When beachside residents begin comparing notes on favorite restaurants, the Tides invariably is part of the conversation. And on a recent Saturday night, it proved once again why for eight years it has been one of Vero Beach's top places to dine.

No shortage of summertime customers here! When we arrived for our reservation at 8, we were told our table was not quite ready. But at the Tides, unlike some restaurants we could name, this is not a transparent ploy aimed at bolstering the bar business.

When we were seated a few minutes later, it was obvious the Tides as usual was packed, with every table occupied both inside and out on the torch-lit patio.

But even with a full house, the layout at the Tides -- with the tables well spaced among several rooms -- makes for a quiet, relaxing dinner atmosphere. Servers were quick to arrive with a basket of bread, and ready to assist with our wine order.

For an appetizer, we tried the diver sea scallops ($12). Pan seared, crispy on the outside and sweet and juicy on the inside, the scallops were perfection served over a chilled Japanese Soba noodle salad with a caramelized ginger and sesame Ponzu broth.

Following the scallops, we enjoyed the Tides' Caesar salad ($8) and their popular blue-and-green salad ($8), a romaine and spinach salad tossed with walnuts, Granny Smith apples, crumbled blue cheese and a cider poppy seed dressing.

For the main course, one of us had the macadamia nut and herb crusted yellowtail snapper ($28). It came perfectly cooked, served on a bed of wilted greens with roasted garlic mashed potatoes, fresh asparagus and a lemon chardonnay butter sauce.

On this evening, the other two members of our party sampled two entrees off the summer bistro menu. One had the Scottish salmon ($22), a wild salmon grilled with a Teriyaki glaze and served with mashed potatoes, asparagus and cauliflower fritters.

The other member of our party raved over the Tides' rendering of a linguini and shrimp primavera ($18), which combined a variety of veggies with a half dozen succulent shrimp.

For desert, we concluded the evening with a piece of excellent key lime pie ($12).

With a modestly priced (but very nice) bottle of chardonnay, dinner came to approximately $50 per person before tip.

If this reminder of the wonderful food and excellent service awaiting you at the Tides prompts you to want to visit, please note that the restaurant starts its annual two-month summer vacation on July 27th.