"In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." ‒ Andy Warhol
As the phrase "15 minutes of fame" suggests, celebrity is fleeting. It seems that Steve of the Jungle's moment has arrived.
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| Steve of the Jungle enjoys a complimentary glass of Mount Gay Black Barrel rum from Barbados. |
I am working on the new menu for our soon-to-open Doc's Rum Bar & Grille. You are a terrific historian ‒ a sense of humor, too, which is a rarity ‒ and I've much enjoyed reading your posts. Thanks to you and the Andersons, Erik and David, and Newspapers.com, the history of your fascinating area is starting to come into focus... I would like to credit you by name on the menu ... May I impose, sir?
Mr. White is a New York Times best selling author who has written 26 novels about Florida marine biologist Doc Ford. He's also amiable and approachable and happy to share stories of his colorful life.
The new Doc Ford's Jungle Terrace Rum Bar and Grille, situated at the northwestern tip of the Jungle at 8790 Bay Pines Blvd, opens on December 9th and Steve of the Jungle and a guest (my wife Amy, a.k.a. Mrs. Steve of the Jungle) were invited to attend the soft opening on December 6th. This restaurant is the second Doc Ford's in St. Pete. The downtown location on The Pier is rated the number one restaurant in St. Petersburg by TripAdvisor.com.
At the soft opening we were treated like celebrities and enjoyed snapper, redfish, grouper, a few rum drinks, key lime pie and a beautiful sunset over Boca Ciega Bay. Everything was perfect. Better yet, Randy stopped by our table to chat. Amy brought his latest book and had it signed (Randy said it was the first book signed at the Jungle Terrace restaurant).
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| Steve of the Jungle with Randy Wayne White who is wearing a Jungle Country Club cap. (Things got a bit blurry after the rum.) |
Later, we met Randy's wife, singer/songwriter Wendy Webb. She said Randy talks about Steve of the Jungle all the time.
I presented Randy with a "Jungle Country Club" cap and he asked that I sign it. I did: Randy, Welcome to the Jungle. ‒ Steve of the Jungle." He said he would be placing it in his hall of fame.
On the Jungle Terrace menu, Randy Wayne White's welcome message includes the following:
...historian “Steve-Of-The-Jungle” Elftmann (his chosen name) provides a timeline he spent years compiling, yet he’s allowed me to steal it in return for a free drink or two.
There is enough information on the menu for guests to find this blog. More people will discover the Jungle's awesome and unheralded history. Will there come a day when Jungle history is awesome and heralded? Given the number of guests who will see Randy's message, Steve of the Jungle may enjoy more than 15 minutes of fame.
See Randy's full message here: https://www.docfords.com/jungle-terrace/
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| Steve of the Jungle discusses area history with Randy Wayne White. |
Info about the restaurant and its location:
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In the 1920's and into the 50's, the luxurious passenger train, The Orange Blossom Special, traveled on the Seaboard Air Line railroad tracks that passed near the entrance of Doc Ford's Jungle Terrace restaurant. Click here for details. Ervin T. Rouse, composer of the rollicking, incomparable fiddle tune "The Orange Blossom Special" lived in the Everglades and was an old friend of Randy Wayne White. Rouse played a major role in White's novel, The Man Who Invented Florida. |
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| Arrows point to the route of the Orange Blossom Special's west coast run through the Jungle. The train tracks are now part of the Pinellas trail. |
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| The building was originally Joe's Crab Shack which opened in April 1997 and closed less than two years later. At the time, there was a restaurant next door ‒ The Waterfront Lodge ‒ located where the Boca Ciega Resort was built in 2005. Pictured above is Joe's Crab Shack in Clearwater which is still in operation. Common features of Joe's Crab Shack restaurants are a wide staircase leading to the entrance and the red, white, yellow, pink and teal color scheme. |
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R.I.P. The Green Iguana which was in operation from January 15, 2004 until May 7, 2012. To the consternation of nearby residents, there was live music almost every night until 1 a.m.
Randy signed the front page of his latest novel "Bone Deep:" For Lovely Amy Prof Steve of the Jungle FROM A FAN! RANDY WAYNE WHITE JUNGLE TERRACE 6 DEC 2022   View of Boca Ciega Bay sunset from our table Doc Ford's is already one of our favorite spots. Everything we ordered was fresh and delicious. The servings are generous and we both needed boxes for leftovers. We dined outside with a great view of Boca Ciega Bay. The lovely Amy saved room for dessert while I sipped more rum. She loves key lime pie and Doc Ford's version is her all-time favorite. A neighboring table of six was served a gigantic piece of carrot cake ‒ it looked like it could satisfy the entire group. |
Here's what our tri-fold menu looked like (click to enlarge):
If you visit Doc Ford's, tell them Steve of the Jungle sent you! But by then my 15 minutes of fame will have passed and the waiter may just answer "Who of the What?"
