Bluewater Grill

Pretty darn good seafood and fresh as can be which you want in seafood. What I liked about this place is the staff we encountered knew thier stuff. They knew the plates well and described each option to perfection. This helps when you need a good recommendation.
Our waitress was awesome, as she suggested the Cioppino and the shrimp and chicken gumbo. Yum
The orders were well prepared and with a good amount of seafood that included the standard ingredients such as shellfish and fish. What I thought was the difference is the red sauce for the Cioppino was spicy and rich with no fish taste. I’ve had my share of Cioppino and this comes pretty close to the top.
Great service and the prices were fair. Paid about 26.00 for the Cioppino and about the same for the gumbo. Not too bad when you see what you get.
Thank you

I went to bluewater the week of dine OC. I had the sea Bön Bön scallops. These are fresh raw scallops. I’ve had them at another location before. I wasn’t impressed with the scallops here because it had too many toppings. I couldn’t enjoy the scallop itself. It was buried in too many flavors. My main entrée was pesto pasta with shrimp and scallop. I enjoyed this dish. The shrimp was tender and the pasta was seasoned just right. My boyfriend has the cioppino. The seafood was good. He wished the base of the dish was more broth and less of a tomato sauce base. He also had the lobster bisque soup. There was a good amount of lobster bits in it. The soup was very hot, as it should be.

February 25, 2016 marked the annual clam chowder day! It seems with the advent of Twitter, they find all 366 days of the year to celebrate.
Bluewater Grill e-​mailed me a great promotion to get me in the door with a free cup of clam chowder. I was stoked at the opportunity to taste their clam chowder again. I was here in late 2015 for a Unilocal Elite event. It was a great to see the general manager on this Thursday too, who kindly greeted us and stopped by our table twice. Great service!
The sourdough bread came out first, and it was so deliciously fresh. The crust was rustic and crunchy, with the warm chewy insides beckoning for butter. This was a carb match made in heaven. Butter is a carb, right?
The glory in a cup called New England Clam Chowder was presented at our table with a small bag of Oyster crackers. No need for the crackers for me! I excitedly slurped the soup as slowly as possible, chewing and tasting deliberately so I wouldn’t miss the clams and tiny hint of the ocean in my soup. I’m a huge fan of NECC in general, and you can’t miss this one if you love it too. When I say you can taste the ocean, trust me, you can taste the ocean in this soup.
Soon after the main event appeared at the table. The Cedar Plank King Salmon. I had such a fond memory of the perfectly cooked and seasoned version we had at the Unilocal event, and I was more than ecstatic to have it plated again. This time though, the salmon was a bit overdone. It just wasn’t as buttery this time, and its texture was similar to an overcooked fish steak. It made that rough, sticky feeling in my molars as I chewed it. I finished my meal just slightly disappointed. Not enough to send it back, but I may only give it one more shot.
A funny thing happened though, this clammy lunch, my beau’s order was totally messed up. I think the back kitchen had made a mistake. Although, I only post this because the busboy showed us his ticket and asked us if we were wrong. Hmm. Our server returned shortly after a few times of him asking us if we wanted it sent back (I’m not sure how a customer is supposed to feel about that question). She had the order perfectly memorized and she went away to have it promptly made again.
The general manager returned for round two and made comments to make sure we were still satisfied with our meals even though they had made a mistake. Beau and I secretly laughed, since they had probably only messed up our order in the whole restaurant that morning. «Of all the people you screwed up, busboy, you mess up the Unilocal Elite’s meal!» — we imagined the general manager saying. No harm done though, of course, I only post it for comedy. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience here and I’ll be back.

3.5 stars. The Happy Hour is good, but not my favorite. Loved the $ 1 drink check-​in which gets you a well drink or a glass of house wine. Beer menu is sad for us craft beer drinkers. Everything we ordered was average to above average, but the service was great and it’s not too noisy inside, which is a definite bonus. We would give it another try. Location is great, close to the District move theater.

This place had great service but the food was ok. The appetizers and bread take the crown. Also the $ 1 drink order through Unilocal check in was awesome. Calimari yum and oysters yum. I ordered the scallop which were over cooked.

I want to give a shout out to the excellent service at this Bluewater Grill. Manager Ryan W and our waitress Nicole were such pleasant people and checked on our table frequently to see how we were doing and made sure that our glasses were filled. I feel like I would return just so I can be served by the same people again.
I’ve been to this Bluewater a few times: they have pretty good tacos, poke, and a solid happy hour, but this time, I returned to cheek out the Brunch menu, which I didn’t know existed, and also take advantage of the bottomless mimosas for $ 12? Score!
We ordered the crab cakes eggs benedict, which was very generous and came with a heap of potatoes. While it was delicious, I think the crab cakes with the egg may have been too overpowering of flavors for me to handle at once. By the time I got to the second crab cake, I was already over it. It definitely was well done though, and I think i would have enjoyed the egg and the crab cake if it was cooked on its own. Perhaps they should try the eggs with smoked salmon or something with less intense of a flavor… just a thought.
They also have tacos and french toast, so that could be worth a try as well. In any case, it was a great experience, and with just the excellent service alone, it warrants another return back.

Yesterday was my birthday, and I have been on a brunch kick lately, so what better way to celebrate, than with brunch at the Bluewater Grill. The Bluewater Grill is located in The District shopping and entertainment center in Tustin. I had not been here before, and was also looking forward to seeing what the Union Market was all about.
When we entered the restaurant, we were warmly greeted by the hostess, and shown to our comfy booth. This restaurant is decorated in dark woods, with modern metal accents, that mimics being under water in a kelp bed. It’s high ceilings, and open floor plan make you think you are in an upscale old school steakhouse. I also like the open kitchen concept.
Our most excellent server Cheantay Immediately showed up at our table, and offered beverage suggestions. We placed our order, and started to dive in to the tasty looking menu. With so many things to choose from, it was a hard decision, but our server had several suggestions, for us, as did Megan the manager.
We started off with a cup of the New England clam chowder. This chowder is some seriously good stuff. I LOVE clam chowder and this is some of the best I have ever had. It was perfectly creamy, and had plenty of clams, and not overly full of potatoes.
For our next course we had the seared sea scallops. They were perfectly seared, and topped with crispy bacon. It was served on a bed of jalapeño aioli, and red chili oil. This plate was a work of art, it was so pretty! This was hands down the best thing I ate.
For our entrees my husband went with bouillabaisse. It was very well balanced, and the saffron scented broth was perfect with the shellfish and fish. The seafood was incredibly fresh and delicious. The stew was topped with a crusty croûton and the traditional garnish of rouille. I am a bit of an eggs Benedict fanatic, so I had to try the crab cakes eggs Benedict. This was excellent. Two crispy English muffins topped with crab cakes perfectly poached eggs, and hollandaise sauce. These crab cakes were very mild in flavor, and not overly «crabby» like some tend to be. They were almost pure crab, and not full of fillers like bread or cracker crumbs. The potatoes that accompanied the Benedict were crispy, and well seasoned, and cooked with bell peppers. Order this!
The best thing about this visit was the most excellent service we have ever received. Not one detail was overlooked. When we were leaving, the hostess thanked us for coming, and wished us a good day, and due to the heavy rain, and high winds told us to drive carefully.
I look forward to coming back and trying some more of the great looking menu items, like the ahi poke appetizer, and the lobster roll.

Restaurant located at the large modern shopping mall called The District. Appropriately modern décor and ambiance. Wine list is small, but reasonably priced — for instance, Justin Cabernet Sauvignon was $ 40 which is 1.5 over retail (but then it is not very surprising for the restaurant in California).
Food overall was good, may be with a few small issues. We ordered a mussels and clams pot as an appetizer, and the dish which arrived at the table contained only clams — I guess mussels were hiding on that day.
I took Sanddabs as my main dish — portion size was very generous, and the fish itself was very nicely pan fried, reminiscent of Tilapia in texture and had none of the fishy smell. This dish comes with two sides. Side of organic roasted carrots was slightly overcooked, but it was still tasty. Cauliflower was well cooked, but tree tiny florets hardly constitute a «side» in my book.
Service was nice, friendly and attentive.
Recommended.

it’s quite ironic for me to be in a seafood place as I am big allergic to seafood :)
but I was here for our team dinner and to be honest, I really enjoyed this place alot, our server was very helpful and pleasant and well informed too
I ordered King Salmon with couple of appetizer and it was pretty good but again I am not a best judge for seafood but I like what I had ;)

No one was here besides us at 11:45. Prices were exceptionally affordable for seafood. I actually didn’t even get seafood in retrospect. They had avocado toast and eggs on their menu. The toast was spread with avocado, bacon, and 2 over easy eggs alongside some roasted potatoes. What else could a Californian want? My accompanying party got mahi mahi tacos with corn tortillas, which was also good. No wait and solid food with a huge menu of options!

My boyfriend and I decided to stop in today and had a really great brunch. It looks like they have a new brunch menu and it was way better than expected. First they had unlimited mimosas for only $ 12 and they were perfect, not drowning in OJ but still tasty. The waitress said it was the champagne they use. My boyfriend got a Bloody Mary and it was also really good.
Then they have the yummiest bread they serve. I ordered the crab cake eggs benedict which was probably the best one I’ve had. The eggs were perfectly poached and the crab cakes were perfect and full of yummy crab. My boyfriend got the avocado toast which came with bacon and potatoes. Very tasty, I’m really glad we decided to stop in. Also the service was excellent. Erin our waitress checked in on us numerous times throughout our meal and even the manager Ryan stopped by a few times and made sure to bring another mimosa over before we even had to order one.

Came here for a work dinner this past week. Ambiance is very nice, apparently a completely different vibe than the Newport Beach one. Wasn’t very full but we had a reservation anyways so got seated right away. They only let you get the happy hour specials are the bar which I think is a little strange, so we just got dinner. I got a cajun blackened salmon and it was okay. Service was pretty slow in refilling drinks and bringing other stuff out, even though they weren’t packed. Prices were fair. All in all, a very average affair. There have to be better seafood options in the OC.

The only other Bluewater Grill I’ve been to is the one in Newport Beach and this location has way better ambiance, service and parking (as in, free). Met up with a bunch of friends for happy hour and we had a good time. I love their $ 1 drink Unilocal check-​in deal (all beers, well drinks, house wine)! Got a pint of 805 for $ 1, wow. I also ordered the ahi poke and a bowl of their New England clam chowder. The chowder here is truly excellent, but the poke was just so-​so – I think they put too much soy sauce on it or something but it wasn’t the best. Our server was super-​friendly but there were lulls at times so I can’t say it was the best service either, but she did seem quite busy. I definitely wouldn’t mind coming back for happy hour again.
STEPH JUDGEMENT: Good food and ambiance, especially good for happy hour.

I was there with a large party so was lucky to try several of the appetizers. The poke was meh, the calamari was average, the artichoke hearts were just okay but the accompanying dipping sauce makes them better than okay, but the highlight of the app round was the crab dip. It was a tad bit spicy and the pieces of crab and what I think were artichoke hearts make for a textured dip packed with flavor.
I ordered the swordfish to give it a try. I wanted something wild rather than farmed. The menu doesn’t disclose this detail but the server was able to give me the 411 on all the fish. Swordfish was one of the few wild ones so that was what I went with. I chose the green rice and sauteed spinach as sides. The spinach was on par with most restaurants but the green rice was unique and really stellar. The swordfish was a little on the meatier side which is what the texture should be so i’m told. I was not a fan of the texture but the flavor was not bad.
The recap — don’t make a special trip to dine here but if you do stick to the crab dip and green rice.

Not the best overly-​priced seafood I have had but not bad. The first time we went here was for dinner and we spent a pretty penny. The second time was for their happy hour, which seemed pretty impressive.
We started with some beer and a cocktail, ceviche lettuce wraps, beef tacos, and garlic fries. All the dishes were good and the portions were expected for happy hour. We ended up still hungry so we ordered the crab and artichoke dip and a burger slider. The dip was good, they could have given us a few more chips but we made it work. The slider was very small so dont plan to share this dish.
I must say, for happy hour this place is great. Lots of choices, prices are not bad for the quality of food you get, and the lounge /​bar area is nice and spacious. Good to know you don’t have to sit at the actual physical bar to enjoy the happy hour.

So I normally really dislike «American» seafood. Usually it’s just steamed (and usually over cooked) with a side of butter (boring!) but Bluewater Grill really goes above and beyond with their menu. Changing it up periodically with whatever fish is in season and flavors that pair well.
Notable dishes for me were:
Ponzu Sashimi Sea Scallop
Sauteed Ora King Salmon w/​Red Quinoa/​Brussles/​Cipollini/​Lemon/​Parsley Salad.
Their service is impeccable and friendly and I’m actually looking forward to an opportunity to go back.

This place was a solid 4 stars in my book.
Came here on a whim after a long weekend trip to Las Vegas and wanted something decent but not too heavy, and I was craving some ahi tuna so came here for an early dinner. I made reservations online which was quick and easy, although on a Sunday night I figured it wouldn’t be that busy. And it really wasn’t, no wait to be seated, with about half of the restaurant empty. Our server was very nice and relatively prompt. I ordered a glass of wine, and when the server saw that I was checking in on Unilocal,she said «hey if you check in you can get a glass of house wine for a dollar»! So of course, I did! The house wine was a Pinot noir which was very delicious, albeit young on the grapes, but still quite palatable.
For an appetizer we tried the fried calamari which was decent. The best part about the entire dinner was the remoulade sauce that came with the calamari. It was absolutely perfect in seasoning and texture.
I had a side salad of house greens and ranch dressing, which was pretty standard. For dinner I had the ahi tuna steak with a side of roasted fingerling potatoes which was absolutely perfect. The tuna was seared perfectly with the right amount of rareness on the inside. The soy sauce came with a little bit of a kick which was enjoyable. The finger line potatoes were cooked just perfect, with just a little bit of crisp but warm and soft inside. Solid dinner.
I was quite full after the meal so opted for no dessert. The restaurant itself was very clean, the staff very friendly. The bathroom was clean as well. If you are in the area and looking for a place for good seafood, then you should certainly check it out!

MEGAN is a wonderful server! If you want a great home-​Like and comfortable and wonderful experience come and ask to be seated in Megan’s section!
Had the Cod but they are known for their swordfish!
The green rice that comes with their Cod but ask for the miso sauce on the side: D

After taking advantage of every bit of sunlight we could get on a Saturday afternoon at the beach, we were pressed for time to get dinner in before a 10 PM showtime at the AMC theaters in the District at Tustin. We chose Bluewater Grill because it was convenient to the theaters, we had been there before, and they had availability that night.
We were seated immediately and greeted by our server Greg who’s service left plenty to be desired, especially having only one other table aside from us. He forgot my glass of wine to be delivered with the rest of the beverages and when it arrived without apology, the glass was sweating. There was failure to prebus our table throughout the meal. Only on our request, were refills given. And he took a break after our food was delivered and did not return until the plates were finished and neatly stacked at the edge of the table for him. I’m all about the laid back So Cal vibe too, but to repeatedly call me «boss» when you are performing shoddily in this classier restaurant is not appropriate.
The food was opposite the service. Everything was delicious without complaints. We ordered calamari fritti, 6 phantom creek oysters, 6 hood canal oysters, seared scallops, seafood louie salad, and the swordfish special, which the swordfish had arrived on a recent shipment. The fish was blackened and served over brown rice with corn and avocado. The fish and the oysters were the winners of the night.
We did not have time for dessert but made it in time for the movie. I’m still a fan of Bluewater Grill and would return with our fingers crossed that we receive service at the same level as the food.

A great, upscale seafood inspired restaurant with happy hour!
I ate here with a coworker and spent over $ 133 on food!
Yes it’s on the pricey side but the atmosphere is sexy and the food delicious.
I ordered a half dozen raw oysters if which they had the kinds available: Canada, California, Washington. The smaller oysters seem to be the sweetest and less chewy.
I would def. Come here again.