Wine Lunch in the Village

Met up with some friends in Hyde Park Village Friday, to get together over some wine and eats. At Timpano's, we waited about 10 min for a table to open up outside, since it was another great day in paradise, and we could do some great people watching of all the shoppers out in the Village on this Black Friday. We started with some Mussels, came out sizzling and hot with drawn butter...very tasty but kind of small. We also all dined on some Sliders, I know they are supposed to be small, but there was barely any meat at all on the soft buns; the 4 cheese pizza was very thin wafer like bread with some cheese melted on it; and some chopped salads with grilled chicken, in which the chicken was cold and also very small portion. What was good was the company and the very pricey wines, and the great service that Andrew provided...everyone on the patio seemed to be in a great mood this Friday after Thanksgiving, we chatted with several people during our nearly 4 hour lunch.

The annual lighting of the Christmas Tree was also taking place in the Village, so afterwards we met up with some more friends at the Wine Exchange, also in the Village. They had a nice large table available on their outdoor patio. It was then a walk through the Historic Hyde Park neighborhood to hit up one of my favorite dives, the Tiny Tap..where we met up with even more friends, shot some pool, played Foosball, before grabbing a cab for the 8 block ride up Howard Avenue to the Deck Pizza. The large pepperoni pizza was as close to NY style, thin slices that you fold to eat, very cheesy, nice tangy sauce....and of course a few pitchers of beer. A cab over to CitySide to say hello, and short walk over to Baxters, and then one more cab ride over to Green Iguana westshore to end the night.

Happy Thanksgiving Tampa!

Nice to be home for the holiday this year, although I do miss seeing my brothers and niece and nephews. Thanksgiving Eve(last night), got a call to see the Lightning hockey game against the NY Rangers at the Forum downtown. I ran in the shower, and caught the 7pm bus 3 houses down from my house(Yes... the Hartline City Bus). For $1.50 I get a comfortable, clean ride, that took less than 30 minutes(about 5 miles), and I did not need to find parking downtown, and I did not have to fork over $20.00 for parking, and I was able to have a few beers at the game and not worry about driving home....the game was Great, excellent seats in the 104 section, went into SO(shootout), which I have never seen before...unfortunately the Rangers came out good in the SO, and won the game.
It was then we all went back towards my house to celebrate an annual tradition at the Green Iguana Westshore, the Huuuuuuge Thanksgiving Eve Party...with people home for the Holiday, it was a packed house, and we ran into several people that you don't get to see but on holidays and some special occasions...Great Band as usual...Good Times!

Turkey Day was with the Aunt and Uncle in Brandon, on the way home stopped by Club Chelsea to see some good friends, and called it an early night.

A visitor in Tampa from LA

A buddy of mine came to Tampa for the weekend, stayed downtown at the Hyatt Regency, nice hotel, had a great view of the Pool deck and Harbour Island and Hillsborough Bay. Saturday we walked over to First Watch for breakfast, a few blocks from the hotel in downtown Tampa. As usual the place was busy, about a 10 min wait, but they always have fresh coffee and ice water available while waiting, and it was worth the wait for fresh omlets and French Toast, very friendly service. Afterwards I wanted to see how things were progressing on the Riverwalk, Tampa Museum of Art and Tampa Bay History Center, all under construction downtown. Most of the segments of the Riverwalk from USF park near Borein Street to Channelside is all complete. The history center was looking almost complete, it was due to open in January. The museum of Art looks huge, alot bigger than the older one, and a perfect setting next to the Performing Arts center along the Riverwalk. I twas nice to take a few hours and walk around downtown, there has been alot of progress over the past year, and they are really getting things ready for SuperBowl.

Afterwards, we took the kids to the Park/Beach at Picnic Island, there weren't many other dogs on the beach, it was a perfect day, temps around 70, clear blue skies. Late in the afternoon, we decided on some burgers, so walked over to the Green Iguana, and again, PERFECT burgers(Baja and the Feta Burger), chilling out watching some football in the tiki deck.

Saturday night after a cocktail on the Lobby bar of the Hyatt, which was very busy, we cabbed it to Ybor City to check out a new restaurant that opened up in Centro Ybor called Teatro. From the street the outside balcony was busy, and they had music playing...we get up there, and it the Benz Modeling Agency annual party, and we were welcomed with open arms...and an Open Bar, and Open Buffet...we even mingled with a few people, and were asked to come in off the balcony at one point by the owner Steve Benz, so we could hear his speech....just a big THANK YOU to Benz...Teatro is an upscale restaurant and bar, it was a highlight of the night. By midnight we ventured off the the 2nd Anniversary of G. Bar, and ended the evening with a cab ride over to City Side.

Sunday was watching the Bucs win over Detroit, and went with some friends to my Alma Mater, USF, last home game against UCONN, which we won.

A short week, but work takes me to NYC Tuesday, and i'm looking forward to Turkey day with the family and a relaxing long weekend in town.
..

A German Deli in Tampa....

After getting back to Tampa from a GREAT long weekend in the Keys and Key West, took Monday off to relax a bit, and we went to have some lunch in South Tampa...a good sandwich was calling..we tried going to a new Deli place on MacDill Ave near Bay to Bay, but it wasnt open yet...then headed over to Roberts Meats a few blocks from my house, and it was closed(?), so finally we ended up at Schiller's German Deli, El Prado and Manhatten Ave...a very authentic German Deli, with all kinds of foods and gifts imported from Germany, but best of all the excellent sandwiches you can get on all types of fresh baked breads...we had the Turkey Club on an Onion Roll, and also a Corned Beef, Pastrami, and German Salami w/Swiss on Rye...both very good. A side of German Potato salad, and fresh baked Apple Strudel for dessert. They have a few tables inside for eating, or you can order and take out.

This week work brings me to Chicago for a few days.

.

Wings Gone 'no so' Wild

We went out for some wings and football Sunday night, a relatively new place opened up where Hawks Grille used to be on Bay to Bay Blvd, just west of MacDill Ave. Large open space, high ceilings, lots of flat screen tvs throughout playing all the games. There is also a large outdoor patio, but it was busy with a Bean Bag tournament of sorts...

Grabbing a table inside, the no so friendly server took our drink order, we kind of felt like we were bothering her, the place was not very busy, lots of empty table dfor the Sunday evening. Ordering 16 wings(Garlic Parmesan and Jamaican Jerk), and also an Angus Burger and the Philly Cheese Steak Wrap. All the food came out at the same time, the wings we crispy, and I felt they were ok(nice to have a choice of over a dozen flavors), my buddy thought they were a bit greasy(they are wings though)...the Burger was typical, and looked to be pre-formed, the Philly Cheese Steak wrap, although small in size, was large in flavor and packed with meat. Sides included Sweet Potato Fries, crinkle cut, which were very plain tasting. It took a while for our server to acknowledge us most the night for refills on drinks, and clearing the table, and finally getting us the check to get out of there. All in all, it was an OK sports bar atmosphere with OK sports bar food, maybe a good place to watch a game with a few friends and some chilly ones.

Short week, as I descend to the Florida Keys Wednesday for a LOOONG weekend!!

.

Kayaking with the Dolphins

Saturday after taking the Kids to their favorite beach(Picnic Island Park down the street off Westshore), it was time for me to do some exploring...on the Kayak. Decided to take them down to Fort DeSoto Park, and found a spot along the road leading to North Beach where you can park right along the water, and put in...after only kayaking about 15 minutes towards the Gulf along the mangroves in the intracoastal waterway, out of nowhere come a few playful dolphins...they stuck around for a while, giving a nice show, and then just disappeared. There was an abundance of wildlife out today, all kinds of birds, saw a few stingrays in the water, jumping fish of all kinds...and made out to the tip of North Beach, beautiful white sands, very peaceful for a Saturday. On the way back, stopped by a picnic area in Fort DeSoto that was along the water, called Arrowhead Picnic area...nice hiking trails and very wooded area, it was great to take a break from the kayak, and walk around exploring this part of Fort DeSoto i've never seen before. Great day to be out doing anything today..blue blue skies, and temps in the upper 70's.

South Westshore Thai

A new Thai restaurant opened up in the 'hood off South Westshore Blvd, about 10 blocks from my house. Jasmine Thai has a couple of other restaurants in the Bay area. An amazing job refurbishing this once Cuban place, and now it is very authentic Thai decor(even some of the decor and settings are from Thailand, according to the Hostess). Very clean, modern, Asian influenced from floor to ceiling. Our very friendly Asian server took our orders, we started with Tom Yum and Wonton Soups..the Tom Yum was very good, a bit spicy and sour, very fresh and flavorful with Chicken, and the Wonton was also very fresh, very thin Wonton skin stuffed with pork, bean sprouts and Asian veges, clear garlic flavored broth. Our meals consisted of Chicken Pineapple Curry - sweet and sour with just the right kick of spice, tender chunks of Chicken, large portion; Garlic and Black Pepper Chicken - huge portion with mixed Asian Veges in a very light sauce; and Crispy basket salad with grilled Chicken - a small sized salad in an edible shell, Asian veges and Greens, thinly sliced Grilled Chicken, and came with several dipping dressings.
We ended dinner with Banana Chips, fresh sliced bananas wrapped in a dough and fried, then drizzled with honey..perfect.
I have never been to Jasmine Thai, but found it to be VERY good, my dinner guests LOVE Thai food, and claimed this was very good. Nice to have another authentic eatery open up in the neighborhood.

Halloween Weekend in Tampa Bay!

The weekend actually started on Wednesday, for the monthly Hyde Park Live Music Series, parking on the top of the garage at the Village, there was an amazing sunset that lit up the few clouds in the sky a very bright orange, and cast the same orange glow on the skyscrapers downtown. A few hundred people gathered as usual, listing to good live music in the Village. Afterwards, we all headed over to MacDinton's to watch the reaming 3 innings of Game 5 World Series, that was delayed for two nights due to rain in Philly...and our Tampa Bay Rays were not triumphant against the Philly's losing the Series 4 games to 1. What a Great Season though, and a more promising 2009 for baseball fans in Tampa Bay!

Friday was Halloween, and as I do every year, some friends came over and we sat out on the Front Porch, like my neighbors all do, with some drinks, watching the kids come up for their Trick or Treats, there were about 40-50 kids this year...by 9pm it was all quiet, and we headed out to Sunset Beach, a great little Gulf Front area on Treasure Island where some friends rented a huge beach house...was a great night, the Beach house was excellent, we walked over to Ka'tiki, one of the oldest beach bars in the area...there were a few people still in costumes this Halloween night, even at the beach bars.

Saturday we did a pre-party at my buddies Bayshore Towers condo on Bayshore Blvd, and then went a few blocks north in South Tampa to one of the largest, best annual Halloween parties in the Tampa area. A huge old house, built in the early 1900's, decorated all for Halloween, each room was different...a few hundred people showed up this year, all in costumes...GOOD TIMES!

Biking on the Beach and Tampa's GUAVAWEEN 2008!

Saturday was a great day out, fall is definitely here, it was dry and mostly sunny, temps hovering close to 80..a great day for a bike ride. We headed over to one of my favorite parks, Fort DeSoto, parked near the boat ramps where the bike trail in the park begins. The park was barely busy this Saturday, after a little over an hour riding the paths, with great views of the Bay, Skyway, Gulf beaches, we stopped by the Fort for some great homemade lemonade while climbing to the top of the Fort.

Tampa's annual Guavaween festival was set for the evening. Before attending the 23rd annual event that draws close to 100,000 to the Historic District of Ybor City, we got all in costume and headed to a friends pre-party at the Seybold Condos in Hyde Park. This restored Bread Factory had a nice rooftop deck, great views of the city, and within the two hours we were there, we had some great laughs at some of the costumes showing up...most of them were all going to the All Hallows Ball being held at the Performing Arts Center this year.
Guavaween was not as crowded this year as it typically is, it was a great crowd, another fun time...going bar to bar, meeting LOTS of interesting people. As for our costumes, in spirit of the Rays being in the World Series, we dressed up as Evan Longoria's(3rd baseman) white trash girls fan club...and were a HUGE hit in Ybor City!!

It wasn't a good sports weekend for Tampa Bay...USF Bulls lost to Louisville, Tampa Bay Bucanners lost to Dallas, Tampa Bay Lightning lost to San Jose and the Rays lost to Philly in the World Series game 4.

USF Homecoming; Biking and Jazz in Clearwater

Saturday afternoon, we went up to my Alma Mater's Homecoming Football Game, USF Bulls vs Syracuse Orangemen. We killed Syracuse, 45-13, in an exciting game for most of the first half, then we just dominated. It was alot of fun, tailgating before hand and seeing some Alumni in the Stadium at half time near the Ship as we do every year.

Sunday, we took the bikes over to Clearwater, and rode the Pinellas Trail through downtown Clearwater, then over to Clearwater Beach along the BeachWalk which is looking great, a major improvement to the area. Lunch was at a place I havent been in a while on the beach, Post Corner Pizza, probably the best Greek Salads, huge hunks of Feta Cheese, and they came with some Gyro and perfectly seasoned and moist chicken on top...back on the Bikes, we went to downtown Clearwater again, listened to some Live Jazz at the Annual Clearwater Jazz Holiday at Coachman Park along the Intracoastal...we then hopped on the bikes and rode the Pinellas Trail up to Dunedin, a great little town, with excellent shops and restaurants, a few blocks off the Intracoastal waterway...a perfect day to be outside, Fall is settling in nicely here in Tampa Bay area.

Sunday night was the Rays clincher against the Red Sox, we WON and are off to the World Series against the Phillies. GO RAYS!!

..

Busch Gardens "Howl O Scream"

A crew of us went to the Annual "Howl O Scream" at Busch Gardens Thursday evening...the park transforms itself at night into a very dark, and supposedly scary place...it was definitely very dark in the park...Busch Gardens is typically not open in the evenings except special events such as this, and some summer nights. A totally different atmosphere at night, with all the rides open, the coasters are a even wilder ride at night time. There was a very party-like atmosphere, with DJ's set up throughout the park, and about half a dozen Haunted Houses and some shows scattered about.
Note to Self: make sure to check the School schedule before going next time...since the schools were closed Friday, the park was the most crowded I think I have ever been..its open from 7:30pm to 1am on Thursday, Friday and Saturdays through the month of October. By 7pm, there was already lines of cars getting into the parking area..we were in for a VERY busy night. We were able to ride a few coasters, and walk through a few houses. One house reminded me of the old Texas Chainsaw Massacre house, with strange people milling about the very dark and eeery corridors, excellent make-up and special effects...ALL of us were scared at one point or another. Thursday's are only $20.00 with a group of four, otherwise it is over $60.00 to get in on Fri and Sat nights. Next time I go it will be on a Thursday when the kids are not out of school the next day...alot of Fun, A ton of laughs, very Interesting themed areas..and definitely different! You will scream and be entertained....

An evening on Franklin Street in Downtown Tampa.

Friday late afternoon, we went downtown Tampa, and started the evening at Fly Bar, for some happy hour cocktails...its a very cool place, the rooftop was empty, but by 7pm, the place was filling up, all the tables on the outside patio were full.....it was then a stop at the Hub for an extra strong cocktail they are known for in this very smokey dive joint along Franklin Street...the 'clip' Film Festival was keeping things busy in front of Tampa Theater.....next stop was a new restaurant/bar called Boss Hogs, very interesting...like walking into a western saloon, there was an upstairs balcony overlooking the place...we tried the wings there, they had a very different type of sauce, and were very small....we then heard about a new invention they thought of that night called "reverse wings"...tossed in a blue cheese sauce, and give buffalo sauce for dipping. Last stop was Hattricks to watch the Red Sox/Rays game, place was very busy, cold drinks and good food as ususal.

'clip' Film festival and Dinner in Downtown St. Pete

Wednesday evening, I got back from an emergency meeting in Atlanta(I had to fly up there in the morning after getting back from Jersey City the night before), and decided to partake in this years 'clip' Film Festival. It is said to be the third largest Gay and Lesbian Film festival in the country, as far as number of films and length of the program(almost two weeks). The film we saw was Clapham Junction, playing at the Baywalk theaters in downtown St. Petersburg. Very interesting plot and story line where the three different stories kind of intertwined into one by the end. Prior to the movie, we went for dinner at Parkshore Grille, took advantage of the great October weather dining outside, with nice views of the water and parks along Beach Drive in downtown St. Pete. Parkshore always has great food and service, this trip was no different, starting out with the Stuffed Meatballs appetizer, about eight small meatballs stuffed with blue cheese in a beef sauce(great for dipping the bread)....and a small "Wedge" salad, great dressing and crisp and cold....for entrees it was the Salmon, perfectly cooked and flavorful, and also the Parkshore Salad with Chicken.

Nina O's new Grille and Bar; and a Kayak Day

Friday after work, went over to a new restaurant that opened up in South Tampa called Nina O's Grille and Bar(they say the Grille comes first because of the great food). They did an EXCELLENT job rehabbing this place that used to be an old strip club, dive bar. Beautiful large bar area, clean modern fixtures throughout, lots of windows and natural light, 11 large flat screen tv's throughout...uniquely, you get your own speaker brought to your table to listen to whatever you choose to watch. The place was packed, but the new outside patio had tables available and a TV outside as well, to watch the 2nd Rays game. The patio had some nice plantings and a few fountains......A friendly server brought us our speaker(we were the only ones outside at the time), menu's and explained the special of the day(all you can eat fried fish and sides). We started with Wings which we were told came breaded, but we could order them naked if we wanted, but he suggested the breaded because they were a house specialty...and they were HUGE, very lightly breaded and fried, almost like southern style, with a little heat. A Turkey and Ham sandwich, which I was told was very good; Patty melt, very fresh Angus beef patty with Swiss cheese and sauteed onions on buttered Rye toast..perfect and delicious!; Also a Philly Steak sandwhich, piled high with meat, my buddy said the meat was slightly luke warm, but he ate the whole thing. The sandwich's came with very fresh potato salad made with red new potatoes, very light mayonnaise, very light flavor. One sadwhich came with Pasta Salad, very overcooked pasta in an oily mess. It was all good, nice relaxing outside, but noticed that the Patio is where the smokers go from the bar to smoke, it was a friendly, family style Grille and Bar...I will be back, they now do Brunch on Saturday and Sunday mornings. One note, DO NOT PARK AT THE LOT NEXT DOOR(thrift store), they lock the gates at 9pm, good thing I had my 4Runner.

Saturday took the kayaks out to a new area, the War Veterans Memorial Park in Pinellas County off Bay Pines Road. Great park area, very wooded and secluded, they had an excellent launch site for the kayaks into the Intracostal waterway...paddling the area there are many private islands to explore, you can even paddle through John's Pass over to the beaches of Madeira or Treasure Island! A great day to be out on the boat.

Both the Bucs and the Rays are playing at the same time this afternoon(4pm)...good thing I got new batteries for the remote, as I will be doing some switching back and forth between the games this afternoon.

Work takes me to Jersey City till Wednesday.

..

South Westshore Crawl; TaTa-Palooza; a Festival

What a weekend....Friday we walked up to CDB's on Westshore a few blocks form my house, the weather was great for sitting outside for some dinner. A great bottle of Wine, some Antipasto Salad(I ordered by mistake), and a Meatball Grinder on the upper outside deck. We were looking forward to CDB's pinwheels(rolled up Provolone Cheese, Ham, Turkey and Roast Beef and sliced like pinwheels), but they come on the Chef Salad, not the Antipasto Salad, which was loaded mostly with greens, and a few chunks of Salami, Cheese and Ham, some carrots here and there..nothing special, but good. Our server did bring out a side order of the pin wheels...next time I think that would be good enough with some bread and a bottle of wine......The meatball grinder(the small) was huge, oven baked, melted cheese...plenty of food...again though there sauce is a bit sweet for my liking...the bottle of wine, side order of pinwheels and company made the night.
Afterwards, we walked next door to The Wooden Door Irish Pub, the Rays game was on, a light crowd was on hand, the outside patio tables were all taken up, its nice they put a 50" flat screen out on the patio....it was then onto the Green Iguana Westshore to finish watching the Rays game, much livelier crowd as usual..the band started up, and it just got livelier from there.

Saturday it was breakfast over at Mama's Kitchen on South Dale Mabry on my way to Home Depot to do some housework...nice to start the day off with some of the BEST biscuits and gravy in town.
Later in the afternoon, met up with a friend of mine up the street who lives in Stoney Point neighborhood, on one of the canals leading into the Bay. We took his boat out on the bay for a few hours, beautiful blue skies, we found a nice sand bar area over near Weedon Island where there were about a dozen other boaters hanging out.
Saturday night was "TaTa-Palooza" at a friends house, to Benefit the Breast Cancer society, there were about 50 of us that showed up for a fun evening of Black Jack, Food and Drinks, Prize giveaways(I got the little kids bike), and a game of Guessing the TaTa's...all for a great cause...the evening went on afterwards as we headed to Club Chelsea, the Old Club Azalea downtown Tampa, interesting crowd, and even a hilarious drag show...for some late night Pizza it was on to Ybor City where we noticed Demini's on 7th was closed, but we enjoyed walking on 7th Ave, looking rough as usual at 3am on a Saturday night, for Pizza at New York New York, and then around the corner for a few more slices at the little pizza place on 15th street.

Sunday was a relaxing day, off to the Hyde Park Fall Art Festival, this year there were many vendors sampling food items and health conscious activities, after socializing and looking at over 100 Art booths, we sat outside on the patio at Bailey's for lunch. They mostly just do catering and take-home meals, except when they open for dinner for a few hours on Tues, Wed and Thurs evenings....this was the first time they did lunch....very freshly prepared Chicken Salad sandwich's or BBQ pulled pork, with their famous BBQ beans, and very tangy and citrusy ColeSlaw with Mandarin Oranges...a down home, southern style type of place. It was back home to catch he rest of the Bucs game against Green Bay(GO BUCS!).

Back from Nashville, TN and A night out in a Tampa Village

Back from Nashville(actually Franklin, TN)..some highlights included the quaint little town of Franklin, TN and the Red Pony restaurant on Main Street, some great hiking in the Smokey Mountains.

As I flew back, I met with a few friends at the monthly Hyde Park Village Music Series, always the last Wednesday of the month through October. The air was very dry this evening, actually wore pants tonight, it was great to feel such a change in the weather as Fall arrives in Florida, and seeing that this was the largest crowd i've seen all year at the Village for this small festival, everybody in the local area was also taking advantage of the nice weather....again as usual, I am always running into people I haven't seen since college, or even my old employer....Good Times!!

Waking up on this Thursday morning, it was actually a bit chilly....ahhhh, a touch of whats to come in Florida for the next 8 months.

Ricks, Rays, Tahitian Bfast

After work Friday a bunch of us met up at Ricks on the River for Happy Hour...large outdoor seating area along the River, nice views of downtown, live music, and good food, whats better than that after a long week? It was also feeling a little fallish, nice breezes and drier air.

Saturday it was off to St. Pete with some friends for the Tampa Bay Rays/Minnesota Twins baseball game, winning this game meant being in the playoffs for the first time since the Rays started back 10 years ago. We parked at Ferg's where for $15.00 you also get 6 free draft beers, well worth the close parking and entertainment happening at Ferg's. The place is HUGE, but the downstairs open air area smelled like someone had been sick all over the place the night before, and the heat of the day was not helping much...we went upstairs where they had a small outdoor patio overlooking Tropicana Field.....we ate some ok sandwich's(limited menu on game day)..they were probably prepared the day before knowing large crowds would be around for the game. After the great win, and playoff ceremony, we walked down to the Emerald Club bar, nice dive bar, a live band was just setting up...it was then onto Oyster Bar where we met some other friends of mine, then Mastry's, Independent, and capping off the evening at Georgi's Alibi.

Sunday, after taking a friend back to St. Pete to pick up his car left at Ferg's, went out to the Tahitian Inn on Dale Mabry for some late breakfast/lunch(served till 3pm). Greek omelet was oversized and stuffed with Feta and Spinach, large helping of sliced and grilled potatoes, and a side over overly salted Corn Beef Hash.

Finished the day relaxing watching a great Bucs/Bears game, that the Bucs pulled off in overtime to beat the Bears.

Work takes me to Nashville, TN this week.
..

Brooklyn, NY

It was a good trip to Brooklyn for work this week, I have been many times, but experienced a few new things this trip to the Brooklyn Heights area....Brooklyn Promenade great views of downtown Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge, Henry's End restaurant-some of the best tasting food and great small intimate dining; Juniors for Cheesecake!!

Biking Upper Tampa Bay

Took the bikes out for a ride as I have many times to Upper Tampa Bay Trail...just wanted to note on this trip, they still have not made any progress beyond the 8 mile mark. It is supposed to connect to the Suncoast trail by 2010. It's a great ride from the Waters Avenue rest area(easy parking and water available)..most of the trail is shaded as well from this point and is all paved and mostly flat, there are water features, and bridges, some wildlife.

Work takes me to Brooklyn, NY for a few days.

..

USF Bulls and The Bungalow

After flying back from Greenville, SC on Friday, a good buddy of mine and I went to my Alma Maters(USF) home game against Kansas....parking at the Westshore Marriott hotel, we took the hotel shuttle, with about 8 KU fans, to get dropped off about 2 blocks form the stadium...we met up with his co-workers who were having a nice sized tailgate party, food, beers and all..being that this was nearly a sell out crowd for tonight's game(59,000)..the fields outside the stadium were packed with tailgaters...Good Times!! There is nothing like a night College Football game against two ranked teams...between the USF marching band, the overflowing Student section, and everyone just excited that the young USF football program has done so well. The game was one of the most exciting i've seen, from KU dominating the game in the first half, to USF taking on a substantial lead in the second half...only to be tied up by the end of the forth quarter, and what looked to be an overtime game, a field goal was kicked within seconds of the end of the game to pull our South Florida Bulls ahead of KU and WIN!! It was good to see some of my alumni I graduated with, we always meet up at the Pirate Ship deck behind the student section at half time each home game.

Saturday morning, went over to Mama's Kitchen on Dale Mabry Hwy, just south of Gandy Blvd..as usual, the greasy spoon diner like restaurant pulled through with another great breakfast....
For dinner, a few of us went over to a new place on Kennedy Blvd in Hyde Park area called The Bungalow. It's a very large Bungalow house built in 1919, they did a great job with an open bar area, and small dining area...very nice, wood floors and brick walls, there are pictures of the old house through the bar area. With flat screen tv's throughout, you can catch any game whether in the bar area or dining area...the crowd is very Hyde Park pretty, there is a front porch as well with some tables. Food was good as well, starting with the Buffalo Chicken Wings, they tasted more like Fried Chicken Wings then Buffalo style....dinners included the Surf and Turf sliders(1 burger, 1 ahi tuna, 1 grouper, and 1 crab cake), when I asked what I could get instead of Fries, the server advised that I could only get fries, even though there are about 6 other sides that you can get with other meals(Asparagus, Grilled Veges, Island Cole Slaw, Mac n Cheese, Yucca Fries and Fries)...I demanded the island cole slaw instead of fries, he said he would see what he could do(I got the cole slaw)...the sliders were good, the burger and crab cake were about the size of a .50 cent piece..tiny, the grouper and tuna were a decent size for sliders....I think they should skip the crab cake and go with the jerk chicken slider instead so you would have two turf and two surf sliders.......we also had the Jerk Chicken sandwich which was said to be ok, and the Ahi Tuna dinner which was said to be excellent, cooked rare and flavorful.
The place can get very noisy, there is some music in the bar area...a very nice new addition to Kennedy Blvd.