The Beach Bistro opened in 1985 shortly after Hurricane Elena had rocked Sarasota. Sean explained why he was doggedly determined to open on schedule: “We had spent all our money and were overdrawn by $800 . . . Opening night, we took in $848.”45 The Bistro’s focus from inception was perfection. One of Sean’s favorite advisories is, “If you pursue perfection you will achieve a high degree of excellence a good part of the time.” The Bistro endeavors to procure the very best American food product and serve it at its best. The Bistro serves only fresh grouper, Prime American beef, domestic lamb, and the “best smoked salmon in the free world.”
The Bistro’s “relentless pursuit of excellence in food and service” earned regional acclaim from the Sarasota Herald, the Tampa Tribune, and the St. Petersburg Times. It was awarded its first Florida Trend Magazine’s Golden Spoon in the early 1990s as one of the Top 20 Restaurants in Florida.
Throughout the 1990s, the restaurant earned national recognition and was consistently awarded the highest Zagat ratings in the region.46 In September of 2005, Beach Bistro was invited to perform a James Beard Foundation dinner at the Beard House in New York, “the Temple” of American Culinary Art. In 2006, the Bistro expanded the Bar and introduced a casual bar menu featuring The World’s Best Grouper Sandwich and the acclaimed Steak Sandwich. That same year, it also began offering a few outdoor tables for dining (When the weather is right, the Gulf views are spectacular).
In 2010, Sean and Susan introduced another Anna Maria Island restaurant—Eat Here, a Gulf Coast cookery serving an upscale-casual menu and craft beer from select microbrewers. In 2011, the Beach Bistro was once again awarded the top Zagat rating in food and service on the Gulf Coast of Florida. In November of that year, a second Eat Here location was opened in Sarasota, receiving rave reviews from the beginning.

What would you do next if you were Sean Murphy?

The Beach Bistro opened in 1985 shortly after Hurricane Elena had rocked Sarasota. Sean explained why he was doggedly determined to open on schedule: “We had spent all our money and were overdrawn by $800 . . . Opening night, we took in $848.”45 The Bistro’s focus from inception was perfection. One of Sean’s favorite advisories is, “If you pursue perfection you will achieve a high degree of excellence a good part of the time.” The Bistro endeavors to procure the very best American food product and serve it at its best. The Bistro serves only fresh grouper, Prime American beef, domestic lamb, and the “best smoked salmon in the free world.”
The Bistro’s “relentless pursuit of excellence in food and service” earned regional acclaim from the Sarasota Herald, the Tampa Tribune, and the St. Petersburg Times. It was awarded its first Florida Trend Magazine’s Golden Spoon in the early 1990s as one of the Top 20 Restaurants in Florida.
Throughout the 1990s, the restaurant earned national recognition and was consistently awarded the highest Zagat ratings in the region.46 In September of 2005, Beach Bistro was invited to perform a James Beard Foundation dinner at the Beard House in New York, “the Temple” of American Culinary Art. In 2006, the Bistro expanded the Bar and introduced a casual bar menu featuring The World’s Best Grouper Sandwich and the acclaimed Steak Sandwich. That same year, it also began offering a few outdoor tables for dining (When the weather is right, the Gulf views are spectacular).
In 2010, Sean and Susan introduced another Anna Maria Island restaurant—Eat Here, a Gulf Coast cookery serving an upscale-casual menu and craft beer from select microbrewers. In 2011, the Beach Bistro was once again awarded the top Zagat rating in food and service on the Gulf Coast of Florida. In November of that year, a second Eat Here location was opened in Sarasota, receiving rave reviews from the beginning.