At award-winning Mikey B's Restaurant in New Bedford, creativity is a key ingredient.

NEW BEDFORD — The 15-year legacy of Mikey B's Restaurant in New Bedford stands on its own at this point. But when it first opened in 2009, some might have thought of it as the casual cousin to the now-closed Huttleston House in Fairhaven.

"Huttleston House was more fine dining, so for most people it was a place you'd go to on your anniversary or maybe a birthday — not a random Tuesday," said Mikey B's manager Christine Sharp in comparing the two, both opened by her boss, Mikey B's owner Michael Bobola.

Mikey B's, on the other hand, is a place hungry locals might stop by on a whim any day of the week, Sharp said, noting there was a brief period of overlap before Huttleston House closed and left Mikey B's as the torchbearer for Bobola's unique approach to food.

"Anything Mike makes, he puts a lot of love into it," Sharp said, noting the owner's knack for restaurant ownership is predicated on his first love — cooking. "Mike is one of the best chefs I've ever worked around."

What's Mikey B's food like?

Whether Bobola is in the back whipping up plates himself or not, Sharp says Mikey B's kitchen staff are all about upholding his standards, and presenting the fun, original menu items the way they were intended, often using from-scratch elements where premade options are commonly found.

"'Mike's Favorite Chicken Sandwich' is one of our signature dishes," Sharp said, describing the oversized chicken breast fillet on a French role, topped with lettuce, tomato, melted mozzarella cheese and mayonnaise. "The chicken is about double the size of the bread.

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"Then we make our own blue cheese dressing which is popular, we make our own vinaigrette dressing, cole slaw, tartar sauce, gravy, mornay cheese sauce, chipotle, mashed potatoes...," she continued. "And we don't use bagged soups like a lot of places — we make our own.

One such soup won One SouthCoast Chamber's Chowderfest two years ago, Sharp said.

"Our Portuguese chowder was created by one of our old cooks, Jeff Arsenault," she said, describing the chowder as a flavorful "clam fish based" chowder that includes finely chopped red peppers, linguica, chorico, onions, peppers, and spices which "give it a little kick."

Another Mikey B's award-winner — though no longer available on the menu — was the restaurant's avocado ice cream. But if a cold, hard-to-find treat is in order, Mikey B's still has its patrons covered, Sharp said.

"We're one of the few places around here that serves fried ice cream," Sharp said. As described by Sharp, Mikey B's fried ice creams consist of 10 oz. of ice cream, covered in corn flakes and dipped in the fryolator, then drizzled with caramel and chocolate, cinnamon and sugar, and whipped cream. "People love them; they're huge."

What's the manager's favorite?

Although Mikey B's is well-known for its seafood, Sharp says, she notes that the popularity of other offerings tends to run neck-and-neck. As far as her favorite item, Sharp says she's torn between "Mike's Favorite Chicken Sandwich" and the "Chicken Michael."

"They put gravy underneath on the plate first, then it's fried and then baked, you could say, and has tomatoes and mozzarella cheese melted on top, with two sides," she said, describing the latter. "Our chicken parm is very good too. If I was to get chicken parm anywhere, I would come here for it."

Creativity is key

Sharp, who first came to Mikey B's as a bartender, says menu creativity doesn't stop at the food. Anyone stopping by for an adult beverage will find some unique selections too, she said.

"There's one drink called the 'Beach Bucket' which comes in a Truly [brand hard seltzer] fish bowl-type of glass, and it has vodka, coconut rum, Peach Tree, all the bar juices, and we take a Truly and open it up upside down inside of it — it's really cool," she said. "Right now I'm actually trying to design new drink and dessert menus."

While there's plenty creativity happening throughout the menu, Sharp says patrons shouldn't feel limited to Mikey B's ideas — speak up about giving an item your own special spin.

"If we have what we need to make it, we're happy to put it together for somebody," she said of Mikey B's openness to substitutions and special requests.

Mikey B's as an event venue

On the flipside of being an everyday, casual destination, Mikey B's is also a place for special occasions, Sharp said.

"We do a lot of functions here in the front room," she said. "I've had a wedding here. I do a lot of baby showers, first communions, birthday parties — day or night."

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And every Saturday, Mikey B's features live musical entertainment from local singer/songwriter Hunter Braley. "He sounds great. He plays a lot of like, newer country," Sharp said. "And it's not so loud that you can't have a conversation while you eat. It's really nice."

Where is Mikey B's?

Mikey B's is located at 989 Victoria St., at the corner of Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford's North End. Ten to twelve dollar lunch specials are available everyday from 11:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m., Sharp said.

For operating hours, menus and more, visit www.mikeybs.com.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Mikey B's Restaurant puts menu creativity at the forefront