I have heard about the Fansler Restaurant Group’s seafood restaurant, Pismo’s Coastal Grill in Fresno, California.
Fansler Restaurant Group also operates the popular steakhouse, Yosemite Ranch and Westwoods BBQ & Spice Co. and having heard a lot of compliments about Pismo’s Coastal Grill, I figured this would be a great time to take the family out for lunch in Fresno.
We went 15 minutes after opening and already the place was starting to get packed. About a half hour later, the whole restaurant was packed with people.
While I briefly looked at the fish market (which is to the left of the entrance), where fresh fish is delivered daily, the family was much to hungry that I didn’t have much time to look around the market area.
But I liked the wooden decor and overall ambiance, as it felt like a seafood restaurant that is operated near the beach. But also add the TV’s with sports programs and everything felt just right.
The place was clean, floors, seats and customer service was great, as I wanted to make sure we had comfortable seats for my mother and father.
While I wanted to order the pan seared diver scallops, my goal with the family is for all of us (a total of four adults) to sample as many things as possible. So, I need to make sure the appetizers were many, than just two.
It’s important to note that these are smartphone photos, I brought the wrong camera which happened to have a dead battery.
The first order was for the Pistachio Crusted Calamari with sauce that was lemon beurre blanc (which translates to “lemon white butter”). As most beaurre blanc is made with a reduction of vinegar, the use of lemon (perhaps lemon juice) brought out the flavors of the calamari.
And to the surprise of everyone eating, was how soft the texture of the calamari was. The entire calamari just melts in your mouth and was absolutely delicious. So, delicious that I think the four of us devoured it within minutes. Granted, it’s not a huge appetizer but it was delicious.
They also offered a Crispy Fried Calamari for the same price of $14.50 with Thai chili sauce and tartar sauce, but under the recommendation of our waiter, I’m quite glad he offered us the Pistachio Crusted Calamari.
I ordered the Pismo’s Famous Stuffed Sourdough Round Bread. The bread is not stuffed with any meats or cheese, but it does have herbs and you get a side of butter. The sourdough was nice and crispy on the outside and soft in the inside.
Absolutely delicious and wasn’t able to get a photo before it was picked (bare in mind, my family is not used to my practice and my brother’s as well of taking food photos once served) but this is another good addition to have in a table as an appetizer and is the cheapest of the appetizers offered at $5.
My dad wanted to eat this one immediately and it was the Fried Snapper Bites which is crispy fried snapper nuggets with tartar and cocktail sauce. Originally, I wanted to get Pismo’s Crab Cakes (as I wanted to compare to Crab House in San Francisco and yes, I know I have to still try Tadich Grill on e of these days) but since it was only two per order, I wasn’t in the mood to spend $35 for only four crab cakes, so I went with the Fried Snapper bites which you get quite a bit for $12.
And now for the main course meals…
My father ordered his Haddock Fish and Chips with cole slaw and sweet potato fries. These pieces were huge but he enjoyed his meal. You can also order Snapper, Fried Shrimp and fish and Fried Shrimp as well. And you can either get regular fries, sweet potato fries or garlic fries (these are $1.99 extra).
Family wanted fish taco but something different, so my mother got grilled shrimp and Angela got grilled shark which was topped with fire roasted salsa, heirloom pico de gallo, avocado, lime crema, cabbage-cilantro slaw with a side of chili black beans.
In addition, I ordered the Maui Style Opakapaka Tacos which has gently fried Hawaiian ono, sriracha glaze, guacamole, daikon, mango slaw and chili black bean for the side. I ordered this just in case the tacos were small and someone wanted a little extra to eat.
As for me, I was recommended the Crab Cake Club Sandwich which is Pismo’s lemon crab cake, avocado, bacon, tomato, arugula, lemon tartar, served with fries or mixed green salad.
I found the crab cake club sandwich to be quite delicious. Better than the defunct Joe’s Crab Shack in San Francisco.
But overall, the family and myself enjoyed our time at Pismo’s Coastal Grill. And if I had to make a recommendation, definitely reserve on their website, just in case.
The customer service was fantastic, they were good in answering my questions throughout the time I was picking their brain of what to order and the ambiance was just fantastic. The place was packed, lively and if anything, the food and ambiance go perfect together.
I also like the fact that they emphasize the freshness of their food, even in their commercial that I found on YouTube.
I will most definitely visit Pismo’s Coastal Grill in Fresno, California again, whenever I’m in the area.
