Water Grill

A mix of very good and very disappointing. Overall not worth it My family of five shared a six top earlier this week to celebrate a late birthday/mother's day. While some dishes were excellent (8 oz petit filet, sea scallops, halibut, the ridiculously good key lime pie), others were disappointing or outright bad. The asparagus side was oily, tough, and flavorless - we returned it and received a credit on the check, which was very generous. The crab cake was loaded with far more bready filter than needed to hold it together, which hid the natural sweetness of the crab. Its two sides, the salty pickles in particular, entirely overwhelmed what little crab flavor remained. The server, Ralph, was very good overall but neglected to mention that they had run out of the lobster bisque until one of us tried ordering it. Surprising. We liked the space and the crowd, but our table’s location was incredibly loud, and not in an energetic, spirited way. It was effectively impossible to communicate across our group without practically yelling at one another. Finally, at the end of the evening, I found that my napkin shed little pieces of lint all over my pants. Given the price of the meal I found the unevenness and quality surprisingly poor. I can't see myself recommending Watergrill.

We recently hosted a college graduation celebration in the private dining room at Water Grill in South Coast Plaza, and we had such a good time. The staff was really friendly and attentive, and they took great care of our large group all night. You could tell they genuinely wanted to make the celebration feel special. We had a set menu for the event, and the food was delicious, with a few add-on options for anyone who wanted to try some extra dishes. Everything came out at a good pace, and the team handled the private dining service really well, especially with such a big group. The private room was a perfect spot to celebrate such a big milestone, and everyone had a really memorable evening. The $50 corkage fee was a little steep, but overall the service and experience made it feel worth it. Big thanks to the Water Grill team for helping us celebrate our graduate and making the night so fun and enjoyable for our family and friends!

Food was delicious! I ordered shrimp scampi and my husband had filet mignon it was one of the best lunch. Great service and ambience!