Checked by The Things To Do In Fernandina Beach editorial desk.
Fernandina Beach is a shrimping town that became a resort island, and its restaurants split roughly along that line. Downtown, in the five walkable blocks between Centre Street and the marina, you get the visitor-facing rooms — waterfront decks, tapas, a couple of serious kitchens. Along 8th and 14th Streets you get what the town actually eats: a grill inside a gas station, a taco stand, a slice shop, a diner. Both halves are worth your time, and this guide covers all of it.
Every entry here has been checked against the venue's own site, the local chamber and CVB listings, and local news reporting. That matters more than usual in this town: several of the restaurants that dominate the search results for "best restaurants in Fernandina Beach" have closed — Brett's Waterway Café among them — and we list what's gone at the bottom of the page rather than quietly leaving it out.
Jump to a category: seafood · waterfront · downtown · breakfast & brunch · lunch · fine dining · bars & nightlife · Italian & pizza · cheap eats.
The full list
How this list is ordered: by how often we'd actually send someone there, weighing what the kitchen does, whether the setting adds something you can't get elsewhere on the island, and value for the price. It is an editorial ranking, not a scoring system, and our sponsor does not buy a position in it.
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1
The Salty Pelican Bar & Grill
Open-air seafood and a rooftop deck at the foot of Centre Street
The Salty Pelican guide → -
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Timoti's Seafood Shak
Order-at-the-counter local seafood, two blocks off Centre Street
Timoti's guide → -
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T-Ray's Burger Station
Breakfast and burgers inside a working gas station on South 8th
T-Ray's guide → -
6
Shuckers Oyster Bar & Grill
Oysters, local shrimp and live music off Amelia Island Parkway
Shuckers guide → -
7
Café Karibo
Courtyard café on North 3rd, and a Fernandina fixture since the 1990s
Café Karibo guide → -
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Salt Life Food Shack
Seafood, sushi and a rooftop deck across from the beach on Fletcher
Salt Life guide → -
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The Hidden Crab
Seafood out on Old Nassauville Road, away from the tourist blocks
Hidden Crab guide → -
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Leddy's Porch at the Florida House Inn
Southern brunch on the porch of Florida's oldest hotel
Leddy's Porch guide → -
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Las Tres Fronteras Tacos
The island's taco truck, parked on South 8th Street
Las Tres Fronteras guide → -
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The Happy Tomato Courtyard Café & BBQ
Barbecue and sandwiches in a courtyard off South 3rd Street
The Happy Tomato guide → -
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Tasty's Fresh Burgers & Fries
Fresh-ground burgers and hand-cut fries on Centre Street
Tasty's guide → -
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The Palace Saloon
Hand-carved mahogany bar, pressed tin ceilings and 120+ years of stories — the landmark bar of the historic district.
Palace Saloon guide → -
27
Green Turtle Tavern
Cocktails, a garden out back and live music on South 3rd Street
Green Turtle guide → -
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The Decantery
Wine, craft beer and cocktails in the Palace Saloon building on Centre
The Decantery guide → -
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Amelia Island Coffee
The Centre Street coffee house, in the middle of the shopping blocks
Amelia Island Coffee guide → -
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Mocama Coffee Sponsor
Espresso, cold brew and pastries in the morning; 24 taps of craft beer in the afternoon, in one of downtown's best interiors.
Mocama Coffee guide →
Find it by what you're after
Sponsored: Mocama Beer Company
Mocama sponsors this site. It sits outside the ranking above, and is listed here so you know the difference.
Eating here: what's worth knowing
The afternoon gap
Several kitchens close between roughly 2pm and 5pm — exactly when people come off the beach. Mini Drunken Noodle runs straight through from 11am.
Sunset is on the west side
The ocean beaches face east. For sunset over water, book the marina end of downtown or the Intracoastal — see waterfront dining.
Downtown parking is changing
The paid on-street programme is due to end on 18 November 2026, after which downtown parking is free again. Either way, park once and walk — the district is five blocks square. Parking guide.
Shrimp season
Local wild-caught shrimp runs roughly May to December. Outside it, ask where the shrimp is from — it's a fair question in this town.
Eating in Fernandina Beach: FAQ
What is the best restaurant in Fernandina Beach?
It depends what kind of evening you want. For a serious dinner, Burlingame on South 5th Street is the room most often named, with Lagniappe its equivalent on the south end. For local seafood without the bill, Timoti's. For a view and a crowd, The Salty Pelican.
How many restaurants are there in Fernandina Beach?
This guide covers 33 restaurants, bars and cafés that we have confirmed are open as of 9 September 2026, across downtown, the beach side, the 8th Street corridor and the south end of Amelia Island.
Where do locals eat in Fernandina Beach?
Mostly off the tourist blocks: T-Ray's inside a gas station on South 8th, Las Tres Fronteras further down the same road, Moon River Pizza on 14th, and Shuckers and Down Under off Amelia Island Parkway.
Do you need reservations in Fernandina Beach?
For the five fine-dining rooms, yes, especially at weekends and in season. Almost everything else on the island is walk-in — and Café Karibo does not take advance bookings at all.
When is shrimp season in Fernandina Beach?
Local wild-caught shrimp runs roughly May to December. Fernandina Beach is the birthplace of the modern American shrimping industry, and the Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival each spring is the town's own celebration of it.
Which Fernandina Beach restaurants have closed?
Several well-known names have closed and still appear in older guides — Brett's Waterway Café, 29 South, Le Clos, Luca's on Centre, Gilbert's Underground Kitchen, The Amelia Tavern and Beech Street Grill among them. We list the current status at the bottom of this page.
Recently closed — don't plan around these
Restaurant guides for this island go stale fast. These places still show up in search results, older listicles and printed guides, and are no longer serving as listed. If you know of a change we've missed, tell us.
- Brett's Waterway Café — Closed October 2025 after 40 years; the building at 1 S Front St is slated for demolition/redevelopment. Reported by the News-Leader and First Coast News.
- 29 South — Closed; the space at 29 S 3rd St now trades as a different restaurant.
- Gilbert's Underground Kitchen — Closed December 2019 when chef Kenny Gilbert's lease ended.
- Le Clos — Listed as closed on major directories as of mid-2026. Removed pending confirmation.
- Luca's on Centre — Closed; 614 Centre St is now Ciao Italian Eatery.
- Verandah Restaurant — The dining room at the Florida House Inn now trades as Leddy's Porch — relisted under that name.
- The Amelia Tavern / The Tavern by AIBC — Closed November 2025 after nearly ten years at 318 Centre St.
- Joe's 2nd Street Bistro — Closed.
- Beech Street Grill — Closed. Kitchen 251 now occupies 801 Beech St.
- The Surf Restaurant & Bar — Reported closing at 3199 S Fletcher Ave. Held out of the guide until the outcome is confirmed.