The Lazy Lobster on Longboat Key

Known for warm and friendly service, great food and good prices, there's nothing lazy about the atmosphere at The Lazy Lobster on Longboat Key, the perfect place to go for a well-priced lobster infused menu. Nestled away in Café on the Bay’s former location in the Centre Shops on Longboat Key, The Lazy Lobster has been a popular favourite for Sarasotans since 2009, when co-owners Michael Garey, former manager of Café L’Europe, and Bob Fracalossy, former chef at Café L’Europe and Café on the Bay, took over the space and launched their new restaurant. Festooned with nautical accents and tropical Floridean flair, the outdoor garden terrace is a special treat in the warmer weather, with colourful umbrella topped tables and gurgling fountain. 

The pretty outdoor fountain and terrace dining at the Lazy Lobster

With an extensive menu and impressive wine list, there's something for everyone, including retro favourites such as Lobster Thermadore, made with mushrooms and sherry in a cream sauce, Lobster Newberg in a rich lobster brandy sauce and crowned with hot, golden puff pastry, Lobster Mac & Cheese with fresh steamed lobster meat, macaroni, and white cheese sauce topped with toasted crumbs and truffle oil, Beer Battered Fish & Chips with tartar sauce and golden frites, or the creamy classic and sinfully rich Lobster Bisque and thick Seafood Gumbo. Other sensational seafood dishes include the Lazy Lobster Wedge Salad garnished with tomato, bacon, egg, gorgonzola, sun-dried cranberries, white balsamic vinaigrette and topped with either grilled shrimp or warm lobster, and my father's favourite, The Lazy Lobster Kobe Beef Burger with grilled onions, sautéed mushrooms and smoked gouda served on a grilled garlic bun with sun-dried tomato aioli and warm homemade potato chips, which are delicious and completely addictive.

A basket of warm rolls and fresh cherry preserves

Sunny lemon yellow napkins set the tone for the restaurants colourful interior 

The Lazy Lobster lunch menu with soups, salads and of course everything lobster

Thirst quenching unsweetened American iced tea

Seafood Gumbo

Lazy Lobster Wedge Salad topped with tomato, bacon, egg, gorgonzola, sun-dried cranberries, white balsamic vinaigrette and grilled shrimp

Beer Battered Fish & Chips with lightly fried haddock, crunchy cole slaw, fries and tartar sauce

The Lazy Lobster Kobe Beef Burger with grilled onions, sautéed mushrooms and smoked gouda on a grilled garlic bun with sun-dried tomato aioli and warm homemade chips

Coconut Shrimp Salad with mixed green salad, diced papaya, dried cranberries, tomato, toasted coconut & gorgonzola, topped with coconut fried shrimp & raspberry dressing

Lobster Bisque with a Turkey Club Croissant with roasted turkey breast, 

crisp cherry wood bacon, sun dried tomato aioli with lettuce and tomato

www.longboatkeylazylobster.com

Louies Modern: Modern American Cuisine in Sarsota

With the opening of Louies Modern, 60-year-old Steve Seidensticker along with his children, Joe, Patrick and Lisa, have turned the first floor of a parking garage on North Palm Avenue into one of downtown Sarasota’s hottest new restaurants. Louie’s Modern blends Southern hospitality with a taste for world travel. Opened by Sarasota's Seidensticker family, the restaurant recalls a family legacy by honouring Louie, the family patriarch, a self-taught culinary master who was passionate about good food and well mixed cocktails. Located on the street level of Sarasota's modern award-winning Palm Avenue parking complex, Louie's Modern presents diners with innovative dishes prepared with contemporary techniques, while showcasing culinary ingenuity, freshness and quality. Having stumbled upon this hidden gem one afternoon while shopping at Sur La Table, we were enticed by the modern decor, inviting ambiance and innovate menu and decided to try Louie's for a quick pre-Christmas lunch.

Steve Seidensticker, owner of Louie's Modern

The reception desk at Louie's Modern

Louies Modern was remodelled from a garage

The interior is fresh, modern and inviting

Louies modern table setting

Louies lunch menu features a fresh take on modern American cuisine including 

interesting sandwiches, salads, small plates and pizzettas

The menu features an innovative selection of starers & snacks, such as Ricotta Gnudi with san marzano pomarola and shaved parmesan, Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes with granny smith apple, celery root, remoulade and black truffle aioli, and Short Rib Lentil Soup with kale, celery root and porcini, to sandwiches and salads including Miso Marinated Grilled Scallops with soba noodle salad, cabbage slaw, toasted cashews, mandarin orange and ginger soy vinaigrette, and Food Truck Grouper Taco with grilled corn tortilla, jalapeño red cabbage slaw, roasted pasilla chile sauce, cilantro, radish sprouts. Small plates are also offered with tempting dishes such as Pepper Yellowfin Tuna Tartar with wasabi mayo, ginger cucumber, spicy citrus sauce, Sliced Flat Iron Steak with mediterranean tabouleh, bulgar wheat, lemon zest, first pressed olive oil, tomato confit and a selection of wood fired pizzettas such as the Margherita Pizzetta with heirloom tomato and  louies buratta, and the irresistible Black & Blue Pizzetta made with short rib, medjool date, blue cheese, black truffle and red onion.

America's oldest brewed beer - Yuengling Lager

Louies offers a number of craft beers including Stella Artois

Wines, craft beers an innovative cocktails are perfect on a warm sunny afternoon

Louies wood fired pizza oven

Black & Blue Pizzetta with short rib, medjool date, blue cheese, black truffle and red onion

Ricotta Gnudi with san marzano pomarola and garnished with shaved parmesan

Miso Marinated Grilled Scallops with soba noodle salad, cabbage slaw, toasted cashews, 

mandarin orange, ginger soy vinaigrette

Food Truck Grouper Taco with grilled corn tortilla, jalapeño red cabbage slaw, 

roasted pasilla chile sauce, cilantro, radish sprouts

Grilled Yellowfin Tuna BLT with multi-grain, turkey bacon, heirloom tomato, 

butter lettuce and basil aioli

Transforming the bottom of a downtown parking garage into a chic, modern and elegant space took some real vision, and they've accomplished it with poise and panache, and with a highly imaginative and wonderfully diverse menu from which to choose from day or night, and courteous, friendly and pleasant staff, Louie's is one of the brightest young additions to Sarasota's culinary stage.

Upside Down Apple Tart with salted caramel and vanilla bean ice cream 

Root Beer Float made with Dads original root beer, vanilla bean ice cream, redid whip and finished with a hazelnut cookie 

http://louiesmodern.com

Mozaic: Sophisticated French-Moroccan in Sarasota

Tucked into a jazzy two-story space on Sarasota's Main Street, Mozaic features chef Dylan Elhajoui's unique vision, a mix of classical French techniques married with the lush bounty of western Mediterranean produce with the sly exoticism of Moroccan spicing, and stands as one of the more luxurious dinner options in downtown Sarasota. Chef Dylan Elhajoui learned how to cook in his native Fes, Morocco surrounded by a family of chefs and restaurant owners, flavourful foods and fragrances, and bustling markets brimming with fresh produce. He infuses the recipes of his youth with abundant herbs and spices, organic meats, and fresh fish, depending on what can be found in that week's farmers' markets and fishermen's nets. He also dips into cuisines on the other side of the Med, with Provençal flavours, Italian ingredients and techniques that mesh seamlessly with the African foundation. Ever since opening Mozaic a few years ago, Chef Dylan Elhajoui has earned rave reviews from foodies and celebrities alike, including Maria Sharapova who calls his couscous, 'the best'. 

View from our upstairs table looking over the balcony to the main floor dining area

Susan von Gies 'Out of the Blue' - one of a series of paintings on display at Mosaic

The results are fragrant, flavourful and fabulous, with dishes such as the Mussels in a Moroccan Chermoula-Scented Lobster Broth, Garbanzo Beans and Garlic Ciabatta, Diver Scallops with rice-lentil medley and lobster lemongrass vinaigrette, Shrimp Risotto with leeks and Meyer lemon oil, and Jasmine Tea Dusted Duck Breast with sour cherry bread pudding and port sauce. Chef Elhajoui and his team also craft delicacies such as Sautéed Escargots and Mushrooms in boursin gougère, with dry Riesling and shallots, Estofado of Boneless Short Ribs and Cannelini beans with anise sausage and dark chocolate, and Wild Mushroom Ravioli and asparagus in a light garlic sherry cream sauce. Guests can conclude meals with one of the house's eclectic desserts, such as the Tangier, a flourless pear-and-walnut cake topped with a dollop of vanilla-bean crème anglaise and toasted-coconut ice cream, but every meal ends with a plate of chilled chocolate truffles, handmade each evening. The interior is vibrant and full of colour with original works of art on the walls available for purchase. Since opening in 2008, Mozaic has consistently earned rave reviews — a place of great distinction, which it maintains to this day.

Mosaic dinner menu

Amuse-bouche of puréed raspberry, beet and fresh ginger

Sautéed escargots and mushrooms in boursin gougère, with dry Riesling and shallots

Mussels in a Moroccan chermoula-scented lobster broth, garbanzo beans and garlic ciabatta

Shrimp risotto with leeks and Meyer lemon oil

Golden hubbard squash potage with sage and crystallized ginger cheese puff

Lightly rosemary smoked quail and Italian sausage, fingerling potatoes, bosc pears and porto

Caraway and violette mustard flavored pork tenderloin with red cabbage-apple 

compote & tarragon cider sauce

Diver Scallops with rice-lentil medley and lobster lemongrass vinaigrette

Wild mushroom ravioli and asparagus in a light garlic sherry cream sauce

Jasmine tea dusted duck breast with sour cherry bread pudding and port sauce

Estofado of boneless short ribs and Cannelini beans with anise sausage and dark chocolate

Wild caught Argentinean shrimp risotto, shaved parmesan and Meyer lemon oil

Handmade chilled chocolate truffles arrive as a final flourish to a marvellous meal

http://www.mozaicsarasota.com