Great Friends and Places for Chow

We thought we should share some of the great places we've been in the past few weeks to eat and share some time with great friends:

* when we first arrived in the Melbourne/Cocoa Beach area, Jimmy and Judi Kirkpatrick took us to Carrabas - here, we ate the best mussels I've ever enjoyed - I was in heaven! Grills Seafood Deck and Tiki Bar (trust the name brings a picture to mind) is also a super place to spend the afternoon on a Sunday at Port Canaveral. From the deck area, you can have a fantastic margarita or Bloody Mary, watch the cruise ships depart and the fishing boats arrive after their day at sea - the captains of both small and huge vessels were excellent skippers in the quite narrow channel!

* when we connected with Ross and Liz Nolan, what a treat!
Ross should change careers and be a restaurant reviewer and both Ross and Liz are wine connoisseurs. Together, we enjoyed The Fat Snook (eclectic) and Silvestros (authentic Italian). As to the latter, I especially LOVED the Valpolicella Ripasso! Both places were on Atlantic Avenue in Cocoa Beach.

* thinking of Chinese? Jerry and Nancy Burkhardt are a couple from Iowa we have met in the RV park. It didn't take me long to say "yes" to joining them for (real) Chinese at the Lucky Garden 2. John's dinner selection of the "Happy Family" and my choice of (my fav) Cantonese Chow Mein were right up there and supported their advertisement of being assessed as within the Top 100 Chinese restaurants in the US - considering the number of Chinese restaurants, this is pretty impressive!

* and ne'er forget the Cocoa Beach Pier . Their lunches are just the right size and the Land Shark beer is ever-flowing. The beach is beautiful and entertaining - men in pink lamay thongs accompanying their wives for a stroll on the beach in the afternoon and, in the evening, gals in flashing sunglasses, sequinned shirts and short, short skirts and feathery boas dancing to the live music. Friday nights offer 'peel n' eat shrimp and ribs at happy hour! And don't forget the Land Shark beer! Oh...

and, did I mention the weather is 85 degrees?