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Reviewing Restaurants from the Sarasota Food Scene - Fall 2026 Edition (Part 1)
We’re back for my semi-annual restaurant review series – fall 2026 edition! There’s alot of ground to plow here with six new restaurants, along with six other local restaurants that Laurie and I have just recently gotten around to visiting! Let’s dive right in!!
Chateau 13
Chateau 13 has been our list of "must visit" restaurants for years now, and we never made it for two reasons: It’s in downtown Bradenton, which is a pain to get to, and we assumed they served primarily French food, which isn’t out favorite. Well, it turns out that Chateau 13 is actually a European restaurant with dishes that would feel right at home in France, Italy, Spain and Belgium. When our friends Gerard and Terry invited us to join them at the Chef’s Table for a multi-course dinner paired with wines, we couldn’t put it off any longer! The Chef’s Table is available on Friday evenings, and includes five courses not available on the menu along with carefully curated wine pairings and even a personal visit by the chef. Everything about the experience was outstanding – the food was thoughtfully prepared, creative, and beautifully presented. The wine pairings were also unique and inspired. We saw food leaving the kitchen from the regular menu that looked just as beautiful as what we were eating. We regret not visiting Chateau 13 sooner, and will definitely be back ! This place is quite small, so reservations are a must.
Overall Rating: Excellent; Food: Superb; Ambiance: Excellent; Service: Superb; Cost: Expensive; Value: Very Good
Mister O1 Extraordinary Pizza
Hearing everyone rave about Mister O1 Extraordinary Pizza before it opened led Laurie and I to believe that what we were about to experience would be life-changing – perhaps the best pizza we have ever had. So we were beyond excited to try the place once it finally opened in UTC off University Avenue in Sarasota. We went early because they don’t take reservations and word was the place fills up quickly in the evenings with waits of an hour or more for a table. We arrived a bit before 5:00 pm and were seated immediately, but once we left the place it with packed as promised. We ordered a traditional pizza, along with their speciality – the star-shaped pizzas with the corners stuffed with homemade ricotta and available in nine different variations. The pizza style is very thin crust, with a mild tomato sauce and fresh ingredients. Both pizzas we tried were very good, and we will definitely go back, but we left not really understanding what all the hype and fuss was about – it certainly wasn’t close to the best pizza we have ever eaten. They also have an antipasti and buratta bar that looks excellent which we plan to try on our next visit. The wine list is minimalist, with eight options in total – that was a bit disappointing. Service was excellent. Definitely worth a try, but temper your expectations just a bit!
Overall Rating: Very Good: Food: Very Good; Ambiance: Good; Service: Excellent; Cost: Moderate; Value: Good
Mama G’s
Mama G’s is another place Laurie and I had talked about for years. It’s a German bakery and coffeehouse that sounded fantastic and got rave reviews for their pastries and breakfast offerings, but they were located about 30 minutes away on the Tamiani Trail near the Ringling Museum so it wasn’t a place we thought of much when we went out for breakfast. Earlier this year, they opened a new location about 15 minutes away in the UTC district, so we made a beeline to go there and try it out. The inside of the bakery is airy and modern, with a nice selection of both savory and sweet pastries. The pastries we tried were very good, but we have had better. Our biggest disappointment was that they didn’t have “make to order” breakfasts like they do at some of their other locations. Instead, the only breakfast items available were danishes and small breakfast pastries like mini frittatas and croissants. You won’t be disappointed with their offerings, but I wouldn’t travel far to frequent this place. Here’s hoping they will expand their breakfast and lunch offerings so we can add it to our regular breakfast rotation!
Overall Rating: Good: Food: Good; Ambiance: Good; Service: Good; Cost: Inexpensive; Value: Good
Crave
To date, our “go to” place for cookies has been Crumble Cookies in UTC – we love their rotating selection of traditional and unique cookies that are always fresh and tasty. But our all-time favorite “craft” cookie bakery is Crave – we tried them down in Estero where Laurie’s mom used to live and they were a cut above Crumble Cookies, especially their signature chocolate chunk cookie. So imagine how excited we were when a Crave bakery opened in Lakewood Ranch less than 10 minutes away right off of 70 and Lakewood Ranch Blvd! And our new Crave didn’t disappoint! Like Crumble, they have a rotating selection of cookies that changes weekly, and includes the classics like chocolate chip, snickerdoodles, and peanut better cookies, but also “extreme” version of cookies like triple chocolate toffee, fluffer nutter butter, and biscoff smore – yum to all!! All the selections are made fresh throughout the day, and are always served warm and ready to enjoy! We frequently buy these cookies for desert when we entertain friends and family, and without fail they are consumed quickly! Definitely some of the best cookies we have ever tasted – a must stop if you love sweets!
Overall Rating: Excellent; Food: Excellent; Ambiance: Good; Service: Excellent; Cost: Inexpensive; Value: Good
Skillets
As I have mentioned many times before, Laurie and I have our regular rotation of restaurants we frequent for breakfast, usually on Sunday mornings – First Watch, Toasted Yolk, Eggtown, The Breakfast Company, Forked at Waterside, The Grannary, and others. For some reason, Skillets wasn’t on our list, even though we knew there was a location not far away right off of 64 east of 75 in an unassuming strip mall. We had been to a Skillets before, again, down in Estero, and liked it. So why hadn’t we tried our local Skillets? I guess because we had so many other options. But we finally gave in and tried it not too long ago, and were pleasantly surprised how tasty the food is, and how great the service is as well. The restaurant itself feels a bit dated on the inside – lots of wood with a bit of an old-fashioned vibe, and vinal booths that have seen better days. But the menu is extensive, with a nice mix of classics and Skillet specialties, including monthly specials as well. They also have a killer bloody mary! Compares favorably to The Breakfast Company and Forked at Waterside.
Overall rating: Very Good; Food: Very Good; Ambiance: Average; Service: Very Good; Cost: Inexpensive; Value: Good
Tiramisu Ristorante Italiano
We love getting recommendations from our friends on local restaurants we need to try. We love it even more when they invite us to join them at the restaurants for an evening out and a break from the routine! Which is how we wound up at Tiramisu Ristorante Italiano a bit of a hoof away from us in west Bradenton off of 70, courtesy of our friends Matt and Cathy! I used to eschew most restaurants located in slightly run-down strip malls, which definitely fits the bill for Tiramisu. But over time, I’ve learned that some of the best food to be had come from these very restaurants – just a reminder of the old adage that you should never judge a book by it’s cover! Inside, Tiramisu transports you back to an old-school family owned Italian restaurant, complete with live music, low lights, and classic Italian ambiance. The menu has all the classics of course, but also includes their signature homemade pasta tossed in a parmesan cheese wheel (which we didn’t try but looked delicious!). The appetizers were all outstanding, made with fresh ingredients and nicely seasoned as well. Our mains were solid – the pasta was cooked al dente as it should be, and again, everything was fresh and tasty. We all really enjoyed our meals, but I felt like with just a bit more effort they could up their game and reach a higher level of quality. The service was outstanding, as was the wine list – organized by region, it had a nicely curated list with lots of options from each region, both red and white. I would definitely go back for another try!
Overall rating: Good/Very Good; Food: Good/Very Good; Ambiance: Good; Service: Excellent; Cost: Moderate; Value: Good
Next week I have six more restaurants to review. Until then, Bon Apetit!!
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