Spodak Dental Group celebrated the grand opening of new facility.
From left: Sage Spodak, Arlene Spodak, Dr. Craig Spodak, Gavin Spodak,
Dr. Myles Spodak, Zaicha Martell-Spodak and Chamber President Karen Granger.
Photo provided
By Christine Davis
For a stinkin’ good time, mark your calendars for Feb. 7-9 and attend the award-winning 15th annual Delray Beach Garlic Fest. Features will include Cloves & Vines Wine Garden and the House of Appliances Garlic Chef Stadium, as well as entertainment, full liquor bars, garlic-inspired gourmet food, more than 180 vendors, children’s activities and rides, professional-level cooking competitions and the Home Depot Garlic University.
This year, the presenting sponsor will be Heineken; Italian Rose will be back by popular demand; and the festival will welcome Jimmy P’s Butcher Shop.
The Main Stage will showcase nonstop entertainment, including Collective Soul on Friday, Feb. 7, and Dispatch on Saturday, Feb. 8. Recording artist Andy Childs will emcee again this year as well as perform with his band.
On Feb. 8 and 9, wander over to the Garlic Chef Stadium for the Garlic Chef Competition, where reigning local chef Bruce Feingold of Dada will have his knives and kitchen skills sharpened, preparing to duel it out with chefs from other restaurants in the tri-county area. Also at the stadium this year, a food-waste and hunger-awareness program, “Waste to Taste” will be introduced.
The festival is held at the Delray Beach Center for the Arts, Old School Square, downtown Delray Beach. Festival hours are 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. Price is $10 for early bird admission on Friday and Saturday until 6 p.m. and $20 after 6 p.m. On Sunday, the price is $10. Children 10 and younger are admitted free. Visit www.dbgarlicfest.com for more information.
A fundraiser for local nonprofits dedicated to children’s arts and activities, Garlic Fest will surpass $500,000 in charitable contributions to the 16 organizations and the 500 community volunteers they represent.
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Notes from recent events:
At Lang Realty’s annual holiday party, associates were recognized for donating a half-ton of food to the not-for-profit, “Move for Hunger.”
“Through the generous efforts of our associates, we collected enough food to feed more than 840 people in need,” said Scott Agran, president of Lang Realty.
Other 2013 accomplishments noted at the party: Lang agent Tripta Chawla was given the Diamond Star Award for reaching earnings of more than $1 million, and the realty, which closed more than $1 billion in sales, opened new offices in Jupiter, Manalapan and Hunters Run of Boynton Beach.
Last month, Drs. Craig Spodak and Myles Spodak, with Spodak Dental Group’s team of 44 doctors and team members, hosted the grand opening of their new, state-of-the-art facility at 3911 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach. The 13,000-square-foot, Gold-LEED-Certified building comprises 18 dental operatories, laboratory space, offices, gathering spaces, a learning center, a waiting area and support spaces.
Spodak Dental Group’s full-service practice includes cleaning, whitening, simple fillings and extractions, implants, Invisalign, and cosmetic and reconstructive smile enhancements.
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Coming up:
From 5 to 6:30 p.m. Feb. 3, the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce will host an open house and invites members of the community to visit its new offices at 140 NE First St., Delray Beach.
While the Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce always strives to enhance good business, its members also keep in mind that old saying about all work and no play. So the Boca chamber will host a community cookout from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 2, There will be lots of food choices (hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken, fruit, veggies and much more), fun games for family members of all ages, bounce houses, slides, DJ and musical performances. Entry fee is $5 and includes one food ticket. Children under 10 enter for free and will receive one food ticket. The cookout will be held at Peter Blum Family YMCA, 6631 Palmetto Circle South, Boca Raton.
Who doesn’t love dining on the waterfront? Boca Raton’s newly transformed Waterstone Resort & Marina will debut two waterfront-dining options: Boca Landing and Waterstone Bar & Grill.
As a modern, upscale restaurant featuring locally sourced seafood and ingredients, Boca Landing will present a fresh-food style that conveys “just off the boat” elements, focusing on its raw bar and creative small plates. The poolside Waterstone Bar & Grill will offer an all-day menu of comfort foods with a Latin tropical touch.
Chef Steven Zobel and director of food and beverage Dustin Lapekas will bring their culinary and beverage talents to Waterstone. Lapekas formerly worked for the Boca Raton Resort & Club and Waldorf Astoria. Award-winning Zobel previously worked for dba/café, The Atlantic Resort & Spa and Triomphe Restaurant.
The resort, at the former Bridge Hotel, is scheduled to open this winter, and will begin to take hotel reservations mid-March. Visit waterstoneboca.com for more information.
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Delray Beach rock ’n’ rolls:
Jim Knight, managing member of the Knight Group, LLC and member of Delray Beach’s Site Plan and Review Appearance Board, listed developments on Linton Boulevard at an Alliance of Delray meeting late last year. “Everyone knows what’s going on downtown, but I want people to understand that other parts of the city are important and thriving, too,” he says.
• Linton Square Pharmacy is under construction and set to open on the southeast corner of Linton Boulevard and Congress Avenue. “It’s a mom and pop, and you don’t see new out-of-the-ground pharmacies like that. Most everywhere, it’s CVS and Walgreens. And Aldridge Connors law firm, through a $200,000 incentive grant from the city, moved into offices into The Arbors from Boca Raton.”
• On Linton and Federal on the southwest corner, the SunTrust Bank is being torn down, and a new SunTrust will be rebuilt along with a Chick-Fil-A.
• On the southeast corner of Linton Boulevard and Federal Highway, the Delray Place shopping center will open next year with long-awaited Trader Joe’s and Stein Mart.
• The northeast corner of Linton Boulevard and Federal Highway are a Chase Bank and Fresh Market.
• On the northwest corner, the Regal movie theater is being torn down, and LA Fitness is under construction.
• Neighborhood Grocer will open on the northeast corner of Lindell Boulevard and Federal Highway.
• The northwest corner of Linton Boulevard and Southwest Fourth Avenue will have Starbucks and Tijuana Flats, Aspen Dental, Buffalo Wild Wings and Five Guys.
• A residential complex, The Franklin, at 320 Franklin Club Drive, is open, and most of the apartments are leased already, he says. “Most recent rental complexes are not what people think them to be. They offer a whole new lifestyle with amenities over the top, beyond St. Andrews Country Club. The Broadstone North Boca Village, for example, has 380 units, and there are about 30 left for rent.
“Development like this is happening all over South Florida. If you go to a corner of Palmetto in Boca Raton, you see four power cranes; in Fort Lauderdale, you’ll see 10 of them; and in Miami, 20.”
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Some closings of note:
After 38 years in Delray Beach on the Avenue, the Nutrition Cottage has closed up shop and moved to its Boynton Beach location at 1815 S. Federal Highway. “We were not able to renegotiate our lease for an affordable price for a small business,” said Mark Stowe, who owns the store with his wife, Karen. “We were one of the oldest downtown businesses and we are the oldest still-remaining family-owned natural-food store in South Florida.”
Mark, a licensed nutritionist, plans to offer even more nutritional counseling, and Karen, a nutritional specialist, will ensure that their customers have a positive experience, he said.
The supplement manager of the Delray store, Michael McNally, will join Boynton Beach manager Theresa Dyer and sales associate Eileen Freidenreich.
The Stowes plan to expand the Boynton location’s inventory, add more refrigeration, expand and remodel the supplement area, add a specialized-bulk-herb section, and carry more groceries, raw foods and gluten-free foods. They also plan to host lectures and talks in the store. Parking is free.
“We have been in Boynton Beach since 1978,” Mark said. “And even though rent was part of the problem in Delray Beach, it was time to focus our energies here in Boynton.”
After almost 93 years, Loehmann’s, the upscale off-price retailer that originated the concept, has gone out of business because of declining economic conditions in its key markets, and intense competition from other off-price and outlet retailers and the e-commerce channel.
Offering bargains at all locations, including its Boca Raton store at 8903-N Glades Road, Loehmann’s began liquidating stock in January.
Christine Davis is a freelance writer. Send business news to her at cdavis9797@comcast.net.
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