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Dancing is all part of the fun at B.B. King's, which also includes some great food. (Brandon Kruse / The Post)
More: Directions, user reviews | House band rocks at B.B. King’s
There’s a part of me that greets an outfit like the recently opened B.B. King’s Blues Club in CityPlace with more than a healthy share of skepticism.
On the surface, this is the blues turned into McBlues. The idea is to take one of America’s true art forms and making it into something resembling a theme-park ride, replete with all the Southern touches and a predictable menu of gumbo, barbecue, cobbler and other down-home favorites.
But once I find myself actually sitting in the West Palm Beach club, the reality suggests otherwise. The nine-piece band is riffing on a B.B. King classic, “The Thrill Is Gone”, as if it were a piece of molasses-flavored taffy — curiously sweet and plenty pliable. And I’m keeping time to the music while sipping on a cold Pabst Blue Ribbon draft, a retro beer that goes so right with the setting. Oh, and that bowl of gumbo? Not bad, not bad at all.
So much for my skepticism. This place rocks.
OK, OK, it rocks in a certain context. If you’re looking for pure blues, especially of the lean-and-mean acoustic variety, B.B. King’s generally isn’t for you. (And I’m still hoping the Bamboo Room in downtown Lake Worth will reopen and fill that genuine void.) Plus, if you’re looking for outstanding Southern grub, well, keep looking: B.B. King’s is good, but it’s far from great, especially in the ‘cue department.
But it’s the total package that counts at B.B. King’s. And visually, it’s an impressive package. The "club," with a total capacity of about 600-800, is actually several spaces — a large main music room with concert hall-worthy sound and lighting system (and a dance floor, too); a restaurant area with a neat little patio that overlooks CityPlace; and an outdoor bar where music is featured during lunchtime. Throughout it all, smart, stylish touches abound — the folk art-like paintings of famous blues musicians, the brick walls, the tables that have an intentionally shop-worn look to them. It’s a themed space all right. But that doesn’t keep it from being a cool one.
It’s also a great place to enjoy a cold one: The draft selection is decent enough, though I do wish the cocktail menu was better — it’s mostly overly sweet drinks with blues-inspired names (i.e. the $10 Rock Me Baby with rum and banana and melon liqueurs). Appetizers put a solid emphasis on no-holds-barred fried fare: My favorite items included the catfish bites ($9), prepared with a light cornmeal breading that doesn’t overwhelm the tasty fish, and the thoroughly addictive pickle chips ($8), paired with a zesty horseradish dipping sauce (as the saying goes, bet you can’t have just one…). On a return visit, I’d opt for these items over a rather disappointing cheese dip duo ($9), which features two supposedly spicy dips that had about as much heat as movie-theater nachos.
With entrees, keep your expectations in check and you’ll be fine. Which is to say the "Lip Smacking" BBQ ribs ($18 for a half rack, $24 for a full) have no discernible taste of smoke, but they’re more than meaty enough and they’re slathered in a sweet sauce that turns pork into a hard-to-resist pork candy. But for true comfort food, try the Chicken Fried Chicken ($16) — kinda like chicken fried steak, but with a plump chicken breast playing the starring protein role. Served with a white-cheddar mac ‘n’ cheese, it’s happy food, plain and simple.
And a peach cobbler ($7) is a happy dessert — with the perfect balance between fruit and biscuit and a welcome addition of cinnamon ice cream. If you’re server is smart — and they’ve got a solid, unobtrusive and hard-working crew here — he or she will steer you right to it.
Of course, the real "dessert" is the evening’s performance by the excellent in-house band (see related story) or whatever musicians happen to be playing that night (look for an appearance by B.B. King later this year, too). The cover charge ($2-10 for the house band, depending on day and time) is more than worth it. Beyond the usual cover bands that play the local watering-hole circuit, live music is an all-too -rare entity in these parts. B.B. King’s rights that wrong in tasteful — and sometimes tasty — fashion.
R E V I E W
B.B. King’s Blues Club
FOOD: B
SERVICE: B+
ADDRESS: 550 S. Rosemary Ave. (in CityPlace), West Palm Beach
TELEPHONE: (561) 420-8600
WEB SITE: bbkingclubs.com
PRICE RANGE: Moderate
HOURS: 11 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., Sunday to Thursday; 11 a.m. to 4 a.m., Friday and Saturday. (Live music in main room starts at 7:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 5:30 p.m. Friday-Sunday.)
CREDIT CARDS: V, MC, AmEx, Disc
RESERVATIONS: Not accepted, but the club offers priority seating.
WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: Yes, including restrooms
WHAT THE GRADES
MEAN:
A
I totally agree.. the place rocks. LOVE those fried pickles.
I went to this place with my Wife and some friends and the serivce was terrible, and the food was cold, and the drinks were weak. Maybe they know how to play the Blues, but they need to learn to cook the food right, Also, the Management needs to care when people tell them about it, not just microwave the food back up and tell them its new!!
Who cares what bbking does? Other than the pbp…no one.
nemo,speak for youreslf.we pwp luv b.b.2 bit……h
good atmosphere BUT the food is terrible – so just eat before you go!
Muudy waters would have done it better
Place is fun, bottom line. You want impressive food, go to a restaurant. This is a club serving food and the food stands up to what the expectations should be. This is a good entertainment place for City Place and should be embrassed.
awesome catfish. never had it before. top ten meals in my life
The food is OK. Drinks are weak and terrible. Go to the Blue Martini first.
Went on Sunday afternoon 3 pm, wife ordered wine, glass was wet with water drops and had lipstick on it! She asked for another glass, and the bartender just poured THE SAME WINE into another glass. Food on time but, no taste, had seafood dip… no seafood… just pasty white dip. Had a BBQ chicken, only one sauce… No choices? NO STARS…. NO FORKS… NO RETURN
One of the worst new places in the area. Huge, nice ooking, lousy acoustics,terrible food and terrible service. No wonder they cannot pay their suppliers’ bills and are filing for bankruptcy!!.
One of the worst new places in the area. Oversized and cavernous with lousy acoustics, terrible food and terrible service. No wonder they cannot pay their suppliers’ bills and are filing for bankruptcy!!.
I don’t know about the food, but they playlist is not the real blues music I was hoping for. The house band, while very good, plays southern pop and R&B moreso than your traditional blues. I heard songs from Gladys Night & The Pips, KC & The Sunshine Band and the likes. No music whatsoever from Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, Albert King, Albert Collins, etc.
The interior was done very well and I like the layout, but service seemed a bit confused on a very busy Saturday night. As stated, the sound system needs improvement to accommodate people in the back part near the bar.
I agree with some that Blues is not played. The food is TERRIBLE. Truly disappointed.
Will we see known acts like they have in NY? cause I’m tired of the same band and same R&B music?
Been there about 4 times and won’t go back til there’s a change.
Want more Blues & and good Food. Spice up your chicken wings – they’re horrible.
Food and staff USE TO BE great, now it’s just terrible. You will enter the front door to personnel chatting about there personal life and if you inturrupt them they will get nasty with you. You will only see your waiter or waitress when they take your order and at the end of the night when they bring your check so they can collect theyre tip. Food comes to the table cold and when your done with it your dirty dishes will sit there untill you leave. If you want a drink while your sitting at the table you waited 45 minutes to get, you will have to get up and get it at the crowded bar since your waiter or waitress are no where to be found.
The band is great but they get old quick since they play the same tune list everynight i.e at last, come together, the thrill is gone, knock on wood, midnight train to georgia, my girl, etc…Another thing I did not like about the band was that in different occasions the front man took verbal jabs at the other band members on stage in the middle of a performance, that bothered me because I find it so unprofessional and unnecessary to demeaner your staff in public.
So for me like that songs says the thrill is gone! I definitly wont be going back and NO STARS from me!
If you’re looking for traditional, edgy blues, you’re not going to find it at BB Kings. If you’re looking for fantastic R&B, you’ve got it. This house band is the hottest I’ve ever heard, and the trip is well worth it. The early night incarnation of the house band is much closer to the blues we know and love, so come early but do stay for the full band (the horns tear it up). Acoustics and view at the stage side bar were great. The nachos were good. The cover charge is affordable. The staff friendly. They serve Guinness. What more could I want?
Regarding the blues: There’s a reason the clubs that go for a pure blues band struggle; like anything really good, Blues is not in the mainstream. Yes, I miss the Bamboo, but despite being the coolest venue ever they apparently couldn’t make it in Palm Beach County, could they?
What’s up definitely got yourself a well designed web site here The only thing about it I don’t care for is all of the spam comments