Review: Southern restaurant features meat and seafood in Florida tropical setting
Chill & Grill's hostess greeted us at the door with a big, welcoming smile and the question, “Time for dinner?” Then she invited us to take a seat at any open table. We didn’t ponder long because the small eatery was filling up fast just a few minutes past the five o’clock opening.
We found a candlelit table set with silverware wrapped in thick paper napkins on a brown vinyl tablecloth. Light green walls matched the color outside the restaurant, which backed into a hammock of trees a bit off U.S. 1.
The green was punctuated by red, blue and violet pendant lights, hand-painted palm trees and parrots, and an eclectic mix of art and photography. With a large bar on one side and a dozen or so tables, it all felt very cozy.
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No time was wasted as a server came right over to help us begin to design our evening meal.
Dinner was launched with cold, crisp flavorful salads, which come in two sizes: small and large. I chose a small organic mixed green salad ($4.99) with tomatoes, toasted almonds and dried cranberries with a creamy balsamic vinaigrette.
My guest enjoyed a small iceberg wedge salad ($4.99) with bacon, tomatoes, onion slices and blue cheese crumbles, completed with a blue cheese dressing. On the menu was an additional salad, a beet salad with crumbled goat cheese and mandarin oranges dressed with citron vinaigrette that sounded lovely.
Just a few minutes after resting our salad forks on empty plates, our entrees arrived.
Red wine braised beef ($27.99) alongside mashed potatoes and steamed green beans with a beefy red wine gravy was outstanding in every way. Melt-in-your-mouth, beautifully seasoned beef is the ultimate comfort food for a meat-eater, and this version could serve as the perfect example.
Our seafood entrée, blackened mahi ($30.99) with a fruity sauce finish, saffron rice and green beans was excellent as well.
The desserts of the evening — Key lime pie, chocolate chip peanut butter pie, and Heath Bar crème cake — were all so tempting but, even though I enjoyed my meal immensely, I was ready to take leave. The place was packed with happy, noisy diners and I was ready to seek out some quiet.
I could have kicked myself afterward when I spied a few outdoor tables that would have been a perfect spot to enjoy dessert.
Unless your vegetarian is satisfied with a cold, delicious salad, I’m not sure this is the place for them. There were no vegetarian entrees offered that evening.
But for those who enjoy meat and seafood, I think you will like Chill & Grill, which bills itself as "a gastropub for Southern-style cooking with a dash of Asian, a pinch of French, and a sprinkling of Cajun" that offers specialty craft beers and boutique wines.
Chill & Grill
Cuisine: American Southern
Address: 7401 U.S. 1, Vero Beach
Phone: 772-562-5477
Hours: 5-9 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday
Alcohol: Full Bar
Maribeth Renne dines anonymously at the expense of TCPalm for #WhatToDoIn772. Contact her at maribeth.d.renne@gmail.com
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Restaurant review: Chill & Grill in Vero Beach features Southern food
