Best Park
CIRCLE B BAR RESERVE
4399 Winter Lake Rd, Lakeland
(863) 668-4673
This former cattle ranch sits on the northwest shore of Lake Hancock with several ecosystems over 1,267 acres. Circle B Bar Reserve’s many maintained, marked trails are perfect for hiking (you’ll probably see an alligator or two). Nature photographers and painters alike also set up on the reserve to capture the wildlife and stunning Central Florida scenery. Have a Circle B picnic at one of their five first-come, first-serve covered picnic areas with grills.
2nd: Central Park Winter Haven
3rd: Bok Tower Gardens
Best Live Music Venue
GROVE ROOTS BREWING COMPANY
302 3rd St SW, Winter Haven
(863) 291-0700
FB @groverootsbrewing
IG @groverootsbrewing
Grove Roots has the beers AND the bands! Best Of Haven voters love to sip a Jammy Sammy and jam out to local musicians at this laid-back community brewery. Grove Roots Brewing Co. was also voted number one for Best Beer List and Best Polk County Beer for their crisp, fruity sour, Tropical Dilemma. One Grove Roots groupie wrote in part, “This is a local spot. We come here for live music, food truck vendors, new beer offerings, and the all-inclusive vibe. Great outdoor seating that offers a wide variety of comfortable options. Lots to do outside that will keep the kids and puppies happy as well.”
2nd: Jensen’s Corner Bar
3rd: Tanners Lakeside Restaurant & Bar
Best Art Gallery
MICHAEL CREWS GALLERY AT LAKE WALES ARTS CENTER
1099 FL-60 E, Lake Wales
(863) 676-8426
FB @LakeWalesArtsCouncil
IG @lakewalesartscouncil
Polk County art aficionados appreciate the world-class work exhibited at the Michael Crews Gallery. The gallery is housed in a former church that was built in 1927 and named for Michael Crews, founder of the Lake Wales Chorale, as well as President of the Community Concert Association, and an instrumental force in merging that organization and the Lake Wales Arts Council. According to the Lake Wales Arts Council, “Lake Waleans who had known Mike Crews and his love for arts, suggested that the new building be named in his honor and memory. The Lake Wales Arts Council unanimously agreed.”
2nd: Ridge Art Association
3rd: Polk Museum of Art
Best Public Art
ALLIGATOR MURAL BY NICOLE HOLDERBAUM “NICO”
435 6th St SW, Winter Haven
Could there be anything more Polk County appropriate than a giant alligator and a dreamy burnt orange sunset? This vibrant prehistoric beauty adorns the north side of the Refrigeration & Electric Service building. The alligator was painted by Nicole Holderbaum aka “Nico,” a Florida-based visual artist, muralist, creative director, and designer.
2nd: Slice of Happiness Mural by Gillian Fazio
3rd: The Calm Mural by David De La Mano & Pablo S. Herrero
Best Visual Artist
GILLIAN FAZIO
FB @gfazioart
IG @gfazioart
Whether you’ve been inspired by her Create mural in Lakeland, or snapped a selfie in front of the oranges and monarchs that grace Slice of Happiness in Lake Wales – Gillian Fazio has probably brightened your day at some point. A Lakeland native, Fazio grew up attending art schools and found a love of painting very young. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelors’ Degree in Fine Arts from the University of Florida in 2017. Fazio shifted from canvas to large-scale public art when she returned home and has since created over 20 murals across Central Florida. As a “new age flora and fauna artist” Fazio says her interest is in “using natural elements such as animals’ divinely designed patterns that serve a function and purpose, combined with purely aesthetic cultural patterns. [...] As the artist, my goal is to create an encounter for the audience, appreciating the intricacy of both senses of artistic intelligence.”
2nd: Trent Manning
3rd: Cathy Hall
Best Photographer
POTTHAST STUDIOS
234 W Central Ave, Winter Haven
(863) 294-4920
FB @PotthastStudios
IG @potthaststudios
Located in Downtown Winter Haven, Potthast Studios offers professional photography services including portraits, commercial photography, video production, photo restorations, digitizing services, and photography classes. Their spacious studio facilities boast flash strobe, constant and natural light studio capabilities, concrete cycloramic for seamless white/blue/green screen projects, and more. According to Potthast Studios, “Putting together a great photoshoot is about much more than just lights, camera, action. We understand it takes coordination, communication, talented design, and styling before the shoot, and talent behind the camera, to make it all come together. After the shoot, we aim for consistent and dependable delivery of client work.”
2nd: Lindsey Cassidy Photography
3rd: Paris Scott Photography
Best Musician
DANIEL PEPIN
FB @DanPepinMusic
YouTube: Daniel Pepin
SoundCloud: Daniel John Pepin
Daniel Pepin has played “everything from stadiums to little tiny dive bars.” His love of music ignited when he listened to his grandmother’s “Eight Days a Week” record as a kid. Many guitar lessons and tons of natural talent later, Pepin would attend music school, give music lessons, and start a band called The Letdown (now The Mighty Letdown) that would go on to open for top names at the time, like Godsmack and Disturbed. These days he’s serenading audiences across Polk County and beyond with his Spanish guitar skills ranging from melodic to pick-on-fire. Catch him regularly at venues across the county like the Winter Haven Farmers Market, Haven Coffee Roasters, The Pink Piano, and Swan Brewing.
2nd: B.Haven
3rd: Coastal Acoustic Barefoot Music
Best DJ
DJ MINI C PRODUCTIONS
(863) 812-7035
FB @DJMINiCpro
IG @djminic
They may specialize in weddings, but they can get the crowd moving at corporate events, school dances, sporting events, anniversary parties, fashion shows, birthdays, class reunions, proms – any event. DJ MIni C Productions has been serving Lakeland and surrounding areas since 2010 with their DJ and entertainment services including photo booths, wedding coordinating, wedding planning, lighting, and beyond. Platform Art said in their review of DJ MIni C, “We hired DJ Mini C to DJ for our PlatformKids art event and we were very happy with the result! They arrived early to set up and were also very friendly, professional, and easy to work with. DJ Mini C had some good music mixes and kept our audience entertained in between our performances.”
2nd: DJ Bracken Entertainment & Lighting
3rd: Triviosity Live Events
Best Maker
KORTLYN DOUGHERTY | ROGUE’S RELICS
Etsy: RoguesRelicsJewelry
FB @roguesrelicsjewelry
IG @roguesrelicsjewelry
Around the beginning of 2020, Kortlyn Dougherty started her Etsy shop, Rogue’s Relics (named after her Miniature Australian Shepherd, Rogue), selling wire-wrapped stones, earrings, bracelets, pendants, and the like. She began experimenting with a process called electroforming, making one-of-a-kind jewelry and decor with everything from snake, frog, and lizard skeletons, to rat skulls, ginkgo leaves, oak leaves, dragonflies, and butterflies that are coated in copper and given an antique finish. You can pick up a stunning Rogue’s Relics piece at one of the many markets Dougherty attends like the Winter Haven Farmers Market and Buena Market, or online at her Etsy shop!
2nd: Lyndsey Venrick | Pin + Needle
3rd: Jessica Garrett | Modish Collection
Best Tattoo Studio
ACES INK
1132 6th St NW, Winter Haven
(863) 875-3798
FB @acesinktattoo
IG @acesinktattoo
Best Of Haven voters think this tattoo shop is dealing all Aces! The shop says its mission is “to provide you with quality tattoos/ piercings in an amazing and sterile environment.” A look through the Aces Ink online portfolio – a lifelike black and white portrait of JAY-Z, Wranglers jeans patch on a buttcheek, colorful cartoon caricatures – is a testament to the clean, creative, quality tattoos their artists consistently produce. One client wrote, “Everyone at the shop is so friendly! Scheduling appointments is easy. Choosing which artist to use is a bit more difficult, as all their work is amazing!”
2nd: Skinfinity Tattoo Company
3rd: Angry Elephant Tattoos and Piercings
Best Piercing
DAKOTA LARUE | ACES INK
1132 6th St NW, Winter Haven
(863) 875-3798
FB @acesinktattoo
IG @acesinktattoo
Professional Body Piercer Dakota LaRue is so good at what she does, many clients say it doesn’t even hurt! You could say she’s pretty sharp. In the “amazing and sterile environment” at Aces Ink, LaRue offers an array of piercing services that her clients rave about. One pleased and freshly pierced patron said, “Dakota the piercer was AMAZING!! Very gentle and had a lot of knowledge on how to make sure they heal properly. She did an amazing job!”
2nd: Atomic Tattoos
3rd: Piercings by Pinky Pierce
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