The Annex

The following review was published under my byline in the Florida Times-​Union on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2015. This is an original, unabridged version of that review.
On any given night, plenty of folks are looking to score on Riverside’s King Street.
At one particular watering hole, it’s a virtual guarantee. And it won’t cost you a thing.
The folks behind The Silver Cow bar are behind this gamesmanship. In May, the Whiteway Corner newbie whipped up a former antiques emporium next door, doused it in craft beer, taxidermy and pop rocks, and aptly named it The Annex.
You’ll find plenty of chances to score in this shoebox of an eatery, with easily half the dining room devoted to free skee ball, billiards, foosball and air hockey tables. Along the left wall are three regular tables, where you’ll rub whiskers with friendly wildlife who’ve seen livelier days.
Behind the bar is a vertical menagerie of hard candy, much of which you can buy by the box. In fact, two full pages of the menu are devoted to packaged, sugary treats. Another page is dedicated to an array of toys and novelties – think fake moustaches and googly eyes.
Since this is King Street, there’s no shortage of craft beer. The Annex rotates 46 crafts and ciders on tap, which go for $ 3 or $ 4 during happy hour, daily from 4 to 8 p.m. Don’t know where to start? Your barkeep will gladly offer you sample pours.
Rest assured, there is food. The Annex and The Silver Cow share a kitchen, and you can order from either establishment’s menu. The Annex hawks simple bar bites – burgers, sandwiches, pitas, dogs and brats. The Cow presents more upscale yet budget-​friendly offerings, with sophisticated «nibbles and noshes,» flatbreads and pitas, grilled cheese and deli sandwiches. Their full array of charcuterie and formage will set you back a little more.
For this review, it’s all about The Annex. My review trio dialed up two appetizers, starting with the Bucket O’ Chips & Armadillo Queso ($ 6.50). The white corn chips were crisp yet unspectacular. The spicy ground pork chorizo and red pepper queso dipper had nice heat, but sadly made a cold debut at our table. We also noshed on a cup of Knotty Bits ($ 2 per cup; $ 5.50 for a bucket), a mug of supermarket-​grade mini hard pretzels with spicy mustard and beer cheese. Unlike our beers, these opening performances were flat.
We carried on to our entrees. The Blue Cheese, Walnut & Craisin Salad ($ 10) was just that on a bed of mixed greens, served with twin crostinis and a side of vinaigrette. It was a utilitarian arrangement that did its job but not with any flair.
The menu advertised the Grilled Chicken Pita ($ 8) with thinly sliced kettle fried chicken breast, but our server admitted ours came with deli meat. In spite of the fumbled chicken, the tangy curry mayo and sun-​dried tomatoes made this sandwich come out OK in the end.
My build-​your-​own Chorizo Tacos ($ 8) came with three flour tortillas, steel dishes of onions, sour cream, salsa and guacamole ($ 1 extra), and a bowl of that spicy ground chorizo pork. I would have enjoyed dry cuts of chorizo meat here, or ground meat not swimming in so much grease and oil. My fingers and pant legs would have as well. Ask for a side of wet-​naps with this one. They should be automatic.
As mentioned earlier, The Annex is not lacking in sweets, but you’d be hard-​pressed to find a standard restaurant-​style plated dessert. While you can get a root beer float, a beer ice cream float or even a Klondike bar for that sweet ending, I threw my faith behind the Warm Moon Pie & RC Cola ($ 3). The Moon Pie was a tasty treat, made better after 10 seconds in a microwave, but they ran out of RC and instead offered a can of plain-​Jane Coke. Dejection.
If you’re focused on liquid refreshment or know your way around a skee ball lane, you might score big at The Annex. Unfortunately, the food menu here doesn’t rack up the same points.
The Annex
1508 King Street, Riverside
(904) 379‑6968
Type of cuisine: Eclectic pub fare
Hours: Closed Monday; Tuesday through Thursday, 4 p.m. to midnight; Friday and Saturday, 4 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Sunday, 4 p.m. until close
Credit cards: All major accepted
Bar service: Beer and wine
Children’s menu: No
Reservations accepted: For large parties
Catering: No
Price range: Appetizers, $ 2 – 6.50; burgers, sandwiches/​pitas and dogs/​brats, $ 6.50−9

This review will probably be updated and longer next time as I’d REALLY like to spend some more time hanging out there. For now, I’ve only had a beer there. This was my first time visiting there or Silver Cow but I had heard good things about them.
Seriously wacky décor inside, very cool space though. So many board games to play, hell they even have skee ball. The fact that they have a candy menu is hilarious too. On top of that, quite a good draft list as well. Although my girlfriend and I were just there for a quick drink before our reservation at Il Desco, we ended up staying until right before because of this bizarre horror b-​movie they had on. Only in a place like this would that make sense, but it was great. Will definitely be back, very fun place to hang out.

This place is great. Unpretentious beer bar away from the main action of King St. A pitcher of Two Hearted was $ 12. Ya, I’ll be back.
They did a great job putting together a nice atmosphere to knock back a few drinks with friends, just eat elsewhere… Wasn’t impressed with the food.

This was a pretty unique bar full of games to play and toys for purchase. Literally they sell toys and old school candies, fake mustaches, etc. The ambiance is bold with covered walls of random items adding to the visual uniqueness. If you’re simply looking to relax with a drink this may not be the exact spot for you. Rather go past the curtain to the adjoining bar (more my style) called The Silver Cow. Hopefully I’ll get to review that place soon. However don’t be fooled, the staff are the same for both bars and are simply wonderful. If you have any questions they are more than willing to take their time and help. The reason for 2 stars is because I noticed my bottled beer expired November 2011. I’m certainly willing to chalk it up as an oversight but still not great for my first visit. Also, regardless if you need to use the bathroom do yourself a favor and go into the bathroom! Trust me it’s a disco, literally. Although I’ll be trying The Silver Cow before I come back to The Annex I’m certainly glad to know this place is at home on King Street!

My new favorite spot! Perfect place for a casual date night. Lots of board games to keep you entertained, plus skeeball, air hockey, and foosball. We had the armadillo queso with chips, which was super yummy and perfect for sharing.

Great new place that’s silver cow’s crazy younger sister. Lots of games like Foosball and air hockey all for free. Very good pretzels and you can also order food off the menu next door. Great beer selection! All around great place. Do yourself a favor and check it out!

The Annex just opened up on King Street and it’s the love child of Chuck-E-Cheese’s and a Parisian Flea Market. Foosball, $ 3 Moon Pie and RC Cola specials, skeeball and a gazebo inside covered in fairy lights are just SOME of the highlights inside. There is also a pool table and all the games are FREE! Talk about my new favorite hangout in Riverside! Besides boasting pages full of beer on their menu, they also sell pages full of candy!
Happy Hour is a generous time allotment of 4 – 8 PM with $ 3 to $ 4 beers on tap! There’s also a Sunday special of a Brat and a Beer for $ 5.
We stepped in for dessert last night and quickly became engrossed in a competitive game of Foosball while playing with other patrons we just met. This Unilocaler is pleased to brag she was the undefeated champion for 3 games, even with a buzz!
The Annex is even joined to its sister store The Silver Cow next door if you’re in more of a wine and board games mood than candy and skeeball!
Welcome to the neighborhood Annex! I foresee us spending LOTS of time together (and me defending my foosball title!)