{"id":4085,"date":"2010-10-05T12:47:34","date_gmt":"2010-10-05T18:47:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085"},"modified":"2010-10-05T12:47:34","modified_gmt":"2010-10-05T18:47:34","slug":"dining-divas-kota-wood-fire-grill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085","title":{"rendered":"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill"},"content":{"rendered":"

BY LISA KAMPETER<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Dining Divas decided to try out Kota Wood Fire Grill, located just across the street from the Fox Theater, and operated by one of our favorite restaurants, Triumph Bar and Grill.\u00a0 This breezy night with pleasant temperatures was a perfect teaser to fall being just around the corner, a favorite season for most of the Divas.<\/p>\n

Prior to making the commitment to try out Kota, we made sure there weren\u2019t any conflicts with a Fox show that night.\u00a0 Parking in Grand Center can be rough.\u00a0 The Cautious Divas weren\u2019t pleased with my decision to park on a side street next to the Fox, a quite desolate area on this night.\u00a0 But had I not, I would never have noticed the charming new diner right on the corner and a place that I plan to check out for lunch some time soon.\u00a0 I\u2019m a diner type of girl.<\/p>\n

The Travelling Guest Diva joined us from Atlanta although her home is mostly on the road.\u00a0 Her job takes her all over the United States.\u00a0 We envied her as she shared with us plans for her upcoming trip to Alaska, until she told us the expectant temperatures were in the 30s.<\/p>\n

But for the Travelling Guest Diva and the Greek Diva, they\u2019d rather plop themselves down on a couch rather than travel the country.\u00a0 The fall means it\u2019s a new college football season.\u00a0 These Florida natives and University of Florida roommates can talk SEC football like the Dining Divas can talk food.\u00a0 Not really professionally but with passion.\u00a0 They are slightly biased.\u00a0 \u201cThree yards and a cloud of dust,\u201d says the Greek Diva of Big 10 football (or is it Big 11 or\u00a0 Big 12?).\u00a0 \u201cReal football is played in the SEC.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regardless of what fashion expert Stacy London says about \u201cwhat not to wear,\u201d any attire with a combination of orange and blue is fashionable, according to these Gator girls.\u00a0 But it has to be the right color orange.\u00a0 \u201cNot that Tennessee orange.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the Italian Diva, the fall means all of her wedding plans are finally coming to fruition.\u00a0 For the Colorful Diva, the fall means back to school (along with a 70-hour work week), and it means she\u2019s that much closer to the degree she\u2019s been working so hard on.\u00a0 For the Educator Diva, the fall means back to the head of the classroom and to the students she loves.<\/p>\n

So Kota had a jump start.\u00a0 We were already feeling good when we walked in.\u00a0 And they had good happy hour choices, which they didn\u2019t limit just to the bar area.\u00a0 Being that we were one of maybe three other tables, I\u2019m glad they could be so accommodating.\u00a0 I\u2019m hoping this was just a slow night.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know how these places survive when there\u2019s not a show playing at the Fox.<\/span><\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the restaurant wasn\u2019t the only thing slow this night.\u00a0 So was our waitress.\u00a0 You would have thought she had 50 tables, not just three.\u00a0 But what she lacked in speed, the chef made up for in our dinners.<\/p>\n

Kota serves up southern style food with a dash of hospitality to top it off.\u00a0 A couple Divas shared the Hangtown Fry Salad, field greens with bacon, egg, tomatoes, olives and fried oysters, chopped and mixed with a green goddess vinaigrette.\u00a0 This was the Engaged Diva\u2019s favorite part of her meal.\u00a0 And the kitchen staff was hospitable enough to split the salad prior to bringing it out.\u00a0 That goes a long way with us.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a fan of grits, you have to try the barbecued shrimp served with smoked chile grits.\u00a0 The creaminess and flavor had a perfect amount of that southern kick we love.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re into stuffed mushrooms, you may or may not be pleasantly surprised.\u00a0 If you\u2019re looking for typical stuffed mushrooms, these are not them.\u00a0 Kota\u2019s are stuffed with goat cheese and herbs and served with a creamy garlic parmesan sauce.\u00a0 They were the size of the Deep Thought Divas head (well, possibly not that big.\u00a0 Her head has grown in the past couple years.)\u00a0 They were a great surprise for the Italian Diva and the Traveling Diva; yet, it was a slight disappointment to the Simple Diva who may have been intimidated by their size and the fact that they were fried.<\/p>\n

The Educator Diva is ready to return to Kota for the Nawlin\u2019s Po Boy with shrimp.\u00a0 She\u2019s still craving this sandwich and the wonderfully spicy grits that accompanied it.<\/p>\n

Of course, the Southern Diva had to have grits with her meal, too, the Smoked Pork Chop. \u00a0And she loved all of it.<\/p>\n

The Picky Diva ordered the safe choice, the Healthy Grill with a beef filet medallion, a grilled chicken breast, and a side of fresh asparagus.\u00a0 Healthy can mean boring, but this meal still tasted good the next day as lunch<\/p>\n

Kota\u2019s menu had so many other items we wanted to try, and their prices were reasonable.\u00a0 For the Dining Divas, that makes it perfect for any season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BY LISA KAMPETER The Dining Divas decided to try out Kota Wood Fire Grill, located just across the street from the Fox Theater, and operated by one of our favorite restaurants, Triumph Bar and Grill.\u00a0 This breezy night with pleasant temperatures was a perfect teaser to fall being just around the corner, a favorite season […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-columnists","entry"],"yoast_head":"\nDining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill - flovalleynews.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill - flovalleynews.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"BY LISA KAMPETER The Dining Divas decided to try out Kota Wood Fire Grill, located just across the street from the Fox Theater, and operated by one of our favorite restaurants, Triumph Bar and Grill.\u00a0 This breezy night with pleasant temperatures was a perfect teaser to fall being just around the corner, a favorite season […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"flovalleynews.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-10-05T18:47:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"independentnws\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"independentnws\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"independentnws\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7bede6d4517a6be3345b47415b09cebd\"},\"headline\":\"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill\",\"datePublished\":\"2010-10-05T18:47:34+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085\"},\"wordCount\":865,\"commentCount\":0,\"articleSection\":[\"Columnists\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085\",\"name\":\"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill - flovalleynews.com\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2010-10-05T18:47:34+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7bede6d4517a6be3345b47415b09cebd\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?p=4085#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"flovalleynews.com\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7bede6d4517a6be3345b47415b09cebd\",\"name\":\"independentnws\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f76505b4d7bc95b432faea9b79d00a6abc40ba8a96aef3a5fbd567ecb14b19a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f76505b4d7bc95b432faea9b79d00a6abc40ba8a96aef3a5fbd567ecb14b19a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f76505b4d7bc95b432faea9b79d00a6abc40ba8a96aef3a5fbd567ecb14b19a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"independentnws\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/flovalleynews.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill - flovalleynews.com","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill - flovalleynews.com","og_description":"BY LISA KAMPETER The Dining Divas decided to try out Kota Wood Fire Grill, located just across the street from the Fox Theater, and operated by one of our favorite restaurants, Triumph Bar and Grill.\u00a0 This breezy night with pleasant temperatures was a perfect teaser to fall being just around the corner, a favorite season […]","og_url":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085","og_site_name":"flovalleynews.com","article_published_time":"2010-10-05T18:47:34+00:00","author":"independentnws","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"independentnws","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085"},"author":{"name":"independentnws","@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7bede6d4517a6be3345b47415b09cebd"},"headline":"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill","datePublished":"2010-10-05T18:47:34+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085"},"wordCount":865,"commentCount":0,"articleSection":["Columnists"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085","url":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085","name":"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill - flovalleynews.com","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2010-10-05T18:47:34+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7bede6d4517a6be3345b47415b09cebd"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?p=4085#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Dining Divas: Kota Wood Fire Grill"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/","name":"flovalleynews.com","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7bede6d4517a6be3345b47415b09cebd","name":"independentnws","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f76505b4d7bc95b432faea9b79d00a6abc40ba8a96aef3a5fbd567ecb14b19a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f76505b4d7bc95b432faea9b79d00a6abc40ba8a96aef3a5fbd567ecb14b19a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f76505b4d7bc95b432faea9b79d00a6abc40ba8a96aef3a5fbd567ecb14b19a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"independentnws"},"url":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/?author=1"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4085"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4085\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flovalleynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}