[My ongoing series for 2016 continues ... with the TWELFTH of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA (coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!]
Establishment: 925 Neuvo's Cubano's
Location: Ft. Lauderdale
Meal: Lunch
Drink: Coca-cola (in a can with a straw)
Appetizer: Empanadas with Cuban Sofrito
Stuffed Meat and Stuffed Spinach and Ricotta
Main: Cubano Sandwich
Side(s): Fries
Dessert: n/a
Server: Lou
Website: not applicable
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/925-Nuevos-Cubanos-567264226673110/
There's a laminated poster of an old newspaper article that starts with the following: "You've driven past a thousand times ..." and I do believe that that number might actually be higher for me and mine, as this walk up stand is on a main road and close to both ye olde homestead AND ye new olde homestead. Finally ... today ... the trigger was pulled, and this establishment was chosen for this ongoing series. As noted below, it's a unique place in a unique spot (right along a major thoroughfare in a section that is much more industrial than residential), best suited for daytime eats and rumor is that it stays open until it closes (which may or may not be on a regular schedule). It promises the real Cuban experience in the FTL and here's how it delivers:
AMBIANCE: 10/10 (a quick glance at the number of pictures of the establishment vs the food that accompany today's post, and it's clear that one of the best things about this place is being there ... and none of the photos captured the sounds [authentic music from the loudspeakers, the chirps of the birds who know an easy target when they saw one and the multi-lingual buzz of the patrons and employees] ... with outdoor seating scattered throughout in all kinds of nooks [ONLY outdoor seating, so go on a beautiful day for optimal effect], patrons are surrounded by colorful signs and mementos hearkening back to Havana)
FOOD: 8/10 (the empanadas were stuffed full and the homemade hot sauce [Cuban sofrito] added just the right amount of kick and was clearly freshly made ... the sandwich was on point, with large portions of pork and ham and cheese and the mustard and pickles to punch it up ... a point is lost for ordinary fries that weren't the hottest and another for the sandwich not being pressed as much as I would have expected it to have been)
SERVICE: 10/10 (it's a walk-up style, so the service is just during the order taking, but we were greeted quickly and the food arrived right away ... with paper towels bolted down at all the various eating nooks, every need was anticipated and taken care of)
BACON: 5/10 (so again this is another establishment with nary a reference to bacon on the menu ... but there is plenty of ham and pork and authentic Cuban-ness all around, so it would be unfair to not grant any points in this category)
BONUS: 9/10 (+3 for being a long time family owned business, +3 for the placement of the POW flag and the obvious military service of the owner and +3 for the entertainment of watching patrons try to navigate the tight "parking lot"/driveway as they come and go [sometimes with the assist of the owner])
TroyScore: 42 out of 50 -- aka 84, a solid B
[My ongoing series for 2016 continues ... with the ELEVENTH of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA (coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!]
Establishment: Bru's Room
Location: Coral Springs
Meal: Dinner
Drink: Guiness (with one 'n', see sign below -- although it tasted like the real thing)
Appetizer: Chicken Noodle Soup
Main: Mahi Tacos (3)
Blackened Mahi, Guacamole, Lettuce, Bruschetta Tomaotes, Sriracha Ranch in Flour Tortillas, with Chips & Salsa
Side(s): Buffalo Chips
Seasoned, spiral-cut, potato chips
Dessert: n/a
Server: Jules
Website: http://brusroom.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrusRoomSportsGrill
Who knew? The FTL has 'burbs! A trip into reclaimed Everglades marshland that was citified back in the sixties was part of the plan once Bru posted on Bru's facebook earlier this month that Bru had a limited supply of a Maple BACON Coffee Porter (sadly, a VERY limited supply, as explained in the score sections) ... and the Coral Springs location (Bru has 10 of these "rooms", all over the area) was the one chosen because friends live in town and vouched for the place. With a nod to the fact that it was basically a higher quality of bar food ... expectations were exceeded. More details by category:
AMBIANCE: 9/10 (it's huge, with a number of different rooms, and big indoor and outdoor bars plus a separate veranda area with booths and tables far enough from the bar that trivia night didn't overtake our party's meal conversation ... and although it's actually an outparcel of a mall, it's so well landscaped that you don't really realize it until you get in the car to leave the parking lot ... as a sports bar, there are TVs every three feet and even they weren't intrusive ... just one point lost for being so far out in the 'burbs!)
FOOD: 8/10 (everything was very good with tacos that tasted very fresh and a soup that was quite flavorful [and I do love me some ribbon noodles and big chunks of chicken in my chicken noodle soup], but there's a point lost for some missed opportunities with seasoning [especially in the chips and the mahi before added the sriracha ranch])
SERVICE: 8/10 (our main server was friendly and attentive, and she took the time to explain the absence of the beer that actually brought us to this place [see above and below] ... but her "helpers" are hurting in this category and causing some docked points -- one for them just throwing down the silverware and napkins for the whole table in front of me and a second one for them not taking empty dishes when delivering the main meal plates)
BACON: 9/10 (that's actually one point for every reference to bacon on the menu ... and Bru's boys aren't afraid to add it to nachos and salads and homemade pizza and chicken sandwiches and, of course, multiple burger offerings ... so even though there was no bacon in the choices I made [shocking I know], the place deserves points EXCEPT for the fact that they were out of the maple bacon coffee porter that we saw on the facebook earlier in the month)
BONUS: 10/10 (all the possible bonus points for having a little arcade room for the kiddies [with maybe four games] that included ... wait for it ... a Batman themed 'whac-a-mole' game ... boom, drop the mic!)
TroyScore: 44 out of 50 -- aka 88, a high B
[My ongoing series for 2016 continues ... with the TENTH of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA (coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!]
Establishment: Jalisco Restaurant
Location: Ft Lauderdale
Meal: Late Dinner (we actually closed the place at 10pm)
Drink: Coca-Cola
Appetizer: Chicken Soup
Delightful delicious homemade soup loaded with chunks of tender chicken floating in a savory, simmering broth with rice. Some say it is magical!
Main: Sizzling Fajitas (Steak and Chicken combo)
Marinated chunk skirt or chicken breast are grilled with fresh bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, green peppers and spices, then presented sizzling at your table with sour cream, Mexican relish, cheese, and hot tortillas to be combined and eaten like a taco
Side(s): Guac to go with the warm chips and salsa (one each of hot and not) and the above fajita accessories
Dessert: n/a
Server: Linda
Website: not applicable
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jalisco-Retaurante/100860013292824
There's a lot to be said about an unassuming place that simply puts out good food ... and that's exactly how it felt when my sister and her eldest son joined me for a late dinner after his swim meet this past weekend at this restaurant. Full disclosure -- I'm not the biggest fan of Mexican food ... mostly because I get in my own head about the textures and don't like how everything blends together on one plate. However, that didn't matter here because of the great variety of choices ... which allowed me to get a dish that didn't have a pool of beans (not that there's anything wrong with them). I almost got a dish called the "crazy Mexican", but didn't feel comfortable saying that out loud ... just like I almost got an authentic pineapple soda, but chose coca cola in the end. And, in a worst case scenario, I *could* have ordered the Hamburgeusa, which was in the "gringo" section of the menu! But I didn't ... and my evaluation is below:
AMBIANCE: 8/10 (it's much bigger than it looks from the outside, with a cute cantina bar and walls filled with the stereotypical things one would expect like sombreros and panchos and the like ... plus the staff all reinforce the concept in that they likely may not know a lot of English ... a point is being deducted though because there were workers in the foyer while we were eating [you can see them in the photo below] taking advantage of close-to-closing time to work on some kind of project and another one lost because the TVs weren't working at the time)
FOOD: 8/10 (there was plenty of it -- one of those plates where halfway through the meal you felt like you hadn't yet made a dent in what you had eaten and every bit of it was tasty ... that said, a point is lost for the excess cilantro in the chicken noodle soup [that was otherwise "delightful and delicious" just as the menu description promised] and another point lost because no one gave a warning about how spicy the "Mexican relish" was that was in the mix as a taco-add)
SERVICE: 10/10 (hot food [sizzling hot!] that was delivered quickly from a menu that was designed for the nonSpanish speaker ... and although our meal bumped into their closing time, there wasn't a single bit of pressure to "eat and get out")
BACON: 5/10 (it's a tricky category, as traditional authentic Mexican food is more about the fresh ingredients ... and although the menu includes many references to pork and carnitas and such, the reality is that I didn't see a single reference to bacon on the menu ... out of sensitivity to the culture and because of the high scores in all the other categories, I'll put a few points on the board)
BONUS: 10/10 (+3 because I scared the server by asking her her name at the end of the meal [I did NOT ask her her immigration status], +3 for having a menu description that included permission to "lick the plate" on an item, +3 because it's so close to where I live and +1 because it is a place to which we will definitely return]
TroyScore: 41 out of 50 -- aka 82, a low B (B as in bacon, which would have raised the score on my scale)
[My ongoing series for 2016 continues ... with the NINTH of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA (coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!]
Establishment: Shawn & Nick's Courtyard Cafe
Location: Wilton Manors
Meal: Late Lunch
Drink: NOT Coca-Cola (I think it ended up having to be root beer?)
Appetizer: n/a
Main: Grilled Monte Cristo
Ham, turkey, swiss on french toast
Side(s): Tots (12 of them ...)
Dessert: n/a
Server: John
Website: http://www.wiltonmanorscourtyardcafe.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CourtyardCafeWM/
It's always nice to get in a place you've driven past so many times and to be surprised with the layout ... in this case, that a strip of little cottage stores "on the Drive" included a covered courtyard in the back. Of course, we *almost* didn't eat in the establishment, because, upon walking in, we got looks that were less than welcoming. That, combined with the fact that the sign said the specials ended at 3pm made us think that maybe they were about to close, and so we spun around and headed out the door until we realized our mistake. All in all, for a late lunch, it was adequate ... and, as stated below, I have a feeling that it might get a higher rating at a different time of day ...
AMBIANCE: 9/10 (as an animal lover, I didn't mind sharing the space with local lizards, a few birds and a french bulldog at the table next to us ... just a single point lost because it looks like it could use a quick freshening up)
FOOD: 7/10 (a point lost for being a Pepsi establishment [what is this? the seventies?], another lost for the tater tot rationing, and a final point lost for there being too much of a powdered sugar dusting on the sandwich)
SERVICE: 7/10 (one point lost for the attitude when we entered, one point lost for a server who seemed taxed when trying more than one task at a time and one point lost for having to stand up and corner that server to pay the bill so we could leave)
BACON: 9/10 (thanks to serving breakfast all the time, bacon is mentioned 32 times on the menu [I searched online ... I didn't sit there and count while at the cafe], so I'll only deduct one point because I didn't think to ask to have it added to MY sandwich at the time)
BONUS: 7/10 (+3 because it's open 24 hours through the weekends to serve all the drunky-drunks, +3 because it's a fixture of the community and +1 because it is a place to which I would return, only because I feel like the experience might be different in the evening [or at four in the morning])
TroyScore: 39 out of 50 -- aka 78, a high C
[My ongoing series for 2016 continues ... with the EIGHTH of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA (coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!]
Establishment: Tropical Acres
Location: Ft. Lauderdale
Meal: Dinner
Drink: Coca-Cola
Appetizer: Gorgonzola Toast and Fried Zucchini Slices
Main: Porterhouse Steak
(Certified Angus Beef) 25-26 oz King of Cuts
Side(s): Mushroom gravy and Baked potato
add bacon, butter and cheese
Dessert: Fresh made cheesecake
cherry
Server: Jill for front service
Website: http://www.tropicalacres.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TropicalAcres
There's a tradition that dates back many many years in my home ... for my birthday, we go to a steak house. Having lived in Chicago for over a dozen years, *that* made complete sense ... and we are holding out hope that the tradition translates well to southern Florida. For this year's edition, visiting family joined us at the oldest steak house in southern Florida ... and although the steak I got sure did fill up the plate (so much so that it was too full to even start to cut it), this choice didn't quite live up to the experiences of some past steak houses. However, it should be said, that it was known going in that this was more reasonably priced ... and the saying is true ... you get what you pay for. The details are below, as per usual ... but to sum it up ... to get dressed up and to *pretend* to go out somewhere nice, this fit the bill.
AMBIANCE: 8/10 (with an "attached to a hotel" feel, the space was plenty big, and our party had a booth in the corner where we could see out over the restaurant with its frosted glass panels and giant ceiling fans made out of boat rudders ... and the pewter plates and dessert cart were a nice touch ... but a point lost for booths that were a touch too small for our four people and another point lost because the place was too bright overall)
FOOD: 6/10 (a point lost for a pet peeve of mine [warm rolls {yay!} but nearly frozen butter pats that can't be spread {boo}], a point lost for a gristly steak experience, a point lost for fried zucchini that needed a touch more flavor and a point lost for a burnt steak of someone else at the table that was ordered medium)
SERVICE: 7/10 (one point lost for a leaky wine bottle the server poured, another point lost for the back server having no personality and a third lost for a bartender who was so slow that one drink came well into the meal [and it had to be sent back because it was wrong])
BACON: 6/10 (although no one in our party ordered them, they do have the good sense to wrap their filets in bacon ... and I had plenty to add to my baked potato, so that's good for a handful of points)
BONUS: 9/10 (+3 because server Jill did try to make the best of it by presenting a bubbly disposition that bordered on ditzy but was certainly entertaining, +3 for being the oldest steakhouse in southern Florida, and +3 magnanimously because it was my annual birthday meal)
TroyScore: 36 out of 50 -- aka 72, a low C
