Pizza Rustica in South Beach, FL (Lincoln Road)

I ate lunch at Pizza Rustica on Lincoln Road in Miami's South Beach. Pizza Rustica had a huge selection of rectangular pies behind the glass, all being sold by the slice. They called these Roman style pizzas, and were similar to a Sicilian slice with a slightly thinner crust and lots of toppings. There were so many varieties that it was actually kind of hard to choose what to get.

Pizza Rustica was busy and had a bit of a line to order, so I had time to make my decision. I ended up going with Pizza Rustica's special, which included a slice of pizza, salad, and drink for $9.50. It was kind of overpriced for what it was, but Pizza Rustica was in the middle of the main drag of South Beach's touristy area, so the high price was kind of expected. My slice of pizza was reheated in the oven for a few minutes, and then I went outside to find a place to sit with my food.

My salad was pretty good. I really liked the dressing...

I picked the Potato & Goat Cheese pizza. The large rectangular slice (then further cut into 6 smaller pieces) was topped with sliced potatoes, goat and mozzarella cheeses, kalamata olives, red onions, and tomatoes. Nobody ever seems to think potato goes good on pizza, but I've tried it on a few occasions (as well as making my own) and it's always been really good. This slice continued the trend of good potato pizzas.

I also did some trading among dining companions and got to try the special pie of the day. It was topped with chicken, Canadian bacon, corn, cheese, and tomato sauce. It was tasty, but I preferred my potato pizza.

I'd gladly go back and give Pizza Rustica another try! I love it when a pizzeria has a huge pizza selection like this place did!

Free IKEA Breakfast

Every so often, the IKEA store in Orlando puts advertisements in the mail or newspaper for a free weekend breakfast at their restaurant. On one of these occasions, I decided to go get my free breakfast. It consisted of a plate of scrambled eggs, hash browns, and a cup of coffee. They advertised bacon as part of their free breakfasts, but apparently that wasn't happening on the day I visited.

Little did I know, free IKEA breakfasts are nothing new. They actually give out free breakfast Monday thru Friday and normally charge on weekends. Perhaps a visit during the week would come with bacon.

On the way out of the store, I stopped off and ate one of IKEA's cinnamon rolls. No complaints here.

Shrimp Boil at Sanford's Earth Day Every Day

On Earth Day (April 22, 2009), I visited an event in Sanford called Earth Day Every Day. While I was there, I ate some food being sold by a stand set up by a restaurant in Downtown Sanford called Two Blonds & a Shrimp. I've never been to the actual restaurant, but I've heard good things about them. I had their Shrimp Boil, which consisted of shrimp, potatoes, chorizo sausage, and some celery. Everything in the shrimp boil tasted good, but I didn't think the shrimp were appropriate for the type of event. The shrimp still had their shells on, so they had to be peeled. This required two hands, but since this was a fair type event, there wasn't really any seating. This meant that the shrimp had to be peeled while holding the bowl of food, along with a napkin filled with shrimp shells. Eating the Shrimp Boil turned out to be a big mess...


Not food related, but they had this very cool solar car at the event. Also a screech owl...

Toojay's Western Skillet

I ate at the Toojays in Altamonte Springs, FL for breakfast. I ordered a Western Skillet, which consisted of potato pancakes topped with scrambled eggs, tomatoes, and scallions. The Western Skillet normally comes with ham, but I wasn't in a porky mood that day. From how this dish was described on the menu, I was expecting a lot more potato pancake and less egg. Regardless, I ate it all and enjoyed it.

The Western Skillet also came with two slices of Toojay's wonderful rye toast. Even when compared to more authentic Jewish Deli style restaurants, Toojay's definitely makes the best rye bread that I've tasted in the area.

Weekend Trip: The Official Snack of Jetblue at 35000 Feet

After my early breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, I arrived at the Orlando International Airport, went through security, rode the people mover, and boarded my flight with no problems.

After about an hour of flying, somewhere over North Carolina or Virginia, snacks were served while at a height of 35,522 feet and a speed of 583 mph.

I asked for orange juice as my beverage. I received a can of Welch's Orange Fusion drink which was a mix of orange, apple, and pineapple juice. It wasn't the orange juice that I was expecting, but it's no big deal. For the food item, I decided to go with the Official Snack of JetBlue and got Terra Blues Potato Chips. The chips were actually made from blue potatoes and tasted halfway between a normal potato chip and a sweet potato chips.


I had my snack and I had my window seat, so I was happy.

Soon enough the plane landed in JFK, and after getting yelled at by another passenger sitting in the row who was accusing us of sticking gum on her seat while she used the restroom, I was ready for lunch.