About an hour's drive southwest of Gainesville, the tiny enclave of Cedar Key is a quaint, old-fashioned, Old Florida vacation spot – one that offers lovely beaches, productive fishing opportunities and lush natural preserves.It's a place that's short on traffic lights and long on relaxation. Cedar Key's houses and stores perch above the Gulf of Mexico on stilts, with the water lapping at their bellies. It's easy to find a tasty clam chowder and a cold brew in Cedar Key. (Visit Florida)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - personal notes & photos - - - - - - - - - - -
Cedar Key is one our Florida trips 'list'... It is "old Florida". Narrow streets lined with shops, locals and tourists, neat cafes and dining at a slower pace. Cedar Key is a clamming, fishing, and an artist village with a tourist trade. The tourism is seasonal and most visitors are looking for a low key sort of vacation. Richard and Sharleen were looking to get together, and we thought this would be a good full day trip. Travel was a little over 2 hours and we all caught up with each other during the drive.
Once we turned off Rt19 north onto Rt 24 west ... well 24 miles later we entered Cedar Key. As we parked, we saw marine police at the small marina (and came to learn, they were extracting one of the three bodies from a small place crash into the Gulf reported two days earlier. We walked the street and found a General Store that served freshly ground coffee - delicious!
Finishing coffee we proceeded walking the main street (but were somewhat disappointed) and realized much had changed as a result of the major tropical storm that saw major storm water destroying much of the businesses. Getting close to noon, and feeling hungry, I had found a popular eating establishment a few blocks away - Tony's that was well know for Cedar Key clam chowder - a must try!. We ordered Poo Boys, Shrimp sandwiches (both to split) and clam chowder.
Oh, our 'professional' server did not have a clue what fish was part of the Poo Boy, delivered the sandwiches BEFORE the soup, never brought drinks and never served condiments we requested. As Ginger and I waited for dressings and soup, our food (after 15 minutes) got cold, I walked up to the kitchen and politely shared "our food is cold, we do not have condiments, we did not receive our ordered soup or all the drinks. (they apologized, removed what was served, re-ordered hot food and all turned out fine - oh, the Potvin's had finished their meal and were served a second!
Suggested Photo Opportunities:
Place(s) to East ... Tony's Chowder
Resources:
Wiki ... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedar_Key,_Florida
Cedar Key ... www.visitflorida.com/places-to-go/north-central/cedar-key/
Historic B&B ... www.islandhotel-cedarkey.com/
- - - - - - - - - - - - - personal notes & photos - - - - - - - - - - -
Cedar Key is one our Florida trips 'list'... It is "old Florida". Narrow streets lined with shops, locals and tourists, neat cafes and dining at a slower pace. Cedar Key is a clamming, fishing, and an artist village with a tourist trade. The tourism is seasonal and most visitors are looking for a low key sort of vacation. Richard and Sharleen were looking to get together, and we thought this would be a good full day trip. Travel was a little over 2 hours and we all caught up with each other during the drive.
Once we turned off Rt19 north onto Rt 24 west ... well 24 miles later we entered Cedar Key. As we parked, we saw marine police at the small marina (and came to learn, they were extracting one of the three bodies from a small place crash into the Gulf reported two days earlier. We walked the street and found a General Store that served freshly ground coffee - delicious!
Finishing coffee we proceeded walking the main street (but were somewhat disappointed) and realized much had changed as a result of the major tropical storm that saw major storm water destroying much of the businesses. Getting close to noon, and feeling hungry, I had found a popular eating establishment a few blocks away - Tony's that was well know for Cedar Key clam chowder - a must try!. We ordered Poo Boys, Shrimp sandwiches (both to split) and clam chowder.
Oh, our 'professional' server did not have a clue what fish was part of the Poo Boy, delivered the sandwiches BEFORE the soup, never brought drinks and never served condiments we requested. As Ginger and I waited for dressings and soup, our food (after 15 minutes) got cold, I walked up to the kitchen and politely shared "our food is cold, we do not have condiments, we did not receive our ordered soup or all the drinks. (they apologized, removed what was served, re-ordered hot food and all turned out fine - oh, the Potvin's had finished their meal and were served a second!
Suggested Photo Opportunities:
- Main Street shops and restaurants
- Cedar Key from pier - up the road and back towards town
- Historic Hotel (interior and exterior)
Place(s) to East ... Tony's Chowder
Resources:
Wiki ... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedar_Key,_Florida
Cedar Key ... www.visitflorida.com/places-to-go/north-central/cedar-key/
Historic B&B ... www.islandhotel-cedarkey.com/
