Coastal Blue Oceanside Bar & Grill

We went to Coastal Blue with friends for the first time. We asked for the outside dining. From the moment we stepped outside until we left for the evening was a wonderful experience . We were greeted by our server who was friendly and knowledgeable . We each ordered a different entree and everything was fresh and delicious. We were also greeted by a member of the management staff who was friendly and very gracious. We felt as if we were old friends. I highly recommend coming for dinner here. The cocktail menu was extensive! We are planning our next visit already !

This place was AWFUL! Sat down for lunch mid week right before high season so it definitely was not because we're too busy. We waited about 15 minutes before anyone came to take our order . There were only 2 other tables in the restaurant. I asked for a medium well burger and it came out rare and bloody. Had to send it back. My husband ordered the fish tacos that came with fries. They said ran out of fries and they were making more. The remake on the burger took forever and when it came out it was completely charred and with the wrong cheese . By the way - they finally brought out my husbands fries at the end of the meal - there were about 5 cold fries on the plate. Horrible service and food! It's very sad bc it's a very pretty restaurant on the strip.

Sat down at 1:05pm for lunch. The floor around our table and others was filthy. It's the off season so I'm not sure when the lunch rush is. Around 1:15pm the server came by and took our order for three appetizers and one drink. By 1:35pm four overly charred shrimp that had been reheated and smothered in the Rothschild pineapple sauce you buy at Costco. The crab cake app was fishy (and not in a fresh crab way- probably canned crab) with bell peppers in the binder to try to hide it. The pretzel was fine but came with restaurant supply co honey mustard and ranch and a plastic dish of caramel that they had just peeled the lid off. There was also a door to the terrace that kept opening and slamming shut on its own because of the wind. We were thinking of having our vow renewal here and wanted to try the food- thank goodness we did- hard pass. It's all appearances.

Our waiter Sandu was amazing. Great service and very personable. Had a very enjoyable dinner and Sandu was very attentive.

Attentive staff. Great brunch drinks. Stayed at the Iconic Beach hotel for the night which is where this restaurant is located in so we came down for breakfast and really enjoyed the French toast and crab cake Benedict. Everything was made fresh to order. Definitely returning.

This is the night before the season starts. The service was SLOW. The cod was meh. I sure hope it gets better.

Ordered the braised lamb cavatappi, clams and linguine, and mussels. Mussels were good, as was the bread! The entrees had a homemade taste which was a positive but was not quite expected. However, the meat was tasty and tender. The downsides of our dining experience were that the entrees had a low meat to pasta ratio and the menu selections were a bit heavy for a Summer menu overall. However, when we pointed this out to the manager Christie, she was determined to make things right! She could not have been more gracious and helpful!! She and manager Matt invited us back for brunch and made us feel welcomed and appreciated when we returned!!!

Went for a drink and stayed for dinner. Chris and Lou were awesome. Helped us with next day travel questions. They both made excellent drinks. And the food-crab cake dinner and salad were yum ! Will be back!

Nice casual atmosphere. Good for .drinks , not so much for food. Small, overcooked portions. Slow service when only 2 other people dining. Beach bar is a better option.

This is a very nice place to come have dinner at. Both the inside and outside is nice but we decided to sit outside during our stay. Everyone enjoyed their food and drinks and had a great time! The burgers looked very great! I wasn't very hungry so I ordered a watermelon salad which was refreshing! The chicken marseille was delicious too

I really wanted to like this place. Good service, nice decor however the food just doesn't warrant the price tag. The mussels were overly salty and low quality and the steak wasn't bad but it was a $30 steak not a $50 one. I think this place has real potential if they got a better head chef to run it cause there aren't many nice places in wildwood to eat. It was packed and they are using that to get away with serving subpar food.

What do you do on a rainy day in Cape May you eat!! My wife and I stopped in for lunch cozy clean little café attached to Icona Hotel. I started out with a bloody Mary ...one thing to note they do not have celery- but it was still refreshing and delicious. For appetizer I got the New England clam chowder which was excellent full of clam potatoes and bacon in a creamy broth. My wife got eggs Benedict and I chose the seafood Benedict that had crabcakes instead of ham. Both were delicious they came with a side of chopped potatoes my potatoes were a little overdone but on the whole very nice meal. They also have large Bavarian German pretzels which we ordered one for later TV watching and we were glad we did .....enjoy this wonderful little restaurant!

I just don't get what they're doing with the menu. A restaurant in a hotel near the beach can be pretty straightforward. Fry some fish, grill some burgers, make a nice vegetarian sandwich. Crab cakes, pizza. Keep it simple. But the art of simplicity was not on display here. There is lamb, there is an extensive sushi menu, there is a vegetarian cassoulet. I just....don't get it. None of it is good. The food tastes like it was made by someone who doesn't like food. It was also one of the most expensive meals of the trip.

Food was over priced and not good quality. You are basically paying for the view. Staff was nice and helpful.

This review is just about my dinner experience, they serve both breakfast and lunch here. The restaurant is by far the prettiest, most modern feeling restaurant we found in Wildwood. It's right on the water and has a the feel of an upscale restaurant. The dinner menu is limited. My husband and I split an order of calamari. It's served with a wasabi cucumber sauce. The sauce is... fine? The calamari, however were hard as a rock. Like beyond crunchy and crispy. They even deep fried the lemon slices that were served on the side of the calamari.... You aren't going to get a refreshing spritz of citrus with that, but rather oil. My main entrée was good. I got the chicken milanese. It was surprisingly good considering how disappointing the calamari was. (It's a seafood spot with a limited menu, not sure how it could have been so bad....) But the chicken was well fried, juicy, and tasty. I liked the sauce it was served with, but the vegetable side of arugula with a stewed tomato was not my thing. (No dressing, just dry arugula with smooshy tomatoes.) I also felt the roasted potatoes were under cooked and under seasoned. My husband's cheeseburger, however, while a bit overcooked was good and the french fries were fresh as well. I'd recommend coming out to this location, but there was a beachside bar that seemed to have a cool ambiance. It would've been cool to have seen that.

Food is good. Convenience is key here as it is located at the ICONA DIAMOND BEACH. Staff is very helpful and I appreciate breakfast is served every day till 2 pm

In the spirit of constructive feedback, I'll offer a few notes: -The linguine with clams was unfortunately flavorless. It came with a lot of small cut up vegetables and seemed like they left salt out altogether. I had to ask for parmesan and when it came it was clearly the sliced bits of asiago that they use on salads. This was just a very disappointing dish for the very high price. My dad makes it a lot better with two cans of clams and a box of linguine for much cheaper. -Why is there Sushi? An extensive Sushi menu? Unless it's actually a Sushi restaurant, why have focus on it so much on the menu? Sushi with a side of caesar salad? I assumed being in South Jersey on the shore there might be a nice amount of regional classics and strengths but there was hardly any of that. The menu just had very little of what we were really looking for. -I was disappointed because having had other good resort dining experiences, I thought we might luck out here. Alas, we ate here once and then did not come back. -Our waitress was very nice though!

I'm sad. I was so excited to go out to dinner on our last night staying at Icona hotel.. it was a beautiful night... ambience is nice enough.. sat outside, which was our preference. Our server was pleasant enough.. but definitely nothing extra, seemed as though she was at the end of her shift and ready to go home. Service was definitely timely...drinks were ok, could've been stronger and had more portion. But, the reason for just three stars (actually 2.5) was the taste of the food. I ordered the surf and turf burger which was terrible. I asked for medium and it was WAY overcooked... very tough, the lobster didn't add to the flavor or taste at all.. I should've complained and sent it back, but Iet it go and still paid almost $30 to throw 80% of the burger away. Fries were good. My sisters orders were definitely more edible, but they were beyond impressed. Specifically, the cheesecake was bland, per one of my sisters. Next time, I will choose to get my car out of valet and just try another option in town.

What a lovely experience! After a disappointing experience at Secondo, we came here and had an amazing dinner! Everything was delicious, the calamari, salmon, crab cakes, drinks and service! Don't miss it in the Crest!

Ordered red wine - lipstick on the glasses. so glasses aren't cleaned real well. Waitress did get a new glass for me. Mahi mahi tacos were delicious- had to ask what happened to fries. According to waitress they don't come with the tacos but menu states otherwise. Restaurant was great a few years ago but seems to be declining

Even though they are less than 10 minutes from us, we had never been here. On a warmer February night we decided to celebrate Valentines Day and located Coastal Blue... what a pleasant surprise! Ambiance is wonderful followed by excellent food, beverages ( I liked mixed drinks and they were great) service by Anna (friendly, outgoing, provided recommendations). Wish it wasn't dark as I'm sure the view from being right at the beach is awesome! We have put them at the top of our list and will be returning....

This place was nice. The food was good. Not the best time of the year to go. It was nice and the waiter was attentive.

This was a terrible dining experience. First of all, it began with a bad start when we saw an employee bring a basket of bread to a manager saying a customer complained about it. The manager began picking the bread apart with his hands to inspect. 2 other employees also went through the bread. They then returned THE SAME BASKET OF BREAD TO THE FAMILY!. Next, the restaurant smelt terrible inside like bad fish. We had to ask to move outside it was so strong. Once we get seated outside, We are waiting for drinks when we hear the person behind us complain of hair in their drink. Somehow we haven't left yet and wait for our food. We ordered 2 filet mignons, a seared tuna, and scallops. Both filets and the tuna come out very over cooked and have to be returned. As We are waiting for the replacement food, I look down at my ice and there is a brown swirl frozen in an icecube. At this point we immediately asked for the check so we could leave. Giving it two stars because our waitress was great and the manager was very understanding and accommodating. Tough that they had to deal with this.

Love this place for breakfast. Great view and atmosphere. Used to stay there til I had a house here. Great staff good food. Recommend!

This restaurant is located in the hotel Icona. We had a pretty good breakfast. With the exception of the home fries. I like mine country style. The eggs was cooked to my liking and the bacon was good and crispy. Our sever was excellent her name was Debbie. She was so helpful and we enjoyed talking to her. We sat near the window and had a great view. The restaurant was pretty empty because it was off season but that worked for us because we felt like it was our own restaurant. I understand during the in season time they offer a breakfast buffet. Off season you can order from the menu. I would love to return for late lunch or dinner when staying in the hotel Icona. I would definitely return for breakfast as well and hope Debbie would be there because she was so pleasant!

Simply way over priced for the food/experience. It took over 30 minutes to get bread and it was terrible. The food overall was good, but it was not the dining experience I was expecting. I would stick to their star bar restaurant on the beach- this place was not worth it

We waited over an hour for our dinner, despite the restaurant being pretty empty. Food came out like it was just microwaved! (Warm on outside, cold in the center.) Chef and servers seem quite inexperienced. Super disappointed and not worth the high price of the place. Outside of food, I'm guessing their bar/tender may be better.

Food was just so-so. Wine selection was very limited and the one bottle of wine that we liked, they did not have. We ate outside and we had reservations at 8 PM and it started getting dark at about 845. They had no candles or any outside lighting so we ate in the dark.

Small portions and just average food. I was expecting more for the prices. The host made a comment about "making it work" when we came in with a reservation, even though half the tables were empty.

We are long time fans of Icona's restaurant Coastal Blue. Their food is expertly prepared and offers a wonderful vista. On our visit this week our food was exceptional. I would award 5 stars but due to the rushed service I can only provide 3 stars. Our appetizers and salad were served at the same time, and entrees followed within 5 minutes. Not 1 of the 3 of us had touched the appetizer, only enjoyed a bite of our salad. Needless to say the table was crowded with plates and silverware. I always look forward to a relaxed, well paced dining experience at Coastal Blue, but this time I left somewhat disappointed.

We ate here twice on our vacation and had two very different experiences. The main appeal of this place was that they are across the street from Seapointe Village where we stayed and they have a dedicated outdoor space for dining. Breakfast was very good. We were quick to be seated and served. Food was good as was the selection. Everyone we encountered was friendly and we didnt feel out of place having our toddler with us. We tried dinner later on in the week and had a very unfortunate experience. They open at 5 pm and got there on time. There was no one outdoors so I popped my head inside and the bartender told me they are just setting up but feel free to grab a table. We did as she said and a middle aged woman named "Liss" or "Lees" made a scene and told us we needed to get up because they arent seating yet. I explained what we had been told and she was very rude and didn't acknowledge what I said. She didn't make eye contact and just continued to flip out. We were in shock and at this point other people began to line up and wonder why the restaurant wasnt opening up. She snapped at them too and muttered how they werent even going to open because they were studying the radar. I hate to leave overly critical reviews, but this was a very uncomfortable experience. I realize we are in tough times. I hope those who run this spot see this and can help prevent experiences like this - especially with hungry cranky toddlers are in tow. This was a bummer because Wildwood is a tough spot to find good spots to eat. COVID only makes that even more challenging.

Save your money and come here when they have indoor space available. The hostess was dismissive with us when we first got there and told us it would be an hour and a half wait which ended up being only about half an hour. The food was gourmet but not all dishes hit the mark. I get what the waiter was trying to do with creativity but blueberries and scallops don't exactly go together no matter what. They served the scallops with blueberry pancakes labeled as corn cakes but they were sweet and not savory. I was looking for the whole dish to taste savory and wasn't expecting blueberry pancakes and scallops! This was a very weird mix! Like breakfast and dinner mixed together! I feel the owner needs to taste test and approve some of these dishes before they are approved for the menu. The ricotta and prosciutto appetizer was a miss - it wasn't prosciutto di Parma and the edge of the prosciutto was too thick and inedible kind of like eating raw bacon - the homemade ricotta tasted off but the caponata tasted amazing and bursted with flavor! My daughter's shrimp cocktail looked amazing and tasted fresh and delicious. It was freezing when we came here in the evening for dinner so bring a hoodie/sweater if you decide to dine here. Our waitress was pleasant and courteous with us. For the price I expected more from this establishment!

Good food, nice atmosphere. The staff was masked but none of the patrons were. We ate outside.

What a pleasant surprise! We are staying at the Icona hotel and this is their restaurant. Given the current pandemic restrictions they've done a good job. It's elegant and outside dining only. The food was amazing. We had the fried calamari appetizer special, Icona burger and BLT mussels. Everything was cooked to perfection. Tender and crisp calamari, juicy burger and plump tender mussels in a savory bacon and cherry tomato broth. Truly great food! The only challenge we found was asking for extras such as a side of pasta. Other than that definitely worth a try.,friendly attentive service too!

The food is ok a bit overpriced. The whole dining experience was awful. The manager along with four other waiters/waitresses were just standing around and talking. It took us fifteen mins after being seated for anyone to acknowledge us or give water. Another half hr for food and no apologies. I get that there may have been training but there's no excuse for just watching as a manager and doing nothing. Would not waste my money

Chef John may be new to this kitchen -- but he is no amateur when it comes to seafood preparations. His hand is steady and his flavors righteous. This was the best meal we ate out in Wildwood this past week. Better than last year and 5 star worthy based on exceptional hospitality and high quality eats. Lets start with the food. The seared -- herb encrusted ahi tuna -- served rare -- was spectacular. You could taste the ocean and the fish cut like butter. The serving size was enormous (enough for 2) and the plating was eye candy -- served over a pleasant coriander infused butter sauce. As good as any sashimi I have eaten in recent memory. Equally delicious was the Jersey Tomato ceviche -- presented in a tall martini glass -- over loaded with shellfish and that perfect citrusy pop that paired well against the sweet tomatoes. Great starter. The seared day boat scallops served over a buerre blanc with roasted tomatoes and what looked like artichokes did not disappoint -- well balanced and as fresh as any we have eaten at the shore. Our teenager ate the house gouda cheese burger -- which was stacked high and looked great -- on a nice brioche bun. He wolfed this down along with a generous helping of fries and pronounced it as good as it gets. Less interesting was the pork belly appetizer served alongside roasted beets. While tender -- this was mostly sliced pork fat and not all that crispy or flavorful. After sharing my impressions about the belly starter with the chef -- the kitchen sent us a gratis appetizer portion of a new dish -- colossal crab chunks served over fried jersey tomatoes in a cream sauce. The contrasting flavors and textures were interesting -- but I'm not sure I would have drowned that terrific crab meat in a cream sauce. Sort of lost its texture and interest for me. Maybe some sort of salsa or remoulade -- but I quibble. Very nice gesture and very tasty. The Lavazza double espresso finish was perfect -- as was the Cape May IPA on draft for dranks during the meal. No doubt but that Coastal Blue is living up to its promise. Great room -- excellent service and now first rate food to match. Don't miss the opportunity to dine here and share your thoughts with the staff. They WANT to know what you think.

We've stayed at Hotel Icona for the past three summers now. Our first stay was during their grand opening and everything was great. The food was delicious, service was great, and I was amazed at the beautiful decor of both the hotel and the restaurant. Our second summer was equally as lovely, but our dining experiences were not. I have a feeling they were understaffed and unprepared for the boost in customers their second year. We were often waiting for a very long time before being served, or we received the wrong check, etc. They also had the same wait staff for both the pool, restaurant, and outside eating area, which was pretty disastrous. Well - our third summer back and it seems they have fixed all the kinks! They now have separate wait staff for the pool area, and they are GREAT! All of the food is delicious, although a tad on the pricey side, but you're paying for a good meal AND the convenience of not having to leave your hotel. I'm so glad that they worked everything out and that the restaurant is running smoothly - the food is great for any meal (I love the breakfast, especially), whether you're a hotel guest or not.

Very enjoyable evening with delicious food and great service. For starters we had the caprese salad and fried calamari. For our main two of us had salmon, crab cakes and steak we were all very pleased. The chief even walks around checking to make sure everyone enjoyed their meal. Best food in the Crest. We have eaten here 7 times in two months. Martini's are also great. Atmosphere is delightful. After walked down by the beach bar "bungalow 7" and enjoyed the amazing view. Really love this find, from another's recommendation on yelp, Chris K!! Gluten free options available - restaurant will work with you. Limited but good

Excellent seafood! Beautiful atmosphere! Would go back. The prices are high but well worth it! I loved the large shrimp cocktail. Loved the tuna it was spicy and the coconut sauce was spectacular!

This is the best restaurant in wildwood nj I have been some places but this in the best in nj have I had better yes but nothing like this I rate off of 3 things 0 to 10 1.Service 2.food and 3.price food 10 out of 10 for the filet mignon burger salads and nice looks and tastes of the food price 9 out of 10 it was a good price for a fancy restaurant service 10 out of 10 the service really got to under standwhat I wanted and how I wanted it so 5 stars

My daughter brought her boyfriend and his friends here for his birthday and WOW! The amazing things they all had to say when they got home. The filet mignon, mussels and scallops were their favorite dishes! The staff really made her boyfriend feel so special!

Food was solid. Could be even better with a few minor adjustments. Multiple seating options including the bar, inside or outside were nice and the windows allowed a good view of the sunset. We ordered the Diamond Beach Cosmo and the Beach Bubbles draft which were yummy. Bread rolls were warm and the butter was room temperature which was perfect for spreading on the rolls. We ordered the Crispy Calamari appetizer to share as a starter. The cucumber wasabi sauce was delicious with the perfect amount of heat. It was just as it was described, lightly coated and flash fried, however I would have liked it to be more fried and crispy. In our portion there were only the calamari rings and no tentacles which was a bit disappointing. For entree we both got the Pan Seared Yellow Fin Tuna. VERY well cooked and they gave a huge portion of fish. The accompaniments however didn't really complement the fish. There was very little Thai chili coconut broth and the sticky rice wasn't really sticky. On the side there was also some raw shredded lettuce which seemed random and tasted bland. Unfortunately there wasn't a dessert menu but we were full from the big entree portions so it all worked out. Would come again but might not incorporate it to in our regular rotation.

A huge shotout to the best chefs in New Jersey Jon Davis and John Mculley! Absolutely amazing food. Every ingredient they've used complemented the overall taste of the dish. My favorite was beet carpaccio where they added pistachios to the well balanced acidity levels in beets and salad. Wish I can write more but family first :)))

We come every summer and this place is 2 for 3. Two good meals vs. one bad over past three years. This year it was very good. We had the cheese steak egg rolls appetizer - great addition to the menu this year. The clam chowder was good.....just to many potatoes......had the steamers very good. For main we had the filet mignon and the chicken marsala both were very good this year.

The decor is nice, our waitress was lovely, but the other waitstaff helper kept trying to take our plates mid- meal. Then he just kept standing/hovering at our table while we were eating, it was weird. I ordered the chicken - it was swimming in vinegar, couldn't eat it. The fish tacos were just okay. The steak was okay.

We had one of the best restaurant experience at this restaurant. The food portions was great! We went for lunch and had enough for dinner. Food itself was great. We highly recommend calamari, it has jalapeños in it! Also shrimp dish was really good. The restaurant manager (in photos) was so sweet. She brought kids ton of drawing paper and hung their drawing on the chalkboard at the entrance. We went in January and would definitely go again in summer. It is a great place to eat and enjoy the ocean view! The ambiance is so nice. Great place for date nights!

I'm a foodie! We're staying in Wildwood Crest and have eaten here twice. Both times we were thrilled with everything! The first meal was Eggs Benedict, it was absolutely delish, home-made hollandaise sauce, great potatoes, cooked to perfection eggs. The next day we had dinner at the beautiful bar and were served by the lovely Sebastian, the bartender. We had sushi - it was the best sushi I ever had! Absolutely pristine fish, just wonderful. Can't wait to go back to try other dishes, from what I see, this is by far the best and most beautiful restaurant in Wildwood. It has been recently renovated, the dining room is so gorgeous! I love this place!

I had a very good experience at this establishment. I ate here on June 28, 2019. It is a very nice place. We were seated immediately, party of 3. I ordered crispy calamari as an appetizer and the seafood bolognese al pappardelle. It was delish! My friend ordered jumbo lump crab cakes and she said it was very good. My other friend ordered the Swordfish and liked it. We each had drinks. I had white wine, but I can't remember the brand. It was all very very good and the portions were a good size. The only suggestion that I can make to the establishment is that one of the concierge girls (a heavy set, young lady) was inappropriately dressed for the place that it was offensive. She had a skirt/dress that rode up her back and that was too short. Just her overall appearance was tasteless for the establishment. Aside from that, good experience. I recommend.

From the start we were notified that the menu had changed when we asked for an item from the online menu we previewed. Long wait for our drinks, appetizers were fine however when we got our entrees, 3 out of 4 were wrong. Asked for a condiment for my (already messed up burger) and it took another 12 minutes to receive. The waitress was snide and rude because we asked someone else for it being that it took so long. Overall, 0 out of 5 stars.. will not return.

So. This review is based sole on one meal on Easter Sunday. We had high hopes, that got crushed quick. Took 7 people for "dinner." Turns out they don't have dinner on Easter but brunch all day, even at 4, 5, 6 at night. So we had breakfast In the morning and then again at dinner. Food was mediocre at best, I had the chicken and waffles both were over cooked. Everyone else's meal was the pretty much the same. Willing to give it another chance but won't be soon. The place is really nice and the service was pretty darn good.