Lu Lu's Oceanside Grill

Judy and I stopped by on a Saturday afternoon, after a pretty crappy day. We had attended the Native American Festival at the Casements which was a big disappointment. Then we had stopped at a bar in Flagler that was filled with alcoholics. It kinda looked fun from the outside but was one of the most depressing bars I have ever been in. Everyone was shitfaced and pathetic. It was 2 p.m. I also think a swinger couple was hitting on me but I guess I could be wrong.

Lu Lu's was a great way to end a crappy day. We had a wonderful waitress. She was informative, gave suggestions, knew the menu . . . she really had her act together.

Instead of being our usual gluttonous selves, we decided to split an appetizer. We ordered the flatbread with cranberries and brie. The flatbread tasted freshly baked, but the waitress told us the restaurant ordered it from an outside source. The cranberries were tangy and went well with the brie. My only gripe is that there wasn't enough brie. It should be known that there is NEVER enough brie for me. A few shavings of brie will NEVER cut it.

I had a garden salad. All ingredients were quite fresh and I asked if the dressing was made on site. It was the creamiest, best tasting ranch I've ever had. I'm not usually a big ranch fan, preferring vinaigrettes, but for some reason, on that day, the thought of ranch dressing on cucumbers and tomatoes sounded to good to pass up.

Judy got a big ass Lu Lu burger with sweet potato fries. She wanted red meat so she got a half pound of it. It looked delectable but I opted for the Cajun kabobs. ("Large gulf shrimp and sea scallops wrapped with bacon, dusted with Cajun spices and grilled. Served with yellow rice, steamed vegetable medley and Creole mustard.") It was "wrapped in bacon" that got me. The spice blend had a lot of salt in it and that along with the saltiness of the bacon, was overkill, but the seafood itself tasted fresh and was on the large side. I substituted a baked potato for the rice.

I was hoping for a better beer selection. They had a few typical imports and the usual domestics. The drink menu looked interesting, but I was in a beer frame of mind.

Our waitress brought us two complimentary cones of mango sherbet. Judy doesn't like mangoes (what a freak) so she gave her cone to me too. That didn't stop us from ordering a Hot Blonde on the Beach (warm cookie sundae). As per the Lu Lu's web site - "Our Blonde cookie pie served hot and topped with vanilla ice cream, warm caramel and chocolate sauces, whipped cream and powdered sugar. Everybody wants one!" It kinda sounded better than it actually tasted. It was good, but it just didn't live up to that description.

I'd go back without hesitation. I'm hoping to hit it for Happy Hour and then dinner one night during Bike Week. I have a friend who is coming down and I think he'd enjoy it too.

According to their website, they also have two additional restaurants. The Swamp Restaurant in Gainesville, Florida and Stella's Skyline Cafe in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. Stella's appears to have a very similar menu to that of Lu Lu's while the Swamp Restaurant's differs to a larger degree.

Farmers Market

I got up at an obnoxiously early hour and found myself driving in the rain to the Saturday farmers market off Orange Street. It was packed. they always have a nice crowd but I didn't think there would be that many people out in the rain.

I bought Honeywell oranges.



And massive quantities of strawberries.


I'm going to try a Rachel Ray recipe. I can't stand her, but the recipe sounds kinda simple and I have lots of strawberries. Stuffed roasted stawberries.

I have many large strawberries and I thought I could try this instead of dipping them in chocolate.


I also bought organic green onions. They are HUGE. I'm going to use them in a sausage casserole for dinner, since I actually managed to find shredded white cheddar in Florida. It's next to impossible to find. I cleaned out the dairy case. Why Floridians have such an aversion to white cheese . . . I'll never understand.

Baby eggplants also caught my eye. I think I am going to grill them with my steaks tomorrow.

I'll chop and freeze one red pepper and then I'll use the other in the casserole.

The only thing I didn't take a pic of are the baby red skinned potatoes. If it stays rainy and cool, I'm making clam chowder on Monday. Or maybe I should make it tomorrow for Monday. Hmmmm . . .

Sad News (Corny but I liked it)

Please join me in remembering a great icon of the entertainment community. The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection and trauma complications from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71.

Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin. Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, and Captain Crunch. The grave site was piled high with flours.

Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded. Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Despite being a little flaky at times he still was a crusty old man and was considered a positive roll model for millions.

Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, two children, John Dough and Jane Dough, plus they had one in the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart.

The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.

If this made you smile for even a brief second, please rise to the occasion and take time to pass it on and share that smile with someone else who may be having a crumby day and kneads it