The 2012 Sarasota Chalk Festival is scheduled to kick off in Historic Burns Square on Sunday, Oct. 28 and will continue through Tuesday, Nov. 6. In fact, the street art will remain on the streets for 30 days after the completion of the festival. With approximately 200,000 visitors over a seven-day period last year, the 2012 festival is setting up to be even bigger. Now in its fifth season, this year’s theme of “Circus City, USA” pays homage to the circus roots that are an integral part of Sarasota’s heritage. If prior Chalk [...]

With its prime locations diagonally across from the Burns Court Cinema and in the center of Burns Square, Galileo Ristorante and Retropolitan are well-situated for an evening dining crowd. New ownership took control of the restaurants at the end of June and started making small changes  through the summer. I thought it was a good time to meet the new owners to find out what else is being planned. I recently spoke to Chad Weidner, one of the new owners, to learn more. Jack Littman-Quinn: How did you decide on [...]

Found yourself just a few days away from Mother’s Day with not clue on how to celebrate your mom? No need to panic! PREEN & CHIC has you covered. From brunch and dinner to those local spots that have the “it” gifts, we’ll highlight some locally owned shops that will have you coming for more all through out the year. Best of all, they are just a few blocks away from each other.   The first order of business is where to eat! And eat here has a spectacular deal for us. [...]

With origins dating back to the early 1600s, the institution of the local café has served an integral role in communities worldwide. Always used as a meeting or gathering place, the pulse of the café evolved from news and information, to political discussion and dissent, to artistic collaboration and entertainment—and with the ubiquity of Wi-Fi returned back to communication and information. Returning to classical café roots, the Burns Court Café serves as host to a monthly book club, a cinema discussion group and a conversational French group. All details for [...]