B.F.D. (New breakfast/lunch place in Sun Center)

101 SE 2nd place #114
Inside Sun Center East (where Maude's is)

The owners of Boca Fiesta have decided to take a shot at the Bermuda Triangle of Downtown Gainesville's Restaurant Scene, Sun Center East. In the 2 years I've been working downtown, no less than 4 other restaurants have tried and failed miserably to make ends meet in the scarcely visited and zero incidental foot trafficked location INSIDE the "mall" behind Maudes.

As this blog has repeatedly stated, Boca Fiesta may not be Gainesville's worst restaurant, but if Tim's Thai burns down, they will certainly be leading the race.
As a fierce critic, I couldn't wait to try their new venture, fangs glistening and mouth salivating like a wolf about to demolish its prey (not in a hunger sense, but in a metaphorical sense).

Upon first glance, I was actually impressed with the menu offerings, but held my horses, as it couldn't be that good, right?

Wrong!

It was amazing.

I'm actually flabbergasted and momentarily without words.






To be honest, this is the type restaurant I'd expect from the folks running Boca Fiesta. It's definitely very Gainesville. There are ample meat options, but the veg choices are unique and seemed enticing. I settled on the BBQ Jackfruit sandwich, which is served on a potato bun with a side of cole slaw. While it didn't look like it was going to win any "handsomest sandwich" awards, it was damn good. To be honest, I've never had anything like it. The jackfruit was very satisfyingly sweet and had a mildly chewy texture. It wasn't chewy like gum, but it had something you could sink your teeth into (unlike tofu). The BBQ sauce was delicious and the cole slaw made a great addition to the sandwich. The real kicker was the price: $4.50!!!! What a great sandwich for a great price.

I polished it off with one of their 3 different ginger beers, which at 2.50, was the only slightly high price in my opinion.

My eating companion got a burger, which he said was very good. At $4.50, it was also a great bargain. His cole slaw had a decent sized sharp piece of plastic in it, so that was kind of a downer, but the restaurant gladly comped us a CHERRY PIE MILKSHAKE!! What insane pregnant woman invented this heavenly confection? I swear to god, if it wasn't going to quickly stop my heart from beating, I'd eat one of these every day for breakfast and consider a second for mid afternoon snacking.

Surprises do happen, even in this town, even with previously unpopular restauranteurs. Take it from me, if I liked this place, it's gotta be good. Again, I really feel like this style of food is more natural to the folks who run it, but don't go here expecting anything resembling Boca Fiesta.

I'll gladly go back (and surely report if things change).

Daytripper: The Great Outdoors - High Springs

65 North Main Street
High Springs, FL 32643-2652
(386) 454-1288

I've often wanted to check out The Great Outdoors up in High Springs, as I've heard good things about it and it looks really charming. I've always envisioned a nice day at the springs followed by a hearty meal at what I assumed was a unique hidden gem in sleepy North Alachua County. Upon finally visiting, however, I was faced with many realizations. First, I'm out of my element up here. That's why my blog is so negative. Food around us is mostly aimed at college (read poor) kids and rednecks. Sure, a lone stand out or two can surprise me from time to time, but overall, I'm not the target market of the restaurateurs in this part of the country. Second, I'm not comfortable when surrounded by Florida Cracker/redneck culture. For example, the little store next door to the restaurant had about half a dozen different front pages from various newspapers on the day of Osama Bin Laden's death. I don't think they'll be taking them down any time soon.

Back to the restaurant. The building was very charming and well done. It took them about 10 minutes to figure out where to seat us (the place was empty), but that allowed ample time to browse the bits and bobs of local history hanging on the wall. To be honest, the little "downtown" strips of Gainesville's surrounding small towns are quite charming and deserve the utmost preservation efforts. We sat on the back porch/bar area, which was very beautifully done. It was almost idyllic out back there until I realized how Red State it felt. I could easily see a bunch of drunken rednecks on a Friday or Saturday night gettin all riled up by some fairy college boys and fittin' ta rassle em.

I ordered one of their private label beers, which are contract brewed through Indian River Brewery in Melbourne. The one I chose was Naked Ed Pale Ale. Naked Ed, for you fans of local lore, is a real dude who lives in the woods completely naked at all times. My favorite part about this "Pale Ale," was the first three lines of the description on the bottle: "This Amber Ale..." Hey, but who's keeping track of things like that?

The porch features live music, and it's about what you can expect of a place in High Springs, FL. The only serious problem (besides the Matchbox 20 covers and basically every other song they played) was that it was being played at ear splitting levels. Just two dudes on acoustic guitars prevented us from being able to hear each other talk at the table 20 yards away.

To start, I ordered the side portion of the nut n berry salad ($5) which featured organic field greens, dried cranberries, roasted pears, spiced walnuts and Maytag bleu cheese in a honey balsamic. It tasted like thanksgiving dessert in salad form. It was pretty delicious, but I'm pretty sure the dressing was made out of pure brown sugar and honey.
For my entree, I ordered the Cajun griddled redfish. They offer their fish prepared in 4 different fashions (cajun griddled, ginger-ponzu pan roasted, deep fried, and grilled) and I picked what seemed to be the most foolproof method. They specify on the menu in an almost boastful manner that the blackened seasoning is Chef Paul Prudhomme's special blend of spices. Seriously? Fucking Paul Prudhomme? I joked with our server by asking if Paul Prudhomme was actually working tonight. He didn't get it. All the fish dishes were served on a bed of organic greens with sweet pea and saffron infused Israeliean cous cous. Despite the fact that it's "Israeli," you can't really fault the folks here, as they've probably never even seen a real live Jew up in their parts. Besides, they're just doing the best job they can at Americaniean cuisine. Also, it really didn't need the overly generous dollop of buttery creamy whatever that they plopped on top.

All in all, the fish was OK, nothing great, nothing terrible. The greens and cous cous were cold, which was odd and they seemed to be seasoned with a light balsamic vinaigrette, which was equally bizarre. The combination of flavors didn't really go with the flavor of the fish.

I really don't know what I was expecting. It was straight up American cuisine with loads of simply prepared meats and an aim to please the good country folk of High Springs. If you're passing through on your way back from the springs, it might be worth checking out, but don't go out of your way to eat here.

The Lunchbox: Fool me thrice?

After vowing to never return to the little ol lunchbox in downtown Gainesville, I found myself starting at its menu yet again. I knew the original owners had sold the place and was assured that quality had actually improved. As far as the original owners, I can't think of a better move for someone so out of touch with culinary skills. The new owner, unfortunately, hadn't changed the menu at all and I was faced with the same 4 boring choices. To reiterate, they are:

1. asian sandwich
2. asian style taco
3. latin style taco
4. rice bowl

To each of these, you'd add a protein (ribs, chicken, baked tofu, fried fish) and voila, lunch. For some unknown reason, they love pickled cabbage, pickled onions, and cilantro. In fact, those seem to be the only ingredients available to them as each of the above 4 choices comes with them on top/inside. I'd venture to say that nothing is less appealing than baked tofu with a few pieces of cilantro and some pickled vegetables.

Today, I decided to do my last resort test for any place in town, venture into the carnivore realm. I'm trying to avoid meat, but consider myself at best a non-strict vegetarian; therefore, I tried the chicken latin-style tacos.

In all honesty, they weren't bad. The tortillas and the chicken were pretty fresh and tasty, and even the garlic-lime mojo sauce was pretty good (albeit weakly flavored for such bold ingredients). I didn't feel ripped off and I didn't think the meal was totally lacking of any quality. I do still feel with all my being that the pickled vegetables HAVE TO GO. Also, I got more than 4 tortilla chips this time but they tasted fishy as they were surely fried up in the same oil as the fish.

All in all I wasn't blown away, but I was hopeful. If the new owner reads this, there's no reason you can't be better than what you bought. First off, ditch the baked tofu. It's terrible. This is a tempeh town. Hook up some great tempeh from one of our local providers. Fry that shit up or bake it and it will be infinitely better than the tofu.

New Owners at Bahn Thai: I'm worried

I've already reviewed Bahn Thai on this blog and gave it a pretty favorable review. Certainly it's in a shady part of town, the decor is kinda creepy, and the fact that their front wall is emblazoned with photos from 1992 makes you wonder the last time they cleaned up the place. But all in all, it was good. It was a Mom and Pop operation, with Mom up front and Pop working the kitchen. You somehow trusted their preparation practices and food quality because they were personally connected to the business. Also, they'd been doing it for ages.

Upon recently re-visiting the place twice in the past few months, I realized something was up. The first hint was a remodeling job that half the restaurant underwent. Chairs, tables, and sculptures that were clearly bought at a restaurant goods bankruptcy auction replaced the old dingy tables, and the walls received some fresh paint (which upon closer inspection was very poorly done). They also were offering sushi and japanese food items.

I quickly realized something was up.

Upon the dinner visit (at 8:30 on a Saturday), the lunch buffet was still out, all congealed and crusted to the pans some 7+ hours after it was last touched. Furthermore, I noted that the sushi coolers had heavy condensation. After looking closer, I realized that the doors were open. All this RAW FISH was being exposed to the open air in suboptimal refrigeration conditions.

The new owners purchased all the old recipes and the regular menu items were still accurate to the originals. But they stopped the complimentary dessert! It was a small gesture, but certainly a welcomed one and a favorite item of many long time locals.

If you need advice on when to be skeptical about a place's sushi, you shouldn't be eating sushi at all, but I'd strongly, and with all my powers, urge you to AVOID their sushi. The Thai still seems acceptable, but I'm not feeling too hopeful. There wasn't one other party eating dinner on a Saturday night in the whole place.

Bahn Thai was never the best Thai Restaurant in the world, but it was certainly the best we had in this town. If the new owners don't get their act in gear, it will be a shame to lose it.

La Tienda : because you really feel like a burrito after picking up that hooker

2204 Southwest 13th Street

2 thumbs up.

La Tienda is one of many restaurants south of Archer Rd on 13th St that exist a mere crack rock's throw from some savory women of the night. But hey, you gotta eat, right? Sandwiched between the charred remains of Traders South, the former gentlemens club that burned down (read: WAS burned down) and the somehow out of business Waffle House, La Tienda is actually a very clean and inviting restaurant/Mexican store. You can buy yourself some home-cooked authentic Mexican dishes, fresh crossed the border Mexican goods, and even some Mexican music (my favorite was an album entitled "Esta es mi gallo" or "This is my cock," which my brother actually bought - much worse than you could ever imagine).

The menu looked somewhat familiar, and as I was told the same folks run Las Margaritas (unconfirmed), it made sense. I ordered a roasted veggie and bean burrito, some guac and chips and salsa. First off, the salsa was great and the chips fresh. The guac had more of a green mayonnaise consistency and wasn't really my thing.

The burrito was tasty, but as a lunch companion described it, very lardy. The beans were super heavy and dense. I felt like I had eaten a lead brick for the rest of the day.

I've always said I don't like sit down Mexican, but La Tienda offers counter service. This caused me to realize that I just don't like what us American's traditionally know as Mexican. Tex-Mex always seems to be a lighter, fresher choice, but maybe that's just me. To be honest, the place was very clean and welcoming, the portions large and reasonably priced (everything was around 5 bucks), and a pretty decent diamond in the rough of south 13th st.

Another old adage of mine is that I don't need any more burrito joints in this town, we've got that covered.

Bottom line, check it out for yourself. It certainly wasn't the worst place in the world. As somewhat of a health food nut, it certainly didn't please me in that regard. Otherwise, though, there was nothing really to complain about.

Designer Greens

1702 w. university ave.
(underneath copper monkey and next to pita pit by campus)

One thumb up (mostly for effort)


Since last week was spring break and parking wasn't impossible, a few friends and I decided to try some restaurants near campus. The first one we tried was Designer Greens, a new "healthy" restaurant next to Pita Pit. Upon entering, we were presented with quite a spread of seemingly fresh ingredients: lettuces, avocados, hard boiled eggs, tortilla strips, tomatoes (there must have been two dozen different fresh ingredients on hand). This pleased me greatly, as fast food seems to be taking a turn for the healthier/fresher. Also, I was satisfied to find out that what appeared to be a corporate chain was actually a small Florida based operation with only two stores currently open.

I ordered the half sandwich and half salad option and opted for the hummus sandwich, featuring hummus, tzatziki, tomatoes, red onion, feta, and black olives. All of the sandwiches came on pressed flatbread (think thick pita). The salad I chose was the "Avocado," featuring romaine lettuce, avocado, mandarin oranges, red onion, hard boiled egg, corn, candied pecans, goat cheese with citrus dressing. The sandwich was quite small and unfilling but the salad was surprisingly big for a "half."

First off, the sandwich was quite tasty, but felt extremely unhealthy. All the ingredients should be fresh and light, yet the sandwich managed to have a heavy, weighed down texture to it. Like I said, it was tasty, but it really seemed like it had some thick, unhealthy ingredients in it. Feta, yogurt sauce (tzatziki) and hummus don't get that creamy on their own.

Second, the ingredients in the salad seemed to have been compiled by either a child or a madman. Mandarin Oranges and Avocado? Corn? Egg and candied pecans? The salad was very unsettling. Even though this place started in Orlando, this salad epitomized Gainesville cooking mentality: throw a whole bunch of unrelated rich flavors together and pass it off as gourmet.

As with most places in town, I have to step back and realize who they're catering to. Sure, most health conscious college kids might be psyched to eat here. But with a 9.50 price tag for my lunch, I'm not sure they can afford it.

Day Tripper: The Yearling (Cross Creek)

14531 E County Road 325
Cross Creek, FL

2 thumbs up (all for the experience, none for the food)

The Yearling Restaurant in Cross Creek is somewhat of an anomaly in North Central Florida. It is a hugely successful restaurant in the middle of nowhere. It has won Best in the State awards every year since it's been open. It's at least 30 minutes from Gainesville and an equal 30 minutes from Ocala. And, I must stress this, it's IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

How do they do it, you ask? Well, if you start thinking like a good ole' Florida boy, the answer is simple. The food defines Florida Cracker cuisine. The only spices on the kitchen shelf are salt, salt, salt, and salt. You'll find an ample sampling of gator, catfish, softshell crab and shirts proclaiming "Eat Mo' Cooter!" (turtle, which I don't believe is actually on the menu).

If you think like a literature buff, you'll realize it's named after the Marjorie Kinan Rawlings Pulitzer Prize winning novel. Despite rumors that the restaurant was at one point her actual house it's not; however, it is very close nearby.

If you think like a music purist, you'll want to go to check out Willie Green, a legit as all hell blues man who performs some of the most authentic blues you've ever heard.


All told, a meal here is a truly unique Floridian experience. As I am not a Florida Cracker, I can't say I was blown away by the food. I tried the blackened catfish sandwich with collard greens. I've never eaten catfish before, so I guess I kinda set myself up for failure when I realized how slimy and oddly textured it is. Regardless, it was so over salted that I could barely focus on much else. The greens were equally salted beyond belief.


My eating partner opted for the soft shell crab sandwich with okra and tomatoes. Again, I'm not a Florida Goodleboy, so I've never seen a fried soft shell crab before. Needless to say, it was rather unsettling. I half expected the thing to scoot sideways off the bun and back into the deep fryer. I didn't try it, but was told it was good.

We both chose sweet tea (duh) which turned out to be SUPER SWEET tea. There was so much sugar in it that you couldn't taste much else. I couldn't even finish my glass due to the diabetic shock I immediately entered.

Do be warned that there was absolutely nothing vegetarian friendly on the menu.

All in all, The Yearling was a fun adventure. To get there, you even have to cross the River Styx (I shit you not). I'd strongly suggest going when Willie Green is playing and be sure to sit up front where he plays (besides, the back room looked like a creepy redneck Denny's).