The good news is that the Tampa foodie blogosphere is in great shape. When I started Eating Tampa a couple of years ago on Blogger Laura Reiley wasn’t writing for the St. Pete Times, Creative Loafing’s food page was thin and opaque, the Culinary Sherpas didn’t have a page, there was no GNAtv, Louis Loves Food, or Happy Housewife. Today there is so much wonderful content covering bay area food, this site can safely mutate into something else.

And that’s the plan. While I probably won’t be updating this page any more Eating Tampa will remain in a new format. Any food writing I do will go to the main page at re/creating tampa. Eating Tampa will transform into a wiki. Think wikipedia but for Tampa food. Eventually I’ll build a wiki that covers all of Tampa, but Tampa food will be the first parts I add.

With any luck the Eating Tampa wiki will launch by the middle of May.

She sees it as a sign of the weak economy. I see it as a sign of sanity finally getting a toehold in the restaurateur’s mind.

While doing some research I discovered the following, ripping the lid off the lies that have been spread by the all-powerful bread lobby for centuries.

BREAD IS DANGEROUS

Why? Judge for yourself:
Research on bread indicates that

1. More than 98 percent of convicted felons are bread users.

2. Fully HALF of all children who grow up in bread-consuming households score below average on standardized tests.

3. In the 18th century, when virtually all bread was baked in the home, the average life expectancy was less than 50 years; infant mortality rates were unacceptably high; many women died in childbirth; and diseases such as typhoid, yellow fever, and influenza ravaged whole nations.

4. More than 90 percent of violent crimes are committed within 24 hours of eating bread.

5. Bread is made from a substance called “dough.” It has been proven that as little as one pound of dough can be used to suffocate a mouse. The average American eats more bread than that in one month!

6. Primitive tribal societies that have no bread exhibit a low incidence of cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and osteoporosis.

7. Bread has been proven to be addictive. Subjects deprived of bread and given only water to eat begged for bread after as little as two days.

8. Bread is often a “gateway” food item, leading the user to “harder” items such as butter, jelly, peanut butter, and even cold cuts.

9. Bread has been proven to absorb water. Since the human body is more than 90 percent water, it follows that eating bread could lead to your body being taken over by this absorptive food product, turning you into a soggy, gooey bread-pudding person.

10. Newborn babies can choke on bread.

11. Bread is baked at temperatures as high as 400 degrees Fahrenheit! That kind of heat can kill an adult in less than one minute.

12. Most American bread eaters are utterly unable to distinguish between significant scientific fact and meaningless statistical babbling.

In light of these frightening statistics, it has been proposed that the following bread restrictions be made:

1. No sale of bread to minors.

2. A nationwide “Just Say No To Toast” campaign, complete celebrity TV spots and bumper stickers.

3. A 300 percent federal tax on all bread to pay for all the societal ills we might associate with bread.

4. No animal or human images, nor any primary colors (which may appeal to children) may be used to promote bread usage.

5. The establishment of “Bread-free” zones around schools.

(H/T Dark Roasted Blend)

I also want to thank everyone for the kind things you said about Eating Tampa – Thanks!

After hearing such nice things I feel guilty about neglecting this page for so long. I’m going to blame February. February is my low-energy month. After finishing up our home repairs just in time to host a party for Jennifer’s professional colleagues, then catching up on all the homework I put aside in preparing the house, I just didn’t have the energy to do much of anything.

But, now the homework is under control, and Spring is just around the corner. It’s time to get back to the blogging way of life. To start, let’s take a spin around the local blogosphere and see what’s happening.

First, congratulations to Jaden Hair at Steamy Kitchen. The UK Times Online selected Steamy Kitchen as one of “50 of the world’s best food blogs – modern Asian cuisine by media savvy blogger.” Jaden has also just about finished her cookbook, which we’re all eagerly anticipating. (h/t BR)

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Green Eggs Marketing has a snazzy new design. Check out his review of the Bahama Breeze bathrooms, and review of the recently opened Ocean Prime.

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Alexandra Zayas at the St. Pete Times wonders if 6 new restaurants in Seminole Heights is too many. As a resident of Seminole Heights I think I can field this one. No.

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Culinary Sherpa Chef Greg Baker will be showing off his skills Feb. 27. Call now for reservations.

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It didn’t take long for the Creative Loafing Food & Drink page to become the best food resource site in the Tampa Bay area. It’s not perfect, but they’ve done a tremendous job in a short time. I think the next thing they’re going to work on will be the Good Eats database of restaurant reviews.

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Laura Reiley has the scoop on the James Beard finalists which include local restaurants Bern’s and Z Grille.

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And don’t forget to look for more of my food-related stuff at Creative Loafing. I try to keep the content over there different from the content here.

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Jaden cooks some Kobe steak burgers on CBS.

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“Find farmers’ markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area” at Local Harvest.

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Michael Pollan is disappointed with Obama’s choice of Vilsack for Secretary of Agriculture.

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Alex checks out the hot dog stand in front of Home Depot on Florida.

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For those who were real Merinos Deli food lovers, allow me to add more info to why Merinos went out of business.

The new owner found a clause in our lease that gave him permission to open a used car lot. Well, that took up any and all the remaining parking spaces.

He knew exactly what he was doing as my rent was at a very reasonable amount and he wanted to raise it, knowing all too well before he obtained the building what I paid per month.

Essentially he stabbed me in the back!

If your interested, I am doing well, however I am seeking a job like so many others out there in the country.

Hopefully, one day I will be back in the hood with a bigger and better restaurant.

If you have some money and want to be a partner in a successful Merinos, e-mail me at merino1951 AT aol.com and we can talk about it.

The business is a good one, but it takes money, not that much, but in order to be successful you have to have cash flow.

I welcome all seekers!

Thanks for hearing me out!
Mike Merino

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Here’s the review from 2007 shortly after Merino’s opened.

Merino’s Deli also won in the Best Deli category in the Eating Tampa 2008 Reader’s Poll.

I wish Mike all the best and hope he finds his way to opening another shop. The closing of his store was a real loss to the neighborhood.

They didn’t really say if they liked the burgers. St. Pete Times food critic Laura Reiley, however, selected Square One as one of her Best 100 Restaurants in Bay area.

Here’s the site for Square One.

Square One got a thumbs up when I reviewed it last year, but my last visit was pretty disappointing.

2 pounds thick cut bacon
2 pounds Italian sausage
1 jar of your favorite barbeque sauce
1 jar of your favorite barbeque rub

aka – The Bacon Explosion.

I like the way the bacon strips have to be woven together -

“A wild female Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin was observed going through a series of complicated steps to prepare cuttlefish for eating in the Spencer Gulf, in South Australia.”

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“The dolphin then lifted the body up and beat it with her nose to drain the toxic black ink that cuttlefish squirt into the water to defend themselves when attacked.”

“Next the prey was taken back to the seafloor, where the dolphin scraped it along the sand to strip out the cuttlebone, making the cuttlefish soft for eating.”

“Many franchisees are suing over excessive fees, overly-expensive products and expensive supply contracts among other complaints, he said.”