The story begins before winter break. The original plan was to go to China and see family, but things changed and we went to Florida instead. So the week before we left, I researched restaurants in the areas we were going to visit. With my list completed, it was time to get the eats on.
On the first day of our trip, all we did was drive. From Dallas to Pensacola, it was over 10 hours on the road. When we got there, we were tired. So, good food was needed to revive us. We went down to 5 Sisters Blues Cafe in historic Pensacola, and got some Southern comfort food. The staff was great their, and the ambiance was as well. In the restaurant, a live performer was singing some tunes and it was beautiful to listen to. After a little bit of consideration, we knew what to order. We got the seafood platter, Aunt Sara's Southern fried chicken, country fried steak, and a good old salad. My only complaint here was that the food was a little slow to arrive. But, when the food did arrive, everything looked delicious.
For me, I ordered the seafood platter. The food was fresh and hot, so we were off to a good start. The blackened fish was delicious. You could taste the smokiness from the Cajun seasoning and it had a small kick. The shrimp was prepared the same and had similar flavor notes. Both were tender and juicy. The crab cake though, was just okay. It was a little too salty for me, but they used little filler which allowed the crab taste comes through. Now the sides. The grits were cheesy and creamy, and you could not ask for more. The collard greens were also good, with a slight bitterness that I enjoyed, but the smoked meat in it was dry. And finally, the cornbread. It was a great side that paired perfectly with the meal. It was fluffy and sweet, which complimented and contrasted the savory components of the meal.
Next up, I had a little bit of the country fried steak plate. The steak was a little dry, but this was in part due to use for ordering it medium well. But, the batter was well seasoned and pepper heavy. The tater tots though were possibly the best I have ever had. They were so crispy and crunchy, while being fluffy on the inside. On the other hand, the okra was a bit soggy. Although it lacked the crunch factor, a nice pickle taste came through.
And to finish off the meal, I had a little of the fried chicken plate. To use the word juicy is an understatement. The meat juice flowed out of the chicken and it was so moist. A crispy, seasoned batter came through as well which added texture and flavor. I devoured the chicken up. On the other hand, the mac and cheese was the polar opposite of the chicken. The sauce was starting to dry up, and it tasted like a boxed mac and cheese. Maybe it was a bad day in the kitchen, but you would be better off ordering a different side. But, the fries sent us off on a good note. They were so creamy and soft on the inside, it was like eating mashed potatoes. Now for the final rating. I gave 5 Sisters a 8.5. Most of the food was delicious, but some did not hit the mark. If you are ever in town, I highly recommend you try it, but beware of some menu items.
The next day we headed back on the road. This time, our stop was Homestead, Florida. Now let me tell you, roads in the South are beautiful. You can see swamps and bayous, then right after fields of agriculture. It truly was special. When we got to Homestead, it was pretty late. We stopped for some late night Vietnamese food at Five Spice in Homestead, and it was pretty good. But, service was very slow. The food their was pretty good, and was
Here is where the real fun begins. With driving finished, it was time to party. We woke up the next day and headed to Everglades National Park. While there, we walked the trails and it was so scenic there. We were surrounded by forests and water, and it was wonderful. Rain had also just passed by, so the sun broke through the sky and re-energized the landscape. Wildlife was abundant there, and we spotted birds everywhere. But my favorite moment in the Everglades was seeing crocodiles and manatees. The animals were so close to the dock that you could touch them. We captured photos of the animals and watched them in silence.
After this, we headed to the northern part of the park. It was approaching sunset, so we felt that we could see more animals. Boy were we wrong. We saw only a few alligators and very exotic looking birds. Although we did not see much wildlife, the sunset was breathtaking. The sky was vibrant with color, and it felt so peaceful as the sun went down. Everglades was beautiful. We headed back to the hotel after and hit the hay.
As we woke up, it was Christmas Day. But, we had driving to do. At the crack of dawn (not really though), we headed down U.S Route 1 in Florida to visit the Florida Keys. The road went over water, through state parks, and past attractions. If the day wasn't cloudy and gloomy, it could have possibly been the most beautiful drive of my life. When we finally got to Key West, we had to the average tourist thing. Take a picture at the southernmost point of the US. While waiting in line for a picture, the waves were splashing everyone, and it was really funny. After this, we went down to Hemingway's House. Inside the property, cats had taken over. Everywhere you looked, there was cats. On the roof, in the yard, in the bed, everywhere had cats.
Refreshed with a cuteness overload, we headed into downtown Key West. The town had a retro laid back vibe, and I was feeling it. To me, it felt like a southern Bar Harbor. Because we were in Florida, we had to get a key lime pie. We stopped at Limes and Pies and ordered a slice of pie and cafe con leche. The pie had a nice buttery graham cracker crust, but it was a little hard to break into. The filling was nice and custardy, and had a mild lime taste. It also had a small tang which was enjoyable. And to top it all off, the whipped cream was light and moist which added to the treat. The cafe con leche was also super tasty. The bitterness of the coffee worked well with the creamy and sweet condensed milk, creating a great drink.
The rest of the afternoon, we walked around town and along the ocean walk. We also stopped at the mile 0 marker to take a few pictures, and got some souvenirs to bring home.
Right as we left at 3ish, rain started pouring. We left at just the right time and avoided a soaking. At this point in the day, we were hungry. All we had to eat at this point was a light breakfast and a slice of pie split three ways. From my list created before hand, we chose to eat at El Siboney. This was our first time trying Cuban food, and I was excited. As we were seated, they brought out Cuban bread with butter which was delicious. Unlike your regular table bread, this was warm, pillowy, and scrumptious. Time was not wasted at the table, and we placed our orders quickly. We got the ropa vieja, pork asado, grilled pork chops, and bistec sandwich. The ropa vieja was peculiar. It had a great taste, being citrus and tomato forward, but the tenderness was throwing me off. The beef shredded with ease, but was a little dry when eaten. Besides this though, it was good. For my side, I got yuca and black beans. The yuca seemed to be boiled with only onions, leading to a somewhat bland side. But, it soaked up the beef juice well which created a tasty bite, and the onions gave a nice sharpness. The black beans were nothing special. Just your regular old beans.
Next up was the pork asado. It also had a citrusy flavor due to the mojo marinade, but unlike the ropa vieja, it melted in your mouth. The porky flavor exploded in my mouth and I had to get some more. The tamale was very different then the Mexican ones you are used to. It tasted like cornbread which I was not mad about. I believe it was also made with masa, but it was moist and almost juicy.
And finally, I tried the pork chop plate. The chops were so tender and had a nice smokey taste from the grill. For how thin the chops were, I thought it would be a little tough, but they were juicy. The yellow rice was fragrant, and the perfect vessel for the pork. It had a faint meaty taste, which I would guess would be from it being cooked in chicken stock. But the star of the show was the plantains. They were starting to caramelize which gave it a rich sugary taste. A savory note also came through which contrasted the sweetness well. If you couldn't tell by now, I love sweet and salty foods. To further add to the perfection, they were firm when cut but melted in your mouth. A ten out of ten bite for sure. With our bellies full, we rolled back to the car and headed back to the hotel. The rain was heavy on the drive back, and we were unable to see the ocean which was unfortunate.
As we woke up the next day, we all wanted to go back to the Florida Keys. Instead of going so far though, we stopped at Key Largo to visit John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. Initially, we intended to go snorkeling, but the water was not clear enough to do so. Instead, we settled on kayaking around the park. We went through the mangroves which gave me the feeling of adventure. The small channels between the mangroves were so clear, we could see the bottom easily. Fish of all sizes were below us and it was really cool.
After some time in the mangroves, we headed out to the open sea. It was humbling to sea how tiny we were compared to the ocean. We spent some more time kayaking before returning back to the visitor center. After our rental finished up, we made our way to the car and headed to Little Havana. It was now lunch time and I knew where was had to go. Versailles. Being one of Miami's institutions and one of the most famous restaurants in the US, we did not let this opportunity slip. When we arrived, we were informed that it would be a one hour wait. Although the line was long, we powered through. To do this, we went to Versaille's bakery and got a few treats. We got a guava cheese tart, key lime pie, a dulce de leche dessert, and a simple syrup soaked cake. Now this is where disaster struck, but you will learn more about it in a bit. While waiting in line, we tried the syrup soaked cake. Let me start off by saying it was good, but I have one critique. It was super sweet. I personally don't mind it, but others may not enjoy it. The cake had a nice gritty texture that I enjoyed though. Not long after finishing the cake, we entered the restaurant. When seated, we ordered quickly. For a appetizer, we got the Versailles Combination.
This was my first time trying all of these, but I must say that these were delicious. The yuca fries tasted like extra fluffy french fries, so no complaints here. The empanadas were a mixture of ham and beef, with both being good. The beef was moist and was seasoned well. The pastry shell was also crispy which was nice. But, the ham was my favorite. It was so creamy on the inside and rich. When dipped into the cilantro sauce, it was chef's kiss. My favorite appetizer was probably the croquettes though. They were crunchy and smooth, while being flavor bombs. After we finished the appetizer, our entrees quickly arrived. This time, we ordered the pollo versailles, masa de certo fritos, arroz imperial, and seafood gratin. The pollo versailles was essentially a boneless half chicken pan fried. It got super crispy, but had a mild flavor. The breast also got dry, as it was cooked at the same time as the juicy thigh. But the sides were delicious. The moros rice was great, as the natural earthiness and flavor of the beans mixed well with the rice. I also like how that the grains of rice were not mushy. But, the plantains in my opinion were a little worse. They were super sweet and lacked savouriness, but this is just my opinion.
The arroz imperial may have been my favorite dish though. The yellow rice was even better than El Siboney's, which I thought was hard to beat. The melted cheese on top gave a subtle creaminess, and the shredded chicken was super moist and flavorful. I also liked how the peas gave a nice creamy vegetable taste. When my sister couldn't finish it, I was glad to help her out.
The last thing I tried was the seafood gratin. Creamy is an understatement for this dish. The cream sauce was rich, and to my surprise, didn't get gross and clumpy after a while. The seafood inside of it was super fresh, with my favorite pieces being the squid and mussels. They retained their chew without being tough, and the shrimp and fish remained tender. All in all, Versailles is not overrated. The long lines may push you away, but I highly recommend waiting it out and eating at this iconic restaurant.
As you would think, we were pretty full after our lunch. So, to walk off our calories, we went to the heart of Little Havana. We strolled down Calle Ocho street, and saw so many chickens, real and fake. I could feel the culture and energy of the neighborhood, which rivaled that of New Orleans.
While there, I had to get some Cuban coffee. I checked out La Colada Gourmet, as the internet said it was the best. I ordered the tres leches iced coffee as to the server's recommendation. This is where I got annoyed. After ordering, it took nearly half an hour to get my drink. I understand that it's a small shop, but there was very few people inside the cafe. Although I was annoyed, the drink was undeniably good. It was sweet and milky, but the coffee taste was not masked. There were also small pieces of tres leches crumble in the drink, which added a nice pop of flavor and texture.
After strolling through the rest of Little Havana, we headed down to South Beach to watch the sunset. It was supposed to be beautiful, but rain suddenly came down. We escaped quickly back to the car and just drove around South Beach for a bit before heading back to the hotel. Now here is where the disaster struck. The desserts we had gotten earlier at Versailles were smushed. This is why you won't see any pictures of what we got. But, there will still be a review. First, the key lime pie. The crust was similar to Lime and Pies, but it wasn't as hard which I enjoyed. The filling also had a stronger lime taste which was what I was looking for. Next, the dulce de leche dessert. This probably was due to us letting it sit out, but the puff pastry was soggy and not crisp. The caramel flavor was nice though, and it had a nice creamy texture. Finally, the guava cheese tart. It was the only dessert unharmed, but it was also my least favorite. I will start with the good first. The tart shell was buttery and held its structure, which is all you can ask for. The filling was also very tangy which balanced the sweetness. This was where the good ended though. The reason why I didn't like it as much as the other desserts is due to me not liking the taste of guava. Guava is the only thing you can taste in the filling, and it overpowers the cheese. If you like guava, you will enjoy it. But for people like me who don't really, it would be better to get a different dessert.
With this, I have recapped half of my Florida trip. The post has gotten quite long, so I have decided to write the rest of it on a separate post. I want to thank everyone that has read this far, and I hope you read the next Florida post and other future ones as well.
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