The Florida Foodie:
A Drink and a Bite at The Backyard Bar
The Backyard Bar
213 South Rosemary Ave.
West Palm Beach, Florida 33401
By Saucy Sarah
In my quest to find interesting places to dine in Palm Beach County, The Backyard Bar, located just a walk from the bustling square of City Place in downtown West Palm, seemed to keep popping up in my searches. The outdoor space of the Backyard Bar is surrounded by the charming Hibiscus Bed & Breakfast and provides a quintessential South Florida eating experience. The place is small and there is no real shelter from the 
elements, but on a nice evening, the grotto is alight with twinkle lights and a bubbly fountain which make for an atmosphere of enchantment. White linens and candlelight adorn the wrought iron tables and clusters of coffee tables and comfy chairs are tucked amongst the tropical foliage. The night my companions and I went, there was a live band playing. The music overwhelms the table conversations a bit, but the band was good and we all found ourselves signing along at times with
favorite songs.
The Backyard Bar boasts a small fixed menu of “small plates”. It runs more like a true bed & breakfast by offering up an ever-changing array of specials each night. The special nights and events can be found on their 
Facebook page. They seem to run out of items quickly too, which gives the impression that the food is limited in quantity. This might have been due to the summer off-season visit, but The Backyard Bar is not a large establishment nor is it a chain restaurant. You get the feeling that you are entering someone’s home and thus you will eat what they provide.
We ordered a good portion of the small plates posted on the menu to share between the seven of us the evening we visited. Some of the highlights were the dates wrapped in bacon. Sweet & salty, chewy & crunchy what could be better? The dates and bacon were so addictive we ended up ordering another round. The cheese plate was delicious with Manchego, Brie, and goat cheese, several jams,
and a variety of crackers and muffins. The tenderloin with arugula salad was cooked perfectly. The highlight, for me, was the truffle grilled cheese sandwich with prosciutto. The other dishes we tried were fine, but nothing spectacular: a Caprese kabob of mozzarella and tomato with balsamic reduction, chicken wings, feta in phyllo deep-fried, a flatbread pizza of prosciutto, 
arugula, and tomatoes.
The drinks at The Backyard Bar are, hands-down, spectacular. I had a “Thyme Tom Collins” which might be the most delicious drink I’ve ever had. Lemony and flecked with fresh thyme leaves, it was the perfect drink to ward off the heat of a late summer evening. I would go back just to drink this magical elixir.
The food is good, but the portions are small. The biggest complaint I and my companions had: the service. It was very slow going to order our food and drinks and to have our food brought to the table. It also took a long time to get our checks at the end of the evening. I recommend The Backyard Bar for appetizers and a drink before you head off to another destination or settle in and nibble, drink, and laugh your way through the night. Summer may not be the best time to visit, but I liked The Backyard Bar enough to return when the days cool down a bit and try it again. To sum it up, The Backyard Bar is not the place to go if you are in a hurry, starving, or don’t like eating outside, but it is an interesting place with delightful little plates and dazzling drinks and is worth a chance.
In her previous life, Sarah, a Palm Beach County Native, spent ten years working in various high-end eating establishments around South Florida. She is currently a fiction thesis candidate in the MFA program at Florida International University where she also teaches creative writing and rhetoric. If that is not enough, Sarah is also the owner of Cakes by Sarah, a local custom cake shop. Sarah lives in Lake Worth with her husband and two beautiful boys. “Food, fiction, and family are my life.”