Down Home Eatin’
If you've never ventured to eastern Hillsborough County for a day of relaxation in the country, take an afternoon and meander through the verdant farmland near Plant City. This time of year, strawberries grow in bountiful fields as far as the eye can see, and roadside stands sell big flats of the freshest, most delectable…
Bring a Big Appetite to Big Tim’s
Transplants to Florida often miss one of the state's most notable culinary delights: country barbecue. One reason may be that the most authentic barbecue restaurants are small, family-owned and operated, often a single room or two hidden inconspicuously among the neighborhoods that supported them for decades. To find them, it helps to be a native.…
Maternal Boredom
Review: Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
Ol’ Fashioned Eatin’ on the Beach
Heilman's Beachcomber and its younger brother, Bobby's Bistro, share the same parking lot and the same 80,000-bottle wine cellar. What they don't share is the same century. At Bobby's, the year is 2001. But inside the Beachcomber, I'm deep in the previous century. A generation that learned sophistication by watching Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin…
Books
Vintage/$14
Real Mexican at Fast Food Prices
Since Ponce de Leon first set foot on our sandy soil and declared it "Floor-EE-dah!"— land of flowers — our pantry has been heavily stocked with the foods of Spanish-speaking peoples. And since large numbers of our early settlers were from Spain and Cuba, it is their dishes that dominate. In Tampa Bay, this has…
Biographical Bebop
Review: Side Man
Make Plans Way in Advance
Once upon a time, there were two bold young fellows named Frank Chivas and Tom Pritchard. Frank grew up among commercial fisherman and worked in seafood restaurants while Tom, who loved mucking about in kitchens, opened his own restaurant in Majorca. During their journeys, one of the young men (no one knows which) saved a…
Capital Pub
With all the beautiful flora and fauna, beaches and parks in our area, it really comes as a surprise that there are relatively few places to eat en plein air. Part of it has to do with the stifling heat that afflicts us six months out of the year; the other culprit is the misguided…
Moroccan Treasure
In my next life, I want to live with a Moroccan chef. I don't care if I come back as an employer, servant or household cat, as long as I'm in a position to have a Moroccan provide my daily meals. Morocco developed at the crossroads of the spice trade. Through its kitchens passed all…
Spins
Reviews of new releases from Townes Van Zandt, The Flatlanders, Lack and The Green Pajamas ******************************************* Townes Van Zandt Live at The Old Quarter, Houston, Texas A Gentle Evening With Townes Van Zandt Few individuals armed with only an acoustic guitar and an everyman's voice are capable of captivating a crammed room on a sweltering…
Letters
Responses to Trevor Aaronson's recent cover story about the Albert Whitted Airport dilemma in St. Pete, Mitch Perry's story on Hepatitis C and Fawn Germer's departure from the Planet. ****************************************** Fly Guys (and Gal) Re: "Airport Insecurity" by Trevor Aaronson (May 22-28) As a guy who buys used cars of the Honda Civic variety to…
Health Blossoms
When my sister and I were infants, my mother referred to expulsions of natural gas as "blossoms." We'd be splashing away in the tub when a telltale stream of bubbles would spiral toward the surface of the water, and my mother would demand to know "who's blowing blossoms?" Years later, my creative writing teacher embarrassed…
Get Off the Bus
Two affluent beach communities refuse to subsidize Pinellas County’s mass-transit system.
DVD Pick: Chungking Express
Chungking Express Shot on a shoestring in less time than it takes most filmmakers to roll out of bed in the morning, Chungking Express is one of the most enervating, visually radical movies of the '90s, even as it rushes to embrace the collective spirit of cinema past (particularly the French New Wave). Hong Kong…
A Local Breakfast Tradition
Sunrise is one of the day's most exhilarating hours, since it affords us freedoms we don't ordinarily possess. At 6 a.m., it's possible to jog or skate unimpeded by people or cars; we can tear recklessly about on a bike, leashless mutt in pursuit; or, assuming your neighbors are still snoozing, you can even search…
Stock Tips
According to many high-falutin' wine experts, storing wine in anything but a state-of-the-art, temperature-controlled cellar is nothing short of wine abuse. These misguided folks claim wine is so very delicate that if you so much as hiccup while holding the bottle, the wine will be forever ruined by the sudden vibration. At the other end…
New Florida Cuisine, Old Florida Setting
I planned to write about Perch, not shark, but this morning, while kayaking around Shell Island, I watched a 15-foot hammerhead butcher a tarpon mere yards from my tiny boat. I was in water so shallow it exposed half the beast, his freckled, sandy back, flailing tail and towering fin, as he spun and thrashed…
Dining in the Garden
With all the beautiful flora and fauna, beaches and parks in our area, it really comes as a surprise that there are relatively few places to eat en plein air. Part of it has to do with the stifling heat that afflicts us six months out of the year; the other culprit is the misguided…
Find Your Lousiana Treats Here
With all the beautiful flora and fauna, beaches and parks in our area, it really comes as a surprise that there are relatively few places to eat en plein air. Part of it has to do with the stifling heat that afflicts us six months out of the year; the other culprit is the misguided…
Web Site: Rap Game(s)
http://www.cashmoney-records.com/frameset_home.htm
Fine Dining Fusion
The first time I reviewed the Blue Gardenia, Tom and Emily Golden were in the early stages of turning a storefront in a Safety Harbor strip mall into a neighborhood bistro. It was their first venture into self-employment (i.e., see Webster's definition of "masochism.") and their energy and enthusiasm carried them well past the limitations…
The Spy Who Came In From the Hood
Review: Bad Company
Wok About
Having experienced a number of extremely poor takeout Chinese meals in recent months, I decided to ask a few chefs to reveal their favorite Chinese restaurants. Alas, their replies were disturbingly similar — and depressing. Typical was this missive: "I'm afraid I won't be able to help you right now for some Chinese takeout places,"…
Outtakes
About a Boy (PG-13) It's a long way from American Pie to this compact little charmer about the redemption of a sexual predator, but that's exactly the journey taken by writer-directors Paul and Chris Weitz. About a Boy is based on a 1998 book by popular Brit novelist Nick Hornby (High Fidelity) and boasts a…
Ocean Side Brunch
Easter is as good an excuse as any to throw a big dinner for family or friends, spend a leisurely day at the beach, indulge in religious contemplation, sample one of the lavish brunches many restaurants offer — or all of the above. And at two well-situated local restaurants, you can even combine a truly…
Freebie: Art Hop Appreciation Day
There's nothing like an art hop to bring out the closeted art lovers who, like most of us, never seem to be able to find time to hit all the good galleries in the Bay area. This Saturday, June 8, the excuses run out. The Tampa Gallery Association's annual summer art hop coincides with the…
Classic Food Classic View
Just before sunset, the Maseratis and BMWs and 'Vettes start lining up outside the Salt Rock Grill. Valets quickly zip the pricey cars away as their owners pile into the restaurant, overflow into its classy bars and occupy the patios overlooking the water. The restaurant is probably prettiest once the sun has actually set, its…
Sludge Packers
Seattle’s Melvins storm into Tampa
Classy Dining in a Casual Atmosphere
With all the beautiful flora and fauna, beaches and parks in our area, it really comes as a surprise that there are relatively few places to eat en plein air. Part of it has to do with the stifling heat that afflicts us six months out of the year; the other culprit is the misguided…
Tea and Conversation
Tea became the rage in England in 1662, when Charles II, nicknamed "the Merry monarch," married the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza. As part of her dowry, she brought with her to England a large chest of tea, drunk in China for millennia, but newly introduced in Europe. It was so expensive, only royalty could…
Turning on Tampa
Letting politicians decide what is good public access will deprive the community of entertaining, even informative shows that ratings-obsessed commercial stations would never air. Unlike network TV, public access doesn't leave any of the nuts and unsavory ingredients out of the cable melting pot. That equality seems to be one of public access' problems. Hillsborough…
Modern and Classic Italian
Downtown St. Pete, once the ugly duckling, has become a lovely swan. It's such a pleasant place to play, so much nicer than downtown Tampa. There's the Pier and BayWalk, with dozens of shops and restaurants; there's the blue magic of Tampa Bay, fronted by 65 acres of parkland. There's live music at Jannus Landing,…
Brunch with a View
Easter is as good an excuse as any to throw a big dinner for family or friends, spend a leisurely day at the beach, indulge in religious contemplation, sample one of the lavish brunches many restaurants offer — or all of the above. And at two well-situated local restaurants, you can even combine a truly…
Tea Stateside
Tea became the rage in England in 1662, when Charles II, nicknamed "the Merry monarch," married the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza. As part of her dowry, she brought with her to England a large chest of tea, drunk in China for millennia, but newly introduced in Europe. It was so expensive, only royalty could…
A Green Gathering
I'm rarely speechless, except when people ask, "What's your favorite restaurant?" How can I rifle through my memory, a mosaic made up of thousands of marvelous meals eaten at places all over the map, and pick one restaurant? It's impossible. But if someone would ask me, "What's your favorite kind of restaurant?" I could answer…
