A couple of days before New Year’s, only weeks after she was forced to close the doors of her popular Blue Star Wine Bar on the beach, Kitty Wagner opened a new, bigger and better than ever Blue Star in Vero’s old downtown.
The Blue Star Bourbon Bar and Southern Kitchen is her fourth entrepreneurial venture in Vero – the third using the name Blue Star (the other was called Undertow) – and the good news is she is back in quarters that include a kitchen worthy of her culinary talents.
While Kitty’s first Vero restaurant a decade ago, the Blue Starfish on Bougainvillea, was a fine dining establishment, her subsequent ventures have seemed to be as much about good times as good food.
Her latest Blue Star gives her the best opportunity yet to combine both. Each night, there’s live music – and a good number of younger guests seem to come primarily for the bands, the drinks and the dancing. But each night, there are also a variety of creative dishes to be had from Kitty’s “Southern Kitchen.”
Headline news: While Sunday brunch at the new Blue Star has drawn rave notices, we hear it has just been suspended. Kitty, we were told, had a slight kitchen mishap with a knife, and has decided to take both Sundays and Mondays off – at least temporarily – after two months of going at a frenetic pace.
Look & Feel: The bar area, where you enter, has a very casual vibe not unlike the old Wine Bar on the beach. Off to the right are a number of tables and knotty pine booths more suitable for dining – but still very much within earshot of the music.
Food: The menu consists of salads, small plates, main dishes and desserts.
On our first visit a couple of weeks ago, I decided to start with the blue crab and sweet corn chowder ($8), and my husband and our companion opted for the cornmeal fried gulf oysters ($14). On a subsequent visit, I had the Belgian endive salad ($14) and my husband chose the escargot ($14).
The chowder was excellent, with plentiful chunks of crab. The escargot was not your classic presentation, but a deconstructed dish with the snails surrounded by bacon, shallots, and slices of apple, and a square of puff pastry on the side.
For entrées, on our first visit I had the low country shrimp and grits ($22), my husband had the pan seared calf’s liver ($21), and our companion chose one of the small plates, the classic Southern chicken pot pie ($12). On our return visit, I had one of the evening’s specials, the sea scallops ($34), and my husband had another special, the striped sea bass ($32).
The divers sea scallops were perfectly pan seared, served atop a butter bean ragout of ocra, grilled eggplant, and fire roasted tomatoes, finished with a light mornay sauce. The ragout was a bit too liquid but extremely tasty.
The striped sea bass, again nicely pan seared, was served atop a very tasty sautee of butternut squash, shitake mushrooms, onions, leaks and bacon, and was finished with a fire roasted tomato coulee. An excellent dish.
Drink: The Blue Star offers a wide selection of beer and wine (both by the glass and the bottle), as well as some interesting cocktails. And of course, as befits its name, it also offers about 30 craft bourbons and whiskies.
Service: The service on both of our visits was knowledgeable and extremely attentive.
Prices: Small plate prices ranged from $8 to $14, with entrées running from $18 for the Undertow fishstack to $34 for the sea bass special ($28 for the 14 ounce Angus ribeye).
Initial impressions: With a different approach to live music every night of the week, ranging from blues to soul to jazz piano, our sense is that Kitty has found a formula to pretty much fill the house nightly. Since the Blue Star doesn’t take dinner reservations, if your interest lies primarily in dining, you might want to come early (ie, 6:30) to be sure of getting a table.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at tina@verobeach32963.com.
The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.
