Driftwood Restaurant Aruba

The atmosphere reminds me of a Joe's Crabshack. We walked by the restaurant, and the smell lured us in. The food was okay. Honestly, it tasted like Razzoos. However, the catch of the day blew me away. My hubby had barracuda, and apparently, if you get it blackened, the consistency is very similar to chicken (who knew). Why I gave this restaurant 3 star is the poor service. As soon as we sat down, we were asked to order drinks (without even seeing the drink menu). We were served bread and appetizers without mini dishes or utensils. The server noticed we didn't have eating tools and didn't even register that we needed them to eat? The worst part was asking for the check. We had to ask for 3 times and waited 40 minutes. Meanwhile, we were constantly asked to order dessert--even after requesting for the check multiple times.

We discovered Driftwood Restaurant through an advertisement in the Aruba guide, promoting it as a daily catch, fresh seafood restaurant. Naturally, we were excited to enjoy a delicious seafood experience. The atmosphere inside was quite unique, with decor resembling an outdoor setting, complete with engraved fences on the walls. For starters, we ordered the fried calamari and seafood chowder. The calamari was excellent—crispy, fresh, and perfectly cooked. However, the chowder was rather underwhelming, just average and nothing memorable. For the main course, we opted for the Captain’s Mix, expecting a flavorful assortment of freshly cooked seafood. Unfortunately, the dish was a huge disappointment. The lobster tail was tough and bitter, while the scallops were disappointingly small, barely the size of a green pea. The rest of the seafood didn’t fare much better. To make matters worse, they didn’t serve melted butter with the lobster, offering a different sauce on the side that didn’t complement the seafood at all. At $58 for one dish, you expect perfection, but this meal was far from it. Sadly, it felt more like a tourist trap than a genuine seafood experience. I cannot recommend dining here.

Driftwood looks unassuming on the outside but the meals my husband and I ordered here were absolutely amazing. I ordered the Driftwood special which includes a good sized lobster tail and shrimp in garlic sauce and my husband got the Driftwood special with the lobster tail and filet mignon. Everything was cooked to perfection! I also got a French martini that was spot on delicious. I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a great place for dinner!!

The driftwood decor echoes crab shacks, but dining is a bit more formal, although casual wear is common enough with shorts omnipresent. Staff are super efficient, friendly and eager to help and make recommendations. Service is fast, maybe too fast. They turn tables very quickly so much of the food is precooked. My crab cake starter came out in just a couple of minutes, so obviously it was pre cooked and just heated in a hot pan. It was tasty enough and not too full of filler, but I didn’t care for the sweet and sour sauce, and the seaweed garnish has no trace of the ocean. The catch of the day Wahoo fillet was fresh and tasty, but the mixed vegetables were closer to soup, completely pre/overcooked. Limp carrot slices anyone? The wine list has about 5 wines by the glass for each of white, rose and red, there are sparkling wines and the by the bottle list is decent and fairly priced. Prices in general are decent for Aruba, under $30 for the catch of the day and $14 for the crab cake. All prices are in USD.

I just recently visited Aruba, and when we asked where a good place was to eat dinner, several people from Aruba suggested that we go to Driftwood. They did not disappoint. The food was excellent, and the service was just as great. One of the members of the staff came to the taxi and opened our doors and welcomed us to the restaurant. It was five-star customer service. After eating the food, I was sold. I definitely recommend it.

Fresh fish, shrimp and escargot with garlic and mashed potatoes that is out of this world. 35 years of business and still feels like they take the same pride as day 1! A must try in Aruba!

Servers are super friendly! Large choices of very fresh seafood. Escargot was tender and flavorful. Breaded shrimp has very thin layer of batter.

I caught a wahoo on a fishing charter earlier in the day, and they recommended Driftwood to prepare the fish. We showed up and everything had been arranged. Fixed price for the fish prepared 4 ways plus sides. The fish was prepared extremely well, so delicious. The decor and ambiance was chill without being completely laid back. Service was prompt and attentive; we never had to wait for waitstaff to attend to anything needed. I even had some one not working our table stop by to compliment me on the catch. Would not hesitant to eat here again.