by Strawberry Jam | Nov 22, 2011 | Art
Do you like art? How about a real-deal scavenger hunt? What if it’s all free, too? This Saturday, you can partake in that trifecta of awesomeness by participating in the annual Art Scavenger Huntin Downtown FTL. How does it work? On Saturday, November 26th, arrive at Laser Wolf at 8pm sharp to pick up your map, then head out on your quest, and return to the same location to get any pieces you find signed by the artist(s). It’s 100% free and 100% fun and local.
There’s quite a bit of history behind the hunt dating back to the old Chili Peper (now Revolution) where Hunt founder and organizer Steve Sticht (yes, the same guy behind the blue bikes) began anonymously leaving art around the venue. When friend and fellow artist Jeff Holmes found out Sticht was behind thes street art after telling him about the mysterious art that was beginning to spook the owners, the two thought of the idea of a “pirate art show”. After it’s success and the eventual departure of Holmes, that show evolved into what the Art Scavenger Hunt is today and is said to get “bigger and better each year”.
Last year, 21 artists participated and an estimated 160 maps were distributed (some of which were shared). The trail has even had to be changed because people were arriving early and grabbing the art before the official start of the Hunt (there is a 2 piece maximum to make sure everyone has a fair chance at getting something- Sticht makes a good portion of the art to ensure there’s enough to go around). See why we say get there at 8pm sharp?
Last year, the hunt was dedicated to Brad Stewart (Gidget Gein of Marilyn Manson), who despite living in California the past three years, would ship art for the Hunt every year. This year the Hunt will be dedicated to Peter Giovenco, one of the earliest artists and participants, who passed away a few months ago.
Check out this album from last year’s hunt: Art Scavenger Hunt 2010.
Some pieces you might find at this year's hunt
A piece from the 2010 Hunt that was never found
Art Scavenger Hunt is Saturday, November 26th, 2011, starting point at Laser Wolf at 8pm. Check out the Facebook page here.
by Strawberry Jam | Sep 26, 2011 | Local Business, News
Just as we were readying a “Battle of the Barts” for the two St Barts Coffee Companies on Ft Lauderdale Beach, we discovered that St Barts on Sunrise and A1A was changing over to “Oceanview Delight”: a “privately owned cafe featuring homemade food and fresh ingredients”. From what we understood, the two did not share the same owner, and, for the record, we were leaning towards the original St Barts on S Ft Lauderdale Bch Blvd. (Note the difference in portion size of the eggs and cheese at both St Barts below)
Farmer's Favorite at St Barts original location
Farmer's Favorite at St Barts Sunrise and A1A
But after seeing these yummy photos below from Oceanview Delight’s Facebook page, perhaps cafe breakfast food was just not their forte. Not pictured here but also on their Facebook are a “Lamb Burgini” (homemade lamb burger, spicy pepper sauce, and feta cheese) and an “SB Angus Burger”. So far a menu is not available online. Oceanview Delight offers free wifi and delivery to the “lifeguard stand nearest you”.
Middle Eastern Chicken Taco from Oceanview Delight
Ahi Tuna Burger, Wasabi Slaw, and Avocado from Oceanview Delight
View from Oceanview Delight on Sunrise and A1A
Oceanview Delight (Facebook, Twitter) is located at 845 N Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd. Call (954)630-1351 for current hours.
by Strawberry Jam | Aug 8, 2011 | Local Business
Like most, we’ve been excitedly waiting for O-B House to open. Though the prices on their all-breakfast menu seem a little high, we were eager to see if their mouth-watering descriptions could make it worth it. Read on for the FTLC breakdown of Saturday brunch at the new O-B House.
O-B Oven Pancake $9
O-B D-Clawed $14
Appearance
Old black and white photos of South Florida and some maritime decorations adorn the otherwise somewhat minimalistic green walls of O-B House. (It’s a bit of a small space so it looks just right). The dark wood tables looked like mostly 2-tops and each had their own single, fresh flower- Gerber daisy, perhaps? It’s super clean and obviously everything has that brand new feel to it. There is also an area for outside seating with speakers, which, when we were there, seemed to probably be playing a Jack Johnson Pandora station of sorts- Sublime, Michael Franti, DMB, and the like were heard. O-B House definitely is trying to get some laid-back sea vibes out- servers even wear some type of boat shoe.
Service
Our server was really friendly and followed standard restaurant procedure in a timely manner- greeting, drink order, check back after our food was out, etc. She even gave us unwrapped straws by holding them with a napkin! Our food didn’t take very long at all (probably under 10 minutes) but there were only a handful of tables at the time. Either way, she was on top of it and if there’s one thing the semi-hefty prices might get you it’s at least great service.
Food
We decided on the D-Clawed, the O-B Oven Pancake (both pictured above), and 2 cups of coffee (which brings you to about $28 after tax). The D-Clawed (soft, fresh, free range egg O-B omelet filled with jumbo lump crab, cream cheese, fresh, chopped cilantro, and served with O-B oven roasted Yukon golds or cheese grits and O-B toast) was very tasty but a little underwhelming in size. We went with the 6-grain toast and was very fresh and hearty. The omelet was quite simply almost crepe-consistency and had the crab, cream cheese, and cilantro rolled in the middle. Though the menu does state the omelet is “filled” with the ingredients, I was kind of expecting them folded in instead of wrapped. Nevertheless, it too tasted fresh and did it’s job without leaving you feeling grossly overly stuffed. We should also note everything was nicely buttered but in a non-greasy diner way. The O-B oven pancake is just as it is described on the menu: a thick and fluffy, cast-iron baked 8″ buttermilk pancake made with organic flour, sour cream, and fresh, free-range eggs, served with real Vermont maple syrup. If you want pineapple pecan, banana, blueberry, or strawberry, it’s $3 more, and if you want an extra side of syrup that’ll also cost you $3. Technically, it could cost you $15 for this pancake, but if you go for the basic (pictured below), you will not be disappointed. It’s huge, light but filling, and truly tastes homemade (if you bake your pancakes in the oven, that is). It came to our table steaming hot and fresh, and a perfect harmony of moist center and crispy edges. Honestly, it’s so good you may not even need to put syrup on it.
Price
If you haven’t already noticed, O-B House isn’t exactly going to get us in the door with their prices. But if you’re looking for an occasional splurge on breakfast, and/or excellent service, this place is for you. And while we make a stink about their That’s-not-Folgers-in-your-cup coffee policy, it’s still pretty reasonable that $2.50 (that includes a 50 cent refill of the small cup) get’s you two cups of coffee.
The Old Fort Lauderdale Breakfast House is located at 333 Himmarshee St, FTL and is open 7 days a week from 7am-3pm Mon-Fri and 8am-3pm Sat-Sun.
by Strawberry Jam | Aug 4, 2011 | News
In May, we posted about the sale of Dania Jai Alai, said to be finalized in September. With the pending sale, the fate of the game is unknown, though it can’t be a good sign the venue has recently stopped jai alai altogether (and their dollar beer Wednesdays) until September 1st.
In continued efforts to give a sort of face lift to the city, Pirates Inn and Lounge is in the process of being demolished (see picture below) after being deemed unsafe and sitting unoccupied since 2009. The city has already built a $6 million 440-spot parking garage in hopes of enticing developers to build in the area, and demolishing what many call an “eyesore” is just another tactic they hope will attract new business to the area.
Bottom line: as Dania hopes for the best and tries to figure out how to attain it, the future of Jai Alai still remains uncertain. So you better get your vintage sport-watching in before it’s too late.
Dania's Pirates Inn being demolished July 2011
A previous aerial view of the Pirates Inn
