Hot & Soul, dining jewel in Fort Lauderdale

Hot and Soul (Closed at this site but to reopen 2020 downtown  Fort Lauderdale)

3045 N. Federal Hwy, Suite 60B

Fort Lauderdale, 33306

754-206-2155

Dinner Tues-Sat 4-11, Sunday brunch 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Lunch Thursday-Saturday

www.hotandsoul.com

By Jane Feehan

Hot & Soul, open less than a year, may be a sleeper of a restaurant—but not for long. Out of its kitchen emerges creative fare that could challenge the best of area chefs.

“We serve what we like to make and eat,” said Christy Samoy who operates the eatery along with her husband and chef, Mike Hampton. It’s a simple formula that results in an array of dishes influenced by international flavors and a New Orleans connection to Emeril Lagasse’s creations at Delmonico’s, where Hampton once cooked.

Perhaps the tastiest stuffed flounder I’ve dined on, their “lost and flounder,” two generous fillets wrapped around a fistful of delicious gently spiced crawfish was a stunner. Meyer lemon artichoke butter and asparagus subtly accented this jewel of a seafood dish.

Creativity reigns in a low-key setting that belies the kitchen’s excellence. Other menu features such as “shankappotamus,” pork shank with red cabbage, black-eyed peas and rice and “suck em gingerly,” oysters with pickled ginger, rice vinegar and flake salt, reflect the owners’ sense of fun as well as their knowledge of flavor pairing.

I returned for lunch to sample more and was equally impressed with “knock knock jokes,” a creamy san marzano tomato soup with a manchego grilled cheese sandwich. A plate of “sweetie petitie” or sweet potato pound cake drizzled in maple syrup, was as good as it sounds. Most dinner and lunch main courses come in small or large dishes, a boon to those with small appetites. Vegetarians will also be pleased with dishes such as curried chick peas with Jasmine rice and papadum, coconut polenta with “shroom” gravy, topped with

olive oil poached silken tofu, and vegan rice pudding.

Hot & Soul, tucked into the shopping center anchored by Fernanda’s, also serves Sunday brunch. A recent menu included pillowy beignets with eggnog crème anglaise, shrimp remoulade on bibb lettuce, duck and andouille gumbo, crawfish étouffée with scallion and rice, and culotte steak with gnocchi. It can’t get any better than this for both those with adventurous palates and others who lean toward the traditional.

A good selection of wines and beers is available.

Tags: Fort Lauderdale restaurants

Sushi Yama - where food and art intersect in Palm Beach Gardens

Sushi Yama Asian Bistro

10921 N. Military Trail

Palm Beach Gardens, 33410

www.sushiyama.us

Lunch: Mon-Sat: 11:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

             Sun: 1-5 p.m.

Dinner: Sun-Thurs: 5-10 p.m.

Fri and Sat: 5-11 p.m.

 By Jane Feehan

Sushi Yama is too good to pass up; it’s where art and food intersect creating an adventure for both eyes and palate. No wonder this bistro draws crowds all year.

Located in the Garden Square Shoppes, Sushi Yama exudes freshness; there is no hint of raw fish in the air. After being seated at the sushi bar we were mesmerized by beautiful plates of raw fish being assembled with vegetables artistically carved into flowers and other ornaments. Pleasant staffers obviously enjoyed our appreciation for their skills.

A Spicy Krab roll  with cucumber and spicy mayo, and a Krab Tempura roll with avocado and cucumber were enough dinner for two (and at less than $12 each, a bargain) but we wanted to sample a chicken stir fry heated up to a three on the spicy scale. It was as delicious as the fresh salad served with peanut dressing.

It’s all here: sushi rolls, sashimi, temaki—cone shaped hand rolls—tempura chicken or fish, whole red snapper, beef entrées, vegetarian fare, noodle dishes, bento boxes … and glorious desserts. The staff is as warm and friendly as the atmosphere is sophisticated with its white leather chairs and subdued lighting.

Some say those boats of sushi amid beds of vegetable art are made with each recipient in mind.  It’s hard not to believe. They try that hard to please.

Tags: Asian restaurants in Palm Beach Gardens, Asian restaurants in Palm Beach County, sushi in Palm Beach gardens

Rodrigue Studio and the Blue Dog culture of New Orleans

George Rodrigue died Dec. 14, 2013 in Houston after a long battle with cancer. He was 69. See more at:
http://www.nola.com/arts/index.ssf/2013/12/blue_dog_creator_george_rodrig.html

Rodrigue Studio
721 Royal Street
New Orleans, LA
504-581-4244
www.georgerodrigue.com
www.georgerodriguefoundation.org
www.wendyrodrigue.com

By Jane Feehan

If you haven’t seen the Blue Dog along Canal Street or elsewhere in New Orleans, visit Rodrigue Studio in the heart of the French Quarter. It's pure Louisiana.

The Blue Dog is a series of paintings inspired by artist George Rodrigue (b. 1944). Born in New Iberia, Louisiana, this “Cajun Artist” captures elements of Cajun and Louisiana culture (including Hurricane Katrina) to create inspired works in a variety of styles lauded by museums and art aficionados throughout the United States.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has recognized Rodrigue by naming him the Artist Laureate for Louisiana. Rodrigue and his wife, Wendy, also own studios in Carmel, California and at the Lafayette Oil Center (Lafayette).

Renaissance Barcelona Fira - vibrant modernity, stark beauty

Renaissance Barcelona Fira

Plaza Europa 50-52, 08902

L’Hospitalet de Llobregat

Barcelona, Spain

By Jane Feehan

We made a reservation to stay in Barcelona for one night to decompress from the hustle bustle of the Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean cruise (see directory/labels for several posts about the cruise). Our hotel choice, the Renaissance Barcelona Fira, proved to be a good one.

This sleek, contemporary hotel, in a new business area of the city that includes a convention center and two-level shopping mall, sits halfway

between the popular Las Ramblas and the airport. A 10 to 15 minute cab ride will get you to either place. We chose Fira because of its proximity to the airport. A train station lies across from the hotel, which provides service to the center of the city.

The austere but modern lobby of Renaissance Barcelona Fira bestowed only a hint of what our room was to be. Located on the 24^th floor, our upgraded suite was drenched in white bedspreads, white furniture including end tables that also served as lighting, and white, flowing curtains that separated the room into sections for the bathroom, sleeping and sitting areas. And about that unique oval-shaped window … it was something from the Flintstones cartoon imagery of the future. The attractive light wood floor brought everything back to earth. This was a fun room. 

The hallways were open air, yet covered; doors to rooms were nearly inextinguishable except for their electronic access plates because corridor walls appeared as an uninterrupted span of attractive metal sheeting.

Dining floor center of building

We decided to walk to the mall but were almost seduced by the dramatic rooftop pool deck with its stunning view of Barcelona. The pool is seldom open in November so we headed over to the mall after taking photos. The shopping center is just like home. In other words, don’t wait until coming here to buy a trinket with a Spanish splash or Barcelona memory. It’s very American with stores such as Game Stop, and sports shops with clothing bearing the names of American colleges, cities, and sports teams.

Lunch was served between 1 and 3 p.m. at the hotel; it is often the biggest meal of the day in this country. Don’t expect sandwiches and salad fare. Our four course lunch, including a glass of wine, was a

seafood delight of lobster casserole, and grilled salmon and vegetables. The fig bread was superb.  Dinner was not even a passing thought. We slipped into an early, blissful slumber, well-rested for the morning flight home but not before after sampling a wonderful breakfast buffet of Spanish dishes that included eggs, a variety of dried meats, superb cheeses, and a rainbow of fruits and vegetables.

Renaissance Barcelona Fira credited my Marriott account with the proper points within two days after I returned home, quite speedy for a Europe stay. I’d recommend the Fira for business or vacation travel.

(There is no concierge level for breakfast or afternoon snacks but the hotel will give you a pass for a free breakfast in their main dining room.)

Lunch - no sandwiches here

Tags: Marriott hotels in Barcelona, Renaissance Barcelona Fira review, Celebrity cruises, Jane Feehan, Barcelona

Stelios Spinoulas: Crown prince of Athens tours

Stelios

By Jane Feehan

One of the highlights of a recent trip to the Mediterranean was our tour of Athens. Our guide, Stelios Spinoulas, made the day a memorable one.

Corfu native Spinoulas spent more than 20 years in the shipping business. His career brought him and his family to Slidell, in the New Orleans area for 14 of them. He returned to Greece in 2003, before Hurricane Katrina slammed the Gulf Coast.  

Since then, Spinoulas has taken another path, one that gives visitors to his country a glance of the ruins of an ancient past that still defines it today. He operates a top-notch sightseeing service that is gaining in popularity.

It is easy to understand why. His enthusiasm for Athens is contagious; his knowledge of the city’s history

impressive. We spent a whirlwind eight hours with him and saw the highlights of Athens: the Parthenon, Acropolis, an ancient Roman market with its first or second century weather “station,” the site where democracy was born, the president’s palace, Plaka (Old Town), the port town of Piraeus and much more. Best of all, he instilled in us—as I’m sure he does others—a desire to return to Athens … a good thing for Greece’s tourism industry.

We lunched at Taverna Fagopoteio (56 Patriarhou Loakeim Street, Kolonaki), a wonderful restaurant in

an upper end Athens neighborhood. The best time to come for lunch is 12:30 p.m., Stelios told us, when food is fresh out of the oven and newly prepared salads and desserts make their debut of the day. Steaming hot chicken and lamb, generously stuffed cabbage rolls, rice-stuffed green peppers, creamy-topped moussaka and an immense bowl of colorful, crisp Greek salad greeted us. We enjoyed the meal, accompanied by wine and topped off with melt-in-your-mouth baklava. The place was immaculate; they didn’t mind us visiting the kitchen.

Of course, we picked up the tab for Stelios. The cost of this big spread for three: 40 Euros and a tip. That’s

about $50 … a bargain.

It was tough saying goodbye to Stelios Spinoulas, Athens’ unofficial ambassador of good will and fun. May we meet up with you again, may you continue to share the best your country offers, which includes you.

To contact Stelios Spinoulas for sightseeing in Athens or tours to Delphi and Peloponnese,  email: stelios_spinoulas@hotmail.com (stelios_spinoulas@hotmail.com)

Telephone: +30210 4632152; Cell: +30 6976 518 378

Stelios communicates several times before the tour, confirming details. He owns a new, comfortable Mercedes for excursions.  He was recommended to us by people in Florida, not a cruise ship.

Tags: Athens tour guide, Athens sightseeing, best Athens tour guide, Stelios Spinoulas, Athens taxi service, Delphi and Peloponnese tours, Celebrity Mediterranean cruises 

Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean Cruise and Rome: last port and the short goodbye

Check labels for additional Celebrity posts on this blog.

By Jane Feehan

Rome was our last and for some, the most spectacular of places we visited. We docked at Civitavecchia and took an hour-long bus ride into the Eternal City.

We wanted to see as much of this historic city as possible, which precluded standing in lines at museums or at the Sistine Chapel. Often the lines are so long at the chapel there is no time for anything else. For us, this will come another day, another trip. Our excursion, “Taste of Rome,” was just that and it was a good one for $100 each. Excursions to Rome from the ship run about $75 to $350 per person.

Our bus with guide took us to St. Peter’s Square where we set out independently for more than two hours

with a map of old Rome to see some places on foot: the Spanish Steps, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Vatican City, and Piazza Navona.  Our walking tour along the narrow streets of the oldest part of Rome, not far from the Tiber River, ended with lunch outdoors at Ristorante Panzirone on the Piazza Navona … delicious pasta in a clean, picturesque setting.

Afterward, we met up with our guide and continued on foot and by bus to see the Colosseum, Circus , the Aurelian Walls and other landmarks, including the spectacular National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II (see photo above). Our only interior visit was to the Church of St. Peter in Chains where Michelangelo's stunning sculpture of  Moses sits. Rome was a much larger empire than Greece (though ancient Greece established the foundation of Western civilization); antiquities abound throughout the Eternal City, more so than in Athens.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Maximus

A visit to the Eternal City was a wonderful way to end the itinerary. The Equinox sailed one more day before returning to Barcelona, giving us time to decompress and reflect upon the past two weeks before heading home.

Information:
Baggage tags with a time for disembarking are delivered by your room attendant. Bags are left outside staterooms by 11 p.m.for pickup. 

If you are given a very early time to disembark, you may go to Guest Relations and arrange another time up until 9 a.m. There is time for breakfast in any event – and don’t forget, you paid for it.

Tip your tour guides. Some are less subtle than others in hinting for tips. Most of the guides we had were exceptional and we showed our appreciation

Tip your room attendants well; they work the hardest. Some tips are prepaid but tip additionally.

Dining

If you opt for select dining and visit the specialty restaurants: 

Tuscan Grill was a favorite, justifiably so. Murano, the French restaurant, was excellent but without a view (in the dark this may not matter to most). If you are Aqua Class, the Blu restaurant serves breakfast and dinner and it’s quite good. The biggest culinary disappointment of the whole trip, both on board and off – was the third specialty restaurant, Silk Harvest.

Before embarking and throughout the trip, dining staff will continuously try to sell the specialty restaurants. There is a cover charge for them, from about $30 to $45. (Hint: One can ask to get in for half price, especially toward the end of the cruise).The food is already included in your cruise ticket; liquor is not.  

Silhouette, the main dining room, serves excellent food and for the most part, offers impeccable service. We enjoyed the meals and interesting people we met (we chose "anytime dining").

Entertainment

With the exception of an excellent jazz quartet from New Zealand, entertainment was mediocre. Given a choice of food or entertainment, I’d take the food any day. The Equinox excels in offering a top-notch dining experience.

Single ladies of any age: you will not find many or any single men on board. A bit disappointed about that, I enjoyed meeting many wonderful couples from around the world.

Weather: Though summer is the most popular time for cruises, a caveat for those who don't like heat: wait until October or November. We went Nov. 1-13 and most of our cruise was warm, well into the 70s and even 80 in Malta. Rome was the coolest place, in the 50s with light rain for part of the day. Oppressively hot summer temps will make it very uncomfortable to walk around or stand in line.

The Equinox cleared us out quickly, easily and set sail again the same day for the northern Mediterranean and Adriatic seas. It’s easy to understand why so many arranged (ahead of time) to continue with the Celebrity on that voyage.

We will return.   Check labels for additional Celebrity posts on this blog.

Tags: Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean cruise, Rome tours, singles on cruises, Jane Feehan

Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean ports of Santorini and Naples: stressand repose

By Jane Feehan

Check labels for additional Celebrity posts on this blog.

The Equinox pulled into the Greek isle of Santorini, along with four other ships on the same day. I’m told this doesn’t happen often. About 9,000 people made their way on tenders at nearly the same time like an invading army to the shores of this picturesque port. To see anything, visitors must make their way to the top of this volcanic island via cable car or donkey. We didn’t pay for a ship excursion, which runs about $90 to $345 per person. The $345 tour takes visitors to a volcanic site, another port and a wine tasting—not worth it. Many told us before our cruise that few take excursions on Santorini.

So … we were on our own, along with most of  9,000 others. Locals offer a 20-minute boat trip as an option (for 12 Euros) to the very long wait for the cable cars to another part of Santorini where a bus took us to the beautiful village of Oia. There, we wandered through narrow streets amid brilliant white stone buildings for about 45 minutes before hopping a waiting bus for a 15 minute ride to Fira.

There are many stores in Fira, some operated by Americans, all targeting tourists. Small cafés with spectacular views abound. We lunched at a place we picked at random where we took in a spectacular, panoramic view. The food—Greek salads and fish—was nearly as good as the view.  It made up for the ordeal to come.

Literally thousands waited in a line for six cable cars to catch their tender to the ship. We decided instead to walk down a cobble stone donkey trail (rides are five Euros one way) picking our way over smelly mounds of manure through hundreds of tethered or wandering animals. It took an interminable 45 minutes in warm weather; it was extremely stressful. One woman collapsed at the bottom of the cliff and was placed in a wheelchair. The descent diminished our Santorini experience. Thankfully, we had a day at sea to recover before a stop in Naples.

Though steeped in history, and a chief port in Italy, Naples is not a tourist destination. But the ruins of

Pompeii lie a few miles away as well as the beautiful Amalfi coast, Positano and Sorrento. We weren’t up for a nine-hour day on this stop (too much night life) so chose a five or six hour Sorrento excursion ($50 each). Other excursions to Pompeii and the Amalfi coast ran $135 to $345 per person.

We relaxed on an hour and a half drive along the coast, took photos and spent two free hours in this pretty town for a couple of hours. This was a Sunday and plenty of locals (who look so stylish even in jeans) and tourists were out walking about enjoying the good weather and Christmas decorations. Sorrento is known for producing fine wooden lacquered boxes, olive oil, and lemon soaps. Tip: don’t buy anything at a store the guide steers you to to as a meeting place; it’s twice as expensive than others with the same merchandise because they get a commission.

We arrived back at around 2 p.m.—ready for another night of culinary glee, fine wine and good music. Our last stop: Rome. Check labels for additional Celebrity posts on this blog.

Tags: Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean cruise, Sorrento, Santorini

Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean cruise: Mykonos and Ephesus

By Jane Feehan
Check labels for additional Celebrity posts on this blog.

Two days back to back, two ports, two countries ...

We stopped at the Greek island of Mykonos where it was warm for November - about 75 degrees. This port caters to tourists so there's plenty of shopping. Friendly "Aegean" cats abound. The island is small so there is no need for a paid excursion. We passed up the stores in favor of a leisurely stroll to the end of the island where there are picturesque windmills used to grind wheat. Mykonos is quite windy throughout the year. We decided to lunch back on the ship. This island, though beautiful, does not appear very clean. 

We docked at Kusadasi, Turkey the next day where we took an excursion to Ephesus,  an important port

Library at Ephesus

city of about 200,000 residents  from 300 BC until about 700 AD. River silt has since eliminated water access but what a booming place this once was. 

Apostles Paul and John visited Ephesus to preach about their new religion (letters of St. Paul to the Ephesians). Some Christians believe the Virgin Mary lived out her days in this ancient city. A shrine on a mountain top marks that site. We took an excursion (about $94 each) to that shrine and to the marvelous ruins. The hoards of tourists arriving on buses at the shrine diminished prospects of a religious experience. The ruins were far more interesting with what was once the third largest library in the world. Only 15 percent of the city's ruins have been excavated (money issues, Turkey is a poor country).

We lunched at the Pine Bay resort, a Double Tree property. They presented a fantastic buffet with local dishes galore. The trip ended at a Turkish carpet retailer where they tried their best (but failed), to make a few big sales. It was a bit of a turnoff.

Cruise tips and info:

Celebrity does a great job organizing disembarkation and embarkation at their port stops; there is very little waiting. The best dollar value is in Kusadasi and Ephesus, so shopping is worth the time. Beware of the hard sell here. Turkey may be going on the Euro and our tour guide told us residents hope it does not come to pass. The Celebrity crew does their shopping in Kusadasi so they also hope the Euro does not come to pass.

Don't fear a virus outbreak on the Celebrity. Attendants stand at dining room entrances with bottles of disinfectant. They also greet us at the gangway with hand wash when we return from shore. The ship's stores stop business transactions every 30 minutes to wipe down counters and cash registers. Bartenders use tongs for fruit and anything else they add to drinks.  Impressive.Check labels for additional Celebrity posts on this blog.

Tags: Celebrity Equinox Mediterranean cruise, Ephesus, Kusadasi,