Prosecco Cafe at PGA Commons
July 11, 2010
PALM BEACH GARDENS - PGA Commons will welcome Prosecco Café, opening fall of this year.
The restaurant will be a relaxed European bistro serving breakfast, lunch and dinner and featuring great sandwiches, wines, savory desserts, cappuccino and more. Owner Avi Sekerel has been delightingBoca Raton with Saquella Café and now looks forward to serving Palm Beach Gardens. Avi received his education at the prestigious HotelConsult Cèsar Ritz in Switzerland, went on to open numerous restaurants, write a cook book on guiltless gourmet, and even hosted his own cooking show in Israel from 2003-2005.
Avi takes pride in his restaurants being a no-fry-zone offering fresh delicious meals at an approachable price point. Diners will enjoy gelato made fresh in front of them, artful salads, and at least three fish dishes in addition to a full diverse menu offered each day. A treat that is sure to become a favorite is “afugatto” the one calorie Italian favorite of espresso whipped with fresh made fat free gelato.
Also at the center:
- Top Drawer is expanding from 1300 to 1600 square feet. Owner Joyce Weiss opened the unique shop in 2007 featuring “fashions for the sophisticated woman” and in the last few years has found success through excellent customer service and featuring all European hand selected fashions that you simply cannot find anywhere else. In the boutique you will find designers such as: Le Painty, Zanella, Newman, Dismero, VotreNom, Missoni, Gran Sasso, Gossip, Vera Wang, GF Ferre and of course Elegantissimo, just to name a few. They also offer custom professional tailoring. Grand opening at the new location is scheduled for mid summer.
- Furry Paws opening later this week, will feature pet beds, leashes, food, treats and more in PGA Commons East. Well behaved pets are always welcome to shop with their parents to help pick out a treat! Owner Melissa Ayers looks forward to meeting you and the furry paws!
- Coldwell Banker Real Estate is opening a branch in PGA Commons East late summer. The brand was founded in 1906 on a commitment to professionalism and customer service that remains the core of their business philosophy today. They are the nation’s oldest real estate organization and their experience has helped make the dream of homeownership a reality for millions of families.
PGA Commons offers three distinct centers spanning one mile along PGA Boulevard between I95 and the Florida Turnpike.
See www.PGACommons.com.
Catch Owen’s Fish Camp in Sarasota
July 11, 2010
SARASOTA - Owen’s Fish Camp, located in the cozy Burns Court area of downtown, is a throwback to the Florida fish camps of old. These fish camp restaurants, once plentiful, were but shacks with porches, plentiful portions and a focus on a few key dishes that had local origins, either vegetable or fish.
Owen’s, which opened in early 2010, is named for early Sarasota pioneer Owen Burns. The stand manages to be deliberately nostalgic without being affected. It’s the quality of the experience. On a packed Friday night, everyone seemed to have time and attention for everyone else. Patrons included families with grandchildren, couples on dates, retired folk, and young singles. No group so ruled the roost that they turned the place into their own territory. Instead, it was all about everyone.
Located on a back street under a banyan, it’s owned by the Caragiulo brothers, who run the successful Caragiulos on Palm Avenue. It’s a basic seafood menu, all reasonably priced, with some inexpensive sandwich items. Fish come three ways, with a few basic sauces, all well prepared. With a fish dinner, I got corn on the cob, served with mismatched corn-cob holders. Now that’s authentic Florida.
Menu items run to the retro, but not annoyingly so. Including menu items such as greens and rhubarb strawberry pie can quickly turn cliche, as if these items could be seen as somehow gimmicky. But they both were obviously on the menu for a sensible serious reason; they taste good, and give patrons something different.
My former co-worker and Florida food connoisseur Silly Goose loves the place.
Creating a hit restaurant that captures a moment and place is always a difficult thing; it’s even more difficult at the height of a desperate recession, but the reasonable prices and restrained atmosphere suit the times.
See Owen’s Fish Camp, 516 Burns Ct., Sarasota Fl 34236, call (941) 951-6936 or owensfishcamp.com
Best-Ever British Pasties in Sarasota
June 28, 2010
One of the best of the Florida British goods companies is 4 & 20 Pasty Company in Sarasota County. Located on Swift Road just a few stoplights past Siesta Key, the Pasty Company has all the great British bakery items including pork pies, desert pasties, Cornish pasties, steak kidney and mushroom pie, shepherd’s pie and other assorted baked goods. Owners Richard and Barbara Posner, who started the business in 1990, hail from London. Read more
Sarasota’s Hob Nob, Classic Florida Drive-In
May 18, 2010
Grand Marlin Opens in Pensacola
May 2, 2010
PENSACOLA – Set for spring opening, The Grand Marlin features beach cuisine, an outside deck on Santa Rosa Sound, a private dining room, bar and live music.
Bryan Housley, operating partner of Atlanta’s Ray’s on the River will serve as manager, while award-winning chef of the Virginia Highland’s Murphy’s, Gregg McCarthy, will serve as executive chef. See www.thegrandmarlin.com.
Skyline, the New Airplane Bar in Miami
February 7, 2010
MIAMI BEACH – Look for the new bar Skyline, an airplane themed bar-lounge. It was made with four retired commercial jets including a DC-9 and 747. Co-creators are Javier Maldonado, a Spanish entrepreneur with interests in Ibiza and Madrid, and Carina Burguete, a Mexican restaurateur.
The new Miami club houses a bar made of an actual airplane wing, booths which give clients the option of window or aisle, a private, high- rollers’, first-class lounge, and of course stewardesses that besides serving drinks will sing and dance. The cocktail list includes: Crash Landing Turbulence Drink, the High Jack shot, Flight 69, Airforce One, Red Eye, the Altitude, the Black Box Martini, and the most recent addition, the Miracle on the Hudson. The bar is at 645 Washington Avenue. See www.skylinemia.com
B Bar Opens In Miami’s Betsy
February 6, 2010
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| From Website-Floridasnapshot.com |
MIAMI - Representing a fresh take on vintage glamour, the new B Bar, in the hotel Betsy, is a nightclub that evokes an older time.
The bar as envisioned by designer Callin Fortis of Big Time Design Studios, said it is “intentionally crafted with French mid century contemporary styling which rests delicately on top of true nightclub bones.”
It’s a true cocktail lounge, with drinks that include:
- Hendricks Gin based Blue Velvet is infused with blueberries and raspberries and shaken extra cold with Luxardo Maraschino Original.
- Black Pearl combines Corner Creek Bourbon, fresh blackberries and elderflower liquor,.
- The signature Josephine pays homage to The Fabulous Ms. Baker, created with apricot liqueur and Thousand Flower runny honey.
It’s had good writeups. On December 28, 2009 Urban Daddy said it was “Everything that was important in Miami….” The Sun Post included B Bar in their “Guide to Some of the Year’s Best Moments in Miami.”
You get to B Bar through The Betsy Hotel located on Ocean Drive. A hidden staircase brings you to the lower level of The Betsy hotel from Wednesday through Saturday evenings 9 pm to 3 am. See www.bbarmiami.com
Visit Cafe Bustelo In Miami’s South Beach
July 18, 2009
MIAMI – If you want to take a bit of Cuban Florida home, grab a package of Cafe Bustelo coffee to take home.
The espresso coffee is a Florida classic, made even more interesting because they sell a canned chilled version of the drink, and have a Cafe Bustelo shop at the Hotel Gaansevort. Read more
Visit Palm Beach Restaurants for September Deals
June 29, 2009
PALM BEACH – Flavor Palm Beach, the second annual Palm Beach County restaurant month is coming this September. For the entire month, the county’s finest restaurants, will offer a special three course Flavor menu for the fixed price of $19.09 for lunch and $30 for dinner. Flavor Palm Beach is poised and ready to excite, tantalize, and satisfy your every craving.
Flavor Palm Beach was established to allow residents and visitors alike to try many wonderful restaurants at lower prices, while the restaurants benefit from more patrons in a traditionally slower traffic month. The area benefits from increased commerce and tourism. Flavor Palm Beach truly is a win-win situation and an epicurean’s delight.
Some of the restaurants participating in Flavor Palm Beach include: Seasons 52, III Forks, Capital Grille, Forte, and Ironwood Grille that will offer 2 for $19.09 lunch and 2 for $30 dinner specials. Prices are per person and exclude beverages, tax, and gratuity. A complete list of participating restaurants and menus will be available at www.FlavorPalmBeach.com .
A kick-off event will be held the evening of August 28th at Centennial Square on Clematis Street benefiting The Palm Beach County Red Cross. This event will feature some of the participating Flavor restaurants, entertainment, gift bags, and more. Tickets can be purchased in advance for $15 at www.flavorpalmbeach.com or for $20 at the event. Last year this was a sold out event.
Reservations can be made at www.FlavorPalmBeach.com or by contacting the restaurant directly. Due to the popularity of this event, advance reservations are strongly encouraged, but walk-ins are welcome.
Flavor Palm Beach is proud to partner with Zagat, Downtown Development Authority, SouthFloridaDines.com, Opentable.com, Store Self and Wine Storage, and the Palm Beach County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Flavor Palm Beach is still accepting applications from restaurants and seeking partnerships for this event. Please contact Briana at BB@FlavorPalmBeach.com, 561-315-8803 or visit www.FlavorPalmBeach.com for more information.
Briana Bournique, Founder of Flavor Palm Beach, is a fifth generation Floridian. She studied Hospitality Management at the University of Florida and has worked for the Brazilian Court Hotel in Palm Beach and the Shore Club and Delano Hotels in Miami Beach. During her time in Miami, she enjoyed the fare and fun of Miami Spice and wanted to bring a similar event to Palm Beach palettes. It is now a mainstay on the South Florida calendars. Bon Appetit!
Top Classic Miami Region Restaurants
May 16, 2009
MIAMI - While in Miami, you will want to try at least a few of the classic restaurants. Each have figured in Miami history and will give you a flavor of this great city.
Joe’s Stone Crab: Who could ever go to Miami Beach without a stop here. Just remember, there are no reservations, but you can call ahead and find out how long the wait is. Yes, it was in Goldfinger. See www.joesstonecrab.com
Puerto Sagua: Classic old-school Cuban, white jackets and great prices. Classic vintage feeling, with lunch counter, 305-673-1115
Shorty’s: The venerable bbq restaurant, 9200 South Dixie Highway. www.shortys.com
Tobacco Road: This is Miami’s oldest bar; way cool neon at 626 S Miami Avenue. www.tobacco-road.com
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