663306 Thu Oct 29 11:44:56 -0700 2009 31 10 Florida 0 5140731 There's a pretty decent dead space between Orlando and I-10, etc. The people from North Florida probably aren't going to drive to central florida to eat, nor are the south floridians driving up north, etc. Am I alone on this? I'd love to see a CF/NF/SF breakdown on threads! Thu Oct 29 11:44:56 -0700 2009 1115783 askdrtodd 1 5140738 Like: Pensacola to Jax and as far south as Gainesville - North Ocala down to Sarasota (west) and Vero (east) - Central Then Naples, Miami, WPB, etc all in South? Thu Oct 29 11:47:34 -0700 2009 5140731 1115783 askdrtodd 2 5140776 Yep, I agree. Thu Oct 29 11:57:36 -0700 2009 5140738 140388 TIGirl 1 5141118 NW: N of Orlando, including Gainseville, but not the east coast. NE Coastal: Jacksonville to Vero Beach I-4 Corridor: Kissimmee, Orlando, Sanford, Deltona SW: Everything SW of Orlando, including the Bay Area (Tampa and St. Petersburg) Palm Beach to Ft. Pierce Broward County Dade County & the Keys It is the fourth most populated state. The Florida Population Map and the Topographic Map help in understanding the divisions. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Florida_population_map.png http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Florida_topographic_map-en.jpg The Most Populous Metro Areas http://www.stateofflorida.com/Portal/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=95 Thu Oct 29 14:04:51 -0700 2009 5140731 110655 Floridian 1 5141146 I don't agree that Naples should be in the South Fl region. Maybe a west coast Fl section which could include the Keys. South Fl should just be the Tri County area. Thu Oct 29 14:14:34 -0700 2009 5140731 22559 smartie 2 5141243 We had a conversation about this a month or two ago. I would very much like to keep the board together. I regularly eat in different parts of the state. Also, I don't really understand what is so burdensome about scrolling. If the board were more active, I would understand. As it is, if you check in every couple of days you barely have to scroll a full page. What is the rationale for splitting the board? Thu Oct 29 14:45:55 -0700 2009 5141146 87905 CFishman 3 5141327 I like the board the way it is. Most of the time when tourists come on it they think it's a Miami board anyway lol Thu Oct 29 15:18:38 -0700 2009 5141243 60784 rhnault 2 5141258 If Naples is 2 hours away from Miami, I'm okay with South Florida including Naples since West Palm Beach is also 2 hours away from Miami. But anything north of it should be closer to Tampa. And I would definitely object if Broward County was separated from Miami-Dade County. There's enough people going between the two counties to keep those threads together. Thu Oct 29 14:53:25 -0700 2009 5141146 101012 mialebven 2 5144736 I agree with you. Estero is only a little over a half hour drive from Naples and a lot of people probably go there from Naples to go to the outlet/shop just as people who are in Estero may want to go to Naples to find something to eat. It just doesn't make sense to lump Naples with S. FL when the other main cities in the group are at least a 2-hour drive away with pretty much nothing in between to enjoy. I just get tired of everyone assuming this is a S. FL/Miami board. I'd probably be happy with some requirement to list the city in question in the title. I don't check this page on a daily basis because there is so much S. FL stuff and often times end up missing posts in my area as a result. Sat Oct 31 05:56:36 -0700 2009 5141146 107671 queencru 3 5144790 I agree if they don't split the Fl board then at least make it so that we must put the city or at least the county in the title, On another note the subsection for Florida is Miami, South Beach and Jacksonville! What's that about? South Beach is Miami for starters and there is a fair old bit of land between Jax and Miami so it's a stupid subtitle. Sat Oct 31 06:43:56 -0700 2009 5144736 22559 smartie 4 5144889 I hadn't even noticed that. It's a little odd since Orlando is a huge tourist destination and at least in between Jacksonville and Miami. Sat Oct 31 07:56:38 -0700 2009 5144790 107671 queencru 3 5153479 I agree with this. I live in South Florida, and I don't think to myself "hey I want to go eat at so and so in Naples this weekend..." however, I do think about going to Miami and Palm Beach for dinner. Tue Nov 03 16:18:38 -0800 2009 5144736 78989 CmdrTulkas 1 5141378 I am in complete agreement that Florida should be Divided to North, South East, and South West(Which could include Orlando and other Central locations) Thu Oct 29 15:38:37 -0700 2009 5140731 292415 SaminSFL 2 5141394 Just happened to notice this surfing around and thought of a great line by a humor writer fifty years ag who, while in Pensacola, referred to to panhandle as "Unoccupied Florida." I think he was pining for a past Thu Oct 29 15:44:43 -0700 2009 5141378 107060 hazelhurst 1 5141447 I would be happy if people put the city /region they are asking about in their title, or if Chowhound could come with a way to make people choose a city/region when they post. I am afraid that splitting the state up would cause confusion. Thu Oct 29 16:08:36 -0700 2009 5140731 93147 Miss E 1 5141478 I don't think it's necessary; I wish everyone would put the area in their original post, but you can't teach people to use their heads all the time. I scroll down and read the posts for the Tampa Bay area. No biggie. Thu Oct 29 16:22:36 -0700 2009 5140731 203076 Manderley 1 5141812 I would love to see a split like this, I am often finding reviews of hotspots from the southeast where the reviewer just seem to assume that everything on the board is about the southeast and don't need to identify their recommendation by location. and I tend to stay in the gulf coast area being from the bay area. Thu Oct 29 18:59:06 -0700 2009 5140731 68779 willdupre 2 5142417 Agreed. I think splitting it into more than 3 or 4 regions would be counterproductive, and I have a feeling it might generate more "local community" (albeit it could get pretty remote) interest. If I were a foodie new to CH, and I wanted to find good grub in Miami, I'd greatly prefer a "South Florida" category, etc. Fri Oct 30 06:10:56 -0700 2009 5141812 1115783 askdrtodd 1 5142642 I live in Fernandina Beach in far northeastern FLA. We're practically in Georgia. But I would like to keep the FLA Board in one piece. Here's why: the Board is not very big as it is; I want to hear about the rest of Florida. I will travel for food and hearing about the best bagels in So Fla, barbecue in Talahassee and Latin in Tampa makes for very rich reading. Keep up the posting! Fri Oct 30 07:47:49 -0700 2009 5140731 71005 marelyisdead 1 5143024 I agree with most other's opinions. There's not enough activity to split this board up. I also don't think the moderators even have the power to make such a decision. And I do like Miss E's idea of forcing all new posts to use a city selection pull down which is then added at the beginning of the post title. Can I get a 'whoop whoop'? Probably not...... Fri Oct 30 09:49:47 -0700 2009 5140731 159150 freakerdude 2 5143193 freakerdude is dead on. Fri Oct 30 10:37:33 -0700 2009 5143024 71005 marelyisdead 2 5143292 Whoop x 2. I think all posts should be prefaced with the city. Pull down or direct entry, but that'd appease me ;) Fri Oct 30 11:05:48 -0700 2009 5143024 1115783 askdrtodd 3 5154013 another whoop. seems just a courtesy to put city/area name in the title of every post. i've suggested this several other times. Tue Nov 03 20:45:15 -0800 2009 5143292 13633 andy huse 1 5144570 I have several thoughts. If all kept as one board, a regional designation pull down menu of 4-6 regions should be included. 1. Keys 2. South Florida 3. Central Florida 4. North Florida 5. Panhandle 6. West Coast (naples to tampa area) HOWEVER, I would prefer the board be broken into say 4 regions (South, Central, North, and West Coast) with also a Best of Florida board. The reason being that the local people who browse often don't really care about different parts (most people I feel). If they want to browse or check other regions of florida, well it's a simple click because it is already organized. This would be especially helpful if I knew I was taking a trip, say to Miami, and I wanted to find cuisine specifically there. All I would have to do is click South Florida, and everything is more or less in traveling distance. Would also make it easier on tourists. The Best of Florida is for all the threads we currently have (Best Mexican, Best Taco or Best Fish Market) as examples. Fri Oct 30 22:29:01 -0700 2009 5140731 78989 CmdrTulkas 1 5144802 Florida is a huge state and anyone who lacks the common sense to identify a location in a query is probably a junk food addict anyway. You are what you eat. I am surprised by the lack of participation in the panhandle and Jacksonville. Sat Oct 31 06:56:52 -0700 2009 5140731 57170 Veggo 1 5144816 we re lucky to have our own board, a lot of states are just apart of "the South" Sat Oct 31 07:11:18 -0700 2009 5140731 268326 pdpredtide 1 5145090 No, but people ought to learn to put a identifier in the title and also, it seems that most new people haven't figured out the search feature. Sat Oct 31 09:45:35 -0700 2009 5140731 121312 herbert1 1 5187040 Even if it was just South Florida and North Florida (with Orlando as the dividing line in the 'north') it would be easier to use. Mon Nov 16 17:27:42 -0800 2009 5140731 67657 Kajikit 1 5187346 think about this, south florida isnt the south, and north florida is in the south Mon Nov 16 19:20:09 -0800 2009 5140731 1095207 seminole phil 2 5187369 florida has always been the border zone between cultures and climates. it has always been the odd man out of the continental US. we've been marginalized from greater southern history and caribbean history. it is a also a huge state difficult to define. i earnestly hope Florida can continue to stake out its own identity in food and other aspects of culture. this discussion is emblematic of the cultural tectonics at work in Florida. it gives me great satisfaction to hear the many voices on this board. Chowhound is a great resource, and this board has come a long way in the last ten years. Mon Nov 16 19:32:44 -0800 2009 5187346 13633 andy huse 3 5190494 Florida does have its own unique culinary culture. It's Floribbean. Pollo Tropical & Bahama Breeze both are a perfect example of it throughout Florida (and the nation). Just like California just adds avocado to American cuisine to make it Californian cuisine, we add citrus & tropical fruits instead - for the most part. And ours is a little more different from American cuisine in that we incorporate a lot of the Latin American / Caribbean influences (yuca, boniato, conch, curry, etc). And lastly, a lot of our state's cuisine focuses on seafood, poultry, and swine. And we've seen more papaya or tamarind sauces, mustard curry, mango dressing in this state than any other state. I've seen some of these stuff even at an Italian restaurant. Example: Bruschetta (Italian - Doral) has seafood in papaya sauce. MaiTardi (Italian - Miami) has seafood lasagna, and tropical tiramesu. And I'm sure the successful Tutto Pasta (also in Miami) has something similar with their Italian-Brazilian chef manning the station. It just so happens that Florida doesn't have Floribbean restaurants on every corner. But last I checked, California didn't have Californian cuisine on every corner either. Tue Nov 17 21:28:16 -0800 2009 5187369 101012 mialebven 1 5189979 I totally agree with dividing the state into 3 or 4 regions (or maybe, North, Central, South, and General/Whole State), or, short of that, requiring that posters indicate in thread titles which part of the state they want to discuss. Those who enjoy eating in different parts of the state and who want to keep abreast of what's going on across Florida could just make a habit of reading all of the individual sub-boards. Unless I am sorely missing something, there is no generic Floridian cuisine that might be one reason to try to keep all of the parts of the state together in a single board. It seems that the board was created as it is from the perspective of users who did not live in Florida but only sporadically visited here. Now that the number of chowhounds who actually live across the state has grown, it would make sense to break the board up to be more accommodating to those of us who want to be able to find and discuss local (within a few miles' driving distance) resources regularly. When I lived in NYC, I did sometimes find it annoying that the Manhattan board is separated from the Outer Boroughs board - yet that way of having divided the website's forums seems to work very well MOST of the time. Like many other NYers, when I lived in NYC I would frequently travel between Manhattan and the other boroughs (a mere 20 - 45 minute train ride each way). Contrast that with driving from South Miami to Orlando (4+ hours) or to Tallahassee (8 hours). From where I sit in Miami, a visit to northern Florida is really no different from a visit to Richmond, VA or Salt Lake City. When I am planning to visit Richmond or SLC, I read their boards. I would have no problem treating the Orlando or Gainesville boards similarly. Tue Nov 17 16:45:20 -0800 2009 5140731 48389 racer x