Our Favorite Restaurants

During the course of our travels we got the chance to eat in a lot of restaurants.  Some of them we like, some of them we don’t.  But we try to let you know what we think.  You may not agree with us, but at least you know what to expect!

Newport Beach to San Diego (Torrey Pines)

August 1, 2011 As Mike explained in an earlier post, I (Nancy) had my first mini-tour experience in Ojai.  Well, ...

If you are in Manhattan Beach, California and want fun breakfast, try Uncle Bill’s.

We stopped at Uncle Bill’s for breakfast on the first day of our trip to our new home in Florida ...

Brothers Restaurant at the Red Barn, Santa Ynez, California

This was the second time we ate at Brothers Restaurant at the Red Barn.  We wanted to go to Mattei’s ...

Industrial Eats in Buellton California is one of the best restaurants in the Greater Santa Barbara area

We had one of the best meals at a place called Industrial Eats in Buellton, California. If you didn’t look ...

Ophelia’s on the Bay, Siesta Key, Florida

Ophelia’s is a very welcoming place.  From the moment you walk in, the hostesses are there and ready to help ...

Hey! Where’s your bird?

August 12, 2015 On Wednesday, I decided to venture into some unexplored territory on my ride.  I've wanted to explore ...

Selva Grill

Last night we ate dinner at the award-winning Selva Grill. It is a Peruvian/Asian fusion restaurant on Main Street in ...

Ride to Nathan Benderson Park and Breakfast

It was a humid (for a change) morning in Lakewood Ranch when Mike and I decided to ride to Benderson ...

Pier 22 Restaurant Bradenton, Florida

Today, Mike and I ate lunch at Pier 22 on the Manatee River in Bradenton ...

Mattison’s City Grill, Main Street, Sarasota, Florida

We had a very enjoyable lunch at Mattison’s City Grill.   It is a real Sarasota classic place. The laid ...

Conflicted About Michael’s On East

We visited Michael’s on East for our anniversary because we heard it is one of the best (if not the ...

We thought we were going to the Cortez Stone Crab Festival (oops!)

Being new to Florida, we thought we would go to cool little festivals in this area. We read there was ...

Why “Roast” anything at home? Give Roast in Sarasota a try! It is a wonderfully eclectic restaurant in downtown Sarasota

How do we say we truly enjoyed our dinner at Roast.  Roast Restaurant is located next to the Sarasota Opera House ...

Skippers Dockside Restaurant, Key Largo, Florida

Wow, I still can’t believe we rode our bikes to Key West. Of course, we tried to find good or ...

Harriette’s Restaurant, Key Largo, Florida

As Mike mentioned in his blog about day 1, we simply got rained out. Our plan to ride that day ...

The Hideaway, Grassy Key, Florida

For dinner on Day One of our Key West Tour, we went in search of something different.   How about a ...

Nine One Five (Duval St.) Key West, Florida

We arrived in Key West the third day! Yahoo, there are some good restaurants for us to enjoy. We were ...

La Te Da Hotel, Restaurant, and Bar, Key West, Florida

What can I say about La Te Da. We were there each day (Day 3), (Day 4)  we were in ...

Louie’s Backyard, Key West, Florida

On Friday night, we went to Louie’s Backyard with Cindy, who is a local friend.  The restaurant was a complete ...

Blue Heaven Restaurant, Key West, Florida

Blue Heaven is very “Key West.” If you dump all of Key West in one place, it would be Blue ...

Ordering food in at the B&B: China Garden, Big Pine Key, Florida

Day 3 we were on our way. Since we stayed at a B&B, we either had to ride our bikes ...

Santiago’s Bodega, Key West, Florida

On Saturday evening, we had drinks again at our favorite bar, La Te Da, We asked the bartender for recommendations ...

Better Than Sex Dessert Restaurant, Key West, Florida

For dessert on Saturday night, we decided to go to Better Than Sex for dessert. It was a relatively short ...

Key Plaza Creperie Restaurant, Key West, Florida

We left fairly early and didn’t wait for breakfast at Author’s Guest House. We thought we would find something along ...

Hawk’s Cay Resort and Restaurants, Duck Key, Florida

On the last day of our ride, we arrived at Hawk’s Cay. Thankfully, the car was still there. It is ...

Yum is the word for Ortygia Restaurant, Bradenton, Florida

Ortygia is simply a delightful restaurant in the middle of a neighborhood in Bradenton, Florida. We had no idea how ...

For a Japanese food lover, Vizen Japanese Cuisine is the place to go in Sarasota.

Vizen Japanese Cuisine is located in Gulf Gate and is a very eclectic shopping area. It has lots of single ...

Fins at Sharky’s on the pier in Venice, Florida

I have to say, I really like Fins at Sharkey’s. I might like Sharkey’s too but can never get in ...

Restaurant Review: Koi Restaurant in the Bryant Park Hotel, New York

What a wonderful lunch! We went to Koi, a delicious Japanese fusion restaurant that takes up almost all of the ...

We love Pinot Noir (part 1)

I have to admit, Mike and I are unabashed and unrepentant Pinot Noir fans. We love the big, chewy and/or ...

We love Pinot Noir (part 3): Santa Barbara  

For us, we love the lush mouth feel of the California pinots. We visited the Santa Barbara wine areas many ...

We love Pinot Noir: Santa Barbara (Part 4)

As we continue the tour of our favorite Santa Barbara Pinot Noir growers, I thought I would take a minute ...

Grey Salt: A Great Addition to the Tampa Restaurant Scene

We don’t drive up to Tampa for dinner very often so since we had to be there for a concert, ...

We love Pinot Noir: San Luis Obispo

As we continued our exploration of the California wine regions, we drove up toward San Luis Obispo. While not as ...

We love Paso Robles and Pinot Noir

Paso Robles is a special place because it is probably what Napa was before it became so commercial. Over the ...

One of Sarasota’s Best: Pomona Bistro and Wine Bar

Pomona Bistro and Wine Bar is a lovely restaurant. It is a wonderful part of the Sarasota restaurant scene. While ...

Don’t Bother Trying Mattison’s City Grille in Bradenton

We were so excited that Mattison's was coming to Bradenton.  When we pulled up to the restaurant, they definitely "Mattisonized" ...

Rides, Food, Wine, Love, Life