Ernie's Bar-B-Q

Good food

by FunJessy at Citysearch

The food was yummy. It DID rain the night myself and friends went and unfort we couldnt enjoy the outside deck upstairs as much as the waitresses had to put the plastic folds down which made it a tad hot. Given the fact that its S.Fla tho, we cant complain too much about heat! Good times!

Been going to Ernie's since 1974...

by anarion55 at Citysearch

Known to we old-timers as "Dirty Ernie's", but it has nothing to do with the cleanliness of the place. Rumor has it that Ernie was run out of the Bahamas way back when, and according to the story told on the menu-back, he disappeared some time later.

I was turned onto this place by a crusty old Texan named Buster. The walls back then were covered in anti-IRS and pro-liberty slogans and a hand-drawn bird character named "Dodo", who lamented the corporate-ization of America.

Well, the walls have been painted over since then, but the BBQ sandwiches, Bimini Bread, Conch Chowder and Fritters are still the best in Florida, bar NONE.

The Sandwiches are overstuffed with your choice of beef or pork, and come with a small tub of chunky barbeque sauce they make on premises. It has just the right spiciness to make a great sandwich that much better.

The conch chowder is thick with big chunks of conch, carrots, peas and potatoes, and a few drops of sherry (available on request) makes it perfect!

They Bimini bread (which is what they use for the sandwiches) is always super-fresh, cut thick and tastes amazing. You also get a slice of it with the chowder to sop up every delicious drop.

The Conch Fritters are big, and not at all greasy like some places serve. With the cocktail/horseradish sauce on the side, they're not to be missed.

I'd recommend the cup of chowder & half BBQ sandwich combo with fritters as an appetizer - but you'd better have an appetite!!!

The rooftop dining area allows a breezy spot to enjoy all this food, and is almost always my choice, even with the traffic from US1 blasting by.

Is it the Ritz? No. And it isn't intended to be - Ernie's is a tradition in Ft. Lauderdale, and it's fine just the way it is. I'm headed there tomorrow night.

Most Amazing Food EVER!!!

by pacific_pam at Citysearch

My family has been going to a time share in Pompano for nearly 30 years, and we've been eating at Ernie's every year since we started. The food is ALWAYS wonderful. And the prices are so cheap, that even when we're too broke to do anything else on the trip, we can still have Ernie's. We always get the conch chowder, conch fritters, and pulled pork bbq sandwiches. The sauce is amazing. The pork sandwiches are always piled high with tons of meat so big I can hardly get my mouth around for a bite. The conch chowder and Bimini bread are out of this world!!! Honestly, nothing else on the menu has ever looked appetizing enough to bother trying. Those items keep us coming back year after year, 3 or 4 times per week we stay. I've had a bad loaf of Bimini bread, where the sweet part was almost nonexistent throughout the loaf. But that is so rare. It's a shame when somebody experiences that on their first visit and won't give it another try. It's usually very sweet, and melts in your mouth. We take a loaf to our condo and get a small container of butter at the grocery store (Publix, of course) and eat that for breakfast throughout the trip. Four generations of my family have been there, and it's one of the very few things ALL of us love. For my siblings who haven't even been to the condo in years and could care less about Florida (heaven forbid...I know), they always wish we could bring back some Ernie's. It's been a local, hidden treasure for decades that you can always see the local cops at. I've rarely been when there weren't a couple cruisers in the parking lot and a table full of cops inside. (So I always feel safe there, too. lol) It's lost the atmosphere it used to be known for, with Ernie's personal sayings and drawings all over the walls. But the food is the same, and will continue to draw my family for generations to come.

Good food, good ambiance...great little neighborhood spot!

by iebrutus at Citysearch

Quite honestly, I really like this place. I enjoy the food (tasty, large portions and moderately priced), I like the staff, I like the ambiance, and I'm guaranteed to see a familiar and friendly face every time I visit. I agree with the last post, it "is a great neighborhood BBQ place" (and breakfast place ....and lounge). My only gripe is that although the BBQ is good (and the Bimini bread, out of this world) the BBQ sauce is horrendous....definitely sneak a bottle of your favorite sauce in with you. I guess some of the other people I've spoken to have had the same experience...I keep trying to convince them to give Ernie's another chance. I would recommend trying this place. I advise eating upstairs on the patio. Enjoy!

Good food/ moderately priced ;)

by torri at Citysearch

Ernies is a great neighborhood BBQ place..the food is moderately priced and the servers are very friendly!! I have been going there for more than a few years and when I see some negative reviews...it gets me upset...they must be those who eat the food, use the servers and don't tip properly..if you want "hoitie toitie" restaurant....go someplace else. This place is a comfortable, down home, good food and ambience type of place ;)