Food Critic Sara Kennedy
Owned for two years by Patrick and Dawn Pendola, The Whistle Stop holds a special place in the hearts of those who grew up in Safety Harbor. It was known for more than 30 years as The Frosty Harbor and retains its ice cream parlor retro charm. Some even organized a "Frosty Harbor" reunion recently to share their memories.

"It's been here forever, like a landmark, almost," explained Dawn Pendola. "I was happy to buy it from the original owners."

A wildly painted fake cow stands guard over the premises, advertising great ice cream. And in fact, the Whistle Stop's current extensive selection of frozen treats has continued what, by all accounts, was The Frosty Harbor's long tradition of primo malts and thick shakes, fresh waffle cones and gooey sundaes. Read More....

OKay, so this may not be the original Whistle Stop Cafe you saw in the film by the same name, but it may as well be. For a start, even the Whistle Stop around which the touching Fannie Flagg story revolves can be readily disputed: do you mean the cafe in Juliette, Georgia, that you actually saw in the movie and which, only after the film, decided to become a cafe and call itself 'The Original Whistle Stop Cafe' (before the film the building hosted a progression of shops including an antique shop, a real estate office before that, and others down, the years); or do you mean the place in Alabama, called the Irondale Cafe, once owned by Ms. Flagg's great Aunt Bess and the eatery which Fannie had in mind when she created the central location for her acclaimed book? As far as I'm concerned, our Whistle Stop is the real McCoy. Nestled beside the railroad tracks on Main Street, Safety Harbor, for many the cozy, unimposing restaurant has been known as the Whistle Stop for as long as they can remember.

I understand that the cafe was first established as far back as the late forties/early fifties, and started life as an ice cream parlor and burger bar. If you sit to the rear of the restaurant today, you can see a wonderful relic of this easier, nostalgic era by way of an original 1950s outdoor table and integral seat set, which present owners Dawn and Patrick Pendola assure me will remain as long as they do. Their appreciation of the past makes me happy, and is in fact what first drew me to the Whistle Stop over a year ago ... and continues to draw me. Downtown Safety Harbor, home to the whistle Stop, couldn't be a more suitable host for the retro-contemporary restaurant which one customer described as '...old Florida style with modern delicious ..... The town is a living reminiscence of a bygone era - a gentler time and place where people still walk the sidewalks to get where they are going, quaint locally-owned shops line Main Street, and you can (usually quite easily) park your car in front of any store for free. The Whistle Stop Grill is every bit in keeping with this warm and personal theme.

The building itself remains much the same as it was more than 50 years ago, with simple block construction, angled frontage, and sliding hatch windows. Interesting 'relics' and antiquities adorn the Whistle Stop's exterior walls: a pair of painted screen doors announcing the cafe's name; traditional chalk boards informing of coming musical treats or special menus; wooden signs, old glass bottles and enamelled cast iron cookware to name a few which make you feel as though you've stepped back to the Old South. The ever-dynamic menu is exciting in its contemporary twist to traditional southern down-home cooking'. Southern Cooking with Kick, is what we termed it when first talking with the Whistle Stop some time ago. And southern cooking it is - on our visit we started with the homemade smoked mullet spread, which was phenomenal. While a home grown Whistle Stop recipe, it reminded me of a recipe my wife picked up from a southern fair cookbook circa 1930. The Four Season Salad’s was a treat, and a regular diner told me that served with apple, it won't be beaten anywhere in the Bay area. Of course we would have been crazy had we not sampled the fried green tomatoes ... and it has to be said that I wish I'd been in a position to stop right there. A first-timer to this dish, I could easily have made my meal out of these sharp, rich treats so perfectly representing all that southern cooking can be.

Then came the fried dill pickle slices. Yes - fried pickles! Some of you may have heard of this one before ... many will have not. Apparently a customer once asked for this unusual dish and Dawn Pendola acceded - adding her own touch in the process, needless to say. The result being that I'd come here just to try this one. Honestly - if you like pickles, you'll smile. Our entrees were Lime Basil Catfish and Portobella Mushroom Wraps. I'm not super-keen on wraps, so to me the mushroom was okay (while being a top vegetarian offering) but the catfish was dynamite. In keeping with their new "r menu with table service, beer and wine license, and live music on weekends, this dish will undoubtedly help put the Whistle Stop on every Bay area diner's map. I'm now anticipating the sequel film.- Lime Basil Catfish' and the Whistle Stop Grill. Come experience it all first hand. Today. Casual attire, good food and fine friends. What more is there to a perfect southern evening.

St. Petersburg Times
CHRIS SHERMAN
Given the artsy impulses of this town, its easy to overlook the cow statue in front of the Whistle Stop, which is painted with Keith Haring splotches of hot pink, metro turquoise and much-too-red. Big deal the colors that grab your attention are whitewash white and general store green. You know those colors, the ones that show off an accent of Coca-Cola red so well They're the iconic colors of tiny town commerce across the South, where sundries, hamburger joints and other country businesses operated in the shade of old oaks just outside the dust of the crossroads. 'The Whistle Stop is from that pre-gallery, pre-condo era of Safety Harbor. If you grew up here - and plenty of people did, including Dan Brown, who plays guitar on Sunday nights and worked the fountain 40 years ago - this was Frosty Harbor. 'For almost a half-century it was a place where teens got smug and grown-ups felt snug, refreshed by cold sodas and warm friend ships. If you didn't you may have heard of the Whistle Stop and its fried green 'tomatoes, as Dawn Pendola fashioned the place in homage to author Fannie Flagg. Pendola took over the old root beer stand in 1995 The fried green tomatoes are still here, as a side, fancied up with cilantro and crumbles of goat cheese, or on burgers and BLFGTs. But they're not half of the changes Pendola and husband, Patrick, have installed. There's a tuna caesar salad and wraps of portobello, turkey, catfish and veggie, but most of the additions show more imagination. How about crackling calamari salad with calamari flash-fried and tossed with field greens in a tangerine mustard dressing? Don't imagine anyone tried to sell the James Dean crowd on fried squid with a frosty mug, which may be why nowadays the Whistle Stop has a wine List It's short but at the top end, $5 buys a glass of Robert Pepi sauvignon blanc or Hess Select cabernet two of my favorite bargains. Catfish get dolled up as an entree, grilled with lime and herbs (menu says basil oil; on my visit cilantro leaves), greens and basmati rice.

A veggie burger comes with aioli - garlic Mayo to you, bud. Most of the tweaking is done on the old-fashioned side. Like fried dill pickles. Yep, pickle chips in a hard cornmeal crust that packs grease and sour pickle together. You shouldn't eat many, but one or two is fun. I Hot dogs get the slash-and- almost-burn treatment I like on the grill. Baked beans are homemade with ground beef (I'd punch them up with vinegar or hot sauce). Order a chocolate milkshake and you get whipped cream and jimmies on top. In tribute to Pendola's Jersey roots, French fries can be ordered with chili, cheese or brown diner gravy. The gravy's the kind that was the best part of a hot roast beef sandwich; The Whistle Stop also carries a few local goods. The fish spread mixes cream cheese and mullet smoked in town More important the hard ice cream comes from Working Cow, made less than 10 miles away. It doesn't always work- The grilled cumin chicken breast isn't very spicy, and the hamburgers made of a third of a pound of sirloin. But if you come here often - and you would if you could - you find your favorites, maybe a soft- serve Florida Avalanche. Stick with them for the sheer pleasure of a place that's been part of a town for 50 years. Parents wheel toddlers by on evening walks, dieters escaping from the spa hike down Main Street little Leaguers celebrate and commiserate. Plus you get to sit under the tree waiting for nothing more exciting than a freight train. Or an indulgent owner rewarding Bowser with some dog- friendly vanilla. That's what summer nights are for. And Safety Harbor can have them all year long.

The Tampa Tribune
The restaurant, nestled alongside the railroad tracks, is an open-air eating establishment offering walk-up window service for ice cream and table service for diners. "You get that old Florida feeling with contemporary, delicious food," said patron-Lois Miller. "I just think it is a very special place in Safety Har- bor." Owners Dawn and Patrick Pendola put more than $50,000 into the restaurant when they bought it 19 months ago. The improvements have made the Whistle Stop Grill a hot spot for local residents. The Main Street institution usually is packed on weekends with patrons enjoying live jazz or blues while they eat and drink $1 drafts. The Pendolas put in a deck, a canopy and picnic tables with tablecloths and umbrellas. They added nicer tables and chairs for full-service, diners, new floors, plants, foodservice equipment and an exterior point job. More improvements are planned, including a larger bar area and more shaded dining areas. The renovations have turned the place into a full-service restaurant with a creative menu that has expanded beyond the business's historic hot dog-and-hamburger roots. "It used to be a place I thought of just as an ice cream shop, WHERE. 915 Main St., Safety Harbor Major credit-debit cards accepted; children's menu (10 and younger): beer and wine served; live music Saturday and Sunday evenings, table service or walkup service available HOURS. 11 am. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday CALL- (727) 726-1956 all the time and eat. It's a place you want to sit down and enjoy."