Critic's Review
I got a $5 off $15 coupon and I wanted to try the new "beer can Chicken", so I headed up to Plantation, which is about the same distance from Downtown as the Fort Lauderdale Location.
The place was dead empty at 2pm. "Would you like to sit at our Full Service Bar?". "I would not". Ok, so she showed me to a booth. This location isn't nearly as nice as the FTL location; this place is one big open room, which I don't really like when I'm supposedly in the "dining room".
I ordered an iced tea and went through the menu, making sure that the chicken was on the menu. The tea came out and I ordered the chicken, which is actually a while cornish hen; I ordered it with broccoli and a new dish, dirty rice. I couldn't find a picture of it so it would be a surprise.
After my server ran off, I realized that there were no sweeteners on any of the tables. Why is it that 4 out of 5 times I get unsweetened tea without anyone either bringing sweeteners or asking if I want them? Isn't there 1 person in South Florida who is properly trained to do their job? It took me a good 10 minutes to get my server's attention; this is the kind of place where servers only care about their tables, so the others flying around were of no use when I tried to wave one down.
She also brought the signature paper bag, which is used for the bones. Sort of their answer to the buckets at Joe's Crab Shack.
A major annoyance was the lack of an AT&T signal, which meant web surfing was impossible. If forced me to notice the music. Looking around, the crowd was largely middle aged, yet the music from Fergie, Blink-182 and "Break Free" was crafted for 23yos. It's not wonder these chains are struggling. Are the managers not in control of the music or are they idiots?
When the food came out, I was saddened that the hen wasn't sitting on the little can like in the
It also didn't look as nicely seasoned as it does in the advertisement.It really didn't matter, but it didn't seem like "Beer Can Chicken" without the proper presentation. I hadn't had a cornish hen in years; You can cut the whole thing in half with a sharp nice and save half of it for a late night snack.
I got some butter for the broccoli; who eats plain steamed broccoli? The dirty rice wasn't dirty rice by any recipe I know, but it wasn't bad tasting; the roasted corn worked with the rice. I guess they put some sausage in it or something; dirty rices is supposed to be made with chicken livers.
I ended up eating 1/2 the hen, the rice and the broccoli; with the coupon it came to $12.70 before tip. A pretty good value with the discount.
Conclusion
Smokey Bones has some decent food; the smoked stuff isn't bad, while the sides are hit or miss. The coupon is good until 10/26; you can use it at any location.