The combination of the soup/salad or Cuban sandwich/soup comes to $7.95, making it one of the best deals in town for both quality and earthy good taste. If you choose another kind of sandwich or an entrée you can have the 1905 salad for an additional $3.95. If you want just a big plate of the salad (served with Cuban bread), that will be $7.95 with turkey and $9.95 with shrimp. A cup of soup is $3.95, with a bowl a dollar more. A Cuban sandwich solo is $6.95.

A lot of the family recipes that appear on the lunch and dinner menus used to be guarded secrets, but today the Gonzmarts share their culinary wealth with home cooks. You can buy the official Columbia Restaurant cookbook with 178 recipes for $24.95 in the gift shop that connects to the restaurant. So next year when visitors once again take over the Columbia for six months, you can concoct soup and salad for lunch in your own kitchen. But you're going to miss that wonderful wait-staff.

The Columbia Restaurant

411 St. Armands Circle

(941) 388-3987

Lunch and dinner, Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sunday, noon-10.

Credit cards

Reservations accepted and necessary during season

Street parking or valet

Wheelchair accessible

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Ask Marsha

Q. On vacation I tour breweries the way oenophiles investigate wineries. But at home, it's hard to find interesting beers. Got a source for me?

Along with its meat, gourmet groceries and more, The Butcher's Block excels in weird beer and staffs an advisor to help you pair beers with specific foods. Charles "Boomer" Halstead organizes monthly Saturday beer tastings and stocks dozens of imported and unusual domestic craft beers sold by the single bottle. The oddest could be Delirium Tremens, a Belgian ale in a blue foil bottle decorated with grinning pink elephants ($3.89). The most expensive is Czar Imperial Stout at $7.19, but it's 22 ounces of full, rich flavor just right for beef Stroganoff or steak. For Asian or Indian recipes try Dogfish Head or Scottish Heather Ale, and with pizza a righteous choice would be Genesis, a kosher beer that calls itself "the chosen brew." Call to get the tasting schedule. The Butcher's Block, 3242 17th St., Sarasota. (941) 955-2822.

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Nibbles 'n Sips

In Fred's new Florida Room and the private dining rooms, the management has clad the walls in luscious russet-red suede (officially called Fred's Red). The look is sophisticated and modern, but the primary reason for the upgrade is to reduce the level of buzz and good vibrations at peak hours. Panels of this suede have also been added to the back of the bar area near the kitchen to reduce noise spilling out from the cooking area. . . . It was only a matter of time and now it's happened. Starbucks (just like Godiva) has entered the spirits market with a coffee-flavored liqueur meant to be sipped straight over ice, to embellish ice cream or to form the base for designer martinis. Starbucks Coffee Liqueur (the official name) is not sold at Starbucks coffee centers, but in liquor stores, at about $30 for a 22-ounce bottle. For a brunch refresher called Coffee Blossom, take one part Starbucks Coffee Liqueur, one part vanilla vodka, one part half and half and a splash of Amoretti orange flower syrup. Shake with ice and strain into a chilled champagne or martini glass. Garnish with an orange twist. . . . The next big national food trends: Brazilian ethnic recipes and a renaissance of barbecue in restaurants and culinary publications. . . . Chef Paul Mattison's newest business venture, Mattison's Culinary Outfitters, features everything you need to set up a kitchen, including professional design advice. Pots, pans, graters, knives, bowls, plus Mattison's recommendation about where to place everything in your kitchen workspace. At 25 Avenue of the Flowers on Longboat Key; open Monday-Saturday 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Call (941) 387-2700.

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CHEF CENTRAL

Grilled vegetables from John Zottoli of Michael's On East.

Until the mid '90s, John Zottoli had never even worked in a restaurant. But on a ski vacation with wife Ellen to Vermont, he passed by a room at the resort where the chef was setting up a wedding banquet. "The food looked so beautiful I realized that was what I'd love to do with my life," says the 37-year-old. He enrolled at Johnson & Wales in Providence, R.I., and five years later was in Sarasota, first at Fred's and for the past three years, as executive chef at Michael's on East. At home, Zottoli cooks simply. "Often I'll share mac and cheese with my three-year-old son or fix myself scrambled eggs with white cheese and fresh black pepper. To me, that's comfort food," he says. These grilled vegetables are also often on the menu. "We use this recipe all summer long because it's light, easy and can be done on the grill," says Zottoli. "To make it an entrée, add strips of grilled chicken, steak or shrimp."