Local Places, Local Faces

The Great Chicken Wing Quest Continues, well, kinda, sorta….

February 28, 2014 by KTgreen

We skipped the month of January for chicken wings. Gotta diet. Didn’t work, but that month is gone.

February we had fully intended to hit at least three chicken wing places. The first we stopped at was Rustic Ranch in Inverness. Now Terry did the research and they were high on the wing list. No wings at Rustic Ranch. And all I have to say about that restaurant….meh.

Then I read about wings at West 82º Bar and Grill at the Plantation in Crystal River. So we went there after playing golf at the Plantation course. No wings. But the cobb salad that we both ordered was excellent.

Cobb Salad at Plantation — Cobb Salad – Yum!

Next, Terry read about a place on Hernando Beach that served wings. Since we go every Thursday to Spring Hill for my BANJO lesson, we took a drive to the beach. The restaurant was closed. Stopped at a bar that was open and looked clean–The Waterfront Bar and Cafe. No wings. In fact, there was nothing fried. But it was a beautiful day and we ate shrimp outside on the deck.

The Waterfront Pub and Cafe — Steamed Shrimp

Waterfront Bar and Cafe — Oh yeah, they had beer, too. Blue Moon.

So then we went to Zephryhills Winter Autofest. On our way over we spotted this sign…

Wild Wild Wings The place looked abandoned. The sign looked really bad. But on the way back from the show, there were a lot of cars in the parking lot. So we turned around, several times since it turned out downtown Zephyrhills is just full of one-way streets.

And they had wings!

Garlic Parmesan Wings at Wild Wild Wings in Zephyrhills — Garlic Parmesan Wings

And a really good wrap for me with enough fries for both of us.

The Great Chicken Wing Quest Continues, well, kinda, sorta.... — Chicken Ceaser Wrap

And Terry was happy!

Wild Wild Wings

It’s an Otter Party!

February 18, 2014 by KTgreen

Never know what I might find lookin’ out my back door. These five otters spent the morning swimming in our canal and teasing the neighbors dogs. After all that fun they shimmied up the kayak dock ramp and rolled around on the boat dock. They’re getting so brave, they’ll probably be taking the boat out for a cocktail cruise!

They saw me on the back deck taking pics. They were obviously not afraid of me, but I was definitely wary of them. I’m pretty sure five otters could take me. Can otters climb stairs?

Otters on the Dock Otters catching the rays

Four of the otters decided to check out the lower level of the dock but this one stayed around for awhile.

It's an Otter Party! And took a nap.

It's an Otter Party!

Stay as long as you want!

Cooking with Class!

February 17, 2014February 17, 2014 by KTgreen

Terry and I were invited to a surprise birthday party last week at The Mullet Hole Tavern, a fine-dining restaurant in Heritage Village in Crystal River. But the party wasn’t a dinner, it was a cooking class! I know, you are also surprised to hear that a restaurant here in Citrus County has cooking classes! Sounded like fun and certainly something we had never done before, so we signed on for the event. And it was a birthday party–we do our best not to miss parties!

We have been to The Mullet Hole Tavern for lunch on one of our “top down travels”. On that trip, Terry and I both had blackened grouper, our very favorite sandwich, with a bunch of fries. The food and service were excellent, so we were expecting another great experience from the cooking class.

The dish for the evening was Pistachio Dusted Salmon with Two Cheese Orzo and Garlic Cream Sauce. Just the name is mouth-watering! The classroom was set up so everyone had a good view of the demonstration and a few guests helped with slicing and dicing. Non-alcoholic drinks were included in the fee for the cooking class but there was a bar set up to purchase other adult beverages. The bartender was very attentive and quick to refill our glasses.

While Chef Randy Fixman prepared the salmon and explained the process, he answered questions from the audience which ranged from the ingredients all the way to how he decided to enter the culinary arts. The evening ended with everyone getting a plate of the salmon and orzo.

Cooking with Class at the Mullet Hole Tavern, Crystal River

We had a great time with our friends, learned how to properly dredge salmon, and enjoyed a delicious meal. If you want to try something fun and totally different, give The Mullet Hole Tavern a call.