Most vacations include scouting out antique shops, sometimes a flea market or maybe a garage sale. Our recent trip to Florida with old friends left little time for our antique prospecting, but I managed to find a great collection. I want to share my find with everyone because of its unique background story, vastness, and the fact that anyone visiting the same area we did, can see and enjoy the results of a concentrated effort, first hand.
In past pronouncements I have discussed collections found along my everyday byway, from friends with sports fetishes, offices clogged with golf memorabilia and factory lobbies containing displays of antique machinery. Today let me share another collection with you.
The Frog Pond Restaurant Frog Collection.
Frogs and more frogs, metal, ceramic, wood, composite, cloth, stone, straw, and a picture of “Toad ala mode”. Kermit on a shelf, a clock and mirror on the wall. Umbrella handle, kite, stained glass window & frog plates all part of the accumulation. Frogs painted on a washboard or on the walls and all manner of pictures and wall hangings. Some larger frogs sit on the floor. Many straddle shelves, smaller ones are housed in wooden boxes, partitioned into little cubbyholes.
The frogs inhabit the Frog Pond Restaurant or more precisely two Frog Pond restaurants located on Gulf Boulevard just off Central Florida’s best beaches on the Gulf side, one is in North Redington Beach, the newer one in St. Pete Beach, which just opened in 2007. Owners David, Bill and Denis serve up super large breakfasts, lunches and plenty of discussion about the frogs. We were told the name came from a restaurant in Rochester, New York that one owner had visited and enjoyed many years ago.
Celebrating their Twenty-fifth anniversary, last year, the owners held a contest to see if customers could guess the number of frogs in the restaurant. Customers spent time trying to count the frogs in every nook and cranny, with the total count at 2697. Now near 3000 plus 500 at the new location at St. Pete Beach. While the new restaurant’s collection pales by comparison, we found loyal customers and long time staffers eager to share their stories of the frogs and the restaurants success with us.
And how does one collect such a humongous assortment of items, all on the same theme?
One frog at a time.
And How do you find all these frogs?
You don’t, your customers bring them to you, embracing the pleasure of visiting their contribution while enjoying another great morning meal.
Their locations are: 16909 Gulf Blvd. North Redington Beach, 7390 Golf Blvd. St. Pete Beach. and be aware they close at Two PM after serving lunch. You don’t want to miss the opportunity to see this collection.
For more pictures of the collection from another happy frogger click here.
