Vacation Wrap up - Part Two - The adventures

In addition to some great seafood, we had lots of fun in Florida. It started out on a somewhat scary note though. My in-laws were going to stay with us for the first week. They got to the condo mid afternoon and noticed some commotion on the beach. They saw a guy coming out of the water holding his hand. Someone on the beach wrapped it in a towel and it looked like he'd cut himself. Turns out it was a shark bite! Meep! Thankfully it wasn't too serious. And the very next morning, there were surfers right out where he was just the day before.

The next morning we got to watch a church service on the beach that included a full dunk baptism in the ocean. It took Sophie a few days to adjust to the condo and she liked to hide under the bed whenever we were in the bedroom. Here she is peeking out at us.Most days while I sat on the balcony and looked out over the ocean while reading, Jim took his kayak out to the Mosquito Lagoon. He was determined to catch a redfish but alas, only a catfish and some ladyfish seemed interested in his bait. He also took Sophie out with him one afternoon. It was her first venture in the kayak and we didn't know how she'd react. But from the looks of these pictures, she seemed to enjoy it as did everyone on the dock who said she was adorable in her little yellow life jacket. I thought she'd go after a dophin or manatee as they surfaced in the lagoon but they must have been too far away to get her attention. Although when she saw me on the dock, she wanted to come to me. I had to step back out of her sight so she wouldn't try to jump into the water.

Jim and I went out fishing one morning and I caught my very first fish! And inexperienced as I was, I never knew the little buggers can crap on you! The little 6 inch fish I caught left a memento on my shirt as I held it up to have Jim take my picture. So not only can they poop, they have good aim.

Jim spent one afternoon in Gainesville visiting a friend from college. They went to a place called Payne's Prairie Preserve. It a wildlife area that's completely open, no fences between you and the critters.

And what kind of critters would that be? Oh, there were white pelicans, wood storks, snapping turtles, wild horses and alligators........lots and lots of alligators. And did I mention there were NO fences! Eek! I think this sign says it all.
He also took a tour of the Univ. of Florida campus and stood in the Swamp. Now being Univeristy of Tennessee fans, this could almost be considered a traitorous act, but I let it slide.

The next day we stopped by a new place called the Key Vista Tiki Bar. It's one of two new places in town that we discovered and really liked. One of the bar tenders told us that Sunday afternoons were the best time to be there because there was live music out on the beach area. You could watch the dolphin and manatees in the water and look at the pelicans as they sunned on the pier while you listened to some good music. This little guy is doing his favorite scene from Titanic, "I'm King of the world!"

And it was just like bartender said. We even tossed in some food and a bucket of Kaliks to boot.
On Thursday, the last day of our trip, Sophie got to take a stroll with Jim on the Dog Beach and chase crabs. They kept running into their little holes on the beach and she'd shove her nose right in there after them. More surprisingly, she never got snipped by one.

And while they were on the beach, I was getting a hot stone massage at the Advance Beauty Care Center on Flagler Ave. OMG....It was so good. They put these hot stones along your back and let them sit for a while then take them off and massage your back. The stones from your back are moved to your legs where they sit for a while then your legs and arms are massaged. I even had flat little stones put between my toes. I was like a limp noodle by the time it was over.

But our last day was only going to get better. How's that? Glad you asked. We had dinner at one of our favorite places, Spanish River Grille. If for no other reason, go there for the Chocolate bread pudding. It's 'smack your mama' good.

After dinner (and a bottle of wine) we went to this cool little bar that recently opened. It's called the OM Bar and Chill Lounge. We'd stopped by one evening the week before and liked it so much we wanted to go back. It's a wine/cigar bar with a very laid back attitude. A walk-in humidor offers some nice choices in smokes and the wine menu is pretty lengthy. And on Thursday nights.......free Sangria for the ladies and free Salsa lessons! Woo Hoo, I loves me some sangria and this stuff was mighty tasty. Jim ordered a beer and bought a cigar from the humidor while we watched the dance instructor teach some folks the basic steps to salsa dancing. He even convinced me to give the cigar a try. And no, I didn't inhale. (This is the "what happens in New Smyrna Beach, stays in New Smyrna Beach" part)I tried several times to get Jim to get up there with me and learn but he was not hearing any of it. But my persistance paid off and I finally convinced him to join the second group of wannabe salsa dancers. There were five couples in this group, including us. One couple was taking it kinda seriously. Not us, we were just doing it for fun and to live up our last night in town.

Halfway through the lessons, the instructor tells us that later we'll all be competing for a bottle of champagne. My first thought was, "well, at least we're having fun, 'cuz there ain't no way we're gonna win this thing." We had a brief rest before all five couples were back on the dance floor showing off our newly learned moves.....or at least trying not step on each others toes. Jim and I were sweatin' but having fun and not even thinking that the bottle of champagne would be ours.

After we all danced together, each couple danced by themselves. We were the last couple up. After we finished, everyone gathered back on the dance floor and the instructor said that the couple who got the loudest applause would win the champagne. He held the bottle over couple #1 (the serious ones)....big applause. Not surprising. Couples 2, 3 and 4 got a smattering of cheers.

Then it was our turn. The only thought going through my mind was that as long as we didn't get boo'd off the floor, I'd be happy. So I closed my eyes as the instructor raised the bottle of champagne high above our heads and would you believe the place went crazy! What!!! Applause, lots and lots of applause.....Holy SH*T!

To make sure the crowd was sure, the bottle was raised over couple #1. Big applause..... When raised over ours again, BOOM, yells, cheers, clapping and a very shocked us. I, of course being the modest person that I am, bowed and did my best beauty queen wave and air kissed to the crowd. Jim took possession of the bubbly.

A very nice couple sitting next to us at the bar took this celebratory picture for us. We stayed there about 30 minutes longer then had to head home as Sophie needed to be walked and we had a 13 hour drive ahead of us the next day. So bottle in hand, we got into the car and headed back to the condo.

On the way, I called my parents to tell them about it and my dad's first words were, "And just how much had you to drink?" Yep, the old man knows me pretty well. A few glasses of wine with dinner and two big glasses of sangria and this girl will shake her booty like the best of them, not as good as the best of them mind you, but just as much. Because truth is, we were far.......very far, from the best ones out there that night but we were probably the ones having the most fun. And for that, you win a bottle of champagne and end your vacation on a high note.

We even managed to wear out the dog. Here she is on the drive home.

Vacation Wrap up - Part One - The Food

How can two weeks go by so fast? But at least we had fun, relaxed, tried new things and ate some great fresh seafood. This first post will cover the food. Come back later this week to hear about Sophie's first outing in the kayak, a Tiki Bar and our first venture with Salsa dancing at the OM Bar and Chill Lounge (the phrase What happens there, stays there should be enough to peak your interest in that story).

The condo we rented was right on the beach. We were serenaded all day and lulled to sleep with it at night with the sound of the ocean. And the weather couldn't have been better. Sunny, low 80's during the day and mid 60's at night.

We only cooked dinner twice in the condo. Jim bought some Cobia fillets and a pound of shrimp from Ocean's Seafood. He sauteed the shrimp in a bunch of garlic and served it as an appetizer. While we happily munched in that, he took the shrimp shells and boiled them down to make a shrimp stock for the Cobia. He added some garlic and saffron for additional flavor. It was all wonderful and the shrimp had to be the freshest I've eaten in ages. It was so good that we went back to Ocean's Seafood a few days later and bought 2 pounds for another home cooked dinner. Before dinner I made a spinach artichoke dip for us to munch on while Jim cooked. The shrimp was served with rosemary baby potatoes, Brussels sprouts and fresh rosemary focaccia.

We wanted to cook in more but there were too may good places we also wanted to eat at while we were in town. One of the first places we went to was JB's Fish Camp and was I a happy camper when I discovered they had rock shrimp! I loves me some rock shrimp steamed with some drawn butter. They taste just like lobster. We went back one night midway through the trip and shared a pound of them and a salad for dinner. Yum, yum!

Other restaurants of note that we went to were Romesco's. We took Jim's parents there and shared appetizers of artichoke hearts, peppers stuffed with prosciutto and cheese, and garlic shrimp. For our entree's, Jim chose a rosemary ham paninni while the rest of us ordered little pizzas. It was all very good. If we'd remembered the camera, you'd see for yourself.

Another must go to place is Scott's Bluewater Grille.Each month they feature a country or region for their specials. The May region was Indonesia. Jim ordered a squid dish from the specials menu which was "very, very hot" according to our server. But we're used to eating very hot food so Jim wasn't too concerned about the heat. The squid was served in 1/4 inch thick, 2 inch long planks onto top of a saffron coconut rice and topped with a spicy red sauce that looked like it had a lot of Sambal Oelek in it. Yes it was spicy but nothing we couldn't handle. I ordered scallops served over coconut rice. They were so fresh, so tender and sweet and cooked to perfection.

On our last night in town we went to Spanish River Grille, another favorite place. From the neon bull on the wall over the bar to the warm cozy colors on the wall to the tasty tasty food, it's a must go-to place each time we're down there. And of all the places we go to in New Smyrna Beach, it's the one place that I have to have dessert. Their Chocolate bread pudding (with caramel ice cream) is decadently delicious. But before I get ahead of myself, we shared a Caesar salad and ordered the whole Hogfish Snapper served over saffron rice (for Jim) and a bowl of steamed mussels and a side of fried yucca (for me). When they brought out Jim's dish, the server said, "Meet Bob" as she set the plate in front of Jim. Haha! Bob, meet Jim......Jim, eat Bob. The hogfish was tender flaky and moist. My mussels were plump and tasty. And because I only had the appetizer order of mussels, I had room for dessert. I looked at them menu knowing what I wanted but I just had to be sure they didn't sneak something even better on the menu. Nope. Bread Pudding was still the best thing there. I let Jim have a few bites and he kept me from picking up the plate and licking it clean.

Then there is Blackbeard's. Raw oysters are what draws Jim here. I enjoy their salad bar and fish dishes. We had dinner one night and lunch one afternoon. The bar is DARK, cool and the kind of place you could sit in all day and drink beer. For dinner there, Jim started out with a dozen raw oysters. I won't touch them with a ten foot pole so I sat patiently and sipped on some wine while he devoured them. I ordered the Grouper Scampi with a baked potato . Jim got the Oysters Rockefeller (yes, more oysters). The grouper was about the best I'd had while down there. And I even tried one of the Oysters Rockefeller. It was ok but I happy to stick with my fish.

A favorite place for the in-laws is Norwood's. It's been around forever and Jim remembers going there before they got air conditioning. The old place used to have big screened windows and ceiling fans. Now it's more upscale, with quite the wine collection. We shared fried calamari as an appetizer and it was perfectly cooked, not a single chewy piece in the batch. For our entree's, Jim's mom got the grilled mahi mahi, his dad got the broiled seafood platter.Jim ordered the grilled Wahoo which was delicious. And I got crab stuffed red snapper. It wasn't as good as the other entrees, a big section of dark bloodline was left in the snapper giving a good bit of it an unpleasant taste. But there was plenty that was good so I didn't go hungry.
Other places of note were The Breaker's. A restaurant right on the beach off Flagler Ave. You can grab a seat inside and look out past the bar to the ocean or get a seat along the windows that look right out onto the beach. Among the best things on the menu are the hamburgers, the buffalo chicken sandwich, the buffalo wings, a Key Lime Mahi Mahi sandwich. Plenty of cold beers on tap or by the bottle help wash it all down.
Then there was Clancy's Cantina. We heard they did a good job with fresh seafood which they did. But the cheesy piano player wasn't my style. I think he only knew the first two lines of songs because that's about all he ever sang. I'd go back and sit at the bar for a drink but we have other places we prefer for dinner.

Next up: The OM Bar and Chill Lounge (where the salsa lessons took place and some other things that I can't deny since Jim took pictures), the Key Harvest Tiki Bar, Sophie sporting her new doggie life jacket and more.

Home again

We reluctantly returned from Florida late last night. The picture above is the sunrise on our first morning.

As vacations go, it was great, even Sophie seemed to have a good time.
There's lots to write about and I hope to get that done tomorrow. For now here are a few hints about what to expect, doggy lifejackets, salsa dancing, chasing crabs and of course great seafood.

Halfway through vacation

Forgot to bring the camera to download some pics but we're having a great time. Sophie is enjoying her view of the beach and eyelevel views of the pelicans (which she barks at). Foods been good, weather has been outstanding. And best of all we still have one more week to go.
I'll try to post some pics next week.

What a vacation

View from the roof deck of the house we rented.

Got back late Saturday night from our vacation. We had a blast and really didn't want to leave. The house we rented had only one house between it and the ocean. A rooftop deck gave us great ocean views and cool ocean breezes. We spent many an hour sitting up there totally relaxed with a cool drink in hand watching the occasional pelican or two fly overhead. When the 'skeeters got too bad, we'd head down to the screened in porch where we had less of an ocean view but still had the breeze. Ahh.........

But man does not live by great views and cold beverages alone........we had some good food too. We hit some of the usual places we go to every time we're in New Smyrna Beach like JB's Fish Camp, Black Beards, and Spanish River Grill. We tried a new place called Scott's Bluewater Grille which was very good and will be in the repitoire from now on as well.

Seafood Chowder from Scott's Bluewater Grille.

At JB's you can't go wrong with the Pompano or the rock shrimp (when they have them). The pomp is best when you get it grilled. Fresh flaky fish with a mild flavor. And the rock shrimp are served steamed with a little melted butter. They're a bear to get out of their shells but the taste is worth it. Think of little miniature lobster tails. When all else fails, my backup favorite is the blackened grouper. Oh, the taste is out of this world. Flaky, like the pompano, a little meatier and with just the right amount of seasoning. It's possibly the best grouper I've ever had. Biscuit Boy is partial to the raw oysters. I've witnessed him do damage to 2 dozen on more than one occasion. Personally, I'd rather lick a cow's snout before I ate one of those slimy little buggers, but I'll take his word that they serve some of the best ones around. Second on his list of favorites at JB's are the hush puppies. And I'll agree with him on this one, they are blissfully good. Sweet cornmeal with just the right moistness to them and fried perfectly to a nice golden brown with a little crust.

Blackbeard's is another favorite place for Biscuit Boy to get his oyster fix.

A dozen oysters from Blackbeard's.

A little bit cheaper than JB's and usually just as good. Again, I'll have to take his word on it. I like the salad bar. Usually after a few days of little or no veggies, it's the perfect place to graze. There's nothing special about it, it's just a good standard salad bar. And when you get dinner there, they serve you a little bucket with hot rolls and cinnamon buns. We usually take the buns home for breakfast the next day.

A fairly new restaurant to the area is the Spanish River Grill. I overheard a waiter telling someone that they had been open 5 (or was it 6) years now. We discovered this gem last year. The owner's grandparents were from Cuba and his menu reflects much of that heritage. We went twice while we were down there, once with Biscuit Boy's parents and a couple of days later by ourselves. On our first visit, we started out with the Ceviche made from a fish called triple tail or Blackfish. It was out of this world. The fish was very tender and tasty and had just the right amount of lime juice, onion, and seasonings. Biscuit Boy ordered the Blackened Flat Iron Steak served with Lagonstino Scampi and fried potatoes. He asked the waiter for a wine recommendation and the guy knew his wine. He brought out a glass of some Spanish red that was perfect. The steak was fantastic as well. Tender as a filet and as big and beefy flavored as a sirloin. I snatched two bites but feared loosing a limb if I tried for a third. I ordered Wild King Salmon served with a sweet pepper stuffed with crab and yukon gold potatoes. The salmon was good but not the best I ever had. However, I could have eaten a dozen of the little crab stuffed peppers. The sweetness of the pepper and crab were a wonderful combination. The only problem with the meal was that we were too full for dessert. They sounded so mouth-watering that we had to go back a couple of days later.

The second time we ate there we skipped the appetizer and ate just an entree and dessert. Boy was it worth it. I ordered the Pan Seared Ahi Tuna.


Pan seared Ahi Tuna with a chimichurra rub.

It's cooked medium rare with a chimichurra rub and served with smashed yukon gold potatoes and garlic green beans. The fish was excellent and tender. The chimichurra rub added a nice flavor without overwhelming the fish. I loved the smashed yukons. They were nice and creamy without being overly rich. And the garlic green beans were amazing. If we had known how good these were, we'd have ordered another serving of them as a side dish. Garlicky, buttery and cooked until they were just barely crisp but not mushy.

Biscuit Boy ordered the whole fish of the day cooked Cuban style.

Whole Yellow Tail Snapper - Cuban Style.

The fish was a yellow tail snapper. It was fried whole and served with a cucumber-jalapeno relish over a bed of saffron rice. It was a very pretty, very tasty fish. Biscuit Boy picked it clean. While we were eating dinner, we were negotiating what to get for dessert. Several things sounded intriguing, the empanadas with guava filling, the manzano banana's foster or the chocolate bread pudding with dulce de leche ice cream. We saw the bananas foster and the chocolate bread pudding being served and both looked really good. But we were swayed by hearing all the waiters gushing over the bread pudding. We chose wisely. It was sooooooo good. It was moist and warm and had little pockets of chocolate interspersed throughout. Combined with the caramel ice cream, it was plate licking good. I kept scraping my spoon along the bottom of the plate trying to get every bit of melted ice cream. The only bread pudding better than this would be my late grandmother's.

So we enjoyed the sun, the beach and good food for two weeks and did not want to come home. It was a very relaxing trip which was much needed. The house we rented was great and I'd be glad to give anyone the owners name and number if you're interested.

Now we're back home and have the rest of the holiday weekend to re-adjust to our normal routines........and to begin planning our next trip to Florida this Fall.

Our 6th Anniversary (And comical dining)

Midway into our vacation, we also celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary. Knowing a good number of restaurants in New Smyrna Beach we began to think about where to celebrate the event almost as soon as we arrived last weekend. A few places we had not eaten at before sounded interesting too. And in the end we chose a place that came recommended by a past guest at the house we had rented. It was a very tiny restaurant called "The Patio." It's a tiny little house that has been converted into a restaurant. The dining room is the old front porch that has been closed in and seats no more than 25 people. A covered patio out back seats an additional 25-30 people as well.

We drove by on Saturday, the 21st, to see if they were open on Sunday (which was our actual anniversary). One of the owners had just stepped out from the back door as we pulled in so we inquired. He said they were closed on Sundays and asked if we would like to dine tonight instead. We said sure, why not. He took our name for a 7:30 reservation then excused himself to get back to prepping for a wedding reception they were hosting that afternoon out on the covered patio.

We drove away with high hopes for a lovely evening. For the rest of the day we lulled around the house, sat up on the roof deck, took the dog down to the beach and relaxed with Biscuit Boy's parents. They had come down for a week to vacation with us. My parents came down as well for the first 5 days we were there but had already gone back home by Saturday.

Early that evening, we got dressed up, had a pre-dinner drink with the in-laws and headed out for what was planned to be a romantic dinner.

We arrived at the restaurant right at 7:30. As we pulled in we noticed that the outdoor patio was still full of people. My first thought was that the wedding party from earlier was still going strong. But that shouldn't have any effect on our dinner plans, right? Wrong..........

Turns out it was not the wedding party but a second catered event the restaurant was hosting that day. This was a birthday party with 70 guests! We didn't find out this little tid bit until we had been sitting at our table for nearly 30 minutes (without even getting our drink order taken). I was ready to get up and leave but Biscuit Boy talked me out of it. Surely the restaurant staff was prepared to handle the large party in addition to the 25 diners in the dining room, right? Wrong......again.........

There were only two wait staff for all of the guests. One spent most of her time inside trying (and failing) to keep up. The other guy flitted in and out between the large party outside and the trying to lend a hand inside.

After 45 minutes, two other tables had also been seated. They got their water glasses filled and were given a basket of warm bread. We had one set of incomplete silverware, one (now warm) glass of water and no bread. I wanted to leave again, but Biscuit Boy cooed at me and smoothed my ruffled feathers. And, it was beginning to become comical watching the harried waitress try to smile and be friendly when you knew she just wanted to scream.

Finally, she came to our table and genuinely apologized for keeping us waiting. It made me feel better that at least she knew we had been waiting. We placed our order for the appetizer, a bottle of Moet White Star Champagne and the Chateaubriand for two. She asked it we were celebrating a special occasion and we said yes, our wedding anniversary. She offered her congratulations and said she'd be right back with some warm bread and our champagne.

About 10 minutes later, she comes out to inform us that because of the large birthday party and the full dining room, the chef said he was too busy to prepare the Chateaubriand. UGH!!!! So she gave some menus, suggested a few items and left to give a few minutes to rethink our dinner choices. We were giggling now, partially out of hunger but also from the chain of events thus far. Little did we know that it wasn't over yet.......

The waitress comes back about 5 minutes later with a bottle of champagne in her hand. It's not the White Star that we ordered. She tells us, "We're completely out of all the champagne except for this. Would you like it instead?" It was a bottle of Andre. Hmm.....let me think about this........we ordered a $45 bottle of champagne.........and we're offered a $4.00 bottle instead. Uh, no.....that's quite ok.

Biscuit Boy just asked for a carafe of the house red since we both had decided on steak for dinner. But had we known what the house red tasted like, we'd have most likely just had water. I'm not sure what brand it was but we're pretty sure it was bottled last Thursday. It was pretty bad stuff but after sitting there for well over an hour, starving, we didn't care.

Our appetizer finally arrived. A portabello mushroom cap stuffed with crab (and lots of filler) and topped with cheese. It was very big and fairly tasty, but we were also very hungry and set upon it like a pack of hungry wolves. By now the cheap red wine was kicking in too. We couldn't help but laugh to ourselves about the comedy of errors but knew that the entrees had yet to come.

Biscuit Boy ordered the Filet with Stuffed Shrimp. It was ok except for the big piece of fat in the middle of it. The shrimp were as much stuffed as they were just topped with some of the same crab (and lots of filler) stuffing. The baked potatoes we each had were barely done.

I ordered the Beef Wellington. It was supposed to be done medium rare and was supposed to be a filet. It came out medium if not medium well and if it was filet, it didn't come from a cow. It was stringy and tasted like pot roast.

We ate about half of our meals and finished off the red wine (We needed something to help us through the meal). We asked the waitress to box up the rest of our dinners and got a dessert to go (A slice of the richest, fudgiest chocolate cake I've ever eaten).

Throughout the entire evening the waitress was as gracious as she could be, and it was genuine. She really wanted us to have a good evening. When she brought our bill, she only charged us for a half carafe of wine and didn't charge us for the appetizer. She didn't have to do that but she did and for that reason, I would be brave enough to give the place another try. Call me a glutton for punishment but I really think the place can do better when they aren't stretched so thin. I would be sure to go on a night when they weren't catering any large parties. You could tell they were pushed to their limits that night and just couldn't handle it.

And it did make for a memorable evening. At least the parts that the red wine didn't fuzz out. Happy Anniversary Biscuit Boy........

Half way through vacation

Halfway through our vacation and we're having a great time. We think Biscuit Pup is having a good time too. She's chased ghost crabs across the beach, barked at turtles, chased a bunny and several lizards. Biscuit Boy got her to go in the water at the beach. Not so sure how she liked that but she didn't run back up to the dry sand so it must not have been too bad. She looked like a drowned rat.

The weather has been great so far and we've enjoyed sitting up on the roof deck of the house in the early evening watching the waves roll in and seeing the occasional dolphin jump in the water.

Biscuit Boy has eaten his share of oysters and I've had my share of blackened grouper. Life is good.
Time to go catch some rays..........

Look out Florida, here we come!

Come tomorrow morning, we are Florida bound for 2 week! I'll try to post when I can but won't have any pictures up until we get back. Biscuit Pup wants to eat a pelican.

Sun and Fun in Florida

The entire Biscuit clan is heading to the sunny beaches of Florida next week. I CAN'T WAIT! That's right fellow bloggers and bloggettes, next Friday before the sun comes up, Biscuit Boy, Biscuit Pup and I load up the car and drive to New Smyrna Beach where we're renting a house on the beach for two weeks.

We were really excited when we first planned the trip because the Space Shuttle was scheduled to take off from Cape Canaveral while we were going to be down there. But darn it all, they postponed it until July. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to find something else to do with my time. Let's see, there's the beach, and hmm....let's see.....the beach and what else......Oh yes, the beach....... HAHAHAHAHA Sometimes I just crack myself up.

I still plan to post a few things while down and will add pictures when I get back. Here's a little heads up.....most of the posts will be about seafood. Imagine that.