One of the more pleasant places to dine in Vero’s old downtown is the Osceola Bistro.
While we generally opt for a table in the Osceola Bistro’s courtyard garden – with fountain and flowers, the most attractive patio dining setting on either side of the Indian River lagoon – for this sultry July evening we had reserved a table in the restaurant’s elegant, colonial-style dining room.
Arriving around 7:30, we were ushered to a nice spot by the window, and a server soon appeared and took drink orders. We briefly considered trying the Tuesday night summer special, one of the Osceola bistro’s burgers plus five wings for $15 (the burgers coming to neighboring tables looked luscious), but ultimately we decided to order off the regular dinner menu.
For starters on this evening, I went with a house salad (included with entrées) and my husband opted for a wedge salad (a $3 add on with dinner). Both very nice.
Then for main courses, our server proposed several off-menu specials: my husband immediately chose the tuna au poivre ($31), and I was intrigued by her second offering, pan roasted local pompano ($28) served over homemade linguini with a spicy tomato sauce and a couple of sautéed shrimp.
I love our local pompano, but couldn’t recall ever seeing it on the menu in Vero this time of year. My impression has always been that Thanksgiving is pretty much the start of pompano season along the Treasure Coast. But upon questioning, our server assured us the pompano had indeed been caught locally – “around the Sebastian inlet,” she said – so I decided to go with it.
When the entrées arrived, my plate featured a beautiful large white fish filet atop pasta. Sure didn’t look like a pompano. So I asked a second server – who I had to flag down for silverware – whether this was indeed pompano. “Yep,” he said. “African pompano. Shot with a spear outside the Fort Pierce inlet.”
African pompano! That was a new one on me. Turns out this is a fish that runs about twice the size of our Florida pompano – a totally different member of the jack family with a different taste and texture. I really do think servers ought to correctly describe the fish that is being offered.
But in fact, this African pompano turned out to be very good – a mild white fish with a texture and taste that I would describe as a cross between snapper and cobia. No complaints about the eating. And my husband’s tuna au poivre, perfectly prepared, drew raves.
Our dinner – with one glass of wine each, no appetizer and no dessert – came to $80 before tax and tip. While you can enjoy a variety of small plates here and probably come away with a tab for two in the $60 or $70 range, if you eat hearty and enjoy a nice bottle of wine, dinner for two is likely to run more in the neighborhood of $100.
Inside or out, this is an enjoyable place to eat. Chef Christopher Bireley is totally committed to fashioning imaginative dishes – as evidenced by the African pompano – out of the freshest possible ingredients obtained from local farmers and fishermen.
While the service at this restaurant still seems occasionally more erratic than you would expect from a restaurant serving food of this caliber, Osceola Bistro is a fine dining choice.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at [email protected].
The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.
