Safe Harbor Seafood Restaurant offers up sweeping views of the waterways where the restaurant’s catch of the day is caught. Guests can often see the boats offloading fish and shrimp and delivering them to restaurant’s kitchen where it is serves up a menu filled with items like smoked fish dip and the oyster po’boys.

Since opening in early 2020, Southern Coast Seafood has quickly become a staple in the Arlington neighborhood of Jacksonville. The restaurant gets its fish and shrimp from Mayport to create some of its fan-favorite dishes like the fish club sandwich piled high with house-smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and a lemon aioli, along with fish tacos where there’s more fish than fillers. 

Like many of the other restaurants on this list, Seafood Kitchen has been serving up seafood dishes for for several decades. Guests can dine on dishes like whole belly clams (no clam strips here), perfectly fried whole snapper, and deviled crab.

Marker 32 has been a cornerstone of the seafood restaurant scene in Jacksonville for more than 30 years. The restaurant is a unique mix of fine dining and a casual atmosphere, offering items like the seared scallop dish, which comes with collard greens, grits, and roasted corn basil shrimp broth is not to be missed.

Two Dudes Seafood Restaurant is a Jacksonville icon, with two locations, one in Ponte Vedra and one in Atlantic Beach. All of the seafood here is fresh and never frozen so everything retains the briny, sea flavor like it just got caught out of the water. For spice lovers opt for the jalapeño crusted catch, which is offers a choice of fish with a jalapeño crust and drizzled with a coconut lime cream.

Aqua Grill has been around for more than 25 years and Jacksonville locals continue to flock there for the seafood and cozy atmosphere. One item that diners love is the classic chilled seafood tower filled with Mayport shrimp, Galveston Bay oysters, king crab, and lobster tails. For those who not craving seafood the menu has plenty of dishes for the meat and potatoes enthusiast as well. 

Homestyle seafood graces the menu at Barbara Jean’s On The Water. The restaurant is known for its back patio, where guests can take in views of the inlets as they enjoy a drink and wait for their food to arrive. This is one of a few places in town to find true southern-style catfish, where diners can get it battered and fried or spicy grilled with their choice of two sides like white cheddar grits and the ultra nostalgic Ambrosia salad.

Since opening in 2018 OP Fish House and Oyster Bar has been bringing in customers who are hungry for seafood but live an hour or more from the docks of the beaches and Mayport. The restaurant gets its seafood delivered daily from local purveyors, including trigger fish, shrimp, and gulf oysters. Orange Park locals love dining here on Wednesdays when oysters are 75 cents each all day long.

Cap’s On the Water is known for the spectacular views of the St. Augustine waterways, ample outdoor dining space, and plates of seafood with a distinct Greek and Southern twist. One plate that is often seen flying out of the kitchen is the sea bass succotash, which is prepared with Chilean sea bass over a bed of pillowy gnocchi with edamame and oven roasted tomatoes in corn chowder. One great thing about Cap’s is that it can make many of their dishes allergy-friendly, so just let the server know.