cookies and code

NOTE: Pup’s is now closed.

For lunch today a bunch of us from the office decided to hit up what has become one of our regular places, Pup’s. Pup’s is a hot dog, burger, gyro, sandwich shop that I’ve come to really enjoy when I want to get a quick American-style meal. We’ve been going to Pup’s for almost a year now and they’ve undergone quite a transformation during that time. In addition to some new cool tables, Pup’s got a larger menu and started serving drinks (wine and malt beverages) and $1 drafts.

Since it was lunch, I reluctantly passed on the beer, but I did order the gyro, homemade Parmesan potato chips, and a soda ($~8). They have the cylinder of lamb(?) spinning in the roaster, so the meat is always tender and the chips are good, but a little salty because of the cheese. 2 of my colleagues ordered the latest addition to the menu on the hot dog side, the Dominator. It’s a fried hot dog with chili, cheese, onion, sourkraut, and bacon on what looks like an herb-flavored hoagie roll because it’s a foot long (not sure about the price). I’m 100% sure that about now they have the meat sweats.

I’ve had the classic dog with assorted toppings and its always a good eat. I’m not too much on the turkey burger or the fries, but otherwise it’s tough to find something you won’t like. The food along with the friendly staff give Pup’s it’s great “mom and pop” feel that always keeps me going back.

Pup’s is located at the Marketplace next to Starbucks in the Dr. Philips area at 7600 Dr Philips Blvd, Orlando, FL 32819.

So tonight for dinner, we tried to new place on US-1 in Rockledge called Ashley’s. The restaurant has been around for a long while and has a descent vibe; it was cozy. There was an indoor and outdoor bar, it looked like they had a few domestic beers on tap, and a couple dining areas with tables and booths. Our waitress was nice but the service was nothing spectacular. They have a big ass flat-screen in the indoor bar that is beautiful. Anyway, you can’t eat a flat screen, so onto the food.

The menu was the classic American cuisine (steak, seafood, sandwiches, salads, etc.) with a couple of specials that were variations on the menu spiced up. I ordered the stuffed mushrooms (crab meat and mozzarella ~ $5) and the open-face Reuben sandwich with steak fries (~$8). My wife got the french onion soup (~$2) and the fried chicken salad (~$7). The portions were larger than I was expecting. The soup and salad had homemade croûtons and the chicken on the salad looked like a pan-fried breaded cutlet. The mushrooms were alright, but I had higher expectations for the stuffing. My sandwich however, was surprisingly good. It was a Reuben made with grilled corned beef, rather than pastrami, some type of cheese, and sourkraut that wasn’t too overpowering. I don’t think I’d order it again, but it looked good when it came out and I didn’t find myself saying “I’m done”.

Overall, Ashley’s struck me as your run of the mill bar/restaurant with descent food for OK prices. We may go back, but I’m pretty indifferent about whether we do or not. Looks like a lot of locals like it. It’s also supposed to be haunted (story provided on back of menu) so that was a good read while we were waiting for our food.

Ashley’s is located at 1609 US Highway 1, Rockledge, FL 32955.