Olde Florida Seafood Restaurant
Matlacha, Florida, USA
Cuisine Style: Seafood
Average Price: $$
Overall Rating: 2/5
Dined: October 2019
By Sean Overpeck (CFE)
**A full article and index glossary of restaurants, wines, recipes and travel for
Wine Dine and Play are in the pages section above, or by following these links:
Olde Fish House Zomato rating:
Olde Fish House Culinary Team:
Dustin Daake
Brandon Dousharm
The Olde Fish House is located in Matlacha, one of five small communities near Cape Coral located on a small island in Matlacha Pass, east of the larger Pine Island. It is an "Old Florida" fishing village, home to many colorful art galleries, island boutiques, restaurants, and traditional Floridian cottages that have murals matching the “hippy” vibe of the village itself. The restaurant changed over to new ownership in 2012, and besides a small hick-up in 2016 has been going strong.
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Entrance |
You park out front, walk between two buildings used by the kitchen to a patio deck overlooking Matlacha Pass filled with wooden picnic tables instead of your typical patio dining furniture. The fish market which was around long before the restaurant would buy their product from the fisherman that docked out back and sold it to the customers out front, dating back to the 1950s. Most of the fish on the menu still comes from the fisherman that delivers their seafood here still comes from local fishermen, some of whom unload their catch along the docks outback. You Can also get some Florida gator or frog legs as well as a few land items. Once your order is placed the food is delivered in Styrofoam plates served with plastic cutlery. In a world that is moving away from this style of service for environmental purposes, they are still behind and could go to a carry-out box made from paper or even reusable Melamine plates.
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Patio |
Olde Fish House Menu:
- Starters
- Soups
- Sides
- Sandwiches
- Po’ Boys
- Baskets
- Platters
- Desserts
Most plates that you order will also come with two hushpuppies with a side of local honey upon request, which we found out about after we ate them. The main hit to most of the plates side items is the coleslaw. For alcohol, they have a license to sell beer and wine, but honestly, folks bypass the wine as it is of very low quality in taste and the red wine is not kept at the proper temperatures. My wife took a few sips and that was enough. I started with a Yuengling then when the server mentioned a few IPA beers I went for them in place of the Pennsylvania classic. The Two hearted Ale is named after the Two Hearted River in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and according to the beer-makers tasting notes it is bursting with hop aromas ranging from pine to grapefruit from massive hop additions in both the kettle and the fermenter. Perfectly balanced with a malt backbone and combined with the signature fruity aromas of Bell's house yeast.
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| Olde Fish House Marina / IPA Beers |
The second beer I had later in the evening was a local Florida beer from Islamorada Island in the Florida Keys called the Channel Marker IPA by the Islamorada Beer Company. According to there tasting notes and what I picked up on an aroma of toasted and caramel malts over earthy hops with citrus grapefruit tones and slight oxidation. Taste follows a touch of spiciness, though clean and hoppy finish with an unexpected malt backbone.
We dined on Tuesday night which has become bingo night where the funds not won by the games are donated to a local charity. We started with the appetizer fish spread which is a favorite of ours to have to be that most Florida restaurants serve it on the menu. The spreads vary from flavor of the fish to how it is smoked and prepared, so many years ago I created a scale to rate the spreads we ate from a 1 to a 6 with six being the best. As the restaurant gets most of its fish from the water along its side it adds a bonus in flavor plus quality and from our tasting, rate Olde Fish House spread at a 4. The spread was delicate, with enhanced ingredients, nice flavor, fresh taste, great smoke, common arrangements of lettuce, fried chips, and lemon, it was an in-state or local fish, superior in quality taste.
(6) THE BEST - Top-notch quality, excellent flavor profiles, memorable presentation, rare ingredients, organic, non-GMO, sustainable, local, immense-colossal quality of fish, and extravagant smoke flavors
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(5) DAMN GOOD - Fantastic smoke, exceptional quality, eclectic flavor, nice display, dedicated local sourcing, beautiful quality fish, possibly sustainable, non-GMO
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(4) GOOD - delicate, Enhanced ingredients, nice flavor, fresh taste, great smoke, common arrangements, in-state local, superior quality fish
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(3) BETTER - Nice ingredients, higher-desirable quality, okay flavor and taste, good smoke content, maybe from in-state sources, but possibly a GMO
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(2) OKAY - Nothing amazing, a regular spread, fair quality, highly probable GMO product, might be from the state, most likely not, fabricated or mainstream smoke products
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(1) BAD - Taste old, horrible seasoning, cheap smoke, manufactured, heavy GMO product, not local, bad smell
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Smoked Fish Spread |
For entrees, as we enjoyed playing bing, my wife enjoyed a lighter dish and was not in the mood for seafood having the grilled cheese which came with two hushpuppies and a side of rice.
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Grilled Cheese |
From the baskets portion of the menu, I had the combo plate blackened versus fried since the other items that came with the dish were all fried from the French fries, hushpuppies, and fried clam strips. The fish of that day was the classic and very tasty Gulf grouper, then the dish is finished with the coleslaw and dipping sides. The presentation was on a smaller styrofoam plate and there were so many items with the dish that it overcrowded the plate. The first thing that came to mind was not really exciting, but antacids. One taste of the grouper, however, changed that between the freshness of the fish, the seasoning, and the flaky crispness of the fish. The texture of the fish was smooth and melted in the mouth. The other items being fried were fillers and had the taste of hydrogenated oil and flour, though the hushpuppies were lighter and had flavor beyond that.
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Combo Plate |
Dessert:
We did not have dessert during this visit, but some items of interest on the menu include the chocolate cover key lime pie on a stick.
Plus check out some of these wonderful selections from Wine Dine and Play:
Please see these guidelines for Tipping in Restaurants and on following proper etiquette, customs, cultures, and avoiding assumptions when you dine out.
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Final notes, review basics, observations, and more pictures:
Most reviews are subjective, depending on the writer; but they should also be responsible, and respectfully written, upholding the truth, and accurately conveying the experience to the best of the writer's knowledge, even if it includes metaphors the restaurant may not like to read about. My ratings are by the stars I award (from 0 to 5). The rating is calculated on a point accumulation of six separate factors based on individual experience. They include wine and other beverage selections, plate presentation, customer service, restaurant or café ambience, food quality, and wow factor.
To see more details of this rating list, read this article:
Overall from this experience and the score factors outlined in the ‘about page’ section, based on my individual experience and rating, I give Olde Fish House a 2 out of 5 stars, meaning that they were far above the average dining experience of most restaurants.
Scores are detailed in the factor chart below:
Formula Factor Conclusions and Overall Ratings for Olde Fish House
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Max Points Possible:
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Total Points Awarded:
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Total Points deducted:
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Ambience
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11
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10
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1
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Food quality
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10
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6
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4
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Plate presentation
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8
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4
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4
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Customer service
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9
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9
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0
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Alcohol and other beverages
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6
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3
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3
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Total regular points awarded
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44
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32
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12
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Total percentage — less the Bonus
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0.727272727272727
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“Wow” factor BONUS
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5
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0
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0
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Total bonus percentage
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0
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Total percentage and bonus for a final star rating
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0.727272727272727
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Stars Awarded (see chart below)
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- 0 - 5
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2
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**A full break down and explanation of the observations and point disbursement is available in the linked article above. To receive a detailed copy of your score, feel free to contact me at any time and I will provide it to you.**
***
Overall Star Rating:
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2 of 5 Stars:
73% Rating with a 0 point “wow” bonus
Far Above Average Dining Experience
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Corkage fees:
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Olde Fish House does not list any corkage fee’s however, most American restaurants charge $25.00 per bottle
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Restaurant-style:
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Casual dining
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Cuisine Style at Olde Fish House:
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American, Seafood
Allergen or dietary accommodations:
Gulf-to-Table, Gluten-free choices, Pescatarian, Vegetarian Options
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Reservations:
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Not Required
Walk-Ins:
Accepted, but not guaranteed
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Dress code:
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Casual attire
It’s Florida, everybody wears flip-flops!
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Child policy:
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The Restaurants reviewed on this site may have a kids menu or cater to them; however, for full enjoyment of food and wine, it is recommended that kids not to be in attendance, unless they have been trained in proper etiquette.
If not then:
Hire a Babysitter!
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Olde Fish House Experiences:
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Contemporary, Great outdoor dining, Rustic, Scenic views, Hole-in-the-wall, Tourist grabber, and a Neighborhood Gem.
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Payments:
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Cash, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express
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Parking:
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Olde Fish House has a private lot
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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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Olde Fish House is a non-smoking restaurant with a non-smoking patio
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Patio or terrace:
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Yes,
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Food Prices
(excludes, alcohol, taxes & 20% gratuity’s)
$£€¥ - Under 50.00 (inexpensive)
$£€¥ x 2 - 51.00- 99.00 (moderate)
$£€¥ x 3 - Over 100.00 (pricey)
$£€¥ x 4 - Over 200.00 (expensive)
$£€¥ x 5 - Over 400.00 (very expensive)
**Currencies reflect the world’s major travelers, restaurant, or wine connoisseur’s**
Currency:
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Price
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United States Dollar (USD)
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$$
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Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP)
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£
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Canadian Dollar (CAN)
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$$
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Chinese Yuan (CNY)
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¥¥¥¥
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European Union (EUR)
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€€
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Alcohol prices:
$30.00 USD
Olde Fish House:
4530 Pine Island Road
Matlacha, Florida
33993, United States
Contact Information:
Restaurant:
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Olde Fish House
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Maître d or host:
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+1 239-282-9577
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Email Us:
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Serving hours:
Eastern Standard Time
(GMT, Zulu, or UTC - 5:00)
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Daily: Mon-Sun
11:00 am - 8:00 pm
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Social Media
And
Accolades for Olde Fish House:
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****
The world’s best restaurants is a subjective list of who is writing it and changes on a regular basis. The Wine Dine and Play best experiences are based on my highest rated stared restaurants, meaning that the visit was an outstanding or extraordinary experience. From cafés, chains, mom + pops, hole in the walls, to fine dining including a few Michelin spots. Visit the Top 100 page to see the entire list.
A few to tease you with…
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Highly creative new American molecular gastronomy tasting menus
Chicago, Illinois, USA
|
Contemporary-Authentic Mexican Cuisine
St. Petersburg, Florida, USA
|
A Re:Start business at “Little High Eatery”
Christchurch, New Zealand
|
Other Olde Fish House Pictures:
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| Olde Fish House Marina / View from the patio |
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Chotskies |
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| Olde Fish House Marina / Seagull |
“Culinary perfection consists not in doing extraordinary things,
But in doing ordinary things extraordinarily well.”
-Angelique Arnauld (1591-1661)
Who is John Galt?
TTFN
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