Patrick "I was a Teenage Vinyl Junkie!" M.'s Profile

I am pretty certain I have reviewed this Rita's in the past.  It is the closest one to my house and in years past I have been a regular.

Summer has started when Rita's opens for the season.  They seem to add new products every year but the Italian Ice with the real ingredients is always the way to go for me.  Have to watch out for the brain freeze.

Since I drive to Delaware and back every day I am a regular at this Wawa.  Usually to fill up the car for the next day's commute but often use the restrooms and maybe buy a snack.

This Wawa has the best gasoline prices in the area and they do not charge extra from credit purchases.  It is a full service Wawa and everone in this area knows what the means.

A small DD in a small Shopping Center on the way to the beach in Long Branch.  Service was quick just like you would expect at any Dunkin Donuts.

This is a busy Dunkin Donuts in the middle of Belford, NJ.  It is convient with lots of parking and dining space.

On all of my previous trips to South Beach I have stayed at the South Beach Marriott.  Since I am no longer  a travelling consultant  and vacations are not subsidized by Frequent Stay/Fly points I elected to stay at a cheaper hotel rather than pay for the more expensive Marriott.

I was orginally planning on staying at the Royal Palms but the online site I used to book could not get the reservation to go through and suggested that I book at the Congress Hotel instead.  After some consideration I agreed.

I ended up booking two junior suites that did not have ocean views but since we spent little time in the hotel is was a non issue.

At first there was a little disappoint in not staying at the South Beach Marriott it did turn into a great vacation.  The hotel is in the middle of the all the action on Ocean Drive.  There are two restuarants in front of the hotel and there is a bar by the rooftop pool.

The hotel provides a voucher for $5.75 for breakfast each day.  This covers enough food to get a good start on the day.  The hotel charges a $12.50 resort fee per person per day.   This covers the cost of the beach chairs, umbrellas and towels.  The Marriott charges $25.

Each room has a full refrigerator and stove unit which did come in handy even though we ate all of our meals outside.

The staff was really nice and I got to know them during my stay.

I would definitely stay at the Congress again.

I recently took a vacation to Miami.  I was planning on getting some open water swimming in but ocean was very rough the first couple days in town.  I was resigning myself that I was going to have to settle for dryland training when the good folks at Crunch directed me to the pool at Flamingo Park.

This was a great find.  The pool has plenty of lanes (I am thinking 10 but not really sure) and the depth goes from 3.5 ft to 7 ft in each lane.  The regulars are nice and I never had a problem getting a lane one the 4 days I did my workouts.

The cost of the pool is free for residents but they will allow vistors in for $10 a session.

The locker room is clean but I would probably avoid using it in the future.  Come ready to swim and leave your bags out by your lane.

Since Crunch wanted $35 a day the Flamingo Park pool was a great find.   Even though the ocean did eventually calm down I still did a morning work at the pool before heading to the ocean.

Flamingo Park is only a 5 minute walk on 11th from the hotels on Ocean Drive.

For years I drove by this The Sport Spot on RT 35 across from the Grove without really noticing it.  I always assumed that they were selling the custom storage sheds out front.  Turns out that I was completely wrong.

The Sport Spot is actually a 4 season sporting goods store that for the most part covers skiing and water sports.  The Sport Spot carries a large number of ski brands and the staff is knowledgeable.

The Sport Spot also has a well stocked competitive swimming section for the pool, triathlons and open water.  

I found the prices to be a little higher than what is online but it is nice to support a local merchant and they usually have what you need.  So far my purchases have been googles and caps but I will consider buying my next set of skis from them.

Every year some former co-workers of mine through a Chinese New Year Party at a Restaurant in China Town. It is always a fun night.  The organizer does all the ordering and the general tone is "do not ask what it is but just eat it".  This year the party was at Three Ocean.

Three Ocean is probably not a restaurant that I would pick out on my own but I do enjoy finding new places.  I was definitely not disappointed.  While there were some food that I did pass on I have to say that everything I did eat was very good.   The service was excellent and it was a great night catching up with old friends.

I really hate to give bad reviews but this is probably the worse diner in the area.  I have given it a chance on several occasions and it has disappointed every time.   It was recently renovated and there is a sign saying that it is under new management so maybe there is hope.

I have never shopped here but I have dropped off lots of clothes.  I discovered this place when my daughter did her community service for her confirmation.  I do not trust the donation bins in the various parking lots and at Calico Cat I can at least hand my donation to a real person.