Dining

By Jack Smith When I was a child growing up on the Chesapeake Bay, we had a special word for shrimp: bait. My first experience with shrimp as a food source was in the ‘60s and it came in the form of a shrimp cocktail. Fried, blackened, steamed were all...

By Marta Rose-Thorpe Poké (“PO-KAY”): A diced raw fish served either as an appetizer or a main course and is one of the main dishes of Native Hawaiian cuisine. When did a bowl of Poké go from being a type of cuisine to an experience? The answer is: When Island Fin...

Shrimp cocktail might be retro, but when done right, this party staple is never out of style. This classic version boasts big, plump, perfectly-cooked shrimp with a lemony, horseradish-spiked cocktail sauce. It’s incredibly easy to make and rivals the shrimp cocktail served at the finest restaurants and steakhouses. The...

By Jack Smith Southern cooking’s international roots run deep. For example, Floribbean. Floribbean cooking is a combination of Floridian and Caribbean cuisines. This style of cooking is found throughout Florida, but mainly on the Southern tip of Florida. Floribbean cooking combines influences from the Caribbean, but also from Hispanic and...

Kurt Fadden and his wife, Eve, are the owners of the new poké restaurant, Island Fin Poké Co located in Pier Park North. The Restaurant serves Hawaiian style poké bowls, as well as Dole soft serve in various flavors. The build-your-own poké bowl experience starts with choosing a base...

By Jack Smith The term ‘appetizers’ seems to have appeared simultaneously in England and America in 1860 as an English alternative to the French word, hors d’oeuvres. But though the name might vary, appetizers, in some form or another, have graced many a cultured table over the centuries. Ancient Greeks...

By Marta Rose-Thorpe It was Saturday night and Señor Frog’s was alive! The loud eighties rock (which would continue for the duration of our visit) welcomed us, and the place was vibrant with activity. Jen, the manager, greeted us and took us to our outside table overlooking the Gulf while...

By Jack Smith When my father passed away he left me his box at the Kentucky Derby and for the past twenty years, we have dedicated the first weekend of May to his memory. Talk about a party! I have a photo of myself sitting on the roof of a...

Christo’s Sports Bar and Grill in Panama City Beach, Florida is a hidden gem that, along with the Christo name and family, has been a part of the community since the 1950s. This family-owned and operated authentic treasure has a sports bar atmosphere and boasts 25 flat-screen TVs, bar...

By Jack Smith The daiquiri’s origin goes back to an actual cocktail recipe card signed by a “Jennings Cox” in 1896. This original recipe underwent an important transformation in the 1920s and 1930s when, with shaved ice and an electric blender, Constantino “Constante” Ribalaigua Vert, bartender and owner of a...