Tag: Florida

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Florida St. Pete downtown; Hollander Hotel

Hollander Hotel – downtown St. Pete

A hotel that causes me to smile

Downtown St. Petersburg, Florida – not the beach

421 4th Ave North Street

Why this place appeals to me

“The Hollander is old Florida,” says a guest sitting on the hotel’s front porch.  Old Florida? Maybe: The Hollander is stacked with once-upon-a-time stuff.  STUFF packs the lobby, hallways and rooms of the Hollander.

An 80-year-old wooden phone booth stands a few feet from the hotel’s Check-In desk in the lobby. 

     “Phone doesn’t work, but it generates conversation,” says Will the front desk clerk at The Hollander.”

The Hollander Hotel; hip? Boutique? Hard to classify, The Hollander simply causes me to SMILE as I roam the building and its contents from time past.

Built in 1933, just as Prohibition ended.  The basis for the original name is mystery.  The Hollander went through several reinventions; it was a Travelodge, then the Bond Hotel.  And then sat empty from 1990 until it came back to life in 2013 as downtown St. Pete’s boutique-ish, lodging venue; offering a spa, a coffee shop/bakery and a tap room.

A poster on the wall of The Hollander’s outdoor front deck proclaims,

  1933 prohibition finally ends

FREE NEWSPAPER ANY DAY THE SUN DOESN’T SHINE

I SMILE!

The wall of the stairwell connecting the lobby to the upper 3 floors is hung with images of earlier St. Pete.  Couples in the 1950’s, wearing 1950’s-style bathing suits, sitting in the sand under 1950’s beach umbrellas cause me to SMILE.

How Far Down the Block?   

st pete, pier, florida, tom lane, cigar, hollander, kerouac, vintage, boutique hotel
The Pier, downtown St. Pete in 1950’s

Expressway I-375 routes you onto 4th Avenue leading into downtown St. Pete.  The Hollander is on the corner of 4th Street North and 4th Avenue North; just a few hundred meters from I-375 merge point with 4th Ave.

The Hollander front porch is a magnet for lodging guests. Travelers share weather updates from home-base, almost always somewhere north.  I light a Macanudo cigar . . . and SMILE.

The Hollander is a timepiece of Florida history.  The wide veranda porch features padded, rattan chairs. Half of the porch hosts outdoor diners being catered by the staff from The Hollander Tap Room; the other half of the porch is seated by visitors that are chatting . . . and SMILING.

Hollander Hotel, front porch

Entering the front door of the lobby, the vintage-style front desk is evident. After checking in, I skip the elevator, choosing to walk up the stairs to my 3rd floor room. Hallway flooring is 2.5” maple strips installed during construction in 1933. The slats refinished lacquer-bright, featuring scars acquired over the past 80 years.  The wooden seams creak with every step.  I SMILE.

Creaking hallway

The Coffee Shop just past the Tap Room offers not only traditional French pastries, but Italian cannoli.  Cannoli make me SMILE.

On a Saturday morning, I step into the first floor Tap Room; the Hollander restaurant.  Brunch is featured on weekend mornings.  At the edge of the bar, a sign suggests a do-it-yourself Bloody Mary, almost a brunch itself – I SMILE.

Do-it-yourself

When the Hollander re-opened in 2013, the former glory and the name were both restored. It breaks the mold of the everyday branded chain hotel. How to describe?  Unshackled lodging?

Why you might be nearby?

St. Pete Beach is a 20-minute drive from the Hollander.  Four of Florida’s Top Ten Beach Bars, chosen by an annual vote conducted by FLORIDA Beach Bars web site, lie within walking distance of one-another at St. Pete Beach.  A Florida pub crawl, eminently do-able.

Lesser Known Facts      

The Hollander Hotel drips character, with non-uppity charm.  Rooms feel Florida-warm. I drift back.  Maybe to another era, or maybe just a decade.  The façade of hotel today, remains exactly the same as when constructed in 1933.  The Bonnie & Clyde era look causes me to SMILE

“The City of St. Peter” Florida was named in honor of St. Petersburg, Russia.  The name chosen by Russian-born railroad builder Piotr Dementyev (Peter Demens).

Jack Kerouac authored On The Road, his roaming-about-tale of travel on America’s newly paved highways of the 1950’s.  Kerouac owned a home in downtown St. Pete in the late 1960’s.

Television had highjacked Kerouac’s theme, creating Route 66 (1960–1964).  Weekly episodes followed two untethered young men “on the road” in a Corvette seeking adventure; jumping from temporary job to temporary job.

Town-by-town from Chicago to California the two protagonists, Buzz and Todd, roamed.  They bore a resemblance to Kerouac.  Kerouac, didn’t like TV’s Route 66. He felt the show’s creators had ripped off his On The Road.  Kerouac wanted to sue, but on October 20, 1969, in St. Petersburg, Florida he lost his chance.  At 11 am that morning in St. Pete, Kerouac was sitting in his favorite chair drinking whiskey, chasing it with malt liquor, and working on another book.

He began to vomit blood. Blood transfusions later that day, failed.  Kerouac’s liver was failing, due to an untreated abdominal hemorrhage suffered in a bar fight several weeks earlier and aggravated by booze.  He died at 5:15 the following morning. Kerouac drank – a lot.

Local Recommendation   

Stroll downtown Beach Drive SE; the city side of Beach Drive is lined by the shops and watering holes.  Manicured city parks line the bay side of Beach Street. Late model luxury and vintage classic cars maintain an all-day parade.

Parkshore Grill, Beach Street, offers refuge under their sidewalk, tabletop, umbrellas.

Something for Nothing     

The Hollander provides free shuttle from hotel to downtown St. Pete; serving a 10-block area.

Free Shuttle

Parking at the Hollander is free. 

Every Saturday morning from October to May, St. Pete hosts a downtown farmer’s market in the parking lot at Al Lang Stadium, a half-mile walk from The Hollander.  Local vendors sell, fruits, foods, goods while live music plays.

6 pm Sunday evening, sitting on the Hollander’s outdoor front porch, piped-in music plays.  Will, the Hollander desk clerk of long standing, says,

     “In the morning, we play Petula Clark on Pandora throughout our public areas.  Afternoon is Debbie Harry.  Evening music here at The Hollander is Jack Johnson.  Do you like his music?”

I SMILE

Categories
Cortez/Anna Maria; Annie's Bait Shop Florida

Cortez, Florida: ANNIE’S BAIT & TACKLE; Minnows, food, Heineken & cigars

Annie’s, Bradenton, Florida, bait, intercoastal, cigars, Grouper, Cortez, dockside, on the water, Anna Maria Island, Bradenton Beach, cold beer, locals, cheap meals, undiscovered, hidden, jogging, running, restaurant, bar, cheap meals, beer, price

Annie’s Bait & Tackle, Cortez, Florida (Bradenton Beach); An inter-coastal bait shop offering Heineken & cigars.

Why this place appeals to me

Annie’s explains their dining as EXTREMELY CASUAL – it is.

     “What time do you open shop?” I asked Bruce Shearer, owner of Annie’s Bait Shop for the past 18 years.

     “6 am, used to open at 5:30, but no reason any more, not busy in the morning,” Bruce said.

     “How come you’re not busy at 6 am, that’s when fishermen like to head out?”

     “They died,” the owner of Annie’s Bait Shop said.

     “The fish died out,” I asked.

     “No, the fishermen,” Bruce explains. “The old guys, down from Michigan, used to charter a boat for the entire season, one day a week, all winter December through April.  Now, an occasional old guy brings his grandson by once a year to show him what a rod and reel looks like.”

Florida, bait, intercoastal, cigars, Grouper, Cortez, dockside, on the water, Anna Maria Island, Bradenton Beach, cold beer, locals, cheap meals, undiscovered, hidden, jogging, running, restaurant, bar, cheap meals, beer, price
Annie’s sign from out front

Annie’s Bait & Tackle is local, but with a surprising touch of class.

Nancy pulled a cool Heineken from the cooler as I selected a Macanudo cigar from the humidor atop the bait counter.

“Need a cutter?” she asked.

Nice touch; a $7 cigar does not offend my yearning to go local.

How Far Down the Block?      From McKechnie Field spring training home field for the Pittsburgh Pirates it’s a nine mile drive.

From mid-crossing on the Sunshine Bridge spanning the entrance of Tampa Bay it is 37 miles to Annie’s Bait & Tackle.[mappress mapid=”8″]

Florida, bait, intercoastal, cigars, Grouper, Cortez, dockside, on the water, Anna Maria Island, Bradenton Beach, cold beer, locals, cheap meals, undiscovered, hidden, jogging, running, restaurant, bar, cheap meals, beer, price
Cortez Road Bridge from Annie’s Veranda

Why you might be nearby?      Social demands on Longboat Key have you seeking somewhere local to sip on a cold beer.  Grab the tender from somebody’s yacht and zip north to the Cortez Road Bridge, following the channel into Annie’s immediately northeast of the bridge.

Lesser Known Facts      Bruce Shearer once sold 15,000 bait shrimp daily to the fishermen pushing off from Cortez into the Gulf of Mexico.  Fishing in 2014 isn’t the same as the 1980’s, Bruce moved with the money.  Annie’s Bait Shop now serves cold Heineken with their signature Grouper Sandwich on the ten bar stools, four indoor tables or dockside on their … well, it’s just a dock..

Bruce, a refugee from Michigan – now proprietor of Annie’s Bait & Tackle, headed south in the late 1970’s with a stash of $1,800.  He stands the afternoon watch at Annie’s these days

Local Recommendation

     “What’s the specialty?” I asked.

Nancy, who came down from Cincinnati, was on duty at Annie’s. She said, “The Grouper Sandwich, 100%.”Florida, bait, intercoastal, cigars, Grouper, Cortez, dockside, on the water, Anna Maria Island, Bradenton Beach, cold beer, locals, cheap meals, undiscovered, hidden, jogging, running, restaurant, bar, cheap meals, beer, price

Nancy was right.

Something for Nothing      Park your car, lace up your running/walking shoes and head over the bridge towards Anna Maria Island.  Round trip from Annie’s n the east side to the base of the bridge on the West side and back is 1.5 miles.  Continue on the Gulf, extend your exercise routine and return to Annie’s thirsty.

Categories
Florida Fort Lauderdale; SNOOZE, the hotel

Fort Lauderdale: SNOOZE; a boutique hotel featuring just the essentials

Snooze, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, beach, undiscovered, hotel, A1A, deck, on the beach, beach, kitchen, boutique, waking path, jogging, ocean view, price, locals,

SNOOZE; a BOUTIQUE hotel featuring just the essentials.

Fort Lauderdale, FL        

     “Who owns Snooze?” I asked,

     “I do,” Robert said from his stool behind the small check-in counter.  Robert, once a London-based

      real estate investor focused on hospitality, had become an Owner/Registration clerk.  No uniform 

      required.

     “Nice place, great location, a bang for the buck,” I said.

     “Bang for the buck is our target.  Provide upscale essentials, just the essentials,” Robert said.

 

Snooze is located on the A1A strip in Fort Lauderdale Beach, far enough from the

Snooze, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, beach, undiscovered, hotel, A1A, deck, on the beach, beach, kitchen, boutique, waking path, jogging, ocean view, price, locals,
View from room 301

honky-tonk strip that only traffic sounds and Atlantic waves can be heard through your open window.  A 2nd floor deck offers box seats to view the fruit of A1A; the morning parade, afternoon bikinis and the stream of classic cars.

Why this place appeals to me.  The view, the refrigerator, the cleanliness and the walking options.

Snooze is the best of the Roger Miller’s 1960’s tune, “No phone, no pool, no pets …”  But Roger didn’t sing about offering the essentials; wine glasses, a corkscrew, refrig/freezer and three tables – one for work, another for vitals, and a 3rd for stuff!

How Far Down the Block?     [mappress mapid=”7″]

A 1.1 mile walk south on A1A to the Bahia Cabana bar on the inter-coastal.

Just step outside to join the A1A parade.

Far enough down the block to be out of range from the Spring-breaker throngs trying to resurrect the Elbow Room.

Why you might be nearby?

You’ve stayed at the Fort Lauderdale Ritz Carlton and this time you want to go local.

Snooze, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, beach, undiscovered, hotel, A1A, deck, on the beach, beach, kitchen, boutique, waking path, jogging, ocean view, price, locals,
Room 301

The Pillars is too wonderfully serene.

Lesser Known Facts

Snooze was formerly the eighteen room Ocean Holiday Hotel, distinguish by its flamingo pink exterior. A 360 degree view roof-top deck is planned for summer 2014.

Local Recommendation    Upscale local, walk two blocks to the Pillars for an evening glass of wine. 

Consider a cab ride to Casa D’Angelo for an Italian dinner.

Local, local; See if Jimmy Buffett stopped at the Bahia Cabana for a beer and takes the stage.

Something for Nothing

Snooze supplies free WiFi, free beach chairs, beach towels and umbrellas.  Each morning God and Mother Nature provide the A1A parade.  Two of everything joins the parade just after dawn.  It is not possible to feel uncomfortable or out-of-place strutting on A1A at 9 am on a March morning.