BLU Seafood Gilbert

01 — THE EXPERIENCE

BLU is a tough one, because there were several things I genuinely liked: the atmosphere, the cocktails, the music, the people watching, even the ample parking—which, depending on where you live, can qualify as an amenity these days.

We went for the food. And that's where BLU lost me.

BLU looks and feels like somewhere you want to settle in. It's attractive, lively without being obnoxious, and the room has an energy that makes you think: Okay, this could be good.

Cocktail in hand? Even better. If I were reviewing BLU strictly as a place to meet friends, have a drink, listen to some music and people-watch, we'd be having a very different conversation.

Unfortunately, eventually somebody brought us dinner.

02 — WHAT WORKED

The cocktails worked. The atmosphere worked. The music worked. The people watching worked. Our waitress was exceptional.

The lightly fried octopus and shrimp were quite good, the accompanying sauce was tasty, and the guacamole and fresh-tasting chips gave the meal a promising start.

And despite BLU feeling upscale, the bill wasn't obscene. I'd put it just shy of $$$. Not cheap, certainly, but not one of those dinners where you look at the check and wonder whether you accidentally bought part of the restaurant.

03 — WHAT DIDN'T

The cod was overcooked—tough and chewy. The pasta was watery and flat. The pesto was only okay, and the pistachios were soggy.

Then there were the Brussels sprouts: dry, chewy and out of season. In my opinion, they shouldn't have been on the menu in the first place.

The flavors across the meal never really came together. Tough. Chewy. Dry. A complete mismatch of flavors. And that's frustrating because everything surrounding the food had set us up to expect more.

04 — WORTH IT?

No. And not because BLU was exorbitantly expensive. It wasn't.

But when a restaurant gets close to $$$, I expect something from the kitchen. For that kind of money, I expect to be at the very least slightly wowed.

I wasn't.

Would I go back to BLU? Yes.

Would I go back for dinner? Probably not.

There are simply too many good restaurants competing for the same money. But I'd happily go back, grab a cocktail, enjoy the atmosphere and people watching—and then head somewhere else for dinner.

And that's not meant as a cheap shot. Quite the opposite. BLU has already done several difficult things right. They've created somewhere I actually want to be. Now I need the kitchen to give me a reason to stay.

If you're looking for cocktails, atmosphere, music and a good-looking room to meet friends or start a night out, absolutely put BLU on the list.

If you're making a special drive specifically for the food? Based on my visit, I wouldn't.

Go. Get a cocktail. Enjoy the room. Do some people watching.

Then I'd keep the dinner reservation somewhere else.

THE VERDICT