I had some really (really) good food in Clearwater. Check out some of the food highlights below:)
Maggie Mae’s
Thanks to Comedians in Cars Getting coffee (if you haven’t heard of it check it out, it’s genius), my sister had a hankering for some good ol’ fashioned diner breakfast food. Since I am by default always game for breakfast food, diner food it was. Maggie Mae’s fit the bill. It’s waterfront location meant we could enjoy the view as we dined on pancakes, sausages, eggs, and biscuits. Any restaurant that has several people waiting outside is typically a good sign, so by all accounts our expectations were high. It took us about 45 minutes to get a table. In the end, the food was yummy and super affordable. About $20 for all the food pictured (minus tip). They only serve pancakes until 12 though (don’t ask me why), so if you have a hankering for some hotcakes you need to get there early!
Cristino’s Coal Brick Oven Pizza
For dinner one night we ended up trying this pizza spot called Cristino’s. Everything about this place was perfect – from the decor and vibe, to the service, and best of all the food.
Oh my goodness. Best pizza I’ve had to date. We’ll get there in a second though. Let’s talk about appetizers first. My sister ordered the calamari because she’d been having a hankering for some and I got the pan tossed crispy garlic wings served with a bed of caramelized onions on top and a blue “cheesy” type dressing.
They bring out samples of some of their gelato for you to taste, which was a great marketing ploy because as soon as we tasted it we knew we wanted some. I got the cheesecake and almond gelato and my sister got strawberry and almond.
My food was delicious at Rumba Island Grill (although the service left much to be desired). Usually when you tell your server you need a minute to decide, oh I don’t know, they actually give you a minute to decide. Every 30 seconds he kept popping back over to our table asking us if we knew what we wanted. Really? Maybe we would be further along in deciding if you didn’t interrupt our thought process every two seconds.
Anyhow, I knew of at least one thing I would definitely be getting. In fact, I had known before we even got to the restaurant. It was their Jamaican jerk grilled chicken wings with cranberry jerk and mango bbq sauces. The sauces had me sold. The big question was what sides would I get to go with the wings.
I ended up going for their cranberry cornbread stuffing and the crab mac n cheese. While I had high hopes for the mac n cheese, it wasn’t my favorite. The cranberry cornbread stuffing was delicious though.
Typically if I have leftovers when I travel, I’ll just throw them away before I leave, but the wings were too good to waste. I traveled back with them and had them for dinner the next evening. Now that’s commitment.
Clearwater outfits up next!