*****  Hot Tomatoe Italian Wine Bistro, 626 South Federal Highway, Deerfield Beach, Florida 33441 (954) 785-5058.

Got a real-good “mom & pop” Italian joint for you…Hot Tomatoe Italian Wine Bistro in Deerfield Beach. Personally, I think that this joint’s name stinks, but that’s the only complaint here. Hot Tomatoe serves really good stuff and yes, it has a nice-sized list of Italian-wines.

Check Hot Tomatoe’s website www.hottomatoe.com for menu/prices.

A recent “taste test” of chicken marsala, veal parmigiana, veal piccata, zuppe di pesce and cheese ravioli was right on the money. Just so you know, Hot Tomatoe’s pastas, breads and mozzarrella are all made-in house. Nice sized portions. Very pleasant wait-staff. Neighborhood pizza joint prices.  The joint’s decor is a “step above” pizza  joint-formica. Your tee shirt/shorts’ ensemble will work.

I really enjoyed this joint. Unlike most “mom & pop” joints…the stuff here isn’t massed produced. Everything is made to order. The menu is a-bit limited, but you will definitely find something to eat.

Hot Tomatoe is open for lunch, Monday-Friday 11am-2pm and for dinner, Monday-Thursday 5:30pm-10pm, Friday & Saturday 5:30pm-10:30pm and Sunday. One final thought, Hot Tomatoe has a very-loyal following…so, on Friday and Saturday nights, I would book a reservation.

*****  Positano, 4400 North Federal Highway, Boca Raton, Florida 33431 (561) 391-2120.

Positano is an Italian joint located in Boca Raton.

Check-out www.positanoristoranteitaliano.com for menu/prices…there are also loads of photos which will give you some idea as to what this restaurant looks like.

Real fast…indoor and out-door patio dining.  A recent “taste-test” of shrimp oreganata, veal parmigiana, chicken cacciatore and gnocchi sorrentino…found everything just fine. The food is probably as good as your favorite neighborhood-Italian pizzeria joint. Very nice looking joint, and its white table cloths won’t preclude your wearing a tee shirt/shorts’ ensemble. Wait-staff very friendly and competent. As for prices, maybe a buck-or two more than neighborhhod pizza joint prices.

I really enjoyed my meal at Positano. Good food…nice ambiance…good service…reasonable prices. A very nice change from the “standard” neighborhood booth joints.

Positano is open Monday-Thursday & Sunday 5pm-10 and Friday-Saturday 5pm-11pm.

Flanigan’s Seafood Bar & Grill, 45 South Federal Highway, Boca Raton, Florida 33432 (561) 395-4699.

Many people literally swear by this “American-style” sports bar…the last time I checked, there were Flanigan’s all over South Florida…real quick, locations that come to mind, Boca Raton,  Deerfield Beach, West Palm Beach, Hollywood, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hallandale Beach, Coconut Grove and Lake Worth…trust me, there are many-more locations…so if you want to eat at Flanigan’s “one” won’t be too far from your home or business.

Personally, I don’t care for this joint…for sure its menu has loads of appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, pastas and meat-seafood-chicken entrees, full bar,  very reasonable prices, loads of flat-screen-tvs…I just don’t think that the food is anything special…Over the years (at the invitation of others) I must have eaten in the Boca Raton location something like 5 times…I have “dined” on this joint’s bbq ribs, burgers, fried shrimp, pasta, steamers, french fries, surf & turf and prime ribs… each time, I wondered (to myself and sometimes out-loud)  as to what all the “fuss” was about. Maybe I’m crazy, but I just don’t get this joint…at best, the food is just-ok. To me, this joint is a “jack of all trades”…in that it serves all types of food, but doesn’t make any one item that good.

Anyway…you can decide this one for yourself. Check Flanigan’s website www.flanigans.net for menu/prices/locations.

The joint is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner.

*****  China Gardens Restaurant, 14400 Military Trail, Delray Beach, Florida 33484 (561) 498-5226.

A number of you guys e-mailed about a “mom & pop Chinese” joint…China Gardens Restaurant, telling me about how good the food was, blah, blah blah. Anyway… last night I gave this joint a shot and “right-you-were”…the food is absolutely delicious.

China Gardens Restaurant is as you would expect, a “hole in the wall” located in a non-descript small South Florida shopping center. Guaranteed (unless you are a recent arrival from Mars) you know exactly what the decor is…what the menu is…and what the price-points and “specials” are.

Now let’s talk food…like I said before, DELICIOUS. Now for the  official-results of my “taste test”….wonton soup (A), egg drop soup (A), hot & sour soup (A), egg roll (B+), pan fried dumplings (B+), sweet & sour pork (A+), chicken egg foo young (A), sizzling steak (A), shrimp with vegetables (A), shrimp with lobster sauce (A), roast pork fried rice (B+)…

Now I may-be going out on a limb here, but…my money says that China Gardens Restaurant is probably better than your favorite neighborhood-Chinese joint. Let me go one step further, China Gardens could “make it” in New York City’s Chinatown.

Based on my first outing, I will definitely be back for a second round.

China Gardens Restaurant is open Monday-Saturday 11am-10pm and Sunday 2pm-10pm.

*****  Woodro Kosher Deli, 1342 Peninsula Boulevard, Hewlett, New York 11557 (516) 791-4034.

I know that Jeff Eats is suppose to be about SOUTH FLORIDA JOINTS…but, every so often, I come across terrific-joints in other areas which I think that you should know about. On this one, let’s call it “reverse-osmosis”…say hello to the Woodro Kosher Deli located in Hewlett, New York.

Let me make this review real simple…this joint, which has been in business for something like 50 years, makes some of the best “kosher-deli” stuff that I have ever eaten. The Woodro which seats something like 150, has a menu packed with appetizers, sandwiches and meat-chicken entrees. A recent “taste-test” had me sampling this joint’s brisket, pastrami, corned beef…not to mention, potato knish, hawaiian chicken salad, matzoh ball soup and roast chicken. Everything and I do mean everything, was absolutely dynamite.

All I can tell you, is that the Woodro Kosher Deli is one of the best delis that I have ever eaten in. The joint is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner.

Anyway…you now know about an absolutely terrific “kosher deli” located in Hewlett, New York.

*****  Sicilian Oven, 2486 North Federal Highway, Lighthouse Point, Florida 33064.

Got an absolutely terrific “wood fired Italian” joint for you…Sicilian Oven, located in Lighthouse Point. 

Gave this joint a shot last night and got-to tell you, that the food is dynamite. The menu is packed with appetizers, salads, pastas, ciabattas, wings and pizzas. My “taste test” (somebody has to do it)… sicilian salad ( a combination of mixed greens, roasted peppers, roman tomatoes, red onions, garbanzo beans & something like 5 other ingredients), wood oven roasted chicken wings, wood fired pizza, “no pasta” lasagna (eggplant & vegetables), meatballs and fried calamari…everything was delicious.

Sicilian Oven is owned by two guys, Andrew and Ralph. From what I can tell, Andrew “handles” the action in the open-kitchen and Ralph “handles” the dining area. Although the joint was packed, these boys were efficiently cranking-out some heavy duty orders. Sicilian Oven is a real modern looking joint, with just enough flat-screen tv sets to make it interesting for sports-afficianados. The prices are neighborhood “pizza joint” prices. Service is excellent & your tee shirt/shorts’ ensemble will work here.

Just so you know, although Sicilian Oven has only been open for something like 4-months, it already has a loyal-following… Giving credit where credit is do, Sun Sentinel food critic Judith Stocks gave the joint **** (four stars: excellent) on March 13, 2009…so, old Jeff Eats can’t claim to be the “discoverer” of this one…as a matter of fact, it was Stocks’ review that alerted me to this joint.

Give Sicilian Oven a try, it really is that good. For menu/prices, check its website www.thesicilianoven.com.

Sicilian Oven is open Monday-Saturday 11:30am-10pm and Sunday 4pm-10pm.

       5 Spice Asian Street Market, 1200 Yamato Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33431 (561) 989-1688.

5 Spice is a “Chinese-Asian” fast-food joint.  Check 5 Spice’s website at  www.five-spice.com for menu/prices.

What a bunch of CRAP!!! I tried the roast chicken, roast pork and roast duck…BAD NEWS…tasteless-tough-CRAP.  Sorry…can’t tell you about this joint’s rice and noodle dishes, because I quit while I was still ahead.

If you want to waste your money, the joint is open Monday-Friday 11am-9pm and Saturday-Sunday noon-9pm.

*****  Mellow Mushroom, 25 SE 6th Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida 33483 (561) 330-3040.

Let me get the necessities out of the way…Mellow Mushroom is a very-casual pizza joint located in Delray Beach.  Its menu is loaded with appetizers, salads, calzones, subs and pizzas…all at neighborhood pizza joint prices. The joint also has something like 100 beers, if that’s your game! A recent taste-test had me “sampling” a meatball ricotta pizza, greek salad, steak & cheese calzone and chicken parmesean sub. The food at this joint is absolutely dynamite.

Just so you know, Mellow Mushroom is a small-chain with joints in 15 states…there are a handful in Florida. The guys who own this company have a terrific concept…great food combined with a “retro-1960’s-70’s decor”…When I was eating at Mellow Mushroom, I “expected” Scott McKenzie, Grace Slick, John Densmore and H. Rap Brown to come walking in at any moment… Mellow Mushroom’s website www.mellowmushroom.com will provide you with menu/prices and loads of pictures “showing” that decor I just mentioned.

Real Casual. Great Food. Great Ambiance.

I highly recommend that you give Mellow Mushroom a try.

The joint is open Monday-Thursday 11:30am-11pm, Friday-Saturday 11:30am-midnight, Sunday noon-11pm.

*****  Pizza Stop, 8242 Wiles Road, Coral Springs, Florida 33067 (954) 344-4900.

Let’s talk turkey here…actually garlic knots. You know and I know, that there are more “mom & pop–red sauce Italian” joints in South Florida than there are Chins in a Chinese phonebook. There are good ones, there are lousy ones and there are great ones. You know the game, soup or salad…garlic knots…side of pasta…entree.

Let’s make this review  real-simple…Pizza Stop is one of the “good ones.” The menu as you would expect, is packed with appetizers, salads, pizzas, pastas, subs, meat-seafood-chicken entrees. Prices are neighborhood pizza joint prices…with loads of lunch and dinner specials. Service is as pleasant as can be. A recent “taste-test” netted me chicken scarpariello, shrimp francese, veal parmigiana, chicken marsala, pizza…everything was A-Okay…and the garlic knots were delicious.

You now know about a good “mom & pop” joint. Pizza Stop is open Monday-Thursday 11am-10pm…Friday 11am-11pm, Saturday 11am-10pm, Sunday 1pm-10pm.

Famous Uncle Al’s Hot Dogs & Grille, 4861 Coconut Creek Parkway, Coconut Creek, Florida 33063 (954) 975-6226.

Famous Uncle Al’s is a “hot-dog, burger, french fries” joint located in Coconut Creek…This afternoon… I tried Famous Uncle Al’s 1/2 lb. cheeseburger ($6.45)–onion rings ($4.99)–french fries ($2.25)–hot dog ($2.50)…let’s just say, cute place, piss-poor location…OK onion rings, OK “grilled Sabrett” hot-dog, lousy french fries, horrendous cheeseburger.

Just so you know, Famous Uncle Al’s is a small chain which currently has 8-9 locations, with 3 of them in Florida. The Coconut Creek joint has been in business something like 2-months. The problem with this concept which features waiter-service is, that the food isn’t very good. Like I said before, the hot dog and onion rings were OK, but nothing great…while the french fries and cheeseburger were absolute disasters. The cheeseburger that I was served, was perfectly “formed” just like the stuff you buy frozen in Publix or Costco’s. The french fries had an oily after-taste, “like” when the oil in the fryer hasn’t been changed for some-time. It is absolutely beyond me, how Famous Uncle Al’s thinks that it can compete with guys like Five Guys who serve fresh-burgers and hand-cut french fries.

 Anyway, I wish the owners well, but I won’t be back.