The Bronson Restaurant

Hand cut, fresh steaks. Need I say more? This is a country café, but the food is very good and most is truly home made! The peach cobbler was fantastic! !

The Bronson Restaurant is a very simple, traditional, Southern cooking restaurant located, expectedly, in Bronson. They’re open seven days a week and do a buffet on Friday nights which apparently is the big draw here. Otherwise, their menu is what you’d probably expect, with breakfast of traditional American favorites, a lunch menu heavy on sandwiches, and dinner offerings that come with three sides – the sides being mashed taters, seasonal vegetables, cole slaw, but also cake or other desserts can count as one side. The prices are reasonable though the portions aren’t as generous as some country cooking places like this I’ve visited.
I got the fried chicken as did my friend, because that’s what has been raved about and his was very good but mine – while also tasty – was simply a poor cut of chicken and not really enough meat. But I think that was a one-​time issue just with the serving I got, no real complaints. The chicken is (as other reviewers and everyone else I know who has been here have said) very, very, good! It’s perfectly fried and it takes the time involved in preparing it the old fashioned way: we were told it would take around 15 minutes and instead took nearly half an hour, but if you’re not in a huge hurry it’s worth it if you like fried chicken. The sides I ordered – okra and tomatoes which was a seasonal vegetable and mustard greens – were pretty good. Mustard greens are quite different from turnip or collard greens so if they have them, you’re in for a treat. The peach cobbler I had was very good, also. I had hoped they’d have cake, but they didn’t on this visit. The waitstaff is all middle-​aged ladies who are sweet and attentive, keeping drinks (sweet tea!) filled and checking up on you.
Again, it’s worthwhile for the fried chicken which tastes just like you’d get at someone’s aunt’s house in the deep South, but only time allowing. This is a time-​consuming process and it really could (as it did today) take about half an hour. I am not sure they have it every day of the week either: their menu lists dinner items by day of the week and it shows up under Sunday but not certain if it’s always available. The fried mullet, which comes from Cedar Key fresh, is supposed to also be a good choice.

The food is delicious. The restaurant i spacious and clean. Small town feel and great customer service. Definetly get their ham. Everything on their menu is good.

Happen to be passing through the bustling metropolis of Bronson and need a bite to eat?
The Bronson Restaurant is your place.
Bronson is a pretty small town in Levy county, Florida. Unlike their neighbor Alachua county, they are not burdened by high property taxes (thanks to the University of Florida), and in fact are one of the poorer counties in the state. As far as places to eat go, this place is a diamond in the rough.
Their fried chicken is what fried chicken should be. They give an estimate of around 30 minutes of prep time. Part of that is to par cook the chicken, and the rest to deep fry it in peanut oil. What results is hot, tender, crispy fried chicken that tastes fantastic.
Their yeast rolls? Freshly made on site. Lemon and chocolate cakes? The same. They also make chicken, turkey and ham on site for use in their dishes. The chicken soup, for example, is laden with dumplings, meat, even a little char from whatever stock pot they used to create it, much like homemade.
The only dings I’d give them are their steaks, shrimp, and service. A 10 oz ribeye was nothing to write home about. A $ 12 or so basket of fried shrimp was meager, to say the least. Both times I’ve been there, they had two waitresses to serve their average-​size restaurant. Sometimes you’d wait a while to get menus. Sometimes orders for sides and such would need to be repeated. However, so far, it’s been worth the wait.
For example, a dinner for two including two entrees (with three sides for the first) came out to $ 23. Again, considering the fact that they made most of their dishes on site, it felt as if we were dining in another country with a lower exchange rate.
I’ve heard the wait staff occasionally refer to a «Mom» back in the kitchen. I’d wager mom is the one ensuring their food maintains the kind of southern style that stands out from the backdrop of the stereotypical «greasy spoon» southern restaurant. If she happens to be advanced in age, I hope whomever she might be passing her techniques down to will embrace them and keep the restaurant going. The locals seem to love it, and as a Gainesville resident I must say I’m a convert.