15th Street Fisheries

Today we rode south just a bit and had lunch at the 15th Street Fisheries at Lauderdale Marina. It is an old established eatery located right on the Intracoastal Waterway. They have a website with their menus, check it out. http://www.15streetfisheries.com/index.html

People arrive by boat, personal water craft, and water taxi as well as cars and two wheels. We took a picture of someone’s Kymco scooter, brand new, nice silver one, with a case on the back that had a sticker saying Tow Away US so we think it probably belonged to one of the guys that worked for one of the many towing companies that park at the marina. We saw about a half dozen tow boats hanging around, guess they are waiting for someone to need their services.

Along with great food you can watch the boat traffic on the waterway, admire the mansions and the happenings at the marina.

The restaurant is quite large and has several unique areas. We ate at one of the outdoor patios. It has glass squares in the flooring so one can watch the fish swim under your feet. Pretty neat! And a wide open view of the Intracoastal waterway and the 17th Street Causeway bridge.

There are upstairs dining rooms that are more formal with great views of the Intracoastal. And a downstairs dining room as well as another outside patio dining area on the other side of the restaurant.

We started with an order of oysters on the half shell and have to say that they were some of the best we have had this season. Then we had grilled shrimp and lobster kabobs with small whole mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and pineapple pieces served over rice. Very tasty. Then we could not resist a chocolate torte for dessert. We are sure that we left there several pounds heavier, fortunately our Vespa 150’s had no trouble hauling us home.


Just outside the front entrance is a small fish pond with beautiful Japanese Koi fish. Some of them are quite large and so very colorful. We took a few photos of them.







This weekend we have a nice long 3 days so hopefully we can get some riding in. The weather is not too great in the afternoons so we try to ride in the mornings. Today we were lucky in that we got home right before 4PM and the bottom dropped out with thunder and lightening at 4. Talk about good timing.

Dania Beach

Dania Beach is a small seaside community that was originally a settlement called Modello inhabited mostly by Danish people. Then in 1904 the town was incorporated and since the 35 families living there were Danes, they renamed their village Dania. Unfortunately disaster stuck the area in the form of fires, embezzlers and a devastating hurricane in 1926.

For years between the 1020’s and 1940 Dania was known as the “tomato capital of the world”. But that too faded and slowly the area has become known for its antiques. The town has a wealth of historic architecture and a variety of architectural styles. People come from all over to shop the antiques.

In 1998 the city commission changed the name to Dania Beach to capitalize on its miles of natural beaches. There is a very nice slide presentation showcasing Dania Beach at this link: http://www.ci.dania-beach.fl.us/index.asp?nid=108

The marine industry is booming in Dania Beach and we stopped by one of the marinas to look at this racing boat. Nice to look at but a bit too pricey for our wallet and too fast for our taste. Right now 40 mph on the Vespas seems to be our limit.

The beaches are beautiful and the most natural of the area as the over development of high rises has not yet invaded these beaches. Hopefully they can retain the quaint natural quality of their beaches.

On the beach side is the fishing pier with a bait shop and a brand new restaurant with 2 bars. Here is a nice photo that I got from the Dania Beach website. The restaurant, called Beach Watch has their own website at this link, http://beach-watch.com/ We have not tried it yet but it is on our list of things to do in Dania Beach. This photo does not show the dining area over the water so visit their website to see it. They are promoting a Valentine's Day dinner and the menu is making our mouths water as we write. Read it and you will want to hop on down.



Along the Intracoastal they have a nice long boardwalk and parks for families to enjoy. They come with their kids to fish from the walkways or watch the boats go by or someone water skiing. It is such an non-commercialized area, no one is trying to sell you something, everyone is just there for the peaceful atmosphere. There are picnic tables and bar-b-ques so families can bring their picnics and cook out.

Dania Beach also has a famous State Park, which is another post. Hope you enjoyed this one. Happy and Safe Riding.