Dear Food Diary:
Winter storm Saturn is starting to take over… more cold winter days!? help me!

To soothe myself and hopefully you guys, I’m taking a visual trip back to my short but sweet sunshine filled 48hrs in Ft. Lauderdale. Just a short flight away from NYC, it’s an easy to plan, fun getaway from the chills of the city.  It’s no Caribbean, but hey, I’m not complaining about the warm sun, mahi mahi and gator bites.

STAY

Harbor Beach Marriott Resort & Spa  3030 Holiday Drive · Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33316 USA

Since StalkerBoy and I both been to Ft. Lauderdale before, we didn’t need to explore. We just wanted to be beach bums. Harbor Beach Marriott Resort & Spa has their own beach which was perfect and hassle free. Specially since I had my soft cast on (sprained ankle).

Talk is cheap! A welcome with fruit and cheese however is awesome. This is my preferred way to be greeted! A nice little surprise. Who would of expected this from Marriott!

Their pool is nice and relaxing too… not too crowded in general…

Breakfast in the hotel was good. We didn’t have much sunshine time and wanted to squeeze every bit of it at the beach. A la carte food. Eggs Florentine and your usual eggs benedict with crabmeat. But the Corn Flakes French Toast was pretty unique and worth mentioning. Soft center and extra crunchy and sweet exterior. Made sense.

Most of our time was spent drinking Frozen Pina Coladas and just chillin’. Since I had my little “fashionable” cast on, i couldn’t go in the water. Which was fine, no white sand, turquoise waters anyways. Though, I did make new friends because of it. People would either say “oh poor girl” or “I know your pain”, which was comforting and creepy at the same time.

For lunch or whenever we got hungry (which was pretty often), we just ate  at the beach. Their Blackened Mahi Mahi Burger was fantastic! Really fresh and just juicy and tender. Enough flavor from the spices without overpowering the meaty fish.

If you’re lucky, you might find treats in the afternoon by the lobby. I stood there for a while (don’t judge me).

Lazy as can be… For our 2 dinners we took a cab to nearby spots… easy breeze…

EAT 

Casablanca Cafe 

Try to call ahead and get a table outside. Great views of the ocean. Pretty romantic and nice, not formal. Friendly service.

GATOR BITES
Cornmeal battered and perfectly fried. The texture is like fish and chicken combined. I love that little chewy factor with that tangy mustard dipping. Way better than popcorn chicken! It’s a really lean protein, too bad you don’t see if enough in NYC.

CRAB CRUSTED MAHI MAHI
Even though we had mahi mahi for lunch, I just couldn’t get enough of that sweet, flaky, tender love from the ocean. Pan roasted with lumps of crab and a umami filled lobster sauce, tasted like they used the lobster head to tail, roe and all. Creamy with chives sprinkled all over. Made me want to lick that plate clean!

GRILLED ATLANTIC SWORDFISH
Really meaty, but not as juicy as mahi mahi. Nice chard flavors and fresh. The black bean vinaigrette gave it a nice acid touch and a hint of sweetness. Very festive.

Chubby’s Rating:
Casablanca Cafe 
3049 Alhambra St  Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304
954.764.3500

EAT 

Coconuts 

Really casual and chill. The best time as you can see is during sunset. Dining al fresco.

CRAB FINGERS 
These reminded me of the good old days when Mara’s Homemade was still in the city (they’ve moved to LI), though Mara’s were better, these weren’t too shabby. Buttery, with tons of garlic and spices to coat the sweet, delicate crab. Dunking the soft bread into that butter and soaking it all up. Finger lickin’ moment.

CONCH FRITTERS
I love conch, so I had to order them to take my tastebuds to the Caribbean. These had a sweet corn batter. It was aight.

GRILLED MAHI MAHI topped with lump crab
Since it was our last meal, we thought we’d go with the theme. I guess I had my full year’s worth of mahi mahi in 48 hours. Fresh and basic, but I’d say the beachside Mahi Burger and the version I had at Casablanca Cafe were far superior.

KEY LIME PIE
The waitress highly recommended  and for good reason. Light, sweet and tart. Citrus bliss with that buttery and crumbly crust. It was a nice way to end our short stay in the sunshine State.

Chubby’s Rating: 
Coconuts
429 Seabreeze Blvd  Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316
954.525.2421