Two Sarasota area restaurants named among Top 100 in U.S. by OpenTable

Jimmy Geurts, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
Dry Dock Waterfront Grill, pictured here at its 412 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key location, was named one of the Top 100 Most Beloved Restaurants in America for 2022 by OpenTable.
Dry Dock Waterfront Grill, pictured here at its 412 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key location, was named one of the Top 100 Most Beloved Restaurants in America for 2022 by OpenTable.

A national website recently released its list of the Top 100 restaurants in the U.S. this year, and two Sarasota area establishments made the cut.

Dry Dock Waterfront Grill on Longboat Key and Connors Steak & Seafood in Sarasota were both included in online restaurant reservation and review service OpenTable's Top 100 Most Beloved Restaurants in America for 2022. The list was determined by analyzing more than 13 million reviews from verified diners, according to OpenTable.

Overlooking Sarasota Bay, Dry Dock Waterfront Grill belongs to the same locally owned Gecko's Hospitality Group that also operates fellow seafood restaurants Dockside Waterfront Grill in Venice and Tripletail Seafood & Spirits in Sarasota, as well as its namesake Gecko's Grill & Pub with multiple locations. Dry Dock was previously included on OpenTable's 100 Best Outdoor Dining Restaurants in America for 2022, as well as the 15 Best Seafood Restaurants in Florida by travel website Trips to Discover.

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Connors Steak & Seafood, which opened in 2017 in the mall now known as Crossings at Siesta Key, specializes in its two namesake dishes as well as salads, pastas and more. The Sarasota restaurant is one of five currently operating Connors Steak & Seafood locations along with Fort Myers, Huntsville, Alabama, and Knoxville and Franklin, Tennessee, with another planned for Louisville, according to its website.

Connors Steak & Seafood's Sarasota location, pictured here, also made OpenTable's list.
Connors Steak & Seafood's Sarasota location, pictured here, also made OpenTable's list.

One Sarasota-Manatee establishment, contemporary French restaurant Cafe Longet in downtown Venice, made OpenTable's Top 100 Restaurants in America for 2021 list. However, the restaurant shut its doors for good just a few months later at the end of March, with owner Steve Longet attributing the closure to a variety of reasons including visa issues and staffing shortages.

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Other Florida restaurants that made this year's OpenTable list include Ulele, Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurant and Ocean Prime in Tampa; Campiello in Naples; Raglan Road Irish Pub in Lake Buena Vista; Louie Bossi Ristorante and Takato Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale; and Makoto in Bal Harbour.

Email entertainment reporter Jimmy Geurts at jimmy.geurts@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota area restaurants named among Top 100 in U.S. by OpenTable