Ellen does Tampa; BRISKET over "Ribdog's", Winghouse girl fun.. SLIMY wings ..!

Ellen sure gets around, huh?!?
I flew down to Tampa on Dec. 13th, 2008 for 5 days .
I was espescially excited about "meating up" with my longtime friend Robin, who just started dealing BJ at the Tampa Seminole Hard Rock .
We first met in 1988, when we were both poker dealers in Vegas.
In addition, Roadfooder "Ribdog" invited me for a homemade BRISKET dinner!
Turns out some fellow Roadfood comrades were in Tampa, as well, and they even beat me to the punch with their great Trip Report!
Kudos to Buffetbuster and TTM for your nice pics and picadillo !! (etc)
My first stop was MEL'S hot dogs near Busch Gardens.

This was recommended to me by fellow Roadfood.com buds.
VIENNA all beef hot dogs.
 
My only regret was that I did'nt buy you a Mel's T-shirt, Miami Don!
(I owe you!)
 
I did a Buffetbuster "pie move" and got 2 different hot dogs, as I could'nt decide.
Hey, it's certainly cheap enough, why not get both?!?
Besides, I have'nt had a CORN DOG in a while!
I moved over some of the peppers and onions, so you can see the MEAT.
John Fox will appreciate it.  I know I hate looking at a pic of a cheeseburger, and only seeing a mound of CHEESE !!!!
TAMPA must have gotten advance notice that I was coming, cause look at the COVER of the freebie TAMPA BAY weekly!

I even ended up going to one of the places that got an honorable mention, the Salt Rock Grill.... thumbs down on their  NY steak, (IMO), but the seafood could'nt be FRESHER! (as I actually witnessed the fishing dayboat come in with some freshly caught grouper! (pics coming)
 
Here's MEL'S WIENER WAGON !
 
 
I enjoyed the place, overall, as it had "character" to it, plus a tasty hot dog..
I still prefer a good crispy broiled garlicy dog the best, though
 
I noticed this LUPTON'S BBQ buffet joint that was also near BUSCH GARDENS
I took a peak inside; did'nt look too good to me.., but hey, for 10 bucks, all you can eat, they were packed... 

 
Next I drove across the bridge to Clearwater/St Pete.
I was going to be checking into my $30 a night (plus tax, etc) Priceline.com room
at the Courtyard by Marriot.
 
Next stop, BIFF'S BURGERS, St. Pete...

Turns out it was about their biggest night of the year at Biff's..
the TOYS FOR TOTS night, complete with a motorcycle show, and lots of extra bike accessory booths, etc..
supposedly, they are huge nationwide leaders in donating to the community.
 

The "TOYS FOR TOT'S" side of BIFF'S sign...

My 1/4 pound BIFF'S BURGER
It had a GREAT charbroiled FLAVOR; no pink, though..(next time I'll try their 1/2 pound version, just for a different experience.
As you can see, the ROLL was way too BIG for the burger..
(better suited for that 1/2 pound one) 
The FRENCH FRIES basically sucked; just your standard frozen ones, IMO .
And I did'nt like the idea that they charged 75 cents each for those extra sauces i ordered, the "Biff's sauce" , and the Hickory Sauce...
I know a lot of places do it, but somehow this one irratated me a bit...
They have a BBQ menu, as well......"Buffy's BBQ", I almost got a bbq beef sandwich, too.. 
 
Sunday, Dec. 14th (the next day)
Headed into CLEARWATER BEACH ....
  I just LOVE the NAMES of these BOATS !

(I like to be thought of as a good girl, but I'm often a bad girl!)
(just a little mischevious ...)
 
Here's those fisherman again..
 
my  lunch destination  is BOB WEILMAN'S Clearwater Beach;                            good buddy SIGNMAN recommended it.


The RELISH TRAY:  l-r: apple butter, cottage cheese, pickled herring, purple beets
The salad with perfect HOMEMADE ranch DRESSING; decent rolls, too 

I felt a little OUT OF PLACE here at the Beachcomber, as most of the crowd was around 80 years old. There were about 14 other tables of people there..

The food was good , and reasonable, too....so it's kind of odd why they don't seem to appeal to people of all ages...
That is one reason I really enjoy dealing poker, cause we get players from 21 to 110.  I think of poker as the great equalizer, nice mixed crowd.. 
 
Here's my PERFECT SALAD with great HOMEMADE ranch dressing!!!
 
Signman recommend their signature dish, the FRIED CHICKEN  (thumbs up!!)

The waiter suggested I order it on the Sunday $14.00 special..
(their 2 for $28 menu).  Same size chicken as their $17.95 one;
the main difference was "no cole slaw" included;  but dessert instead.
 
Had the KEY LIME PIE ; too sweet for my tastes
Most people in here seemed interested in a real leisurely meal; not ME, though..
I let the waiter Fred know that I was too full of energy to be in there too long..
needed to get outside and walk around, drive around, see the sights!
 
The BEACHCOMBER, Clearwater Beach, since 1948 ! (just like Cantor's Deli, L.A.

 
MORE pics COMING during the next few days! Please COME BACK!
I love your support!!!!!!!!!!! 
  

It's Sunday morning & I'm on my second cup of coffee, roaming thru this tread only to come across the wiener wagon. I was going to comment, but I'll save the administrators the trouble of censoring the comment & just censor myself.
 
Great report!

Love that hot dog car!

Hi Ellen,

I just love how much you get around.

Tell me about the hot dog.  What all was on it?  Did you eat the entire thing?  Scrape off any of the topping?

It looks like the dog they called the LA dog at Fabs here in the Valley.  That will be my next choice when I go there.

And.... I also love that car!  I bet it's Hell to park.

Thanks Ellen.

Did you get to La Terisita?

I ate there today and was very impressed.

(Me: Off to Seattle/Yakima/Bend, OR tomorrow.)

Hey,Ellen, I wouldn't like that Biff Burger either...plain frozen generic fries...and it's a peeve of mine when a hamburger can't fit the roll!! Why pay for extra bread...or not enough meat!!!!

You're off and running again. LOL, first time we took the kids to Busch Gardens about 25 years ago we stayed at that hotel behind the car.

Well, actually, those oldtimers among us  go to BiffBurger annually, not for the food, which is Ok, but not worth a trip, but for the 50's ambience. Ellen was luck to be there when a major motorcycle event was taking place - tats when you joint jumps!!

Cheers, John 

Well, actually, those oldtimers among us  go to BiffBurger annually, not for the food, which is Ok, but not worth a trip, but for the 50's ambience. Ellen was luck to be there when a major motorcycle event was taking place - thats when the joint jumps!!

Cheers, John 

cavandre


It's Sunday morning & I'm on my second cup of coffee, roaming thru this tread only to come across the wiener wagon. I was going to comment, but I'll save the administrators the trouble of censoring the comment & just censor myself.
 
Great report!

Ja vell, you know vot zey say - zometimess a hot dog car iss just a hot dog car!

OMG........another Ellen trip report!  Prepare to drool!  Did you get any seafood on this trip? You do get around, gal!

mar52

Hi Ellen,
Tell me about the hot dog.  What all was on it?  Did you eat the entire thing?  Scrape off any of the topping?

Hi Marlene,
I opted for grilled onions, peppers, and brown mustard on Hot Dog #1.
And , yes, I DID find myself scraping off a little bit of the toppings,  cause I wanted to taste the meat better.
Hot Dog #2 was a corn dog, and I ate it mostly plain, but I did dip a  little into some mustard.
 
My final stats are : I ate about 1/2 of each hot dog...(wanted to save myself for more munching out later...)  And I enjoyed most of the  super good cole slaw ...
 
That was a cute comment you made about that "Weiner Wagon" being tough to PARK!
I never even thought of that!
(just as well they leave it parked right there, huh!!!?) 

GREGG: Ended up at ARCO ISIS, although  I did walk into La Teresita to catch the vibe..
(lots of people sitting at those 2 horseshoe shaped counters.  And I took a few pics outside.

LEETHEBARD: I actually really liked the burger itself!!  And although it was silly to have all the extra "roll overhang", I could deal with that......
But those FRIES , ugh!!  (It was either a choice of fries or tator tots, which looked ugh, too)

FRIEDCLAMFANATIC: I'm probably missing out on a lot, but I don't do seafood.
(although it was pretty impressive to watch the freshly caught grouper being taken off the boat at the Salt Rock Grill. Now THAT'S fresh seafood, espescially when Captain Brian yells to us ramp onlookers,  "Seafood for everyone tonight!!"

Eleen, TM and BB certainly had a better go at Tampa St. Pete than I did last week, grabbing a meal at the airport's excuse for a Cuban restaurant while waiting for the delayed flight home after a quick day trip for business.

If I could spell fallic, I'd comment on Mel's Hot Dogs beetle. 

Ellen:

Did you have a steak at "Council Oak"??  My BF and I went to the casino last year, we won a nice chunk of change but still could only afford to salivate over all of the dry aged beef they had hanging in the window.

Twinwillow


If I could spell fallic, I'd comment on Mel's Hot Dogs beetle.

Start with 'ph'.  I will resist any jokes that involve the words Florida and wang...

mark

I dont think Tampa will ever be the same again - Ellen, Buffetbuster and TTM all in the same city........

Ellen

Mel's are some mighty fine dogs, I have never had one of their corn dogs how was it?
 
 

Ellen, Glad you enjoyed Tampa.
 
Boy, I would never want to be rear ended by Mel.
 
Hey get your minds out of the gutter!

Ellen, Did you get any smoked mullett? Keep the reports coming.

CajunKing

Mel's are some mighty fine dogs, I have never had one of their corn dogs how was it?

Pretty good, I would say,  ..... (to nitpick , I'd like it even more if  it was a thicker, juicier, crunchier/wavier crust)...., however, I don't come across all beef corn dogs that often, so I had to be grateful for what I got...
 
 

Rusty246


Ellen:

Did you have a steak at "Council Oak"?? 

No, I just was there at the Tampa Seminole Hard Rock Casino about about half an hour....
I played a little poker while waiting for my friend Robin to get off work from dealing. We went for wings..(pics coming)
I did go to a few other steak joints , though..
(you know you can count on that!!)
Pics coming...

rpalmer1


Ellen, Did you get any smoked mullett?

No, I had the (supposedly) famous burger at Ted Peters.
I passed on the mullett...
 
PICS COMING!!

doggydaddy

Twinwillow


If I could spell fallic, I'd comment on Mel's Hot Dogs beetle.

Start with 'ph'.  I will resist any jokes that involve the words Florida and wang...

mark

Phlorida is phine with me. 

Joe---Beautiful...

Two blocks from Cooters,O my, local eatery and then some . Keep the turist away.
http://www.cooters.com/
 
Always there on MON nites. when back in the area, Mel's 1 1/2 mile from condo . 3/4 Mile bird flies.  Next week down there and don't where to start. No BBQ, No STEAKS, just
seafood.

===Two blocks from Cooters,O my, local eatery and then some . Keep the turist away.
http://www.cooters.com/ ===

As a tourist, I would keep away from that menu. Crabby Cakes are a tip-off. The description for them does not list crab...

===Next week down there and don't where to start. No BBQ, No STEAKS, just seafood.===

I hear that there is some unique and delicious seafood down there.  It looks like there is more beef in Florida than in Texas.
I have one question about Florida and BBQ? Is there anything or anyplace that defines that state? Somebody asked me and I did not have a answer.

mark

The Beachcomber looked just great, Ellen! I love the idea of the lazy susan with the various items.And boy, that chicken looked fantastic.

Ellen, both of your salad photos show up to me as broken links, with the red x in a little box.  I never had problems viewing your reports before.

doggydaddy

I have one question about Florida and BBQ? Is there anything or anyplace that defines that state? Somebody asked me and I did not have a answer.

Mark,

Having lived in Florida for almost 20 years and traveled extensively in search of great BBQ, I can say that Florida BBQ is defined solely by its almost universal crappy nature.

As big a state as Florida is, good barbecue is scattered pretty well.  There is one place that I like in Orlando.  There is one place on my list to try for Tampa.  And, I have one local place that hits the spot in a pinch, if I haven't been to a good barbecue town in a while.  For comparison's sake, a small town like Lockhart, TX, which has a population of less than 10,000 people has four or five BBQ joints that are better than anything you will find in all of Florida.  Fortunately, I have no trouble getting to Texas, Kansas City or other places that specialize in BBQ - and I can enjoy Cuban, Jamaican, Puerto Rican, and all sorts of local seafood that I cannot find elsewhere.