Pass-a-Grille, St. Pete Beach, Florida
Cozy Spot on the Beach
Dined in September 2015
It was a beautiful summers day in Central Florida, not as hot as it had been in the weeks prior, but at the same time, I was home on leave from Iraq, and the mid 90’s here in Florida was much better than 135-145 Fahrenheit over there any day of the week. My girlfriend and I were driving around the beach area near to where we lived just south of St. Pete Beach on one of the southernmost islands of the St. Petersburg area called Pass-a-Grille, where we enjoyed a cozy lunch at a local dive called Hurricane Restaurant, a two story building, and patio with the beach on one side, surrounded by shops, and high end homes and condos on the other.
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****
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From the restaurants home page:
Experience the crown jewel of historic Pass-A-Grille – the Hurricane Seafood Restaurant is in the heart of the Pass-A-Grille historical district. Located just across the street from the Gulf, with rooftop twin bars that offer spectacular sunset views, the Hurricane has become a world-renown restaurant for both locals and vacationers, serving the St. Pete Beach community for over 30 years. Offering the finest in fresh, wild-caught seafood in a tantalizing array of appetizers, entrees, drinks, and desserts, the Hurricane dazzles with three levels of dining and complimentary views, seven days a week.
Savor a St. Pete Beach sunset on the Hurricane Watch, overlooking the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, sharing our signature "Colossal Margarita" with friends. Make it a date or celebrate a special occasion on Level Two – featuring an alluring menu of juicy steaks, our signature "Mom's 1945 Crab Cake," and more. Or dine downstairs at the Original Hurricane, amidst a casual yet festive, family-friendly ambiance. Meet for Breakfast, Lunch, or Dinner, or wind down with our Roof-Top Happy Hour, from 12 - 6 pm, Monday through Friday. Whichever level you choose, and whatever the occasion may be, it's all here at the Hurricane!
The Hurricane Seafood Restaurant proudly offers cholesterol-free, trans-fat free, non-GMO, Kosher-certified oil in our cooking. You can browse our website to learn more about our Menu, Upcoming Events, Holiday Buffets and Nightlife. For information about hosting your special event, Contact Us.
Main review:
My Girlfriend and I arrived at the start of lunch, choosing to sit outside on the patio area, with a nice view of the Gulf of Mexico, enjoying our day in the Pass-aGrille area, and since the time of enjoying our lunch here in September, my girlfriend has returned to the area several times to enjoy her afternoons with our dog on the beach. Our original visit to this area was because we were looking for a dog friendly beach in the area. Though many restaurants and stores are dog friendly in this area, not many beaches are, simply because there are a lot of masters that don’t clean up after their pets, so there are fewer beaches every year for pets to enjoy.
They had a very large lunch menu from starters, greens, sandwiches, pastas, land, sea, and seafood specialities. We weren’t that hungry so we bypassed the starter menus and went straight for the entrees. Their starter list did have the usual suspects to most beach style restaurants like calamari, fish spreads, shrimp, and chicken, but also included some gator bites and all beef kabobs. One item of interest that I did almost order was their 1945 crab cake that had been in their family recipe from Maryland. When I return, I will be curious to see if this crab cake is as good as the best restaurant crab cake I had ever eaten before from Hank’s Seafood in Charleston, South Carolina. My girlfriend had a caesar salad topped with blackened shrimp and a cup of lobster bisque labeled as a house speciality.
Instead of going for one of the many entrée’s, pastas, or seafood specials, I felt like being ordinary and simple, having a regular hamburger with cheese and bacon for lunch. As I looked at their menu, there were many selections of interest from a T-Bone steak selection, chicken, Florida grouper platters and pastas that I look forward to trying beyond that crab cake.
After the meal, we bypassed the desserts and continued our exploring of the Pass-a-Grille area. When I returned to work in Iraq a fellow contracted co-worker also lives in the Tampa area, and mentioned that he had been to Hurricane Restaurant several times, and he and his wife were married at the beach across the street.
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5 stars
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is Extraordinary
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4 Stars
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is Outstanding
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3 Stars
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Exceeded Expectations
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2 Stars
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is Above the Average
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1 Star
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is an Average Dining Experience
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No Star Rating
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The Restaurant is Basic, Poor, or Appalling
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Overall Star rating by Wine, Dine, & Play:
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2 of 5
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Ambiance:
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5 of 10
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Quality of the Food:
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6 of 10
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Plate Presentation:
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5 of 10
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Customer Service:
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4 of 10
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Wow Factor:
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4 of 10
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This Restaurant reminds me of:
I was honestly surprised by the experience at Hurricane Restaurant, with ambiance being similar to most beachfront style restaurant, with a basic plate presentation, and quality of food with the same rankings of 5 out of 10 rating. One very impressive area of interest with their quality of food is that they use non-GMO products and oils to cook with, raising the ranking by an additional point in ranking. The customer service was less than normal as we rarely saw the server and she was more like an order taker instead of an actual server so that lowered the rating for that area. The wow factor was that of a normal restaurant, not great but also not bad, giving my overall rating as above average. Compared to other beach restaurants I had been to in the past such as Wipe Out Bar and Grill in San Francisco, and Dunes Restaurant in Cape Town, South Africa which were both very bad experiences, it is good to know that there are better beach style restaurants out there, so thank you Hurricane for making this lunch better than the others in the past.
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Food Prices
(excluding taxes & gratuity)
$£€¥ - Under 50.00
$£€¥ x 2 - 51.00- 99.00
$£€¥ x 3 - Over 100.00
$£€¥ x 4 - Over 200.00
$£€¥ x 5 - Over 400.00
**Currencies chosen reflect the world’s major travelers and restaurant connoisseur’s**
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My food bill:
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Currency:
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Price chart:
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$32.00
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United States Dollar (USD)
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$
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£21.00
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Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP)
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£
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€30.00
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European Union (EUR)
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€
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$43.00
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Canadian Dollar (CAN)
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$
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$44.00
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Australian Dollar (AUS)
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$
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¥205.00
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Chinese Yuan (CNY)
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¥¥¥¥
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Cost of wines and other alcoholic beverages in $$ USD:
$0
Review basics:
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Corkage fee’s:
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American Restaurant standard is $25.00 per bottle
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Restaurant style:
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Casual
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Reservations:
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Not Required
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Walk-ins:
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Accepted, but not guaranteed
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Dress code:
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Casual
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Child policy:
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The Restaurants reviewed on this site may have a child’s menu or cater to them; however for full enjoyment of food and wine, it is recommended for children not to be in attendance, unless they have been trained in proper etiquette.
Hire a Babysitter.
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Cuisine style:
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Contemporary, Seafood, American, Southern, Caribbean, Beach food, & Vegetarian
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Music styles:
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Background instrumental
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Experiences:
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Lounge, Great outdoor dining, Rustic, Tourist grabber, and a Neighborhood gem.
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Gratuities:
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Industry standard is 18-20% added to parties of 6 or more
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Payments:
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Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express
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Parking:
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Street Parking
1 hour validated parking
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Transport options:
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Bus, taxi, limousine, personal vehicle, and walking
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Wifi
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The restaurants reviewed on this site may have Wi-Fi, but do not require you to go online, because the excitement of the food and wine alone will keep you too entertained instead of checking your social media and emails.
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Noise level:
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Medium
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Smoking:
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Nonsmoking restaurant, and nonsmoking patio
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Patio:
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Yes
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Restaurant address:
809 Gulf Way
St. Pete Beach, FL 33706
(Historic Pass-A-Grille Beach)
Neighborhood:
Historic Pass-A-Grille
Cross streets:
8th Avenue and 9th Avenue
GPS Coordinates:
Latitude: 27.688390
Longetude: -82.737530
Contact Information:
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Maître d, Reservations:
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(727) 360-9558
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Restaurant Website:
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Social Media & Accolades:
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Hours:
Standard Time (GMT - 5:00)
Hours:
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Monday
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7:00 am –10:00 pm
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Tuesday
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7:00 am –10:00 pm
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Wednesday
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7:00 am –10:00 pm
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Thursday
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7:00 am –10:00 pm
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Friday
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7:00 am –11:00 pm
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Saturday
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7:00 am –11:00 pm
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Sunday
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7:00 am –10:00 pm
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Reviewed by:
Sean Overpeck (CFE) in Bagram, Afghanistan, 2009
Executive Chef
Chef Sean cooks for soldiers in Afghanistan, 2012:
“Culinary perfection consists not in doing extraordinary things,
But in doing ordinary things extraordinarily well.”
-Angelique Arnauld (1591-1661)
TTFN
