The Old Fisherman

Things have changed

We have eaten at The Old Fisherman for over 10 years. The past two years the service and food has changed. The current service is terrible and used to be excellent. The food was still good but not up to par with previous years. The famous cornbread was not served hot. My wife’s dinner was not up to par and they don’t seem to have as many fresh fish offers as they used to have before. The wait staff was more concerned with their own conversations rather than taking care of the customers. There used to be many locals in the restaurant no matter what day you went this is no longer true. If I could send a message to the management it would be watch your wait staff and take care of the customer. The meals are not cheap and we used to eat here at least two or three times during a two week stay. I doubt we will be back unless we see reviews saying things have changed back to the way it used to be.

appetizer was good, shrimps in avocado. ordered mahi mahi with creole sauce. fish was tasty but cool, vegetables, rice and potatoes were cold. their usually delicious corn bread was brought to us ice cold and soggy, cheese was not melted. Obviously they cater to the locals so if you are not local. AVOID this place. The locals food came out very quickly and very hot. too bad since it was good the last few times that we ate there. NOT AGAIN UNTIL WE SEE BETTER REVIEWS FROM AMERICANS. TOURISM IS THE ONLY BUSINESS HERE. START TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS IF YOU WANT TO SURVIVE. WORD OF MOUTH COUNTS MORE THAN ALL THE ADVERTISING AND FREE GLASSES OF WINE THAT YOU PAY FOR.

My husband and I have gone to lunch at this establishment every Flag Day for years. This is a locals place to eat so you know the food is very good. Since Flag Day is a holiday, the restaurant is usually packed. I know I am on vacation and I should slow down but don't ruin my meal because you are not paying attention. For example, take notice that my beverage is low and proactively ask me if I want another. Your owner would love that my bill is higher based on your suggestive selling. I hope management takes note and makes some recommended changes on the service.

This was an awful experience. The bathroom stank and it's right near the kitchen. All the help hanging out by the bar ignoring us. Pan Bati is actually pancake with ground corn. Nothing to sneeze about. Oil and coconut milk dripping from the food. For the prices, I expected a lot better. The part is we were given the check for someone else's meal. When I asked the waiter to explain the check to me that's when we got the corrected check (a lot less). I wouldn't reccommend to anyone else. However, Dos Locos, now there's a good one for you.

Like everyone else, I agree the food is very good and the place is very nice. Nice that I got a table fast, but after that, it was wait for everything. Menus, water, food, and service. Its not that they were busy, everyone is just standing around the bar. Also, everyone is raving about the cornbread, what cornbread? We didn't get any.

The place was recommend to us. However the service was bad.
We asked three times for an extra plate, one of the children's order was forgotten and I'm still waiting for my drink :-).
Not the best place to be.

great place for local food. can't beat the value and quality and quantity. best of 10 places we went to over 3 weeks. best bread in town. sorry we did not have time to go back a second time. you know it is good whne there are a lot of locals eating there as well as tourists. don't miss it.

This was our 4th year coming here and it has always been consisant for us. Casual, locals place with good food and service and reasonable prices. Nothing fancy. We enjoy the escargot and fried calamari to start with a nice cold Amstel Bright. We both had the catch of the day, which happened to be Mahi Mahi. We had 1 with the garlic sauce, the other meunire. Both equally tasty. And of course, can't forget the pan bati with grated cheese-yum! A nice 1st night since we were staying at the Renaissance.

our first visit to tbe OF... we were not disappointed.
service and food excellent. love places where locals eat... will definitely be on our play list next year.

After reading some reviews I wonder if we ate at the same restaurant? My husband and I love TOF and return to it year after year. Yes, there are many locals and what does that tell you? I usually have my fish a la meuniere and my husband enjoys the garlic sauce. Pan Bati is our absolute favorite. For us, there is too much food. I would prefer to just have the fish and have the price reduced a bit. And if you need the server of the year, ask for "Sue". She is the best. Looking forward to returning next year.

We essentially stumbled onto this restaurant our first night in town. It was the only night of the week I had not made reservations somewhere. Unfortunately it was the only restaurant we ate at that we would not bother to visit again.
The complimentary basket of fried cornbread was the only part of the meal that we all enjoyed. It actually was very good, and after eating the disappointing main meal we were tempted to just ask for more fried cornbread.
They were child friendly in that we could simple order fried chicken strips and french fries for the kids. It was good white meat chicken, but had no flavor.
The main meals were a bit below average, and certainly not worth a return trip. The fish was fresh but flavorless. The mango sauce with one fish entree was acceptable. The fish cakes were not good, and I had to pick multiple fish bones from my mouth while trying to eat them. The red skin potato salad that came as a side was actually quite good, despite having an unusual ingrediant of sweet cabbage in it, that actually was not an unpleasant addition. The owner of the restaurant was genuinely concerned about whether we enjoyed the meal. I should have told him directly that we found the meal unpleasant. Maybe if we gave other entrees a second try we would have been content. Since most everyone (6 adults and 3 children) found their meal to be less than ideal, it didn't seem worth the effort to send them all back. Furthermore, this place was definitely OVER priced for the quality of the food. I truly thought their prices were in florins, not dollars. But they insisted otherwise. We nearly walked out after seeing their prices, and I wish we had. We ate at mostly top 20 rated restaurants during our stay. Despite this fact, The Old Fisherman was one of our more expensive meals of the week, and definitely was the least satisfactory. There are many other far better choices for food and location/ambiance on the island. Don't bother to eat here.

This restaurant was suggested by one of the bus drivers. I found it to be average. The staff was friendly, but could not figure out why the cooks were hanging around at the bar. The cornbread is AWESOME. I could eat that all night. I ordered the shrimp dish which was nothing special. Prices were reasonable. I would go back again if I just wanted something to eat, but if looking for an exceptional dining experience, probably not.

We had the most delicious seafood and fish at this wonderful local restaurant.

The portions were huge, and there were many included side dishes that came with our meal, plus the prices were very very reasonable. We had top-notch excellent service and everyone was so very friendly. We were seated immediately. No wonder there were so many local people eating here, they know what a delicious gem this local place is!!

We will definitely return for their outstanding food, excellent large portions, and fabulous service and prices! THANK YOU SO MUCH.... Oh, we LOVED the free cornbread appetizer with goat cheese.

Spent over 45 minutes inside the restaraunt where my girfriend and I were largely ignored. This is a place that is frequented by locals and we got the impression that tourists are not welcome. Our waitress was an abject failure and had no clue what "customer service" is. (Local) people came in after us and seemed to get get great service (they actually received food). I vote with my money, we will never set foot in their establishment again! The owner should find better help (the help they have now is pathetic).

A local resident advised me to have lunch in this restaurant. The food was alright, but I've definitely had better. Service and atmosphere weren't that good and I had to wait almost an hour before I received my order. To sum up: a disappointment.

This was our first visit to this restaurant. We sat inside even though they say they have outside seating, it's more like a porch at the front door. It's a small place, so it's good we had reservations, the place was really busy. Not much atmosphere, kind of bright and noisy. My husband wanted the Red Snapper, but wanted the fish filleted in the kitchen, not the whole thing brought to the table. I don't know if the waitress didn't understand what he wanted but said it only comes one way, so he ordered something else. Both of our meals were good and we enjoyed the corn bread.The corn bread was deep fried but it wasn't greasy or fishy tasting. Portions are good size and pricing very resonable. We were just about ready to add this to our "restaurant repeat list", when on the way back to the car, something "bothered" my stomach. About an hour later, something "bothered" my husband's stomach. We both had different types of fish for dinner, so we don't think it was bad fish. We don't eat much fried foods anymore, so maybe it was the corn bread. Needless to say, I don't think we'll be back.

We returned to our favorite island yesterday and then returned to our favorite restaurant on the island! We had not made reservations but were seated after a short wait. Our favorite waitress was there as well...
the smiling face of Sujeiry will make your dining experience even more enjoyable. I had the red snapper meuniere....wow! It was so good. My husband had the snapper with mango sauce and his was very good as well. One of our favorite parts of the meal is the pan bati that is served immediately. We loved it so much last year that my husband tried to duplicate it at home....we did a good job but it wasn't The Old Fisherman.

This restaurant was recommended as a place where the locals go for seafood at a good price. It met all our expectations. The food was excellent, prices were reasonable, servers were very friendly, in a easy to get to downtown location.

This is one of our favorites places to eat. We had a party of ten and no one was disappointed. Red snapper and Grouper in garlic and butter sauce was outstanding. I went back again and had the linguine w/seafood. It's hard to cook calamari to the right texture, but they did it perfectly. Also try the seafood stew. With some bread, it could also be a meal. They don't scrimp on the ingredients. Nice ambience inside. Just across the street from the bus terminal next to the Taj Mahal restaurant.

The corn bread was AMAZING! Our server was extremely friendly and helpful. Both my husband and I loved our meals -- chicken and conch. Most importantly, we had a fun time - the restaurant was filled with locals. Wonderful Aruban dining experience!

We just returned from a week long trip to Aruba. Based on several recommendations we headed to the Old fisherman. We were not disappointed. The service, environment, food, hospitality, and price were unequaled during our stay.

We tried the fresh catch (barracuda, grouper, red snapper, and wahoo) in a mouth watering garlic butter sauce based on the advice of the manger. The meal was out of this world! The meal was started with a free appetizer of local deep fried corn bread with goat cheese (this was excellent and a favorite of our group). We decided to also try the calamari which was also very good. When the meal was brought out it consisted of plantains, potatoes, salad, rice and the main course. This was the best eating experience during our stay. It was so good that we decided to head back before we left just to eat there again.

If you are ever in Aruba do not pass up the chance to eat here...you will not be disappointed!

After much buzz from the Aruba BB and this site, we made it to this restaurant. Fish we had was well prepared, generous portion and very tastey. Our waiter, Erwin, was very attentive and easy to talk to. The place itself is kind of in a crummy location at the end of the street across from the bus terminal. The night we went, while the street was kind of deserted, there were some guys hanging around the corner and one offered to sell us drugs. The restaurant is next to the Taj Mahal restaurant. We parked a little of a walk away in front of Chez Mathilde as parking was well lit there. Having said that it wasn't as expensive as other places we've eaten at in Aruba but it was not a bargain either. I think our entrees were $23. If lunch prices are better, a good recommendation when downtown.

The Old Fisherman is the hidden gem of Aruba. The seafood is caught fresh daily and simply out of this world. Grouper in garlic sauce and blackened red snapper are simply superb. Our boys ordered 2.2 pounds of garlic shrimp and were fighting over the last piece. The shrimp was so fresh and perfectly cooked that it melted in your mouth. Cornbread, fried and sprinkled with cheese, and local side dishes accompany every meal. This restaurant has plastic covered tables and paper napkins so if you want to stick your feet in the sand and watch a romantic sunset, this is not the place to go. If you want incredible food at a very fair price this is a must stop. You will still be smiling from the food when you take that romantic walk on the beach after your meal! If you don't try The Old Fisherman and instead go to one of the places that advertises a lot, you will be making a big mistake. Trust us, we've made that mistake.

My husband and I ate here at the recommendation of our taxi driver, and we were pleasantly surprised at how good the food was. It was fresh, and well priced. The service was great too. Bebe, our waitress was very friendly. We were so pleased we went back a couple of nights later with 4 friends and they were just a happy with everything as we were. Again Bebe was our waitress and treated us like we were old friends. We are all going back in March and plan to enjoy a couple more meals at the Old Fisherman.

We had dinner here last week, and it won't be the last time! Excellent food and service, in a surprisingly cute place (not so great from the outside - you can't judge a book by it's cover). Probably the freshest shrimp I have ever had.