Best Bistros in Lake Sarasota

Five women went after a movie. Food and service were great. Paris Bistrot is such a wonderful neighborhood find on Main Street in Lakewood Ranch. Always a pleasure to return.

Only our second visit, we now luv, luv Indigenous. We were greeted promptly, seated promptly and serviced promptly by polite, friendly and attentive staff. The pickled vegetables were delightful, the burger with the duck fat roasted potatoes were delicious and vanilla bean ice cream was scrumptious. We will absolutely, positively both recommend and return. Thx…

The shrimp and ribeye dishes were delicious. The pork belly starter was disappointing as it was very small, not crispy and it was smothered in a strongly flavored bbq sauce that overpowered the pork taste. I don't know why there was also whole grain mustard when the meat was already doused in strong sauce. I would have preferred at least another 2 pieces of the pork, crispy, with maybe three sauces on the side...bbq, mustard and maybe something like an herbal aioli. The restaurant itself has great sunset views and we'll be there again if staying in hotel.

Took my wife here for a date on a Friday evening. While I can’t say there was anything particular bad (other than the NY strip that I ate half of and left behind) I don’t think I will ever go back. All employees were extremely nice. Served was attentive and the GM came by twice to check on us. Food and drink was prepared promptly and delivered efficiently. The ambiance was great in the dining room but there were little details missing for a dinner that we ultimate spent $350 on for the two of us with tip. It’s all minor details but the paper towels in the bathroom were in a dispenser and were what you’d find in a McDonald’s; I would think that there would be some type of softer almost cloth like disposable napkin. The fixtures in the bathroom were what you’d see in a chilis, again this is just nitpicking but important in at a restaurant at this price point. Out of respect, I had my steak boxed and I would have expected it to be brought to the table in a branded bag but instead it was in a cheap box and left on the table. Parking lot is small and there is no valet, not a big deal but again it’s the details. You walk in through the back door past the bathrooms which I found odd. We had two appetizers the oysters and foie gras - both were fantastic. My wife had the scallops which she found delightful. I had the NY strip ordered medium rare and it came out closer to medium. I could tell as soon as it was set down that it was going to be dry. The sear marks on it looked nice but unfortunately carried an extremely charred and burnt taste that made it inedible. The dryness coupled with the burnt flavor absolutely ruined it for me. The rest of the plate was tasty but it felt like the dish was doing too much. I had similar thoughts about the other entrees and figured it would be hard to mess up a steak. We had the butter cake to finish and split an espresso martini. The cake was dry and the basil sauce was odd. Overall, I think it’s worth a try at least once.

Excellent food and filet was cooked to perfection!