Late to the party but may be moving to Florida so I’d love to see recs there
Where in Florida are you moving? I can help you with the St Pete/ Tampa area
Welcome back. We keep crossing paths, first in Bklyn Heights (Henry’s End, Noodle Pudding, etc) & now your area of Florida. We’ve been renting in Indian Shores/IRB each winter for years, but didn’t go this year & may not be coming back (not sure yet - we’d need to find a new rental). Have you gone up to Clearwater Beach and tried Heilman’s Beachcomber yet? Its an old line place with live piano music and more than decent food. We really like it. Also, our rental was across the street from Salt Rock Grill, which we found to be a nice place, especially at both their indoor and outdoor bar areas. We also liked Fodder and Shine in Tampa, but that’s only based on one lunch several years ago. And, of course, the original Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City. But the place we miss the most, by far, is Bern’s.
Probably St. Augustine or Palm Coast. Still at early stages. Thanks!
Ah, Berns and the wine list . . .
Also, fried grouper sandwiches at Frenchy’s Cafe and Dockside Dave’s . . .
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Hey Steve - yes it’s such a small world. We’re usually down here for 6 months (Nov-May ish) but got stuck this year and so have been here for about a year and a half. It’s a mess in Florida so we don’t really go out.
In the past era we made the rounds of mainly St Pete and environs. St Pete has some terrific restaurants and is becoming quite a food scene.
Avoid the Clearwater craziness as much as is possible (altho have heard great things about Heilman’s Beachcomber and occasionally go to Frenchys for a grouper sandwich). Salt Rock Grill is reliable. Dont go often to Tampa but love the original Columbia and often go when dropping off or picking up at the airport.
We will be probably be heading up to Asbury Park sometime in May or June until the Fall before coming back down. If you come down let me know.
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St Augustine is lovely. Completely different area from us but have been several times. Could give you some restaurant suggestions there if you’d like.
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Lol Frenchy’s and Dockside Dave’s for grouper 
New places constantly opening around Indian Rocks and up/down the Gulf. Some new ones since you’ve been here probably
I’m on the Tampa side, but up for a HOdown anywhere you want to go. There are some good tables in Bradenton and Sarasota, too. Tarpon Springs and Dunedin are good, too and @Scubadoo97 might be persuades to join us!
But for the love of all that is holy, wait till a couple of weeks after Easter. I’ve been here 35+ years and simply dont go to the beach till the 'birds go home.
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Sounds good for next year. Not going anywhere during covid. People are crazy down here!!
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Yes, please. We are going down at the beginning of May to look around. Would love some suggestions around the SA and Palm Coast areas. Not seafood fans though!
The Floridian, Catch 27 and Ice Plant have all been highly recommended. On our list for next visit.
We have friends who live in St. Augustine and, when we passed through a couple of years ago, we ate at Preserved: https://striverestaurant.com/storage/2020/06/ReOpening-Menu-2.pdf. and liked it. They seem to not be too seafood/fish centric, but I have to admit that’s what we ate there.
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If you plan to scout a bit farther south, toward Jupiter and North Palm Beach, you should check out my blog, johntannersbbqblog, for a lot of good seafood places and a Cuban place or two. There also is a lot on SW Florida (which I prefer – much less crowded, better for beaches and, I think, the Gulf seafood. And the sunsets, of course.)
And Florida is doing much better on COVID these days. We were in Key West in January, and felt very comfortable. OF course, we stayed out of bars and avoided Duval St. at night – common sense precautions). You can see current data by state in the NYTimes and other papers.
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Yes, the Gulf Coast is wonderful - beaches, seafood and low key vibes are all superb. Its actually not true that Florida is doing well with covid. Everything is packed to the gills (beaches, bars, restaurants) with way too many anti-maskers. The governor is being investigated for hiding/lying about covid stats as well as for diverting vaccines to his top donors, while the rest of the state is forced into the Hunger Games to snag an appointment. New (and much more dangerous) variants are exploding throughout Florida now, just in time for spring break. It’s crazy down here…
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I’m in Dunedin
Born in Tampa, raised in Clearwater and had my practice in Dunedin for 36 yrs before selling to a new Doc
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I can only speak to my own experience in Key awestruck and Marco Island. There certainly was crowding at bars (see my post on the Snook Inn), but in the main the behavior was pretty much like that DC (where there’s also crowding at bars). I certainly can imagine more general misbehavior in other areas.
Ha! Key West, not Ket Awestruck.
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We’re in St Pete Beach. Clearwater must be tens times worse. Try to stay away from there as much as is possible. It’s just wall to wall highrise hotels and tourists and they’re still building!!
