Beyond the big game, the hometown of the Florida Gators is also known off the field for local tastes.
Breakfast in The Swamp
"All these wonderful things for tailgating,” said Jackie Dufty, the owner of the uppercrust bakery (fashionably spelled without any capital letters).
At uppercrust, you'll find breakfast before the game all mixed up.
"It's just working with the medium with your hands,” Jackie said of the breads and pastries prepared each morning. She believes each pastry comes to life in uppercrust’s ovens.
"They're beings,” Jackie said softly in her trademark voice. "If you pay attention to a yeast being, it will really blossom for you."
Blossoming begins well before the sun rises.
"Everything is from zero, and made, baked fresh daily," Jackie explained. Her passion for tastes from France, Italy and Spain come from her roots.
"My parents were very fine cooks and we ate very well when I was growing up," Jackie recalled. "Traveling to Europe and learning about all these wonderful countries, I love the different flavors that I discovered there."
The kitchen at uppercrust is as clean as a hospital operating room. One corner is reserved for baking, another for rolling dough and another for cutting cheese. Pans are stacked to the ceiling, ready to be put into use at a moment's notice. Besides breakfast, folks grab buns, cheeses and dessert.
"Tailgating is a big thing too. We do a lot of savory breads, filled with all sorts of things like olives and cheeses," Jackie concluded.
See the information on the left for more on uppercrust.
Lunch off the Field
Folks call a timeout for Burrito Brothers when lunch rolls around. A University of Florida staple for almost four decades, Burrito Brothers is popular with students and graduates alike.
"Come here constantly,” said future doctor David Ullman.
"When my husband did his graduate work here, we use to eat at Burrito Brothers at lot,” said Tina Hemme, who ate at the diner often decades ago. She recently visited campus again with her son, a University of Florida graduate himself.
"When he came here as an undergrad, we gave him a gift card, because we knew he would be eating here," Tina said of her son's time on campus after the Burrito Brothers moved to their new location.
"Man, look at how nice this place is!" Tina exclaimed while looking around the dining patio. "The original Burrito Brothers on 13th Street was literally a door."
Still today, the newer location for Burrito Brothers has no inside, rather just a patio. People and pets stroll up to the window, place an order and then wait for their number to be called. There are no servers. In fact, the restrooms are located next door inside a Presbyterian church's recreation center.
"It's a local favorite here,” David said, despite its lack of amenities.
The small restaurant is renowned for their fresh guacamole. A green neon sign hangs on the brick exterior next to the order window. A welcome beacon to the hungry, there's fresh guacamole if the sign is lit.
"If the sign is not on, it's not available,” David explained. "They only sell it when it's really fresh."
Even if the fresh guacamole is not available, David admits he would still eat at Burrito Brothers over a nationally known competitor down the street.
"It's garbage compared to this place," David said without hesitation.
Just be ready for a wait on game day. The line can stretch for 30 minutes when the Gators play football across the street.
"Do you like it when you have an easy order? Or do you like it when you have a really difficult, crazy order?" I asked burrito builder Abby Bayer behind the counter.
"The difficult creative ones can be fun," Abby responded. In the early days, the menu was limited. Today, Burrito Brothers offers a greater variety. Chicken, pork and black beans now round out the menu.
For those who miss the flavors of campus, Burrito Brothers offers mail-order meals. Managers said Gator Nation alumni members are their biggest customers.
See the information to the right for more on Burrito Brothers.
Dinner on the Road
“When I saw that van, I was like, THIS IS THE BEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN!” proclaims artist Satchel Raye.
Upon pulling into Satchel's, you'll notice the Ford Fairlane van perfectly parked on the front lawn. Look inside and find tables and chairs. It's one of the most popular seats in the house.
Welcome to Satchel’s Pizza, a place created in the imagination of a man who is an artist first, and a pizza proprietor second.
“I like the red on there,” Satchel said as he sprinkles red peppers on a pizza. “I am going to slip a few carrots on there just for the color. Look at that!”
This is not your average pizza parlor. In fact, Satchels may first appear to be full of junk. That's because it is.
“I was always telling my wife, ‘I want to make something out of concrete and put it in the yard at home,'" Satchel explained about where his appreciation for eclectic art comes from. “She said, ‘You're are not mixing concrete and putting anything in my yard at home.'” He didn't.
Instead, the concrete mounds started growing in this pizza restaurant's parking lot. Today, the pile of concrete is a water fountain. Satchels trash-to-treasure works of art also dangle from the trees, the ceiling and the fences around the property.
"I remember a five and dime as a kid, and I thought, ‘Oh. We’ll make it a five and dime.'" And Satchel did just that.
The "Lightning Salvage Company" is a store located behind the pizza parlor that sells novelty items, gag gifts and toys from the 1960s. There are finger puppets, whoopee cushions and even Florida maps printed on oven mitts and hot plates.
The store goes along with the "Walk-O-Junk" outside. Here, old technology lives on in a cyber graveyard mixed with toys.
Inside the dining room at Satchel’s Pizza awaits works of art, mixed with folks with large appetites for the pizzas served with creative toppings.
“Satchel’s is very unique in the sense it is a very eclectic atmosphere,” said diner Wayne Meyerson.
Satchels joins uppercrust and Burrito Brothers as three places where game day can start early and end with a fun meal in “The Swamp.”
See the information to the right for more on Satchel's Pizza.
Tankful on Television
Live in a Bright House? You can catch new Florida on a Tankful stories each Thursday and Saturday on News 13 and Bay News 9. New editions play at the end of each hour starting at 6 a.m.
Classic Florida on a Tankful stories can be found each Friday and Sunday on Bay News 9 and News 13 at the end of each hour starting at 6 a.m.