Ocean Prime

It's sexy. It's new. Anyone who is anyone has been there.

It's a brand new restaurant that just opened called Ocean Prime. Positioned as the new "modern American Supper Club," I have slowly been watching the restaurant being built for over 6 months.

The restaurant is huge and in a premiere location in Tampa. My anticipation has been building for weeks now itching to try it because the exterior is so clean, beautiful and elegant. In addition to watching it being built, when it opened the entire city was buzzing with an out-pouring of love like a long lost child had finally come home.

After checking out the menu online and driving by and staring I decided I finally had to bite the bullet and give this so called wonder of a restaurant a try.

The second you step within 10 feet of Ocean Prime you feel like royalty. A red carpet awaits you, and after walking through a tropical oasis to the solid glass front doors a group of very professional hostesses will take you to the luxurious dining room (pictured above).

The booths are all half moon shaped and extra comfy. They face a wall of windows which overlooks a large patio and pond.

As you might imagine, after all the hype and anticipation I expected our service to be world class. We sat and looked at the view and talked about how gorgeous the inside of the restaurant was for a solid 5 minutes before the server finally showed up.......what good is a restaurant palace if the service is as good as eating at a diner?

While I wasn't initially impressed he did somewhat recover. My tea was served in a glass along with a miniature glass pitcher so I could refill it myself....but I ran out of ice quick.

We were there for lunch (thank goodness because the dinner prices are through the roof). It was hard to decide. Ocean Prime has a variety of great seafood, chicken and steak entrees. However I ended up going with the Park Farms Chicken with asparagus and a side of truffle mac and cheese. (I think the mac and cheese is what sold me).

As we waited the server brought more free bread (amazing) and after I got tired of waiting I went to the front and asked the hostess to give me a tour of the restaurant.

She took me through the 3 private dining rooms, into the elegant lounge and out onto the spacious patio. The highlight of this mini-tour was the blue flame stones. In the restaurant and also on the back patio are blue stones in a pit that are powered by a propane tank to give off powerful flames. Quite simply one of the coolest, simplest things I have ever seen in a restaurant (pictured left).

When I got back the food was there. The chicken was juicy, moist and tender, however I probably could have just gotten the truffle mac and cheese and been just as satisfied.

After we were all finished I sat back and thought about this experience.....the hostesses were outstanding, the manager stopped by our table to greet us, the food tasted good, the service was mediocre and the atmosphere was phenomenal.

Then I asked myself this question: how would I feel if I had this exact same experience in a different restaurant?

It's likely it wouldn't have been as exciting or sexy. When I visit restaurants I expect the hostesses to be knowledgeable and enthusiastic, I expect the service to be outstanding, I expect the manager to stop by and I expect the food will be delicious.

I guess what I'm saying is: take away the building and Ocean Prime really isn't that spectacular. Don't get me wrong, it was a wonderful experience! But, at about $20 a person for lunch and $50 a person for dinner I'm not sure I'll be back. Some things are more important than a restaurant building, even if it's built like a palace.

You can find a location near you here.