I recently spent ten days in the Florida Keys with friends, and as a ritual, my wife and I spent one day traveling up and down Route 1. If for no other reason except to see the aqua blue tropical waters, this leisurely ride is always fun filled and adventurous. Our day trip had two specific goals: To find a great lunch and dinner spot amongst the many on this road, and also to shop. I was in charge of the first goal, and my wife took care of the second.
We started our trip at mile marker 28 in Big Pine Key and headed up towards Key Largo. Our first stop was in Marathon at the Publix Shopping Center. Located on the corner of the center are the Lazy Lizard and the Goofy Gecko. These fun shops have all of the tropical souvenirs and gifts you could ever want. Painted Gecko’s, Tropical clothing, and Caribbean furniture are only a few of many different items you will find in these two stores. Both have unique items, so it is worth the stop.
After spending some time, (and money), we headed up to Islamorada and the shops at mile marker 82 caught our attention. In this row of small stores, we found the Blue Marlin Jewelry shop that had unique designs by Steven Douglas, The Sandal Factory/T Shirt City, which had great T Shirts and Sandals, and many other interesting shops. If you walked behind the last shop, which housed a flower shop and interesting outside pottery and Caribbean items, you would find a glass artisan that was blowing glass and making all kinds of interesting pieces of art.
The Bass Pro shops at mile marker 81.5 in Islamorada are a favorite of many boaters and fishing enthusiasts. This large shopping area on the water also houses the Zane Grey Lounge, which was my choice for lunch. My one of only two tasks turned out to be an excellent one. Housed on the second floor of this expansive shopping area, Zane Grey offers balcony seating overlooking the blue azure waters and marina. The picture perfect view enables you to sit and relax as you enjoy a fabulous lunch or dinner.
Specializing in seafood, but also offering other tantalizing treats, the Zane Grey had excellent choices for us to look at. I chose the Caesar salad topped with five large shrimp, and my wife had the curry chicken salad, which was served in a half of a pineapple. The presentation was as good as the food. We both thoroughly enjoyed our meal. Since we were driving and had many more stops, we opted for the iced tea and we passed on dessert because I already knew where I wanted to stop for my evening meal. For the two of us, our lunch, with tax and tip came to thirty-four dollars. We were both very pleased with the Zane Grey.
Back on the road again, our next stop was the Rain Barrel Sculpture Gallery, located at mile marker 86.7. There were two reasons for this stop. First, this has a great array of small shops with artisan’s works. We’ve been here before and made a few purchases that we still cherish today. There are many paintings, pottery, hand made quilts, and various other original items with the Key West flare. Although we did not make any purchases here today, we enjoyed admiring the unique works of the artists.
The second reason for stopping at the Rain Barrel Sculpture was that we had read about HGTV and the fact that they were building the “Dream House” in Islamorada Florida. We had previously asked if anyone knew where the house was being built, and locals at the shops prior to this stop told us they knew exactly where it was being built. The dirt road next to the Rain Barrel Sculpture, if taken back to the water is the location of the HGTV Dream House. We drove back to find that the land had been cleared, and the footings set, but the project was just barely on its way. We hope to come back before the house is finished so we can get a look at it before it is given away.
Our last stop before we turned around was at mile marker 97.5 in Key Largo. Shell World is located in the middle of the highway and has an abundance of gifts to please everyone’s taste. If you enjoy looking at different shells, you will find varieties from around the world. But shells are only the beginning. Several rooms have anything tropical you could imagine, from clothes, to cards, to house wares. My wife was enjoying a sale of Fresh Produce, while I wondered and checked out the shells and other fun items.
Heading back to our destination, we stopped at a few more interesting places such as Latitude 25, located at mile marker 82.7 in Islamorada, which also had great clothing options such as Tommy Bahama, and T-Shirts with Florida sayings. Fish Lips, a small store on Key Colony has unique tropical gifts that are worth seeing.
We have now shopped the day away, enjoyed the scenic drive up and down Route 1, but there was one last stop we had to make before our final destination. My last responsibility for the day was our dinner choice. It was not a difficult one. A few years back, we discovered the “Keys Fisheries Market & Marina” located at mile marker 49 in Marathon. The Market, on the bayside of 35th Street is a rustic fishing marina with fresh seafood served daily.
You stand in line and place your order, and give them your favorite movie, song, or actor/actress. Once your food is prepared, your “pseudo” name is called and you pick up your tray. What makes this a wonderful treat is that the atmosphere, although rustic, is very calm, and the food is fantastic. If you don’t like seafood, don’t come. Other than chicken wings and chicken fingers, everything else is seafood.
We were introduced to the Lobster Reuben our first visit to this market. This is a huge lobster sandwich (two can share this), served with sauerkraut, cheese, and Russian dressing, just as a Reuben would be served but with lobster meat. This comes with French fries and is grilled and mouthwatering. What a great sandwich. Other delicacies include crab, shrimp, scallops, and many of the local fresh fish.
Nothing fancy at the Keys Fisheries, Market and Marina, but wonderful food at a reasonable price. My wife and I shared a Lobster Reuben and Crab Chowder and both were outstanding. After we were finished we had ice cream served in a waffle cone. For the two of us, the bill came to $27.00 with tax and tip. A great meal at a great price.
We headed back to Big Pine Key and felt satisfied both by food and shopping. The day was sunny and we thoroughly enjoyed the scenic ride up and down Route 1. One last note about this road. This is the only road up and down the Florida Keys and there are restricted speed limits, and many accidents per year. If you take this road at a leisurely pace, you will not only arrive safely at your destination, but you will also take in the beautiful scenery and arrive feeling calm and relaxed.