I came to the key west some 20 plus years ago. Us old timers never really remember the year that’s just the way it is. I can remember the water, the wind, and the sky. The small little place it was back then. I was in my 20’s and came to play for 6 weeks at the Pier House. Play music that is. I had put together a jacuzzi band as I called them, top forty music, it was a place to stay, travel, get out of the cold upstate winters. When we finally made Florida it was to be the last gig, end of the road, we have made it as far as we could go and I wasn’t going to play Madonna anymore.
I landed in the best of music senes and instant friends were all around. I played for some years and it was great. So many stories to tell. One of the best of times I had was writing and playing music with Keith. Key West sunsets were alive and we were the music. We made 6 albums of island music that still stand the test of time.
Enter Tom Kelly a restaurant owner with live music, and where I played Sunday reggae nights with One World. We became friends and this is where smoked fish became a regular appetizer at gatherings. Tom smoked the fish I made the dip and we all had a good time.
You see first you had to go out and fish the beautiful blue green waters of the Florida Keys. Then you had to fire up the smoker and have a beer play a round of horseshoes and wait out the smoke. You see where this is going.
When the endless steam a gigs seemed to stop in its tracks I became a custom installer of Home Theaters playing some music and now teaching piano. When the housing market went bust and there were no more custom houses being built I went to fish dip and made my job a favorite pastime.
Of course thats only part of the story last year when sales tripled and the work load became to much I had a crazy idea. My brother was in Missouri and the rest of us were in Florida. Enter Kevin my brother, bother in law to my friend Tom friend for years. Got the picture?
Smilin bobs is a family business dedicated to bring our customers the best that we have. Made in the USA
