HopScotch Cafe — Restaurant in Dunedin

Review: Hopscotch Cafe

So...for a couple of weeks Facebook kept recommending I try restaurants in Palo Alto, St Petersburg, and Chicago. Not that I would mind, normally, but they're all (even St Pete) too far to get takeaway. And, as one does, I complained to my friends, one of whom recommended I try Hopscotch Cafe in Dunedin.

Which I did. Ordered four sandwiches for three of us (again, as one does), which left enough for lunch leftovers for tomorrow. The Cuban is tomorrow's lunch for Hub and me; it looks and smells wonderful but I have thus far restrained myself. Tonight's dinner sandwich was this:

FLY ME TO THE MOON: Prosciutto di Parma, Serrano Ham, Hop Sopressata, Fresh Mozzarella, Roasted Red Tomato, Arugula, Calabrian Pepper Spread, Balsamic and EVOO on a Toasted La Segunda Baguette

Oh my baby Jesus. The angels sang and somewhere, the preserved meat and cheese gods are weeping tears of joy. I may have had a "When Harry Met Sally" moment. (In the interest of full disclosure, I've been eating my own cooking since early in March, but even so, this was delicious.)

This is not Publix prosciutto, ladies and gentlemen, not even the imported stuff that costs $7 more per pound. The Serrano ham and Sopressata likewise (though I've never actually bought either of those at Publix, in the interest of full disclosure, but I'm extrapolating). Magnifico, baybee. The mozzarella was fresh and a good 1/3 of an inch thick. It actually had the taste and texture of proper mozzarella. I may have contemplated proposing marriage to the Calabrian pepper spread. As for the bread..."La Segunda baguette". That's really all that has to be said. It is the pinnacle.

Price? Well, it is in downtown Dunedin. $13 for a sandwich and chips, which is more than a similarly composed sandwich from the local Big Chain Place, but worth every penny of the difference (plus it comes with chips, which BCP's does not). Also, they're currently offering a pay-as-you-can scheme for people who are financially strapped due to the 'Roni. I didn't avail myself of it (because we're not) but it warms the cockles of my heart to contribute to the existence of a place that would do that.

Hub had a muffleta and Offspring had the Stairway to Heaven, which is turkey-bacon-ham-white-cheddar on sourdough. Those were excellent, according to Hub and Offspring, and looked every bit of it (this place uses really pretty bread!), but these two are not given to rapturous detail so you'll just have to assume.

So anyway yeah. Five stars. Go here. Buy yummy sandwiches. Be happy. Live...

I feel like I need to give this place a second try, as my first experience was probably not typical. Came in for a late lunch, place was empty, which is okay. The decor is really great, I like the music theme, and the music playing was good. The beer selection is excellent, local craft beers and not-so-local craft beers were on tap and they had a good variety of different types of brew. I was in the mood for a roast beef sandwich, but I didn't see one on the menu, not sure if they do beef. So I ordered a Cuban Sandwich, now I know Tampa puts salami on their Cubans... personally, I'm not a fan, but I wanted to give it a chance.

The sandwich was packed with meat, which made it a little difficult to bite into, especially when I opened it up and saw thick slices of prosciutto on the sandwich. That was odd, as I'd never seen prosciutto on a Cuban before. I'm not a fan of this meat, so I took it off the sandwich. While I was at it, I removed the genoa salami as well, and the sandwich was much better from there. I did ask the owner about the prosciutto and he told me it was done due to an issue they were having with getting jamón serrano, and was just a temporary substitution.

I did like the complimentary pickle/pepperoncini jar that came with the meal. In terms of pricing, considering the location of the restaurant, and quality of food, it was pretty fair. I opted to get a salad instead of chips for a $2 upcharge. Total came out to about $20 for a sandwich, side salad, and craft brew before tip.

Like I said, I feel this place deserves a second go-around for me. I've heard many people say they like it, and everything other than the stuff with the sandwich was great. Hopefully next time I go to Hop Scotch, I'll have a...

Wandering on a beautiful Saturday to find my next yelp place to try is one of my favorite things. And today filled the bill with finding a 5 star cafe.

As Brett likes to say Why 5 stars? Because if you love charcuterie this place is legit! And as a bonus, they have delicious and very unique sandwiches too.

We started with the shareable Charcuterie Platter at $18 it's enough for a meal worth generous portion sizes and a fantastic variety. There's also an individual size where you pick three and a pick seven size.

We got to choose 5 from a well curated selection of meats and cheeses. Our picks were the Serrano Ham, Hot Sopressata (like a bit spicier salami), a "good" Gouda, a nutty Parmigiana Reggiano & lovely Blue Cheese.

These paired with all the accouterments like olives, grapes, almonds, real El Segundo toasted baguette slices, cranberries & even a few slices of strawberries made for an irresistible melange.

And extra kudos for the yummy sweet stone ground & Dijon mustards and their truly outstanding homemade fig compote. Putting that compote on a slice of warm baguette & shmearing that creamy blue cheese on top was an epiphany.

That plus our delicious Caribbean inspired "St Somewhere" sandwich we shared made for an inspired lunch.

Service was great, love that it's right next door to 7venth Sun Brewery and the Hopscotch Cafe is owned by a cool husband & wife team. If you want to try something unique, off & support another great local business, go and...