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!

Urban Cantina Mexican Restaurant in Tampa, FL

On a recent rainy evening, I stopped for dinner in Downtown Tampa at a Mexican restaurant called Urban Cantina. My initial destination was going to be a nearby Taco Bus location to give them a second try. After walking by and seeing that restaurant deserted with all the employees outside smoking, we decided to give Urban Cantina a try instead.

Chips and salsa was served first. The chips were interesting. They were probably double the thickness of a typical tortilla chip. They reminded me more of a pita chip than a tortilla chip.

I had their Three Taco Combo. I tried the Carne Asada taco, the Tinga taco, and the Al Pastor taco. The carne asada was filled with steak, onions, cilantro, queso fresco and avocado. The tinga was served on a hard taco shell, filled with chipotle marinated chicken, onions, lettuce, pico, and queso. This was my least favorite of the three tacos. The chicken lacked flavor and toppings combined with the hard shell reminded me of something Taco Bell would serve. My personal favorite of the three tacos was the Al Pastor. This soft tortilla was filled with marinated pork, pineapple, cilantro, onions, and cheese. The sweet pineapple provided a nice balance between the savory pork and the salty cheese. Refried beans and rice were served alongside the tacos.

Overall, I liked my tacos. The food was good. My one complaint about Urban Cantina is the TV placement in the restaurant. They had televisions placed around the dining room, like many restaurants do (although I'm not a big fan of this). The problem in this restaurant was that the TV that I was facing behind our table was so low that it was very hard to ignore. Seeing silent images of some sort of crime scene reconstruction show slightly above eye level for my entire meal was really distracting.

Chicago's Stuffed Pizza in Orlando, FL

I can't say I've had much experience eating Chicago style stuffed pizza. Previously, my only meals eating this type of pizza has been at the Giordano's locations near Disney. Giordano's pizza was different and unique in the Central Florida area, but it was also a cheese overload every time I've eaten there. A new restaurant called Chicago's Stuffed Pizza has opened since my visits to Giordano's on Church Street next to the SunRail Station in Downtown Orlando. I was definitely interested in trying this style of pizza that wasn't from a national chain. Being that Giordano's is my only other Chicago style stuffed pizza data point, I'll be doing a lot of comparing in this post.

I ordered a personal sized stuffed pizza with sausage and peppers. This pie had a similar crust setup to what Giordano's has. There was a bottom layer of crust covered in the cheese and toppings. A second layer of crust was placed over this, and sauce topped the pizza. I found the pizza at Chicago's to be nicely balanced. Unlike the pizzas I've had at Giordano's, there wasn't a disgusting wall of cheese that came oozing out of the slices. This is a good thing. The amount of sausage, peppers, sauce, and crust seemed to equal out the cheese. There was still a whole lot of each of these, but this stuffed pizza was tall enough to support a whole lot of the toppings. The sauce and sausage both were flavorful.

Now that I have a second data point for Chicago style stuffed pizza, I would say that I preferred the pie I had here over what I've had at Giordano's. The main reason for the favor going to Chicago's was a little more balance between the cheese and the rest of the pizza. I think I still would take a more traditional pizza over one of these stuffed pies, but I'd still be willing to get these again.

Whitewood Modern Mediterranean Grill in Orlando, FL

After watching the circus at the Amway Center, I decided to wander around downtown Orlando and find some food. I ended up at a middle eastern restaurant on Orange Ave called Whitewood Modern Mediterranean Grill. I attempted to try this restaurant on two occasions in the past, but each time they were closed. Whitewood must have very spontaneous hours. Their website lists them as open during the times I've attempted to eat there in the past, yet they are listed as closed on Sundays. I ate at Whitewood on a Sunday.

I had the Kafta Kabob Platter. This consisted of two pieces of kafta, which were essentially middle eastern meatballs made from very nicely seasoned ground steak. These were served over rice with a very tasty white sauce. The platter came with two sides, and I chose the stuffed grape leaves and mixed vegetables. Grape leaves were good, with a nice dill flavor. Pita chips garnished the center of the plate and were very useful in collecting all that delicious white sauce that was on the plate. I enjoyed my food, as did everyone else who dined with me. What we didn't enjoy were the other patrons of the restaurant. I find the people who spend all Sunday long drinking on Wall Street, then end up in a restaurant later in the night to be very obnoxious. Sober people don't want to hear you very loudly yell "I'm going to fuck you up" over and over and over throughout the entire course of the meal. I know this had nothing to do with Whitewood, but it was annoying. I noticed a second Whitewood location recently opened in Lake Mary. Perhaps there's less annoying drunk people in Heathrow the next time I want middle eastern food at Whitewood...

Krazy Greek Kitchen in Lake Mary, FL

I was in Downtown Lake Mary and was going to give the relatively new Flipper's Pizza a try since it had been years since I had been to any of their locations. Once I parked, I noticed that Delano on the Park was no longer in business and a new restaurant called Krazy Greek Kitchen was there in it's place. I always enjoy good Greek food, so I decided to forgo pizza for the afternoon and ventured into Krazy Greek Kitchen...

I ordered the Gyro Pita. The sandwich was filled with plenty of thinly sliced meat, lettuce, onions, tomatos, and lots of tzatziki. The meat was very flavorful and the sandwich was kept nice and moist from the tzatziki.

 

Another food item that I was considering, but decided to get my gyro pita instead when someone else at the table ordered it was the Gyro Flatbread.  This pizza-like creation was something I haven't seen elsewhere. It consisted of a pita piled high with a layer of gyro meat, then a layer of peppers, onions, tomatoes, and then melted cheese. All this was served over a Greek salad. I tried a slice of the flatbread and it was delicious! Next time I come back to Krazy Greek Kitchen, I know what I'm ordering.

Lake Mary has a couple other Greek restaurants, but I think Krazy Greek Kitchen has the potential to be my favorite. I need to return to see if they hold up well!

Harry Buffalo in Orlando, FL

On the 4th of July, I ventured into Downtown Orlando and ate dinner at a restaurant called Harry Buffalo. This space was formerly occupied by a Cajun restaurant called Mojo, which I enjoyed on my first visit. The next two visits weren't nearly as good. I actually never got to try the food at Mojo on these visits. We were seated and sat for far too long without being acknowledged. Even after asking for our server, we were still ignored and ended up leaving on both of these subsequent visits. I know it's a different restaurant now, but because of the last two bad experiences at Mojo, I was hoping Harry Buffalo wouldn't have similar problems.

Inside, not much was different during the change from Mojo to Harry Buffalo. There was more of a sports bar vibe now with more TVs and some sports memorabilia hanging on the walls. The building was still impressive, remnants from when Church Street Station was a thing...

This didn't click for some reason before dining at Harry Buffalo, but they do a lot of variations of Buffalo wings. With buffalo in the name, I don't why this wasn't obvious, but it didn't click for me. With that in mind, I ordered something that incorporated Buffalo chicken and had the Buffalo Mac & Cheese Big Horn Melt. It sounded like a weird and very unhealthy combination, but it was actually very tasty. The sandwich consisted of Buffalo chicken and macaroni & cheese sandwiched between Italian bread. The spicy buffalo sauce went really well with the cheesyness of the macaroni. Fries and coleslaw were served as sides.

I liked my food at Harry Buffalo. They didn't have any of the problems that Mojo developed. They also had trivia going on which is always fun. I'd return!

Bill & Frank's Brickhouse Grill in Deland, FL

Bill & Frank's Brickhouse Grill is a restaurant located in Downtown Deland. I've been here a couple times in the past and always liked the restaurant but never wrote about them on this blog. I took a picture of my food on my most recent visit, so now there's a blog post. The Brickhouse Grill has a very varied menu, ranging from sandwiches, steaks, pastas, salads, and my choice for the evening: barbeque.

I decided to try some the beef brisket and smoked turkey. This was served with garlic toast, mashed potatoes, and pickle slices. The meats had a nice smokey flavor. Out of the two, I preferred the turkey. A couple of the slices of brisket were very fatty. It's unfortunate because the brisket was otherwise tasty. The mashed potatoes had bacon and cheese mixed in for some added flavor.

My meal at Bill & Frank's Brickhouse Grill wasn't perfect with the fatty brisket, but was otherwise good. I'd most definitely return, next time to probably try some of their sandwiches that sound really good.

Sloan's Ice Cream in West Palm Beach, FL

I was in West Palm Beach and had some dessert at a place called Sloan's Ice Cream.

Sloan's was a very colorful place inside. There were intricate ceiling murals. There was a model trolley moving back and forth under the ice cream counter. I apparently missed the main attraction here. Sloan's has one of the top ten bathrooms in the world according to Travel Channel. According to what I read after the fact, the bathroom has glass windows that allow everyone to see in, that is until you lock the door and the windows become opaque. Worth returning for?

I had strawberry cheesecake ice cream in a waffle cone. The large serving of ice cream had big chunks of actual cheesecake mixed in, always improving any ice cream that calls itself cheesecake flavored.

Sloan's had good ice cream. I'd return and will hopefully have to use the facilities next time...

Stavro's Pizza House in Daytona Beach, FL

I had dinner at Stavro's Pizza House in Downtown Daytona Beach. There seem to be lots of Italian restaurants in the area that use the Stavro's name. It's very confusing because they all claim to be completely independent and not connected to the other Stavro's in any way. The menus and foods at each of the Stavro's seem to vary a lot from location to location as well. I wonder what the story is here how so many Italian restaurants in the area all ended up with the same name?

We ordered a pizza topped with half pepperoni/half meatball. The pizza here was pretty average. The crust had a nice texture that I liked, but there was too much cheese in my opinion. Never good when there's so much cheese that it can't be supported by the crust and it floods off of the slices. Otherwise, this pizza wasn't too bad. I might stop here again at some point...

Metro Espresso Pizza Café in Orlando, FL

Metro Espresso Pizza Cafe is located in a building adjacent to Lake Eola Park in Downtown Orlando. After a recent visit to the park, I decided to try the pizza at this restaurant. We were seated and then proceeded to wait a very long time for drinks, giving our order, and for the food to be finally served. We were there between lunch and dinner, so the place wasn't exactly busy with two other occupied tables in the restaurant. There didn't seem to be a reason for the very long waits between seeing our very distracted server, but eventually our food came.

The pizza here was forgettable. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't great either. The sauce tasted very generic. The crust was thin and the cheese seemed somewhat sparse. The pizza filled my stomach, but it wasn't something I'd seek out again. With a few other restaurants within walking distance that serve pizza that I do enjoy, I don't think I'll be returning here anytime soon...

Lucky Dill in St. Petersburg, FL

I was in St. Pete a few weeks ago and was looking to find breakfast somewhere downtown. We were told by a police officer that the only place in the area that would be open on a Sunday morning serving some sort of breakfast was a Starbucks. That was a disappointing answer, but food is food, so we started walking in the direction of the Starbucks. On the very next block, we came across a restaurant that was very much open for breakfast called the Lucky Dill. Most likely a much better choice than Starbucks...

Lucky Dill was a NY Style deli during the day, serving typical deli-type foods like huge pastrami sandwiches. The breakfast menu included several different breakfast meals as well as omelets and sandwiches. I had a meal called the Manhattan Morning. This included two scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast, grits, and bacon for just under $5. The breakfast was simple yet good, and definitely much better than one of those pre-packaged breakfast wraps that are served at Starbucks!

 

BellaBrava in St. Petersburg, FL

I had dinner while in Saint Petersburg at an Italian restaurant called BellaBrava. Based on the location, right by the water in an area that seemed like everything would be expensive, I was surprised how affordable everything was here. The majority of the menu items were under $10 and there were some interesting takes on Italian foods. Some of the pizzas were especially interesting to me.

I had the Asparagus & Crispy Prosciutto Pizza. This pizza was topped with asparagus, crispy prosciutto, smoked mozzarella, and a sunny side up egg. They served half the pie alongside a side Caesar salad. This was my first time trying egg on a pizza. Egg always seemed like a very strange pizza topping to me, but much like pineapple on pizza, I enjoyed it once I tried it. The runny egg yolk dripped down and got absorbed in the airy pizza crust, adding a whole new element to the pie. My only real complaint about this pizza was with the asparagus. There weren't any actual asparagus heads topping the pizza. Instead, there were only asparagus stems, but they were still tender and edible so it really isn't a big deal.

I was pleased with my food here. The pizza was tasty and the toppings weren't what everyone else serves. Prices were affordable and the location was also very nice. I'd return.

Los Mayas in Clearwater, FL

I stopped in Downtown Clearwater on the way to the beach for some lunch. The winner for the day was a Mexican restaurant called Los Mayas.

The meal started with a huge basket of chips and salsa. For my meal, I had the Tacos al Pastor. This consisted of four tacos filled with very flavorful pork on corn tortillas. Refried beans were served on the side as well as a bowl of salsa borracha. This salsa, or drunk sauce, was new to me. It was sort of like a type of guacamole, except it had chunks of avocado rather than mashed. The salsa had a nice kick and ended up being used on all of the tacos as well as left over tortilla chips.

I liked Los Mayas. I haven't been too happy with the past few Mexican restaurants I've visited and Los Mayas finally broke the spell of mediocre Mexican food!

Chicken Satay Stand in Orlando, FL

On July 4th, I watched the fireworks at Lake Eola park in Orlando. Lots of food vendors were set up, most of which I did not partake. As I was leaving though, I did start to get hungry and noticed skewers of Indonesian chicken satay being grilled.

The grilled meat smelled really good and the skewers were very affordable compared to most of the other foods being sold in the park.

I bought my chicken satay, which was immediately drenched in peanut sauce, and I proceeded to eat as I wandered around Downtown Orlando. These tasty chunks of chicken made me think about how Orlando needs more street food that is between a full-fledged food truck and the hot dog carts that show up late at night. We need more skewer carts. We need some halal carts. We need all those fun little carts that show up in other cities like New York and Washington, but have yet to come to Orlando. The ones that fit on a sidewalk corner and provide a nice tasty snack for cheaper than any full restaurant or food truck. Chicken Satay should be around in Orlando all the time, not just on holidays in the park...

Island Pasta Company in Melbourne, FL

Island Pasta Company is located in Downtown Melbourne. They specialize in all sorts of pasta, with many of their dishes having a tropical influence.

The first pasta dish on the menu caught my attention. It was called The Mediterranean and was a tri-color rotini topped with feta cheese, scallions, basil, garlic, roasted red peppers, and sun dried tomatoes in a marinara sauce. I'm not entirely sure why, but I pictured this dish differently from the menu's description. It definitely was a tasty pasta, but perhaps because everything except the basil and feta disappeared into the sauce, I found it a little boring. Next time I'm going to have to go with something more out of the ordinary like their Trenchtown Tortellini, served in an alfredo sauce with tropical fruit...

Mustard's Last Stand in Melbourne, FL

Mustard's Last Stand is one the more famous restaurants in Downtown Melbourne. The restaurant is a small hot dog stand with some indoor seating and a nice outdoor patio. I had heard countless people talk about Mustard's, and I finally stopped into the restaurant to give them a try.

This hot dog stand was decorated with murals of a bearded hot dog and a bottle of mustard in various activities.

For a hot dog place, Mustard's Last Stand has a huge menu. I'm not a big fan of normal hot dogs served plain. They are just plain boring to me, but hot dogs get better when they can be dressed up in countless ways. When I got to the restaurant, I found out they have 2 for 1 dogs from 5-8. Since I got to try two, I had a Chicago Dog and a Guac the Dog.

The Guac the Dog was topped with guacamole, melted cheese, salsa, and onions on a poppy seed bun. This dog was somewhat messy with all of the saucy toppings dripping out while being eaten.

The Chicago Dog had mustard, tomato, onion, pickle, relish, peppers and celery salt on a poppy seed bun. This was definitely the winner out of the two hot dogs that I tried on my visit to Mustard's.

Mustard's Last Stand was a fun place. Really unhealthy with their encouragement to eat two hot dogs in one serving, but still tasty with a huge menu as far as hot dogs go. I'd go back!