Cameron Healy
Want to know the best places to eat at along St. Pete Beach? We have you covered. The Gabber staff recently took a lunch trip to Boulevard Burgers & Tap House to taste some of its “must-try dishes.”
The St. Pete Beach restaurant highlighted its top five appetizers, burgers, and entrées to try this spring. With only four people, each of us tested four from their top five.
This “must-try” list features an appetizer of sautéed mussels, New England- or Connecticut-style lobster roll, the “Boulevard Shrimp” dinner entrée, the “Haystack” burger, and “The Ghost Rider” burger.
The Gabber’s Patrick Graney ordered the mussels. This appetizer prepares sautéed mussels with “white wine, garlic, butter tomatoes, and capers” and includes four slices of toasted Cuban bread.
“The mussels weren’t over-garlicked, and the toast wasn’t over-buttered,” Graney said. “It was overall a delicious meal and fantastic service.”
Cameron Healy
Although the “Boulevard Shrimp” is exclusively for dinner, reporter Monroe Roark took one for the team to try it out. This dish includes eight large, grilled shrimp over garlic cream sauced linguini served with four slices of Cuban bread and a side salad.
Roark’s meal was very filling. The portion was large enough that he took much of it home and shared it with his wife. He said she loved it as well.
Cameron Healy
Boulevard’s Best Burgers
Joey Neill and I tasted the two best burgers the menu offers.
Neill is a spicy guy, which led him to “The Ghost Rider” burger – so called because, in addition to cheddar cheese and barbecue pulled pork on a medium-sized patty, this burger features a spicy ghost pepper aioli – with a side of tater tots.
Other side options include fries, coleslaw, chili cheese fries, sweet potato fries, garden salad, and onion rings.
Cameron Healy
After mowing down that large burger, Neill declared his patty masterpiece to have the “perfect amount of heat.”
“[The ghost pepper aioli] was not overpowering,” Neill said. “Excellent portions, I’m overly full. The pulled pork was really tasty.”
Cameron Healy
I tried the restaurant’s “Haystack” burger. This dish involves a patty with “American cheese, applewood bacon, and crispy onion straws” on top and – because vegetables are also important – a piece of lettuce below. I chose the restaurant’s freshly cut fries as my side.
I’m a big fan of onion rings on my burgers, so this was quite yummy, but a little barbecue sauce would have made it even better. With all the meat and fried rings, the lettuce actually did make the burger feel lighter.
Although our team didn’t try all five “must-try” meals, our four dishes were delicious. Check out more options as well as the two kinds of lobster rolls Boulevard Burgers has to offer next time you’re on St. Pete Beach.
Love to try new places? Take a look at our latest story on Tommy’s Hideaway in Gulfport.
Boulevard Burgers & Tap House, 5905 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach. Sun.-Thurs., 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. 727-201-4906, blvdburgers.com
