Jam-packed little roadside diner on the wayback from Duck Key. Possibly in Key Largo.
What we had:
Continuing my theme of conch, I had the conch fritter burger with eggs, hashedbrowns & a homemade biscuit (with local honey bottled special for the restaurant). Sometimes you gamble on a weird menu item & lose. This time I won. This was a surprisingly nice combination, though I didn't really need the Mickey Dees-style hashed brown patty. The slightly-yielding, lightly fried burger-sized fritter with unctuous egg yolk would have sufficed. You really can't go wrong with a homemade biscuit, either. Especially not one that's light, flaky & ever-so-slightly holds firm against your teeth.
My DH had the pancakes, which he thoroughly enjoyed.
Décor:
Homey, with tons of awards and pictures on the walls.
Service:
Diner efficient and down-home friendly.
Overall impressions:
A great little spot to fortify ourselves for the drive back.
Rating:
3.5 out of 5 salamanders
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Tom's Harbor House
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The main restaurant on Duck Key. The whole Key is basically Hawks Cay Resort (not my favorite place), this restaurant (which may or may not be affiliated), some tour boats & a pro shop/convenience store (affiliation also unknown).
What we had:
The meal started with hands-down the best conch fritters I've ever eaten. The perfectly-fried fritters had actual, discernable conch, nice flavor & a nice bite of spice.
I had the Mahi wrapped in banana leaves with Key lime butter, mixed veggies & coconut milk rice. OMG this dish was awesome. Almost regretted it, but I finished every bite. The fish was tender & perfect, the veggies were a nice mix that included vibrant red peppers, and the rice... The rice was fan-freaking-tabulous & I must make it at home.
My DH had the whole steamed w/crispy skin Yellowtail Snapper, which was also great (but not as great) and came served with veggies & rice.
Décor:
Non-obnoxious nautical with lots of honeyed wood.
Service:
Prompt & personable.
Overall impressions:
Mmmmmmmmmmm
Rating:
4 out of 5 salamanders
What we had:
The meal started with hands-down the best conch fritters I've ever eaten. The perfectly-fried fritters had actual, discernable conch, nice flavor & a nice bite of spice.
I had the Mahi wrapped in banana leaves with Key lime butter, mixed veggies & coconut milk rice. OMG this dish was awesome. Almost regretted it, but I finished every bite. The fish was tender & perfect, the veggies were a nice mix that included vibrant red peppers, and the rice... The rice was fan-freaking-tabulous & I must make it at home.
My DH had the whole steamed w/crispy skin Yellowtail Snapper, which was also great (but not as great) and came served with veggies & rice.
Décor:
Non-obnoxious nautical with lots of honeyed wood.
Service:
Prompt & personable.
Overall impressions:
Mmmmmmmmmmm
Rating:
4 out of 5 salamanders
The Wreck & Galley
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Sports-ish bar & grill right past Duck Key in the Florida Keys.
What we had:
I had the local-caught Grouper sandwich. The huge filet Grouper was delicate & flaky, the batter not overwhelming & the accompanying remoulade-reminescent sauce played a nice counterpoint.
My DH's chicken sandwich was flavorful & juicy.
Décor:
Typical Keys bar with stapled dollar bill decor, light sports memoribilia & light nautical theme.
Service:
Friendly & prompt.
Overall impressions:
A great start to our vacation.
Rating:
3.5 out of 5 salamanders
What we had:
I had the local-caught Grouper sandwich. The huge filet Grouper was delicate & flaky, the batter not overwhelming & the accompanying remoulade-reminescent sauce played a nice counterpoint.
My DH's chicken sandwich was flavorful & juicy.
Décor:
Typical Keys bar with stapled dollar bill decor, light sports memoribilia & light nautical theme.
Service:
Friendly & prompt.
Overall impressions:
A great start to our vacation.
Rating:
3.5 out of 5 salamanders
Kebab Something on 163rd
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I've been neglecting to tell you about a place for months now because it was horrible & I can't for the life of me remember the name.
This place is a kebab shop next to the Thai restaurant we visited with the purple napkins and Siddartha head on 163rd in for the life of me remember the name.
This place is a kebab shop next to the Thai restaurant we visited with the purple napkins and Siddartha head on 163rd in China land.
What we had:
Some sort of greasy, tough lamb kebab with obnoxious seasoning & too many over-fried little things in the sampler platter.
Décor:
Bland.
Service:
Meh.
Overall impressions:
Yick.
Rating:
2 out of 5 salamanders (ick, but no one got sick)
We also Re-visited Granny Feelgoods in Aventura a few months back, and it sucked horribly. We went for dinner & the food was bland, boring & lifeless; the service was tragic & the whole experience felt like a restaurant that had given up. Yuck-o--needless to say, we won't be going back if they remain open.
2 out of 5 salamanders
This place is a kebab shop next to the Thai restaurant we visited with the purple napkins and Siddartha head on 163rd in for the life of me remember the name.
This place is a kebab shop next to the Thai restaurant we visited with the purple napkins and Siddartha head on 163rd in China land.
What we had:
Some sort of greasy, tough lamb kebab with obnoxious seasoning & too many over-fried little things in the sampler platter.
Décor:
Bland.
Service:
Meh.
Overall impressions:
Yick.
Rating:
2 out of 5 salamanders (ick, but no one got sick)
We also Re-visited Granny Feelgoods in Aventura a few months back, and it sucked horribly. We went for dinner & the food was bland, boring & lifeless; the service was tragic & the whole experience felt like a restaurant that had given up. Yuck-o--needless to say, we won't be going back if they remain open.
2 out of 5 salamanders
New Dominos
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I grew up in a Pizza Hut or Little Caesars household. I think my father once likened Dominos to rat barf. So, when I saw the bold new ad campaign addressing the company's shortfallimgs, I was beyond intrigued and impressed. I fell for the taxidermied Quiznos hamsters, too.
What we had:
I had a mushroom & spinach pizza and my DH had a pepperoni & bacon pizza, both on original crust.
Go Dominos. I must say, this was entirely efible--the garlic brushed crust was pretty tasty, the sauce was much better than Papa Johns, the cheese came from a cow and the toppings were decent. The spinach was mummified, but points for having spinach in the first place.
Décor:
Messy again living area.
Service:
WTF? Why no delivery?
Overall impressions:
I'm impressed. Not impressed enough to choose it over delivery, but impressed all the same.
Rating:
3 out of 5 salamanders
What we had:
I had a mushroom & spinach pizza and my DH had a pepperoni & bacon pizza, both on original crust.
Go Dominos. I must say, this was entirely efible--the garlic brushed crust was pretty tasty, the sauce was much better than Papa Johns, the cheese came from a cow and the toppings were decent. The spinach was mummified, but points for having spinach in the first place.
Décor:
Messy again living area.
Service:
WTF? Why no delivery?
Overall impressions:
I'm impressed. Not impressed enough to choose it over delivery, but impressed all the same.
Rating:
3 out of 5 salamanders
Di Vita's Restaurant
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Not sure if this place us still also called Che Sopranos or not, but it's on Biscayne in MiMo.
What we had:
Delivery sandwiches on really nice foccacia. I had a grilled veggie sandwich with fresh mozzarella & pesto, which was tasty.
My DH had a plain chicken sandwich, which he didn't really want, so I don't think he really enjoyed. It didn't have cheese or bacon.
Décor:
Messy living space.
Service:
Decently snappy.
Overall impressions:
Not bad. I like the menu stance--nothing loaded with cheese or bacon and interesting pizzas.
Rating:
3 out of 5 salamanders
What we had:
Delivery sandwiches on really nice foccacia. I had a grilled veggie sandwich with fresh mozzarella & pesto, which was tasty.
My DH had a plain chicken sandwich, which he didn't really want, so I don't think he really enjoyed. It didn't have cheese or bacon.
Décor:
Messy living space.
Service:
Decently snappy.
Overall impressions:
Not bad. I like the menu stance--nothing loaded with cheese or bacon and interesting pizzas.
Rating:
3 out of 5 salamanders
Ye Olde Falcon Pub
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Irish pub on University in Plantation.
What we had:
I had the bangers & mash-frozen, steamed veggies that were blessedly butter-free, fresh mashed potatoes and pork sausagues that I wasn't a fan of (I know, right? Given my affinity for pork, I never thought I'd write such words either), covered in a decent beef gravy.
My DH had a chili cheese dog that ended up ripping his stomach up.
Our friend had the shepard's pie, which he thoroughly enjoyed.
Décor:
Dark (misding the smoky) and smelled like alcohol in the middle of the after nnon, but hey, it's a pub. Very Irish themed.
Service:
Typical for a bar.
Overall impressions:
Might be a good place to grab a pint & watch a game.
Rating:
3 salamanders
What we had:
I had the bangers & mash-frozen, steamed veggies that were blessedly butter-free, fresh mashed potatoes and pork sausagues that I wasn't a fan of (I know, right? Given my affinity for pork, I never thought I'd write such words either), covered in a decent beef gravy.
My DH had a chili cheese dog that ended up ripping his stomach up.
Our friend had the shepard's pie, which he thoroughly enjoyed.
Décor:
Dark (misding the smoky) and smelled like alcohol in the middle of the after nnon, but hey, it's a pub. Very Irish themed.
Service:
Typical for a bar.
Overall impressions:
Might be a good place to grab a pint & watch a game.
Rating:
3 salamanders
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