From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Destination: Hollywood

by Jeff Rusnak

September 21 2005

From Young Circle west to Dixie Highway, www.downtownhollywood.com

Choose a synonym for dead -- lifeless, deceased, flatlined, expired, kaput -- and downtown Hollywood was it until a couple of years ago. After nearly a decade of trying to become the next South Beach, Hollywood has at least become the best nightlife destination in South Broward, sans the SoBe pretense. Although some older, incongruous storefronts whose day has passed remain, the district is almost entirely composed of bars, clubs and restaurants, many with sidewalk seating for watching the people who give this area much of its character.

Nightclub highlights include but are not limited to: the apple-flavored martinis at Sauer Apple Saloon; wines by the glass at Harrison's Wine Bar; free cigarettes on Saturdays at Now Art Café and Blue Martini Lounge; a game of pool and mugs of beer at Toby's Billiards; and more beer at Sneakers, Octopus' Garden, Coyotes on the Boulevard, O'Hara's Jazz and Blues Cafe and Club M.

As for eats, Hollywood's restaurants made it a viable locale in the first place, and the options have only gotten better of late with a number of recent openings. The anchors are the long-standing Try My Thai, which is under renovation; Sushi Blues Cafe and Blue Monk Lounge, our Best Japanese Restaurant; and the Italian faves Mama Mia and Conca D'Oro. Three other Italian sites are also worth the trip: the clublike La Piazza Pasta Cafe, the upscale Fulvio's Nineteen Hundred and its more affordable sibling, the pizza-and-salad café Luce.

The newest additions are La Barraca (see Best Spanish Restaurant), which offers a sexy flamenco show and full liquor bar; and Michael's Kitchen, home of the best cooking show in town because of the 20-seat bar that provides a view of your meal as it's being cooked. You can also eat Argentinean (Argentango Grill), Turkish (À la Turca), Mexican (Cancún), Brazilian (Spice Resto-Lounge), Romanian (Transylvania) and Chinese (Chinatopia and Christina Wan's). Or simply get an inexpensive steak (Beef Eater Steak House), dessert (Chocolada) or a slice of pizza.

Downtown Hollywood is likely to thrive even more with the construction of a high-rise condo on Young Circle and an apartment complex just past the tracks on Dixie Highway. As with any downtown, the trick is finding parking. The street parking fills up quickly on weekends, but a garage at Harrison Street and 20th Avenue handles the overflow.