Dean Cochran

Great bar scene on the water. Live music, Plenty of space to pull up on your boat, tons of seating area. The parking lot will look crowded, but you can probably have no problem finding a seat. Tons of seafood or American food choices. The service is fast and the food is hot. Had the fried chicken sandwich and a cup of chili and the homemade chips with blue cheese crumbles and drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. Everything was awesome. You won't be disappointed.

Erik

Such a cool local bar. It was just a lucky find when we traveled through the area. It's on the water, plenty of seating inside and out. Great gift shop and staff was extremely helpful. Food is your typical bar food. Found nothing extremely exciting about their food fair. But so worth the stop. Live music when we were there was found wanting... good musical ability but lacking in vocals. Will definitely return when in the area

Tim Worton

Our go to place, always good live music and great seating. If you like it loud you can sit inside under the big tiki or of you want a little less volume sit out under one of the mini tiki tables. Came here Christmas night for some entertainment and dinner. Always a good time at the Roo.

Duane Cook

We love Woody's and we like to stop in whenever we're on this side of the SkyBridge. We always sit out by the peninsula bar for the view and the atmosphere. Its worth a trip to check it out.

Amy Mo

Best clam chowder from Sarasota to st Pete, Clearwater and tarpon! I’ve been looking and finally found it. Bartender Charles made it amazing also and went the bang bang shrimp and it was great flavor and portion! Take care of your bartenders and servers! Will be back with my family.

Brenda Parsons

The seating is really nice. If you want more of a younger loud open seating area including a bar with seating, then you got it. Looks like a band was going to play. But, this is really cool; if you walk around and down a ways, there is a quiet area with big tables and the sound from the band/open area does not travel there. Food was really pretty good at this level of pricing and type of restaurant. I gave it 5 stars in comparison to like restaurants not in comparison to sit down French cuisine. Best part: our server Sammie O was awesome! Quick, attentive, and a cheerful down to earth personality. One other staff member helping us initially was nice too.

Tekk Nomad

We were driving back to St Pete from Sarasota, and we stopped spur of the moment to check this place out. It did not disappoint. It was a very busy Saturday and the service was outstanding. We sat ourselves, and our server immediately appeared to clear and wipe down the table. The three of us were hungry and we ended up ordering a couple draft beers and a couple margaritas between us. We also had the fried grouper sandwich which was outstanding and the blackened grouper sandwich which was good but could be spicier. Generous amounts of grouper. Fries and tots were very good. Pass on the sweet potato fries, they look like frozen. Our server was outstanding throughout, even accommodating our small requests very efficiently. There was live music which was really good! It's a beautiful place to dine right on the Manatee River. We will definitely be back.

Chads Jones

Cool place to come eat! I came for lunch but definitely want to return for the night life experience. Good value considering the price of eating out in the area. Had the chicken tacos and they were delicious along with a huge portion, for a lunch item. Good brewed tea, which can be hard to find nowadays too haha. Put this on your place to stop at if nearby!!!

Samuel Segal

Got recommended Woody's while in the area for work. I ordered the pull and peel shrimp with butter lemon and homemade cocktail sauce with a mojito. This is a cool local hangout. The live music was good. With staff that's attentive and a good-sized menu. I will definitely be back when I'm in the area again.

+5

Jen and Damian Hilgendorf

Stopped here for lunch. Very happy with our experience. The food was all hot and delicious. Our waitress was friendly and attentive and it's always cool sitting next to the waterfront. Love music was starting as we left. Also they have a large souvenir shop as well.

+9

Jeff Thal

Really cool place to hang out with friends or family to have some good food and hear some live music. I had Woody's Famous Pork BBQ Sandwich and it was very good! Great flavor. The Aloha Sharks were playing...great music. Hot day but it was all covered. The bar and wait staff are super busy and hectic but do a good job addressing everyone. Friendly too.

+7

Karissa Marie

Woody’s River Roo is a really great place!!! The service was top notch, and the food was delicious!! My husband ordered the seafood boil and loved it. I had the beer battered fried shrimp, and let me tell you!! *chef’s kiss* the batter was perfect and the shrimp were big and clean!! My son had the cheeseburger from the kids menu. It was a really good size and the fries were fresh. We all shared the crab & shrimp dip which had a generous amount of crab and shrimp! The peanut butter pie dessert was the best peanut butter pie dessert I have ever had. The atmosphere was nice and welcoming. They were busy but the food was quick & fresh. They have a nice lil shop and beautiful views of the water. We cannot wait to come back for when they have live music.

+4

Great spot on water, beware of a good time! Live bands, Spirits & food. Great table service from Shauna. Open TIKI bar spread out on the water, they even have a gift shop. Place is especially packed when a band is playing, so come and hour before. Get some good food just before the show and a good parking spot. Can't wait to come back in warmer weather. We saw Skake Society band and they didn't disappoint. Great Horn section, multiple band members play, most sing their songs, such different voices. Wonderful band playing upbeat happy music, felt like a cruise ship band. 7 band members and 2 sound guys/roadies Great show & Venue.

Gerson Santos

Thursday midday service and it was busy surprisingly. That means the food is good. And the food at 1:20 pm came out really fast . The food was hot and tasted good . No complaints everything was exactly as expected. The right price, setting weather.... Couldn't ask for any better .

+3

Serge El-Khazen

Woody’s Pub in Ellenton is a true hidden gem that feels like a neighborhood hangout with a friendly atmosphere. The staff are welcoming and attentive, making you feel right at home the moment you walk in. The food is excellent for classic pub fare, burgers are juicy, wings are perfectly crispy, and portions are generous. They also have a solid selection of beers on tap, along with great daily specials that keep things interesting. The vibe is casual, with plenty of TVs for catching a game, pool tables, and live entertainment that adds energy on the weekends. Whether you’re stopping by for dinner, drinks, or just to unwind, Woody’s is a spot you’ll want to come back to again and again.

+3

Brandy D

We stopped in early Friday afternoon and were told to sit wherever we liked, so the kids picked a spot near the water. It took almost 8 minutes before we were greeted. I saw our server notice our table while she was doing something near the bar, and she noticeably made a face on her way over, which left a bit of a sour first impression. The place was busy, but not overly crowded. The food and drinks were good, but the service was slow. After our meal, we stopped in the shop and picked up a few things. The woman behind the counter was very friendly, and we had a great chat with her—definitely a highlight of the visit.

+1

Mary Ulmer

Nice spot located right on the water. They offer boat parking as well as a free parking lot. There is nightly entertainment, a full bar, and a souvenir shop. There are multiple tvs in the bar and tiki area and outdoor seating is right on the water with another outdoor bar. I did notice smoking at the end of the indoor bar, but with all the fans, it didn't bother us. Both the mems and women's bathrooms were clean, and the women's bathroom had soap as well as a scrub that had an orange vanilla scent. They offer your typical bar food menu with some added items such as ahi, grouper, and other seafood items. Bar staff is very friendly and welcoming. Draft beers are served cold in plastic cups, and with the florida heat, they tend to get warm quickly, so drink up. I went with the Cuban and appreciate that the mayo is on the side in case u dont want it. I recommend the Cuban it was juicy and full of flavor. The pulled pork and ham were both tender. The buttered roll was easy to bite into, and the tang from the yellow mustard and pickle made the sandwich. The cheesesteak was made with ribeye and was tender with peppers and onions throughout. We added pickles. The seasoned fries were also good. We do prefer hoagie rolls, but the roll the steak was on was not bad.

+2

Andrea Calmon

Bartender was great! Food was okay- salmon rice bowl and Key West rice bowl. I could have made a better bowl.

C. Porter

The atmosphere and ambiance at Woody's were great! We visited on New Year's day and plenty of others had the same idea. The many options for seating were very packed, and we wound up sitting at a half-table of the back deck, facing the Tiki tables. The service was less than impressive - we ended up waiting for about 50 minutes before our food came out, and we needed to poke them for expedited delivery of the goods. Our order was the fish dip and a blackened grouper sandwich with fries. Needless to say, the wait time didn't warrant the complexity of the order. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the drinks were dangerously good - so here is your heads-up. 😄🍹 Where the food is concerned, it was only okay. We ordered saltines with our fish dip, but it still needed some seasoning assistance (but salt and pepper were at the table). The grouper sandwich was lukewarm and not very flavorful, even taking the tartar sauce and lemon juice into account - which we could look at generously and call impressive. In short, it wasn't much to write home about, but if you're interested in some people-watching to enjoy in the nice weather, this may be the spot for you. 😄🍹🐟 🥪

+7