Editor's Note

Tobin Bennison

Hey you! You got a problem with soccer? No? Well that’s not what I heard. A little bird told me you hate everything about the sport — the internationalism, the implied socialism of all the team play, the lack of action, “offsides,” the arcane terminology, the low scoring, the odd-sounding names of the players… Quite simply, its unforgivable foreignness. And do you know what? I hate it too. First off, why does everyone else call it “football”? Why do they... [Read more...]

Features This Month

Tobin Bennison

The Shark Pit Bar & Grill • Tobin Bennison • For all our easygoing, open-minded reputation is worth, beachside residents can certainly be a prejudiced bunch, especially when it comes to how far we’ll go for a good meal. For the majority of us, a hungry drive to the mainland becomes a... [Read more...]

Tobin Bennison

Don Ryan of Surfers for Autism • Tobin Bennison • Last September, we interviewed Surfers For Autism President Don Ryan on the eve of what proved to be a huge event for area children and families touched by autism. Autism, or ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder), is the fastest-growing developmental... [Read more...]

Vern Hobbs

Toronto • Words and photos by Vern Hobbs • “They walk among us, undetected,” warned the stoic TV reporter, thus inspiring Sheriff Bud Boomer’s ridiculous invasion of Canada. “Canadian Bacon,” the 1995 cinematic gaffe that might explain director Michael Moore’s... [Read more...]

Tobin Bennison

Derek Gores • Tobin Bennison • There’s a good chance you’ve seen some of Derek Gore’s work without realizing it. Having spent more than a decade in the corporate art world after graduating from the Rhode Island School of Design, the Melbourne-based artist has produced designs for... [Read more...]

Word On The Street

Read about local news and events from in and around the Space Coast community. Got something to post? Let us know by emailing staff@thebeachsideresident.com

Local Scribes

David Sherman

Ditch Fish • David Sherman • In years gone by, it was common practice for political candidates to hire a wagon with a band to head a parade through town. Bands being rather scarce at the time — even more so bands riding on wagons through the streets of a town — this would invariably... [Read more...]

Dan Reiter

A Thousand Island Lullaby • Dan Reiter • It is always easy going and very pleasant with a light tail wind, and if you look behind you will see a v-shaped plume rippling over water grooved like elephant hide. The stand-up paddleboard is a biblical vessel — postured, princely, weightless;... [Read more...]

Rick LaClaire

Big Sis • Rick La Claire • It may interest my readership (Hi, Mom!) to know that I have an older sister. She is six years older, to be precise, and that had a lot of advantages when I was young. As a matter of fact, it still does. When I was young, we had a built-in babysitter. She being related,... [Read more...]

Judy Forney

Spirits of 1776 • Judy Forney • … or Declaration of Interdependence … or All my Rowdy Friends are Gonna Sing Tonight If you’ve studied animated television, then you realize I ripped off my title style from old episodes of “The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.” That’s... [Read more...]

Previous Restaurant Reviews

T. Bennison

If you have trouble finding Gracie’s Café, blame Georges-Eugène Haussmann. I know it’s a stretch, and rather unfair of me to attack a man who’s been dead for 118 years, but I hold the controversial urban planner wholly responsible for obscuring one of downtown Melbourne’s best... [Read more...]

By: Tobin Bennison

They say you can’t go home again, but places like the Blueberry Muffin prove you can still get pretty darn close. Like thousands of small, independently owned restaurants scattered all over the country, Indialantic’s Blueberry Muffin acts as a home away from home for individuals throughout... [Read more...]

By: Tobin Bennison

If any nation lives up to its hospitable reputation, it’s Jamaica, and Montego Bay native Trevor Dixon is the perfect ambassador for the friendliest tropical isle in the world. To be fair, Jamaica isn’t without its share of problems, but he’s the right man to remind you of the good things;... [Read more...]

By: Tobin Bennison

Roberto’s Little Havana In Paris, it’s La Coupole. In New York, it’s the Russian Tea Room, and in London, it’s Rules. And to scores of locals and visitors, Roberto’s Little Havana is the similarly symbolic stomach of Cocoa Beach. And though some may argue in favor of other... [Read more...]

By: Tobin Bennison

Chef Matt Nugnes left much of the County feeling bereft after the hurricanes of 2004 forced him to close his revered Tropical Grill. And though that parting came with a promise to return in a different guise, it didn’t really offer much consolation. Because of the intense, almost consuming passion... [Read more...]

By: Tobin Bennison

Considering their impressive CVs, you’d think that chefs Thomas and Caroline Mannion would be involved in something more illustrious than a modest beachside deli. After all, those resumes are generously peppered with studies under a variety of culinary luminaries from Napa Valley to Paris. But... [Read more...]

By: T. Bennison

Love. Surf. Eat. You’d be hard pressed to find a motto that captures the spirit of beachside living better than that. Those three simple directives form Da Kine Diego’s guiding credo, which, while certainly catchy and pithily evocative of this area’s ingrained principles, also hides... [Read more...]

By: Tobin Bennison

In much of polite society, it’s considered somewhat rubeish to order beer with your meal. Among the wine drinking sophisticates who rule as the equally reviled and exalted archons of taste, the celestial clink of fine stemware is the only admissible sonic accompaniment for any repast. The convivial... [Read more...]

Tobin Bennison

Rubio’s Cuban Café Given the rich cultural history of Cuba, a tangled mélange of African, Spanish, Latin American, and Caribbean influences, “refinement” is probably the last word you’d expect to hear associated with its cuisine. Cuban food is, both by historical precedent... [Read more...]