Deep Fried Butter and Krispy Kreme Cheeseburgers: Standouts at the Florida State Fair in Tampa

The State Fair: thrilling rides, games of skill, blue ribbon livestock, intriging sideshows, and fried food. Not necessarily in that order. It's all at this year's Florida State Fair in Tampa, running through February 15th. 

I'm not one for rusty, old, portable thrill rides, giant, or bootleg, stuffed Bart Simpsons, or prized, hand-raised pigs. I am, however, pretty much totally into the freaks, and I especially love the fried food.

There was no shortage of fried food this year. As you walk along the midway, you're overwhelmed by the smell of funnel cakes, con dogs, cotton candy, and grilled sausages. Look this way or that, and ornate signs atop the traveling menagerie of food trailers scream fried obscenities: "Hot Sausage Dogs," Giant Elephant Ears," "Hog on a Log," "Chicken on a Stick," "Deep Fried Pepsi," "Deep Fried Cookie Dough," etc.

Tempting, but this year's standout food items were the Deep Fried Butter and Krispy Kreme Hamburgers. No joke.

First up, Deep Fried Butter:

Sure, it sounds like cause for cardiac arrest, but fried butter is rather divine. Pats of cinnamon butter are speared with a toothpick, dipped in funnel cake batter, and deep fried. They're served with a generous sprinkling of powdered sugar.

A bite through the butter balls reveals liquefied cinnamon butter in the center, oozing out and melting into the funnel cake batter. They taste like cinnamon bun flavored funnel cake balls. That's not a bad thing. Don't miss them.

With a heart attack old news, let's go for a stroke. Krispy Kreme Burgers:

Okay, so if a Bacon Cheeseburger isn't bad enough for you, try replacing the bun with 2 Krispy Kreme Glazed Doughnuts. Yep. No kidding. Who the hell thought of this?

Well, I'm glad they did because the combination of sweet, savory, and salty somehow works. It's very messy, very sticky, and very hard to eat but is quite delicious. The doughnut begins to melt as you eat the burger, thouroghy glazing all 10 fingers, but licking your fingers as qawkers stare in disbelieve is satisfying enough to make the hot mess and sugar spike worthwhile.

I think I can figure out the recipe for the Krispy Kreme Burgers, but if anyone has a recipe for the Deep Fried Butter, can you please post in a comment. Thanks.

5 Freaky Fair Foods out of 5

Florida State Fair

Now through February 15, 2010

Florida State Fairgrounds, Tampa

How to Start the Morning Off Right: Peach Valley Cafe Review

Breakfast, ah breakfast. The most important meal of the day. My favorite meal of the day. It’s too bad my schedule doesn’t allow me to eat breakfast as often as I’d like. And when I say schedule, I mean my sleeping schedule. And when I say sleeping schedule, I mean I’m really just too lazy to get out of bed early enough to eat breakfast.

But when I do, one of my favorite stops is Peach Valley Café in Lake Mary/Heathrow.

Peach Valley is upscale and inexpensive, and the food is down-home and exquisite. You’ll find all your breakfast favorites on the menu – scrambled eggs, pancakes, biscuits, French toast, omelets, sausage, and bacon - but it’s served with a little more panache and a little less grease than at the typical greasy spoon. Service is also a little more professional, but not any faster.

I must say, the pancakes are my favorite in the whole area. On my most recent visit, I ordered the double stack of Buttermilk Pancakes ($4.75) with a Sausage Patty ($2.75) on the side. As usual, the light, just-thick-enough pancakes filled my entire plate. Topped with a dollop of butter and a sprinkle of powdered sugar, they bring a smile to my face every time the server puts them down before me. The sausage was nearly as good: hand pattied with a wonderful sage kick. I know there’s a whole breakfast and lunch menu available, and I hear it’s pretty good, but I order the pancakes every time.

On this visit, I was accompanied by my 80-year-old aunt. She’s a woman who grew up in Southern Georgia, and is no stranger to biscuits and gravy. You gotta figure she’s tried a few orders in her lifetime. Somewhat surprisingly, after enjoying The Buttermilk Drop Biscuits & Sausage Gravy ($4.90), she proclaimed them some of the best she’s ever had. I sampled a little off her plate, and yes, they were pretty darn good.

The biscuits were extremely dry and crumbly. Too dry to eat on their own, but when topped with the creamy sausage gravy, they became moist and velvety. The gravy was loaded with crumbled sausage chunks and was more brownish-orange in color than the standard white to gray. All together, it’s a very unhealthy, but blissful dish.

Well, come to think of it, my 80-year-old aunt has been eating biscuits and gravy all her life, and she's healthy as an ox. Maybe it's not that bad for you after all.

Peach Valley is normally packed for breakfast and lunch, and not open for dinner (closes daily at 2:30; 3:30 on weekends). Sure, the regulars at Denny’s are a lot more fun to people watch than the regulars from Heathrow at Peach Valley, but the pancakes never taste this good (well, maybe they do at 2 o’clock in the morning).

4 ½ Hotcakes out of 5

Peach Valley Café
In the Shoppes at Oakmonte
1210 S. International Parkway
Heathrow, FL 32746
407-833-9440

Eating Orlando's Pick for Best Fish and Chips in Orlando

A while back, readers made their pick for the best fish and chips in Orlando. I just realized that I never told you my favorite. Well, ladies and gentleman, my choice for the best fish and chips in all of Central Florida is Fish and Chips Restaurant in Altamonte Springs.

Fish and Chips Restaurant (yes, that’s the name) is located in a nondescript, tiny little strip mall on Highway 436 between Altamonte Springs and Apopka. It’s a little hard to find, even if you’re looking for it. I challenge anyone to spot their roadside sign amidst 11 others as you drive by at 45 miles an hour (hint: it’s the fifth panel from the top). In the small plaza, you’ll find a cell phone store, a tattoo parlor, a taqueria, a liquor store, a nail salon, a hair salon, a traffic school, a jewelry shop, a pc repair shop, and the the best fish and chips in Orlando.

Step inside the shop and you are overwhelmed by the lingering scent of malt vinegar. The sweet smell is intoxicating. One sniff and your stomach readies itself for fried fish.

It’s a simple setup inside: chairs and tables line one wall and a small bar/counter serves beer and wine. Beer signs glow above the bar and decorative fishing nets hang from the ceiling.

The menu is simple; it’s focus squarely on freshly-prepared fried fish. Yes, there’s a chicken breast and a burger thrown in, but everyone comes for the fish. The fish and chips selection includes haddock, cod, whiting, catfish and black grouper.

On my most recent visit, I chose the cod fish (market price/$10.45). The cod was dipped in a beer batter and served deep fried. The piece was large, crisp, not greasy at all, moist, and flakey inside. A piece of fried fish just doesn’t get much better than this. The steak cut fries (chips) were fried just as golden. The cole slaw was not overly sweet and not overly runny. It was, in fact, just about perfect.

That being said about the fish and chips, the real reason I keep coming back to the restaurant again and again is for the fried oysters ($7.95). They are heavenly. The very large oysters are battered fresh, and served piping hot. The breading is crunchy, and the succulent oysters inside explode with a salty-sweet bang when you bite into them. I’ve truly never tasted oysters this good.

Service is friendly, yet unobtrusive. A husband-and-wife team run the place, and they clearly understand how proper fish and chips should be served. Start with the freshest seafood you can find, dip it into a nicely-seasoned batter, fry to golden, and serve it hot and with a smile. They’ve nailed it at Fish and Chips.

For the best fish and chips in Orlando (and incredible oysters), do yourself a favor and visit Fish and Chips Restaurant soon.

4 ½ Beer-Battered Goodness out of 5

Fish and Chips Restaurant

1146 West SR 436

Altamonte Springs, FL 32714

407-862-2262

4Rivers Smokehouse Officialy Opens November 11 in Winter Park

4Rivers Smokehouse, the Orlando area's newest "premium" barbeque joint to woo diners with lip-smacking ribs in an upscale setting, will hold a grand opening November 11th in Winter Park.

Partnering with Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, the official ribbon cutting and grand opening commences at 10:00 AM. Sales to the public will begin at 10:30 AM until 8 PM with proceeds from the day benefiting the largest provider of homeless services in Central Florida and the largest residential facility for children. 4Rivers Smokehouse is located at 2103 West Fairbanks Avenue, 407-474-8377 (407-4RIVERS) featuring premium Texas-style barbecue in a rustic, authentic smokehouse setting.

Additional parking will be made available for the November 11th festivities with parking officials ready to direct traffic for this important grand opening. 4Rivers Smokehouse is giving 50% of the day's proceeds to Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida to help provide food, shelter and supportive services to their homeless clients.

Local owner and resident, John Rivers has spent 20 years perfecting his recipes. He takes pride in using the highest quality products for his mouth-watering menu featuring his award-winning 4Rivers Smokehouse Sauce with items such as Angus brisket, St. Louis style ribs and southern pulled pork. The Texas Destroyer and the Messy Pig are just a few of 4Rivers Smokehouse Signature Stacker sandwiches and the menu's featured side items include 4Rivers BBQ beans, baked cheese grits and smoked jalapenos. Dedicated to helping others, 4Rivers Smokehouse is committed to the financial support of schools, charity organizations and the local community.

Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida is the largest provider of homeless services in Central Florida and the largest residential facility for children. Of the 600 people served on any given night, nearly 200 are children with an average age of six. This non-profit organization provides food, shelter and comprehensive case-managed services, with the goal of helping the homeless become self-sufficient. Over 70% of the Coalition's resources come from the community's generosity.

4Rivers looks like a winner to me. I'll be there to check it out for you and report back.