Nest Full of New

Have you been to Bonefish Grill lately?  I hadn’t. I knew Bonefish Grill as a restaurant near my parent’s house (in another state, mind you) that closed not long after it opened. I do remember the amazing duck I used to get there.  Well, flash forward two years. Bonefish Grill, a casual chain with a solid reputation for service and food, has recreated their menu and kindly let me in on it! They sent me a gift card, a mini-menu and a sweet invitation to come by and give them a try.

I invited my daughter to be my date for lunch and we set off to one of the Bonefish Grill locations in the Atlanta area (shout out to Webb Gin!)  We arrived early and found a near empty restaurant. This was the “tax free” weekend here in Georgia for back-to-school shopping, and I think everyone was out shopping. (They did all show up before we left, by the way!)  We were charmingly greeted at the entrance by Kayla, who sat us promptly. She also happened to be our server for lunch and took our drink orders.  Because it wasn’t 5 o’clock here, we didn’t have any of the new cocktails, but the Fresh Pineapple Martini is on my list.  You just can’t go wrong with Malibu Rum, Elderflower liqueur, fresh pineapple, lemon and homemade vanilla bean simple syrup.  Don’t like pineapple? There’s a raspberry version, too!

I really dug these wireless tablets for sending in orders. What a time saver! Kayla was very gracious to let me take a photo of her with it.

Kayla was really helpful and explained that Bonefish Grill only serves fresh fish and seafood that is hand cut daily. She told us the fish and soup of the day. I noticed they offer a gluten-free menu, as well. I felt the lunch prices are pretty reasonable particularly considering they make everything fresh. That is a big deal to me. When I go to a nice restaurant, I don’t want pre-prepared foods that arrive in bulk. I want fresh!

Appetizers. I love appetizers. I’m the one who fills up one the bread and appetizers before the entree is even served. While the Lunch Menu was more limited than Dinner, we still found two new appetizers to try.  We ordered the Bang Bang Shrimp Flatbread and the Twisted Edamame Hummus.

The Hummus is made from edamame rather than chickpeas, and topped with a roasted tomato relish and pepitas, served with crispy flatbread chips. This was fabulous!We make our own hummus, but haven’t tried to do it with edamame. It used lime rather than lemon, and the sweet, roasted tomatoes were a great punch of tangy flavor.

 

The Bang Bang Shrimp Flatbread is mozzarella cheese, crispy shrimp, cilantro and a creamy, spicy sauce on flatbread. The verdict? The shrimp, in true Bonefish Grill style, was delicious. The red sauce underneath was very spicy.  Thumbs up from me, thumbs down from my daughter (because of the spice level.)

For entrees, my daughter was looking forward to trying one of the new bowls, but none were offered on the Lunch Menu. She wanted to test out the Fire Roasted Vegetables Bowl, and the Seared Ahi Tuna Bowl looked really tasty, but it wasn’t happening this time.  Instead, she got the new Basil Fettuccine with chicken,  that comes with artichoke pesto, asparagus, peppers, tomatoes, white wine cream sauce and Parmesan cheese.   This was so good and very filling. Colors were beautiful!

I got a really nice Surf & Turf Burger that is an Angus beef burger with Bang Bang shrimp. Very well seasoned and grilled! Served with House-made Parmesan fries.  The buttery brioche bun made it simply awesome!

Finally, dessert!  S’mores Flatbread coming up! This clever creation is flatbread spread with creamy chocolate and topped with toasted marshmallow and sliced almonds, sprinkled with graham cracker crumbs.

(I know you’re probably thinking “hmmm…so many things with flatbread.” You’re right, but they were all good! I didn’t even realize this trend until I sat down to type this up and my computer kept telling me that “flatbread” isn’t a word!)

 

The only complaint is the inconsistent preparation and nearly nonexistent graham cracker crumbs. I’m glad mine was the one on the right!

Overall, the meal was fantastic. I can’t say enough good things about our server, Kayla, who was very patient with us and all the drawings and photos we did. She even brought us extra brown butcher paper to draw on! We received a coupon for our next visit, too.

We spoke at length with Darwin Johnson who is over Guest Relations and also a Brand Ambassador for Bonefish Grill. He shared that the new Shrimp Pad Thai was popular at their location and that they are expanding their hours to include lunch six days a week (rather than just Saturdays) and Sunday Brunch.  So few restaurants strike the right balance of serving well-crafted food in what Bonefish Grill likes to call a “Polished Casual” atmosphere while being totally family-friendly!  Families shouldn’t have to choose between great food and having a fun night out with the kids.   Bonefish Grill is also cozy enough for a date night, and with it’s colorful lineup of cocktails, it’s a great spot for a girl’s night out.

Thanks for having me, Bonefish Grill! I’ll be back to check out the Dinner Menu and I’m bringing friends!

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I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.