Tiffany H

I’ve traveled all over the world, and this truly was one of the best meals. The food was really well presented and flavorful. The hostess went above and beyond to help us wiggle our reservation time, to accommodate a last minute change on our end. Our server was polite and did his best. Overall it was fantastic.

+2

S Dra

If you’re looking for top notch food and a great atmosphere, look no further. Oceans has it all from appetizers, drinks, amazing entrees and desserts. The oysters are a great start and taste incredible. The whole red snapper, grilled over their wood fire, is the best in Birmingham. The owner, George, came around checking on the food which meant a lot, considering how busy the restaurant was. All of the staff was very helpful in anything we needed, and Chris made it a fun experience.

+4

Meshia

We came a few months ago and did not have a reservation, but was able to sit at the bar. The bartender was very attentive and helpful with the menu, as well as patient with us. Everyone at the bar was friendly and the bartender made sure everyone was taken care of and had a lot of laughs. The food was fresh, flavorful, very delicious, and the portions were a good size. I wish they opened for lunch or earlier in the day, but I will return.

ViV S

Good things come to those who book reservations. Couldn't have asked for a better pre birthday celebration. Impeccable service, beautiful presentations of delicious food, and the clientele is ever so amusing and entertaining. We also got to witness owner and chef George Reis host his wedding rehearsal dinner on the patio. Started the celebration off with a glass of prosecco and a dozen oysters ranging from the Olde Points, Blue Points, and Blackberry varieties. Then moved to the scallops and yellowtail snapper. The entire fish comes out on the platter so have an appetite ready! The starlight of the evening was definitely the chocolate panna cotta, the brownie brittle is to die for, though if you want something richer order the oatmeal cheesecake. Parking can get limited since it's near the hustle and bustle of downtown Five Points. They offer valet parking for your ease. Nothing beats that unforgettable feeling of good company and summer nights with a glass of wine and dessert sitting before you. Thank you for ushering in my birthday wishes Ocean!

Christa Lodico

Wonderful food, amazing atmosphere, sushi and oysters were prepared fresh to order. Amazing serving staff, kind and knowledgeable. Our glasses stayed full. Clean, neat and very inviting. Quirky clientele which added to the wonderful experience.

+2

Erin Hunter

Hands down Birmingham’s best! Wow! Savory bites that make you sad when it’s time to leave. Delicious from start to finish. Lobster and tuna were perfect. The crab salad roll was out of this world!! The tortellini left me speechless! Wow! Thank you Ocean!

Zack Stovall

We had a wonderful experience at Ocean following the Van Gogh exhibit. We arrived early to our reservation, and were promptly seated 10 minutes after arrival. Superb service. Our needs were met with joyful pleasure and was overall a fabulous service experience. The food was outstanding. We started off with a beet salad and oysters, that were more delicious than we could have hoped. Our entrées were next. The trout and shrimp were delectable, savory, and masterfully crafted. Finally we finished with the crème brûlée, which was the perfect desert to finish the perfect meal. Already planning our next visit.

+1

Jeff Pele

What a great meal in Birmingham. This was a date night for us and finally some normalcy and refinement. It felt great to dress up, have great service, and amazing tasting food. The seafood tower, seafood pot (Thai flavors), and salmon were all cooked perfectly. This was a great evening enjoying the food scene

I’ll put this first, I’d overall come here again. I enjoyed the food Food (4/5): • Bread - loved it. The toppings were fresh, absolutely delicious. • Oysters - tasted so fresh. • Fish (can’t remember which kind) - Oh my god was this to die for! Recommended by the server • Side of fries - this is the sole reason this is a 4/5. I swear to you these are McDonalds French fries lol. • Lobster Tail - good • My husband got something else as a main course but I can’t remember. Service 4/5: I’m going to go ahead and say that my server, he was great, but there was just a big miscommunication and I think this was just a bad luck sort of thing. We were placed in someone’s section, they weren’t closing, they thought someone else had been assigned to us. Nope. We’d been sitting there for 30 minutes. We were actually about to say something but they came to us first. They did apologize a lot. I order my food, he walks away, we don’t have it. You know I get it. Understandable. I wanted a whole fish. They were completely sold out of all of the whole fish. What he recommended was great but it’s not what I wanted at the end of the day but that’s not his fault they were out. My husband ordered a side of lobster tails. It didn’t come with his food. By the time we told our server and had gotten it, we were both done with all of our food. Our server was so apologetic. I felt bad for him myself 😅 it was just one of those nights. There’s only so much I can put into perspective here but hopefully this sums it up. We got a $40 gift card and things taken off of our ticket and we didn’t even express our frustration once. Really appreciated that. He said please come back. We’re typically not like this. Lol 😂 We will be back. Resolution skills are top notch. Atmosphere: it was very neat and there was a lot of ambience.

Natasha Baroody

My husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary here and the overall experience was wonderful. The food was absolutely amazing—beautifully prepared, full of flavor, and truly worthy of a special occasion. The service was also attentive and professional throughout our meal. My only disappointment was that, although the reservation system asked for the occasion and we noted our anniversary, there was no acknowledgment during our visit. It wasn’t a major issue, but a small gesture would have made the evening feel even more memorable, especially for such an important milestone. Still, we had a lovely time, and the quality of the food alone makes this restaurant worth visiting.

Thom Tyrrell

My wife and I celebrated our 33rd anniversary here. Valet parking was excellent. Food was spot on and the desert was presented in a unique way for our special occasion. The reason for the 4 star rating on service is because our waitress did not tell us about any specials. We heard another server explaining them at another table after we had placed our order. Excellent experience all around and will visit again. Making reservations online was easy.

K Verb

Good food, not great. Excellent service. Nice facility. Overpriced for the quality of the food. The coffee was great. I've had better food from chain full-service restaurants at a better price. I will say the service staff is outstanding. They make the experience great. The chefs need to up their game for the price paid. We had a party of 8 and tried just about everything on the menu. We all agreed with this assessment.

Saxon Monk

Most Important: Absolutely incredible food - I thoroughly enjoyed everything we ate! Not So Important If The Food Is Incredible: Horrible service. Ordered drinks and received them over 20 minutes later, had to hunt the waiter down all night (he spent plenty of time in the servers corner drinking Red Bull and on his phone) but overall the food was amazing so I will 100% return. If you want a waiter/waitress to stand by your table all night ready to assist with any need - go to Bottega/Chez FonFon/any of the members only clubs in Birmingham.

Was very disappointed. Took customers for dinner and everyone was served... except for one. It took 25 minutes to get her meal. Everything was cold by the time hers came. We had to get up to ask what was going on. No visit by a manager... nothing. Very frustrating for a $1000+ meal. The dessert was great which is why I gave 3 stars for the food.

Michael Gary

First, let me say our waiter, Marcus, was outstanding, and none of this review relates to the attentive and helpful service we received, and the atmosphere of the restaurant is quite pleasant. Unfortunately, the food my wife and I ordered did not live up to the same high standard. While this was our first (and probably last) visit and certainly may not be representative of the entire menu, the items we selected were mediocre at best and at least one item was sub-par - particularly considering the prices. Specifically, the wood fire roasted grouper was somewhat bland, and the bed of rice was undercooked although better seasoned than the fish. Similarly, the risotto and mushroom side dish (which we should not have ordered considering the bed of rice with the entree, but my wife is Italian, so what can I say) was significantly undercooked and sending it back for further cooking didn't change anything. Of course, if you like crunchy risotto, you might feel differently. The fried feta Greek salad wasn't bad, but not particularly noteworthy either. The one bright spot was the triple chocolate ice cream sundae, but even that was accompanied by unremarkable, although impressively-served, coffee in a French Press pot. Finally, the bill was over $200 including tip, and we couldn't help comparing it to our typical outing to our long-time favorite local restaurant for similar, but actually tasty, fare at under $100.

The food was fabulous, the service was beautiful, atmosphere so nice for Valentines Night. The problem here was the valet. My husband has bone cancer and is going through radiation treatment. The treatment has left him with uneasy walking due to the extreme pain. We’ve never been here and parked across the street to give him an easy walk to the restaurant not to mention we are elderly. The valet mid aged white guy pulled across the street and yelled out the window “HEY!!! This parking lot is for valet parking only” then he gave me a nasty smirk and pulled on over into his parking spot. When he parked the car he was in he got out and my husband asked him if we could leave our car there and just pay him to park there. He rudely said “ no there’s a parking spot on the street” making my husband get back in the car and re-park the car in a parallel parking spot on the street. He had already had radiation treatment that day so leaving him not feeling well. While he was struggling to park the car and get back out again, the valet had pulled another car over there And I told him it would be nice if someone had a sign out here stating this was for valet parking he ignored me, did not answer me and kept walking across the street. This left a foul taste in my mouth for my dinner, although the restaurant the food, the service and the atmosphere Exceeded my expectations, this was the first thing that happened before we went in to eat so thanks to him I really didn’t enjoy being there.