Cole Moclair
Perfectly serviceable high end restaurant that makes up for the pricy food and small portions with a killer view and good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Brad A.
Ironically, the app asked me to leave a review...bad ask. Have had awesome food elsewhere this weekend - but jeeze, what a bust this place was. Hostess was rude when we walked up - seemed annoyed that we asked for a table. Ok, whatever - maybe she had a bad day. After an hour wait - which was totally fine, we were able to walk around the beautiful property (truly very pretty) - we were texted to return. We were sat, given menus - same girl took us to our table, same complete lack of caring. Ordered shrimp cocktail, lobster roll and crab cake sandwich. Had cocktails from prior to being seated, so didn't order any. Shrimp cocktail was pricey, but came with four jumbo shrimp. They were fine. Lobster roll - asked if it was served hot or cold. The waitress said hot, it was cold. Came with an ok side of greens. Likely didn't know because she'd never been told. Crab cake sandwich - yikes. The roll was hard around the edges, almost as if it sat out and dried up before it was toasted. One thin slice of tomato, and a DOT of aioli about the size of a penny. No exaggeration there. Bit into the sandwich and the cake fell apart. Completely flavorless. Lukewarm. Not even old bay and Jesus could save this thing. It was the worst crab dish I've ever had. Add to the food not being great, the server didn't once ask how the food was or check in on us, or we could have let her know about our experience. Just overall a mess. Hopefully it's just a seasonal place, and you can shut down in the winter and revamp. We left and got McD's and ice cream from a Cheshire Farms Creamery - it was better and about $80 cheaper. Save yourself the frustration of paying good money for bad food and go ANYWHERE else.
I recently dined at The Sandbar, and while the ambiance and food were enjoyable, my experience was marred by a disappointing encounter with the manager. Despite his politeness, the request for us to vacate our seats abruptly due to a reservation just before a performance was unsettling seeing that I was still eating and drinking. We had arrived early enough to secure a table in the empty restaurant and were looking forward to our daughter's Irish dancing performance. However, being asked to leave left us feeling unwelcome and rushed, causing us to miss her performance as we were forced to stand in the back. It's understandable for restaurants with limited seating to manage reservations carefully, but the lack of flexibility in this situation was disheartening. While the manager was kind and polite, there was a lack of tact in handling the situation. In the future, it would be appreciated if the server could discreetly inquire if we would like our check rather than rushing us out.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Love that the hotel as an option for a casual bar, but the service was very slow.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
I so far have been ignored at the bar (3 different occasions)with the added slow rude service at the table. I give it a 3 because I have had friends tell me that it is getting better. Honestly, there are so many great places to eat in Canandaigua that have great service and food, that i have not yet tried a 4th attempt
Average restaurant food at a premium restaurant price.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Lobster Roll
We chose to eat lunch here out of convenience. We were staying at The Lake House and were headed out to do wine tastings so wanted something to eat prior to leaving. We had three cheeseburgers, a beet salad, and a grilled chicken sandwich. The beet salad was so small the person who ordered it left hungry. It was a small portion of beets and came with microgreens which were exactly that - micro! The chicken sandwich was dry, and the burgers were just ok. They were pitched the burgers to us as "smash burgers" which sounded so good but were very disappointing. The handhelds came with fries that were good. We also had one glass of wine and one Blue Moon. Total for lunch was $135 for five of us before tip. We ate outside which had a nice view of the water on a perfect fall weather day.
The atmosphere and drinks were great. For being such a nice place, the service was subpar and the food was very mediocre. We had a few dietary restrictions at our table, and our server acted very inconvenienced by them. Disappointed over all.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Fish fry was mushy cod with a greasy deep fried batter! very expensive.. not worth a trip back there from Naples!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 3
It is very peaceful to sit alongside the water in the Adirondack chairs. Also have fire pits for cooler days. Drinks are expensive.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Worst $24 hamburger I ever had. been to the sandbar several times and always had a good time but last night was terrible the hamburger was nothing more than 2 very thin frozen patties cooked like a piece of leather. The meal was on a way too small rectangular plate as soon as I pulled my first French fry off the pile half of them ended up on the table. My wife had the fish fry the crust was very soggy the fish fry was placed on top of good French fries making them moist.
Beautiful spot along the lake. Nice walk on the boardwalk as we waited for a table at sunset. Food was decent and satisfying but not like wow this is good. Crab was really good in the crab cake. Bun was not.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crab Cake
Restaurantji Recommends
I ordered a beet salad $18, salad was cut up beets and dressing with some micro greens sprinkled on top, dish was 2” round. Not enough to feed a fly. I also ordered a side of fries at a ridiculous price of $9. My husband order the chicken with avocado, at a ridiculous price of $22. Sandwich consisted of a dried piece of chicken placed in an ordinary roll with mashed avocado. Manager explained price of food was the way it was because they use fresh ingredients, well I bloody well hope they use fresh ingredients. What other type of ingredients would you expect from a restaurant? Way over priced for quality and quantity of food. I left hungry after paying a $77 bill. (2 drinks included)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 5
Had a reservation, waited for 30 minutes to be seated after the hostess said "oh, I don't even look at reservations. It'll be about 10 minutes." I told her that I requested a table in the shade because my kids and I are red heads and burn easily. After waiting 30 minutes, I walked back up to the hostess stand and a table was magically available but it was directly in the sun. I said, I'm sorry, but is there anything shaded? She laughed at us and said you'll have to wait again. Seriously, it shouldn't be this way when you have a reservation. We saw 4 older people walk up, without a reservation, and get seated instantly. If you don't look rich and entitled prepare to receive terrible service.
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
I miss the old sand bar. This one is way too expensive. The food is awful and so is the menu. And the staff is rude. They treat you poorly.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Perfectly serviceable high end restaurant that makes up for the pricy food and small portions with a killer view and good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Ironically, the app asked me to leave a review...bad ask. Have had awesome food elsewhere this weekend - but jeeze, what a bust this place was. Hostess was rude when we walked up - seemed annoyed that we asked for a table. Ok, whatever - maybe she had a bad day. After an hour wait - which was totally fine, we were able to walk around the beautiful property (truly very pretty) - we were texted to return. We were sat, given menus - same girl took us to our table, same complete lack of caring. Ordered shrimp cocktail, lobster roll and crab cake sandwich. Had cocktails from prior to being seated, so didn't order any. Shrimp cocktail was pricey, but came with four jumbo shrimp. They were fine. Lobster roll - asked if it was served hot or cold. The waitress said hot, it was cold. Came with an ok side of greens. Likely didn't know because she'd never been told. Crab cake sandwich - yikes. The roll was hard around the edges, almost as if it sat out and dried up before it was toasted. One thin slice of tomato, and a DOT of aioli about the size of a penny. No exaggeration there. Bit into the sandwich and the cake fell apart. Completely flavorless. Lukewarm. Not even old bay and Jesus could save this thing. It was the worst crab dish I've ever had. Add to the food not being great, the server didn't once ask how the food was or check in on us, or we could have let her know about our experience. Just overall a mess. Hopefully it's just a seasonal place, and you can shut down in the winter and revamp. We left and got McD's and ice cream from a Cheshire Farms Creamery - it was better and about $80 cheaper. Save yourself the frustration of paying good money for bad food and go ANYWHERE else.