Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
374
salads $5-$15. AE, DC, DISC, MC, V. Bernard's Mon-Fri 4-10pm; Sat 4-11pm. Fischer's Mon-Fri 11am-
10pm; Sat 11am-11pm. Closed Christmas.
The Mango Tree
CONTINENTAL Gourmet seafood, pastas, and chicken are
served in a plantation-home atmosphere with elegant furnishings in this stucco house,
the finest dining venue around. Although the ambience borders on tourist-tacky, the
restaurant is rather picturesque. Indoor goldfish ponds and an outdoor waterfall splash-
ing into a koi pond in the gardens provide pleasing backdrops. Start with Indian River
crab cakes, and then go on to the chef 's expert spin on roast Long Island duckling, beef
tips with peppercorn-mushroom sauce, or other excellent dishes drawing their inspira-
tion from the Continent.
118 N. Atlantic Ave. (Fla. A1A, btw. N. 1st and N. 2nd sts.), Cocoa Beach.
&
321/799-0513.
www.themango
treerestaurant.com. Reservations recommended. Main courses $16-$38. AE, MC, V. Tues-Sun 6-10pm.
Rusty's Seafood & Oyster Bar
Value
SEAFOOD This lively sports bar beside
Port Canaveral's man-made harbor serves inexpensive chow ranging from spicy seafood
gumbo to a pot of seafood that will give two people their fill of steamed oysters, clams,
shrimp, crab legs, potatoes, and corn on the cob. Raw or steamed fresh oysters and clams
from the raw bar are first-rate and a good value, as is a weekday lunch buffet. Seating is
indoors or out, but the inside tables have the best view of the fishing boats and cruise
liners going in and out of the port. Daily happy hour from 3 to 6pm offers beers drafted
at 60¢ a mug, and tons of raw or steamed oysters and spicy Buffalo wings go for 25¢
each. The joint is busy and sometimes noisy, especially on weekend afternoons, but the
clientele tends to be older and better behaved than those at other pubs along the banks
of Port Canaveral. There's another
Rusty's
in the Bernard's Surf/Fischer's Seafood Bar &
Grill restaurant complex in Cocoa Beach (see above).
628 Glen Cheek Dr. (south side of the harbor), Port Canaveral.
&
321/783-2033.
www.rustysseafood.
com. Main courses $14-$30; sandwiches and salads $5-$12. AE, DC, DISC, MC, V. Sun-Thurs 11am-
11:30pm; Fri-Sat 11am-12:30am (lunch buffet Mon-Fri 11am-2pm).
10
3
DAYTONA BEACH
54 miles NE of Orlando
Daytona Beach is a town with many personalities. It is at once the self-proclaimed
“World's Most Famous Beach” and “World Center of Racing,” a mecca for tattooed
motorcyclists and pierced spring-breakers (though it lost its Spring Break crown to
Panama City Beach),
and
the home of a surprisingly good art museum. Though the city
and developers spent millions of dollars to turn the somewhat seedy beachfront area
(complete with the requisite T-shirt and souvenir shops) around the famous Main Street
Pier into Ocean Walk Village, a redevelopment area of shops, entertainment, and resort
facilities, there's still something bleak and seedy about Daytona's famous strip. Many of
its '70s-style beachfront condos and hotels are still decrepit, run-down, and badly in need
of a face-lift. In due time, I hope. Thank goodness for Ponce Inlet, a scenic fishing village
that has seemingly remained impervious to development.
Racing fans, however, don't care what the place looks like. Daytona Beach has been a
destination for racing enthusiasts since the early 1900s, when “horseless carriages” raced
on the hard-packed sand beach. One thing is for sure: Daytonans still love their cars.
Recent debate over the environmental impact of unrestricted driving on the beach caused
