***** Good Times Sub Shop, 17225 South Dixie Highway, Palmetto Bay, Florida 33157, (305) 964-7418.

Anyone here remember the 1970’s tv blockbuster show- Good Times? Recently caught Jimmy J.J. Walker at a comedy club…and the man is still very funny.

Anyway…the other day I tried Good Times Sub Shop…a “sub” shop (what else?) in Palmetto Bay. Now nothing for nothing, you guys know-that down here in South Florida, sub-shops are literally a dime a dozen…you also know, that most of them are pretty-good and get the job done…for example, even a gigantic operation like Publix turns out decent enough stuff. Now, every so often Jeff Eats comes across a sub joint that goes-shall we say–the extra mile…just check, I got some names for you in the Subs/Salads category. Getting back to Good Times, I’m gonna put this joint in the “extra mile” category. First, the two young guys who own this joint, couldn’t be more pleasant or nicer. Second, the 3 subs (delicious hard crust bread) that I tried- churrasco, bbq chicken and tuna were right up there with the best of breed. Third, rare for a sub joint, Good Times has wings—and the grilled honey mustard ones I had were delicious. I’m gonna leave you guys to let me know if the cold meat/cheese subs are any good–but I will tell you, the Italian Special that I saw a guy eating there looked awfully good to me.

You can check Good Times Sub Shop’s menu/prices at www.goodtimessubshop.com.

Good Times Sub Shop is open Monday-Friday 11am-7pm, Saturday 11am-4:30pm, closed on Sunday.

***** What’s Your Favorite Breakfast Joint? *****

Looking- for the “best” breakfast joints in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.

***** Super Dave’s Diner, 2166 North Dixie Highway, Boca Raton, Florida 33431, (561) 544-0940.

Every so often Jeff Eats comes across a joint that is an absolute homerun…

Last night, I took-out from Super Dave’s Diner a “hole in the wall soul food” joint in Boca Raton…the order was real simple–fried chicken, bbq pork ribs, chicken wings, mac & cheese, green beans, sweet potato pie, corn bread, cole slaw -and I gotta tell you, every item was absolutely delicious.

A few seconds ago, I called Super Dave’s Diner a “hole in the wall”—trust me on this, Super Dave’s is the real-deal, maybe 4-5 tables and 4 counter seats—throw in that it’s in a bombed out strip center and you got the makings of a special-really cool joint. Nothing for nothing, but the bet here is- if tv’s Guy Fieri of “Diners Drive-in & Dives” or Adam Richman of “Man V. Food” tried Super Dave’s Diner not only would they love its food but they would launch it into “must try” status. Just a quick story, about 3 hours before Jeff Eats got there, Super Dave’s Diner had fed (inside and outside in Super Dave’sparking lot and two adjoining lots) a group of 150 which included a number of New York Jets’ players. Just so you understand as to where I’m going with this, your living room (the bet here-that no matter who you are or where you live) is bigger than Super Dave’s Diner’s entire restaurant. Based on what I heard, Super Dave’s only had 20 minutes notice that the group was coming in…talk about banging out food, the scene in the kitchen must have been wild.

Let me tell you a drop about the food…each bbq rib is something like 7″ long. The ribs are smoked in an outside smoker, basted with Super Sauce a sweet sauce (with a bit of kick to it) and finished off on a gas grill. The wings are lightly battered/fried–I had both honey mustard and Super Sauce covered wings. Let me make this short and simple, the ribs and chicken were some of the best I’ve had….same for the sweet potato pie and green beans. So you don’t think that Jeff Eats is a shill for Super Dave’s Diner, the mac & cheese and corn bread although very good, didn’t quite make the “some of the best I’ve had” category.

For a small joint, Super Dave’s Diner has a good-sized very reasonably priced menu…It’s got all kinds of breakfast stuff (which is served all day long) like pancakes, omelettes…loads of sandwiches, wings, bbq items, sides, seafood/chicken/meat dishes—trust me, you’re gonna have trouble deciding what to eat.

Just in case you find yourself on tv’s “Jeopardy”– Super Dave’s Diner opened in October, 2011 and is owned and operated by Dave Harmon. Dave has been in the restaurant business for 16 years and has worked at such South Florida joints as Ernie’s Restaurant, 5th Avenue Grill, Macaroni Grill, Carrabba’s and Ribs and Things…now for the Final Jeopardy answer…in Jeff Eats’ professional opinion, Dave’s 10 year kitchen stint at a 24-hour New Jersey Diner is the reason he was able to handle 150 people with relatively no notice without even breaking a sweat.

I absolutely loved Super Dave’s Diner.

I highly recommend that you give this joint a try…it’s a rare find.

At this stage of the game check www.superdavesdiner.com for menu/prices.

Super Dave’s Diner is open Monday-Tuesday-Thursday 11am-8pm, Wednesday 11am-6pm, Friday-Saturday 11am-10pm, Sunday 1pm-6pm.

***** BET THE JOCKEY *****

Got- what could be a very interesting stock play…Function (X) Inc. (NASDQ:FNCX:$3.01)…then again, it may not be, so before you do “anything” do your own DUE DILIGENCE.

FNCX is a “play” on this whole social-media business. I know that sounds kinda nebulous, but I still use a rotary phone.

FNCX was “cobbled” together about a year ago from a shell-corporation by a guy named Robert F.X. Sillerman who “use to own” American Idol. For our purposes, Sillerman is THE JOCKEY.

Now if this kinda stuff interests you, do some heavy duty GOOGLING as well as check www.functioninc.com and see what you come-up with on Sillerman and Function (X).

Based on THE JOCKEY and the team of jockeys that Sillerman has assembled–JEFF EATS thinks that something huge maybe in the works here.

***** Super Dave’s Diner *****

Over the past week or so, I’ve gotten a number of very positive e-mails about a BBQ-joint named Super Dave’s Diner, 2166 North Dixie Highway, Boca Raton, Florida 33431- (561) 544-0940…www.superdavesdiner.com.

I got plans to check this joint out in the very near future.

If half the stuff in those e-mails is true, Super Dave’s Diner has terrific food.

If you get there before I do, let me know what you think.

***** THINGS YOU KNOW FOR SURE *****

Kill some time with me, until I “cook up” another restaurant-joint story for you.

Give me your best THINGS YOU KNOW FOR SURE…

***** MATTRESS STORES *****

Just a quick observation…

I don’t know about you guys, but it seems to me that every “crappy” South Florida strip center now has a MATTRESS STORE in it.

Now…I know that in recent years fancy-schmantzy self-adjusting mattresses have become quite the “rage”—but something tells me, that “mattresses” just like “upscale” fast food burger–self serve yogurt–cupcakes–coal oven pizza joints—definitely got a musical chairs game going on–and it ain’t gonna end well for most of the retail-mattress joints.

I don’t know about you, but it just seems to me–that in a real weak economy “buying” a new mattress can’t be on too many folks’ “must buy” lists. It would also seem to me that all of these mattress stores indicate that landlords are having trouble finding shall we say-stronger tenants to fill those vacancies.

Just some observations.

***** Meyer Amphitheater–Sunday* June 17, 2012* 4pm-7pm *****

Now, not trying to turn Jeff Eats into an “oldies” Rock N Roll-newsletter or nothing…but, when I see something really good, it’s my sacred duty as a child of the 50’s to tell you guys about it.

On Sunday–June 17, 2012 from 4pm-7pm the Meyer Amphitheater in West Palm Beach (www.cityofwpb.com)- is presenting what looks to be a fabulous free “outdoor concert” headlining three of South Florida’s top 60’s cover bands:

THE FABULONS (www.fabulons.com)
ORANGE SUNSHINE (www.orangesunshine.biz)
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE (www.acrosstheuniverseband.com)

Trust me on this one, “IF” you are a fan of 1960’s Rock N Roll you will absolutely-positively love this concert. I have seen all three groups and each one of them puts on a tremendous show.

Check the websites listed above for event details/audio/video.

***** Johnny Contardo *****

Now, I may be going out on a limb here… But one of the most underrated singers in Rock N Roll history has to be Johnny Contardo who was the lead singer of Sha Na Na from 1971 to 1983. Now many of you guys may think Jeff Eats has lost it, but as a huge fan of 50s & 60’s Rock N Roll music, Johnny’s singing prowess has to be rated right up there with that of Roy Orbison, Frankie Valli and other greats of that era. If you do some “You Tube” checking, you will find that although Jon “Bowzer” Bauman was known as Sha Na Na’s leader, it was Contardo’s tenor/falsetto leads that made the group a huge television, recording and concert act.

You can check Johnny Contardo’s website www.jonnycontardo.com for audio/video/personal information.

In November 2011, the Woodfield Country Club in Boca Raton invited the semi-retired Los Angeles based Contardo to perform at the Club backed by local party band The Fabulons. Just so you know, I saw that 1-hour performance and suffice it to say Contardo absolutely killed it.

The reason that I am now mentioning this “old” story…I just learned that Huntington Lakes (condo community) in Delray Beach has signed Johnny Contardo to perform there on Saturday, October 20, 2012. I have no other details…

Like I said before, the Woodfield Country Club “brought” Contardo to Florida…apparently, Huntington Lakes is now doing the same thing. From what I can tell, Contardo isn’t on a circuit tour of South Florida.

All I know, is that in this day and age, it is getting harder and harder to “see” the true legends and greats of Rock N Roll.

If this type of thing is your bag, check with Huntington Lakes www.huntingtonlakes.com and see if you can get to see Johnny Contardo in this very rare public appearance.

+++++ Your Favorite Sub-Hero-Grinder Joint Poll *****

Tell Jeff Eats who makes the best sub-hero-grinders in Dade, Broward, Palm Beach counties.