Fernandina Beach Eatery Popular With Locals & Tourists, The Surf Restaurant Shut Down Via Inspection

Photo byIvan Bandura, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Florida has several restaurants that are part of beachy hotels. Examples are Shepherd's Beach Resort and Havana Beach Bar and Grill, to name a few options. Unfortunately, one restaurant in this genre, Fernandina Beach's The Surf Restaurant Bar Grill & Motel, was recently temporarily shut down after a state inspection.

About The Surf Restaurant & Bar: This eatery has been serving the Fernandina Beach community since 1957. As you might suspect, it offers visitors to (and residents of) the beach a casual, laid-back, and fun dining experience. It's not fancy and serves comfort foods like burgers, wings, and pizza.

Patrons give this eatery 4.2 out of 5 stars on Google reviews. Many mention the friendly staff and some rave about the shrimp basket. A reviewer named John wrote:

"Just had the fried shrimp basket and it's the best I've had on the Island and I've eaten at most of the restaurants here. Our server, Ava, was very engaging and made our experience even more enjoyable."

What Happened At Inspection?: According to the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, an inspection occurred on July 8, 2024. At that time, 5 violations were noted.

Basic violations came from a cup being stored in flour and employees leaving their personal drinks on the prep table.

An intermediate violation came because a bottle of chemicals wasn't labeled.

High-priority violations came for a high number of rodent droppings as follows (and taken directly from the inspection report:)

• approximately rodent droppings 35 on top of the dishwasher;
• approximately 30 under the dishwasher;
• approximately 10 under the triple sink;
• approximately 40 under the oven in the prep area;
• approximately 6 rodent droppings on top of the oven in the prep area;
• approximately 2 rodent droppings on top of boxed wine in the dry storage area;
• approximately 10 under the dry storage rack under balsamic vinegar;
• 5 droppings under black rolling charts near the ice machine;
• approximately 30 in the corner of the ice tea-making area;
• approximately 75 behind warmers in the back prep area near the ice cream freezer;
• approximately 20 in the back prep area/pizza area;
• approximately 7 in the wait station next to a small bar; and
• approximately 5 droppings under the hand sink in a large bar.

Because of some of the above violations, the restaurant was temporarily shut down.

At a follow-up on July 10, 2024, the eatery "met inspection standards" and was free to reopen.

This is not the first closure for the eatery. It was also temporarily closed down in October of 2021.

Please note that an inspection is one moment in time and not necessarily how a restaurant conducts itself every day.