**INITIAL REVIEW**
When it comes to the restaurants within Downtown Melbourne/Melbourne Main Street, I often stress that the ones on the edge of the river and/or marina are some of the best ones if you want a meal with a view. The Mansion and Chart House come to mind.
The one my family wanted to go to was Ichabod's Bar & Grille. Unfortunately, its popularity exceeded its capacity and the waittime was over an hour. Ergo, we went to their sister location on Melbourne Beach, the one right across from Paradise Beach.
Maybe, I was expecting a bit more as the Melbourne Beach location is the newer location meaning it had the OG to learn from, but it did not live up to that standard, at least the one I had in my head.
Though an address is provided, this Ichabod's Bar & Grille - which I will shorthand simply to Ichabod's for the remainder of this review - is located as a stand-alone business right across the entrance to Paradise Beach.
Ichabod's surely has that look of being a dockside restaurant despite being "landlocked," but good luck parking nearby. The parking situation has always been bad around the area.
Inside, the seating is limited in which the majority of seating seems to be at the two bars. I guess Ichabod's is catering to a certain demographic pertaining to who dines inside. Outside, there are more tables for families and groups. That is where my family and I sat for our meal.
Our waitress Jordanann, God bless her soul, was the only waitress working. She was running around like a chicken with their head cut off as she served everyone both inside and outside the restaurant. Despite her situation, she remained focused and kind. I definitely gave her a big tip for how hard she worked.
As for the food, it was... well... okay. I always get fried fist fillets whenevere I come to a new seafood restaurant, along with crab cakes. There was shell in the crab cake, which I find to be a bit of a norm with a little piece, but there were some thoroughly recognizable pieces in my mouth when biting right in. And the fish, well... it was... okay. Not the best fish I ever had, but not bad where I would not finish it or at least take it home.
Other food my family ordered includes the Mahi Sandwich, Our Burger, Shrimp Wrap, Caprese Burger, Jerk Mahi Plate, and the Jerk Shrimp Plate.
Overall, the initial visit was very lacking. Though I do not fault the waitress herself, I do fault the restaurant for only having one waitress for this shift. I assume they are having a troublesome time keeping staff.
I will definitely come back and give them a second chance. Can't just say Ichabod's is what they are over one visit, but for this initial visit, this is the kind of rating I would give them. If they improve over an average, i will reconsider changing the rating and updating the review. read more