The foodie scene in Florida is impressive, as it boasts multiple restaurants with Michelin stars
. In a state surrounded mostly by water, there are plenty of places to get great seafood like stone crab claws, lobster, snapper, and Key West's unexpected signature seafood dish -- conch fritters. Some of the best dining establishments in the state also come with interesting history to go along with scrumptious food, like Cap's Place Island Restaurant.This restaurant on Florida's Lighthouse Point can
only be reached by boat, and this Yelp reviewer enjoyed the journey to get there as much as the food, saying, "Best crab cakes that we have ever had, and we will be 70 years old this year! It is so so much fun to get to this rustic restaurant! You park your car in a big parking lot, and there is a water taxi that will bring you to this fun, amazing restaurant! Service, ambience, and food [are] absolutely fantastic!"
As if a boat ride and yummy food weren't enough to make it special, Cap's Place is also one of the oldest seafood restaurants in Florida. It opened in 1928 and was originally called Club Unique. It was definitely unique -- serving up interesting meals such as turtle egg pancakes with seagrape jelly. It also served as a place where folks could go to gamble, although that was illegal at that time. Smuggling liquor in from the Bahamas during Prohibition wasn't exactly lawful either, but Cap's proprietor did that, too.
Read more: Secret US Beach Towns That Rival The Caribbean
Even Celebrities Love Cap's Place Island Restaurant
With a past this colorful, it's probably no surprise that Al Capone was among its famous customers. Cap's Place has also earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places, and has become a go-to spot for many celebrities over the years. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, the Vanderbilts, the Rockefellers, George Harrison, Mariah Carey, and Joe Namath are just a few of the names you may recognize. Everyone gets treated like a star though, and reviews rave about the service. One Tripadvisor reviewer shared, "Everyone on the staff was extremely friendly. We arrived early so that we could explore the bar, but they sat us immediately. We had Bonita as a server and she made the evening. So friendly, and went out of her way to share recommendations and tell history stories."
Cap's Place is located on Lighthouse Point, which is on Florida's east coast. There aren't any hotels right in this community, but you can find places to stay within a couple of miles. If you're flying in for a visit, you can fly to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) and drive to Cap's Place in about 30 minutes. On the way, you can also stop by Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, which is Florida's beach diving capital and is where you can find a living coral reef just off the shoreline.
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Read the original article on Islands.