Panama City is certainly not the place I would choose for a vacation or weekend getaway, but Mr. ARB’s parents live down there, so we find ourselves in Panama City about once a year. We were down there last month, and I researched and selected about twenty restaurant possibilities, even though we were only gonna be there for like three days. Yeah, I’m kind of dorky like that. Funny thing is that we only ended up going to one Panama City restaurants on my list. There’s always next year.

Ditching an invite for cereal with the rents, we slept in and stopped in at Tony’s Taste of Ybor City for lunch. It wasn’t on my list, but Mr. ARB picked it and I’m always in the mood for some good Cuban. For a restaurant that boasts Cuban, Spanish and Italian, the menu was really small. We opted to share everything starting with the Ropa Vieja Empanada followed by the Cuban Sandwich. The Empanada was crispy and the filling was juicy and tender. It is served with a small salad, which was a little confusing as it isn’t really a starter but too small to be an entree. For the $4 they’d be better off to serve two of them as a starter. The Cuban sandwich was large, tasty with crunchy bread and sweet ham – plenty enough to fill us both up.

8100 S Thomas Dr
Panama City Beach, FL 32408
850 230 3840

Next we stopped in on a lazy Sunday at Liza’s for brunch. Liza’s is the top rated restaurant in Panama City Beach on UrbanSpoon, not that I based my decision to go there solely on this. The menu looked awesome. Poached eggs topped with Hollandaise sauce over fried eggplant? Yes, please. They don’t take reservations and the place is quite small. You place your order at the counter, pay, and shortly after it is brought to your table. I was worried we’d have a long wait to find a table, but we popped in at the perfect time, easily snagging a table. But by the time we got our food, the line was about 10 deep. We started off with Bloody Mary’s which were superb. They have half portions of some breakfast items but what’s the point? Mine wasn’t huge and I ordered the full portion. Mr. ARB’s Breakfast Burrito, on the other hand was quite substantial. I wouldn’t hesitate to order either breakfast again. They also serve sandwiches.

7328 Thomas Dr
Panama City Beach, FL 32408
850 233 9000
Liza’s Website

That same Sunday, having skipped lunch, we were pretty peckish by early evening. We’d already agreed not to eat the reheated fish Mr. ARB’s parents would no doubt drag out for like the third day in a row. So heading for a “walk on the beach” we made our escape to have a decent dinner. We stumbled upon a bar called Buckaloo’s which sounds like a tourist trap if I’ve ever heard of one, but the live music sounded good, so we thought we’d give it a try.

Starting with some popcorn shrimp with a tangy sauce, dinner was off to a good start. We then split the gigantic half bbq chicken. Tender and moist, served with onion rings we couldn’t have asked for more. Well, I guess a better beer selection if I had my druthers. We shared a $5 pitcher of Yuengling (the best beer available there) and I enjoyed a nice buzz. I felt like a teenager: sneaking out, drinking beer and then sneaking back in. Not a bad stop if you are seeking live music, decent food and cheap beer.

6628 Thomas Dr
Panama City Beach, FL 32408
(850) 249-5270

Earlier this year, I was approached by a publishing company, Globe Pequot Press, and asked if I was interested in writing a Food Guide book for Atlanta. I practically jumped out of my skin, I was so excited that they picked me. My publisher just sent me the cover of the book (pictured above) and I wanted to share it with you.

I’ve had so much fun over the last several months visiting restaurants around Atlanta and talking to staff and chefs. It has been a wonderful experience writing the book and I definitely have a new appreciation and respect for both authors and editors.

As you are reading this, I’m down in Florida for a short break and celebrating finishing the book!

Cheers!

842 N Highland Ave NE
Atlanta, GA 30306
Website

The Cuban Diner
I’ve been to the Cuban Diner in Marietta a handful of times now. I can’t seem to order anything but the Cuban sandwich as it is just so tasty and a great lunch special at $6 for a half sandwich and two sides. The fish pictured below right, is another lunch special. I’m not crazy about Tilapia, but it is cooked just right and is perfectly seasoned. Another good lunch option.

1484 Roswell Road
Marietta, GA 30062
Website

Umezono Japanese
Lunch is a great option here. Combo lunch includes Miso Soup, Salad with yummy ginger dressing and lots of sushi, dumpling, udon choices and more. My favorite is the Pork Katsu (not pictured), a fried pork cutlet. Delicious and so filling. All of this for less than eight bucks!

2086 Cobb Pkwy SE
Smyrna, GA 30080

The Crazy Cuban, located off of 14th street in Midtown, recently opened it’s doors to fill the void that Kool Korners left when it closed it’s doors back in 2008. That’s according to the website of the Crazy Cuban anyway. The Crazy Cuban is only open from 11 AM to 3 PM Monday through Friday. So, if you are in the area and jonesing for a Cuban on a weekend, look elsewhere.

I stopped by to check out the Crazy Cuban with First Bite for lunch recently. As I was a bit early I sat in my car for a while waiting to go inside. I noticed most in the small parking lot just dashing in for a couple minutes then leaving with a brown paper bag. I just figured that most prefer to get their lunch to-go from the Crazy Cuban. It wasn’t until I went inside, I realized how tiny the place is and that there is nowhere to actually sit.

Well that’s not exactly true. They do have two picnic tables around back, which Jessica and I sat and ate our lunches.

The menu is pretty limited with only about 4 sandwiches and there are no authentic Cuban sides. The only side you can get is a bag of chips. Sandwiches are $5.75, or you can get a combo with drink for $7.79. We both ordered the Cuban sandwich, sans the lettuce, tomatoes and jalapenos which are offered on the chalk menu. Who orders a Cuban sandwich with that on it I wondered when I saw the menu.

Besides the fact that they went a little overboard on the mustard, I thought it was a decent sandwich. But it didn’t blow me away either. The bread was crunchy, the ham was plentiful and the pork was tender (albeit a little fatty). If you are in the area, it’ll cure your craving, but I’ve had much better Cuban sandwiches at other places in Atlanta.

290 14th Street
Atlanta, GA 30318
404 607 7348
Website

The food is so fresh and flavorful. And Pura Vida has such interesting pairings of ingredients. Think mahi-mahi and chorizo skewers with banana mustard. Or how about this – hearts of palm coated in a coconut vinaigrette with dates, Serrano ham, and tres leches yogurt? Those were some of the first flavors I ever tasted at Pura Vida. Everything I’ve ever had was phenomenal. However, based on the menu I wouldn’t recommend that you take a “meat and potatoes” crowd to Pura Vida.

If you can’t figure it out, Pura Vida is one of my Atlanta faves and has been for several years. Last year, I went there about 3 times in a period of about 2 months.

One one of those visits, we began with a Pisco Sour. If you aren’t familiar with a Pisco Sour, Pisco is is a type of liquor from Peru and the Pisco Sour (made with egg whites and bitters) is the unofficial drink of Peru. Having visited Peru the prior year, and having many, many of these I was really looking forward to having one again. They were ok, but certainly not going to make you a Pisco Sour lover. So, we moved onto wine. I hear they make a mean mojito, which I’ll be sure to check out on my next visit.

Although all “meals” are technically tapas, some lend themselves more the “appetizer” side and some are more the “mains” side. On all visits we tend to place an order for a couple items to start and a couple to share for our main meal. Some starters were the malanga root chips (bottom left), shrimp coctel and calamari (bottom right).

The shrimp coctel (yes, that’s how they spell it), is delicious and one of my favorites with it’s diablo sauce and butternut squash squares, is the perfect blend of sweet and spicy. And the calamari is a unique presentation (unfried) and very fresh to be served that way. The root chips had a great, flavorful cremini mushroom sauce too, which surprisingly was not too heavy or filling and would be an excellent choice for sharing with a large group.

We also tried a trout ceviche, which didn’t excite me too much. However, I would love to try the tofu ceviche, for which Chef Santiago got high praises for while on Top Chef and is now featured on his regular menu.

Duck Confit, Steamed Coconut Buns

For the second order placed, we decided to order the steamed coconut buns, which didn’t disappoint. The light, fluffy, and yes, steamy buns pair well with the pork belly inside. And the duck confit was also equally matched with plantains. I would never have thought those two ingredients would be such a pleasurable flavor but they were.

Pura Vida Goat Mofoguno

And on another visit we tried the goat mofongo. If you are a lamb lover, don’t be afraid to give this one a try. The taste is somewhat similar. I was told by our server that it is one of the most popular dishes that regulars like to order. And, after sampling it, I can see why. The slow cooked goat with coconut and banana is oh so tender, slightly sweet and spiced just right with a couple drops of diablo sauce which accompanies your meal.

For dessert, don’t miss the house made ice cream. Even if it’s cold outside, this is a real treat. We had the banana ice cream and it is amazing how much the flavor comes through. The chocolate flan brulee as it’s called, is also tasty and great with a glass of red wine.

The service here has always been top notch too. It seems much more authentic and a cut above other tapas bars like Elclipse di Luna and Loca Luna. Pura Vida is less noisy, the service is better and the food is a much higher quality.

Want to be able to cook some of the dishes son the menu? They have cooking classes once a month with different menu features.

Extras: There is free parking on the side street adjacent to the restaurant. And it is located very close to Fernbank, so it is a great choice for date night at Martinis and Imax.

656 N Highland Ave.
Atlanta, GA_30306
404-870-9797
Website