sarge's Profile
Florida produce
For the most part, Florida oranges are cultivated for juice. It is more important that a grove produce a high yield of juicy oranges as opposed to edible oranges. Sugar is then added as needed. I have found most local navel oranges to be very dry compared to Californias
Seafood Markets in St. Pete??
I saw this special mentioned on another thread a little more recent than this one. Is this deal still going? Bama doesn't have much info on their website. Do they have a retail market?
Questions about Lexington #1 BBQ
Strong possibility Lexington will be catering the Champions Dinner before the 2013 Masters
Tampa - Hidden Gems?
Organic Life Coffee shop in Land O Lakes/Wesley Chapel uses Boars Head meats and fresh bread from La Segunda. $7.00 with a side of veggie straws.
They are the best I have had anywhere
TAMPA ADVICE
I am surprised no one has respondend. I don't get out as much as I used to, but I follow the comments on Tampa closely, and I have a feel for who the knowledgeable posters are. That said, based on what I have been reading, The Refinery has gotten very mixed reviews of late. Also, no one has mentioned Grill One Sixteen for quite a while.
Pane Rustica is always popular.
You may want to try Vizcaya for tapas.
Otherwise, your choices are solid
Looking for the best seafood at Jacksonville beach with rockshrimp as a must!
Rock Shrimp are hard to find as a regular item. The closest place I know of is Lang's in St. mary's GA. That's a bit of an excursion for you, (about an hour) but doable if you really have a craving
Decent casual restaurant near Tampa airport?
http://www.urbanspoon.com/ps/30/5271/tampa-bay-westshore-plaza-nearby-restaurants
Lots from which to choose. I'm not sure what you're looking for. I would think probably Maggiano's or Mitchells. I know they are both chains, but they are pretty good and it sounds like you're looking for something easy and close
Good lunch spot between Tampa and Inverness off of Suncoast Parkway
There are a few chain places at Hwy 54. There is Nouvelle Cuisine in Spring Hill, pretty interesting. Biguns BBQ off Cortez Blvd. is kind of classic
Tampa recommendatons please (Researched!!)
Mis en Place is a good choice, but there are over 100 places just like it (or better) in NYC. I would suggest you go to Oystercatchers around 4:30 to 5:00 p.m. (to catch the sundown) to have some very good seafood with a view you won't find in NYC. Sundown on the West Coast of FL can be incredible, the food is a bonus.
Tampa recommendatons please (Researched!!)
I suggest you reconsider Columbia. It's classic, unique, attractive, and an important part of Tampa's culture. The food is usually very good, and I think you would enjoy a lunch there, but it will likely be pretty crowded that weekend. They handle a big crowd very well though. Oystercatchers is a must for you.
Thanksgiving buffet near Dunedin Florida
Oystercatchers is an easy enough drive from Dunedin, and I am sure it would be great. If you are looking to stay close to home, try Dunedin Golf and Country Club. It is a very nice place, and a Holiday Country Club buffet has alot of tradition in America, especially the South.
An afternoon in Tampa?
Columbia is a good choice, but walking around Ybor will get tiresome pretty quickly. The buildings are old and unique, but it is more trashy bars than anything, with a few decent restaurants and galleries thrown in. You'll be ready to leave after 30 minutes. Most people who are regular to Chowhound would enjoy walking the streets in Hyde Park and looking at the beautiful old renovated Arts and Crafts homes much more. Ybor and Hyde Park are really your only choices for what you want to do.
The problem with Hyde Park is that the best places are not open for lunch.
You could take a cab to Columbia , and then ride back to Hyde Park afterwards to just walk around, and there are decent coffee shops and the like to hang around after you walk a bit.
A closer option for lunch near Hyde Park would be Pane Rustica, but there is not much to see around there.
-----
Hyde Park Cafe
1806 W Platt St, Tampa, FL 33606
Cheese in Tampa
There is a cheese shop in Temple Terrace on 56th. I have never been in, but I understand it has been there quite a while. Interesting that no one has mentioned it yet
Olympic Cafe - Tampa
I hope the USOC doesn't learn of their existence. They will force them to change the name, and make them pay their attorney's fees
Palm Harbor Recommendations
I like Casa Ludovico and Mystic Fish as well. For more casual, I like MollyGoodheads, especially their Grouper Sandwich, which I believe is the best around.
-----
Mystic Fish
3253 Tampa Rd, Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Clearwater suggestions for four golfers
I think Molly Goodheads has the best grouper sandwich around, and a good beer selection as well.
I like Guppy's and Mystic Fish.
Spoto's used to get some pretty high marks for steaks as I recall, but i have never been. Salt Rock Grill gets pretty high marks as well, but again, I have not been. Salt Rock also has a pretty impressive wine list
For italian I always liked Casa Ludovico in Palm Harbor
-----
Mystic Fish
3253 Tampa Rd, Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Salt Rock Grill
19325 Gulf Blvd, Indian Shores, FL 33785
Hobe Sound Area
Jupiter or Stuart are your only real options. I find no redeeming value at Harry and the Nativees. Just up the road in Port Salerno (south part of Stuart) is a great little dive called the King Neptune. Food Shack or Leftovers are great choices, no reservations taken, you have to wait on line, but it is worth the wait
-----
Food Shack
103 S US Highway 1 # D3, Jupiter, FL
King Neptune Restaurant
4795 SE Dixie Hwy, Stuart, FL 34997
Shun Knives
I have been very pleased with my Shun Santuko. It is superior to the German knives i have. I especially like the lifetime free sharpening. That is whhat tipped the scale for me
Cuban Sandwich between TIA & Busch Gardens
I have tried quite a few of the aforementioned places, but the best I have found was recently at the Cup of Organic Coffee Shop between Land O Lakes and Wesley chapel. They get their bread from LaSegunda in Ybor and use mostly organic
Soul Food options in Savannah?
As a forty two year resident of Savannah with a home on Tybee, for the life of me I cannot figure people's fascination with the Breakfast Club. The ffod is mediocre, it's expensive, and the coffee is weak. Like most things Savannah, it is a social attraction
-----
Breakfast Club
225 N Caldwell St, Charlotte, NC 28202
Any place in Tampa for really "good" gluten free bread?
http://www.samisbakery.com/index.cfm
I am not sure if their stuff is gluten free, it probably is. My wife likes their flax and millett bread. I have tried it and it is good. You absolutely have to toast it though, or it is inedible for some reason. The difference is night and day
deep fryers
CI DO.
WTF?
Seriously! Who in the hell do you think we are? How can people be expected to know what the hell you are talking about?
ISO: Casual seafood favs in Savannah
Flying Fish on Wilmington Island has the best fried seafood in my opinion, but Wilm ington Isl is too far east for your 1st stay.
If you are going to stay at one of the I 95 interchanges, I can only think of chains out there. Downtown Savannah is not too far from the Interstate Hotels. There is Crystal Beer Parlor on the west side of downtown, very easy to get to, casual, moderately priced, and they do very good fried seafood, along with crab stew and a great shrimp salad sandwhich. The place has alot of history, and has been a local favorite for generations.
I suggest avoiding Crab Shack
-----
Flying Fish Cafe
2003 S Croatan Hwy, Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948
