I took my bike on the bus to run an errand yesterday, so I had a chance to do some exploration. I found a little hot dog stand on the side of the road. This isn’t just any hot dog stand. It’s a real New York hot dog stand. I am not kidding.

There are many ex-New Yorkers here in South Florida. It seems like New Yorkers know more people here from New York than they knew when they lived in New York.

The Rangers Suck!

I hate going to Panthers-Rangers games. Half the crowd is cheering for the wrong team! I’ve seen the Panthers play against the Devils, Islanders, and Sabres, but the Rangers seem to draw the most and the worst from the Empire State. I have nothing against New York or its inhabitants, but I paid money to see a PANTHERS game!

Real New York Food?

Ever watch two New Yorkers meet for the first time? They start talking about that deli on 72nd and Broadway. Then they reminisce about the pizza and the Chinese takeout. “The pizza sucks down here. I don’t eat pizza anymore. That place Mauro’s on the corner? They suck!” If you miss the food so damn much, then go back!

You can go back to New York just by heading over to 6401 Sheridan Street in Hollywood Florida. That’s where New York transplant Elliot has set up his hot dog stand and tent. He serves up real all-beef New York hot dogs, pastrami, brisket, and knishes! Is it authentic New York food? Yes it is. Elliot has all the stuff shipped from New York. The all-beef hot dogs with the natural casings are hand-made. You get that satisfying crunch when you bite into them.

I stayed and chatted with Elliot for a while. He saw the Nikon D80 around my neck, so we chatted it up for a while. He’s a photography buff too.

During the time we chatted, 3 ex-New Yorkers came by to order some dogs. One woman was vocally skeptical until she took the first bite. “Give me another one!” she exclaimed. “This is it! This is the real deal!”

It’s the Water

Elliot went on to explain that it isn’t the water. The word on the street is that New York’s water supply is the magic ingredient that’s missing here in South Florida. Most restaurants use reverse osmosis filtration systems to cook with and to provide water for the soda machines. It’s part of the insane overhead a restaurant has. Go ahead and order the “tap” water when you go out to eat. It’s essentially the same as that bottle of Dasani you pay $2.25 for!

Elliot insists that it’s the quality of the ingredients and the level of service that distinguishes New York food from the South Florida wannabes. He further explained that the food in New York is so good because, if it wasn’t, the people would riot. New Yorkers demand the best.

New York Pizza in Florida?

Before I left, Elliot endorsed another South Florida restaurant. “I went to Angelo’s Corner down in Hollywood. I took one bite and I was like, ‘where am I?!?!’ I live by Sawgrass Mills. At $4.25 a gallon, I drove all the way to Hollywood Beach just to have a slice. The gas costs more than the pizza!”

I’m not an expert on New York pizza, but I do know Angelo’s makes a good pie. Renee and I order the large pie with fresh basil, fresh garlic, and black olives. We save on gas because there’s another Angelo’s within walking distance.

The next time you have friends visiting from New York, take them down to Coney Island Joe’s.

Coney Island Joe’s is open daily from 11am – 7pm and accessible by BCT Routes 12 and 18.

My name is Elliott Kim and I approve this message. I was not compensated for this review.

Public transit gets a bad rap in South Florida. Many people I talk to dismiss it as inconvenient and inadequate. This perception is understandable. The infrastructure was not built with public transit in mind. There are so many good reasons to use public transit. I use it as often as possible. Many of the people who dismiss public transit in South Florida have never taken the bus or the Tri-Rail. I sometimes hear a hint of snobbery when these comments are made:

1. It’s inconvenient
2. The bus doesn’t go where I need to go
3. The buses never run on time

I have taken the bus several times, and have found the above statements to be mostly false, except for number 2. Here is how someone who has actually taken several bus rides will address the above mentioned assertions:

1. “It’s inconvenient.” – Public transit doesn’t run on your schedule, but it has to run on a schedule. This complaint is often rooted in the poor planning skills of the person making the remark.
2. “The bus doesn’t go where I need to go.” – This is partially true. Some areas of Broward County aren’t serviced very well due to suburban sprawl. Generally, the routes thin out as you go farther west. However, the local municipalities here run their own FREE buses to fill in the gaps as best as they can.
3. “The buses never run on time.” – It is remarkable how well they do run on time. The routes and timetables are planned with traffic patterns in mind. When the bus is running ahead of schedule, the driver will make an extended stop to synchronize with the published timetable.

Read more after the jump…

The Limitations of Public Transit

For the sake of thoroughness, I will give some validation to the nay-sayer, albeit with real life experience behind my words. The public transit system here isn’t as robust as it is in other major metropolitan areas. Limitations exist in the timetables and the routes. In many cases, it isn’t a viable solution. Transferring to a different route can leave you waiting for up to 40 minutes for your connecting bus. Some parts of Broward County are not accessible at all.

Why Do People Resist?

Aside from the reasons stated above, most people in South Florida default to their automobiles. It’s just too easy to get in your car. You don’t have to think. God knows too little thinking goes on in Flori-DUH! The suburban landscape is not on a pedestrian scale. It’s designed for cars. We invent many excuses for not using public transit.

There seems to be a perception that “bad” people ride the bus. Most users of public transit simply cannot afford an automobile. A minority are just choosing to ride. None of the above reasons makes a person “bad.”

Public Transit Works For Me

Fortunately, two routes have stops within walking distance of my house, and a third is just over a mile away. Here are the destinations served by those routes:

• Central Terminal and connection to Tri-Rail
• Young Circle in Hollywood
• West Regional Terminal
• The beach!
• Stops along University Drive
• Connection to Miami-Dade’s transit system

The terminals and Young Circle offer connections to several routes. Central terminal is in downtown Fort Lauderdale. If a bus route near your home goes to any of the destinations named above, you’re very well covered.

Your reach is extended even further if you have a bicycle. All Broward County Transit buses are equipped with bicycle racks. Many of the community buses run by each city have them too. As an added bonus, those community buses are free! To take your bike on the Tri-Rail, you will however need to purchase a bicycle permit.

Back in my single days, I would go out to the bars on weekends. There have been times I was not fit to drive. I did the responsible thing and called a cab. The following morning, I took the bus to retrieve my car. Cab fare, a parking ticket, and bus fare sure beats a DUI, risking my life, and the lives of others.

The Benefits of Using Public Transit

For short trips, the cost savings is a wash. For a longer trip, the bus wins. $1.25 can take you up to 20 miles. The last time you got that out of your car, Lyndon B. Johnson was President. Every time we fill up, we think of it as one big recurring expense. Gas is an incremental expense. You burn fuel (and money) while driving, idling your engine, and when starting your car. Every time you take the bus is one more day you can put off filling up your tank. There are many benefits to using public transit:

• Reduce fossil fuel consumption and emissions
• Reduce congestion on the roads
• Create and sustain economic opportunities

Here are the benefits that directly affect you:

• Reduce wear and tear on your vehicle
• Eliminate your own risk as a vehicle operator
• You don’t have to pay for parking
• You can read a book or write in your journal
• You can take a catnap
• You can chat with people
• Your older children don’t have to mooch off you as much for transportation
• You don’t have to endure the stress of driving during rush hour
• Some walking is necessary, so you’ll get exercise
• Save money

In many cases, taking the bus does take more time than if you had driven yourself. Also consider the activities that aren’t available to you while you drive. You certainly can’t read a book, write in your journal, or take a catnap while driving. Ironically, you don’t see people talking on cell phones, putting on makeup, or fumbling with fast food while riding the bus.

Using mass transit takes a little effort and planning, but it’s well worth it.

~elliott

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I have been a faithful listener of Live365 Internet radio. (They offer a FREE basic membership, with ads. But if you want to get a VIP membership with them, send me email and I’ll send you a 30% off referral.) They have an excellent variety of stations–everything from Downtempo Electronica to Barber Shop Quartet! I enjoy a somewhat obscure collection of electronic music, with brief ventures into “new wave” music from the 80′s and 90′s. And I have about 15 hours of music in my iPod. But I still get bored with my music library. So internet radio is good for me. But even that gets stale. (I already recognize the rotations there, too!)

So today I went to Digitally Imported to hear something different. I saw an interesting text link, so I decided to check it out. I was very impressed at what I saw.

Pandora allows you to create your own stations, based on artists you like. Then it asks for your feedback on EACH SONG. It even allows you to skip past the song that is currently playing.

They offer a beautiful explanation of their name:

The name Pandora means “all gifted” in Greek. In ancient Greek mythology, Pandora received many gifts from the Gods, including the gift of music, from Apollo. She was also, as we all know, very curious. Unlike those Gods of old, however, we celebrate that virtue and have made it our mission to reward the musically curious among us with a never-ending experience of music discovery.

Here is an example of how the songs are displayed. (See the little “thumbs up” marks on the 1st two?)

The ONLY thing I don’t like about it is that you cannot play it through iTunes. We use the Apple AirPort Express with Air Tunes to stream music from iTunes to remote speakers. So unless the music can be played through iTunes, I have to manually connect the speakers to my computer. But other than that, I’m very pleased. It’s always nice to find new ways of consuming the life force of MUSIC! Thank goodness for broadband!

~renee