Spell mouthwatering: Tarpon River Cafe Absolute Catering

Tarpon River Café Absolute Catering

14 SW 11 Street

Fort Lauderdale, FL 33315

954-767-8306

Lunch, 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. Monday through Friday

Lunch first Saturday of each month

Catering for organizations, weddings and other special occasions

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By Jane Feehan

Just out of the shadows of downtown Fort Lauderdale sits an unpretentious, terrazzo-floored tiny café shrouded in trees and other flora. It would be easy to miss except for a small sign indicating its business or if someone invites you as I was.  

Catering is chef/owner Chris Stachowski’s primary occupation here, but what a find for lunch. He whips up a new menu of five entrees and a soup each day; all entrees are priced at $11. With 24-hour-notice, he’ll fill a special meal request as well as requests for the next month’s Saturday lunch.

A large group of us—about 15—ordered across the menu. I sampled a delicious, slightly spiced clam

Turkey, brie and cranberry ciabatta

chowder and off-the-frame turkey, brie and cranberry creation on a ciabatta roll. It was served with a choice of a green salad or pasta salad; the large-portioned pasta salad of perfectly-cooked macaroni ranks as one of the best I’ve had. One of us ordered a ham plate, a few others ordered pork loin—all with eye-popping thick cuts of meat. Turkey slices in my sandwich were nearly a half-inch thick as well as they were for a large off-the- menu salad entrée one diner requested. Extremely accommodating, Chef Chris also served an off-the-menu burger with several slices of bacon draped over the meat. Desserts are house made by Chris’s sister, Beth, who serves as baker extraordinaire of an array of mouthwatering pies and cakes.

With deep, life-long roots in Fort Lauderdale, Chris comes with an impressive resume and thick portfolio of wedding, special occasion and business clients as well as repeat catering customers, including Saint Anthony Church Women’s Guild. Also, for about a decade, he served as a yacht chef—one of the most demanding roles in the culinary field. He’s also been an award-winning participant in local seafood festivals…and in fishing tournaments. Chris’s interests extend to horticulture, evidenced by his collection on 11th Street of fruit-bearing trees, a cinnamon tree, three varieties of pineapple, and herbs and vegetables and a project dear to his heart: an orchid farm, which is under development.

Stop by with a big appetite or to preview a catering menu. Easy parking at Tarpon River Café, which lies across the street from historic Trinity Lutheran Church. The café is an inexpensive and peaceful alternative to the hub bub of downtown. Patio or indoor dining.

Tags: Fort Lauderdale caterers, Fort Lauderdale catering, Fort Lauderdale restaurants, downtown Fort Lauderdale lunch