Clean Plate Charlie writers meet each week for a blog meeting. It’s there we “chew the fat” and brainstorm about “tasty morsels” to write about. It’s also the morning when I usually come into the office slightly harried and hungry after trying to fit a day’s worth of writing into…
When it comes to good Italian in South Florida, one name tends to pop up all the time. Angelo Elia, owner of Casa D’Angelo could probably be credited with bringing high-end Italian to Broward County. Now the locally famed chef is bringing his laid-back, casual — and much less expensive…
Nothing screams summer more than the sweet taste of ice cream. Somewhere in the word, at this exact moment, there’s a little kid covered from to head to toe in melted sugar and cream. Like most other popular foods, the great treat of ice cream has its own festival –…
It’s time to man the battle stations because Stone Brewing is leading Stonehenge, a brew-d’etat of tap takeovers when they commandeer (nautical term) all taps at all World of Beers across the nation on August 22. And this whole time you thought it was just heap of boulders in the…
Each step of construction at 13|Even was a labor of love. It began with a raw, empty white room. Then, as photos show, the weathered chocolate-brown wood bar was framed. Later, test stripes of different colors were painted onto a wall so owners could decide which hue to choose (ultimately,…
Ah. Twitter. What glorious news we find on thee? Yesterday, Fort Lauderdale Hard Rock Improv posted a picture on Twitter of an engagement ring stuffed into the top bun of some sort of McDonald’s sandwich — fish, fried chicken, who knows — with the headline “Somebody got McEngaged!” At first,…
Generally, most people tend to have a negative opinion of hotel restaurants. Whether it’s due to bland food, long travel times for room service, or just too much time spent at the Holiday Inn buffet, consensus is to get a good bite to eat, you need to make your way…
‘You drink my beer, but I’ll drink yours too!’ No, we’ll never get tired of screaming these (modified) “The Trooper” lyrics, from Iron Maiden’s album Piece of Mind. The Crimean War-themed hit single resonates as a icon of 1983 British metal. All of that musical background, though, is more suited…
Looks like Mario Lopez and Steve Martorano have themselves a little “bromance” going on. The X Factor host who will always be known as A.C. Slater to us, started up a friendship while taping the Kris Jenner Show last month. Of course, when Lopez found himself hungry and in Fort…
Stresa Italian Restaurant is an 18 year old, West Palm Beach landmark. But it’s not on Palm Beach Island and it’s a distance away from the party scene of Clematis Street. Oddly located among the big box stores along Okeechobee Boulevard, with their inconspicuous exterior, reinforced by their lack of…
Delicious and simple: roast chicken is probably one of the most common recipes in the average home cook’s repertoire. Unfortunately, we’ve all had a bad experience with a poorly done roasted poultry; dried-out breasts with underdone thighs will kill the joy of any meal. However, with proper trussing, even the…
Intricately intertwined in the folklore of the South Pacific, islanders from this remote pocket of the globe would drink this intoxicating pepper root, kava, for its relaxing, blissful properties. It took almost 3,000 years for this potent plant to reach our shores. But now that it’s here at the Mystic…
Mojitos are kind of like the patron cocktail of South Florida. It makes sense: they’re refreshing, tropical, and they herald back to the birth-land of many of our region’s inhabitants. Originally from Cuba, the drinks were traditionally made up of white rum, sugar cane juice, lime juice, sparkling water, and…
For the first time in what feels like forever, we had a pretty awesome — i.e. sunny — weekend. Unfortunately, all good things come to end. It’s time to head back to the fluorescent lights of your cubicle from the hours of 9 to 5. On the bright side, this…
The usual tap takeover is when a brewery takes over all of the beer taps in a bar and calls it a day. A reverse tap take over is when South Florida’s Craft Brewjas bring the masses to the taps. And that’s exactly what’s happening this Sunday when Orlando’s Tap…
For years now, we’ve been hoping and praying for Trader Joe’s to open in southeast Florida, going so far as to start petitions and promise to rename our cities after the grocery chain that offers both the exotic and everyday in a Tiki setting. We’re certainly getting our wish. First…
Hey moms! Can you believe it’s almost back-to-school time? That means only a few more days with the kids before you see them off on that big yellow bus! Whole Foods is celebrating the remaining days of summer vacation (and the countdown to school) with events at two locations this…
At a Monday night food truck roundup in downtown Hollywood’s Young Circle people walk by David Peck’s Box of Chacos truck and squint their eyes trying to grasp what the former Tap 42 chef is serving. “This is too much for me,” one woman concedes before walking away. That “too…
What do you do when your craft brewery doesn’t serve food? You bring the beer to some of the best restaurants in south Florida and co-host awesome beer pairing dinners. That’s exactly what Funky Buddha’s been doing lately — and it makes for an amazing evening of beer and food…
From Emeril Lagasse to Paula Deen, whether famous or infamous, the celebrity chef is now such an enormous mainstay of American culture, we hardly remember it wasn’t always that way. Self proclaimed foodies and the rise of the celebu-chef is a fairly recent phenomenon. Don’t get us wrong – it’s…
South Florida is full of food and drink related activities, whether it be wine tastings, beer events, burger festival, hot dog celebrations, gardening, or anything else you can imagine. This weekend, however, we have some very different and possibly scary eating and drinking events — we’ll let you figure out…
Manning her vegan cupcakes at a booth all by herself at the Yellow Green Farmer’s Market, 21-year-old Ariel Silvers has been awake since before dawn and has already frosted seven-dozen cupcakes. She baked them all the night before. With her apron tied tightly around her waist and a shy smile,…
