Two ?- Parking w/food & Cocoa Beach

[runwad]

Hello,

We are driving down to Port Canaveral and parking our car while on the ship at our hotel. My first question is do you think it would be ok to leave unopened pre-packaged food in the car, things like chips, cookies, granola bars. I don't want to come back to ants! If I need to I'll bring them on board but I'd like to keep them in the car for the ride home.

My second question is we are staying at Country Inn & Suites. Can someone tell us how to get to Cocoa Beach? I know it's not far but if there is a better spot we should go to to enter the beach can you share that? And a good restaurant for dinner that night? We're coming in the day before our cruise.

Thanks!!

 

[JimB.]

If you are staying at the CI near the port, just keep driving south on A1A and you will be in CB "proper" in about 5-10 minutes, traffic depending. More beach accesses than you can count ......... Just keep an eye peeled for the signs.

As for eating, I have been to the Durango Steakhouse more than once. Food is pretty good, prices comparable. It is on the site of the old " Mousetrap" bar, so there is a lot of old 60's/70's vintage Space Program paraphernalia on the walls which is cool if you are a rocket nerd like me........

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[onlyon7]

Hello,

We are driving down to Port Canaveral and parking our car while on the ship at our hotel. My first question is do you think it would be ok to leave unopened pre-packaged food in the car, things like chips, cookies, granola bars. I don't want to come back to ants! If I need to I'll bring them on board but I'd like to keep them in the car for the ride home.

My second question is we are staying at Country Inn & Suites. Can someone tell us how to get to Cocoa Beach? I know it's not far but if there is a better spot we should go to to enter the beach can you share that? And a good restaurant for dinner that night? We're coming in the day before our cruise.

Thanks!!

Hi there!
I live in Florida and I wouldn't be too concerned about the ants getting to the food as long as it's sealed. But the heat is another story. Anything chocolate will melt and granola bars will get gooey. Just choose wisely what you leave in the car.
We cruised a couple of weeks ago and stayed at the same hotel. It was a short drive from the hotel to the beach, basically it's further down the road. There are many little roads you can park on to access the beach.
We ate at Grills for lunch and it was very good! We tried to go to Fishlips for dinner ( I heard it's great) but it was an hour wait. We ended up at a Mexican restaurant that was just OK.

 

[runwad]

Ok thanks guys, so no specific roads to turn down for beach access that are better than others? If not we'd probably take the first one we come across.

My DH is real concerned about ants. I'd think the bags of chips and goldfish would be fine but if I can dig up another duffle bag maybe we'll just carry them on board.

And yes we are staying at CI & S at the port.

 

[Kitster]

Ok thanks guys, so no specific roads to turn down for beach access that are better than others? If not we'd probably take the first one we come across.

My DH is real concerned about ants. I'd think the bags of chips and goldfish would be fine but if I can dig up another duffle bag maybe we'll just carry them on board.

And yes we are staying at CI & S at the port.

If you're only looking to keep snack items in your car, in the Central FL heat, I'd consider making a pit stop at the Racetrac Gas station and stocking up when you return from your cruise. It's less than a mile down the road from CI&S and at least everything would be fresh. Plus you could always top off your gas tank before heading home.

As to your restaurant question, if you take a left out of the CI&S parking lot onto Astronaut Blvd (528), immediately get into the exit lane for George King Blvd. Take a right on George King and proceed on that road until you reach either Dave Nisbet Dr. (1st red light) or Flounder St (2nd red light).

If you take the left onto Dave Nisbet Rd, it will take you directly in to Milliken's Reef, a good but very expensive seafood restaurant. If you go around the corner, on to Glen Cheek Dr., the road will take you in front of Rusty's Seafood and Oyster Bar (used to be great, but their food has slipped a little since the remodel), Baja Tavern and Eat's (never been there), Fishlip's Waterfront Bar and Grill (good food and a great place to watch the cruise ships sail by; VERY busy), and Seafood Atlantic Market and Restaurant (great food, lousy service, limited hours).

If you take the left onto Flounder St., it will take you directly into Grill's Seafood Deck and Tiki Bar (again, good food and a great place to watch the cruise ships go by; VERY busy; LIVE music Wed. - Sun.).

If you take a right out of the CI&S parking lot, you will pass a lot of little restaurants on Astronaut Blvd. I've eaten at Durango Steakhouse once and was less than impressed with the food or service, although this was a few years ago.

If you like sushi, I can highly recommend ThaiThai Sushi Bar. It directly accross from the Radisson hotel @ 8660 Astronaut Blvd. Suite 128 (on the NE corner of Commerce St and Astronaut Blvd.). They also have a good selection of Japanese and Thai dishes. In the same stretch, you also have the ubiquitous Sub and McD's.

 

[newbydisney]

Ok thanks guys, so no specific roads to turn down for beach access that are better than others? If not we'd probably take the first one we come across.

My DH is real concerned about ants. I'd think the bags of chips and goldfish would be fine but if I can dig up another duffle bag maybe we'll just carry them on board.

And yes we are staying at CI & S at the port.

HI there!
you don't need to drive to Cocoa Beach at all unless you really want to. You can get to the "same" beach in Cape Canaveral and usually parking is a little easier. Most streets that end at the beach have parking. In Cape Canaveral Jackson is easy but there are many. Also the "parks" in Cape Canaveral which are really just parking lots are free. In Central Cocoa Beach ( behind Ron Jon's ) you have to pay for parking at some spots..only to discover there is plenty of free parking just a few blocks north or south. For Seafood very far south (past The Lobster Place almost to the end of town) is The Cape Codder on the West side of the main drag (A1A) ..do not judge it by the appearance and do have the deep fried asparagus and do not shy away from the pasta either! As mentioned in a previous post The Steakhouse, which is now The Backwoods Steakhouse is pretty good if you want beef..and the chocolate cake is to die for. The steakhouse is between the Days Inn and Best Western in Cocoa Beach. In Cape Canaveral is Izzy's Bistro..if you have a large group it's great and there is a 20 for 40 deal on Yelp. If you have a large group and want to go economy then again on Yelp there is a deal for Papa Vito's Pizza and Italian. The service is very good the food portions are huge and very inexpensive, especially for lunch. Some people really like the pizza others ( like people from New Jersey) do not!

If you leave chips in the car they will explode due to the heat! And you cannot take food on the ship.

 

[runwad]

HI there!
you don't need to drive to Cocoa Beach at all unless you really want to. You can get to the "same" beach in Cape Canaveral and usually parking is a little easier. Most streets that end at the beach have parking. In Cape Canaveral Jackson is easy but there are many. Also the "parks" in Cape Canaveral which are really just parking lots are free. In Central Cocoa Beach ( behind Ron Jon's ) you have to pay for parking at some spots..only to discover there is plenty of free parking just a few blocks north or south. For Seafood very far south (past The Lobster Place almost to the end of town) is The Cape Codder on the West side of the main drag (A1A) ..do not judge it by the appearance and do have the deep fried asparagus and do not shy away from the pasta either! As mentioned in a previous post The Steakhouse, which is now The Backwoods Steakhouse is pretty good if you want beef..and the chocolate cake is to die for. The steakhouse is between the Days Inn and Best Western in Cocoa Beach. In Cape Canaveral is Izzy's Bistro..if you have a large group it's great and there is a 20 for 40 deal on Yelp. If you have a large group and want to go economy then again on Yelp there is a deal for Papa Vito's Pizza and Italian. The service is very good the food portions are huge and very inexpensive, especially for lunch. Some people really like the pizza others ( like people from New Jersey) do not!

If you leave chips in the car they will explode due to the heat! And you cannot take food on the ship.

Thanks for the info, but can you explain this a little more, I'm not getting it. So if we want to stay in Cape Canaveral are there specific directions? Like go out of CI &S turn right, blah blah,blah...something along those lines, we are clueless on the area. Thanks. Or if you could give us some kind of address to plug into the GPS that would help. THANKS

 

[Kitster]

Now on to your beach question:

George King Blvd will take you into Jetty park; $10 per day for non-resident parking the last time I was there. If you decide to go there, stay on the main road (don't go into the camping area) until you reach the parking lot. The beach is a short hike from your car, over the dunes.

The next closest PUBLIC beach access is Cherie Down Park, at 8330 Ridgewood Ave. (take Astronaut south, left on Church Ln, left on Atlantic Ave, right on Washington Ave then left on Ridgewood.). If you continue going straight on Washington Ave, there is a small parking lot at the end that allows for public beach access. The same can be said if you turn right on Ridgewood from Washington Ave. ... all of the cross streets have small public parking lots with beach access.

 

[runwad]

Thanks Kitster, exactly what I was looking for

 

[Kitster]

I have family in the area, so I'm familiar with some of the roads, but I have to say I LOVE Google Earth. Just type in Cape Canaveral, FL and you can get a good feel for where things are. The only thing I will stress when looking for beach parking is to stay out of any condo / hotel parking lots. They WILL tow your car if it doesn't belong there. That's why I noted the PUBLIC beach access.

 

[newbydisney]

Now on to your beach question:

George King Blvd will take you into Jetty park; $10 per day for non-resident parking the last time I was there. If you decide to go there, stay on the main road (don't go into the camping area) until you reach the parking lot. The beach is a short hike from your car, over the dunes.

The next closest PUBLIC beach access is Cherie Down Park, at 8330 Ridgewood Ave. (take Astronaut south, left on Church Ln, left on Atlantic Ave, right on Washington Ave then left on Ridgewood.). If you continue going straight on Washington Ave, there is a small parking lot at the end that allows for public beach access. The same can be said if you turn right on Ridgewood from Washington Ave. ... all of the cross streets have small public parking lots with beach access.

Yes I recommend Cherie Down Park as well..you will see when you get there it's much easier than it seems. AIA runs North and South as you can see on a map and virtually all the streets that cross it end at the beach.

 

[Meredisney]

Hi there! You've already reveived lots of great information, but we have a condo not to far from Cocoa Beach / Cape Canaveral & I just wanted to share our favorite places to eat.

Pig & Whistle240 N. Orlando Ave., Cocoa Beach, FL 32931
This place is a nice little English pub. It's has English food with a mix of American. The atmosphere is great and the food is excellent. It is set up with a large bar in the middle of the dining room, however I don't hesitate to bring my two year old and 4 month old here. They are family friendly.

Azteca II1600 N. Atlantic Ave, Cocoa Beach, FL 32931
This restaurant is located in the Resort at Cocoa Beach but don't let that scare you. This is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Cocoa Beach! The food is great and they have delicious margaritas. I think they even have 2 for 1 specials. One is usually my limit


Grills Deck and Tiki Bar505 Glen Cheek Dr, Cape Canaveral, FL 32920
A few people have mentioned Grills and FishLips. Both are great for watching departing cruise ships from Port Canaveral, but we prefer Grills for the food and atmosphere. FishLips always smells like a mix of alcohol & bathroom cleaner from the bar scene the night prior. The menu at Grills is pretty big so there is something for everyone. I love the Bahamian Fish Chowder and usually get the Fish Reuben made with whatever the fish of the day is. DH says the burgers are awsome. We've also hade the coconut shrimp and sweet potato fries. Everythingis consistantly good here!

 

[runwad]

Thank you everyone for all your reviews and especially the addresses makes it so easy to just plug into the GPS and go!!