Sarasota, Floridas best kept restaurant secrets

Sarasota, Florida’s Best Kept Restaurant Secrets: Three Town Favorites, By Price

Sarasota, Florida is full of great dining spots and continues to blossom as the years go by. To name all of the great restaurants in Sarasota would take up an entire book. But no matter how many hot new menus appear on the city’s hot list, no matter what venues are the latest award winners in atmosphere, cuisine and service, there will always be a few of those city’s best kept secrets that only the natives are keen to. A few of the best, in order of price, are illustrated below.

$ Super Cheap. Patellini’s Pizza.

Patellini’s is located on Main Street, right in the center of the city’s small downtown center. You can buy pizza by the slice or the pie, along with an Array of other fast Italian meals. Patellini’s has always been an unspoken hot spot for the areas artists and traveling hippie crews, as well as the well-informed Sarasota’s elite class. This is probably because of the open-minded friendly personality that the owner, who seems to be always working, exudes. You can tell that he truly wants to hear the what the people of the town are up to and he is the kind of guy that would give any wandering homeless person a free soda. Patellini’s is a great option for those visiting the downtown area’s musical attractions, or for those who find themselves venturing out to gaze at the boats in the marina (just a short walk from the joint). Additionally, Patellini’s is open later than the other quick serve restaurants in the downtown area, which is always a huge selling point. Oh, and not to mention, fantastic, one of a kind pizza.

$$ Moderately Cheap: El Greco

Also on Main Street, but in a more easterly direction than Patellini’s. Especially famous for its gyros, El Greco is a classic Greek restaurant that has been around for ages and is known for its exceptional Greek cuisine. Though the atmosphere is fairly undesirable (it is very cheap looking, almost cafeteria-like, and no music) the food far outweighs the awkwardness. It is so indescribably fantastic that one forgets the fact that they can hear the conversations of every other patron the very instant the warm complimentary bread is placed upon the table. All of the recipes are true to the classic Greek style and served accordingly. You can get anything from a shot of Greek coffee to Avgo Lemono (chicken lemon), their infamous soup. A great fulfilling combination is a Greek salad with a cheese Stromboli. The Stromboli