the Gafford in Stuart - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Visited on a Sunday evening and was surprised that they have happy hour all day on Sundays. Nice dark classic interior and overall enjoyed my visit .

Nice little spot, but the night we ate there, everything was overcooked. It is really hard to overcook a double cut porkchop, but somehow, they still managed it. They do have some front of house issues as well, but the problem is mostly that the space doesn't really feel like it's designed for its current use. Table placement is awkward, and there is a lot of coming and going that typically wouldn't happen table side like ice buckets being hauled through and having to jockey around servers and diners. They also have a really strict rule on not seating even 1 minute before 5, leaving people to stand there and pile up at the miniscule front door area until the clock precisely hits the dot, unless you want to go sit at the bar and buy a drink. Those are kind of incidental things - and all in all, the food is generally pretty good, that night it just left a lot to be desired.

I’m deeply disappointed by our recent experience at The Gafford, a place we’ve always enjoyed and recommended to others. My parents have been loyal patrons for years, specifically requesting to sit in the Palm Room each time, as it’s more suitable for our group to converse compared to sitting near the kitchen. On this occasion, despite making a reservation and explicitly requesting the Palm Room, we were informed upon arrival that we could not be seated there. When I asked the hostess for an explanation, she simply said they couldn’t accommodate us. There was an open table for four in the Palm Room, but the manager later explained that it was reserved for a large party and another table was needed to combine with it. While we understand that businesses must prioritize large parties, what we find unacceptable is the lack of communication. Had we been notified in advance that our request could not be fulfilled, we would have made alternative plans. The lack of consideration for our reservation and the disruption to our limited family time was extremely disappointing. We hope that after years of loyal patronage, The Gafford will reflect on this experience and improve its communication with customers.

Food is good, but a bit pricey. They also need to expand their menu especially the appetizers.

I stopped off at a Local Restaurant in downtown Stuart. The Gafford, a family-owned restaurant in Stuart, Florida, opened on October 21, 2023. The restaurant took 17 months to renovate, which was 13 months longer and $2 million more than originally planned. The Gafford is in the Martin Downs Village Center and occupies three spaces, including the Palm City Chamber of Commerce. The restaurant has 151 seats and an outdoor dining patio with 80 seats. I started with a glass of freshly brewed Sweet Iced Tea. Look at how beautifully dark and rich the flavor of that tea was awesome. It hit the spot for me. My server Abigail was prompt and super friendly. She was on top of her A game tonight covering a lot of tables and didn't miss a beat. I ordered the Gafford. Look it up on the main menu. This is a 20 full ounce bone in Ribeye. It came with a homemade from scratch Mac & Cheese and Green Beans. NOW, they change up the Mac & Cheese from time to time and tonight I got a spicy one. (Now to be fair here I'm not one for very spicy food. So, to be fair on my scale from 1-10 this was a 7-8. But for a person who normally eats spicy stuff I'm going to guess around a 2-3ish.) So, as you can see, I couldn't finish it. TOO HOT for me. But the flavor was very good. The meat was cooked to Medium, and it was right on the money. Thanks to Chef Taylor and his talented crew. The unsung heroes of this fine establishment as well. I also know that everyone's preferences are different when it comes to Steak tenderness. I like my Ribeye firm not mushy overly tenderized. This was nice and firm, not chewy in my book. To me it was perfect. As you can see in the photos that I took the meat was a nice light pink in the middle perfect Medium for me. I hope you all enjoy the photos and the short video to kind of give you a feel for The Gafford. I give this place 10 out of 5 stars! Plan to come down here and visit this family-owned business.

We were 8 peoples celebrating a birthday ! I understood that the person’s dinner was completely as they advertise when you join via email. Long story short, we been told by the manager that this will not apply for use. Orar drinks was more than $200, the total was $800. What about making customers happy, specially on their birthday!!! We love the food, but non of us want to eat there again.

I used to rate this restaurant a 5, but have downgraded to a 3. Since they have opened up their second location, the prices here have gone up and the food quality has gone down. We won't be returning to what was once an amazing place (but no more).

Great food with decent size portions. We enjoyed the drinks, appetizers, and entrees. The crab cakes, meatloaf and pork chops were excellent.

Excellent steak, great wine and service

Not worth the hype…I do had dinner here 3 years ago and everything was spectacular. Had dinner here tonight 6/20/24 and it was horrible! Meatloaf was overcooked, sauce was tart and inedible. Service snotty, actually said, “same chef, same recipe, it must be you!!” Will Never go back!!.

Great place for special moments, occasions, and quiet evenings! Food exceptional and service is on point!!!

As I am currently on a strict regimen of foods for health reasons my food selection was not as exciting as what is offered. Although my husband had a salmon special that he said was outstanding and the salmon was huge. They graciously allowed him to get the whole grains rather than the potatoes. I ordered their salad with grilled chicken. The dressing was very tasty. The only complaint I have is the tomatoes were large cherry tomatoes and the carrots were not cut bite-sized. It sounds very silly to say until you understand that when I tried to cut a carrot it flew out of the bowl onto the floor. I didn’t dare cut the big juicy round tomato in the slippery bowl with the bread knife I had fearing I would either spray my white blouse or lose another vegetable on the floor. I thought it said a chopped salad on the menu, but I may be mistaken. Overall a wonderful date night with fantastic service. (Just a few slippery veggies).

Hands down, the best meal we have had! James was personable, knowledgeable and fun to talk with. The swordfish and shrimp/grits were fantastic! Highly recommend and will be back the next time we visit.

Great service and yummy food. Don't miss the cream of spinach soup, but a heads up? There is an upcharge for blue cheese olives in a martini. Which the server suggests but doesn't mention the charge? Seriously? It's an olive!

Pat Hacket took Kathy and I to this nice restaurant in Sturart. I had a salad which was excellent and a pork chop which was fair. It was a bit fatty and I didn’t care for the flavor. Kathy and Pat both had a salad and swordfish which they said was excellent. It was good to see him.

After moving to this are about 18 months ago, we finally tried The Gafford. We arrived at 8PM on a Thursday night without a reservation but secured the one open table they had. Noise level was reasonable. I think they have limited outdoor dining. Service was quick and the food was excellent. I had the meatloaf (made with three different kinds of meat). It was delicious, but I should add that it was loaded with garlic. I love garlic, but I need to take Prilosec before consuming mass quantities :-) The green beans were fresh, and the mashed potatoes were excellent. My wife had the Seared Tuna that she requested not to be blackened. It was a rather large sushi grade piece of Tuna. She couldn't finish it. Served with rice and green beans. We each ordered a house cabernet, which turns out to be Bonanza at $11 or $12 per glass. There are cheaper options on the menu, with the lowest cost being around $9 if I recall. They allow corkage, but request the wine not be on their menu. They had some daily specials (Diver Scallops was one). Lots of folks were ordering the fried chicken. We'll go again.

After moving to this are about 18 months ago, we finally tried The Gafford. We arrived at 8PM on a Thursday night without a reservation but secured the one open table they had. Noise level was reasonable. I think they have limited outdoor dining. Service was quick and the food was excellent. I had the meatloaf (made with three different kinds of meat). It was delicious, but I should add that it was loaded with garlic. I love garlic, but I need to take Prilosec before consuming mass quantities :-) The green beans were fresh, and the mashed potatoes were excellent. My wife had the Seared Tuna that she requested not to be blackened. It was a rather large sushi grade piece of Tuna. She couldn't finish it. Served with rice and green beans. We each ordered a house cabernet, which turns out to be Bonanza at $11 or $12 per glass. There are cheaper options on the menu, with the lowest cost being around $9 if I recall. They allow corkage, but request the wine not be on their menu. They had some daily specials (Diver Scallops was one). Lots of folks were ordering the fried chicken. We'll go again.

Very expensive, and very, very loud and noisy, seated near the kitchen, but it's a small place.

Susan, our waitress, was extremely attentive and accommodating. The food was delicious. We had a great time.

One of my favorite restaurants to eat in.

Service at bar table was very attentive. Tuna Tartare was a sharable portion with tuna,avacado and wonton chips.

Always great food. Service is excellent. Love the atmosphere.

We had a fantastic dinner at The Gafford with visitors from out of town. It is our favorite spot to showcase Stuart's great dining. The food was delicious, especially the tuna tartar and the meatloaf. The presentation is always beautiful. The hostess greeted us with a smile, our waitress, who has been at The Gafford for 14 years, was very friendly and efficient, and we marveled that even the busboys are engaging. We love The Gafford!

Best restaurant in Downtown Stuart

A wonderful evening! The food was so delicious, as was the service. In particular we enjoyed the burrata appetizer, the shrimp and grits, and the butternut squash risotto. Abby M, our server, was both helpful and delightful. We will be back!

The Gafford is an excellent restaurant for all occassions. Great food and service. The menu is not vast but all is good.

This is only the second time eating here, but it won't be the last. Great food and excellent drinks. We will be back!

Always a great time at The Gafford

First time. The food was excellent and our service was exceptional. We had a table reserved. We arrived early and had a cocktail in the bar. When our guests arrived, we were having such fun in the bar we asked if they could just serve us on high tops there. They made the adjustment and we had an amazing dinner.

Great place to spend for dinner on our 56th wedding anniversary.

Always the best!! Food and service never disappoints. It has become a favorite!

The outdoor seating at The Gafford on Osceola Street was horrible. Our table was right on the road. The noise and exhaust fumes, especially from the passing pick-up trucks, was intolerable. Several times the cars revved their engines right next to our table. My wife and I remarked how we could not stand the noise, or the exhaust fumes. The food was only passable and did not merit a 4.6 overall restaurant rating. My “daily special” steak was tough, and it had way too much fat on the sides to warrant a $40. Price. My wife’s Scottish Salmon was good quality, but it was not cooked enough and it was mushy. Service was excellent and I attribute that to our waiter Tim. The Bordeaux wine was the high point of the meal for me. I will never go back to The Gafford, for brunch, lunch or for dinner

Had a 16 ounce strip steak for $40 and it was cooked perfectly and tasted even better. Someone made a mistake pricing the steak? We asked twice and were assured it was correct!

We dined at the bar with Ian. He was very attentive and professional without being intrusive. The salmon was rare to perfection might be the contender as best yet!

Brisket, Filet and Swordfish were incredible! Service as usual excellent!!!

My husband had the ribeye, and I had the crabcakes, and both were outstanding! John, our waiter, was very professional, helpful , and attentive.

Enjoy an early dinner. Emily was great, as was the rest of the staff.

Great meal and very friendly team. Great wine selection.

Went on a Saturday night. My wife and I for a nice get out. We shared the crab cakes they were great. My wife had the filet mignon also great. I had the rib eye. Not as good as expected, fatty and somewhat tuff. From NY I’ve eaten at many steak places. This steak was not up there. Service was great. I would go back just order something other than the ribeye.

Excellent evening and dinner as always. Will definitely be back.

Good excellent. Always is. Crowded. Service was slow, it’s usually better.

The steak was cooked perfectly, yet all the sauces had a slight kick to them, which isn’t for us. Also, we made reservations for 5:30, it was our anniversary, we were 10 minutes late since we couldn’t find parking, and as soon as we walked in the hostess told us we have to be done with our table by 7 pm due to a party of 10 coming in & they need the table. Never been told that before. Also we sat outside so the ambiance was the street traffic.

Very noisy and no ambience. Food was ok but basic

Our food and drinks were delicious. I ordered the meat loaf and a winter Paloma. My husband had the roast chicken, an Old Fashion and we shared the Farmers salad. Our waitress was delightful.

The food was excellent! It was cooked to perfection and the chocolate flourless tort dessert was out of this world. The waitress was very pleasant and made a great recommendation on wine for us. We sat outside and enjoyed watching people go by along with the gentle breeze. We had a great time!

My wife and enjoyed two great fish meals. I had snapper and shrimp while she had the sword fish. The taste and quality of the meal was excellent. Our server was excellent as well. She was attentive to all our needs. This a great place to eat. I will be back and I'm bringing friends with me.

My food and my server Abby were excellent. It’s crowded inside but we sat outside and it was lovely

Our server John C did a very nice job! Two in our party had the duck special and both said the dish was creative. My Caesar salad was very good with crisp lettuce.

We thoroughly enjoyed our evening at The Gafford. The ambience and service were fantastic and the food was delicious! Made for a great evening!

Excellent food, the drinks were great, and the service was good as well. One of our favorites.

As always, the food is fantastic and the service is always impeccable. We love the Gafford. I had the scallops and I wish they were on the regular menu. Soooo delicious. My husband has the pork chops and that’s one of his favorites. Our favorite place to go for a nice dinner.

Excellent service and fabulous food. My request for a table in a quieter area was honored and the guests with hearing aids were pleasantly surprised at how well they could hear the conversations. It was a wonderful surprise to be seated as per requested.

We were given water as soon as we were seated but waited about ten minutes for a drink order. Other than that, Abby was very attentive. We were not rushed and she did a great job spacing out our appetizer and entrees. She checked in just enough to see how we were doing. We’d love to have her again when we go back. The manager ( or maybe the owner?) stopped by and sincerely asked how everything was and could he do anything for us. Unfortunately, we were seated near a group of 8 or so, clearly co-workers and the type that had to shout over each other when speaking. Yes, we’ll be back.

We each enjoyed an outstanding grouper dinner. Our server, Janine, couldn't have been better. Extremely knowledgeable about both the food and the wines and very attentive without being overbearing. Made another reservation for when we are back down there in March.

The food and service were excellent. Lauren our server was excellent.

Delightful evening with friends. Server John made us feel very welcome and he was extremely efficient, no rush, no hurry... no worries. We had the signature Mabel's fried chicken (try it!), a Mahi special, the short ribs and the Snapper Scampi....all very reasonably priced

Emily, our server was incredibly pleasant and understood we were visiting friends so no rush was put upon us. My filet was delicious, my hubby's meatloaf moist and yummy. The Salmon our friend ate she raved about. We will definitely be going back.

Excellent and attentive service. Great tasting food but a little disappointed in variety available

This our first visit to the Gafford and it was excellent. Our server, Abby was very professional, good knowledge of the food, with just the right amount of attention. We will definitely recommend your restaurant and plan to come back next month. We split 3 different items and appreciated that you put them on 2 different plates for us.

Consistently very good food and service. We eat here every time we come to Stuart.

A great Friday night. Our server was excellent, the food terrific and the energy level high. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and will be back!

as always, it's amazing! it is our go-to place for dinner and/or drinks!

Favorite place in Stuart...by far...never disappointed The Garrord

Always a pleasure! Love the staff and the food!! Everything on the menu is always outstanding. ❤️

Met friends for dinner and everything from appetizers to our dinners we're very good. Service was top notch also, we look forward to going back

The Gafford has never disappointed us. Their good is terrific, menu reflects everything you would want a choice of, service is terrific. Only issue we’ve had is the noise level in their bar. But then again, people are having such a good time talking and being with people, it’s hard to contain that.

Our meals were very good. For our group-4 adults- we had shrimp and grits, salad with blackened chicken, and 2 entrees of grilled shrimp with rice and asparagus. All enjoyed. Cocktails of wine, beer and martinis were on point. The restaurant is very loud but we very much enjoyed downtown Stuart.

Everyone at my table LOVED their food! The waiter (John C.), the food, the atmosphere was all amazing.... Was my first time at this place, but it certainly won't be the last!

Great atmosphere and excellent service. Crab cakes were mediocre, and lamb chops were okay. We wouldn’t order them again. The roasted cauliflower with pepper cream sauce was excellent. We look forward to trying different dishes when we go back.

The food was prepared by a very inventive, and cooked to perfection! Our server, Lauren, was amazing. What a great meal!

Wonderful night. Out of town guests very impressed. Long live Mabel and her chicken!!

The food and service were very very good. It was really an enjoyable experience, and we would recommend The Gafford totally.

The food and the service is always top notch. I can't say anything negative about the Gafford. Love it!

Abi was a wonderful server. She was knowledgeable and friendly.

Always exceptional! Can’t really say anything to improve it.

The service was excellent! My meal was delicious!!! We’ll be back!

The food was delicious. The cauliflower appetizer and the snapper scampi were tasty. Need a bigger beer selection.

All meals were prepared perfectly....we will be coming back.

Anniversary spot every year with a great experience. Was placed by the door which was busy and cold but service and food were outstanding.

We were a party of four, we sat outside, which was nice. The service was a little slow and the food was just OK. Three of us had salads, no protien added, which sounded fantastic on the menu as described but when we received them they were 95% lettuce and no flavor. The other in our party had the butternut squash risotto, again lacking in flavor and seemed under cooked. We all had water and one had a cocktail. Our bill was $93 for three salads, a risotto and one drink. For the price we were expecting a bit more. 

Service and especially the food was outstanding .the salmon with the bbq sauce was cooked to perfection

Food was good. Always enjoy eating near the kitchen. It’s fun to watch food going out.

Always a good experience at the Gafford! Food is just fabulous. Took neighbors who loved the menu and the entrees they ordered. Been long time customers who haven’t had a bad meal yet! Two thumbs up!!!

Love Gafford, get noise level at Social equal and we won’t have to drive from Palm City. LOL

Great food and service at an old town Stuart Restaurant!

Service was exceptional as was the food—as always!

Every menu choice is the right choice.

For the cost food was not that great. Will not be going back.

Our waitress was Abby. She was super sweet and wonderful. She welcomed us immediately. Service was top notch. Water glass half full quickly filled. Owner checks on you as does anyone walking by. We had the short ribs. Fork tender and wonderful and the steak special. Amazing!!

Nice restaurant in the center of town. A bit loud on busy nights but the food was very good, so we put up with the noise.

The Gafford is a local favorite, despite the appearance, the food is excellent. The appearance is not bad it is just plain, not exciting. Every time we go there, which is often, the food does not disappoint. The cocktails and wine list are great as well. Do not walk by when you are in downtown Stuart, stop at the Gafford!

Snapper and swordfish were really good. Food took a little long to be served. However, we enjoyed everything. The carrot cake was to die for! It was unlike any carrot cake I’ve ever had! We took it home with us and thoroughly enjoyed!

We had a reservation before a Lyric Theater performance. Our table was not ready at reservation time. We were beginning to worry about missing some of the concert, but when our delayed table was ready, we were totally taken care of! A complimentary charcuterie was delivered immediately. Our awesome server was aware of our situation and made sure our dinners and drinks came out promptly and delivered our bill early so that we could depart for our show on time. We've eater there several times and enjoyed every meal. But Friday night our experience was exceptional!

Second time I've been here. What awesome bartenders! They MADE my experience. It is an absolutely beautiful place and frankly, a surprise if you are new to the area. I was solo and felt very welcome.

My guest is immuno-compromised, so I reserved an outdoor table. Luckily it had warmed up, so we were able to enjoy our meal. There is always some noise from Osceola Street, but you get used to it. My friend and I both chose the special meal, Alaskan Halibut with lobster sherry sauce, delicious green beans and superb rice. The fish was perfectly cooked, literally flaked when touched with a fork. Am happy the serving was large enough that I will be enjoying my leftovers tonight.

The Gafford is a gem in downtown Stuart. The food is consistently delicious. We had the shrimp and grits and the pork chop and both were outstanding. The server was pleasant and efficient. Can’t wait to go back.

Overall great experience server was awesome. Was disappointed in the Barada was not as good as it used to be.

Great experience! Swordfish/ Pork chop both fab. Service excellent. Vegetables done perfectly.

Waitress placed both of our leftover in the same dish. What was she thinking?

We always have a greeat exxpperience at The Gafford. Had the Snapper andit was delicious.