Kelly's Caribbean Bar, Grill & Brewery

Bierguy5

Ohio

3.13/5  rDev -6.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 2 | $$

Nice historic building. Both indoor, and outdoor seating. Lots of palm treas line the outdoor area. Pretty comfortable all over.

When we stopped in, the had only 2 beers available, a wheat and a red. Neither were impressive. Both seemed dumbed down for the masses.

Service was good, they were quick to get our beers, and seemed friendly at the bar.

I can't comment on food, but for happy hour, they have wings that are only $4, and I hear they are some of the best on the island. Beers at happy hour were $2.

Overall, I was very disappointed. I was really looking forward to a brewpub, especially since I was tired of all of the usual suspects in Key West. Neither beer was a welcome relief. Maybe the food is good, and I may revisit when I go back, but still disappointed.

05-12-2008 23:42:41 | More by Bierguy5

Immortale25

Florida

2.04/5  rDev -39.1%
vibe: 2.5 | quality: 1.5 | service: 3 | selection: 1.5 | $$

Since it's the only "brewery" in Key West and I got a free sample coupon from the hotel I stayed at, I needed to check it out...and regret the waste of time. We went for happy hour since their "microbrews" are only $2 a pop. I use my coupon to get a sample of the Red ale...eh. So, since they only have three beers, I go down the line: I ask my father for a sip of his Southern Clipper Wheat Ale and it's even more lackluster than the Red. So I order the IPA...which doesn't even come close to a true IPA. Not only that, on the menu they call it a Golden Ale, but the bartender refers to it as an IPA. Yeah, IPAs can have a gold color but to call it a Golden on the menu is incredibly misleading to someone who knows beer. Guess it doesn't really matter since the beer advocacy in the Keys is extremely low anyway and, if someone ordered the Golden expecting a light-bodied ale with low bitterness, they wouldn't be far off. Also, there are no craft selections besides their homemade swill so we didn't even bother trying any food, paid our tab and walked down the street to The Porch. If you're in Key West and you want to try great Florida beer, go to Krawl and try whatever Due South they have on tap and then go to The Porch and try any Cigar City they have.

09-27-2012 18:19:14 | More by Immortale25

SaCkErZ9

Florida

3/5  rDev -10.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3 | service: 2.5 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4 | $$

This place has two attractions: the scenery/ atmosphere, and the food. Other than that, this place was a huge miss.

The whole bar is an open area with a courtyard out front for a rainforest feel if you enjoy that while dining; I do. I sat at the bar but the courtyard seemed like a very nice place to be.

The food was delicious. I had some curry chicken that was outstanding.

The beer was pretty awful. There were only three selections, all house beers, and all very average. They had a pale ale, a wheat, and an amber. How original. The beers lacked any flavor and had no spark or anything in them to make me want more of them.

The service was very slow. The food took about 45 minutes to arrive and the bartenders had empty glasses all over the bar.

Unless you go for the food and scenery, go other places for beer and service.

07-17-2012 15:10:43 | More by SaCkErZ9

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

2.42/5  rDev -27.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2.5 | service: 1.5 | selection: 2 | food: 4 | $$$

The atmosphere is a uppity version of Key West, lots of outdoor seating, small bar, however quite proper. A small bar under a overhang that is overlooking the outside dinging. The quality of the beer was, well, kind of touristy, and not fantastic, but not really that bad. A more of focus on their extensive wine list (wait, we are in a beer place?), and Miller Lite is on special right now!! Service was slow, the waiter spilled a beer and didn't even clean it up, no, it's ok, I will take care of it, oh yea, thanks for the apology. As for the food, all was good, split some apps, everything was really nice, but it could have come out at the same time, I guess the server thought we were coursing our apps. Had two of the three beers, would have had a third, but he brought the check instead of asking. So, all in all, been there, done that, food was good, but pricey, and I will not go back.

10-17-2010 14:22:39 | More by OWSLEY069

adkirkish

Florida

4.22/5  rDev +26%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4 | $$

Being the only brewery in the keys, I had to pay a visit to Kelly's and here was my experience: Kelly's is a microbrewery with 3 small batch fermenters. The usual beers on tap are the Havana Red Ale, Key West Golden Ale, and the Southern Clipper Wheat. I had all three and I ended up getting a pint on the Havana Red Ale.

I love the outdoor patio. There are huge trees that grow up through the interior structure that form a jungle canopy overhead. It's relaxing, lowkey, and off the beaten path of the hustle and bustle of duval street, but within close proximity to the main drag.

The service is nothing short of spectacular (Erica - You are awesome btw ;). Server poured me enough samples to make sure I had a proper tasting and was knowledgeable about the beers / brewery.

The food is great as well with local catch, steaks, and other normal pub fair. Everything is higher priced in the keys so nothing over the top here.

The only issue I see is just the minimal tap list. But for being so remote, I'm not that hard pressed to demand someting more. I'm just happy that there's a brewery at the end of the road offering up local craft beer. This is one stop you shouldn't pass up in Cayo Hueso.

07-15-2010 13:04:27 | More by adkirkish

david18

New York

3.63/5  rDev +8.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | $

I went to Kelly's because it was the only micro brewery on Key West. A very beautiful bar/restaurant with a nice setting. Seating in a restaurant, a bar, and outside porch and a further outside yard. The help was very nice but didn't seem to know too much about the beer itself.

i had the Red, the Golden (which is an IPA) and the Wheat. All were ok. I think the Red is the best for the style but the IPA was my favorite and a very decent IPA (I've had a lot worse). Nice building/pretty house.

I did not try the food but the menu seemed like most of the others on Key West. Lots of fish including the signature Key West Conch Fritters.

02-17-2010 15:54:32 | More by david18

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +17.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 2.5 | $$

I was down in the Keys with The Chauffeur1 contemplating the idea of order in Key West. Actually, I was contemplating beer and Kelly's beckoned, plus Greg said that he only had two requests for the trip - Key West and Nawlins. Being an accommodating sort... Ha! Like I needed an excuse. My contemplation was an allusion to one of the most famous poems by Wallace Sevens, who routinely came down to visit. It also represented an opportunity to continue to follow the footsteps of Papa Hemingway who routinely came to Key West. A real literary moment was in the llate 1920s/early 1930s when the two got into a one-punch fist fight on the beach over Hem's advances on Stevens' wife and Stevens laid the tough guy out on the beach and walked away shaking his head.

Back to the present. Kelly's was a massive complex that sat at the corner of Whitehead and Caroline Streets. The long patio entry was on Whitehead with the m.d.s. about ¼ of the way aft on right. The long, angular aluminum-topped bar was to the left and further aft, down a flight of stairs, was an outdoor patio area. The bar was pop-riveted to emulate an early airplane wing. Lavs were on right, past m.d.s., followed by the kitchen. The whole place was aviation themed with ceiling fans that looked like old prop turbines/motors. The front of the bar was corrugated aluminum with aluminum chairs. The patio area was enclosed by dense foliage, including palm trees and twisted ficus and banyan trees. Other than being the only b/p in the Keys, their other claims to fame were being the birthplace of Pan Am Airlines and being owned by Kelly McGillis of "Top Gun" fame. A second floor was accessible by stairs behind the m.d.s., leading to a set of bookshelves, a secondary bar, a private seating area, and a deck for overflow seating.

Beers: Havana Red Ale; Key West Golden Ale; and Southern Clipper Wheat. They were decent and beat most of what I had seen for sale in local stores.

Mom Test: Yeah. Why not? It's a tourist destination among other things.

12-17-2009 11:51:44 | More by woodychandler

aaronh

Pennsylvania

3.4/5  rDev +1.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | $

Located in the building where Pan-American airlines was founded, this "southernmost" brewpub was a nice find. On Whitehead street just a block off of Duval. Nice plane motif - one of the locals said it's owned by actress Kelly McGillis of Top Gun movie fame. Beer selection was average, but the $2 pints at happy hour are a nice bargain for decent beer in Key West. The outdoor seating area is very tropical, and the bar area is relaxing. Mostly football on the TV's since it was a Sunday afternoon. The IPA was a nice British-style. Would visit again if in Key West.

12-12-2009 18:17:31 | More by aaronh

spointon

Illinois

3.33/5  rDev -0.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4 | $$

Visited while on vacation last week.

Kelly's is a really cool indoor-outdoor place with its own line of beers brewed on premises. The vibe of thie place is all Key West, and I especially liked the airplane motif (The bar is located in the old Pan Am airline office building). The bar itself was made of riveted metal and looked like an aircraft fuselage. Cool.

The beers were so-so. Not great, but very drinkable nonetheless. The selection wasn't much though. Just three house brewed beers (an ok wheat, an ok IPA that was more like a pale ale, and a red/amber ale that was really unique). The bottle selection was all macros.

The food was also decent (we had conch fritters).

The service was pleasant and attentive. The bartender was happy to chat with us tourists and give us the scoop on Kelly McGillis the former owner and namesake.

All in all an ok bar in a place where craft beer is not celebrated much.

03-20-2009 06:39:46 | More by spointon

HardcoreKeith

Florida

2.58/5  rDev -23%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 1.5 | selection: 2.5 | $

Cool place, very nice building. Service was not so good. We sat at a table about 5 feet from the bar for about 10 minutes before the bartender informed us, "There's no table service." No, "What can I get you? Here you go, I'll have to give it to you at the bar though," or, "Hi, I'm afraid I'll have to serve you up here at the bar," or anything. That's all. There's no table service. Well, I tell you what, there's hardly any service at all. Anyway, I went up to the bar and inquired about their microbrews. There were only three, and they were, as described to me by the bartender, in entirety, "A wheat, a red, and an IPA." I ordered two of each for my party.

They were ok. Very mild, muted, and subdued. The IPA seemed like maybe 30 IBU. American hops, but English style, I suppose. It was nice to have a fresh microbrew, but that's about the full extent of what I can say about the beers.

They have other light macros available in bottles. Being Key West though, the focus and precedence is on mixed frozen drinks, so expect that if you go here.

Positives: Their microbrews were only $2 for a goblet of what I estimate to be 8 to 10 ounces. I paid $12 for the round, which was friggin' amazing for Key West. It seemed like there were other good happy hour deals on mixed drinks available based on the chalkboard.

05-29-2008 04:41:24 | More by HardcoreKeith