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Lush tropical oasis, Playa Largo Resort & Spa in Key Largo is honoring its roots with its Summer Pineapple Series — a specially curated food and cocktail menu.
The stunning resort sits on 14 pristine beachfront acres, once home to America’s largest pineapple farm. The award-winning Playa Largo — voted one of the best in the Florida Keys by Condé Nast Traveler — is ripe for summer with the introduction of its pineapple-infused cocktail and culinary menu. Both rich in flavor and imbued with nutrients, antioxidants and digestion-easing enzymes, the summer pineapple series taps into travelers’ craving for flavorful foods packed with immune boosting properties.
The legend of Playa Largo’s unique location along the Florida Bay dates back to the 1860s and 1870s with Captain Ben Baker. He homesteaded 160 acres along Mile Marker 97 and, using natural fertilizer, figured out how to successfully plant more than 6,000 pineapple stalks. In a single summer, Baker racked up a supposed $7,000 — equivalent to more than $100,000 by today’s standards. By the late 1800s, it is estimated that 85 percent of America’s pineapples were grown in the Florida Keys.
Today, Executive Chef Gavin Pera pays tribute to the resort’s unique legacy, offering a curated menu of inventive, pineapple-infused appetizers, entrees and cocktails in which he manipulates the citrus into various forms and textures. The Key Largo Pink Shrimp and Wahoo apps, for example, use a pineapple gastrique and pineapple ponzu, while the Swordfish entrée incorporates a pineapple basil vinaigrette drizzled over sweet potato, pancetta, glacé onion, rosemary and rainbow chard.
Pulling in Florida’s indigenous ingredients, the other menu options include everything from light to savory. The Scallops, served with crushed pineapple, chorizo, saffron and broken rice are a hit. The Muscovy Duck includes a pairing of macadamia nut and pineapple with basil and farro. The Short Rib offers pineapple, ginger, bacon and shallot flavors served with grits.
Be sure to start off with the conch fritters, and get two orders because they go fast.
The pineapple menu also includes three new cocktails including the Pineapple Jalapeño Shandy, Island Paradise and Pineapple Martin. The shandy, a guest favorite, Sandbar Sunday Ale from the Islamorada Brewery & Distillery, brewed just 20 minutes from Playa Largo. Pera, a key figure in the Upper Keys’ culinary community, heavily relies on local purveyors when sourcing ingredients.
“Most of my inspiration stems from Florida’s fresh, natural flavors, so I thoroughly enjoyed creating a menu inspired by Playa Largo’s unique history and iconic seaside location,” Pera said. “The pineapple is also synonymous with hospitality, a tidbit not lost on me as our F&B team aims to create memorable culinary experiences for our guests.”
All four of the resort’s on-property restaurants will offer the limited-time pineapple menu through the end of August, including the waterfront restaurant Sol by the Sea, modern Las Olas ceviche bar, poolside Sand Bar, and indoor/outdoor La Marea, a restaurant that celebrates the simplicity of the Mediterranean.
While the restaurants at Playa Largo are only an hour’s drive from Miami, we highly recommend spending several nights at this incredible property, an Autograph Collection Hotel. It is one of the only Keys resorts with an actual expansive, private, white-sand beach that features convenient concrete steps into the ocean and sweeping views of the Florida Bay.
Aiming to bring a taste of the beach indoors, the property is marked by its nautical design and whimsical décor, which pay homage to Florida’s natural beauty. The property boasts 178 luxury rooms and suites, including 10 two-story bungalows and a three-bedroom beach house with a private pool. There’s also a fitness center, three sport courts, a private marina and Ocean Spa. Activities include beach cruiser rentals, a zero-entry pool, beachfront hammock pods, and water sports including parasailing, snorkeling and kayaking.
Every evening, 30 minutes prior to sunset, Playa Largo hosts an “Eventide” celebration at the Sand Bar by the beach to transition from day into night, including live music, fire on the water and torches, special drinks served in actual pineapples and other surprises.
Guests have the privilege of witnessing one of the Keys’ most perfect sunsets from many convenient spots along the sand, in the ocean, pool area or right from their balcony. Playa Largo is the most optimal Key Largo resort for indulging in a seaside escape, watching magnificent sunsets, enjoying outstanding dining and partaking in an overall magical experience. Once you arrive at Playa Largo, you won’t want to leave.
For more information, call 305-853-1001 or visit www.playalargoresort.com. Connect with Playa Largo on social media by liking them on Facebook, www.facebook.com/playalargoresort, or following on Instagram (@PlayaLargo) and Twitter (@PlayaLargo).
Menu prices for the Summer Pineapple Series range from $9 to $32.
The full menus can be accessed at www.playalargoresort.com/dining.
