At the beginning of April, I took an unforgettable trip to Florida, marking my first time in the state. Whenever I visit a new place, I love sampling area dishes and local specialties. I feel I achieved this in spades when my group ate lunch at The Catfish Place, where I ordered the most Southern dish I could find on the menu:
Fried catfish and shrimp with hush puppies, fries, cheese grits, fried alligator, fried green tomatoes, fried pickles, and a tall glass of sweet tea. I wasn’t too keen on the grits, but I liked everything else, including the gator – which tastes like chicken, of course.
Another novel experience was Medieval Times, a “Dinner and a show” experience where you watch a joust while eating chicken with your hands – no cutlery allowed!
We also ate at more conventional local restaurants, enjoying a fantastic steak dinner at Meliá Orlando – so tender, you didn’t even need a steak knife!
I also had a chance to try the famous 1905 Salad at Columbia Restaurant!
We were also treated to having personal chef Linda Page come to our vacation home and cook us a delicious dinner of lasagna and Tiramisu!
We got a little “Taste” of food history at Chocolate Kingdom, where we got a crash course on the origin of chocolate along with a tour of Chocolate Kingdom’s candy-making facility. I got a chance to dip a marshmallow in a vat of chocolate, which was fun!
Speaking of my sweet tooth, I really enjoyed nibbling on these goodies from the Sweet Escape Cookie Company during a Twitter party that we held!
Finally, I bought a couple of sticks of Gator Bob’s alligator jerky at Wild Florida for souvenirs. I got it as more of a novelty gift, Jai said it was actually some of the best jerky he’s ever had!
So tell me: Would you try alligator meat?
Beeb Ashcroft
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We always say we will get the gator but never do. May make my husband actually eat his words next time.
And I don’t think I will be going to Medieval Times anytime soon. The idea of eating that with my hands is just too much.
Looks like you had a lot of great food. I’m not so sure about the fried alligator though….think I would have taken a pass on that one.
I am a native Floridan living in Florida all my life, I have never had gator, what does it taste like? The desserts look great!
Wow, that vacation sounds like a foodie lovers dream! Also: so happy to hear you loved fried tomatoes – I can’t get enough of them.
Thanks for stopping by, everyone!
Mary – I know what you mean, I’m prissy so it was a good challenge for me to eat with my hands, haha!
Mama to 5 Blessings: Believe it or not…it really does taste like chicken! Specifically, it tasted like very chewy popcorn chicken.