Florence and the Spice Boys

These first few lines tend to be the toughest when setting the tone of an article. And when it comes to writing about friends, that challenge becomes even harder.

With any Edible article, it’s our duty to tell the restaurant’s story and to tell it well. But this isn’t just a typical Edible article in which I describe how stupendously good the food is (which it is) or how bold and imaginative the flavors are (which they are) or how whimsically stylish the interior is (seriously, the prettiest place in town) or even how special the staff is (Florence is quite literally the loveliest woman I’ve ever met).

This is an article about Florence and the Spice Boys, a trio most of us Sarasotans met through the small window of their original cramped food truck and have now come to view as family (or at least that idealized kind of family you see in Publix holiday commercials), now visiting them in their bigger, creatively cozy dining room for extra servings of great food and good feelings.

Florence and the Spice Boys is comprised of Head Chef Steven Schmitt (the heart of the kitchen, whose skill and ferocious love of food has made a menu with an almost cult-like following); his wife, Florence Schmitt (the smile and soul on the front end who also maintains all marketing initiatives); and Carl Kolber (the brains of the back end, who manages most things administrative). Theirs is a cute story of college buddies and long-time love and I encourage you to chat with Florence about it over their famous Jerusalem Beef Pita and Turmeric Fried Chicken Sandwich. Meanwhile, I’d rather tell you what to order.

Like many of you, I’ve been going to Florence and the Spice Boys since almost day one in 2019, when they were just “The Spice Boys” in a bright green truck with an ever-changing schedule. Florence hadn’t made it to the logo yet as she was focused on their growing family. I’d follow them to empty sand-filled lots in 2,000-degree Florida summer heat and to equally hot parking lots outside of local breweries just to get my hands on juicy chicken thighs perfectly fried with an expertly executed greasy golden crunch stacked tall in a sandwich or stuffed full into a pita, all things smothered in sauces that we food-lovers live for, like zhug (a Yemenite hot sauce akin to chimichurri, loaded with herbs, garlic, and chilies) and amba (a tangy pickled mango sauce of Indian-Jewish origins).

And I wasn’t alone. Every visit yielded a group meeting of familiar faces, all fellow Spice lovers asking “When will you get a restaurant so I can come every day?”

And now here they are—with a bright, breezy, open-air space exploding with cool cookbooks, vining plants, and a whole slew of new sauces and specials made possible by their bigger kitchen and growing staff allows. The whole vibe is “modern Middle Eastern fusion,” but unlike most fusion concepts where each dish needs to have some sort of balance between two cultures, their menu is meant to be viewed more as a majority of Middle Eastern–based dishes and a hefty handful of completely not Middle Eastern dishes that you’d order together and eat more mezze-style. So, approach it like this: You come in with friends and order a classic Jerusalem “Arias” Beef Pita (a meat-stuff ed pita popular at Arabic markets in Galilee, where the super-seasoned raw meat is placed in the pita and the whole thing is grilled together, resulting in this crunchy, juicy meat hand pie); and the Falafel Pita Taco (with smoked harissa, beet tahini, their insanely smooth hummus, and a pickled slaw—all things housemade, of course); and you also order the Sweet Potatoes (with a Japanese goma dare sesame sauce, Szechuan chili oil, and crispy tofu); and the Fried Truffle Polenta (with gruyere cheese, preserved Meyer lemon mayo, and sumac onion). Since each dish is creative and flavorful, they all work together regardless of which region they hail from.

“We’re not confined by family tradition,” says British-born Florence. “We’re just passionate about this food and these flavors and cook what our hearts desire. But there will always be hummus, shawarma, falafel, and all the flavors, colors, and spices of that area.”

She goes on to explain, “You’ll also find other exotic flavors in our weekly specials, like kimchi [mixed with apple in their current pork belly special] or our take on a Big Mac that we just put out on a whim just because the chefs felt like having fun. The fusion isn’t that each dish incorporates Middle Eastern ingredients, it’s that the entire dining experience itself creates the fusion between Middle Eastern flavors and modern ingredients.”

By the way, get the hummus. It is absolutely superior with options like kofta meatballs or sweet corn or brown butter with caraway-spiced golden raisins. Or you can simply have it plain—but why would you? The spicy corn ribs are rightly a huge hit, the corn carved in a hand-held rib-style way dusted with Szechuan spice and served with a brown butter maple sauce, and the Harissa Oyster Mushroom is my new favorite (and probably yours too) with a pile of just-spicy-enough oyster mushrooms atop a bed of that ridiculously velvety tahini and soaked with kaffir lime leaf oil.

And readers, please please please don’t skip the sweet, salty, crunchy, creamy, tangy Bhel Puri, an Indian-style snack made of chaat masala, green apple, tamarind, coriander chutney, and yogurt. Just trust me.

Overall, it’s their magical blend of heart, mind, and soul that makes this delicious and vivacious restaurant feel so special.

“I love serving and making people happy … just giving people a good experience,” says Florence, adding “I love knowing someone leaves having felt not only well fed but really well taken care of.”

If you haven’t eaten at Florence and the Spice Boys yet, you haven’t eaten at one of the best spots in town.

> Florence and the Spice Boys; 4990 S Tamiami Trl, Sarasota; 941-405-3890; facebook.com/spiceboyskitchen