Charlie & Jake's Brewery Grille — Restaurant in Viera

Charlie & Jake's Brewery & Restaurant-Suntree- 3.5-Stars

"Barbecue may not be the road to world peace, but it's a start." -- Anthony Bourdain

As any loyal Biggie knows, the state of Barbecue in my beloved Brevard county is dismal, to say the least. I recall, not too long ago a place where you could get the best BBQ ever imaginable. sigh Alas, Fat Boy's is no more. Then we still had it good with Sonny's until their service went to hell in a hand-basket. There is a local "chain" around here known as MeMaw's that has cheap beer, but not much else and Bubba's Backyard BBQ which should stay in the back and should be avoided at all costs, there are a few independents that sprung up here and there, but I have yet to find a decent one, which brings us to Charlie and Jake's. The Beachside location sucks and who knows what happened there...the split of Charlie and Jake might have something to do with it; however their location in Suntree was yet to be tried. One would think, back here in redneck country, if you threw a stone it would hit a good BBQ place, alas, that is not the case and so with a cheerful, optimistic view I entered and was greeted warmly, shown to a table, handed a menu and told my server would be right with me. It wasn't all that long before said server appeared at my table and in a very cheerful, friendly way introduced herself as Amanda and asked for my order. I requested their "award-winning" BBQ half chicken with a half rack of St. Louis style ribs and their Brisket along with one side each of their Turnip greens and some corn on the cob.

Glancing around as is my modus operandi while awaiting my food, I couldn't help but wonder what caused the split between Charlie and Jake. The inside is spacious without being cavernous and there is plenty of outside patio seating for those wishing to dine with the no-see-ums. The decor, while not being uppity, exuded an air of class making one feel right at home. Returning to the mystery that is the split between Charlie and Jake, my thoughts were interrupted by the return of Amanda laden with steaming heaps of BBQ.

First up on the BBDO palate was their BBQ half chicken. I have to say this was prepared to perfection and I just fell in love with this bird! While the fowl was done to perfection and so succulent in my mouth, I found their sauce to be short of extraordinary and fell on the average side of the rating scale. So far, with the perfect chicken and the average sauce, this place was head and shoulders above its old namesake located Beachside. I also found the accompanying garlic bread to be cooked properly and exploding with garlicky goodness on the palate. Sadly, I found the turnip greens to be on the bland side of the taste spectrum while the corn was cooked properly and tasted like, well, so much corn.

Turning my taste buds to the second item in this delightful combo, the St. Louis style ribs, I eagerly dug right in. As one can see by the picture they were large, plump and had more meat than fat (meat!). I am not here to join in the debate of whether or not they should or should not be cooked to the point of "falling off the bone." I know what I like and that's all there is to it. These were cooked to perfection and not only fell off the bone right into my mouth but were exceedingly tasty. All around, the entree was very good and very cool. If only the BBQ sauce was on par with the meats, this place would be right up there with places in TX, SC, MS, and MO, alas, as such it is not; however, it is the best I have yet to find on the Space Coast of Florida.

Big Boy says, If Charlie and Jake's is a harbinger of good BBQ to come, I cannot wait. If it is an anomaly, then I suggest every time "you have a hunkerin' for some down-home, excellent cooked BBQ meats, head on over to Charlie and Jake's Brewery in Suntree and stay away from their Beachside location." #iamthebigboy...

Visited a few days before Hurricane Dorian to give the kids some time out of the house before lockdown began. We were delighted to see they were open. The waitress was new but energetic. She struggled with my wife's request for a cider. We eventually placed our drink orders and then were made to wait for about 10 minutes while the waitress saw to other tables and eventually retrieved our drinks. The beer, a Harbor City Gold, was delicious and consistent in quality I have received over many many years coming. This however was my first visit in four years. Although the beer was good I couldn't say the same about the food. My daughter ordered an appetizer sampler (green beans, mac & cheese, corn on the cob and baked beans), The green beans were swimming in liquid and mushy mac & cheese was bland, the corn on the cob tasted frozen and the baked beans were likely from a can. One of the accompanying hushpuppies had the consistency of a pool ball - we were lucky to escape without dental damage. My Hogzilla sandwich was tasty enough but the underlying barbeque was bland - missing a hint of seasoning, rub or even smoke, The accompanying cole slaw was slightly sour and didn't appear to be freshly made. The rest of the food aside, the most disturbing thing was that my shoes were sticking to the carpet which was peppered with debris from the plates of previous diners. Having drawn my attention, the disgusting carpet caused me to question the overall cleanliness of the kitchen and the rigor of their cleaning routine.

As far as Melbourne's collection of mediocre barbeque establishments go, this one has fallen to the lower half of the pack since its hay day. I will not likely be returning to this...

I took my son here early on a Friday evening. He specifically wanted to go for the chili dog that he thinks is amazing. Our server was great. She was attentive and personable. We ordered our drinks, and then found out they were out of Root Beer. Not a huge deal, but disappointing for a 9 year old. We ordered our meals, which consisted of the chili dog and a Prime Rib sandwich. Unfortunately, they had not received a delivery of hot dogs, so that was unavailable also. A different lady came to our table, I'm not sure if she was the manager or a lead server, but she made us aware of the hot dog shortage and was very apologetic. My son ended up ordering the buffalo chicken sandwich. When the food came out, it was esthetically underwhelming. The prime rib sandwich was 2 slices of thin Texas toast with a thin cut of prime rib thrown on top. The buffalo chicken sandwich was a piece of grilled chicken breast, and it looked like they added the sauce on it right before it came out. And forgot the lettuce and tomato. Definitely not worth the price you pay for the food. The fries and salad were pretty good. I've been here twice in the past 3 months, and both times I have left disappointed. Service has always been...