Fish House: In A Fish Of Its Own

Tweet

   On a recent romantic getaway to Pensacola Florida, I found this gem of a seafood establishment. It's called The Fish House! Not only was it located overlooking beautiful Pensacola Bay but inside this fabulous place was some of the best seafood that I've had in a very long time, and I grew up in Houston eating some of the best. As a seafood lover, I have to tell you, be prepared to blown away by the freshness of the catch served at The Fish House. If I can make one hungry stomach satisfied, I would be doing very good to recommend the Gulf Sampler. You can't possibly go wrong with this because the shirmp are so big and succulent that you'll be wondering where they got them. Not only that but there is a bunch of other fried seafood goodness on that plate including a fish of your choice. For this I went with a grilled Mahi Mahi. Yes, they do know how to grill seafood in Florida, and this establishment is no exception. I'll go one up on that, the way they do a Mahi Mahi at The Fish House leaves me speechless but if I can get these words out and you can quote me on this.. "YOU WON'T FIND BETTER".  I feel bad if only a little, writing that but only because it's like giving away the ending of a good movie in that you have to experience this dish for yourself.
   On some last notes, I'm a guy so I have to help my fellow guys out by letting you in on a little secret. This is an awesome restaurant to take a date. There is reason for this, and it's because the atmosphere is very romantic with stunningly beautiful fish tanks to look at while you enjoy your meal. What gets me though, is that at the same time, the atmosphere is also very casual and laid back at this fine establishment. It's a winning combo that in all my years of eating out I haven't quite experienced. The Fish House just happens to be one of those experiences that you won't ever want to pass up when you're in Pensacola. For location and more delicious seafood details please do visit their website: The Fish House

Ranking: 5 Goode Points

El Meson de Pepe: A Tremendous Amount Of Satisfaction

Tweet

One of my intentions with this new blog is to recommend great restaurants so you can easily find where to have a good time. With that said, I thought Cuban food would be appropriate to be my first restaurant recommendation. Why? That's because up until recently I hadn't tried it but when I did, "I said what took me so long"? I know you'll say the same.
This establishment was only found after doing extensive research of what Key West has to offer in the way of Cuban food. I know they have plenty of nice Cuban eateries on the island so this wasn't an easy task in the least. Like I said, I did my homework and it paid a delicious ten fold because I ended up at this cool little spot called El Meson De Pepe in Key West, Florida.
Finding Pepe's as we will call it for short and deciding to go there as I mentioned earlier was a choice in of itself. However, that was only half the battle as I walked through the door of this festive food experience. You see, upon walking through the door they give you a choice, do you want to sit inside or enjoy the patio outside? Patio I said, I didn't know this place had a patio but sure enough they do. After a couple of minutes of surveying the atmosphere inside which I have to say was very open and full of life, I had a decision to make. Again, not an easy one but luckily my traveling companion made the decision for me because I can be kind of indecisive especially when it comes to tough choices! We get outside, and I was very glad she made the choice she did, the outside was just as fun as the inside if not even more so. Again lots of space and with this came lots of seating, a bar (you know you need one those if you go to Key West), and big LCD TV's hanging from the covered patio. Nice! It couldn't be any better so far!
We get seated and break open the menu and see more choices than ever staring back at us. What to order in such an extensive menu that includes many many yummy sounding entrees as well as traditional Cuban sandwiches? I told myself, be logical about this, you've never tried Cuban food before, just go for the platter again and sample it all. Geez, I just can't get away from those platters can I? I said, oh well.. I'm probably not going to be able to come back here for a long time. Why not? The waiter came by and not wanting to sound like a moron I point to Completa La Tremenda. I know you're probably laughing right about now because even if you don't know the slightest amount of Spanish you probably can surmise that Completa La Tremenda is a tremendous amount of food. What do you expect from a food junkie though, my appetite is only complete when I eat a tremendous amount of food!
As it turns out though this tremendous amount of food turned out to be the final trifecta of awesome choices that I made for this food experience. To be honest with you I can't even pronounce half of what I ate which includes,Tamal En Hoja and Lechon Asado but I have to say my stomach didn't care because it was more than satisfying. The way they cooked the meat for this meal which inlcuded pork couldn't of been better. It was tasty, juicy, tender, and had all the right spices to make it melt in my mouth.
You know, walking into any restaurant for the first time you never know what to expect. However, I have to say that Pepe's as we will call it for short, went above and beyond my expectations in every sense of the word. It had plenty of festive atmosphere inside and out with an abundance of tasty Cuban treats to choose from on a more than satisfying menu! Again, a winning combo that I can't wait to go back and have to choose from again! At least though, I'll have one less choice to decide upon because I know just where I'll wind up: El Meson de Pepe's! To check out their extensive selection of Cuban goodies and to know exactly where you need to wind up next time your in Key West please visit their website: El Meson De Pepe

A tremendous amount of delicious traditional Cuban food including the Completa La Tremeda pictured above awaits you at El Meson De Pepe's in beautiful Key West, Florida!

Ranking: 5 Goode Points

Fly Away To Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville

Tweet

What's the best theme restaurant on earth to fly away to if you had a private plane? If you answered Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville in Panama City Florida, I’d play a Jimmy Buffett song for you and pass you another Margarita. There is no need for me to do that because there is plenty of Jimmy Buffett songs and drinks to go around at the Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville in Panama City Florida. Like, I mentioned in a previous a post, you cannot pass up the opportunity to be a part of a one of a kind experience as far as theme restaurants go. Forget that, I’d venture to say that when I was a recent Parrothead there (note: the noun that being a Jimmy Buffett fan will turn you into… Parrothead) I was completely blown away because I’ve never quite had a dining experience as fun as that one!

It’s hard to explain the atmosphere of a place that pulls you in from the moment you step in the door and stays with you hours and months after you go there especially if you go for the first time. I simply can’t stop thinking about the experience from 6 months ago when I was vacationing in Panama City Florida. Images of giant LCD screens playing the best of Jimmy Buffett and the beautiful decor of a tropical paradise flash through my head at million miles per second. Maybe not that fast, but it’s definitely an experience you’ll remember. I swear I’m not a sucker when it comes to theme restaurants because I’ve been to a few in my life and they didn't come close to impressing me like Margaritaville.

You might be asking me ok, the atmosphere is all well and good but what about the food? Does it match the atmosphere? I’d have to take another sip of my Margarita, look you straight in the eye, and tell you yes. It’s hard to explain a theme restaurant because to me, I think it reverses the rules of a good restaurant experience. When it comes to theme restaurants....it’s like the age old question, what came first, the chicken or the egg? Here I’d have to tell you that the atmosphere transcends the food and almost comes first. Luckily though, you don’t have to worry about that in Jimmy Buffett's world. The food is very top notch for a theme restaurant! You haven’t had quite a cheeseburger like the Cheese Burger in Paradise that Margaritaville is famous for. It was super tasty and only if I could of stayed in Panama City for more than a night, I would of come back for days just to sample everything good on the menu but hey that in itself gives me a reason to go back so I’m doing pretty good for a Parrothead.

I could go on and write more about this unique restaurant but I feel that if I do that, I would almost spoil the experience for you because of fun that you have to experience to believe so to speak. I'd be like spoiling a movie and I’m never one to spoil a movie for anybody.... I’ll leave that to someone I know but I won't mention names! To become a Parrothead, get to the nearest Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville (there’s several in the USA) immediately. You can find one here at: Margaritaville or you can always hop on that private plane and go to any. :)

Ranking: 5 Goode Points