tybee island social club

last time attybeei had the fish tacos and was amazed. the service was blah, but who cares! this time around i had my husband with. we both enjoyed the fish tacos and great service. this is a must stop while at tybee!

my boyfriend and i foundtybeeisland social club on urbanspoon when we were looking for a place to grab a bite while exploring the island. the decor drew me in right away--casual, cozy and inviting, and the little stage made me want to stick around to see what the night scene was like. the blood orange sangria was the best sangria i've ever had. the service was perfect--everyone we interacted with exhibited what we've come to recognize as the southern hospitality you always hear about (we are from baltimore). finally, the food--the fish tacos and zissou tacos and crab stew rivaled if not surpassed our other dining experiences in savannah.
don't misstybeeisland social club. i wish we had something comparable in baltimore or even in ocean city, md.

good food, substandard service. we were disappointed with our dining experience attybeeisland social club, and i cannot in good faith recommend this restaurant. if you are interested in dining at thetybeeisland social club, take the time to read reviews before deciding to dine there.

we arrived at the restaurant just before 8:00 pm on tuesday may 28, 2013. our group consisted of six adults, three hungry children, and two babies. our group had over 67 years of restaurant/ food service experience, and we were looking forward to a great meal.

our drinks were ordered and arrived promptly. at that time, we ordered both appetizers and meals. for our appetizers, we requested hummus and chips and salsa. we began to suspect we would have problems when the appetizers took 25 minutes to arrive. we enjoyed both appetizers, but had to reorder chips and pita to keep the hungry kids calm.

our table did not order anything difficult to prepare, just tacos and hamburgers. however, the delay in getting it to us was unacceptably long. we had one false start when a different table’s food was delivered to our table. our food, at least most of it, finally arrived around 9:15 pm. however, one member of our party did not receive their meal until 9:45 pm. it went straight into a “to go” box, and we paid the bill. we were leaving for the parking lot at 10:00 pm.

as people who have made careers of serving food, we can understand having problems and service failures. things do not always go smoothly. the difference between a “great” restaurant and a mediocre to poor one is how a staff recovers when there are problems.

this staff at thetybeeisland social club failed to communicate. our server did not keep us apprised of the delay in service or the reason things were slow. we were not sure if she was hiding from us or spending more time at her other tables. in either case, she was absent. even with one meal being served after everyone else was finished, the management of the restaurant did not stop by to apologize for the service. they did not offer a drink, dessert, or discount for the bad service. in fact, we were charged the full amount plus an already included 15% gratuity. this full amount included being charged two dollars for the extra chips and pita bread to keep the kids satisfied as they waited 1:15 for their meals. it also included the price of the meal that ended up in the “to go” box as we were leaving.

in the interest of full disclosure, i did stop to ask the bartender what had happened this evening. he stated that someone had quit today, three large groups were being served at the same time, and the kitchen is slow. however, we counted less than 20 people in the restaurant when we arrived.

in fairness, we enjoyed the hamburgers. the tacos were excellent. we especially enjoyed the pork and the tuna taco. the two salsas with the chips were tasty. however, i could not in good conscience recommend thetybeeisland social club due to the pattern on slow service, the staff’s inability to timely acknowledge that there is a problem, and the staff’s inability to compensate or correct the problem in the restaurant at the time of service. if you take the time to read more reviews, you will see a pattern of complaints being addressed online after the fact instead of in the restaurant at the time of the service failure.

this was so disappointing. this appears to be the nicest restaurant ontybeehowever the service and people skills are horrible. after waiting a good half hour for our drinks once they were finally taken, we placed our dinner order and planned on starting off with an appetizer. after 45 minutes and several times inquiring about the eta from our server, who was also the manager of the place. nice girl however should not be in the position. she gave us several reasons for the delay..."we are short staffed, they have not even started making it yet, they have many orders before yours". the four of us said "wow!" myself being in the hospitality industry, was appalled. you think i want to hear about your troubles. we asked to speak with the owner and she was even worse. she seemed to be a bit unhinged and said to us "welcome totybeeisaland" insinuating that it is a busy time and this is the standard level of service provided here on tybee. she also threw her hands up to us and said "i am doing the best i can". she was very unprofessional and completely turned us off. i actually was scared of her reaction. never in my life have i had an owner of an establishment act like this. she did not care about our situation. if i were you i would stay away and go to savannah for dinner if you are looking for a nice dinner

mixed review but overall positive. had a fantastic seven day holiday ontybeeisland. sunday afternoon, i went by myself to social club to have a quick lunch, and was pleased to see a very good live blue grass music band. i ordered the farmer's platter which consisted of humus, cheese, carrots, cucumber and warm pita. delicious! and a refreshing departure from the regular deep fried, wrap and burger fare that is available on the island. the bill came to approximately ten dollars (including club soda.) i had a great time and was excited about bringing my husband back for dinner. the evening ambiance is as inviting and comfortable as the afternoon, with low lighting in a fresh cottage atmosphere. we ordered the blue crab stew, which was beyond excellent, a steak taco salad and blackened fish taco. the service was spotty, our waitress was very sweet, but didn't seem to know what was offered on the drinks and food menus, and was slow to bring us our drinks. i heard about "tybee time" while we were down there, and appreciate that this is a laid-back island lifestyle, but bringing drinks promptly is a necessity anywhere - i don't care what time it is. the very small taco salad had no tacos in it, instead the tacos were piled on my plate beside a very small fish taco, which was nice enough, but two bites and it was gone. when i asked the waitress if the fried tacos shouldn't have been in the salad, she basically shrugged. the bill, including four bottles of beer, was about $37. a bit pricey for a rather small amount of food. i really want this place to succeed and become a fixture intybeeisland, which needs a restaurant that serves simple, healthy meals at a reasonable price. people are here on holiday, already spending a fair amount of money on accommodation, and we can't afford the fine dining prices that the social club is verging on, especially if the portions are tapas sized. also, the wait staff needs more fine tuning - know the menu, and make sure the customer gets what they order, improve communication with the kitchen and bar. there are some bugs to be worked out, but this place is a diamond in the rough and is worth the effort. but by all means, keep that crab stew on the menu!

better late than never.... we were up intybeelast year at this time and it just dawned on me that i didn't leave a review as i should have because this place did an amazing job. the food was very creative and all at the table loved it. the staff was friendly(which i might add is not the case for some other establishments on the island) which is partly why i want to make sure that i get a great review out for the ti social club. thank you very much for making part of our trip up there quite a foodie success. when we come back we will be visiting you again for sure.

fish taco & blood orange sangria...omg. great food and drink. try to get there m-f 4pm-6pm for their happy hour: 2 for 1 sangria, $7 1/2carafe of wine, beer specials and complimentary pork rinds. they have several different kinds of tacos, fish, duck, pork, orange beef, to name a few. we had the fish taco, chorizo burger, and the ceviche 3-way sampler. all delicious! we tried all the house sangrias red hibiscus, white jasmine or blood orange. blood orange was my favorite.
indoor and patio seating. there was a band (trainwreck) that played inside while we were there (covers and originals). live music is always a nice touch, in my opinion, and they were pretty good.
i liked that this was place was geared more to adults, when most of the places ontybeeisland are very family oriented. it's not that i don't like children, its just i like it better when they're not around. this was a great place to enjoy a few drinks, have some great beach food and listen to some tunes.
i'll definitely be back.

locals that love it!. my husband & i have lived in savannah for several years now, & used to rarely make the trip out totybeefor dinner, as there were no restaurants on the island that we felt particularly drawn back to. since social opened a few years ago though, we happily take the drive down 80 at least once a month, & several times during the warm months! since we are having an unusually warm january weekend right now, we have plans to go eat at social with friends tonight. i actually got on this site to see if there were any coupons, & felt compelled to write a review after reading some others.

between the two of us, we have tried everything on the menu, which changes seasonally. we have never left the restaurant disappointed. sure, we have our favorites (fish tacos, orange pork tacos, chorizo burger...) but everything has been fresh & delicious. the service isn't always super fast, but this isn't a place we go for an "in & out" meal. we like social because it is a laid back place to sit, relax, & have one (or a few) of their wonderful drinks. even on busy nights, the servers have always been friendly & helpful. we love social & will keep coming back as often as possible!

best place ontybeeisland. simple amazing cuisine with excellent choice of wines. great atmosphere: live music, friendly staff, hospitable owners!

depends when you go, i guess, based on other reviews. not the best place ontybee(sundae cafe - it's not even close) but probably #2 (slim pickings on tybee).

pleasant enough staff, good sangria-type drink, and interesting tacos (the main fare). liking the pork with ginger sauce taco.

thumbs up!

stayed ontybeein late august. visited social club on a whim for coffee and desert.
food: coffee and cheesecake. best, most simple cheesecake i have ever had! coffee was served in home style coffee cup (big) with real cream. we had a really pleasant experience. staff was courteous and not over lingering.

a big disappointment. after five great meals ontybeethis trip, and after reading all the many reviews for the social club, it was particularly disappointing. the restaurant was not busy, but service was sparse.

the peel and eat shrimp was not fresh and was served limp and tepid. i can't remember last time i left shrimp on the plate to go to the trash. the shrimp and crab nachos were not bad, but nothing special and the juice from the beans made the chips soggy.

our lunch seemed awfully overpriced for such mediocre food.

really nice menu comparatively speaking. compared to downtown savannah, that is. nothing else on the island compares. had lunch there today and going back tonight after getting tired of the southern beach fare all seasoned with old bay. this is really more like a bistro menu complete with reasonable (and seemingly well thought out) wine and beer pairings.

highly recommended - just make reservations and plan for a tiny parking lot!

ourtybeefavorite!

thetybeesocial club is hip and their menu is anything but boring, including their drinks with their hand made mixers; this place would be more comfortable in south beach than tybee...

excited about being intybeenext week looking forward to eating at social serveral times! great food and atmosphere!