Sloppy Joes and Key Lime Pie

After visiting the Hemingway House, we continued walking north, back toward the port. Along the way we stopped for a couple of Key West treats.

I'd been hoping to get a picture by the Instagram-famous Key West mural at Cuban Coffee Queen. However, after walking around the downtown location near Duval Street, we were told that the mural is at the main location on Margaret Street. It was just too far a walk following our morning trek, so we contented ourselves with a bag of beans from the gift shop.

Our next stop was Sloppy Joe's Bar at the northern end of Duval. There is some discrepancy over exactly which Key West Bar was called 'Sloppy Joe's' at the time Hemingway frequented it. But as one Hemingway biographer says, it's likely he drank at them all.

I was craving a piña colada while Mom ordered a 'Papa Dobles' - rum, grapefruit juice, and grenadine. Seeing as we hadn't had anything to eat since our room service breakfast, we also ordered a Sloppy Joe to split. Maybe it was because we were hot and famished, but both the drink and the sandwich hit the spot!

About a block away on Greene Street, we made one last stop at Key West Key Lime Pie Co. There are three or four highly rated places in Key West that focus solely on Key Lime pie, and they all have pretty good ratings. I got a traditional slice while Mom went with chocolate dipped. It was pretty good, though I feel like I've had better.

After picking up a few things at CVS, we decided to head back to the ship. We walked past Mallory Square, the aquarium, and a ridiculous yacht. We were given cool towels and our choice of fruit-infused water as we got ready to show our seapasses and get scanned back in. Key West was a great first stop on our cruise - easy to plan and navigate and plenty to see, buy, and eat.