Best Inexpensive Gourmet Eats


Important: This article was last updated on September 21, 2005. Please call ahead to confirm hours, prices, dates and other information.

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Readers' picks

Best Breakfast
 The Original Pancake House, various locations

Best Cheap Eats
 Taco Bell, various locations

Best Chain Restaurant (Tie)
 The Cheesecake Factory and Olive Garden, various locations

Best Barbecue
 Tom Jenkins B-B-Q, Fort Lauderdale

Best Mexican
 La Bamba, various locations

Best Chinese
 Toa Toa, Sunrise

Best Thai
 Siam House, Fort Lauderdale

Best Mall Food Court
 Aventura Mall

Best Pizza
 Downtown Pizza, Fort Lauderdale

Best Hamburger
 Cheeburger Cheeburger, various locations

Best Diner
 Lester's Diner, Fort Lauderdale

Best Romantic Restaurant
 The Melting Pot, various locations

Best Italian
 Il Mulino, Fort Lauderdale
 
Giorgio's 17th Street
1499 S.E. 17th St., Fort Lauderdale, 954/767-8300

 The term casual gourmet has become a cliché thanks to franchise restaurants, but it's a tag line that has a ring of truth at Giorgio's 17th Street. The 24-seat room is small, but the menu is ample. And the prices are as kind to the wallet as the food is to the stomach. Garden-fresh ingredients like ripe tomatoes, roasted red peppers and artichoke hearts, plus an assortment of herbs, cheeses and meats are found in the delicious hot and cold sandwiches, entrée-size salads, thin-crusted pizzas, more than a dozen pastas and a medley of entrées. Most items cost less than $11 apiece, but everything is prepared with the care of a gourmet kitchen. Giorgio's is especially adept with the pastas, including the not-too-heavy rigatoni served with asparagus and sweet peppers, or the more-filling Bolognese sauce or three-cheese lasagna. Be sure to check out the neat selection of wines and the house-made desserts, especially the tiramisu and chocolate cake. The service is familiar and easygoing and outdoor seating is available.