***** 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).

***** Best Coal Oven/Woodfired/Brick Oven Pizza Poll *****

The other day “we” did Best Regular Pizza in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.

Let’s see what you guys come up with for the best coal oven/woodfired/brick oven pizza in the same counties.

***** Best “Waitered” Burger Poll *****

The other day “we” did the best fast food burgers in Dade, Browad and Palm Beach counties.

Today, we do the best burgers that are served by either a waiter or waitress.

***** Facebook *****

I think that most of you guys know what FACEBOOK is. I’m also thinking that most of you guys know that last Friday morning Face Book went public with an IPO price of $38 a share. As I type, Facebook (NASDQ:FB) is currently trading at $33.01-$33.03. That means, that for right-now, the stock has lost roughly 5 bucks a share…Take it from me, for an IPO to “drop” from it’s offering price in such a “quick” move after coming to market, isn’t good!

Look, I still use a phone like they used back on the old Lassie tv series. You know the one, where Jeff’s mother (or Tommy’s mother, depending on how old you are) would say something like “Jenny, could you get me Linda down at Miller’s Pond.” The point that I’m trying to make, is that I really don’t know too much about this “new thing” called social media.

What I do know, is that you CAN’T have Facebook (which claims 900,000,000 million users) valued at something like $100 billion–only netting $1.9 billion a year in revenue. Now, I could be dead wrong here, but I seriously doubt that most of the folks who currently use Face Book for free- are going to be inclined to ever pay for the service…in addition, I kinda think that most of Facebook’s users have absolutely no interest in the advertisements or products that Face Book currently markets…My thought process also tells me that Face Book is going to have a huge and I do mean a HUGE problem monetizing its business.

So…what initially looked like a “goldmine” IPO may just prove to have been nothing but fool’s gold.

Just thought I’d tell you my Facebook thoughts…Jeff Eats would love to hear yours.

***** Jersey Johnny’s Pizzeria, 1313 Boynton Beach Boulevard, Boynton Beach, Florida 33426, (561) 364-3464.

I don’t know about you guys, but there is no way that Jeff Eats could-not try a pizza joint named Jersey Johnny’s Pizzera… betcha a dime, that I’ll soon be hearing from Mike’s Bayridge Pizzeria, Flatbush Boys Burgers, Joey Chan’s Staten Island PizzerIa, Leon’s Atlantic City Subs, Tony’s Bronx Deli—so be it!

Anyway…last week Mrs. Jeff Eats had some folks over to the house and did a “takeout” from Jersey Johnny’s Pizzeria… antipasto salad, Caesar salad, 16″ round pizza, 16″ sicilian pizza, meatballs marinara, penne ala vodka, fettuccini alfredo, veal parmigiana, sausage & peppers. At this stage of the discussion you can check www.jerseyjohnnyspizza.com for menu/prices.

Let me make this one real simple, Jersey Johnny’s Pizzeria gives you a ton of food for cheap money…Now you and I both know, that cheap doesn’t necessarily mean good…

I’m glad to report- that every “dish” that we had was A-OK. For sure, some were better than others, but not one disappointed. I will tell you, that the pizzas were really good and the meatballs marinara were dynamite.

Like I mentioned 33 seconds ago, we did takeout…Just so you know, the joint has plenty of tables, so you can eat there.

One final thought, some of you guys maybe wondering how Mrs. Jeff Eats “selected” Jersey Johnny’s in the first place? Just so you know, one of her closest girlfriends-Judy recommended the joint so that’s how that tune really got played.

Jersey Johnny’s is open Monday-Thursday 11am-11pm, Friday-Saturday 11am-midnight, Sunday 11am-9pm.