* Maggiano’s Little Italy.

Way back on a July 24, 2008 Jeff Eats told you about Maggiano’s Little Italy- a national Italian chain -which for our purposes currently has 4-Florida locations. If you check that initial writeup- you’ll find that Jeff Eats really enjoyed Maggiano’s food/service/decor/prices. To be perfectly honest with you-in the ensuing years, maybe I ate there (Boca Raton) again 2-tops 3 times. Just so you know, no particular reason for only 2-3 visits in 6 years- just giving you the facts.

To make a long story short…

Earlier this evening, Jeff Eats, Mrs. Jeff Eats and a bunch of other folks- watched the Heat v. Bobcats game at a mutual neighbor’s house… The neighbor did a little catered-thing and had food delivered from Boca’s Maggiano’s. Not gonna bore you with the details- but the salads, pastas, entrees, desserts were terrific- now, I know these were free eats, but trust Jeff Eats-free or no free, the stuff was real good.

Anyway,

This neighborhood outing got me thinking about Maggiano’s…and low and behold- I found out that if you go to www.maggianos.com and sign up for its E-Club it sends you a $10 Welcome coupon, a $10 Birthday coupon, a $10 Anniversary coupon and periodically a bunch of other discount coupons.

The way Jeff Eats is thinking here, if I’m gonna eat at Maggiano’s anyway, why shouldn’t the money be in my pocket and not -the joint’s pocket!

So… If this “couponing” stuff is your bag…go for it!

* I Write The Songs.

Jeff Eats just picked up 2-tickets for..I Write The Songs -for this coming Saturday Night-May 3rd at 8pm at Delray Square Performing Arts, 4809 West Atlantic Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida 33445 -(561) 880-0319 -www.DelraySquareArts.com.

In a nutshell, I Write The Songs- is a 25 song revue featuring the music of Barry Manilow. The latest production of I Write The Songs which first premiered in 2003 -is scheduled for the Delray Square Arts from May 1st -May 11th.

Heard -rave reviews from folks who saw a recent rehearsal.

As I said a few seconds, Jeff a Eats and Mrs. Jeff Eats will be “there” this coming Saturday Night.

If this type of thing is your bag- you can call the box office at (561) 880-0319 for tickets.

*. White Manna.

For the past 15 years Jeff Eats has been getting his haircut at Joe & Mario’s Barbershop in Boca Raton. For years, the shop’s owner Rosa (don’t ask) has been telling Jeff Eats about White Manna her Hackensack hometown -favorite hamburger/slider joint…

To make a long story short, Jeff Eats finally got to White Manna and I gotta tell you that its sliders-are now the yardstick for Jeff Eats when eating sliders. So, if you ever find yourself in Hackensack- this joint is a “must try.”

By the way, what’s the difference between a good and bad haircut? Two weeks,

* Meeting of the Minds.

Real short and real sweet…

Jeff Eats has seen and heard a ton of bands in his day…

This afternoon I caught- Meeting of the Minds- a South Florida -four piece acoustic band and I gotta tell you, it blew Jeff Eats away. Fabulous harmonic covers of stuff by The Beatles, The Eagles, Barry White, Harry Belafonte

These guys can sing any-body.

Check-out the band’s schedule/playlist/videos at www.facebook.com/MeetingOfDaMinds.

The group works bars/clubs/festivals all over South Florida.

* School Snacks.

Now- after all Jeff Eats is a food blog…

How many of you guys remember school-snacks?

If memory serves me correctly, back in the 50’s- NYC’s elementary schools (every afternoon) provided students with a small container of milk -and students could buy up to 3 sugar cookies for a penny a piece.

Thoughts?

* Junior’s Restaurant.

Just curious, how many of you guys have eaten at Junior’s?

***** Burger Craze, 2096 Northeast Second Street, Deerfield Beach, Florida 33441, (954) 596-5949.

Great looking indoor/outdoor patio seating/full bar/ wait service- burger joint with ok- food.

Burger Craze has a real simple menu…handful of appetizers, handful of salads, handful of sides, tons of burgers, loads of hot dogs, handful of milkshakes.

You can check www.burger-craze.com for menu/prices.

Jeff Eats recently did dinner…roasted garlic parmesan wings (8-$9), cheeseburger (lettuce/tomato/onion-$6), grilled chicken breast burger (lettuce/tomato/onion -$5.50), French fries ($2.75), all beef grilled hot dog (mustard/sauerkraut-$3.75), chocolate milkshake ($5)…

There’s an old saying…Don’t judge a book by its cover!

Well- in this case, Burger Crazes’ decor “cover” was a lot better- than its food was (hope this makes sense to you). Now, don’t get Jeff Eats wrong, the food was ok— but based on the joint’s looks- the wings/ burgers/hot dog/fries/shake should have been a whole lot stronger.

Let me wrap Burger Craze up for you…

Great looking restaurant…great spot for people watching-it’s right across the street from the beach…ok-food & service.

That’s the call on Burger Craze which is open 7 days a week 11am-10pm.

***** Pizza Chef Italian Bistro, 23269 State Road 7, Boca Raton, Florida 33428, (561) 477-5252.

You know…being in the restaurant business is an absolute bitch…

Jeff Eats’ mantra–“You want to eat in restaurants, you don’t want to own them. You want to eat in restaurants, you don’t want to own them. You want to eat…

To make a long story short, way back on September 8, 2008 I told you guys about Tony’s Authentic Brooklyn Pizza- a terrific “hole in the wall” mom & pop- red sauce Italian joint in Boca Raton. To make a long story short, Tony’s and the “pizza guy” (don’t recall the joint’s name) who came after him–are no more. Jeff Eats has absolutely no idea as to why Tony’s didn’t work…what I do know is- that Tony’s made real good pizza and other stuff.

Anyway,

About a year ago, Pizza Chef Italian Bistro opened where Tony’s use to be. Based on a recent Jeff Eats’ outing, décor-wise nothing changed–the joint seats 30. The one kitchen change, the Pizza Chef Italian Bistro installed a char-gas grill.

Jeff Eats and Mrs. Jeff Eats recently tried Pizza Chef Italian Bistro and I gotta tell you that this restaurant is GOLD! Now, not trying to sound melodramatic or nothing, but it’s joints like Pizza Chef Italian Bistro that make being- Jeff Eats fun!

As expected, Pizza Chef’s menu has the full boat of Italian pizzas, pastas, subs, entrees–but now for the kicker, it also has a ton of Argentinian dishes…Not sure on this, but Jeff Eats’ money says the owners are “of” Latin/Spanish heritage and not Italian–but that’s just a guess.

Anyway,

The recent eating- outing that I mentioned above- “netted” Jeff Eats, Mrs. Jeff Eats and another couple…cheese pizza, penne ala vodka, veal parmigiana, chicken marsala, zeppoles and I’m telling you–the stuff was delicious. For those of you wondering, Pizza Chef Italian Bistro has soup/salad-entrée-pasta side “specials” galore and neighborhood pizza joint prices. Oh! before I forget, we also had meat and cheese empanadas that were off the chart and a char-grilled sausage sub that I’m sorry I shared with my friend Norman

Pizza Chef Italian Bistro is a winner. I am telling you, go there! You’ll thank Jeff Eats for the heads-up!

Just so you know, your tee shirt/shorts- ensemble is the dress of the day.

Pizza Chef Italian Bistro is open Tuesday-Thursday 11am-9pm, Friday-Saturday 11am-11pm, Sunday noon-9pm, closed on Monday.

* The Chowfather’s-Best Burgers Miami/South Florida 2014.

You know Jeff Eats likes to share. The goal here, finding the best joints in South Florida.

To that end…

On March 30, 2014, one of Jeff Eats favorite- south Florida food blogs The Chowfather (www.thechowfather.com) put out a 2014- list of his “top 20” Miami/South Florida burger joints. Take a look at his picks- as you may get you some ideas–on where next to go…and if nothing else, The Chowfather has some great burger photos for you to salivate over.

Enjoy!

***** Tucker Duke’s Lunchbox & Market, 1101 South Powerline Road, Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442, (954) 708-2035.

Way back on February 14, 2014–Jeff Eats mentioned Tucker Duke’s Lunchbox & Market-an “upscale” wait-service hamburger joint in Deerfield Beach. You can check that 2/14/2014 “story” if you like–but the jist was-that the joint had just opened for business, that I had not yet eaten there and that Jeff Eats had heard terrific things about Tucker Duke’s from -friends at Burger Beast www.burgerbeast.com.

Now, since that “story” appeared, the Sun Sentinel reviewed the joint–giving it a real-solid 3 stars…in addition, Jeff Eats must have spoken to at least 15 people who had eaten there and had really enjoyed the food and service.

Now, I could say…”You’ve read and heard from the rest, now listen to the best (that’s of course Jeff Eats) but I won’t…just too tacky!

Anyway,

Last night Jeff Eats and Mrs. Jeff Eats had dinner at Tucker Duke’s and I gotta tell you we absolutely loved the food, service, décor and vibe.

Tucker Duke’s is “literally” located no-where…it’s in a small strip center and is in between a Dunkin’ Donuts and a Subway. The whole store is 1,600 square feet and it has 12 seats outside. Inside, it has 1- table that seats 4, a small bar (wine and beer) that seats 16 and a- common seating-hi top setup that handles 16…that’s the whole shooting match. By the way on that common seating hi top—think of “strangers” sitting with “strangers” and you’ll be on the right page.

Now let’s talk about menu/and what we ate…Tucker’s menu has 9 appetizers, 14 burgers, 11 sandwiches, 3 salads, 2 desserts…

We tried peanut butter & jelly bon-bons and cheese fritters. We tried The Tucker Duke Burger topped with fried onion rings/American cheese/tucker sauce/lettuce/tomato/onion roll. We tried the Fido Burger topped with American cheese/cheddar cheese/crispy onions/ketchup/tucker sauce/pickles/onion roll. We tried tater tots and sweet potato fries. All Jeff Eats can tell you is that everything was right on the money-and the burgers were exceptionally good.

Last night was a Thursday night…Jeff Eats and Mrs. Jeff Eats got there around 7pm. When we arrived, every seat was taken and it took us 20 minutes to catch a table outside. During the 75 minutes or so that we were there, the crowd was eclectic–I saw college kids, I saw middle aged folks, I saw older folks, I saw young families, I also saw at least 10 takeout pickups.

Let me wrap this up for you,

It’s rare, but every so often a new-joint “catches fire”…time will tell, but Jeff Eats’ gut tells me that Tucker Duke’s is going to be a huge winner.

Check www.tuckerdukeslunchbox.com for menu/prices.

Just so you know, Tucker Duke’s has another location in Valparaiso, Florida…

Finally, at the start of this story I mentioned Tucker Duke’s vibe…now you and I know that “vibe” is a subjective thing…This is taken directly from the Tucker’s menu-“WARNING: Lighten up-Tucker Duke’s is not politically correct. If you are easily offended or your egocentric personality compels you to operate with a thin skin, there’s a good chance you’ll be offended here. Consider yourself warned, AND REMEMBER ITS ALL IN GOOD FUN! We believe that tact is for people who aren’t witty enough for sarcasm.” The menu also has a no Whining section…

Trust Jeff Eats on this one, the food is dynamite, the service is solid, the prices are reasonable, the music is loud, the “crowd” is shall we say-“fun”—and you’ll really enjoy yourself (that is, unless you are a real whining egocentric person).

Tucker Duke’s Lunchbox & Market is open Monday-Saturday 10:30am-10pm, Sunday 9pm-9pm.