Restaurant feasts on top national score

Beach Bistro, the famed waterfront restaurant on Holmes Beach, recently earned another honor: a food rating of 4.9 out of five stars in the Zagat rating guide.

The 4.9-star rating is the highest rating of any eatery in Florida, according to a statement. The rating is part of Zagat's new five-star rating system, and utilizes a compilation of recent restaurant ratings by diners nationwide. Less than a dozen restaurants across the country earned a 4.9 star ranking, the statement adds.

Beach Bistro owners Sean Murphy and Susan Timmins received the news about the ranking in late July.

“Over the past 30 years our guests have become our friends and are a part of the Bistro family,” says Murphy in a statement. “We have created a special little place perched on the sand at the edge of the Gulf of Mexico, where life's major moments — marriage proposals, anniversaries, birthdays and graduations — are celebrated along with the simple pleasures of sharing food and wine with friends. To be recognized by Zagat in this way, is icing on the cake.”