***** 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.

***** Time For New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg To Retire *****

Do a quick Google-Search… you’ll find a ton of stories about Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s latest “idea” to pass a NYC law that prohibits the sale of sugary soft drinks in containers larger than 16 ounces. For the sake of fairness- there are “various” exceptions built into the proposed law which is intended to help fight obesity.

Is Bloomberg nuts or what?

I don’t know about you, but Jeff Eats is perfectly capable of deciding for himself how much Coca Cola or Pepsi or Sunkist Orange Soda I can “handle” at any given time.

Talk about the Government “getting” into your daily life. The next thing you know this guy Bloomberg will be looking to limit NYC residents to only 6 Lay’s Potato Chips a day and require them to take 10-minute showers/4-times a day.

No question in my mind…time for Bloomberg to call it a day–and retire to one of those 11 homes that he owns.

****

March 11, 2013 UPDATE

Since Jeff Eats first “tackled” this one, New York City passed a law regulating bottle size. The law was set to go into effect tomorrow morning. This morning a New York State Supreme Court Judge declared the law illegal and stopped the implementation.

Like I said on 5/31/12 Time For New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg To Retire.

***** Seminole Hard Rock ‘n’ Roll Beer-B-Que *****

Don’t have all of the details yet…from what I “gather” there is going to be a huge outdoor BBQ-BEER-MUSIC event at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida on Saturday, June 30th from 4pm-8pm.

Take a look at the “press release” I just received. Let me do some further checking and I’ll update you guys with details.

This one looks like it–could really be fun!!
*****

Eat BBQ, listen to R&R, drink beer! (http://www.seminoleparadise.com/beerbque/index.html)

The second annual Seminole Hard Rock Rock ‘n’ Roll Beer-B-Que, presented by New Times, gets grilling on Saturday, June 30 and if you like to have your meat smoked you’re not going to want to miss out on this event.

From 4 – 8 p.m., over 40 of south Florida’s best barbeque restaurants will compete by showcasing their grilling skills. Best of all, you get to try as many as you can — and vote for your favorite.

But meat is just one part of this trifecta of flavor because there’s no such thing as a Beer-B-Que without beer! Feel free to sample beer from a variety of popular brands, as well as craft beers from micro-breweries. Beerfest 2012 winners Misfit Home Brewers will be among the top brewers pouring their wares at the Beer-B-Que.

While all this is going on, get your groove on and rock out to live music from several local bands.

Tickets for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Beer-B-Que are on sale now and only $35 in advance ($45 at the door). A limited number of prepaid VIP tickets will be available for $70, offering one-hour early admission, seating in the air-conditioned VIP tent, access to an open bar with wine provided by Rex Goliath, special entertainment, and more.

*****
June 22, 2012 UPDATE

The word of mouth about this event is really spreading. Based on what I’m hearing here in “food blogland” is that a crowd of between 2,500 -4,000 is expected. Don’t have exact ticket numbers, but a very reliable source told me that online sales have been excellent and assuming good-weather, “day of” ticket sales will be extremely strong.

If you check the event’s website you will find an updated list of “contenders.”

The way I see it, you really can’t go wrong spending $35-$45 for all the bbq you can eat–all the beer you can drink–all the Rock N Roll music you can hear. Just last night, Jeff Eats and Mrs. Jeff Eats and Son Jeff Eats ate at a sports bar. The bill $86 for 2 salads, 1 cheeseburger, 1 bbq steak sandwich, 1 chicken pot pie, 1 Coke and 3 beers. Get the picture? The only “negative” thing I see here, is the possibility of lousy weather. If the weather breaks the right way, this event is going to be an absolute homerun. By the way, I also heard that a “ton” of those $70 VIP tickets were sold. Not a bad deal, extra hour of partying–air-conditioned tent, open bar.

Oh! One other thing…Jeff Eats will be one of the judges.

****Here’s a “gift” from Jeff Eats—if you want to buy your tickets online–enter 10OFFGA in the Promtions Code box and you’ll get 10 bucks off that $35 ticket. For right now, that code will work until June 25, 2012.

Hope you guys can make it. AND if you aren’t a disgruntled restaurant owner, make it your business to say hello to me.

***** Border Grill, 5695 Vineland Road, Orlando, Florida 32819, (407) 352-0101.

Look! I’m no “Mexican” food expert…as a matter of fact, Mexican food really isn’t on my “must eat” list. That said, every so often, when I’m with a group of people—I eat this stuff because I’m a nice guy. With that in mind, let me tell you about a recent outing to Border Grill a “hole in the wall–mom & pop” Mexican joint in Orlando…By the way, I’m not sure why Mexican food isn’t a “favorite”…may have some psychological thing to do with that “D” I got in Spanish- senior year at Erasmus Hall High School. Back then this subject was so “touch & go” that if Mr. Gold the “other” Spanish teacher (and all around good guy) hadn’t graded my Regent’s test–I’d probably still be in high school tryig to pass the freaking subject. Anyway…

Border Grill has loads of tacos, burritos, enchilladas, tortillas, fajitas, quesadillas–so, if Mexican food is your game, the joint definitely got you covered.

Let me make this story real short and simple…Border Grill makes some of the best Mexican stuff that I have ever eaten.

My recent outing had me “trying” chicken fajitas, shredded beef/soft flour tortilla, marinated pulled pork taco, steak burrito…

Like I said a few seconds ago, some of the best Mexican food that I’ve ever eaten.

In closing let me go out on a limb here, Border Grill is what Jeff Eats is all about…that being finding the “best” joints to eat in. This is a real hole in the wall…limited seating…piss poor signage…cheap prices—the kinda “place” that most people of sound mind would never ever think of walking into. To be honest with you, “locals” told me and my friends about it…that’s how we “came to” it. TV-critics like Guy Fieri of “Diners, Drive-ins & Dives” and Adam Richman of “Man v. Food” search the country for joints like Border Grill…well, you are now one step ahead of them…

Border Grill is open Monday-Wednesday 11am-midnight, Thursday-Saturday 11am-3am, closed on Sunday.

***** AMERICAN ENGLISH *****

Got something that you Beatles’ fans might like…American English.

I know and anyone over the age of 3 knows, that Beatles’ tribute bands are literally a dime a dozen. I’ll bet you a buck— that the most basic Google search turns up something like 10 million Beatles’ tribute bands here and abroad. For what it’s worth, some of the bands are terrific, others are very good-good-fair and some stink. Trust me on this, I’ve seen loads of Beatles’ bands and most fall into the “fair” category. To put it another way, if The Beatles actually sounded like most of the tribute artists out there–Decca Records which rejected the group in 1962, wouldn’t to this very day-be the laughing stock of the music industry. Decca’s passing on the group ranks right up there with Coca Cola’s mind boggling decision to change its world famous Coke formula.

The point of the above discussion…back on March 1, 2012 at Palm Beach State College’s Duncan Theatre in Lake Worth—I caught American English an absolutely amazing Beatles’ Tribute act. Like I said before, I’ve seen tons of Beatle bands– and American English “most” of the time had the audience convinced that John, Paul, George and Ringo were actually in the house. Now, we all know that The Beatles are The Beatles—but these guys are as authentic as is humanly possible. By the way a few months ago, I caught Rain–The Beatles’ tribute band that played Broadway and was featured on PBS– and nothing for nothing, its bass player is a righty and Paul is a lefty, so what’s that all about?

Anyway…American English is based out of Chicago and plays all over the United States.

You can check the group out at www.americanenglishbeatles.com.

If American English gets “down” to South Florida again, check these guys out–they really are that good.

One final item, Palm Beach State College’s Duncan Theatre has a terrific “yearly” series of shows…the theatre seats about 300 (every seat is good) and tickets go for something like 20 bucks. You can check its upcoming schedule at www.theatermania.com.

***** HiWay Burgers, 12 Southeast 5th Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida 33483, (561) 243-6460.

Back on May 7, 2012 Jeff Eats did a writeup on HiWay Burger (it’s down below). At the end of the “story” I told you guys that I would make it my business to get to HiWay and report back on how the joint was. So, here goes–

Last Saturday night I and Mrs. Jeff Eats ate at HiWay Burger in Delray Beach. First of all, I absolutely loved the look of this red/white 1950ish looking “hole in the wall” joint. When you check HiWay’s website for menu/prices at www.hiwayburger.com there is also a photo of what HiWay looks like, so you’ll know exactly what the deal is here.

Just so you know, HiWay has a real small menu… flat-top grilled burgers, french fries, shakes, sodas, ice tea. So if you are into a vegetarian game-I don’t think so!

Now for the taste-test. I did a double cheeseburger with french fries and a Coke—both the burger and fries were right up there with the best of breed.

I really enjoyed the food.

HiWay Burger is open Sunday-Thursday 11am-10pm, Friday-Saturday 11am11pm.

***** HiWay Burger *****

Got something that you “burger” folks might like to checkout…HiWay Burgers, 12 Southeast 5th Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida 33483, (561) 243-6460.

Two weeks ago, I and Mrs. Jeff Eats were “strolling” Atlantic Avenue…and low and behold- we spotted HiWay Burger, a brand new “hole in the wall” fast food burger joint with a “Coming Soon” sign in its window. Looking in, there were a handful of 50′s style booths and a small counter to order at. Just so you know, this thing really is a “hole in the wall”—the menu board listed— BURGERS, FRIES, SODAS, SHAKES period. Now nothing for nothing, but based on color scheme/decor and menu– my money says that, Hiway’s owner is trying to “emulate” the hugely successful and cult favorite In-N-Out Burger chain. Now for our purposes that’s a good thing, because if my assumption is correct, then it’s a safe bet that the owner “knows” what a top-notch fast food burger joint-should be. Of course, knowing and executing are two whole different things…so, we’ll just have to see how this all plays out. I will tell you, that from my brief “peek” the joint looks really cool.

To rap this up, yesterday- I bumped into my old friend Glenn who owns several Atlantic Avenue buildings…and- he mentioned to me that HiWay Burgers had opened and that the cheeseburger, french fries and chocolate shake that he ordered were terrific. For the record, I think that Glenn knows his fast food burger “stuff” because he’s also a huge fan of Five Guys, BurgerFi and Shake Shack–but then again, he’s a Red Sox fan, so I can’t really swear for this guy!

Anyway…I’m gonna get up to HiWay Burger in a few weeks and “taste” for myself. If you get there before I do, let me know what you think. By the way, the joint is so new that its website www.hiwayburger.com has yet to be fleshed out

***** ORLEANS *****

You guys do know that I’m a huge fan of 1960s-1970s Rock N Roll.

With that in mind, I got something fabulous- if this is also your bag.

On Friday, July 13, 2012 at 8pm – appearing at Boston’s On The Beach in Delray Beach:

ORLEANS- the band which had the 1970’s monster hits “Still The One”-“Dance With Me”- “Love Takes Time.”

Just so you know, this group still includes most of its original members including lead singer Larry Hoppen.

I don’t know if this is a “free” deal or what…but trust me, I’ve seen this band in recent years and they are as good as it gets.

***** Central European Media Enterprises Ltd *****

Got–I think- an interesting stock situation that some of you guys might like…Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ: CETV: B-5.96- A-$5.97).

First let me tell you, you gotta do your own DUE DILIGENCE.

In a nutshell, Central European owns/operates television stations in Eastern Europe. A few years back, this stock traded well over 200 bucks a share.

In recent years, Time Warner has slowly but surely been building a hige position in this company. Time Warner currently owns about 40% of the outstanding stock.

Like I said a few seconds ago, you got to do your own research. Mine tells me, that Central European Media which “hasn’t” been too hot business-wise lately is set for a huge turnaround. My research also tells me, that CETV’s stock price has literally been killed the last two weeks or so because it’s a European company and as you know or not know- that everyone and their mother thinks Greece, Spain, Portugal and the rest of Europe are going down the financial drain–so they have been punishing European companies.

The bet here is a business turn around is in the cards and that Time Warner “buys” control of this company. I think that a double in the stock price is very do-able.

* L-TRIBE.

Got an absolutely terrific South Florida based party band for you…L-TRIBE.

Recently caught this 5 piece group at the Seminole Immokalee Casino and I gotta tell you–these “guys” can literally play anything…from the 1950’s–to current hits by artists like Adele, Beyonce, Rhinna and Linkin Park. Over the years, I’ve been to a ton of South Florida weddings, bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs, conventions, holiday parties, lounges, bars, restaurants and I’m telling you that L-TRIBE is right up there with the best bands in our neck of the woods.

When you check L-TRIBE’s website (l-tribeband.com) take a close look at the “BIOS” section. Of note, the band’s drummer/founder Lionel Harrison is the son of the late Wilbert Harrison who in the 1960’s had massive hits with “Kansas City” and “Let’s Work Together.” When “prompted” by the audience, Lionel performs dynamite versions of his father’s legendary songs. Also of note, the group’s female vocalist Selena Serrano is one of South Beach’s hottest club performers- her recent recording “Sound Killa” debuted at #12 on Billboard’s ‘Bubbling Under R&B’ charts. For you old fogeys out there, Selena also “does” some terrific leads on hits like “At Last”–“Bad Girls”–“Respect”–“I Will Survive.”

If this kind of group is up your alley, do yourself a big favor and check them out.

L-TRIBE performs all over South Florida…past appearances included joints like– Blue Martini (Boca Raton, Naples, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach), Hard Rock Seminole Casino, JB’s On The Beach (Deerfield Beach), Smith & Jones (Fort Lauderdale), Riverside Cafe (Vero Beach).