by Thomas Miller – Food Blogger for Vero Vine
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Bobby’s has been an institution in Vero Beach for over 30 years, and has won numerous awards, including the TCPalm 2014 Reader’s Choice Award for the Best Sports bar. Since my wife and I are still fairly new to Vero Beach, there are a lot of restaurants that we have not had the opportunity to try yet, and Bobby’s was one of them. We’ve heard rumors that it’s where the locals hang out and that they have the best burgers in town. With a claim like that, I’ve got to check this place out for myself!
We arrived at dinner time on a Friday night. As we entered the restaurant, we were promptly greeted by the hostess. Since the weather was gorgeous out, we asked if there was an outside patio we could dine on. There was, and we were ushered through the restaurant and out to the patio. The inside dining room was somewhat dark, and had stained wood booths with padded seating. The walls were a dark green color. It reminded me of a country club type of dining room. The walls were adorned with sports pictures and memorabilia. Being that this restaurant was at the beach, I was a little bit disappointed that there was not an ocean view from the patio. However the patio was nice and somewhat private. The chairs look like your typical patio lawn furniture, but were much sturdier than what you have at home, and they were surprisingly comfortable. The tables were moderately decorated with candle in an orange colored glass candle holder, and a basket with the usual condiments. The patio was surrounded with a short concrete wall with plants and was nicely decorated. A strings of lights were hung around the patio to provide a low light ambiance to the area. It was very nice!
Let’s dive right in and see what we had to eat!
Beef and Barley Soup – ($3.95) – My wife ordered this soup as her appetizer, and was glad she did. The soup is house made and was very good. It had a nice depth of beef flavor to it, and was not too salty.
New England Clam Chowder – ($3.95) – This is one of my all time favorite soups. This is made in house and was spectacular! The clams were soft and tender, it was not overloaded with potatoes, and had just the right amount of salt in it. Very good!
Cheese Burger – ($10.95) – My wife got the cheese burger and she thought it was very good! The burger patty is quite large and it comes with the usual toppings. The french fries were lightly fried, but still had a nice crunch to them and were lightly salted.
Bobby’s Burger – ($11.95) – I ordered Bobby’s burger since I figured this was the house specialty and one of the more popular burgers on the menu. My instincts were correct, the burger was a good choice. It had a 10 oz (pre-cooked) weight and overhung the side of the bun. The mushrooms and onions were plentiful, and it was served with the usual toppings. My choice of side was the potato salad since I figured that was also made in house. While it was good, it did not stand out for me. It was your typical mustard potato salad. I thought it could have used a touch more seasoning to make it a little tastier.
In Conclusion:
We decided to skip dessert since we were both stuffed. The burgers were quite large and were exceptionally good. Service was prompt and courteous, and the atmosphere, while lacking an ocean view, was very nice and seems somewhat private out on the patio. My expectations were set high before we arrived since I’ve heard so many good things from multiple people around town, and we were not disappointed. Our total bill (without tip) came to just under $40.00 so dining here will also not break the bank. If you have not had a chance to check out this Vero institution, you definitely need to.
Ratings:
Atmosphere – 4 Forks
Service – 4 Forks
Food – 4 Forks
Ratings Scale Legend:
1 to 5 Forks – 1 Bad to 5 Excellent
Bobby’s Restaurant & Lounge
3450 Ocean Drive, Vero Beach, FL 32963
(772) 231-6996