Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
373
The Inn at Cocoa Beach Despite having 50 units, this seaside inn has an
intimate B&B ambience and is far and away the most romantic place in the area. Owner
Karen Simpler, a skilled interior decorator, has furnished each unit with an elegant mix
of pine, tropical, and French country pieces. Rooms in the three- and four-story build-
ings are much more spacious and have better sea views from their balconies than the
“standard” units in the original two-story motel wing (all but six units here have balco-
nies or patios). The older units open onto a courtyard with a pool tucked behind the
dunes. Highest on the romance scale are the two rooms with Jacuzzi tubs and easy chairs.
Guests are treated to continental breakfast, afternoon tea, and evening wine and cheese.
There's also an honor bar where you can pour your own drinks, and a library from which
to feed your head.
4300 Ocean Blvd., Cocoa Beach, FL 32932. & 800/343-5307 or 321/799-3460. Fax 321/784-8632. www.
theinnatcocoabeach.com. 50 units. $125-$325 double. Rates include continental breakfast and after-
noon tea. AE, DISC, MC, V. No children 11 or under accepted. Amenities: Bar (guests only); heated out-
door pool; sauna. In room: A/C, TV.
Riverview Hotel Right on the Intracoastal Waterway in New Smyrna Beach,
the Riverview Hotel, a former fishing and hunting shack for sportsmen scoping the
Indian River Lagoon, is a spectacularly restored hotel featuring a 5,000-square-foot spa
complete with mineral pool. There's jazz on the deck every night and a fabulous restau-
rant to boot, the Grille at Riverview. Some rooms have private patios or porches; all are
immaculate, charming, and stocked with modern amenities. If I had a choice, however,
I'd go for the cottage or house with private pool, which are bargains at $200 to $250!
103 Flagler Ave., New Smyrna Beach, FL 32169. & 800/945-7416 or 386/428-5858. Fax 321/423-8927.
www.riverviewhotel.com. 18 units. $110-$125 double; $170 suite; $175 private cottage; $225 3-bedroom
house for up to 4 people. Rates include expanded continental breakfast. AE, DISC, MC, V. Amenities:
Restaurant; free bikes, heated pool; sauna; spa; Wi-Fi. In room: A/C, TV.
WHERE TO DINE IN COCOA BEACH
On the Cocoa Beach Pier (www.cocoabeachpier.com), at the beach end of Meade Ave-
nue, you'll get a fine view down the coast to accompany the seafood offerings at Atlantic
Ocean Grill ( & 321/783-7549 ) and the mediocre pub fare at adjacent Marlins Good
Times Bar & Grill (same phone). The restaurants may not justify spending an entire
evening on the pier, but the outdoor, tin-roofed Mai Tiki Bar , where live music plays
most nights, is a prime spot to have a cold one while watching the surfers or a sunset.
Bernard's Surf/Fischer's Seafood Bar & Grill SEAFOOD/STEAK Photos on
the walls testify that many astronauts come to these adjoining establishments to celebrate
their landings. It started as Bernard's Surf in 1948, serving standard steak-and-seafood
fare in a nautical setting. The present Bernard's offers specials such as stone-crab claws,
chargrilled red snapper, and a belly-busting platter of shrimp, scallops, grouper, crab
cakes, lobster, and oysters. You can even get Russian beluga or sevruga caviar, if you so
desire. The fresh seafood also finds its way into Fischer's Seafood Bar & Grill, a Cheers -
like lounge popular with locals. The menu here features fried combo platters and mussels
with a wine sauce over pasta, as well as burgers and other pub fare. It has the same 25¢
happy-hour oysters and spicy wings as a branch of Rusty's Seafood & Oyster Bar (see
below), also part of this complex.
2 S. Atlantic Ave. (at Minuteman Causeway Rd.), Cocoa Beach. & 321/783-2401. www.geocities.com/
bernardsseafood and www.geocities.com/fischersseafood. Reservations recommended in Bernard's, not
accepted in Fischer's. Bernard's main courses $8-$40. Fischer's main courses $6-$20; sandwiches and
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