Not too many years ago, we were enthused about the Blue Starfish, which for a short time occupied the Bourgainvillea Lane space previously home to Tango’s (and currently the location of the Roberto Coin Boutique). Owner/chef Kitty Wagner could certainly prepare fish.

But the Blue Starfish came and went, and Kitty moved across the bridge, ultimately opening a new restaurant/bar, Undertow, in the old downtown.

In the time Undertow has been open, we have heard a variety of opinions, ranging from those who came away raving over Kitty’s California/Asian culinary creations to those complaining of the slow service, indifferent staff, and over- or under-cooked food.

Certainly, the Undertow bar has a strong band of adherents, who gravitate to it as one of Vero’s more happening scenes. But as a fine-dining restaurant, the Undertow can most charitably be described as erratic.

On a recent visit to Undertow with a group of friends (on a night when Kitty was cooking, no less), we came away feeling that the odds of hitting the restaurant on one of its great nights are higher than you may want to risk given the prime-time prices.

Our caveats would start with cocktails, where two members of our party ordered Grey Goose martinis. A price of $12 per martini strikes us as a bit excessive. A Grey Goose is $11.50 at the trendy Taboo in Palm Beach (and considerably less at many other places); Old Dixie Highway, we would suggest, is not Worth Avenue.

The second caveat we would raise is that food was excruciatingly slow coming out of the kitchen. While this might be understandable midway through a packed Saturday night, our party was seated in a half-empty restaurant at 6 pm, and we waited close to an hour between the ordering and the serving of appetizers (the first sign of food, since no bread ever made its way to the table).

Something is not quite right when you are not tarrying over after-dinner coffees and cordials, and still don’t finish in much under three hours.

The appetizers, when they finally arrived, were the best part of the meal.

Two members of our party tried the escargots ($12), served in a flaky puff pastry accompanied by a carmelized onion and bacon sauce. Very tasty indeed.

Two others tried the stone crab claws ($14), three smallish claws served with a tarragon sauce. Not bad, though we prefer the mustard sauce that accompanies the claws at Joe’s.

The other members of our party had a Caesar salad ($10) and an endive salad (also $10). The endive salad, served with goat cheese and baby beets, was the better of the two.

For entrees, two of us had the rib eye steak ($25) – a char grilled steak served with w hipped potatoes, grilled asparagus and bleu cheese butter. The steaks were good, but nothing exceptional.

One member of our party had the pork loin ($26), which she said was overcooked and served over sweet potatoes that were slightly burned.

The other three of us had seafood. I may have fared best with the pompano ($27), pan fried and served on a bed of shitake mushrooms, onions and rice. A very nice dish.

One of our friends had the pankoed yellowtail snapper ($26), crunchy on the outside but moist and tender on the inside, served on a bed of creamy mashed potatoes. Also rated highly. My husband had the tripletail ($28), which could have been the best piece of fish. Alas, it came to the table overcooked and dry.

For dessert, our table split an order of Key Lime pie ($6.95 -- not one of Vero’s best) and an order of chocolate insanity ($6.95 – pretty good).

Dinner for six, with more than $80 of overpriced drinks, came to $320 – to which the restaurant added an 18 percent gratuity. We can understand restaurants adding a service charge for parties of 8 or more; We find this a bit annoying – if not insulting – way to treat a party of six.

If I sound not particularly enthused about how this night went, you are picking up the message. I would also note that the Undertow’s service charge policy had an all-too-predictable effect. Our server throughout the meal seemed not particularly interested that we weren’t wildly happy. Actually, he seemed not particularly interested in anything.

Undertow’s main dining area is an attractively decorated room, with Moroccan-style banquettes and billowing silk curtains. While the dining room, when full, is a bit loud, it does not have a crowded feel. And goodness knows, Kitty has proven in the past that she is capable of turning out great meals.

It seemed likely to us that on good nights, her approach could produce memorable dinners. But this night did not provide one of them (or at least memorable for the right reasons), and Undertow’s inconsistency is indeed a big problem.

When you are paying $300 plus for dinner, a restaurant is not entitled to off nights.

I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at tina@verobeach32963.com .

The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.

Hours: Tues through Sat, 5:30 pm to late

Bar: Full bar

Address: 1931 Old Dixie Highway

Telephone: 772-770-0977

Review first published: April 2, 2009