***** Dean Anthony’s Express, 1449 Yamato Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33431 (561) 988-2202.

The folks in Boca Raton just-lucked out…let me explain.

Dean Anthony’s is a “mom & pop” red sauce Italian joint which currently has 1 full- restaurant in Wellington and 1 full-restaurant in Boynton Beach. Two days ago…in a real-small Boca Raton strip center a Dean Anthony’s Express opened… which if you forget about a few window-counter seats, is a takeout-only joint.

Over the years, I must have eaten in the Dean Anthony’s restaurants at least 10 times…I rank these joints right up there with the “best” in the mom & pop South Florida Italian category. By the way, before the Jeff Eats’ website crashed a few years ago, there was a very favorable review on the full-restaurants. On my to do list, is a revisit for an updated “opinion”…

Last night, I tried Dean Anthony’s Express…the menu is loaded with appetizers, salads, pastas, sandwiches, chicken wings (something like 12 different sauces), entrees, pizzas… I did a plain pizza, penne alla vodka, chicken parmigiana, greek salad, garlic rolls, cheese calzone, chicken wings (honey garlic), meatballs-spaghetti…everything I “sampled” was real-good. Gourmet food? Now, let’s not play dopey here! This is a takeout red- sauce -joint, but I am telling you, that give or take a handful of restaurants, this Dean Anthony’s Express is as good as neighborhood takeout gets. One thing that I gotta single out here for special treatment, the pizza…plain old slice with sauce/cheese—one of the best slices I have had down here in South Florida…let’s call it a real NY slice.

As for prices…strictly neighborhood prices. 10 wings $7.99–Greek salad (enough for 2) $9.99–a large pizza goes for $13.99. You definitely won’t go broke ordering from this joint.

You folks in Boca Raton really lucked out…I am telling you, that the next time you want takeout, you want to give Dean Anthony’s a try.

The joint is open Monday-Sarurday 11am-9pm and Sunday 3pm-9pm.

***** Liquori’s Fired Up! 5810 South Uniiversity Drive, Davie, Florida 33328 (954) 434-2378.

Liquori’s Fired Up! is a modern decor “wood-oven pizzeria”…

The joint’s menu has loads of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, pizzas and a handful of entrees. You can get details on menu/prices at www.firedupdavie.com.

Did a “taste test” of roasted wings (10 go for $8.75), chicken parm focaccia sandwich (7.95), 8 oz. meatball appetizer ($6.95) and a large plain pizza ($16.95). The verdict— loved the wings with the carmalized onions…juicy and not overdone. Chicken parm was good but I have eaten better, same goes for the meatball…now don’t get me wrong, nothing terrible, but I found the parm and the meatball to be a bit on the bland side. Absolutely loved the pizza, to my “trained” palate…the sauce was the perfect-sweet, the cheese was mild and the crust was thin-crispy.

Service…pizzeria friendly. Prices…same as your favorite neighborhood joint.

Let’s rate Liquori’s a good neighborhood joint. The wings and pizza are worth the trip alone.

Liquori’s is open Monday-Wednesday 11:30am-9pm, Thursday-Saturday 11:30am-10pm and Sunday 12:30pm-9pm.

***** Bobo’s Restaurant, 2938 East Grant Road, Tucson, Arizona 85716 (520) 326-6163.

Yesterday I told you about a terrific Tucson bbq joint named BrushFire BBQ Co. Indulge me one more time…and let me tell you about another absolutely-great Tucson joint… “mom & pop” 5:30am-2pm 60 seat diner–Bobo’s Restaurant.

In a million years, unless you were looking for it… would you ever notice no less stop at this maybe 50-year old hole-in-the wall. The joint is in a non-descript freestanding building in an industrial-setting. Those guys from meal plan ZonaBucks (www.zonabucks.com) took me to this joint, as they were looking to add Bobo’s to their student dining network and thought that I would enjoy this local breakfast-lunch landmark.

Didn’t get a detailed Bobo’s history…but according to current owner Debbie, Bobo passed away years ago.

Anyway…Bobo’s is my kind of a joint. Something like 60 table seats and a handful of counter seating. From every seat in the joint, you can see short-order cooks at the grill working like madmen turning out all kinds of breakfast stuff, sandwiches, burgers, salads, soups, and lunch specials like chicken fried steak and ham steak.

I did breakfast and the western omelette was one of the best that I have ever had as were the home fries…the rye toast, nothing to write home about. I also sampled a sausage-american cheese-onion omelette which was also great. The pancakes are “off the chart” not to mention off the plate…the pancakes hang over the 12″ plates that they are served on. I tried a banana pancake, which was probably the best pancake that I have every eaten. Not sure of how this concoction was made, but this “thing” was amazingly just-right sweet. I didn’t sample the burgers, but I saw the short order guys banging out cheeseburgers and fries that looked absolutely diner-perfect…you know, that “greasy spoon” look that makes you want to load on the ketchup.

I did a quick “survey” of the crowd…and found that on Saturdays and Sundays the all-day line is packed with locals and college students…during the week, local workers/business people keep the joint packed from open to close.

Bobo’s is the perfect joint. It’s got the formica look, staff in Bobo’s tee shirts (if you are wearing one, your soft drink is on the house), hustle and bustle, short order cooks, diner ambiance, easy going crowd, great food, and diner prices…a burger w/fries runs $4.50, omelettes $4.95-$6.95, pancakes $3.50-4.50.

You now know where to eat breakfast-lunch in Tucson.

***** BrushFire BBQ Co., 2745 North Campbell Avenue, Tucson, Arizona 85719 (520) 624-3223.

You guys gotta indulge me here…I know Jeff Eats is suppose to be all about South Florida joints, but I got to tell you about BrushFire BBQ Co. in Tucson, Arizona…because it’s that good.

I was recently in Tucson to “consult with” a new “off campus meal plan” which was started in 2009 by two-University of Arizona undergraduates. These guys, about 6- months ago created a company called ZonaBucks (www.zonabucks.com) and contracted with various Tucson restaurants, national chains and basic need merchants to “feed and service” students at the University of Arizona. From what
I can tell, The U of A has a “food court” on campus which isn’t very appetizing or diversified, so ZonaBucks quickly found a huge student- following in that its network has the restaurants-supermarkets-drugstores-haircutters that students frequent. Although it is relatively-new, the company received inquiries from all over the United States to “nationwide” the concept…and the students are now planning to “rebrand” as CampusBucks with national expansion plans. Checkout the website as it is really amazing how “kids” came up with a better student meal plan than the bureaucrats at the U of A did…but then again, we have all heard about Bill Gates and Michael Dell, haven’t we!!

Anyway…on the ZonaBucks network, is a fast-food bbq joint named BrushFire BBQ Co. You order at the counter and the food is then delivered to your table.

Now here’s the story…this little hole in the wall joint…serves some of the best bbq that I have ever tasted. I did bbq beef ribs, bbq pork ribs, bbq chicken, french fries, corn on the cob, mac and cheese, fried chicken wings…incredible. The joint works with 6 sauces (I tried– sweet molasses and honey mustard) so your “order” can be flavored anyway that you like. Checkout BrushfFre’s website www.brushfirebbq.com for menu/prices. The prices are neighborhood sports-bar type prices…real reasonable. How this joint puts out such “high quality” stuff- so cheaply is a mystery to me.

Brushfire is open 7 days a week from 10am-9pm.

So…if you ever get to Tucson, you now have a “must try” place.

***** Henry’s, 16850 Jog Road, Delray Beach, Florida 33446 ( 561) 638-1949.

Got a real-nice “American-style” joint for you…Henry’s, which is located in Delray Beach.

We can make this one real simple…check the joint’s website www.henryofbocaraton.com for menu/prices/photos.

The joint has a beautiful menu…nice selection of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, entrees. Not bad prices–Plenty of specials and price fixe dinners ($19.95 range). Real good waitstaff

Let’s talk food…did a turkey meatloaf, bbq ribs, chicken marsala, veal parmigiana, crab cakes. Absolutely nothing to complain about.

This is a real good joint to know about, when you are looking for “old style” comfort food. Now keep in mind, this isn’t some roadside dump-diner (which happens to be old Jeff Eats’ establishment of choice) but rather, a nice looking but not too fancy joint…if you check that website, you’ll see photos that will tell you the whole story in about 1 second.

Henry’s does lunch Monday-Friday 11:30am-2:30pm and Saturday noon-2:30pm and dinner Sunday-Thursday 5:30pm-9pm and Friday-Saturday 5:30pm-10pm.

***** Gary Woo Express, 9874 Yamato Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33498 (561) 483-4889.

Let me be straight-up with you guys…years ago, Gary “Woo” was a neighbor of mine…best friends, nope, but I know the guy. I remember when he opened his first joint- China Dumpling (Boynton Beach), his second joint-Gary Woo’s Asian Bistro (Boca Raton)…if you check, I rated China Dumpling one of the best Chinese restaurants in South Florida. To date, I have not reviewed the Asian Bistro.

Anyway…a few months ago a new strip center opened in Boca Raton…Gary Woo Express is the Chinese “anchor”…this is a takeout -only joint.

Let me start off by saying, that the food that this joint is cranking out is top-notch. Now, in most likelihood, I haven’t gotten stuff from your favorite neghborhood haunt, but based on 2-takeout outings…I’m gonna bet that Gary Woo’s food is better than the food you have been schleping home.

Recent taste-tests of…wonton soup, egg rolls, bbq ribs. pan fried dumplings, roast pork fried rice, sweet sour pork, general tso’s chicken, shrimp in lobster sauce…top-notch. I couldn’t find one item to really complain about.

At this stage of the game…checkout Gary Woo Express website www.garywooexpress.com for menu/prices.

I do have one problem with the joint…some of the prices are off-the chart…waaaaay tooo expensive.

So…you guys now know about a top-notch Chinese takeout joint.

Gary Woo Express is open Monday-Friday 11:30am-10pm and Saturday-Sunday 3pm-10pm.

***** Slice & Ice, 3024 Southwest 27th Avenue, Miami, Florida 33133 (305) 461-9190.

Let me take you back to Brooklyn circa 1965…15 cents slices, 5 cents Cokes, 10 cents single scoop of Italian ices…now if that isn’t heaven, I don’t what is…or shall I say, was.

Slice & Ice is located in Coconut Grove…not sure how long this freestanding hole in the wall Italian joint has been around, so I’m gonna guess 20 years. Order at window, pickup at another window. You are not going to be eating-in at this joint.

Slice & Ice has a “what you would expect menu”…the game here is PIZZA & ICES.

Great slice of pizza…crispy with a real nice sweet sauce. Handful of different flavored ices. Almost Nirvana…but the slices arent 15 cents…the Coke isn’t 5 cents, the ices aren’t 10 cents.

Don’t worry, you won’t need a second job to pay the tab.

The next time you are in the Grove, grab a slice and ice…and enjoy the “people traffic flow”…The joint is open, Monday-Thursday 11am-1am, Friday 11am-4am, Saturday noon-4am and Sunday 11am-11am.

***** Orient Diner, 1725 South Federal Highway, Delray Beach, Florida 33483 (561) 243-2688.

Orient Diner is a “mom & pop” Chinese joint…aren’t they all? I know all about P. F. Chang’s …this is a relatively new 28-seater having opened in March, 2009. Modern decor, with a glass wall that let’s you watch your food being prepared. Neighborhood prices and service.

Now…I’m a bit confused as to its owners’ “history”…some kind of connection to the Oriient Palace Restaurant that use to be in Delray Beach—the Orient Palace (takeout) in Boca Raton—5 Spice Asian Street Market in Boca Raton …anyway, you sort it out, but the Orient Palace Restaurant had real-good food, the Orient Palace (takeout) has lousy food and 5 Spice Asian has horrendous food.

Anyway…first things first, check Orient Diner’s website www.orientdiner.com for menu/prices. Now, let’s get down to the “taste test”…wonton soup (good), egg rolls (good), pan fried dumplings (good), bbq ribs (good), general tso’s chicken (very good), moo shoo pork (very good), shrimp in black bean sauce (very good), roast pork fried rice (good).

As I mentioned before, something like 28 seats…so it’s a real small joint. I think the “plan” here—as it is in most Chinese joints—lots of takeout.

So my friends, if you live in Boca Raton-Delray Beach…you now have a decent-enough Chinese joint to do business at. China Diner is open Tuesday-Friday 11am-9:30pm, Saturday noon-9:30pm, Sunday 4pm-9:30pm, closed on Monday.

***** Hong Kong Noodles, 1242 Northeast 163rd Street, North Miami, Florida 33162 (305) 956-5677.

Hong Kong Noodles is a “mom & pop” Chinese joint…you know exactly what its decor is/price points are/service is…so I won’t bore you with details. This joint is an interesting combination of…”Brooklyn-style/Jewish Chinese food” and “Real Authentic Chinese food.” Regular Jeff Eats’ readers know that old Jeff really isn’t a fan of fried chicken feet-roasted pig head…so, I can’t tell you how this stuff tasted, because I didn’t taste it. What I can tell you, is that… the “Brooklyn” stuff was very good. I did a roast duck that was dynamite…same goes for bbq spare ribs, wonton soup, roast pork fried rice, shrimp in black bean sauce.

Nothing fancy here…roast ducks and pigs hanging decorations…

I really liked this joint. Hong Kong Noodles is open 7 days a week for lunch-dinner.

***** The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co., 14451 South Military Trail, Delray Beach, Florida 33484 (561) 455-7491.

Yesterday morning a new “fast-food” bagel joint opened in Delray Beach…its name, The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. If you check its website www.brooklynwaterbagels.com you will find menu/prices. The “opening” garnered quite a bit of local interest, with both the Sun Sentinel and Palm Beach Post doing “cover stories” on the opening. Just so you know, the Delray Beach location is a “prototype” store for a planned franchise-chain, which is owned/operated by Steven Fassberg and Larry Feldman. You guys should also know, that I personally know both Feldman and Fassberg…Fassberg is an extremely knowledgeable restaurant man having owned a number of delis in New York and South Florida…Feldman is a “major player” in the enormously successful Subway chain. I’ll leave you guys to “Google” both Fassberg and Feldman if you want more info on them.

The Original’s “hook” is that it claims to have a patented technology that can convert “local water” into the same consistency as that of Brooklyn’s public water supply. I really don’t have the time or inclination to get into it, but many believe that “it’s the water” that makes New York City’s bagels so great. Over the years, I’ve heard more “Brooklyn water” stories than their are stories in the Haftorah (for the non Jews out there, ask your Jewish friends for a translation). Anyway, your guess is as good as mine, as to The Original Brooklyn Water Co.’s water claims.

Now…let’s talk about the important stuff, decor-service-food.

Like I said before, this is basically a “fast food” operation…order at the counter and your food is delivered to the table. The decor, is Wendy’s-Burger King-McDonald…one whole side of the 3,000 sq.ft space has a see-through window, where you can watch the “water-treatment” plant and bagel baking operation. To be personally honest with you, I found the watching-through-glass “deal” to be on the gimmicky side.

Now let’s talk food….the menu is jammed with all kinds of bagels, bialys, soups, salads, sandwiches, cream cheeses, butters, smoked fish…trust me on this, the selection is outrageous, you absolutely-positively will not be disappointed. After 4pm the joint also offers $9.95 “dinner specials” which include- entree, potato, vegetable, beverage and dessert…the entrees are–fresh turkey, roast beef, roast chicken, chicken cordon bleu, chicken francese, corned beef with cabbage.

Yesterday…I “taste tested”…everything bagel, sesame bagel, pumpernickel bagel—scallion cream cheese, tuna salad, chicken salad, ham & cheese omelet, . Now for the results…the bagels were very good–were they the best that I have had down here in South Florida? No!..but they were very good. The tuna salad and chicken salad were delicious…the chicken salad was exceptionally good with big chunks of chicken–the omelet which came with a bagel and french fries was done just right.

As for prices and service… let me ballpark this for you, omelets run $5.45-$6.45, bagels with cream cheese or butter go for $1.69-$2.99, sandwiches $4.95-$6.95…the most expensive item on the menu is a nova-whitefish-baked salmon salad at $10.95. As for service, keep in mind that you order at the counter and food is delivered to your table…so there is “no tipping”…for a brand new joint, everything ran smoothly when I was there.

I really liked The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co…it has a great menu, reasonable prices, very good food. Like I said before, the “water treatment” angle seems a bit hokey to me. I will also tell you, that Fassberg-Feldman couldn’t have picked a worse location for the first store. It is located in a miniscule-non-descript shopping center on Military Trail…if you weren’t looking for the joint, you probably wouldn’t even notice it.

Based on Day-One,The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. has a shot to run circles around other “self-service counter” bagel joints like Einstein Bros. and Offerdahls Cafe. The joint is open 7-days a week for breakfast, lunch and dinner.