Key Largo in the Florida Keys offers some incredible places to visit especially if you love the water. Key Largo has pristine waters for snorkeling, diving and fishing and is located east of North America’s only living coral barrier reef formation and just west of the watery wilderness of the Florida everglades.

If you love the water but don’t like diving, fishing or snorkeling then perhaps you would prefer to take in a daily excursion aboard a guided boat trip or you could lay back and relax in the sun or shade on some of the incredible beaches of Key Largo. Read the rest of this entry »

By Gary J. Arzt

If you’re in Palm Beach, and looking for classic French food and service, L’Escalier is the right choice. A very attractive room, classically baroque with plenty of space between the white cloths draped tables.

Located in The Breakers, Palm Beach’s historical, landmark hotel, you have to know that the restaurant will be, as the British say, ‘up market.’ And so it is. It also delivers the best meal in south Florida, and is easily accessible to those living in the four east coast counties (Palm Beach, Broward, Miami Dade, and Monroe).

It provides the kind of dinning, and service, that is not readily available in Florida, or, for that matter, elsewhere. The operative word is elegant! Dishes brought to the table under silver plate domes; soup poured from individual small tureens. Read the rest of this entry »

Thanksgiving is a very special time of the year for all Americans. But in Florida where the weather is a little warmer we are able enjoy Thanksgiving in a different way… and at same time we still keep up the traditions of Thanksgiving.

We’re going to start of Thanksgiving in Florida with:

Some Thanksgiving traditions for the locals of Florida

Since many Floridians are transplants from other states, they’ve had to make their own Thanksgiving traditions.  That’s because not all families can get together during the holidays since everyone is spread out in various states within the United States.  Thus, many Floridians spend holidays, such as Thanksgiving, with friends and neighbors via a potluck, backyard BBQ, or progressive dinner. Read the rest of this entry »

By Gary J. Arzt

It was 2008; one hundred and twenty-eight years after Emile Commander opened his instantly successful restaurant in New Orleans’ Garden District, and about a decade after the Brennan family (owners since 1974) opened the second Commander’s Palace, in Las Vegas, that the world famous eatery came to Destin, FL.

A fabulous waterside location in Harbor Walk Village, world renowned modern Creole cuisine and fabulous cocktails in the On the Rocks bar, make a visit to Commander’s Palace a culinary experience par excellence and a collection of wonderful memories!

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We locals love to party right? And we love to try and out do other states when it comes to special times of the year like Halloween. So this year, it’s time to really get out those crazy Halloween costumes, prepare your pumpkins and get cooking some crazy finger licking, weird and gooey foods for your Halloween party.

Invite the family, invite the neighbors and make it one incredibly spooky and awesome night to remember.

First up it’s time to get working on those plans and to start with you need to think about decorating your home, your unit, your apartment or even your workplace if allowed. This time of year allows you to step outside the box and do something a little different and if you haven’t tried this before then this year is a good time to have your first Halloween party.

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Florida is replete with natural scenery, despite the large population of people and the big cities. All one needs to do is do some local travel through Florida, and you’ll feel like you’re in another place and time… you can see Florida before it became a popular living and tourist destination.

One such place is the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, just east of Titusville. This huge place to experience Florida ecology is composed of approximately 140,000 acres, where you’ll see over 500 types of animals (including some that are endangered) and over 1000 plant species.

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