The best places are often the ones we least anticipate, those accidental byways on the journey from one destination to the next. This is how I came to discover Fruitville, a tiny spot on the Florida map just west of Sarasota, notable mainly because the Fruitville Road exit off I-75 is exactly one hour from my house—about the time I’m ready for my first pit stop on a long drive. I’d taken the exit dozens of times during road trips north, always pulling into gas stations off the highway and then getting back on the road without the smallest glance around. But on a recent trip home from Orlando, I made a left instead of a right at my usual exit and discovered the kind of spot I’d like to visit again and again.
After the off ramp, I drove down a long stretch of road past cow pastures, the Fruitville public library, a driving range and a new-looking RV resort with its own water park. Just when I was losing hope that I’d ever find gas, I saw a Texaco station. As I pulled in, I realized that it wasn’t like other gas stations. This one had a sprawling, chickee-thatched, smokehouse-and-picnic-table megaplex called Stottlemyer’s Smokehouse attached to it. I glanced around. A few swamp buggies were parked in the parking lot, right next to shiny imported sedans. What was this place?
Most people would have filled their tanks and pulled back on the interstate, but I like to think I have an adventuring streak running through me. Also, I was dying for some good sweet tea.
I walked into the establishment intent on ordering a to-go cup, but the next thing I knew I was seated at a table checking out the joint. It was early evening, and the bar was filled with regulars—true Florida types, I’d guess, the kind of people who don’t need a Flo-Grown sticker to advertise where they’re from. But here’s the surprising part: That wasn’t all. The place was filled with guys in Tommy Bahama, too, and ladies in nice sundresses. There were as many pairs of linen pants at the bar as cut-offs. As I pondered this, I noticed some nervous activity around the stage area.
“What’s going on?” I asked one of the waitresses as she hurried by.
“Open mic night,” she told me.
Not long afterward, a man with a white mustache sat at a nearby table and began fiddling with his acoustic guitar. An excited hum ran through the place. When everything was ready to go, he took the stage while the crowd—some drinking bottles of Bud, some sipping cocktails—applauded enthusiastically. The man gave the guitar a few test strums. He cleared his throat, leaned into the microphone and began singing in a voice that sounded like a cross between Jimmy Buffett and Leonard Cohen. The song was his own creation, a ditty about ex-wives and hurricanes, and it perfectly summed up the atmosphere. A cornhole game had started up in the back area, and servers rushed between the tables passing out baskets of pulled pork and fried onion rings. A person could spend an entire afternoon here, I thought. Maybe the night, too.
What about Fruitville itself? If this gem of a bar/smokehouse/concert hall lay hidden just off the interstate all this time, what else could be in the vicinity? A waitress stopped by my table to refill my sweet tea, and I asked her what else there was to see in the area.
She thought for a moment.
“There’s an Arby’s down the street,” she said. “And the library.”
OK.
So Fruitville itself is not much of a destination, but Stottlemyer’s is absolutely worth a trip. It’s a rare treat to come across such a cross section of Florida culture—both the high and the low—in one spot. Plus, you can fill up your tank before heading home.
If you go … Stottlemyer’s Smokehouse is off exit 210 on I-75. Don’t let the Sarasota address fool you. This is pure Fruitville. It bills itself as an “open-air restaurant, live music venue and Old-Florida tiki bar,” which pretty much sums it up. It also offers some of the best barbecue in the state. Open mic nights usually run on Thursdays, but you’ll want to call ahead to confirm. Sometimes the Sarasota Bay Parrot Head Club takes over, and you’ll have your fill of Buffett before you’ve finished your brisket. Stottlemyer’s also brings in live music acts to perform rock, country, bluegrass and jazz. Check their calendar of events to see what’s playing. 19 East Road, Sarasota, (941) 312-5969, stottlemyerssmokehouse.com
