Big Blue Seafood & Grill Brings Polished Service to Midtown

The public verdict

Big Blue Seafood & Grill has a 4.9 Google rating based on 1123 reviews, a strikingly high public score for a restaurant close to Manhattan’s major tourist routes. The available feedback mostly backs it up. Diners often mention warm, attentive service, enjoyable food and an elegant atmosphere. Several describe a special night out, not a quick stop for seafood.

Not everyone was impressed. One diner called the meal generally fine but not especially memorable, and felt the broad, cross-cuisine menu was typical of a tourist-oriented restaurant. That view is an outlier among the supplied reviews, though it puts the near-perfect rating in perspective. Diners looking for a tightly focused seafood restaurant may want to adjust expectations.

Food and menu

Seafood leads the menu, particularly the fresh nightly specials. Reviewers praised a halibut special served over mushroom risotto, calling the fish tender and flaky and the sauce flavorful. Another dinner covered blue crab fish cake, lobster ravioli and swordfish steak. All three drew enthusiastic approval. Broader comments about the specials also singled out their freshness.

The menu is wider than the name might imply. Pasta bolognese was enjoyed alongside the seafood dishes, and one reviewer described the selection as a mix of cuisines. That range may work well for groups with different preferences. Seafood purists, however, could find the restaurant’s identity less precise than expected. Fresh homemade bread received a favorable mention too.

Each named dish appears only once in the supplied reviews. As a result, the public feedback makes a stronger case for asking about the current specials than for ordering any one consensus signature dish.

Service and setting

Service comes through as the most consistent strength. Reviewers call the staff friendly, polished and attentive. When one party wanted to share two specials, the restaurant split both onto separate plates without being asked. Another diner noted frequent water refills and responsive care through the meal. Individual servers were also praised directly for their warmth and attentiveness.

Reviewers describe the room as elegant, with an atmosphere suited to dinner celebrations, dates or visitors after a polished meal in central Manhattan. One weekday diner found several open tables without a reservation at around 8 p.m. That was a single experience, not a guarantee that walk-ins will always find space.

Value and cautions

Big Blue is expensive. Its appeal depends more on attentive service, ambiance and well-executed seafood than on value. Judging by the high public rating, most diners believe the overall experience delivers, especially when they order the fresh specials and ask the staff for guidance.

The central location may influence the restaurant’s character as well. One reviewer thought it catered heavily to tourists and lacked a distinctive point of view. There is another practical drawback: the bathrooms are shared with the hotel and were described as falling below the standard of the dining room. Taken together, the reviews favor Big Blue for polished seafood and attentive hospitality, while raising some concerns about price, menu focus and its tourist-area character.