***** Mojo Donuts, 7906 Pines Boulevard, Pembroke Pines, Florida 33324, (954) 983-6631.

Got something absolutely terrific for you…Mojo Donuts in Pembroke Pines…that is, if you are looking for some of the most delicious donuts that you have ever eaten. If this isn’t your game, Jeff Eats will have have “something” else for you later in the week.

Long story short, a husband wife-team in their 50’s who previously owned smoothie shops—in February 2013 opened Mojo Donuts in 1400 square feet in a bombed out shopping center in Pembroke Pines. Prior to Mojo they had never been in the donut business. They start baking around 1am and the official store hours are Monday-Sunday 6am-5pm… but when they “sell-out” they just close the doors no matter what time it is. In the 2 months that the joint has been opened, it has been featured on several local tv news programs, one reality tv series and in several South Florida newspapers/blog sites. Talk about getting the word out!

Jeff Eats’ friends over at food blog- Burger Beast (www.burgerbeast.com) on February 20, 2013 did a real good story on the joint—check the writeup out. By the way, Burger Beast is how I found out about Mojo.

The concept…7 or so standard donuts like glazed and Boston cream pie—and then, 15 or so different daily donuts (try and say that one fast 10 times).

Trust Jeff Eats on this one, this ain’t Dunkin’ Donuts type stuff…these are off the chart–dynamite–can’t stop eating donuts. Just so you know donuts are gonna run you $1.09-$1.39-$1.75 a shot.

I recently “tried” glazed–maple bacon–apple fritter…like Jeff Eats said 11 seconds ago, some of the most delicious donuts going.

Mojo has a handful of tables inside and a couple outside. It has 4 large flat screen tvs and also does coffee (that figures!).

Let me wrap this up…this is a real “mom & pop” operation—you can taste their “pride” in every bite (No! Jeff Eats hasn’t gone all soft and fuzzy, but last week was Passover and yesterday was Easter Sunday).

If you want to eat-try something very-very special…then you gotta get to Mojo Donuts—but get there early, because you ain’t the only one who knows about this fabulous donut shop.

***** Jay’s Pizza & Pasta, 8983 Okeechobee Boulevard, West Palm Beach, Florida 33411, (561) 753-9997.

Got an absolutely dynamite “mom & pop” red sauce Italian joint for you…Jay’s Pizza & Pasta in West Palm Beach. Handful of tables inside, a couple outside…tee shirt/shorts’ ensemble is the dress of the day.

You can check menu/prices at www.jayspizzapasta.com.

Jay’s menu has loads of appetizers, salads, pastas, hot/cold subs, pizzas, meat/chicken/seafood entrees.

Let me start by saying that Jay’s makes a fabulous thin crust brick oven pizza—18″ large will run you $12.99. Trust Jeff Eats on this one, you definitely want to try the margherita.

A recent outing also had Jeff Eats “doing”—12″ veal parm sub ($7.29), 12″ philly cheesesteak sub ($7.29), penne ala vodka ($11.9, baked lasagna ($9.99). The veal and cheesesteak subs were right on the money. Nice crisp bread and the fillings were just right. The penne ala vodka and baked lasagna were also delicious.

Now so there is no misunderstanding…’cause I don’t want any of you guys to be hollering at Jeff Eats—Jay’s Pizza & Pasta isn’t a “fancy” mom & pop joint. I may-be confusing you here, but on its website there is a photo that may help to “explain” what this joint is all about…I’m gonna call Jay’s a “bare-bones” joint, if that helps.

Anyway…the food is real-good.

Jay’s also has something real cool—Pick Your Pasta, Pick your Size, Pick Your Sauce…3 types of pasta, 6oz or 9oz, 5 sauces…You do recall that a few seconds ago I told you that Jay’s wasn’t a “fancy” mom & pop joint? Sure You do! For you wise-guys out there…I thought the pasta-idea was cool.

If you are looking for good solid red “stuff” that goes great with a bottomless glass of Coke…Jay’s Pizza & Pasta is for you.

A quick reminder, that thin-crust pizza is an absolute must try.

Jay’s is open Monday-Saturday 11am-10pm, Sunday noon-9pm.

***** BEST HOT DOG JOINTS IN SOUTH FLORIDA *****

How about a list of your favorite South Florida—Hot Dog Joints?

***** GRILLED CHEESE—NEXT CRAZE? *****

During the past 90-days or so, Jeff Eats has been to several large-Florida malls…low and behold, a new fast food concept seems to be spreading into the food courts, namely “gourmet” GRILLED CHEESE. I did some checking and it appears that there are now-a handful of companies “selling” grilled-cheese franchises. The concept is “easy”—all types of bread/all types of cheeses/all types of fillings.

For what it’s worth…the grilled cheese business seems kinda “narrow” for this Brooklyn Boy’s business concept mind. Cute idea, but “anybody” can make a grilled cheese sandwich, so there really is no-financial bar to entering this business. Too many guys are gonna try this “business” out and it’s going to be a real ugly game of grilled cheese musical chairs.

Now let me see…we “did” the gourmet burger thing, we “did” the make your own pizza thing, we “did” the yogurt by the ounce thing—and now we got, the gourmet grilled cheese thing.

Nothing for nothing…but Jeff Eats thinks that the Grilled Cheese “fast food” concept is what’s called “a pig in a poke.” Just a guess, but the guys buying these franchises- down the road aren’t going to be happy campers.

Your thoughts.

***** Blue Willy’s Barbeque, 613 Southeast 1st Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301, (954) 224-6120.

Blue Willy’s Barbeque…food truck with a huge cooker in a parking lot. Handful of benches to eat at.

Some of the best “smoked” bbq that Jeff Eats has ever eaten.

A recent outing had Jeff Eats doing…Saint Louis ribs, bbq chicken, chopped pork, beef brisket. mac & cheese, French fries. Like I said two seconds ago—delicious bbq.

Blue Willy’s offers something like 5-6 different sauces…Jeff Eats really liked the mustard based Carolina Style and the sweet tomato based Blue Willy’s BBQ.

If I had to do a pecking order…beef brisket was off the chart as were the ribs…almost off the chart was everything else including the mac & cheese and French fries.

To wrap it up, really good smoked bbq stuff. If you want to “fine dine” this joint ain’t for you. Don’t wear your good tee shirt, because the sauce is gonna get all over it.

I loved Blue Willy’s–which is open Monday-Friday 11am-5pm, closed Saturday & Sunday.

***** Azucar Ice Cream Company, 1503 Southwest 8th Street, Miami, Florida 33135, (305) 381-0369.

Got a real good ice cream joint for you guys…Azucar Ice Cream Company in Miami.

Last week I had a chance to “try” Azucar’s stuff out and I gotta tell you, some of the best tasting ice cream and sorbet that Jeff Eats has had in a very-very long time. Beautiful thing about this joint which has a “Cuban/Latin” flavor (pun intended) to it—is that all of the ice cream and sorbet are made in-house.

Strictly an order at/pickup at the counter operation…handful of tables inside/outside.

Jeff Eats didn’t do the math, but the joint has something like 50 ice cream and 8 sorbet flavors. During the year, Azucar rotates various flavors in and out of the lineup. For you diabetic folks, dieting folks, anti-sugar folks—Azucar has a handful of sugar free ice creams. For those who aren’t strictly “purists”—Azucar has something like 30 different toppings. Personally, I like my ice crean “unencumbered” except every so often Jeff Eats can handle some chocolate sprinkles (you may know them as jimmies)…Just in case “we” ever go on the Newly Wed Game, Jeff Eats really isn’t a fan of multi-colored sprinkles.

You can check flavors/video at www.azucaricecream.com.

Jeff Eats’ recent “taste test” included…strawberry–mint chocolate chip–Cuban coffee & oreo–Belgium chocolate–double cherry–heath bar crunch ice cream….lemon–watermelon–mango sorbet. Trust me on this one, all of the flavors were delicious with a special shout out to the Cuban coffee & oreo concoction.

Look! Jeff Eats is no ice cream-sorbet expert. Got no idea about fat-content or even a clue concerning other “scientific” measuring-sticks. What I do know, is that Azucar’s stuff was right on the money…and that the ice cream and sorbet that I had was right up there with the best of breed.

Azucar Ice Cream Company is open Sunday-Wednesday 11am-9pm, Thursday-Saturday 11am-11pm.

***** FLORIDA AIDS WALK AND MUSIC FESTIVAL *****

Literally just received the “below” email.
CHARITY EVENT–DANCING ON THE BEACH–FOOD TRUCKS GALORE–CONCERT BY CHAKA KHAN
Jeff Eats is gonna get to this one.
Sounds like a load of fun while supporting a worthwhile charity.
*****
Chaka Khan to Headline 2013 Florida AIDS Walk
Published: Monday, 18 Mar 2013 | 8:00 AM E

For the 8th consecutive year, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, is hosting the Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival benefitting South Florida nonprofits who provide much-needed HIV/AIDS services in the region – Chaka Khan to headline this year’s concert at Walk’s end on Ft. Lauderdale beach

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
AIDS Healthcare Foundation:
What: 8th Annual Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival
When: SUNDAY, March 24th 8 am – 3:30 pm
Where: Fort Lauderdale’s South Beach Park
Who: – Music Festival Headliner Chaka Khan, ten-time Grammy Award winning member 1970s funk band Rufus and solo pop icon
– Event Host Sheryl Lee Ralph, writer and film/stage actress (TV’s “Smash” and Broadway’s “Dreamgirls”)
– Music Festival Performer (back by popular demand) Tony Cruz, popular South Florida musician and 2012 Florida AIDS Walk Music Festival act
B-Roll: Thousands of participating Walkers with Florida AIDS Walk gear walking 5k; Live concert by 1980s pop icon Chaka Khan
CONTACTS: Mark Martin, +1.954.318.4337 or mobile 954.383.8007 mark.martin@aidshealth.org
Kyveli Diener, +1.323.308.1821, ext. 1805 or mobile 310.779.4796 kyveli.diener@aidshealth.org

The Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival – an annual fundraising 5k walk in Ft. Lauderdale benefitting HIV/AIDS service providers and hosted by leading global nonprofit AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) – has become a highly-anticipated event both for the citizen participants and the nonprofit organizations who receive much-needed funds that allow them to serve those living with HIV in South Florida. According to the state’s department of health, there are more than 4,500 new HIV infections in Florida every year, and an estimated 135,000 Floridians are currently living with HIV.

“South Florida is a fun, vibrant region with a thriving and empowered community, but the state still ranks 3rd in HIV/AIDS infections. The need to raise awareness and funds to fight the disease must remain a high priority,” said Michael Weinstein, President of AHF. “We are very proud to once again support the Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival to help the tireless organizations who assist those living with HIV in so many important ways.”

This year, the Walk will be hosted by star of stage and screen and HIV activist Sheryl Lee Ralph and is followed by a live performance by, among other acts, pop icon Chaka Khan after the 5k procession that begins and ends at Fort Lauderdale’s South Beach Park. The walk is sponsored primarily by AHF Pharmacy, a national chain of full-service pharmacies whose proceeds fund AHF’s global work providing HIV/AIDS treatment, testing, and advocacy in 28 countries around the world. Additional supporting sponsors include Wells Fargo, LabCorp, Starbucks, Target, and local South Florida media outlets Y100, Sun Sentinel, South Florida Gay News, HotSpots! Magazine, and many more.

This year’s beneficiaries include recurring recipients AHF, Broward House, Latinos Salud, Sunserve, Minority Development and Empowerment, Inc., and The Pride Center at Equality Park as well as new local beneficiary agencies like The Village and The League Against AIDS. These organizations keep every penny of every dollar they raise themselves through sponsoring teams of Walkers in addition to receiving a monetary beneficiary gift to help support their individual missions serving the community of people living with HIV in South Florida.

“I’m very excited about having the Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival out on the beach again for the second year in a row,” said Event Director Mark Martin. “Our participants had a great time last year, and we’ve fine-tuned the event since then to make it even more enjoyable all around. Our attendees are going to have a great time walking alongside the beach, then dining on unique food from gourmet food-trucks and dancing in the sand to our incredible musical entertainment! It’s almost easy to forget that this entire day is all for the great cause of caring for our Floridian friends and neighbors who are living with HIV.”

About AHF

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is the largest non-profit HIV/AIDS healthcare provider in the USA. AHF currently provides medical care and/or services to over 200,000 individuals in 28 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, Eastern Europe, and Asia. For more information, visit www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth and follow us on Twitter: @AIDSHealthcare
AHF
Ged Kenslea, 323-308-1833
Cell: 323-791-5526
Source: AIDS Healthcare Foundation

***** Brandsmart USA *****

Unless Jeff Eats is mistaken here…I’m gonna assume that you guys know “what” BrandsMart USA is. For those of you who don’t, large appliance outlet store with numerous South Florida locations.

Just wanted to let you folks know that Brandsmart USA is a business that denies access to its stores to people who don’t produce WRITTEN PROOF that a service animal is in fact a service animal.

As discussed in a previous Jeff Eats’ “story”- Table 42 Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar (4/13/12) it is a violation of Federal Law to “ask” a person to produce WRITTEN PROOF that an animal is a service animal.

You would think that “maybe” a mom & pop restaurant or store might be fuzzy on this law…but a huge operation like Brandsmart USA that does hundreds of millions of dollars worth of business every year—should know exactly what it can do and what it can’t do.

***** March 22, 2013 UPDATE *****

Just wanted to give you guys an update.

On March 18, 2013 Jeff Eats received a call from a Brandsmart representative who advised that the corporation would make sure that all of its General Managers/Managers were well versed with reference to State-Federal Laws/Regulations concerning Service Animals.

***** Cecilie’s Gourmet Italian Ices, 19726 Wiles Road, Coral Springs, Florida 33076, (954) 753-2727.

Let me start by saying, that one of Jeff Eats favorite “desserts” is (or is it- are?) Italian Ices. I’ve been hooked on the stuff, since my Brooklyn days, when I would get a large cup ($.10) at the pizza joints in my neighborhood—1 scoop cherry/1 scoop lemon. Not sure when the “hooking” first took hold, but I do have a black & white photo of me-holding a squeeze cup of ices in the Summer of 1953.

Anyway…

I’m really pissed at myself, because “big ears” Jeff Eats didn’t hear about Cecilie’s Gourmet Italian Ices until yesterday afternoon. Amazingly, this joint has been around for something like 20 years.

Cecilie’s is located in the “ultimate” bombed-out South Florida shopping strip center. When you go there, get directions first, because the store is a real hole in the wall and give or take 1-or 2 other stores you’d never-ever think of going to this center. This center is so decrepit, that Cecille’s can’t run a a simple soft-serve yogurt/ice cream machine–because there isn’t enough electrical power running to the store.

Despite the aforesaid…

Cecilie’s makes some of the most delicious Italian Ices that Jeff Eats has ever eaten. ALL OF THE ICES ARE MADE IN THE BACK OF THE STORE. The joint has 48 flavors, four of which are sugar free (Mrs. Jeff Eats appreciated that). In speaking with Evan the owner, every day (give or take) he rotates 4 flavors in and out of the lineup…24 of the flavors are cream ices and 24 are water ices.

Let me make this one short and sweet (pun intended)…

I “sampled” 12 different flavors— cherry, pistachio, oreo cookies, jelly roll chocolate, coconut, lemon, peanut butter, cotton candy, carrot cake, honeydew, chocolate mint chip, birthday cake. Do you know what a “pig in sh@t” is? Well Jeff Eats was. Cecilie’s makes some of the best ices I’ve ever had. Just so you know, during the 1/2 hour or so Jeff Eats was there (starting at 3:30pm) at least 20 people came and went and everyone of them “tried” all kinds of ices before settling-in with a final purchase. Figure a small cup is gonna run you- 3 bucks.

A bit more “color”…the owner Evan, is about 44 years old–born in Brooklyn and raised in Philly. He opened this store 20 years ago and makes all of the ices all-by-himself. This is what Jeff Eats calls a one-man-show…Cecilie’s is open Monday 3pm-10pm, Tuesday-Thursday 1pm-10pm, Friday-Saturday 1pm-11pm, Sunday 1pm-9pm…Evan is the sole counter person Monday-Saturday, he takes Sunday-off when he has a couple of young ladies run the store. By the way, Cecilie’s has a couple of tables inside and 1 table outside so if you want–you can hang-out.

Like I said a few seconds ago, I can’t believe that I “missed out” on 20 years of Cecilie’s…

Trust Jeff Eats on this one, This joint’s Italian Ices are about as good as it gets.

***** NII Holdings Inc. *****

Jeff Eats is gonna go out on a limb here…

I am recommending that you guys buy a wireless communications stock- NII Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: Bid-$4.46-Ask $4.47).

Please do you your own Due Diligence, but mine tells me that this South American Wireless Company’s business is in a lot better shape than major short players want shareholders to believe.

Once again do your own DUE DILIGENCE.

Jeff Eats thinks that the short players in this stock are gonna get killed very soon.

Update: April 10, 2013

This stock-literally in a few short days had a very nice Up run.

With that in mind, with the stock currently trading at $7.55-$7.56 I think I’d cash my chips in right about now.

It’s hard not to lock in such a nice profit in such a short period of time.