El Tamarindo Coal Fired Pizza 2/3

El Tamarindo Coal Fired Pizza is located at 712 Atlantic Shores Blvd, Hallandale Beach FL 33009 Btwn N Federal Hwy & NE 8th Ave.) I was down that way for business so I decided to check this place out. The same people who own the fantastic El Tamarindo on SR 84 in Fort Lauderdale across from Lesters Diner opened this outpost in Hollywood/Hallandale that serves Coal Fired Pizza's in addition to their regular El Salvadorian menu. The pizza is an obvious attempt to copy Anthony's coal fired pizza as well as their salad and wings and they do a really good job of accomplishing this. We got the large pizza with half pepperoni and half sausage. Although the sausage was crumbled as apposed to chunks or bite sizes as I prefer, it was still an excellent pizza for those that enjoy this coal fired style. The wings were also very good and compared favorably to Anthonys. The only drawbacks to this place was that 90% of the people dining there were over the age of 75 ( (I guess that is common giving the neighborhood and large portions at reasonable prices) and the service was a little slow compared to their main location. Still gets 8.0/10 for the food though.

Pollo Tropical 2/4

Just a quick, boring lunch at Pollo Tropical on Federal Hwy today. I got the Chicken with yellow rice and vegetables trop-a-chop, which is basically chopped up grilled chicken served over yellow rice with mixed vegetables. A decent, quick, and simple lunch. The curry mustard sauce on top is a necessity and probably turns an otherwise healthly lunch into an unhealthy one, but it does taste pretty good. 6.5/10

11th St. Annex

Back to the 11th St. Annex today. Reviewed a few weeks ago. Such a great place for a nice, freshly prepared sandwich in a relaxed atmosphere. Today I had the tilapia sandwich with olive tapanad and feta cheese. Very solid. Everyone in the courthouse area needs to check this place out from time to time. 8.0/10.

Silver Pond 1/29

I was up in the Lauderhill area today and wanted to check out Saigon Cafe, which come highly recommended, but when I arrived, they had a sign in the window that they were closed until Feb 26 for kitchen renovations. We then went to Silver Pond Chinese Restaurant, which is right next door. This place has been around forever. Their menu has all the traditional Chinese Fare. I ordered the General Tso's Chicken, which came with wanton soup and pork fried rice. Very solid.

Outback Steakhouse 1/28

I was told the Outback Steakhouse off of 17th st. is now open weekdays for lunch so we decided to give it a try. I was a little skeptical since I used to really enjoy the outback many years ago, but over the last few years I've found that they expanded their menu to much and the quality of all their food has suffered. For lunch they have a special that includes 1/2 a sandwich, either prime rib, steak or 1/2 a chicken quesadila and your choice of 3 different salads or soup and fries for $8. They also have a "bottomless" soup and salad deal for $8.75 that sounded good.

I got the 1/2 of steak sandwich with fries and the pecan blue cheese chopped salad. It was quite good and the service was very fast and efficient. I'll definitely be adding the Outback to my list of lunch places that I'll visit regularly. 7.75/10.

Taqueria Dona Raquel 1/26

I was up in Pompano today so I stopped by my favorite authentic Mexican Taco shop today. Taqueria Dona Raquel is located at 793 S. Dixie Hwy., Pompano Beach, 954-946-4490. Previously reviewed. Today I got 3 different meats in the taco's. All were excellent. I got 1 Al pastor, which is pork, one pulled rib meat, and 1 carne asada (Not pictured). Each taco is $1.99 and comes with fantastic chips and 2 spicy sauces. The tacos are truly authentic Mexican style and just come with a double flour tortilla, meat, cilantro, and onions. These also had some pineapple on top. A great lunch at a great price. Definitely a place to check out if you are in the area around Dixie Hwy in Pompano. 8.5/10

Kelly's Landing 1/22

Kelly's Landing is a Northeastern/Boston style seafood restaurant located just off 17th St. in Fort Lauderdale, http://www.kellyslandingseafood.com/

They have a fairly large menu, mostly fried items like Ipswich clams, scrod, haddock, and shrimp. Not surprisingly they also make an excellent clam chowda. Today, I wasn't feeling the fried items, so I went with a grilled Mahi Sandwich. My only complaint about this place is that all of their northeastern fish items like scrod and the haddock only come fried. Mahi isn't my favorite fish, but for some reason it appealed to me today. The sandwich was a decent size and came with a fairly good cole slaw and excellent Boston style baked beans. $9. My friend had the Ipswich clam roll, which was about 10 Ipswich belly clams on a New England Style hot dog roll. $13. I've had these before and they are excellent, but a little pricey.

I've also heard that Kelly's makes and excellent hamburger, but I've yet to try it.

Although I could do without all the Red Sox paraphernalia all over the walls, Kelly's is a quality lunch spot if you are looking for fried seafood or chowder. 7.0/10

Marina Deli 1/22

Ventured back to the Marina Deli today, 1453 SE 17th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL , previously reviewed. I got the Pastrami and Corned Beef combo on rye. A good sandwich but a little light on the meat today. I remember the sandwiches being a little bigger in previous visits. 7.0/10

15th St. Fisheries, 1/20

Since it was a beautiful day today, we decided to sit outside on the dock at 15th St. Fisheries Dockside Cafe. www.15streetfisheries.com
I didn't get my usual, the crab cake sandwich. Instead I ordered the Tuna Salad sandwich with steak fries, $8. The fries were great as always but the tuna was rather tasteless. Not awful, but just bland and plain. Pictured below is 1/2 the sandwich. Next time I'm going back to the crab cake sandwich for sure. Great weather and atmosphere made the lunch worthwhile though. 6.0/10 for today.

Gilbert's 17th Grill 1/19

I went back to Gilbert's 17th St. http://www.gilberts17thstgrill.com/ in the Harbour Shoppes today. (Previously reviewed). I had heard they have some really good hamburgers, so I had one today. I got the Cheeseburger, medium rare, with sweet potato fries. $8.50. The burger came out a perfect medium rare, which was great because so many places are afraid to serve it that way. It was very juicy and not one of these thin little patties like is served at so many places today, like 5 guys. The sweet potato fries were also quite good, though they needed some kind of dipping sauce other then ketchup. Overall, a very good and juicy burger, served just the way I prefer them. 8.0/10.

Maguires Hill 16, 1/15

I stopped in for a quick lunch at Maguires Hill 16 on Friday. A well know happy hour place with the courthouse crowd 535 North Andrews Ave.Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301. They have an extensive menu with many quality items. Today I was looking for something a little lighter so I went with the Maguires Salad, which is a tradition Chef's salad with ham, turkey, cheese, hard boiled eggs, onions, and cucumbers over mixed greens. They make their own salad dressings. I had the honey dijon, which was quite good. Overall a quality salad. I've had a number of their other menu items in the past. As I recall, I didn't care for their corned beef, but their other traditional Irish Bar/Pub items were fairly good. 7.5/10.

Waxy O'Connors 1/14

I went back to the always solid Waxy O'Connor's today. 1095 SE 17th St, Fort Lauderdale.

Yes, it is more then just a bar. They have a really nice menu with plenty of choices including all the traditional Irish Pub fare and a number of sandwiches and salads.

Today I was feeling like eating particularly unhealthily, so I went with the traditional Fish and Chips, pictured below. It comes with excellent fries (chips), and fresh green peas. Although the meal was extremely greasy as expected, it was also very tasty. The fish was battered and cooked nicely and not overdone as is often the case with fish and chips. Overall a nice, but heavy lunch. I'll be eating something light for dinner tonight for sure to balance this out. 7.5/10

11th St. Annex

I finally made it to the 11th Street annex for lunch today. 14 SW 11th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL, right across from the Trinity Lutheran Church, off of Andrews Ave.

How had I never heard of this place in all the years I've been working near the courthouse? It is truly a great discovery. They only have about 6 tables and it fills up quickly at lunchtime, but the food was great. It feels like you are dining in someones living room. They don't have a set menu, instead they have 4-5 daily choices, usually consisting of a soup, 2-3 sandwiches, an entree or 2, and a dessert. I had the Japanese style lightly fried turkey breast topped with Seaweed salad. It came with a side of macaroni salad, $9. My friend had the Chicken Curry with Roti, $9. Both were excellent. (pictured below)

The only negative of this place is the limited seating and since they only seem to have 2 or 3 employees, it isn't the quickest of places. The great food and cozy atmosphere more then makes up for it though. I will certainly be coming back here many times. 8.0/10

What's the infatuation with La Spadas Hoagies?

I went to La Spada's Hoagies this weekend for the first time in about a year. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures. Anyway, the reason I went back there this weekend is that in the 2010 South Florida edition of Zagat's, La Spada's was rated as the BEST food in all of Fort Lauderdale. I kid you not..... I wanted to try it again to see what the infatuated is. I've eaten there a few times in the past but not recently, but I never understood why people thought they were so amazing. Don't get me wrong, they do make a very good sub, but, it's just a sub and not really any better than any number of places, like My Market for example. I had the "Monster", which is Ham, Turkey, Roast Beef and cheese. $10.75 for a large. It was quite good and was enough for 2+ servings. But again, it was just a sub. No exceptional or interesting toppings, just your standard lettuce, tomato, onions, hot and sweet peppers, etc. Was I happy with the sub, yes, but the best food in Ft. Lauderdale? Come on. Can someone please tell my how anyone can think this is the best food in Fort Lauderdale?

Jack's Old Fashioned Hamburgers. 1/2

I went back to longtime favorite Jack's Old Fashioned Hamburgers, located at 4201 N Federal Hwy Oakland Park, FL 33308. They also have a location in Pompano. Jacks grounds their own beef freshly each day and serves old style fried/MacDonald's style hamburgers. Although in my opinion, Jack's pales in comparison to places like Charm City Burger Co (Deerfield), or California Burger (Near the Galleria Mall), they still make a nice, old style burger, as long as your body can handle all the extra grease. Their fries are just OK and it would be nice if they offered some additional toppings, but its still a great place to try when in the area. 7.5 out of 10.

12/30 Isabella's Pizza and Pasta

Isabella's Pizza and Pasta is located at 1571 S Federal HwyFort Lauderdale, FL 33316, it is in a small strip mall near the Dunkin Donuts and the Hair Cuttery, off of Federal between Davie Blvd and 17th St.
I had the Chicken Bleu cheese salad and my friend had the chicken Parmesan, (pictured below). The salad was quite good and featured a nice amount of grilled chicken and crumbled bleu cheese on top of a traditional green salad. It also came with garlic rolls which were fairly good. My friend said the chicken parm was solid and it certainly was a large portion for lunch.
On a previous visit here, I had 2 slices of pizza, which were good, but the slices where a little on the small side compared to other place. The chicken salad was better then I expected and I certainly will return. 7.5 out of 10.

1/8 Update, Anthony's Runway 84 from 12/23

I've been really slacking off on here lately and I'm going to try to be a bit more consistent with the posts in the coming year. I am running out of local places so any suggestions are greatly appreciate. Also, comments are welcome. Shout out to the JAAB Blog http://jaablaw.com/ for the recommendation to try Saigon City. I'll be sure to stop by in the coming weeks.

Anthony's Runway 84

Before the holidays, we hit Anthony's Runway 84, near SR 84 and Andrews. This long standing Fort Lauderdale Landmark recently started serving lunch. The last time I ate here, was probably with my Grandparents when I was like 10. I've mostly avoided it for dinner over the years due to the long waits. There were 3 of us for lunch so we decided to split 3 of there most traditional appetizers and a sandwich. (Pictured below in order) We had their famous meatballs, which were quite good, but not as awesome as I expected them to be, the rice balls, which were stuffed with meet and cheese and where fantastic, and the sausage and broccoli rabe, which was also fantastic. We also ordered a chicken panani (not pictured), which we probably could have skipped. It was nothing special. The 3 appetizers would have been enough for lunch. They had a few other items that looked interesting, including a seafood salad, which I'll try next time. Price wise, the lunch menu is very reasonable. The apps were about $8-9 each and the panini was like $10 I think. Overall, lunchtime is a great opportunity to dine at this historic Fort Lauderdale landmark for a reasonable price with none of the usual waits or favorable treatment for tables. 8.0 out of 10

12/30 Update

New posts coming after the new years. Anthonys runway 84, Isabellas Pizza and Pasta, and others

12/7 Update

I got a new puppy last week who requires a ton of attention, so I've been going home around lunchtime every day to take him out and have been eating at home. I should have some new updates coming sometime next few weeks.

15th St. Fisheries, 12/1

I went back to the downstairs, casual area, of 15th Fisheries at Lauderdale Marina 1900 SE 15th Street, Fort Lauderdale. While I don't particularly care for the supposedly fancy, upstairs dining area, the downstairs area by the dock is a great lunch place for this time of year when its not to hot to sit outside.I had my usual favorite, which is a crab cake sandwich $13,(pictured below) with excellent steak fries, served with a creole mayo. Top notch as always. The crab cake had the right amount of crab and not that much breading and filler. Although $13 is a bit more then I like to spend for lunch, this is worth it, given the food and the great setting right on the water. My co-worker had the chicken sandwich, pictured below, which was also very good. 8.5/10.