CHINA WOK, at the Driftwood Mall on A1A and almost next door to Publix, is a most welcome newcomer, here on the "backwater-sandspit" here in Melbourne Beach, where resturants are so few, and far-between. Now that the oceanview long beloved AQUARINA resturant and LOGGERHEADS-Sea-Dunes Resturant have been bull-dozed-down to make room for luxury oceanfront palaces, there are few choices left, down here on the beach...but CHINA WOK has come to the rescue, and a welcome, welcoming, and pleasing place it IS ! Watch the owner and family move smartly around the immaculate kitchen, conjuring up a broad variety of truly well prepared Scezchwan, Hunan, etc. CHINESE dishes, and then eat-in on spotlessly clean formica tables, or take-out to the beach, or home, for a delicious, well-prepared, crispy golden, colorful, and pipeing-hot Chineese treat. All of the shrimp dishes are just out of this world; fresh, and succulent. I would have to avoid the sweet & sour dishes, unfortunately, because they are served as little deepfried balls of battered chicken or pork accompanied by a little pot of what might jokingly be called red-dye-number-forty sweet&sour sauce, in a sort of do-yourself-kit. But everything else I've ordered has been FABULOUS, service is lightning-quick, and prices are moderate, and no MSG is used here. I'll be going back to CHINA WOK again and again, and will hope that the local community will be able to support this recent and most welcome addition to the community, unbegrudgingly helping the family owned and operated CHINA WOK to survive the sky-high-rents, here in the Driftwood Mall. Hours are from about eleven, til late.

You'll luve BERNARDO'S, located here on oceanfront A1A, and serving-up it's delicous Famous New York Style Pizza since 1990. In recent years the menu has been expanded, little by little, to include an impressive array of savory Italian dishes, including dinners of Settembrino, seafood stuffed shells, shrimp alfredo, liguettine, eggplant parmesan and rollettino, baked ziti, veal parmesan, calzone, ....and of course all the usual PIZZA-PLACE offerings of SUBS and sandwiches. TAKE-OUT is the way-to-go here, altho there are a few patio tables available, both inside and out... BERNARDO'S is located at the homey beachside SURFCASTER MOTEL, and you'll enjoy your dinner, and the salty fisherman's retreat atmosphere, here at this family owned seaside little bit-of-Italy.

The NEW ENGLAND SEAFOOD EATERY, in MELBOURNE SHORES, Melbourne Beach, is your best-bet on this rather remote stretch of beach, and you could never go far-wrong, here ! Locals depend on this fish place as both a reliable everyday-eatery and as a dependably pleasing place to bring houseguests and visitors. The seafood here is "cheap and plentiful";crispy golden-brown fried fish, shrimp, scallops, clams, and oysters, fresh n' flavorful, heaped high on giant platters, cheerfully served, and at surprisingly moderate prices. Be sure to try the New England Clam Chowder, or the mildly spicy red conch chowder; and the best-bang-for-the-buck here is the piled-high Lobster Salad or Lobster Roll, for ten dollars. The fish n' chips is always exceptionally good...and of course there are a few well-prepared landlubberish offerings on the menu, in case your guest is not into the fishy side of the menu. This resturant also has a Palm Bay location, and does a high volume of business keeping quality and freshness high, and prices low; and while both locations have a rather basic seaside family-eatery navy-mess-hall sort of ambiance, you'll leave here pleased with the food, friendly service, and reasonable prices, and you'll want to return again-and-again.

The SEBASTIAN BEACH INN, housed in a converted and picturesque old-coast-guard-station located right on the beach, and A1A highway, in Melbourne Beach, can no longer be considered to be a resturant. Sometimes known as the HOUSE OF BLUES, and formerly a biker-hangout, this seaside watering-hole features a full bar, tall-tropical-rumdrinks including it's famous and potent "Bahama Mama", and live regaee music on weekends; and sometimes big-name musicians, jamming, late at night. At one time there was an effort to serve reasonable food here...but now the "bar-menu" is limited in scope, including only a half-hearted selection of hamburger, sandwich, and seafood-basket suggestions. The Mahi-Mahi sandwich is surprisingly good, however, and you'll enjoy sitting on the deck, munching crispy frenchfries and nibbling on seafood, as you listen to visiting Jamacians playing Bob Marley songs, and the music of the islands, and view this pristine nesting-turtle-tracked beach and a shimmering azure sea. This coastal-casual Sebastian Beach Inn, affectionately called the S.B.I., offers pleasant seaside-patio service, and some interesting people-watching on weekends, and for that-alone you'll not regret you've come.

Unless it's a well-kept-secret, this resturant, Pirates Moon, no longer seems to exist in this Melbourne Beach area. It was located in Old Melbourne, for a while, but never really caught-on, and seems to have gone the way of some of the other chic-chic little overpriced California-Bistros of this rather down-to-earth beach-y area.

Sampertons resturant was a casualty of hurricanes Floyd and Irene, several years ago, and was sold to the capable and friendly Greek Resturanteer, Costas, who has created of this almost destroyed building the imaginatively decorated and CHARMING resturant which he and his family have named THE BEACHSIDE INN. Murals painted on the walls of the OCEANVIEW upstairs diningroom make you think you're back in the Greek Islands, and the food is very good, fairly highly priced, well prepared and attractively presented American food. Costa seems surprised and pleased when dining-patrons do occasionally request a special GREEK dish, and I think that he would do well to place more of his authentic Greek specialties on the menu. There's a pleasant deckside bar downstairs, which is a gathering place for friendly locals who come to soak up the serenity of the ocean-view, and listen to mellow-guitar. THE BEACHSIDE INN, right on A1A just south of the four corners in Melbourne Beach, is one of the best. If you don't mind walking up a flight of rustic old-wooden-stairs to the seaside upper-deck dining room above, you'll luve it here, and be very glad you came.

This little riverview resturant, DIJONS, right in the heart of Melbourne Beach, has a new manager, Hewitt, and under his capable direction seems to have greatly improved. The waitstaff and chefs have been carefully hired, and quality control and morale are way-up from the sagging lows of a year or so ago. Do try DIJON'S again....and it's sister-location, THE TROPICS BISTRO on Fifth Avenue in Indialantic, too. The cigars have been put away, since enforcement of the new smokeless resturant law, and altho prices are fairly high here due to it's expensive beachside-location, it's a friendly gathering place for locals and visitors alike, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

...A cute little lunchroom where you'll "spend a moment, not a fortune".

SHELLS, at the Melbourne Square Mall complex, has a new and improved menu, and this has lately become one of Melbourne's most enjoyable eaterys! The food here is absolutely fresh, and supurbly prepared...and the waitstaff is friendly, cheerful, and competent. Prices are moderate. Try the now-in-season COCOANUT ROCKLOBSTER tails, for a truly succulant mouthwatering treat...or even the "just in, fresh, and hard to find" delicasy, "GATER NUGGATS", if like I do you feel that the only good-gater is a Gater-Nuggat Gater, and you'd like this chance to do your part! Delicious ! Everything about this place is copescetic, from the rustic fish-shanty interior to the brightly-colored fish-shirts of the wait-staff, to the heaping platters of crusty, crispy fried seafood feasts, to the reasonable prices. You'll have fun here, and want to come back often !

CAFE COCONUT COVE combines it's lovely sunset position on the eastern shore of Melbourne Beach's Indian River Lagoon with a limited selection of colorfully presented and well prepared "California Nouvelle German" cusine. Munich at Octoberfest, or hearty Hoffbrau "comfort-food", this is not, and there's nothing robustly German about the mood, the music, the ambience or the cooking....but there's a romantic elegance all it's own here, in this serene riverside setting, the gracious hospitality of the owners, the homey Old World atmosphere created by the mellow patina of authentically German antique break-front-chests set against immaculate white walls, and the carefully prepared chef's specialties of the house, and you won't regret having discovered this quietly refined dining-room, hidden-away down a corridor of cocoanut palms along highway A1A.

FOREMANS Steak House is the best steak resturant in this Satellite Beach area...which isn't saying a whole lot, as it's the only one for miles-around. Foremans serves fairly high quality beef at fairly high prices, with fairly comfortable seating, fairly competent waitstaff....and a fairly well-dressed but casual clientelle, located on busy A1A in Satellite Beach. Foremans is nothing-fancy, featuring just good basic well-prepared, cheerfully-served, quality meat-and-potatoes....but there's alot to be said for that, and you'll leave contented, and happy that you came.

The OLYMPIA CAFE' is about as authentically GREEK as you'll find in this quaintly restored Old Melbourne Antiques-Mall area, and the owners, Teddy and Adrianna, are good-hearted, warmly-welcoming supurbly good cooks ! They'll take you right in to the small and homey kitchen, in the Greek Bistro manner, to let you take a peek at the days scrumptuous authentically-Greek/Syrian Moussaka, Spanikopita, Osso Bucho, and other hot-from-the-oven lunchtime offerings. This is a lunch-time eatery, closing at three o:clock in the afternoon, and is a favorite of the antique-lovers and boutique-shoppers who comb Old Melbourne for vintage bargains, and then do-lunch....and a honeyed dessert of Baklava, or other classic Greek-sweets. Standard American lunchtime fare is served here also, and the hospitable Theodore and Andriana will helpfully wish to please any special request. Prices are reasonable, service is quickly competent, and the decor and setting, here at this small, intimate family-owned lunch-room by the rail-road track at Strawbridge at Old Melbourne, will make you think that you are back on your favorite Greek Island, sampling specialties from the kitchen of warm friends.

Dine at poolside by the sea, here at WALDO'S COASTAL-casual hide-away in Vero Beach. The menu features a variety of California-Bistro cusine, at moderate prices, with cheerful service, and in the good company of the residents of this exceptionally attractive timeshare resort, as well as the devoted locals who regularly drop-in to Waldo's cozy bar & grill to sit awhile, catching up on local-gossip and soaking-up this laid-back ecclecticly mellow driftwoody ambiance which is at the very heart of Vero Beach, and has remained a treasured Vero Beach early-settlement Institution, beloved and respected here.

THE ATLANTIC GRILL, in mainland Vero Beach, is a well kept secret, tucked away on a residential neighborhood street, just off route sixty, backing-up-to the Dodgers Stadium. The Atlantic Grill is a popular X generation Disco by night, and an excellent and economical family-resturant, by day. There is a blue-collar, pub, working-man's club lunchroom quality about the place, in this friendly hall which serves hearty, well prepared, fairly-priced meals to please a devoted following of local regulars....and then rolls back the carpet to surprise you when after nine p.m. this quiet family resturant suddenly becomes Vero Beach's hottest disco, with bouncers enforcing cover-charge at the door, and high above the dancefloor inside the local "oldies of the eighty's" disc jockey spins the generation's X patron's favorite requests, and the dance-floor and parking-lot come alive with a gyrating crowd, moving under disco-lights of pink, purple, and tourquoise-blue....and this quietly understated Atlantic Grill has suddenly turned out to be one of Vero's hottest, In-est, and fun-est late-night places !

The RIVERSIDE Cafe' is billed as Vero Beach's ONLY riverside sunset-watching resturant, and is THE place to join Vero Beach locals at this first choice of SUNSET-watching watering-holes. The tradition here is a bit like that of Mallory's Pier in Key West, where the town's people gather at the magical Sunset hour to socialize, listen to Jimmy Buffet style songs and watch from the wrap-around-decks as the "big red ball" (of the Kenny Chesney ballad) sinks into the sea. The basic American food served at the rustic Riverview is good-enough, the crowd is convivial, the music is live, laid-back, and enjoyable in this mellow sea-shanty atmosphere....and the staff is trained to be friendly and courteous...and will briefly celebrate WITH you for those appointed five minutes as all pause to watch as song-writer Kenny Chesney's "big-red-ball sinks-into-the-water" , at the Riverview's sacred SUNSET-HOUR.

You'll luve-it, here on the Indian River at Captain Hiram's. It's an Islands-Atmosphere, where you dine on the riverside-deck with a view of charter-fishing-boats docked at this marina, with mellow sounds of live Jimmy-Buffett style music, good company, tall island-rum-drinks, good fried-seafood heaped-high on platters, n'such, at reasonable prices. Go there for the Indian Riverside deck-seating, the "sand-bar" under cocoanut-palms, the islands-ballads, and all the local color and islands-ambiance of this pleasantly touristy laid-back setting that will make you think, for a moment, that you're magically back in the Bahamas...

FINS, on the Indian River in this quiet commercial fishing village of Sebastian, is a great place to be on weekends....or any time. What's not to like about FINS...unless maybe you've worn your stiletto-heels for the 100 foot walk to this rusticly constructed wharf-resturant which is built on pilings, way-out in the Indian River. You'll luve everything about it, from the balmy salt-air, winged-sea-birds diving for bait-fish, fishingboats-bobbing, to the SUPURB oak grilled seafoods, steaks, and chops, served with mango chutney. And for a quick luncheon seafood-basket, try the scrumptious CRUNCHY rolled-in-wheaties FISH n' chips or Grouper-basket. Especially good are the succulant shrimp and scallop kabobs, bacon wrapped and still smokin' with the flavor of the oak-chip-fire. The friendly crowd, cheeful waitstaff, moderate-prices, live musicians, and mellow islands ballads sung aboard the "barge-bar", all combine to create this unique out-in-the-water festive holiday atmosphere...;and you'll be glad to find that, unlike some wharf-resturants we've visited, the plumbing works fine and is fastidiously-maintained, even in this out-in-the-river facility. It's all the fun of being out on a riverboat for the evening, without the risk of getting sea-sick. You'll luve everything about an evening at FINS !

HURRICANE HARBOR is one of the oldest and best riverside resturants along the shores of this little fishing village of Sebastian, Florida, and it's been making riverfront-diners happy for a long time. Hurricane Harbor quietly presents some of the best local seafood, dancable-music, and friendly riverfront ambience, at a fair price and without much of the touristy hype. Everything at Hurricane Harbor is quietly-copescetic, and you'll leave contented, well-fed, and glad that you came here....

OZZIES CRABHOUSE is exactly what it sounds like, located in the heart of the Grant, Florida fishing industry...and offers the freshest and the best of crab in the shell, and out if you prefer, accompanied by the pounding sounds wooden mallets, and other claw-cracking tools, in a rustic setting with newspaper spread tables, lots of brown-paper-towels on the table, and plastic red-crab-bibs offered to its devoted following of seafood luving dining-patrons, who come back again and again. A crabhouse doesn't get any better than this, and you'll be pleased by the friendly laid-back atmosphere, freshest of blue-crab, stone-crab, and seafoods, and all that served-up at unexpectedly moderate prices, here in this undiscovered treasure of a crabhouse hidden along scenic route one here on the Indian River coast of Brevard County, Florida.

POMADORO is an excellent choice, for what may feel like an evening-out in Tuscany. From it's unbrella-tables set in the romantic walled courtyard patio-garden, to it's mellow polished-wood interior, and colorful Italian pottery, Pomadoro has the authentic old world "feel" of being in rural country Italy...while right-here in the midst of this exclusive little resort enclave of Vero Beach, Florida. Everything here at Pomodora will please you. The menu selection is colorful, favorful, authenticly Italian, and prepared of the best and freshest ingredients, and if you come fairly late in the evening you'll find yourself dining in the company of some of the most "beautiful-people" who winter here in this lovely quiet beachside community. The staff is professionally European-trained, the food is excellent, and menu prices are competative in this exclusive resort town of Vero Beach.