Holy Smoke! Sanibel's Little Neighbor Gets Things Smoking!

Captiva is a smaller island than Sanibel by far, but certainly not without its charms.




No, it does not have Ding Darling nor the miles of biking/walking trails, but its cutesy/artsy presence is greatly enjoyed.



We are aways game to go to Captiva though even that short distance from Sanibel needs a reason. And we do go over to McCarthy's Marina to catch the boats to other Islands as well as to have a bite of lunch at the outdoor cafe at the Green Flash.



Now we have one more reason to drive the 2 miles from our vacation rentals to the smaller of these two barrier Islands.



One thing we are a bit challenged by on Sanibel and Captiva is to find inexpensive (as in cheap!) places to eat where there is some atmosphere. There are the usual pizza parlors and a couple of sports bar pubs where one can eat inexpensively, but they really don't feel/look any different than anything you might find in New Jersey (or Michigan or anywhere!)


So we were delighted to find Holy Smoke, a BBQ "experience" located in South Seas Plantation. The small but sparkling clean restaurant might not attract us were it not for the spacious outdoor deck. There, with palm trees waving in the breeze, you can eat chicken wings, pulled pork and several styles of ribs.



The night we ate there we had a triple delight. We really enjoyed chatting with the chef and his assistant, both very welcoming and friendly. We also enjoyed meeting a young German couple--- with the most adorable baby---- who were the only other diners there and, at our invitation, came and sat next to us. And, though it initially alarmed us, we were amused when some neighborhood raccoons, the cutest bandits you could imagine, came around literally standing on two legs and "begging" for a hand out.



So we had nice company, two legged and four legged, good service, an "island" atmosphere and very reasonably priced food.



The food was not the best bbq we have ever eaten. Nor was it the worst. So we are hopeful it will improve. But even if it doesn't, we will be back. Finding tasty food with an outdoor environment, helpful, friendly service and good prices is incentive enough to return.