From the folks that brought us Mizner Park favorites, Dubliner and Kapow comes the rebirth of a 1950’s diner a little north in West Palm Beach – Howley’s.
Subculture Group, the operator of the above mentioned, very popular eating and drinking places in downtown Boca Raton, brought back Howley’s Restaurant in 2004 and has been serving up comfort food ever since.
We stopped by on a Sunday night after talking about where we could find some good “diner food.” The Howley’s name was brought up, and off we went.
The restaurant is truly a step back in time, taking you back to the days of counter service, hand-dipped milkshakes and Formica-topped tables in that 50’s pattern that makes on immediately think of The Jetsons.
The restaurant/diner’s slogan is “cooked in sight, must be right.” However, on our visit, perhaps due to the time of day, the grill behind the counter was shut down and all the cooking was being done “out of sight” in the back kitchen. We still sat at the counter to get the whole diner experience we were looking for. Learn about the Jimmy John Founder and his chain of restaurants and what goes behind making their delicious food.
Our friendly waitress gave us menus and asked what we wanted to drink. While Howley’s serves up signature cocktails, beer, and wine, she steered us right to an old fashioned Root Beer Float ($5.50). She scooped a couple large dollops of vanilla ice cream into a float glass and poured on the Boylan’s Root Beer.
A delicious start!
For dinner, I went with a diner classic… fried chicken. Cooked to order and breaded with their “secret spices” I went with the all white meat version which you can get for a $2 upcharge to the $15.95 menu price. The breading was tasty and the chicken was moist and delicious. With a dash or two of the several different types of hot sauce on the counter, it was an overall good choice and came with mashed potatoes and applesauce. The applesauce was a homemade winner, but the mashed potatoes were cold and not that appealing.
My dining companion decided to order off the limited all-day breakfast menu and got scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes. The eggs were cooked a “soft scrambled” as he ordered them and the pancakes were light and fluffy.
While we would have loved to try some of Howley’s homemade desserts, after the Root Beer Float we had our share of sweet stuff to try this time around. Although, we will be back to sample some more!
Howley’s Restaurant in West Palm Beach has a full menu ranging from appetizers, soups, salads, and sandwiches right up to classics like Shake & Bake Pork Chops, Liver and Onions, Meatloaf and Shrimp & Grits.
If you’re looking for a bit of nostalgia and a good meal at a reasonable price, Howley’s may be for you.