Dan Greco Wedding Blog Day 1: The Search for Good Cooters

As a sophomore at Syracuse University, I decided to rush the Fraternity system, hoping to find friends for life but more importantly to get laid while I was in college. When I entered the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity house, I didn’t know if Lambda Chi was necessarily the best fit for me to accomplish these things. Then one of the brothers sat me down and recruited me like a ***** QB prospect out of Florida. Dan Greco recruited me into Lambda Chi and although only half of that house became long time friends, Dan is absolutely part of that half. We have been friends to the extent that I didn’t give going to or being in his wedding a second thought when he decided to get married 13 years later.

When he told me that wedding would be held in Clearwater Beach, Florida, I immediately thought this was my chance to go on vacation somewhere nice. You see, when your friends live in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, when you go on vacation to visit them and tell your co-workers none of them blink an eye or get the slightest bit jealous. The weeks leading up to this trip, needless to say that changed. The wedding and the four days of the trip lived up to all expectations and then some…

Day 1: Wednesday

I flew Southwest to Florida, and if you haven’t traveled in the past six months, let me advise you; EVERYONE FLIES SOUTHWEST NOW. So many people that the line for the baggage check-in was long enough that I almost missed my flight, I took a lesser known security line and a roundabout way to my gate to make the flight never taking advantage of my B22 Boarding Pass I printed the night before. Bottom line is I made my flight but it was close.



I met up with Josh and his friend from work Catherine at the airport as our flights got in within a half hour of each other. The people at Woodway know Catherine as the one who does all the work while her boss is researching for his fantasy football draft.

While the Sand Pearl Resort, the location of the wedding is a beautiful resort, it is also $350 a night meaning we needed less swank arrangements for the days before. Therefore we check in to the Hotel Motel Holiday Inn (granted we upgraded to a suite upon arrival) but we got a coveted gulf view and a balcony overlooking the pool. While this is all great, by the time we check in its past 1 and all of us are starved. We asked the cute Southern belle at the front desk where to eat and she gives us the easy answer, Frenchy’s.



There are something like 18 Frenchy’s all independently owned, yet all serving the same shit. You figure that out. Frenchy’s and most every restaurant on Clearwater Beach has three featured items. Shock Top beer, which is like Blue Moon except more orangey, delicious at $2.50 a pint. A Cuban Panini, which is pork, salami, ham and cheese on flatbread. And Grouper, the local fish. You can have Grouper Sandwich, Grouper Cheeks, Fried Grouper, Grilled Grouper, Blackened Grouper, Grouper on a Stick, Popcorn Grouper, Jumbo Grouper…okay I’m exaggerating but I think if we went to McDonald’s they would’ve had a McGrouper. Every restaurant in Clearwater had to serve Grouper, it must’ve been the law. I had the Cuban, and it like everything I eat on vacation was delicious.

On the way back Josh said “You look like a Country music singer, and they get laid…they get laid a lot”. Maybe we could meet up with some late Spring Breakers.

The week of my vacation, the Broncos openly declared that they were shopping Jay Cutler, more on this later.

The next four hours were Josh, Catherine and I laying out by the pool and the gulf getting sun in 85 degree weather. I will try not to taunt you all with those details but it was a big part of what we did.

Jeff and his wife Meg, greet us at the Holiday Inn. Not five minutes after we all get in the pool does Jeff try to choke me out in the deep end in the pool. That’s what I like about Jeff, he’s so nice. Jeff’s wife Meg is pregnant and I’ve heard spending time in the pool can accelerate labor. She’s due in August so let’s hope she spends a lot of time in the pool so that baby comes out before the fantasy football draft. It’s good to have your priorities in order.

After getting dressed, we met up with the future Bride and Groom as well as Kevin Leitzell and his father. Kevin had been in Clearwater all week orally servicing following his Philadelphia Phillies Spring Training. We let Jeff lead us to find a dinner spot, this if you have to be told was a mistake.

Our first try was a Japanese Steakhouse, even got as far as sitting down and reading menus. Unfortunately if you didn’t like sushi or anything Japanese, your only option was a $30 steak. We got up and tried other options. After Jeff tried to take us to a small pizza place and a Chinese restaurant we see bright lights and a word no man could resist, Cooters.



Cooters was everything we wanted. Everything fried, including Grouper. Tequila Wings, Gator Bites, Buffalo Nachos. American Idol on the television (I’ll miss Megan Joy, some couldn’t get over the Arm Sleeve, but I appreciated her big picture, thinking you could always tuck the arm under a sheet), the jukebox going back and forth from Journey’s Greatest Hits and Doors Greatest Hits. It was everything great about America in one restaurant.

The dinner was a fantastic start to what would be an all-time weekend.
Dan as a gesture to thank us for coming down paid the tab as we pretended to be upset. Well all of us except Josh. It was a great gesture by a great man, one well worth traveling for.