Delray Beach

*****  Big Al’s Steaks, 450 East Atlantic Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida 33483, (561) 819-1888…&…5607 Regency Lakes Boulevard, Coconut Creek, Florida 33073, (954) 480-8550.

First let me give you this joint’s website…www.bigalssteaks.com.

Big Al’s has 2 South Florida locations. Big Al’s is basically a take-out, but a few outdoor tables are available.

This joint’s name says it all…Big Al’s Steaks—Authentic Philly Steak Sandwiches.

When you bite into one of Big Al’s steak hoagies you’ll swear that you are in  South Philadelphia eating at  the lengendary Pat’s  King Of Steaks or Geno’s Steaks. The sandwiches are incredible.

Big Al’s Coconut Creek location  is open 7-days a week from 11am-10pm.

Big Al’s Delray Beach location is open 7 days a week…Sunday-Wednesday 11am-Midnight…Thursday 11am-2am…Friday-Saturday 11am-3am. 

Figure that a steak hoagie is going to run you something like 7-8 bucks. Big Al’s also has other types of hoagies, but the game here is STEAK.

Don’t miss this one.

*****  Carolina’s Coal Fired Pizza & Pasta, 9 S.E. 7th Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida 33483, (561) 278-1913.

As most of you know, over the past 3-4 years COAL FIRED PIZZA JOINTS have been popping up all over South Florida… joints like Anthony’s, Red Rock, Coal Mine, Vic & Angelo’s and Giovanni’s immediately come to mind.  Rather than going into esquisite detail, the usual  menu game at these joints is family style salads-coal fired pizza-coal fired chicken wings covered in carmalized onions/garlic-individual bottles of soda. For sure, almost everyone of these joints has some sort of variation on the above theme, but all-in-all, the pizzas and chicken wings are the stars of the game.

Readers of jeffeats know that I love good coal fired pizza/wings. Past rave revues for Anthony’s, Red Rock and Giovanni’s should convince “you” of that love.

Now let me tell you about…Carolina’s Coal Fired Pizza & Pasta.

Last night I ate dinner at Carolina’s which is located in Delray Beach. The joint is housed in a “house” and seats about 60 inside and 60 on an out-door patio. Like the other joints previously mentioned, Carolina’s is in the coal fired pizza business….however, there isn’t a chicken wing  in sight. Carolina’s spends as much time on its pastas and salads as it does on its pizzas…coal fired pizza is just one of many dishes….Anyway, last night 5 of us “dined” at Carolina’s. We had pizza, salad,  fried zucchini appetizer, 3 family sized pasta dishes and 5 sodas (no bottles) unlimited refills… I have to tell you that everything was absolutely delicious.

Now I am not looking to “have” any hard feelings here, but I have to tell you, that the coal fired pizza I had last night, was the best I have eaten since I have been down here in South Florida. As a matter of fact, it is as good as some of the “famous” pies that I had in New York City’s  John’s of Bleeker Street  and Coney Island’s Totonno’s Pizzeria. The pastas and salad are equally top-notch and are as good as any I have eaten in South Florida. As for the fried zucchini, Matteo’s makes the best (as far as I am concerned), but Carolina’s was a close runner-up.

Carolina’s is a tee shirt/shorts joint. I am telling you that the food is great. By the way, the bill for 5 and there was plenty of food, was $110 (tax and tip included). Carolina’s is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner.

You don’t want to miss this joint…it really is that good.

*****  Wowies Sports Grill, 7036 West Palmetto Park Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33433, (561) 392-5040.

 As everyone knows, South Florida’s landscape is literally covered with sports bars…there is this Ale House and that Ale House…this Duffy’s and that Duffy’s… this Hooters and that Hooters…now let me tell you about WOWIES SPORTS GRILL which puts these other joints to shame.

Wowies which opened in March 2008 is located in Boca Raton. The joint has the obligatory “usual” 25 giant flat screen tvs, juke box, large bar and cute waitresses dressed in referee shirts & short shorts. Wowies also has live bands/DJs “performing” on weekend evenings. The joint also has a  canopied out-door dining patio.

 WHAT SEPARATES WOWIES FROM THE COMPETITION IS ITS FOOD…TONS OF APPETIZERS, PIZZAS, SALADS, SOUPS, SANDWICHES, PASTAS, FISH-MEAT-CHICKEN ENTREES, DESSERTS. Now get this…the food is absolutely terrific. Wowies doesn’t serve “bar food.” Wowies’ food is quality stuff, on the same level as The Cheesecake Factory and Houston’s Restaurant.

 Just so you know, Wowies’ prices are exactly what you would expect from a neighborhood sports bar…let’s call them extremely reasonable.

Do yourself a favor and visit www.wowiessportsgrill.com and take a look at this joint’s menu, daily food/drink specials, entertainment schedule and growing photo collection.

Wowies is not your typical sports bar. It really is a great restaurant that just happens to be themed as a sports bar. Wowies is open 7 days a week for dinner…lunch is served Monday-Friday.

You now know about a relatively new joint that has yet to be discovered by the “masses.”  If you are wondering what type-age crowd  Wowies draws, a recent Friday night had ages 18-90. The juke-box covered the latest hits and cover band  1 Trac Mind did fantastic versions of “Heat Wave-White Rabbit-Ticket To Ride-American Band-Brown Eyed Girl” just to name a few.

 One final note… Wowies has a dessert that you absolutely-positively must try…ZEPPOLES which basically are fried dough-balls covered in confectioner’s powdered sugar. Every order is made fresh. Zeppoles are normally found at fairs and carnivals not in restaurants. Wowies goes out of its way, to differentiate itself from the run-of-the-mill joints.

Try Wowies…it is a terrific place!!!

***** 3 G’s Gourmet Deli, 5869 West Atlantic Avenue, Delray Beach, Florida, (561) 498-3910.

Before Jeff Eats’ website crashed, it had a writeup about 3 G’s Gourmet Deli. The jist of that review, was that this New York “kosher-style” deli was a joint that’s for the budget-crowd who would rather sacrafice quality for quantity.

This evening I gave 3 G’s Gourmet Deli another try. Sorry to say, same result. 3 G’s food is fair at best. You literally get tons of food for your money, but not one single item stands-out as being really good. For something like 13-14 bucks, you get an appetizer, entree, 2 sides, beverage and dessert…and the portions are LARGE.

If you are looking for quantity over quality this joint is for you. The food is just okay.

Finally, just so there is no misunderstanding between you guys and Jeff Eats- this food “reviewing” gig is purely a subjective call, you know, what I like you may hate and vice versa…

With the above in mind, I’m looking forward to reading your comments on this joint!

3 G’s is open 7 days a week for breakfast-lunch-dinner.

*****  Sage Bagel & Restaurant Company, 800 East Hallandale Beach Boulevard, Hallandale Beach, Florida 33009, (954) 456-7499.

Sage Bagel has been around since 1972. I have been stuffing my face at this kosher-style deli since 1972…Governor Crist should declare this joint a State Landmark…Pumpernick’s—gone. Rascal House—gone. Sage is one of the few old-timers still around.

Great bagels. Great appetizing. Great deli meats. Great ambiance. Great everything.

Unfortunately…Sage is about 30 miles from my home, so I can’t “spend” as much time as I would like eating at this joint. I try to get down to the Sage at least 5-6 times a year for breakfast. Today, I was down in Hallandale checking out the Gulfstream Park casino-development and that gave me the perfect opportunity to stop in at the Sage.

This joint is a throw-back to another time. I am telling you, be smart and make it your business to eat breakfast/lunch at the Sage. It will remind many of you of the days long gone, when there were appetizing stores, neighborhood delis and mom & pop diners.

Sage is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner.

*****  Regency Grill, 3011 Yamato Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33434, (561) 998-3336.

Ate dinner tonight in a new joint named Regency Grill. Regency has been open about 6 weeks and calls itself a “contemporary bistro.” This is a very nice looking joint, with blond wood floors, black ceilings, upholstered booths and black wood tables. There is an open kitchen and a large bar with a couple of flat screen tvs. This is a  casual joint with an upscale atmosphere (if that makes any sense), but you can wear  tee shirts/shorts and be right at home. Young energetic staff in black shirts/black pants.

Regency is open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week.

This joint (for my taste) has a somewhat limited menu. That said, I will tell you, that everyone should be able to find an entree to order. The dinner menu’s entrees include…salmon, veal meatloaf, char-grilled chicken breast, filet mignon, hamburger, pork chop, tuna, skirt steak, veal chop milanese, NY strip, fillet of mahi-mahi and tender tips of beef. There are also 5 different salads, 2 soups, 7 side dishes, 7 appetizers and 5 desserts.

 Just so you know, the lunch menu is basically the same as the dinner menu but the prices are “reduced”  and there are 1-or-2 “specials” thrown in, like a chicken salad sandwich or one-half of a chicken sandwich+cup of soup+ a small mixed green salad.

Tonight I “tried” the burger, marinated double chicken breast and grilled double cut pork chop. I also had a caesar salad. Everything was absolutely delicious.

As for price points…appetizers run $8-14…entrees run $12-29…salads run $5-12…soups run $5-6…sides run $4-5…and desserts run $6-7.  You get a couple of sides with your entree, but no salad.

Tonight’s service was friendly and extremely efficient. Like I said before, this joint has only been open a few weeks…amazingly it already has its act together. Good food, good service and the prices are  fairly reasonable.

If you live in the Boca Raton area, Regency is worth a try.

       Campagnolo Italian Restaurant, 3013 Yamato Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33434, (561) 989-1990.

Campagnolo has been open for about 3 months. This Southern Italian joint serves both individual/family style…for example, a half order of spaghetti & meatballs runs $11.95 and a full order costs $19.95…a half order of chicken scarpariello runs $18.95 and a full order is $31.95…a half order of chicken piccata runs $13.95 and a full order is $24.95…

I ate dinner twice at this joint and took-out a pizza another time. Just so you know, in addition to that pizza, I “sampled” a fried zucchini appetizer, a baked clams appetizer, a chicken scarpariello entree, a chicken parmigiana entree, a veal pizzaiola entree, a calamari marinara entree and an order of rigatoni a la vodka.

Over-all I would rate the food as  borderline FAIR… Let me give you the actual scorecard… The zucchini was good…The baked clams were fair…The chicken scarpariello was fair…The chicken parmigiana tasted like the chicken parmigiana that Saga Food served me at Ithaca College, circa 1970, horrendous…The veal pizzaiola was fair…The calamari marinara was fair…The rigatoni a la vodka was good…The pizza was lousy.

The service was good. You do get plenty of food for the money whether you order half/full portions…then again, if the stuff is no good, you don’t need a ton of it.

Let’s put it this way…Your favorite neighborhood joint is better than this latest South Florida Italian restaurant entry.

Campagnolo is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner

***AT THE REQUEST OF CAMPAGNOLA’S OWNER (July 15, 2011)…PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THIS RESTAURANT HAS CLOSED.

*****  TW Steak & Seafood, 7104 Beracasa Way, Boca Raton, Florida, (561) 391-6525.

TW opened for business about three months ago. I have eaten dinner there twice, the last outing being last night.

TW is my kind of place…just imagine an upscale Chinese retaurant, that also does non-Chinese  steak-seafood-chicken-pasta. Trust me on this, the food is absolutely terrific. During my two dinners, I “sampled” such entrees as New York Strip, BBQ Baby Back Ribs, Crab Cakes, Orange Chicken and Grilled Shrimps…I also managed to down such appetizers as Pot Stickers and Spicy Crispy Chicken Wings.

Just so you know the game here…TW, is owned and operated by the same family that owns Delray Beach’s Tony Wu’s, which is a very successful Chinese-American combination restaurant. Tony Wu’s is so well known in South Florida, that many of its sauces are carried by local supermarkets.

TW’s doesn’t promote itself as a Chinese joint… as a matter of fact, the decor is devoid of “standard” Chinese signage/furniture. TW’s has a full bar and  a very upscale look. That said, you can wear tee shirts/shorts here and feel right at home.

TW’s menu is loaded with appetizers, soups, salads, steaks, seafood, chicken, beef and pasta dishes. Entrees come with an absolutely terrific house salad/or soup of the day and two side dishes and range in price from $15-27. There is also a discounted lunch menu.

Like I said before, this joint’s food is terrifc. TW is open 7 days a week for dinner and Monday-Friday for lunch.

*****  Talia’s Tuscan Table, 4070 North Dixie Highway, Boca Raton, Florida (561) 362-0874.

If you live in the Boca Raton area, I have a great take-out joint for you…Talia’s Tuscan Table.

Talia’s is a “hole in the wall” Guaranteed, that if you aren’t looking for this joint, you won’t find it…just so you know, it is actually located on the N.E. Corner of Dixie & Spanish River Boulevard.

Talia’s is open Monday-Saturday for lunch/dinner from 11:30 am-8:00 pm. This joint has all kinds of appetizers, salads, soups, wraps, risotto, hero-sandwiches, pastas, pizzas, meat-seafood entrees and desserts. Just so you know, the emphasis is on Italian stuff, but there are plenty of other items to feed your face with.

Last night I picked-up a Caruso Hero, which is a combination of sausage and meatball parmigiana…a Michelangelo Hero, which is a combination of herb chicken cutlet, eggplant and mozzarella & roasted peppers…and a Galileo Hero, which is a combination of roast beef, cheddar cheese, onion, organic greens and Russian dressing…All of the heros are on ciabatta bread…cost $9…feed 2 people…are absolutely fantastic…AND NO, I DIDN’T EAT ALL 3 SANDWICHES BY MYSELF.

I have been getting stuff from this joint for about 5 years and I have to tell you that the  pastas and pizzas are great…as a matter of fact, everything Talia’s makes is terrific.

Talia’s is a fabulous take-out. The joint has something like 50 lunch and dinners for under $11 and a large pizza is going A to run you $12.

Don’t miss this one.

*****  Renzo’s Restaurant, 5999 North Federal Highway, Boca Raton, Florida 33487, (561)994-3495.

This year’s Mother’s Day Dinner (yesterday) was spent at Renzo’s Restaurant in Boca Raton. There were 18 of us and the final bill was $1,300. Everything and I do mean everything was served…steak, veal chop parmigiana, lobster tails, minestrone soup, pastas…Everyone ordered straight from the menu and there were some hefty doggie-bags. Do the math, eating like pigs the whole meal ran something like $72 a head and I am telling you that was soup-to-nuts.

Over the years, I have eaten at Renzo’s at least 20 times. The food has always been terrifc and the staff is as efficient and accomodating as can be. Renzo’s is an upscale joint, but you can wear tee shirts/shorts and no one is going to say boo. Just so you know,  that if you order like “normal people” you will spend far less than $72 for a complete meal. You can get away for $35-40.

In a previous writeup, I told you about Renzo’s Cafe & Pizzeria which is located at 6900 North Federal Highway, Boca Raton, Florida. Renzo’s Cafe does the pizzas and more casual stuff. By the way, Renzo’s also has a take-out “only” joint at 1906 Clint Moore Road, Boca Raton, Florida. With these 3 joints, Renzo’s has all of the bases covered.

Renzo’s 3 joints are all terrific…

Renzo’s Restaurant is open 7 days a week for dinner.