BAR BOUNCE
Welcome to the premier installment of HUNTERS monthly article written by Mark and Patrick. We are going to be bouncing around from one bar to another giving you our opinions on those bars and restaurants. This month we are going to Ft. Lauderdale and reviewing three bars/restaurants. The three bar/restaurants will be Rosie’s Bar and Grill, the California Pizza Kitchen and Dapur.
Now a days, most bars or restaurants offer seating at the bar for dining and drinking. This newer style dining is a great way for most people, especially single diners to enjoy a meal at your favorite place. As a single diner when seated at the bar you instantly feel a bond with the restaurant. When seated at the bar as a couple you feel part of an open community allowing interaction with other. Table seating does not offer these benefits.
2449 Wilton Drive, Wilton Manors Florida 33305, 954-563-0123
Facebook.com/rosiesbarandgrill
Situated “on the Drive” in Wilton Manors Florida, Rosie’s Bar and Grill is at the hub of gay Ft. Lauderdale. It is a casual, friendly, Key West style restaurant/bar. The young clientele is mostly gay and lesbian but you often see families and senior couples enjoying the festive atmosphere. The fictional icon, Rosie, seen in their advertisements, is a bawdy, busty, broad that seems to enjoy fun and frolic. The place is airy, mostly outside and colorful with plenty of lush landscaping, water features and eclectic decorations. MARK SAYS:
Patrick and I usually go to Rosie’s once a week while we are in Ft. Lauderdale. Although we have been there many, many times we have never sat at the bar for a meal. The bar is a large “L” shaped bar with the outside of the “L” outside in a covered area and the inside of the “L” is well, inside. The outside covered area is the bulk of the place with a hundred colorful paper lanterns swinging in the Florida breeze. So right away we have a choice of sitting in or out. I have to say there are not a lot of places that you get this unique, fabulous option. We choose to sit inside since it was a little cool outside that night. The bar top is a large thick slab of terrazzo in keeping with the Key West theme. The barstools are backless and spin. The bartender greeted us warmly and quickly, taking our drink order. A Ketel One martini straight up for me and a Malbec wine for Patrick. As we sipped our cocktails, we were in the perfect position to cruise the entire bar and restaurant inside and out. There are no obstructions behind the bar to peruse the entire place. The crowd is eclectic with young handsome men everywhere. At this point Patrick and I were able to very close together, another advantage to sitting at the bar rather than a table. I ordered a “surf and turf” burger, a burger with grilled shrimp on top, delicious! All in all Rosie’s is the perfect place for everyone, single, couples or groups. The food, service and atmosphere are great! I give Rosie’s five drink umbrellas and a lei for a high rating! PATRICK SAYS:
Well since Mark has already filled you in with the aspects of the bar and restraunt layout I will start at the bartender. Yes he greeted us warmly and was quick with our order but what was left out was the word Hot. Ok enough of my editorial on the bartender. My drink of choice these days “Malbec Wine” was delivered promptly and with the sidecar of ice I always order with my wine. I also ordered a hamburger but mine was served open faced, a burger with all the trimmings of a Taco. My “go to” hamburger selection at this “Must Go To” restraunt here in Wilton Manors. Rosie’s is a must either while visiting or a resident of beautiful Ft Lauderdale.
2301 North Federal Highway Ft. Lauderdale Florida 33304 954-565-1196
I think the first time I saw a bar that you could eat another than a diner was at The California Pizza Kitchen. I almost think The California Pizza Kitchen was the first to elevate the “eat at bar” in a modern setting. The trade mark black and yellow colors of each restaurant are timeless as well as the acrylic encased artistic pizza boxes decorating the walls.
MARK SAYS:
The bar is a large semi circle encircling the wood burning pizza oven. The ovens, chefs and part of the kitchen are like a stage in a theater and the customers at the bar are like the audience. This gives a very theatrical feel to the bar area. The show behind the bar is a well rehearsed with pizza dough being spun and the chef shuffling pizzas around in the oven with large spatulas. The empty seating areas at the bar are welcoming with table settings. We ease into our seats as the bar is full. We get wine; take a sip and lean back to enjoy the circuses. The show is great and we get our pizzas quickly. Although the food is a little better than average, the show was fabulous. I give “CPK” of Ft. Lauderdale four pepperoni’s for an above average score.
PATRICK SAYS:
The bar is full and we sit directly across from the stools. This makes me happy as we are met by my friend and my favorite server in the whole world Ronnie. Having someone that knows what you drink and what you like at any given time makes this a great experience. Unlike Mark I rate the food as very good. I do have to admit though that I do not deviate very far from my usual choice of a thin crust pepperoni pizza with extra goat cheese and two glasses of Malbec wine. I give it a “Five Goats Up” rating.
1245 north federal highway ft. lauderdale florida 33304 phone 954.390.0770
A casual restaurant decorated with stack stone walls, drum shade lighting and leather seating. There are three seating areas. One is the main dining area the second is at the bar and the third is a large expansive covered patio. They offer a large wine selection but a small draft beer selection along with the typical cocktail.
MARK SAYS:
I usually look at the positives in a place but in this case I cannot overlook the negatives as well. This was our second visit to J. Marks. The first visit left us unimpressed so we were in no hurry to come back. On the second visit we sat at the bar. As we approached the bar we could see that is was set up for meals with neatly folded napkins used for place mats and rolled up napkins for the tableware, a nice first impression. The bartender was a little cool in her greeting. We ordered two different red wines and the bartender poured them out of the same bottle. Hum. The menu is huge with almost anything you can think of on the several pages. I ordered vegetable pasta. When my entrée arrived it was cold and I sent it back. It came back only slightly warm. The pasta was swimming in olive oil. I know olive oil is good for you but I mean this pasta had more olive oil than a Popeye cartoon. The pasta entrée was priced at $15.00 for lunch. Not much value here. I give J. Marks a half can of day old spinach and a Wimpy…..I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.
PATRICK SAYS:
I too usually look on the positive side of things but this time I have to agree with Mark. The Service, Food and quality all need to be improved. I did order a different Malbec than Mark which I did not receive but the wine that I did receive was very good. I ordered a Chicken salad sandwich on a croissant that was tasty but a bit too much mayonnaise for me. The sandwich came with a side, in which I ordered sweet potato fries. The fries were cold and seemed to have been sitting under the warmer for some time. The price of my lunch at around $12.00 would seem fair if the food was A-1, and a 1 would be what I would rate my experience on a 1-5 scale.
On a positive note though a group of friends invited us for brunch this past Sunday and where did we end up, yes J. Marks. Most of the group ordered some type of Benedict Egg dish which everyone seemed to enjoy. I ordered a Half rotisserie chicken with a loaded baked potato which I enjoyed. I think since my more particular partner has not had any good experiences here we will not be returning.
