I love going to brunch on the weekends. It is a fun time to get together with friends and family and catch up on the past week events. I am always looking for new places to try out for brunch. The Rusty Pelican was one of those places that popped up on my list. It is located on the water in Clearwater, Florida. Almost every room has a beautiful view of the water. There is no better way to enjoy brunch! The restaurant is very large inside and can accommodate any size group. Rather than sitting in the bar area,…
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There is a really popular restaurant at Hyde Park in Tampa called Meat Market. I had some friends visiting the area, so we decided to check them out. The place was packed and the only tables that were available were in the tent at the front of the restaurant. We really wanted to try this place, so a tent was ok for us. While we looked over the menu the waiter brought us some “popped corn”. This is not what I was thinking it would be. These were corn pieces that were some how fried up till they got a…
Leave a CommentSt. Petersburg, Florida is a beautiful place. The entire city is growing quickly. There are so many places to enjoy breakfast, lunch, and dinner. During this visit to St Petersburg, I wanted to get brunch and I decided to check out a restaurant I had visited years ago called 400 Beach Seafood. You cannot enjoy brunch without a mimosa and bloody Mary. They were not bottomless, but they were still a great price. The mimosa was made with Brut champagne and fresh orange juice. The sweetness of the juice helped cut down the sharpness of the brut. The bloody Mary…
Leave a CommentI love sushi and it had been a whole since I had some. I wanted to try a different restaurant. There was a little place that had gotten great reviews that I decided to try, called Fancy Q Sushi in Lakeland, Florida. It is not very big inside, so I am glad I got there when I did. Otherwise, I would have been waiting for a table. When I got seated at the table, the waitress brought over a fried sushi roll as a welcome appetizer. It was a nice surprise. It was really tasty. It was a crab and…
Leave a CommentIt was a beautiful Spring morning and I headed to downtown Lakeland for the Saturday Farmers Market. It is a great place to go help support local businesses. Each time I go I find something, and this Saturday was no exception. I saw a sign for a Japanese rice ball, and I was curious what that was all about. They had a pretty large crowd around their booth. It seemed that everyone was interested in these rice balls. These are made with Japanese sushi rice that is stuffed with different filling and then wrapped in a seaweed sheet. It was…
Leave a CommentAfter enjoying a wonderful steak dinner at Bern’s Steakhouse. I had two options for dessert. I could either eat there at my table in the restaurant or I could head upstairs to the Harry Waugh Dessert Room. Naturally I went upstairs for a unique experience. Luckily, we had a reservation, otherwise we would not have been able to get in. We were seated in a semi-private space. It was intimate enough for small groups without making you feel like you are closed in. Their menu was filled with dessert and dessert like cocktails. I orders one of each. The actual…
Leave a CommentFor over 50 years Bern’s has been serving the Tampa area. What started as a small sandwich shop turned into a famous steakhouse. With their enormous wine cellar and a special dessert room, they have appeared many times on the Food Network and Travel Channel. I could not wait to check them out for dinner. To start off the meal I ordered a bottle of Syltbar Prosecco. It is from Veneto, Italy. I love Prosecco and I never had this brand before. It was not very sweet, but it also was not overly dry. It was smooth to taste. They…
Leave a CommentA special occasion calls for a good steak dinner. That is exactly what I got at Texas Cattle Company in downtown Lakeland, Florida. I got a table by the window so that I had a nice view for dinner. A steak dinner needs to start off with a good bottle of wine. The Amici Cabernet Sauvignon was mild in flavor, without a dry aftertaste. It paired perfectly with steak. We got one of their starters, the Blue Chips. These were homemade potato chips with a blue cheese cream sauce drizzled all over. Then it was topped off with extra blue…
Leave a CommentSo, it is Sunday in St. Augustine and I was ready for brunch. What better was to enjoy brunch the along the water. That is what Nero’s Waterfront Café offered. I was able to get a seat on their patio. Their menu offered an array of breakfast and lunch type items. I made sure to try their corned beef hash and eggs. They make their own corned beef. It was shredded, almost like pulled pork. It was tender and juicy. It was cooked well done so it allowed it to get a little crispy. It was fresh hash with great…
Leave a CommentI have loved the Spanish restaurant Columbia for years. I have written about two of their locations in Clearwater and Ybor City in Tampa. While I was visiting St. Augustine, I wanted to make sure I checked out this location too. It was in the Historic District which is a wonderful experience. They were busy the evening I was there, so I was not able to get a table. I was able to get a seat at the bar. As with every visit to Columbia, it starts out with the waiter bringing out fresh baked Cuban bread. It comes out…
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