Jimmy Doherty's Florida food adventure from oysters and rollercoasters to the Everglades

ok.co.uk:

Jimmy Doherty is swapping his Suffolk farm for sunny Florida as the keen foodie travels across the US state to visit its culinary hotspots.

However, the ITV1 series isn’t just a regular travel show for Jimmy – as he finally fulfilled his lifelong dream of ticking Florida off his list of must-see holiday destinations. “Growing up, my view of Florida was Miami Vice, Gentle Ben, Flipper and all that kind of stuff.

I got to tick a lot of those things off my bucket list as a kid, which was great,” says Jimmy, 48. “Everyone knows Florida, but do they really know it?" "It was a journey of discovery," continues Jimmy. "And I wanted to get beneath what everyone knows Florida for – the beaches and the theme parks – to get to its vibrant food scene.” Jimmy explores the dishes on offer across the Sunshine State.

And while most people tend to think of greasy burgers, over-sized portions and stacks of fries when they picture American food, Jimmy was delightfully surprised by Floridian kitchens’ unique twists on classic cuisine. “In Pensacola, a chef introduced me to boiled peanuts,” he smiles. “I’m used to eating peanuts in a pub with a pint of beer but out there, they boil them in their shells until they’re really soft in a spicy stock.That was incredible." “I then went to Panama City Beach and met one of the fastest oyster shuckers out there – you’ve got to be careful how you say that,” Jimmy laughs. “You walk into a sports bar and there are guys and girls coming back from work – fishermen, policemen.They rock up and work half a dozen oysters with their beer while watching the game. “I think in the UK, sometimes people go, ‘That’s too posh for me,’ but in Florida, oysters are food for everyone.