Seasons 52

This Fort Lauderdale storefront is just one of seven chain restaurants courtesy of Darden Inc. (of Olive Garden fame). And you can bet your Prada handbag that this test concept, “seasonally inspired healthier dining,” has been thoroughly researched, tested, evaluated, and strategized. Low-cal flame-grilled meats, 60 wines by the glass, whole grains, fresh veggies, and […]

Serafina Waterfront Trattoria

The saying goes, “Don’t judge a good book by its cover,” and the same is true for romantic restaurants. Set in a nondescript storefront on an uninspiring road, this waterfront Italian eatery offers extraordinary ambiance and remarkable food. A narrow path takes you to a small candlelit room with a few cozy seats. Though the […]

Seventh Street Wine Company

Seventh Street Wine Company has it all: atmosphere, service, and quality. Located off Federal Highway in an inconspicuous yellowish building, Seventh Street’s entrance is around the back in what looks like a pretty cruddy parking lot. But walk in and the multiple spaces take you in. Low ceilings open up to wonderfully lit rooms with […]

Shade Post

The Shade Post has relocated to a new art and design warehouse space that stands as a cornerstone on 1st street, between Andrews Avenue and 1st Avenue, a crossroads in the downtown civic center area of Fort Lauderdale. This unique band of people, merged together to bring the Shade Post to a larger venue in […]

Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Beach Hotel

Two bars keep patrons abuzz in this classic Fort Lauderdale beach resort. Inside, the Wreck Bar’s underwater ambience is replete with stocked fish tanks and a viewing glass to watch swimmers in one of the hotel’s pools. Outside, the pool-side bar straddles an expansive stretch of beach.

Shula’s on the Beach

As we were finishing up our entrees, the woman with the Karen Carpenter voice had an announcement to make. She paused before a rendition of “Son of a Sailor” to let the dozen or so tables in a cavernous, beachfront dining room know that a couple was celebrating a special night. “It’s their 52nd wedding […]

Side Bar

So you just ate the best meal of your life, but you’re not sated. You still need that little buzz that makes a damn good meal perfect. You could smoke a cigar, but that’s not allowed these days. Pot? You crazy? So how about a snifter of the finest French cognac? No better place to […]

Smarty Pants

Pull up a stool at Smarty Pants and observe fellow drinkers. The cute bartenders are a nice addition to the scene, and $2.25 well and domestic drinks are offered seven days a week at this Wilton Manors establishment. Friday and Saturday provide karaoke entertainment. During Bingo on a Sunday night, you could win a free […]

Solid Gold

Solid Gold is an upscale gentlemen’s show club with a full high-end steak-house restaurant called Palms Grille that serves steak, seafood and Italian entrées and even offers tableside flambé for select steak entrees and desserts. The club opens at noon every day and offers a two-for-one happy-hour special until 8 p.m. and a value-priced lunch […]

Solluna

This seaside cantina has Mexican classics, American fare, and fresh seafood.

Sonny’s Stardust Lounge

Sonny’s Stardust Lounge is an institution around these parts. Creative types have inhabited its dark corners, rockers have frequented the punk shows that owner Sonny Scott used to host, and many a country line dancer has do-si-doed her way across the dance floor. Never been there? You’ll surely recognize it as the imposing, sometimes ominous-looking, […]

Southport Raw Bar

For those of us with high expectations of low places, this raw bar has appeal. You can stumble up to the docks almost any time of day and sup on platters of gulf oysters and wash them down with ice-cold beer from the bottle or plunk down inside and escape the sun with an iced […]

Spazio Fine Italian Cuisine

This open-air Italian restaurant and bar sits between Elbo Room and Dirty Blonde’s in the much-traversed touristy strip of Fort Lauderdale Beach. Spazio’s interior bar top overlooks the outdoor dining patio, where swirling fans and the eye-level beachfront view create a relaxing, tropical atmosphere. The restaurant opens at 8 a.m. to serve a full breakfast […]

Squeegee Science

Screen printing is all the rage, and while this fashion craze is totally awesome – it tends to err on the side of environmentally unfriendly. But at Fort Lauderdale’s Squeegee Science, they’re a laboratory of sorts, continually pushing the boundaries and discovering new ways to do business while remaining eco friendly. They’re all about sustainable […]