The Banyan House

Review summary

1. C

   Claude

   New York City

   3 reviews

   4.0

   3 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   To start with, the food is largely amazing. The lettuce wedge salad is a triumph. The linguini with lobster and truffle cream was magnificent: al dente but not undercooked, and a lobster tail the size of my forearm. So, too, the double cut lamb chops — done Moroccan style, with sumptuously subtle spices and roasted marble potatoes, carrots and Brussels sprouts with cold yogurt, it was sublime to the point of saying it’s the best I’ve had. However: The ribeye, admittedly a fatty cut of meat best cooked medium well to ensure it melts into the sinew, was a little too — easily a third of the cut was blubber. The mac and cheese that comes with it is too rich by half, although the broccolini was perfect tender crisp and charred just right. Overall, 4 and a half stars. The only issue here is ambiance. Dining outside is heaven: Shockingly picturesque view of the bay, gorgeous sunset. The inside is modern and sleek, but it really suffers from being a slave to the the name of the place: It has an actual banyan tree inside which, sure, is striking. But the resulting architecture means super high ceilings and lots more surface areas on which sound will endlessly bounce. Inside it is loud. Very loud to the point where it’s a bit hard to hold conversation if you’re middle aged and certainly impossible for older folks to discern what’s being said. All of which is to say: Go, but try and get an outdoor patio table. Oh, and the prices are beyond reasonable. A meal of this quality and this waterfront location in Venice or Sarasota will set you back 2 or three times as much. Dinner for three was $150 before tip, excluding gratuity and without cocktails or wine. Overall, 4.5 stars owing to the challenging interior acoustics and the botched ribeye steak, & a slow kitchen. But forgive that, & it’s a 6 star gem a mere 19 minutes from the oversubscribed town of Venice. My advice is: Make the trip. You can always go to the Crow’s Nest to be mistreated & taken for granted some other day!
   

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2. k

   karen

   Richmond

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Cem was an excellent server and definitely added to our experience. The food was outstanding and it was a very busy night! Impressed and will return.
   

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3. K

   KIM

   San Francisco

   3 reviews

   5.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Wonderful meal and nice service! Would highly recommend.
   

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4. D

   Daniel

   VIP

   Naples

   3 reviews

   1.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 1
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   Very over rated and over priced. I eat out every night and never mind paying for great taste, value, and service. It’s VERY loud, fish was hard and cold, no it wasn’t sushi, it was halibut, I think! Many of tables were left dirty after guests finished. It is in the category of “try hard” they want to be what they simply don’t have, yet! I hope they can turn it around, but for now the only glimmer of hope was the onion soup which was on point. I am not a drinker but did see a few drinks that might make Jon Taffer’s list. I wish you the best but for now I’m shutting this place down. ✌🏼
   

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5. D

   Denise

   Greater Boston

   3 reviews

   4.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 4

   Kelly our waitress was extremely attentive and very pleasant! She is an asset to the restaurant. The ribeye was delicious as well as the beet salad and French onion soup. I highly recommend this restaurant.
   

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6. L

   Lori

   New York City

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Beautiful location. Wonderful choices. Excellent service
   

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7. L

   Lori

   VIP

   Tampa

   56 reviews

   4.0

   56 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 5

   I made reservations to have brunch there in Sunday since my hubby was out of town up to Valentine's Day. Our drive down was a little busy as the exit off of 75 has a lot of construction taking place. Once there we were seated right away. The restaurant only has the brunch buffet available but that was fine with us. I loved the interior of the rest and we had a nice table by the windows in the back. I enjoyed my meal and finished by having a chocolate covered strawberry. My hubby said that the Mac and cheese was a little dry but everything else tasted fine. We were a little disappointed that for just the two of us they included the gratuity automatically. We were able to enjoy walking through the farmers market after eating. A nice location.
   

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8. G

   Gaspare

   Tampa

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Very nice place to eat good food good atmosphere we'll go back
   

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9. E

   Eric

   Tampa

   1 review

   1.0

   1 review

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 1
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 4

   When the waitress touched our food with her bare hands we stood up and left !
   

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10. D

    Diana

    Indiana

    5 reviews

    4.0

    5 reviews

    Dined 2 days ago

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    First time there, the buffet offered lots of options. I’d say more breakfast items than those to go with the carving table. Shrimp was wonderful!! They offer unlimited Bloody Mary’s or Mimosa’s for 20.00. My husband ordered the Bloody Mary, and we were charged the 20.00. I don’t know if there’s an option to just order 1 for that charge or not, but I think the server should ask the customer if they want one or unlimited. We were not expecting to pay 20.00 for the one drink.
    

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