Lakeland is not exactly the most culinary diverse town; just throw a rock and you’ll hit a fast food joint around here. So it’s both surprising and welcoming that an upscale restaurant like Posto 9 not only would set up shop here rather than Orlando or Tampa, but that it would be this good.
This is a Manhattan-style Gilded Truffle type of restaurant. They clearly went all out on making it look as beautiful and upscale as possible. The establishment has a white color scheme and it’s brightly-lit. The décor is beautiful, as is the artwork on the walls. The kitchen is partially-open, too (what is it about open kitchens that make a place seem fancier?). I’m surprised they even bothered with a TV next to the bar, since it kind of distracts a bit from the ambience (this isn’t the kind of place you’d come to watch sports anyway).
I went on a busy Saturday evening. When my date and I arrived they said they didn’t have any tables but we could sit at the bar. It’s a pretty nice bar, though the bookshelf arrangement of liquor bottles is a bit odd. I could see the bartenders and waitresses constantly having to use a stool to grab the good stuff from the higher shelves.
I found the beer selection to be good but not as impressive as I was expecting. There are 16 total beers available: 5 IPAs/APAs; 4 lagers; 3 dark beers; 3 Belgian styles and a blonde ale. Pretty much all of the beers are American (Stella Artois is the only import – meh); you’d think a fancypants place like this would carry some 750ml Belgian Trappist and Abbey ales, plus some German and British bottles. What’s really surprising is that there aren’t any Brazilian beers available (not even Xingu). All beers are $6-$9 which would be fine if they were draught, but is a bit steep for bottles and cans. At least they serve everything in stemmed glassware – no shaker pints as far as I could see. There’s a cool cocktail list, and a pretty extensive wine list, but I won’t comment on those further since I drink neither.
My date and I both went with bottles of Boulevard Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale. This is one of my favorite American saisons as it’s quite hoppy, peppery and bone dry. Though strong at 8.5% ABV, it drinks like a much lighter beer; it’s also quite versatile because it can either be sipped or quaffed. It’s a great beer to accompany a meal in a place like this since it’s a virtual palate-cleanser with each sip. Later on, we split a can of Big Top Brewing’s Trapeze Monk. Though billed as a witbier, it comes across more like a blonde. I really wasn’t a fan because it was missing the fruit and spice flavors and esters typical of the style, plus it was also under-carbonated and a tad watery. The can may have been a bit old.
I’m looking forward to the rooftop lounge they’re supposed to be opening. I hope it will have a bigger and better beer selection than what’s available at the main bar. I’m actually pretty surprised there aren’t any beer taps at the main bar (well I did see one, but it wasn’t labeled). A place like this should have 6-10 taps at least.
But this is a gastropub after all, so let’s talk about the food. The first thing you’ll notice is that it’s pretty damn pricey. There are NO entrees priced below $20, and most apps are around $13-$16 as are the salads. The selections from the raw bar are just under $20; sides are $6 each, and desserts are around $10.
Instead of getting entrees, my date and I decided to order a few appetizers and split them:
Picanha Sliders ($14): Essentially little roast beef sandwiches on a cheese bread bun. Meat was tasty, but seemed about the same as any other deli meat. They also went a little heavy on the mayo.
Chicken A Passarinho ($14): The bartender described these as the Brazilian version of chicken wings. They’re much smaller than the American wings we’re used to, and they have a nice spicy/savory flavor, but you don’t get a heck of a lot of them. It also comes with a huge dollop of a creamy garlic spread which was a little sweet. These were good.
Coastline Roasted Mussels ($13): Being a beer nerd I’ve had plenty of mussels at Belgian-style bars and restaurants and these can definitely hang with some of the better servings I’ve had.
I should also mention that a complimentary side of cheese bread and yucca chips is served as an amuse bouche. Though mild, it was difficult to stop from filling up on these.
The service was pretty good I must say. There were a few people working the bar, and they were friendly and informative. Since it was a Saturday evening, the restaurant was quite busy and at one point the bar was swarmed with people trying to get drinks so there were a few times I had to work to get their attention.
Something I did find a bit strange was that there are no men’s or women’s restrooms; just three unisex one-person-at-a-time bathrooms. Those are quaint in little bistros, but I can’t believe I had to wait a few minutes for an available toilet in a large establishment like this (I’m actually surprised the building codes even allow for that).
The total for three beers and three appetizers came to $61 ($65.27 after tax). That seems pretty high, but the thing about Posto 9 is that they’re a non-tipping establishment. So to “translate” the prices to what we’re used to, you could subtract 20% from each item to get the real price (i.e. $20 in drinks is more like $16, and $41 in food is closer to $33). That being said, I think the prices here are a bit more than they are really worth. While the food, service, and general ambience were enjoyable, the experience as a whole wasn’t especially better than other restaurants of similar or even lesser caliber (which is why I give it four instead of a full five stars).
Still, I’m glad to see a place like this in Lakeland. It will likely raise the bar for culinary outlets city-wide.