MDLinDC

My wife and eight year-old son are traveling to Key West in a few weeks for 4 days. We are staying at the Crowne Plaza La Concha. I wanted to know if anyone could provide suggestions for cheap eats for breakfast and reasonable (I know that term is relative in Key West) lunch and dinner spots.

Any thoughts on the La Concha?

Thanks...Matthew

Owen_ONeill

I believe La Concha is the downtown hotel that used to be the Holiday Inn? Don't recall hearing anything negative about it in this forum and the location is certainly central but IMHO you're missing a big part of the KW experience by staying in a hotel. There are soooooo many good guesthouse facilities in KW, many of which will have pools and some of which are also kid friendly. It's woth looking into that as an option and it mayu be the same price or less than La Concha but with more intimate feel, better atmosphere and a nicer experience.

I'm not up on all the dining options but I think Pepe's is prpbably a good choice for moderatey priced meals. La Siboney is a family oriented Cuban restaurant that is very reasonably priced and a great choice for dinner. It's not cheap but Blue Heaven is a must visit, especially with kids. Go there for breakfast as it's the least expensive meal of the day there - not terribly expensive (more than Denny's but less than a hotel dining room) and really worth it.

There's a grocery/deli over near the marina on the Gulf side that has great cheeses, meats breads etc. to make a good picnic. I also love the conch fritters from the stand that is just outside the aquarium but they're only open during the day. Half Shell Raw Bar is also worth checking out if you like seafood. Very casual atmosphere and moreate prices. I was not impressed with the conch chowder and conch fritters that I had there (chowder too blandf and fritters too oily) but I keep seeing favorable reports on it so I'll guess that my experience was a fluke.

Italiano

Your Hotel is right in the middle of Duval one of the best locations. Great roof top views . Your Hotel is part of the Holiday Inn chain they may offer free breakfast for your little one. Also they have a good breakfast buffet in the morning. There is a Buger king at the foot of duval Towards Mallory squar . All other types of cheap eats you would have to drive back out to us1 buy the shopping mall area . There are some litte cuban carry out place in the interior portion of Key West that has great food .Also a good artisian bakery . My Recomendation for lunch if you want to escape the heat go to PTs late night directly across from the Half Shell Raw Bar and turtle crawls. one of the few plasces with AC lots of local hagng out there good prices and food . you walk down from tour hotel to the white Bull tavern and make a right go three block it will be on your right.The only thig I did not care for at the La Concha was the additional parking charge per day . one of the best bar is Irish kevins you could spend hours there.Ask the locals tell will tell you the non tourist trap places

Jodi

Definitely go to Blue Heaven for Brunch. It's lovely.
http://blueheavenkw.homestead.com/Bl..._Key_West.html

MDLinDC

Thanks for the recommendations. Our son is not really picky (we travel a lot and he outs a vareity of food), but I have just heard that Key West can be really expensive. I appreicate the tips.

Cheers

alex

I just returned from my 4th trip to Key West on Monday night and I can heartily second the recommendation for Pepe's. The food was very good and inexpensive. You may also want to visit Dennis Pharmacy, allegedly the real birthplace of the Cheeseburger in Paradise where you can eat at the old fashioned soda counter for just a few dollars. Finally, absolutely go to Blue Heaven! We have to eat there every time we visit, sometimes more than once. My husband could not stand a visit to Key West without the shrimp & grits served at the Sunday brunch.

bookhall

For a sampling of Key West menus, go to http://www.keywestmenu.com/ .

For a light breakfast in the morning, I'm partial to the Paradise Cafe at 1000 Eaton St. They open at 6, and stay open through lunch. Breakfast ranges from 1.50 for an order of Cuban Toast, to the steak egg and cheese sandwich for 5.75.

Overall, the sunset view from the top of your hotel is preferable to Mallory Square. You must do the Square once or twice just for the scene. But the view is better (and the ambiance a bit less frenetic) at the top of La Concha.

smileworld

If flying on AA or Continental Miami/Orlando/Tampa to KW, suggest you talk with your airline a few times beforehand - they're playing games with their service, and cancelling flights at the very last minute. Also, some weather related delays keep cropping up. The airlines's attitudes are not that helpful, especially AA in Miami. Horrible toward their passengers.

Good lunch place - Mangoes on Duval.

Blue Heaven is okay - part of the KW spirit.

Marie

Croissants de France (on Duval) ? Good croissants (baked fresh 3 times daily). Also worth mentioning that the servings of fruit are very generous. Good place for breakfast.

El Siboney's (Cuban food) - it's a walk from your hotel, but the food is good and cheap (since it's a local hangout).

BigRed

We have been on the roof of the LaConcha and it's the best part of the hotel...The Hotel has it's own website something like laconchakeywest.com or something like that..do a search on Google and I'm sure you'll find it

As far as restauarnats...below is something that I copied and pasted from another post that asked about restaurants...
La Trattoria is the best for Italian....actually it was the best place we ate at while in EYW.

El Soboney and El Meson de Pepe are both excellent Cuban choices...Siboney is more of a "down-home" Cuban experience while Pepe is touristy.

Wanted to eat at Blue Heaven...but it was closed for vacation.....I actually enjoyed Margaritaville

Seafood is good no matter where you get it in the Keys....We did the Conch Republic Seafood..and enjoyed it, but it was very typical and nothing out of the ordinary..I did like the open seating on Key West Bight

DO NOT under any circumstances go to Crabby Dicks....we were caught late one night close to there and were hungry so we tried it....Overpriced and horrible service...even if price is not a consideration, you want something good for your money. We sat out on the Balcony above Duval...which you would think would be a great location....apparently a little too far to travel for our waitress...The food was just OK....Should have known better....always steer clear of double-ententre named establishments....unless your a college-aged drunk who wants the t-shirt.

clairelong

steer clear of Margaritaville also...just a name......terrible

SusanCS

You've gotten some good advice, and I'm especially glad bookhall gave you the website of the Menu. Of the restaurants currently listed (it changes quarterly, I think) the places that are least expensive and also within walking distance of La Concha are PT's, Two Friends, the Half Shell Raw Bar, and the Schooner Wharf Bar. Dennis Pharmacy is a good idea, too.

I would advise AGAINST the Conch Republic for eating...it's mainly a drinking place and its food is mediocre at best. I'd also advise against the Cuban restaurant Pepe's which isn't great for food either. The other Pepe's (near Key West Bight) is good, but not particularly cheap. The best Cuban food is El Siboney.

alex

As a clarification, I was recommending the Pepe's at 806 Caroline, which is an American restaurant (supposedly the oldest restaurant in Key West), not El Meson de Pepe the Cuban restaurant. For breakfast and lunch at least, almost everything on the menu was under $10. Mimosas with fresh-squeezed orange juice were either $4 or $4.50. I think bloody marys were the same price.

SuzieQ

We have also done Harpoon Harry's for breakfast and I think the both of us got out of there for under $10. Its a local spot. There is also a place called the Deli on Truman Ave which I understand is also good and cheap. Have a great time.

JeanH

Interesting how people have such different food and drinking experiences. We've eaten an Conch Republic multiple times and have enjoyed most. Not great, but not terribly expensive either. We regard Schooner Wharf bar as more of a bar and don't eat there, I think we had some peel and eat shrimp once that were ok though.