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One fish, two fish, red fish, Mad
fish?!? Yes as in Madfish Grill, a delightful neighborhood
restaurant that opened this spring on the east side of town.
While the name may seem unusual, the ownership should be familiar to area residents. And the friendly ambiance conveys an appealing combination of Florida-style hospitality and
tourist-spot charm. The elements add up to an uncommon dining experience.
Proprietor Miles Millwee took his enormously popular urban restaurant—the Hillview Grill—and retooled the concept to give the Madfish Grill a "suburban" spin. His latest offspring is located in a vacated bank building in Sarasota's bustling Bee Ridge Road/I-75 corridor. With panache and plenty of 'tude, it stands apart from the typical interstate chain-style eateries that populate the intersection of Bee Ridge and Cattlemen roads.
Bold colors splashed liberally throughout, and playful use of an offbeat South American mola logo, lend the Madfish its distinctive appearance. And the restaurateur is "banking" on the uniqueness of his newest venture to attract customers from the surrounding neighborhoods. "Our goal was to establish a dining experience between the Outback and the Bijou (Café), in a Class A location where our competition would be corporate, franchise restaurants," explains Millwee.
It wasn't just the successful 12-year stint of shepherding the Hillview Grill that gave Millwee an irresistible urge to open a second location. Prior to launching his won venue, he had run with the big fish—Steak and Ale, TGI Fridays and Bennigan's—where he acquired 20-plus years of on-the-job schooling in Restaurant Management 101.
But years of corporate transfers finally began to take their toll. In the mid-1980s, Millwee, with his wife Mindy and their two children Ben and Casey, began to search in earnest for a Sarasota location to set up a business of their own.
In 1988, they bought a small, 65-seat "spin-off" restaurant with a beer and wine license that had been operating for two years under the supervision and direction of another pair of popular, well-like local restaurateurs. The name Hillview Grill advertised its location, midway between Tamiami Trail and Osprey Avenue on the south side of Hillview Avenue. Millwee recognized the value of the Hillview's market niche—a relatively novel concept for this area at the time. The menu creatively combined homemade pasta dishes and fresh fish from local waters, often prepared with sensational infusions of Cajun influences.
For five years, Miles and Mindy raised their young family and young enterprise without interruption. Miles credits his years of restaurant management experience for helping him keep perspective, empower his small but loyal staff, and build a following that enabled him to stabilize the impact of volatile seasonal fluctuations in our local economy.
According to Millwee, the Hillvew—and later, Madfish—were loosely patterned after Bodega's, a small regional chain with operations in Texas, South Florida and Michigan. "The emphasis was a casual, bistro-style atmosphere," he says. But the owner, who was a co-founder of the Burger King empire, capitalized on a growing consumer demand for a greater variety of high-quality wines. It was and ideal environment for me to learn and develop a business sense and direction that represented my own style."
But in January 1994, a fire blazed trough the strip center that housed the restaurant and several other small businesses, threatening to extinguish Millwee's dreams. Luckily for its loyal patrons, and for Millwee, the restaurant's landlord and staff proved cooperative and indefatigable.
"Jim, George, Christine and Pam, who had been with us from the beginning, were instrumental in reconfiguring the space more efficiently," Millwee points out. Our landlord was sympathetic and made accommodations for us until we could overcome the damage. Fire insurance helped cover
salaries and overhead while we were under renovation. Using very little outside labor, the restaurant was ready to reopen in October with larger capacity, more efficient surroundings and a full-service bar."
Millwee said he had flirted with the idea of opening a second restaurant for "a period of time after the Hillview reopened." But he waited for the right location at the right time. His "professors" had taught him the No.1 corporate rule of running a restaurant: "move up and replace yourself." His devoted staff had mastered the day-to-day operations at the Hillview site and Millwee's creative, entrepreneurial nature sent him searching for new challenges.
"It's one thing to successfully develop a restaurant that competes within a narrow field," he says. "The Hillview is located in a locally trafficked district, but it lack prime visibility on a main roadway or an anchor eatery in a mall location. By positioning a niche-concept restaurant in a high-profile location and pitting it in direct competition against large, established franchise operations, I felt like I was putting my skills and knowledge to the ultimate test."
Mindy took note of the bank's departure and urged Miles to explore the opportunity even before the property was officially available on the open market. After 14 months of suspenseful wrangling, the bidding process was finally concluded in Millwee's favor. In conducting his market research, Millwee discovered some interesting differences between his
Hillview and Madfish clientele with regard to their tastes and preferences. While both establishments target a reputation for fresh seafood, the similarity ends there. Homemade pasta had become synonymous with the
Hillview's cuisine, while the Madfish utilizes vibrant Caribbean seasonings to differentiate its personality.
Like so many others, my business has migrated east, so the Madfish Grill has become my favorite new neighbor. Already my colleagues have proclaimed their favorite dishes on the menu, and we lunch there regularly. I favor the Crab Cake Burger, pan-seared and served with roasted-red-pepper aoili (a garlic mayonnaise), lettuce, tomato and onion on a Kaiser roll for $6.25. Others extol the Island Primavera, which combines fresh seasonal vegetables in an herbed cream sauce over fettucine, also for $6.25 (shrimp, scallops or a combination can be added to the dish for an additional $1.25).
For another best-loved lunch, try the Mahi-Mahi Tortilla Wrap. This blend of black beans and rice, tomatoes, lettuce, pepper-jack sheese and fresh mahi-mahi is rolled in a red chile flour tortilla, then served with roasted ancho chile mayonnaise and tropical mango salsa for $6.95. The chef whips up daily specials of quiche, soup, potatoes and, of course, a unique preparation of fresh catch of the day.
Another cultural distinction between the two restaurants, according to Millwee, is the serving time. To remain compatible with family-style dining, the Madfish doesn't close for a brief period between lunch and dinner seatings, and remains open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday brunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with an al la carte menu offering traditional and Caribbean
selections. Brunch entrees are priced from $5.25 for quiche or soup-and-salad, to $9.75 for Crab Cakes Benedict. With a full bar and daily happy hour specials, the Madfish is a hospitable destination for casual socializing. An interesting twist: the former bank's money vault now serves as a wine cellar for both the Hillview and the
Madfish.
The dinner menu at Madfish Grill boasts a number of signature dishes that carry on the reputation for quality established on Hillview Avenue. Mad mixed Grill features grilled skewers of "jerked" chicken, pork, fish and shrimp in a trio of sauces for $15.75. The Herb Encrusted Snapper with Caribbean pesto beurre blanc is delightful, priced at $16.95. The Andaloo is an intriguing concoction of shrimp, chicken and andouille sausage over rice as the foundation—but no ordinary jambalaya, this! A delectable cream sauce of Marsala, honey, sweet peppers and onions makes this a surprisingly delicious dish for $12.15. A plentiful selection of steak and chicken entrees, in addition to tantalizing seafood, round out the Madfish dinner menu and will certainly satisfy any craving.
Nightly dessert specials, too, are prepared with attentive love, in addition to the menu regulars. I'm partial to the White Chocolate Bread Pudding with Kahlua, caramel and bourbon cream sauce ($5.95). But don't be afraid to make another selection: It's impossible to regret indulging your sweet tooth at the Madfish Grill.
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