Laguna BOB

My oldest is down for a slightly post-birthday visit.  He likes to come down around his birthday and gifts himself with a fishing excursion and lots of relaxing fishing (wade, jetties, piers, docks, whatever he finds).  Today, however, the inestimable Captain Jack Barton once again scored for my boys.  Jay and Ian caught a ton of fish (some of it catch and release) and ended up with one trout and 5 big Red Drums.  We will be having Red Drum for dinner, that's for sure!

They were out of the house at 6:00 a.m. and home around noon.  They wanted a shower and FOOD.  Ian requested lunch on the island.  I knew Jay's "things to do" list ALWAYS includes ceviche from Laguna BOB (previously Wahoo's).  He was thrilled to find the ceviche hadn't changed when he first came down after the closing of Wahoo's and the opening of Laguna BOB.  Both of my older boys find this to be one of their favorite spots for sitting around, drinking a margarita or a beer, and munching on ceviche.

So, with that knowledge, I suggested we go there for lunch.  Mr. Flip Flop was not so happy - he is not a big fan of lunchtime outdoor dining...with the record heat and high humidity he was groaning and moaning...but he's a trouper and said he'd come along.  We got rained on HARD as we were passing through Port Isabel and driving over the causeway, but by the time we got to the lovely bay front location, there was just a bit of sprinkling going on.  Fortunately, they have expanded and provided so much more covered seating, that even at 1:30 on a Saturday on Labor Day Week-end, we found covered seating and a few napkins got rid of most of the wetness on the tables.  Our butts were damp in the chairs, but hey, it was COOL outside and for that we were immensely grateful!

You order at the bar, can run a tab with plastic, and they deliver your food to the table, calling out your name as they come.  The brought all the correct condiments, were very friendly, and we had a fabulous meal with enough food to fill any one's belly!  Jay and Will like coming off-season and chatting with the friendly bartenders.  They've always liked the casual, laid-back environment.

We knew Ian would be having a hamburger...and he did.  What he won't do is wait around for Mom to take a photo...hence, a half eaten burger by the time I snapped everyone else's photos.  The teen and the Dad are now growling at me for taking food photos.  They are growing more and more irritated by it.  Tough, I say.  It's what I do!

Here I am getting "the look" for interrupting his chowing down!

My Jay ordered a large ceviche and a margarita, frozen, with a shot of tequila on the side.  He said his arm ached from fishing all morning...but by the time the tequila hit his empty gullet, he was starting to feel much better.  I will say, I have tried ceviche twice and hated it both times...but, since Will and Jay both say this is the best they've ever eaten...I gave it a try.  It was DELICIOSA!  The difference is the excellent flavor balance and the small pieces of fish.  The last time I ate ceviche it tasted like raw fish in lime juice - big chunks...and nothing else.  This, however, was a work of art with the perfect balance of spice, heat, herbal, and citrus.  Really, really good.


This is a large ceviche...he couldn't even eat half of it!

 

That is one contented man!
Fishin', margarita, and ceviche...in that order :-)

 

I ordered a Grilled Chicken Club (sans the tomatoes).  It had bacon, melted cheese, moist chicken, and was served on a light onion roll.  Excellent - made excellent by really good bacon.  So often I find restaurants take short cuts with their cheap bacon (down here anyway) and it can ruin a meal.  This was good thick tasty bacon.  Yum.  The fries were a mixture of sweet potato fries, regular white potato fries and waffle fries.  I couldn't eat many because the sandwich was so big, but I focused on the sweet potato fries and they were very tasty.

My Grilled Chicken Club needed to be cut in half for me to wrangle
in all of that bacon and other good stuff.

John had a BLT and he ate every single bite.  He, too, focused on eating his sweet potato fries.  He even finished off my sandwich for me because it was just too much.  He was pleasantly surprised at how cool it was and uncrowded and a nice view of the bayfront activity.

The BLT was a generous sandwich!!!

All-in-all, it was a great lunch.  I certainly see why my boys like it so much.  I bet it is truly an awesome place to wind down the day on a pleasant Fall or Winter's evening!  Summer is hot - so I'll leave it to the tourists and young'uns who can tolerate the heat.  I'll definitely enjoy it again in my favored non-summer seasons!

This appears to be primarily a bar environment - I don't think I'd take my kids there.  I didn't see any children present...but I could be wrong.  The menu didn't list a children's menu...just saying, in case you were wondering. 

Also, I see that they have quite a musical line-up.  Check out their Facebook page and Like them to keep up with the musical offerings!

Bon Appetit, Y'all!

SPI FLIP FLOP FOODIE RATING:

4 – Lip smackin’ - good quality – flip flops will definitely be parked under their table again!