Sarasota Real Estate Agents Are Passionate Food Bloggers

In this edition of Better Know A Blogger, we meet Jill Berg and Mart Solu who sell real estate for Coldwell Banker during the day, and squeeze in some great meals to write about at SarasotaFoodies.com.

Blog: SarasotaFoodies.com

Town: Mainly Sarasota, But "road trips" are not out of the equation.

Writers: Jill Berg and Mart Solu

Started: May 2012

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Why did you start your blog?

We started the blog as a resource for our real estate customers to get to enjoy some of the restaurants we do, and to get some insight into the local dining scene. 

What do you do when you're not blogging?

We are full time professional Realtors with Coldwell Banker's downtown office. 

What type of perspective do you try to bring to a food review?

We are not critics in the strictest sense of the word. We will only blog about places that we've enjoyed, choosing to focus only on the positive experiences we have, and in so doing, hopefully to help promote the local independent restaurants, and Sarasota as a whole.  

Sarasota has a lot of turnover in the restaurant business. What advice would you give to new restaurants?

Having been an owner/operator of  (locally) The Broken Egg, as well as several other operations, there is no one simple answer to that. Have a focus on what you are trying to be, and the vision and energy to stay the course. Understand what challenges (and hopefully rewards) you'll face on an ongoing basis. Have systems, recipes, policies in place. Having a good accountant, lawyer, as well as having the proper capitalization to sustain and get to where you need to be profitable doesn't hurt either. Then hope for the best! 

What is the most underrated restaurant in Sarasota?

It's a tie. Asha Grill is certainly one of them. Audrey's Jamaican Cuisine is right there as well. It's a pretty amazing palette of flavors and nuanced choices, so it's endlessly fascinating to explore the "Thomases English Muffin nooks-and-crannies" dining and food related events that we have here in paradise!