Phoenicia Diner in Phoenicia, NY

The morning after skiing at Belleaire Mountain, I stopped for breakfast at Phoenicia Diner in Phoenicia, NY. This place was located in middle of nowhere upstate New York, so what the diner was like on the inside surprised me. A good way to describe it would be "hipster." Which is a good thing. 

I had the Arnold Bennett Skillet. This was scrambled eggs, locally smoked trout, parmesan cheese, chives, and creme fraiche, served in a skillet along side toast. This was one of the best breakfast dishes I've had in a long time. Good job!

 

Hudson's on the River in Stuart, FL

Had lunch in downtown Stuart, FL at a waterfront restaurant called Hudson's on the River.

I ordered the Tropical Roll. This sushi roll consisted of coconut shrimp, avocado, mango, kiwi, pineapple salsa, and pear teriyaki. I enjoyed the roll. In regards to taste, I had no complaints. Only complaint was all aesthetic. The choice to put the brown colored teriyaki sauce on top of the bright colored fruit sort of made it look like the fruit was turning brown. It wasn't, but the presentation on this roll could have been better.  

 

Catfish Johnny's Restaurant in Lake Panasoffkee, FL

I was driving to Dade City from Orlando a while back and wanted dinner on the way. Restaurants were thin on the route I was taking, but the internet told me there were restaurants in the town of Lake Panasoffkee. I had never heard of the tiny little town, but the highest rated restaurant was called Catfish Johnny's. Headed that way and lost cell signal, meaning that my meal was phone free.

I ordered the Catfish Fingers Dinner. This consisted of a huge mountain of deep fried, boneless catfish. The crispy batter was nice and flavorful and the fish was tender. Corn fritters, cheese grits, and fried okra were served as sides.

With the slim pickings of restaurants that I had in the area, I think I chose well!

Farmer's Market Restaurant in Florida City, FL

I had dinner in Florida City at the Farmer's Market Restaurant. This was located in the State Farmer's Market. I've seen similar restaurants like this in industrial farmer's market complexes, but it seems unusual to actually see them open for business. This Farmer's Market Restaurant had the highest restaurant rating according to Google near my hotel and was also open at 8:00pm when I was looking for food.

I had their seafood combo special, which started with a cup of lentil soup:

The combo came with conch fritters, fish, and shrimp. The shrimp and conch fritters were both deep fried, but I had the fish blackened. The meal came with two sides. I picked mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts. Everything was tasty. Biggest complaint that some of the shrimp seemed a little overcooked and were beginning to be a little rubbery. Other than that, the fish and conch were both cooked well and were flavorful.

I enjoyed my meal!

St. Johns River Steak & Seafood in Sanford, FL

I ate at St. Johns River Steak & Seafood located in the Sanford Marina. This location has been host to several different restaurants, none of which seem to survive very long. This includes two which have been featured on this blog before: Limoncellos and Efes Turkish Restaurant. Downtown Sanford has been booming lately and the marina is being redeveloped, so hopefully this bodes well for the survival of St. Johns River Steak & Seafood.

I ordered the Key West Combo. This dish included jerk mahi and shrimp in a honey mustard sauce, along with conch fritters, rice, and broccoli. The mahi and shrimp were very good, although I've had much better conch fritters elsewhere.

There was a birthday at our table so the restaurant brought out a huge slice of chocolate-peanut butter cake. For a surprise slice of cake, there were no complaints!

Pepper's Mexican Grill & Cantina in Fernandina Beach, FL

I had dinner in the historic downtown section of Fernandina Beach. When I found out that my first choice for dinner was only open for lunch on Sunday, I explored and found Pepper's Mexican Grill & Cantina.

I had the Enchiladas De Camaron. These were corn tortillas stuffed with grilled shrimp, then topped with creamy tequila sauce. Rice and black beans were served on the side. It was interesting and unusual to see an enchilada that didn't contain cheese at a Mexican restaurant. The shrimp were larger than average and the creamy sauce was very tasty. The rice and beans were both unfortunately a little bland tasting.

Fish on Fire in Orlando, FL

I had dinner at a restaurant near Orlando International Airport called Fish on Fire. I went here with a a few people from a convention I was attending at a hotel a few doors down. If I was alone, I probably would have walked out because the whole place had the unpleasant stench of cigarette smoke. Nobody was smoking in the restaurant because that's illegal, but the large open doors leading to the patio brought the smell straight into the dining room.

I ordered the Cobia for my meal. The fillet of fish was cooked well, with a nice bit of flavored seasoning. I had a side of collards which were good. My side of grits weren't so good. They were dry and crunchy.

Our server seemed angry throughout the meal, but his service was okay until we were ready for the check. It took a good 45 minutes after we were done eating before we saw the bill. This was while asking our server repeatedly, then asking other employees who referred us back to our server. The fish was good, but Fish on Fire had too much going against them. I don't think I'd return.

Boston Seafood (Boston Chowda Co & Beantown Pub)

I was told that while visiting Boston, the two foods that are absolute must eats while in the city were New England Clam Chowder and Lobster Rolls. The person behind the desk of where I was staying told me Boston Chowda Co was the best place to get these foods for affordable prices.

Boston Chowda Co:

Boston Chowda Co was is located in the Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall. This was basically a big food court in a historic building. It turned out lobster rolls were really expensive here compared to prices I saw elsewhere in the city. I guess the person who recommended this place was saying it was affordable because it was fast food.

I did have a cup of New England Clam Chowder. It was okay, but I would have expected a bit better from a place called Boston Chowda Co. The soup was creamy with lots of potato. It had a typical creamy flavor, but nothing really memorable. The clams were really chewy, so that was disappointing.

Beantown Pub:

In order to check the lobster roll off my list of Boston foods, I ended up at the Beantown Pub. Beantown Pub was a very busy place with very few open tables. Luckily I didn't need to wait too long. Something I noticed about Boston, including this restaurant, was that I felt underdressed. Almost everywhere I went, the majority of people in here were wearing business attire. Do people dress like this all the time in Boston?

The lobster roll here cost much less than Boston Chowda Co's. It also came with fries and coleslaw, while the more expensive roll came with nothing. I'm honestly not a lobster connoisseur, but I'd much rather eat the crustacean in sandwich form like this over plain lobster dipped in butter. The sandwich was tasty enough, as were the fries and coleslaw.

Nathan's in Coney Island, NY

Everyone knows Nathan's in Coney Island for their hot dogs. I've been there. I've tried their hot dogs. Hot dogs are boring. There's Nathan's franchises all over the country where you can pretty much get the same hot dogs. When I found myself at the Nathan's in Coney Island yet again, I decided to try something that couldn't be found in other locations, that being the seafood.

I started out with an order of the frog legs. The cashier said that they had never tried them and looked a bit disgusted about the thought of eating frog. Regardless, I split an order of them. The large frog legs were deep fried in an almost funnel cake-like batter. It was a bit different from the times I've tried the frog legs on Chinese buffets. The batter was the best and tastiest part. The meat tasted fine, but the veins and tendons in the meat got a bit chewy after the first leg. As of right now, amphibian isn't going to become a regular part of my diet. This was served with fries, cornbread, and coleslaw. Nathan's coleslaw was interesting. Instead of using normal cabbage, they made it from their sauerkraut. I really liked sauerkraut coleslaw. Frog legs being served at this Nathan's is interesting. I can't imagine they are a huge seller, but yet they are on the menu. I'm guessing they are a hold out from another time. Perhaps frog legs were a more accepted food for Americans in the past? Or were they a novelty food item then, and they have stuck around, still being a novelty food item for this Nathan's.

I also tried the Lobster Salad Sandwich. I had a choice between the plain lobster roll and the lobster salad. The lobster roll was served on a hamburger bun with no mayonnaise. The lobster salad sandwich came on a hot dog bun with mayonnaise and lettuce. I like foods with mayonnaise, so I went with the salad. It was pretty good. There was enough lobster in the salad where you could still see the pieces and taste the shellfish, but had a nice creamy flavor from the rest of the salad. Would have been better if it was served on a nicer bread than a hot dog bun.

Red Lobster in Sanford/International Drive

A few months ago Red Lobster was going to have a blogger tasting event to try their new menu. For whatever reasons, this event didn't happen. Instead, Red Lobster offered to send me a gift card to try the menu on my own time. It had been quite a while since I had eaten at Red Lobster and I was interested to see if there were any major changes since the chain is no longer owned by Darden. I took them up on their gift card offer and first ended up at the Red Lobster in Sanford for lunch. The meal started with a basket of their Cheddar Bay Biscuits.

My meal was served with a side caesar salad.

I ordered the Create Your Own Lunch. This menu option allowed you to pick two different dishes and a side. I went with the Garlic-Grilled Shrimp Skewer and Garlic Shrimp Scampi. Out of the two, I preferred the shrimp skewer. The flavorful, good sized, grilled shrimp were served over rice. The scampi consisted of several shrimp oven-broiled in a garlic butter sauce. I picked the mashed potatoes as my side.

My dining companion for the afternoon ordered the Rainbow Trout Lunch with beans and a baked potato.

I used the rest of the gift card at the Red Lobster on International Drive near the OCCC. The Seaside Sampler appetizer was ordered to start the meal. It came with Lobster, Crab, and Seafood Stuffed Mushrooms, Parrot Isle Jumbo Coconut Shrimp and Chilled Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail. I'm not a big fan of mushrooms, but the stuffed mushrooms were the tastiest item on the sampler. The coconut shrimp followed, and the shrimp cocktail was my least favorite. Cold shrimp don't do much for me.

For my main course, I tried the Salmon New Orleans. This consisted of salmon topped with shrimp, served with mashed potatoes and broccoli for my sides. The did enjoy the sauce that topped the salmon and shrimp.

The side salads that were supposed to come with this meal didn't arrive until after the main course, after being pointed out that we never received them. Looking around, it seemed like salads at other tables in our section of the restaurant were forgotten as well. This was the only hiccup in both of my recent visits to Red Lobster, and the problem was quickly remedied.

Red Lobster seemed like the same restaurant that people either love or hate. I noticed no major discernible differences post-Darden. I know they have new menu items, but as a very infrequent Red Lobster diner, I'm not sure if I would have noticed the changes. The food I tried was tasty and I was full after eating, so I suppose that's the important part!

Diva Dawg Food Truck in New Orleans, LA

One of my last food experiences in New Orleans happened at a food truck. They were called Diva Dawg and specialized in hot dogs, fries, and shakes.

The first thing on their menu is what caught my attention. They had a Mardi Gras Beignet Dawg. From the way it was described, it was similar to a corn dog, fried in beignet batter and topped with powdered sugar. I decided I had too many beignets on this trip already and wasn't in the mood for a hot dog so I ordered the Homemade Etouffee Fries.

I had a list of stereotypical New Orleans food items that I wanted to try while in the city. Crawfish etouffee was on this list, and these fries crossed etouffee off the list. The fries were widely cut, topped with the etouffee. It was messy to eat, but it was also delicious. There were plenty of crawfish tails over the fries and the creamy roux from the etouffee made a wonderful sauce for the fries.

Diva Dawg provided me the opportunity to almost complete my food list in New Orleans. The only food I was unable to find was Crawfish Pie. Apparently Crawfish Pie is a food item that's not very common in New Orleans...

French Market Restaurant in New Orleans, LA

I was trying to decide where to eat dinner while walking around the French Quarter in New Orleans when my nose made the decision for me.

The French Market Bar and Restaurant had a porch where they were cooking crawfish. The smell wafting out of the boiling pot was so tempting that I went in to have some crawfish.

I ordered 1 pound of crawfish along with a side of corn, potatoes, and sausage. This steamy boat-shaped bowl of bottom feeders was a huge amount of food. According to my server, most people order at least two pounds, but one was plenty for me. They had a nice garlic flavor that wasn't too overpowering.

Eating crawfish in New Orleans was checked off my list of foods to eat in the city...

Gumbo Shop in New Orleans, LA

I started to get hungry while wandering around the French Quarter in New Orleans. This meant lunch was happening soon, and the winning restaurant turned out to be the Gumbo Shop.

Gumbo Shop is located in a historic building on St. Peter Street. They had indoor seating or outdoor seating in a nice looking courtyard behind the restaurant.

I had the Seafood Okra Gumbo. According to the menu, this was okra, onion, bell peppers, celery, and a tiny bit of tomato sauteed and blended with shrimp and crab into a thick brown Creole soup - served over rice. This was a very tasty okra. There were plenty of good sized shrimp floating around in there, as well as half of a crab. The gumbo had just the right amount of spice. It was very flavorful, and wasn't  too spicy or bland. I liked it! Bread was served on the side.

I enjoyed Gumbo Shop. The food was good and the prices were much more affordable than the surrounding restaurants that I looked at. I'd return!

Swamp House Grill in Debary, FL

Swamp House Grill is located in the Highbanks Marina in Debary. The restaurant has both indoor and outdoor seating which provide scenic views of the Saint Johns River flowing past. They have a varied menu, serving seafood, steaks, salads, sandwiches, and more.

I had their crab cake sandwich on one visit to the Swamp House Grill. This consisted of two crab cakes with lettuce, tomato, and tartar sauce served on baguette style bread. The crab cakes were good and I was able to detect crab in them, unlike some other crab cakes I've had elsewhere where they seem to be all filler. Homemade potato chips were served on the side.

I had the grouper ruben on another visit. The ruben was served on marbled rye bread, filled with blackened grouper, coleslaw, swiss cheese, and thousand island dressing. This was a very tasty sandwich, although sauerkraut rather than coleslaw seems to be used on most of the rubens I've had in the past. The Swamp House was very generous with the amount of fish on the sandwich as well, which is always a good thing. Fried onion frazzles came as my side.

I enjoy Swamp House Grill. The food has been good on every one of my visits. The views of the river are nice. You get to watch alligators swim by as you eat. Certain menu items at the restaurant do seem steeply overpriced for what they are, but otherwise I have few complaints about Swamp House Grill.

Buttonwood Cafe in Flamingo, FL

While visiting South Florida, I ventured deep within Everglades National Park and found myself in the former town of Flamingo. Flamingo is the furthest south that you can travel in the park by road. Flamingo was an actual town at one point which was occupied in the late 19th and early 20th century. Eventually Flamingo became a ghost town and was incorporated into the national park. The ruins of the former ghost town are apparently still present, but today Flamingo consists of a visitors center, marina, campsite, and an abundance of alligators and crocodiles.

Behind the bright pink Flamingo Visitor Center, there is a screened in area that houses a restaurant called the Buttonwood Cafe. The location provides a very nice view of Florida Bay.

The restaurant itself was essentially a food truck with table service. There was a trailer attached to the screen enclosure where all of the cooking was done. Servers took orders and delivered food. Apparently there was a more permanent restaurant here in the past which was destroyed by hurricanes and was never fully rebuilt.

I ordered the grouper sandwich. This consisted of a fried filet of fish on a bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, and tartar sauce included alongside the sandwich. I assembled all of the sandwich components together and this ended up being a tasty sandwich. The large piece of grouper was freshly breaded and fried. The breading had a very nice peppery flavor. The bun was a step above a standard hamburger roll. Coleslaw and fries were served on the side.

I enjoyed my meal at Buttonwood Cafe. It was my first experience dining in one of Florida's National Parks. It was also the furthest south I've ever eaten in peninsular Florida. I'd gladly return to the Everglades to eat here again!