Fort Lauderdale's Greek Islands Taverna - Seriously good

Greek Islands Taverna
3300 N. Ocean Blvd.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308
954-568-0008
Takeout: 954-565-5505
Open daily for lunch and dinner

By Jane Feehan

There’s no live Greek music, belly dancers  or shouts of Opa heard over raucous banter here; it’s not a party place as some Greek restaurants advertise. Greek Islands Taverna is all about food.

Hallowed dishes of Greek cuisine – a 4,000 year-old tradition – can be found at Greek Islands. Dolmathakia (stuffed grape leaves), roasted lamb, Souvlaki (marinated pork on a skewer), and Moussaka (ground beef, macaroni and béchamel sauce) top the list of Greek specialties. Traditional salads of cucumbers, large wedges of tomato, feta cheese and sliced onion are tongue-slapping good.

A plate with two small loaves of bread – white and wheat – and a heaping dish of hummus comes to the table before one has time to look at the menu. Many items can be ordered as merze, a small dish, or as a full dinner. Dessert classics of honey, walnuts, filo and yogurt complete a typical Greek Islands meal.                                                                        

There’s lots of wallet options and a tab without alcohol can be pleasingly moderate.

Prices and consistently good food keep the tables full here. A wait is not uncommon. Many patrons choose the full bar to eat a meal, watch a game or to socialize. It’s a comfortable place for the single diner.

Patio dining available for lunch and dinner. Service: good.

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Tags: Greek restaurants in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale restaurants, dining in Fort Lauderdale

Hurricane Café - a blast of good food in Juno Beach

Hurricane Café

14050 US Hwy 1 (closest cross street: Donald Ross Road)

Juno Beach, FL

877-775-2559

Breakfast – 7-11 a.m. (with early bird 8-9 a.m. for $4.75). Extended weekend breakfast hours

Lunch – 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Dinner – 4 -9 p.m. (Sunset  dinner 4-6 p.m.)

http://www.hurricanecafe.com

By Jane Feehan

For some of us in South Florida, an establishment with the word “hurricane” attached to its name may conjure up images of a rough refuge taken during a storm where food, some adult beverages and fun-loving, adventurous company serve as ingredients for a party.

A tropical storm doesn't provide locals a reason to gather at the Hurricane Café in Juno Beach – the food does.

Breakfast, served with a basket of thick slices of toast, draws a loyal following. A meal is delivered within minutes of placing an order (good for those on their way to work). They know eggs done any way with omelets their specialty. They also do a great job with waffles and pancakes. For those who need a morning jolt, the Hurricane Café offers a variety of coffees, espresso and organic teas.    

Lunch and dinner fare is a significant cut above a corner café and includes overstuffed sandwiches, vegetarian dishes and comfort foods like Yankee Pot Roast, N.Y. strip with gorgonzola and hand tossed individual pizzas. Seafood also available. There’s a good selection of wines (no hard liquor) to top off the dinner menu.

Hurricane Café’s interior is simple with a breakfast-place-look, far from elegant if one is looking for sophisticated ambiance for a special occasion or date. My advice is to take a seat on the patio, which offers a more pleasant atmosphere for dinner, weather permitting.

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Tags: breakfast in Juno, breakfast in Jupiter, dining in Juno Beach, dining in Jupiter, restaurants in Palm Beach County

Sequin New York: Affordable Palm Beach Glitz

Sequin New York

330 South County Road

Palm Beach, Florida 33480

561-833-7300

By Jane Feehan

Meandering through shops on Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue may leave some deflated by inflated prices but a visit to Sequin New York, just a few blocks away, may cure the-small-budget-blues. Yes, Virginia, there are bargains in Palm Beach.

New York-based Sequin  is tough to miss with colorful, glitzy-ritzy high-end costume jewelry heaped elegantly on tables visible through their storefront window. Even non-shoppers are lured by the sparkling sight. The best part: prices. With baubles ranging from $15 to $750, few will walk out empty-handed.

                                                                                                                            

Sisters Kim and Linda Renk, owners of Sequin, design jewelry for Badgley Mischka (sold at Neiman Marcus), for Target, Kohl’s, Cache, Nordstrom, other customers and for their own stores (private label). In addition to the shop in Palm Beach, they have two in Newport, Rhode Island.

Palm Beach store manager, Wendy McIlvain, says Sequin also does trunk shows, including an upcoming event in Houston. Stop by and say hello. For a little bit of cash, you can walk out with a piece of Palm Beach elegance.  

Tags: Palm Beach shopping, Valentine's Day ideas, costume jewelry

The Floridian: A Fort Lauderdale 24/7 to meet, greet and eat

The Floridian

1410 E. Las Olas Blvd.

Fort Lauderdale, Florida

954-463-4041

Open 24/7

By Jane Feehan

The Floridian is as remarkable for its longevity on Las Olas Boulevard as anything else. Operating for more than 60 years (under different owners), this spot is great for people-watching and generating a feeling for downtown Fort Lauderdale.

This corner eatery with sidewalk tables drums up a big weekend breakfast crowd and draws daily neighborhood business from Las Olas residents, merchants and night owls. A place at the indoor counter for breakfast ensures lively discussions with locals; it’s a friendly bunch.  

The Floridian’s large menu and oversized servings will satisfy most appetites. Eggs cooked any way, huge sandwiches, platters of burgers overflowing with fries, and large salads – all at reasonable prices – may remind one of a diner.  It’s the best way to describe this restaurant’s fare.

There aren’t many restaurants where one can walk off a large meal these days but one can after dining at the Floridian. A  stroll down Las Olas, the quintessential Fort Lauderdale boulevard, may be a great way to top off a visit to this landmark.

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Tags: restaurants open 24 hours in Fort Lauderdale, breakfast on Las Olas, dining on Las Olas

Angelo's - Best pizza in Jupiter, Florida

Angelo’s Restaurant

155 Toney Penna Drive

Jupiter, Florida

561-747-2974

Open for lunch and dinner until 9:30 p.m. nightly – Call to check which nights

Delivery available

By Jane Feehan

The hand tossed crust is slightly crisp (not thin), the sauce is a perfect blend of tomatoes and spices, and the cheese is melt-in-your-mouth good.  It’s best eaten if folded. That’s a New York pizza, and you can get it at Angelo’s Restaurant.

His place isn’t fancy and it’s in a business/industrial area near the railroad tracks but he offers a full menu that features all the typical food most Americans flock to neighborhood Italian joints for: Hot and cold subs served on Italian bread, and chicken, veal, and pasta dinners with a few seafood items like mussels and fried calamari as sides. Oh yeah, don’t forget the Tiramisu, Cannoli or Zeppolies (Italian donut) for dessert.

I go for the pizza. I’ve been searching for months now and the Jupiter quest has ended.  Angelo’s has the best pizza pie in town. If you're looking for great thin crust pizza, visit County Line Pizza in Juno Beach (see review).

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Tags: Best pizza in Jupiter, dining in Jupiter, Italian restaurants in Jupiter, Florida, best pizza in Juno Beach

Classico's Italian Restaurants: Nonna's kitchen in Juno Beach

Classico’s Italian Restaurants
14131 US Highway 1 at Loggerhead Plaza

Juno Beach, Florida

(561) 622-9772

www.classicositalianrestaurants.com

By Jane Feehan

“Two great restaurants, one great location,” Classico’s self-description goes.  One side is a bar and pizzeria, the other a bit more upscale dining area. Both offer the same convivial atmosphere.

A loaf of warm bread and a plate of olive oil with garlic serve as part of their welcome on the full-dining side; both are good. The menu is southern Italian – lots of cheese and sauce.  Sunday sauce, the kind one’s Italian grandmother simmers with meat on the stove for hours, joins marinara and white as “gravies” available for pasta, seafood, veal, beef and chicken It's homey eating here - not gourmet. Warning: the portions are huge. Diners may want to think about sharing, even though the charge is $6. It’s still reasonable. I had leftovers of the leftovers at home the next night. Dessert choices are presented on a tray and most are house made. I can’t imagine many getting to that part of the meal; I couldn’t.

The atmosphere has that New York City kind of feeling with photos of 1950s and 60s celebs. Cute, but not really as sophisticated as it’s trying to be. The white table clothes, pleasant lighting, and soothing acoustics make up where the photos leave off.

There aren’t many places to eat in Juno Beach, which probably accounts for patrons greeting each other when they enter; it adds to a warm, felicitous atmosphere.

One caveat: the pizza served in the other side of the restaurant is NOT good; they use inexpensive cheese and a cook up a crust that tastes over-oiled.

For good pizza at two other places see my reviews. Use search box at right to find "pizza" or see:
http://janesbits.blogspot.com/2011/05/county-line-pizza-best-pizza-in-juno.html 
or
http://janesbits.blogspot.com/2011/01/angelos-best-pizza-in-jupiter-florida.html


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Tags: Italian restaurants Juno Beach, dining in Juno, Italian restaurants in Jupiter area, pizzeria in Juno Beach, South Florida dining

U.S. Seafood: Going Going, GONE – or Saved?

By Jane Feehan

Seafood lovers and sports fishing enthusiasts should have the relatively new National Policy for the Stewardship of the Ocean, Coasts and Great Lakes on their radars; commercial fishermen do.

President Obama signed an Executive Order establishing the policy on July 19, 2010 as a nod to  recommendations made by the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force in the spring of 2010.

 

“Spatial planning,” central to the new policy, will limit where fishing will be permitted. I’ve spoken to several local fish market owners and they fear the policy will drive local fishermen and their markets 

out of business

I’m not sure how this will affect jobs, small businesses and restaurants. Will fish farming be the government's solution? I’m not keen on eating farmed fish, loaded with antibiotics and hormones (tilapia, or Atlantic salmon, anyone?). Will the national policy prove be the best approach for much-needed ocean conservation?  It may be; only time will tell. One thing is certain: more regulations for the most regulated country in the world.

Executive Order for Executive Order for the Stewardship of Our Oceans, Coasts, and Great Lakes

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/07/19/executive-order-stewardship-our-oceans-coasts-and-great-lakes

A synopsis of that policy from the White House is posted at:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/oceans

For articles on the pros and cons,visit http://www.ESPNOutdoors.com

Any other ideas to save the fish?

Tags: fishing, seafood, ocean conservation, Florida sports fishing, Florida seafood restaurants

Panama Hattie's, a dash of Caribbean, a bottle of rum - North Palm Beach

CLOSED

11511 Ellison Wilson Rd.
North Palm Beach, Florida 33408
561-627-3408
Lunch: Mon-Sat, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
Sunday Brunch: 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Dinner: Sun-Thurs, 4:30-10 p.m., Fri and Sat, 4:30-11 p.m.
http://www.panama-hatties.com

Water Taxi – free 30-minute rides from the dock Thurs.-Sat,
call 561-775-BOAT (2628 

CLOSED 

Most come to Panama Hattie’s for the atmosphere, not the food. Seafood is touted as their specialty but there's an ample selection of other dishes.

Interior bar of Panama Hattie's

A large covered wooden deck along the Intracoastal (docks available) provides the main dining area, though there’s plenty of seating inside if the weather isn’t friendly. The décor is colorful and not as shanty-like as I had envisioned before visiting. It has that worn, seafaring look from the outside.

For lunch they offered lobster and stone crabs as specials for the day but we opted for lighter fare: a spinach salad topped with mahi mahi and a crab cake with rice, beans, fried plantains and an excellent mango and pineapple salsa. Bread and water was served as soon as we took our seats, a nice touch at lunch. The crab cake turned out better than the mahi, which was neither a good cut nor cooked long enough.

Outdoors  in the sand at Rum Bar

Panama Hattie’s also serves Cuban sandwiches, and Cuban and Jamaican dishes that feature pork and chicken. Speaking of pork, their outdoor area, the Rum Bar, holds a pig roast on Sundays that draws the drinking crowd. 

Rum Bar along the Intracoastal

For $10, a diner can feast (with toes in sand) on a plate of pork, rice and beans, plantains and a choice of cold salads. Not bad. Patrons at the Rum Bar must be 21.  The menu is short here.      

A seafood lover would be cautioned to dine at Panama Hattie's with qualified expectations for great seafood. The water is the attraction ... and the view beats Red Lobster's. Service: very good.

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Tags: water front dining in Palm Beach Gardens, pig roast, Rum Bar, seafood restaurant, dock and dine