Austen’s Sports Bar

Update… I meant to write this review a month after my previous one, but YEP… that spot closed down a month after my review… Why? Because of bad customer service. Bad Management and Bad food. It’s called something else now, just as I predicted… lol.
Prost!

Stopped by hear to watch the SuperBowl Game during the Miami Marathon Weekend. Welllllllllllllllll I really hate to give such a low review. My friends and I had the worst experience. We waited forever for our food. The manager bad mouthed her server to us. Wrong orders were sent to our table. Menu items that were not available we’re not communicated — so we waited for meals that would never come. It was just BAD all over. I don’t know if this was a one time thing but it was bad enough to not visit again.

Worst d*mn service ever. I ordered my food before a football game started and after asking over and over, I get half of what I ordered AFTER the halftime show during the start of the 3^rd quarter. I was told that what did come would be comp, but guess what was on the final bill accompanied by more of the same excuses I heard all night. NEVER expect honest service here!

(Misspost. Please remove.)

So my buddy took me here to watch the games and when I walked in I thought the place had potential to be my go to spot to watch games. Cool atmosphere. Excellent setup. The main problem I have is the service is not good. The place was dead, maybe 20 people in a 200 capacity place and they couldn’t get anything right. The wings took 30 mins and came out cold. He had to ask 3 times for extra wing sauce. They brought out the wings at the same time as our meal. I ordered my salad with no cheese and it had cheese. The guy next to us waited 40 minutes for his wings. I wish i was exaggerating. What makes it comical is that the place wasn’t busy. What were they doing in the kitchen? Every possible mistake they could have made they made it. The food tasted good but this place has serious problems that are typical of most places in SoBe. I would go back if they got their act together. Two stars for the setup/​atmosphere. Place had potential. The manager did give us a shot which we didn’t want because we were not drinking.

Stopped by to grab a bite and watch the end of one of the football games. Service was great– very attentive but food was mediocre at best. Beer was on the expensive side [no NFL specials] so I probably won’t be back.

Great bar to watch a game. Good selection of beer and nice people working there. Food is okay.

This was an okay place, especially if you like ping pong and pool.
We showed up late at night so our group were the only people there.
Fun fact: many bars in South Beach are open until 5 am, 3 hours later than in California.
Not so fun fact: a beer in SoBe costs about 3 dollars more than it does in California.
There was nothing special too special about this place, but it wasn’t the worst of the bars we went to — at least they had some decent beers (Goose Island!) on tap.

Went there for lunch and only a couple of people were in the restaurant. I ordered food that obviously had been cooked the day before and then re-​heated for my meal. At $ 20, I expected better quality. Service seemed to be more pleasant if the bartender knows you, so if you’re not a local, you’re not going to get friendly service either. Not a complete waste of my time and money, but I won’t be going back. See Viola’s review from 10/​18/​2012. My experience mirrored hers exactly. Happy other people got better food and service, but if it’s a hit or miss, I’m not interested taking another chance.

great BBQ
and burgers on sobe
HUGE portions so bring an appetite
bucket of bones is my favorite on the menu
happy hour beer specials 3 – 7 and during miami games
and they are even open for breakfast at 8am!

Awesome BBQ at great prices! As a local, I was craving bbq chicken wings and pulled pork without having to cross the bridge to get it. It was a Friday night and I became very skeptical considering that the place was nearly empty, besides a couple of other hightops occupied. I was wrong to be skeptical as the service and food were amazing. This place should be packed with BBQ lovers. Don’t let the emptiness fool you… the servers and cooks will be ready to please !!!

Best BBQ we’ve had anywhere! We loved all of the different sauces, the chicken was juicy and the ribs were perfectly flavored & cooked! We love wings, and have tried a ton of different places in Jersey and NYC, but Austen’s has the best! My husband wasn’t too fond of the cornbread, so I ate his! We wished we had a microwave in our hotel room so we could take the leftovers with us. The next time we’re in South Beach, we will be back!

Went for breakfast on a Wednesday morning at 8. I was the only person there. Had the breakfast special of 2 eggs, bacon hash browns, fruit Nothing special but a pretty good deal for $ 6, except glass of o.j. was extra 3.75. Was in and out quickly.

We went because I was craving some bbq and this place was within walking distance from where I lived. I wasn’t expecting much from a bbq joint on South Beach.
I was pleasantly surprised. The food was better than I expected. My ribs were cooked almost perfectly, until I got to the ends they were tough and barely chewable. The sauces were very good.
But the service was horrible. The restaurant was empty besides for one other table and the waiter took forever to get out drinks and take our orders and it took forever for the food to come up.
But the food is good, I would give the food 3 stars.
overall experience meh, plus the décor was ugh!

I made this simply because I wanted to WARN people. I usually am willing to give a lot of leeway to new places but this whole experience was terrible. Austins occupies the spot vacated by Hogzillas but it seems everything has gone downhill. The décor is confused, flat and uninspired with what looks like the front display of a costume shop shoved in a nook near the ceiling.
My husband and I stopped in for breakfast and right off the bat we were ignored. It took ten minutes to get drink and they were served by another waitress. I would give this a pass if it weren’t for the fact that we were one of only three groups in the place. I ordered Lox and onions with eggs (When the OTHER server finally took my order) and my hubby ordered waffles the fresh fruit. Mine came out and instead of the nice smoked salmon I had been expected I got salty fish that tasted like it had been thawed out MIX IN with the eggs. Inedible. For the first time in my life I pushed it aside and sent it back to the kitchen having lost my appetite. Plus for something that is supposed to have onions in it there were almost none plus a random piece of green pepper in my food that I’m not sure even belonged there.
My husband the dismayed by the melon mixture he was given with his dish and I was even more dismayed to find mine was the exact same only much much less. His fresh waffle was actually an eggo with whipped cream on the side.
I guess Breakfast isn’t their thing but considering how TERRIBLE it was I won’t be coming back for dinner or drink either. This was the most half-​assed meal I have ever eaten and the service sucked. I looked at my bill and I was miffed when I realized they added gratuity automatically. I would have pressed the issue but the manager was to busy on his cellphone to speak to me. I payed 36 $ for something I could have gotten from a hospital cafeteria.
Likely would have tasted better too. Yuck.

I was pretty shocked to find Austen’s just chilling on Washington Ave. I mean, who would have thought to find a bbq place smack-​dab in South Beach, this close to Lincoln and Espanola? Didn’t the city permit people know what this is? It’s bbq. It’s stick-​to-​your-​ribs food. It’s beer. In SoBe. Oh, the humanity! Seeing as I had wandered up and down the street like a hooker for much too long in search of some hearty food and decent beer, I knew I needed to stop in.
First thing I noticed was how nice the staff was. From the manager (more on that later)* to my server, I was greeted with a smile, quickly seated and asked about what I wanted. I know this sounds basic but around these parts, this is some gold medal worthy service. [Point of order: I will never understand how an economy dependent on tourism gets away with such across-​the-​board terrible customer service.] Smiled at? Catered to as a paying customer? These elements would give Austen’s at least 3 stars even if everything else was terrible.
But, it’s not. It’s pretty dang good. Throat parched for wandering for 40 nights/​days, I settled in to a nice, light Shock Top. Not knowing exactly what I wanted, but knowing that I wanted a lot of it, I let my waitress take the lead and direct me to the food I was craving. She did well. I ordered the pulled pork platter which came with my choice of eight (8) sauces, Texas toast, apple cornbread, and slaw. As much as I wanted to finish, I couldn’t. I was overwhelmed with food. The meat had a great flavor on its own, but I highly encourage experimenting with the various sauces. No two are alike and each brings out a different taste profile to the meat. I was there on a Friday night, so on the south end of the restaurant/​bar, folks lined up to belt out karaōke covers. If that’s not your thing, be advised. It did, however, provide some pretty hilarious entertainment. From what I can tell, this corner has been bad luck for businesses. Check out Austen’s and help break that streak.
*The manager, noting how much time I spent looking for the right beer for my food and how excited, in general, beer makes me gave me the life-​changing tip to check out Abraxas. I love you for that, man.

Kind of a hot mess
Most brews were out, food was meh.
Highlight? The sauces

Haven’t been here for more than just drinks, but it’s great. Stopped in once when they had live music. Cool Stuff! Again another time when they had Karaōke. Enjoyable! Lastly, the bartenders and staff are a delight. I can’t say enough. It was enjoyable. I will, one day in passing stop in for some food as I’ve heard it’s good stuff! Be back to write another review when that does happen.

Really good for a BBQ restaurant. The food is fantastic since they changed to Austen’s from hogzillas and before BBQ beach! Service is decent and decore is updated but a little trippy like wild wild west meets thunder mountain. Their big screens are great for sports and it’s competitive to other restaurants in terms of value.

Promising.
I went for a quick drink at like 11:30p on a friday night and it was EMPTY. Kinda sad bc the service was nice and fast. The bartender, Leda, was very nice. She let us try some beers and hooked us up with some wheat thins. They had a good looking BBQ menu which I may return for.
Could be a nice spot.