Not to brag or anything, but us Floridians are pretty darn lucky. I mean, we get to live in tropical paradise and food paradise. From the freshest seafood around to the most authentic Cuban food outside of Havana, you best believe that Florida residents are doing some good eatin’.
It’s too bad that sometimes life has the nerve to take you out of Florida and transplant you somewhere with no beach and all four seasons. And while we can’t FedEx you a bottle of Florida sunshine, we can remind you of all the amazing foods you’ll get to eat when you’re back in town.
1. Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
If wasn’t squeezed five minutes ago, then it’s not real OJ. Get outta here with your Tropicana nonsense.
2. Stone Crabs
Stone crabs are basically lobster’s cooler, hipper cousins that don’t try so hard to be popular. Extra mustard sauce, please.
3. Cuban Sandwiches
Two kinds of meat, pickles, cheese, and mustard all pressed together on perfectly toasted, yet soft bread. One bite of this sandwich and you’ll be hearing a hallelujah chorus.
4. Mojitos
We can thank the Cuban population for this cocktail, too. True Floridians know that mojitos taste especially good on an 88 degree November afternoon, because that’s totally a thing in Florida.
5. Publix Subs
Publix does exist in other states, but every Floridian knows that Pub subs taste best when eaten with a view of the ocean.
6. Conch Fritters
Like the conch in that episode of Spongebob, conch fritters must be magic because they taste so freakin’ good. Oh, and all Florida natives know that it’s pronounced “kongk”.
7. Key Lime Pie
The perfect combination of sweet and tangy — kinda like Taylor Swift.
8. Plantains
Sweet, fried, or sliced into chips, you can always judge a Cuban restaurant by how good their plantains are.
9. Alligator
Okay, so you’re probably not craving gator on the reg, but knowing that you could eat it if you wanted to is pretty cool.
10. Mangoes
If you’re in Florida during mango season, be prepared for neighbors, friends, and even strangers to gift you bags of mangoes. THEY’RE EVERYWHERE.
11. Ice Cream 24/7/365
With our weather alternating between hot as hell and slightly less hot than hell, we’ve got an excuse to eat ice cream all the time.
12. Mahi Mahi
AKA dolphin, but not as in Flipper. Yeah, we still don’t get it either, but it tastes awesome in fish tacos so whatever.
13. Avocado
“When in doubt, add avocado” is truly our state motto. Your tiny California avocados have got nothin’ on our giant Florida variety. #sizematters
14. Pastelitos de Guayaba
You’d never expect guava and cheese to go together, but this duo is totally killin’ the pastry game.
15. Starfruit
I guess you could say that Florida has some pretty ~stellar~ food. It’s seriously outta this world.