***** Cafe Frankie’s, 640 East Ocean Avenue, Boynton Beach, Florida 33435, (561) 732-3834.

Cafe Frankie’s…”mom & pop” Italian joint located in a Boynton Beach craphole shopping center—which has more closed stores than opened ones. Didn’t count tables, but maybe a handful inside and maybe a handful outside…absolutely nothing fancy going on here. Your shorts/tee shirt ensembles will work well there.

The observant will have noticed by now, that I didn’t call Cafe Frankie’s a “red sauce” joint. For sure, its got pizzas, pastas, veal parmigiana, meatballs, penne ala vodka—that said, someone in the back-of-the-house really knows how to cook…outrageously delcious veal marsala, shrimp scampi, fried lobster, clams oreganata…throw in terrific thin crusted-sweet sauce pizza and I gotta rate the food right up there with the best mom & poppers in South Florida.

Only got two-complaints, the joint’s bread which is served with roasted garlic and pesto—was boring. I guess “boring” is a subjective thing…what I do know, is I usually devour a ton of bread in these kinds of joints…last night, one piece was more than enough for old Jeff Eats. Some real good garlic bread or garlic rolls would have been more on point. The second complaint, soda in cans…I also love loads of Coke when I do mom & poppers—cans take the fun out of eating like a pig.

On the price front…Cafe Frankie’s has the requisite- entree, soup or salad, pasta side “deals” going. A cursory menu review—just an estimate, but some of the entrees are here-and-there- a few bucks more expensive than the local competition. No biggy here, as I thought that the food was just plain out-better than the stuff I usually “sample.”

Cafe Frankie’s is open 7 days a week for dinner and does lunch Monday-Friday.

***** 5 South Florida Food Blogs *****

I always say–the more the merrier.

Got- 5 South Florida Food Blogs that I really enjoy. Over the years, these “guys” have turned me on to a huge-number of terrific-joints. Give a read…

In no particular order:

Miami Food Trucks………………www.miamifoodtrucks.com

Burgers By The Beach……………www.burgersbythebeach.com

The Burger Beast……………….www.burgerbeast.com

South Florida Food & Wine……….www.southfloridafoodandwineblog.blogspot.com

Worst Pizza.com………………..www.worstpizza.com

Just so you know, sometimes Jeff Eats agrees and sometimes Jeff Eats disagrees with the “calls” of others. For what it’s worth (wink wink wink!), I know I’m right and they are wrong, but after all, this is America!

Enjoy these other sites…like I said before, these guys often come-up with terrific joints that serve great stuff.

***** Egyptian Pizza Kitchen, 3201 North Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida 33127, (305) 571-9050.

Go figure…and- I thought that the Chinese invented pizza.

Eqyptian Pizza Kitchen…reminds me of a Tucson joint I once ate in…Vito & Sol’s New York Kosher Style Deli & Pizzeria—-half the menu had “Jewish stuff” and the other half had “Italian stuff.” As I recall, neither “half” was very good, but then again we-are-talking-Tucson.

Anyway, Eqyptian’s menu has pizza/Italian stuff–middle eastern stuff–mediterranean stuff. At this stage of the proceedings you can check menu/prices at www.epkmiami.com.

A recent outing had me doing, falafel, Greek Salad, bbq chicken pita, sausage/pepperoni calzone, chicken shawarma, margherita pizza, baklava. All of the stuff was good, but the pizza, calzone and baklava would be the “items” that would get Jeff Eats to make a return visit…especially that baklava and its drizzled chocolate sauce.

So, if you want to play United Nations in Miami…

Eqyptian Pizza Kitchen is open Monday-Friday 10:30am-10pm and Saturday-Sunday 10:30am-11pm.

***** Gusto Fino Italian Deli, 2103 South LeJeune, Coral Gables, Florida 33134, (305) 444-0504.

Tremendous! That’s the best way to describe this “hole in the wall” Italian Deli in Coral Gables. You can check menu/prices/photos at www.gustofinodeli.com.

Just so you know, this is basically a “takeout”…the joint does have a handful of tables. The menu has some absolutely terrific sandwiches, salads, personal pizzas, pastas and entrees. A recent outing had me “doing” sausage & peppers—chicken parmigiana—meatball ciabatta sandwiches…off the chart. I also “did” meat lasagna and a caprese salad…delicious.

I loved this joint.

Nice break from the “typical” $5 sub joints that dot the South Florida landscape.. For those who haven’t yet checked Gusto’s website…sandwiches run $7.95-$8.95 and the most expensive item on the menu are a couple of pasta/entrees that top out at $13.95

Gusto Fino Italian Deli is open Monday 11am-4pm, Tuesday-Friday 11am-4:30pm, Saturday noon-4pm, closed on Sunday.

***** The Stage, 9144 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs, Florida 34135, (239) 405-8566.

Got a really cool “music-dance-eat-drink” joint for you…The Stage located in Bonita Springs.

At this stage of the “story” do me a huge favor and check www.thestagebonita.com…in a nutshell, on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday starting at 4pm The Stage features some of the best original bands, cover bands and tribute acts in Florida. Sometimes the “music” is free and sometimes there is a cover charge. To round things out, The Stage has a full-bar and a menu loaded with very reasonably priced “decent enough” appetizers, salads, burgers, sandwiches and meat/chicken/seafood entrees.

The play here…get a good table and plan on staying awhile. In recent months I’ve been there twice and I had a blast.

***** Between The Bun, 1035 Gateway Boulevard, Boynton Beach, Florida 33426, (561) 735-8820.

I gotta tell you, I must be getting old…absolutely can’t believe- that it took me until today, August 24, 2011 to discover, Between The Bun- a sensational “fast-food” burger joint which has been around since Januray 2011. Too much sun!!!

Order at the counter/food delivered to table…You can check menu/prices at www.boyntonrestaurantbetweenthebun.com.

Let me go on record…Between The Bun serves one of the best “flame grilled” burgers down here in Sunny South Florida. Throw in fries “just like” Nathan’s Famous makes…and they hooked Jeff Eats as a huge fan.

Just so you know, Between The Bun also has other stuff like grilled chicken, tuna salad, tenderloin steak, hot dogs, black & white cookies, …so if burgers and fries ain’t your bag, your still covered.

Between The Bun is open 7-days a week 11am-9pm.

***** NY’s Big Apple Deli, 14432 North Biscayne Boulevard, North Miami Beach, Florida 33181, (305) 940-0128.

Got a terrific— “New York Kosher Style Deli” for you…NY’s Big Apple Deli in North Miami Beach.

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

Two recent lunch outings had me “sampling” pastrami/corned beef/brisket/turkey…some of the best stuff I’ve had down here in sunny South Florida. Also gave the joint’s chicken salad and chopped liver a shot…once again, real good stuff. I also did 2-soups, chicken matzoh ball soup and mushroom barley—both were homeruns.

Let me sum NY’s Big Apple Deli up in a nutshell…this is one of the best New York Kosher Style Delis in South Florida.

NY’s Big Apple Deli is open Monday-Thursday 8am-7pm and Friday-Sunday 7am-3pm.

***** Max Pizza, 15455 Southwest 137th Avenue, Miami, Florida 33177, (305) 235-0825.

Max Pizza…”mom & pop” red sauce Italian joint in Miami. Checkout out maxpizzamiami.com for menu/prices–video.

Tried the pizza…fair.
Tried the meatball sub…fair.
Tried the chicken parm sub…fair.
Tried the sausage & peppers sub…fair
Tried the calzone…delicious.
Tried the meat stromboli…delicious.

That’s this one in a nutshell.

Max Pizza is open Monday-Thursday 11:15am-10pm, Friday-Saturday 11:15am-11pm, Sunday noon-10pm.

***** Kenny Vance & The Planotones *****

If you are a fan of 1950’s-1960’s doo wop/rock n’ roll music…there is a concert scheduled for Saturday Night, August 27, 2011 at the Parker Playhouse www.parkerplayhouse.com in Sunrise that you do not and should not miss…Kenny Vance & The Planotones.

Suffice it to say, that Kenny Vance in a former-lifetime was an original memember of Jay & The Americans, television’s “Saturday Night Live” and films- American Hot Wax, Eddie & The Cruisers and Hairspray musical director.

Over the years, I have seen Kenny Vance & The Planotones in action something like 5-times. Each time, I was amazed at Vance’s vocal range. As many of you may know, Jay Black was the “voice” associated with Jay & The Americans. I am telling you, Kenny Vance’s voice is as good if not better than Mr. Black’s. For you guys who do get to this show, Vance’s songlist often includes Jay & The Americans hits like ‘Cara Mia’ and ‘Only In America’…the show highlights the group’s ‘Looking For An Echo’ from the American Hot Wax film.

Like I said before, if 1950’s-1960’s doo wop/rock n’ roll music is your game…you will really enjoy this Act.

I just checked the Parker Playhouse site and there are some real good seats still available. They range in price from $30.50-$50.50 and every seat is just-fine in that this is a small 1,100 seat venue. Just so you know, at the Parker Playhouse site, there is a video of Kenny Vance & The Planotones–if you want to check this group out before buying tickets.

***** Shindig Irish Restaurant & Pub, 464 Southwest Port Saint Lucie Boulevard, Port St. Lucie, Florida 34953, (772) 785-6202.

Got a good Irish pub for you…Shindig Irish Restaurant & Pub in Port St. Lucie.

A recent dinner had me “trying”…braised short rib sliders, bacon cheeseburger, shepherd’s pie, fish & chips, corned beef & cabbage. Nothing to get hysterical about “foodwise” here…but the stuff is decent enough. Do like-I did…hit this joint on either a Friday or Saturday night when it features live bands. For “small” money (the most expensive item on the menu is the flat iron steak-$21.99), you’ll eat and drink good and have a blast listening to some of the better rock bands in the area.

Check menu/prices/entertainment schedule at www.shindigpub.com.

The joint is open 7 days a week, 11am-2am.