Beyond the Beltway: Surf Club Ocean Grille

Due to its proximity to the house we were staying at in Virginia Beach, we decided to try the brunch at the Surf Club Ocean Grille, which is at the Wyndham hotel on 56th Street and Atlantic Avenue. We had tried to eat here the previous night but, despite the restaurant being mostly empty, we were told there was a 45 minute wait because they were inexplicably only seating a few of the tables. Nonetheless, we gave this place another chance. That was a mistake. We sat in their small outdoor area, which is right on the beach. A guitar player was singing surprisingly good renditions of classic rock songs. That was the best part of the meal and made the glacially slow service not seem so bad. The food was served in large filling portions but was altogether uninspiring.

Their French toast is eight thick pieces of fried bread arranged in four sandwiches and stuffed with cream cheese, bananas, walnuts, and strawberry jam. It's hard to mess up a dish with this many calories, but I was wholly unimpressed. The bread was on the soggy side and the cream cheese, fruit, and nut mixture did not taste fresh. This was enjoyable only if you covered it with an ample amount of maple syrup.

I also tried the sweet potato pancakes, which were served with brown sugar butter and sweetened sour cream. Like the French toast, this was a lot of food; there were four large pancakes. They were, however, not exactly what I had expected when I ordered sweet potato pancakes. They were actually regular pancakes with pieces of (presumably canned) sweet potato mixed into the batter. This brown sugar butter was good, but the pancakes were ordinary. I couldn't taste a lot of sweet potato and so they were little more than orange tinted pancakes to me.

We also ordered the chicken salad sandwich, and what they called "Eggs Benedict the 3rd" -- three different eggs Benedicts: a classic Benedict, a steak buscuit Benedict, and a crab puff Benedict. Following the pattern, this was another very large dish that opted for quantity over quality. As you can see in the picture, the butter and egg yolks of the Hollandaise sauce were separating, which shouldn't happen. It was otherwise competent.

There are definitely better places in Virginia Beach and there's no good reason to go to the Surf Club.

Contact information after the jump. Continue reading.

Brunch menu [Surf Club]

Surf Club Ocean Grille
5700 Atlantic Avenue
Virginia Beach, VA 23451
(757) 425-5699


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