We had our last dinner in Maui at this local favorite. While the menu prices rivaled those of Lahaina Grill, the white linen and suited waiters was replaced by blue Hawaiian patterns and casual button ups. The food is less fancy, but still tasty. We were kind of in a hurry to get through our meal since some people in our party were trying to catch flights to the airport that same night.
Bread & Butter
Warm and soft.
The Annoyer prefaced Lahaina Grill as our fanciest meal of the entire trip. So The Keeper and I made sure to wear our nicest outfits with heels, and basically look a little less Hawaii and little more LA. Lahaina is quite a drive from Wailea so we were lucky to be able to push back our reservation because it takes a bit of time to get our LA faces on ok? Turns out we got the nice semi private dining area, which kicked the dinner off on a special note. The place is definitely a white linen and suited waiters kind of place so check your flip flops at the door. Although, I'm sure they'd still welcome you dressed in the standard Hawaiian attire. Lahaina Grill serves contemporary seafood and steak with a Hawaiian twist in an elegant fine dining setting. Translated, the place is NOT cheap.
Bread & Herb Compound Butter
Warm and soft bread with gobs of flavored fat makes for happy campers anywhere.
We opted for more poke and fish tacos for our third lunch. Food trucks seem like quite the popular thing in Maui. I wonder if they were popular before the crazy food truck trend hit the mainland. In any case, we hightailed it here after dropping off 3SB for his kite surfing lessons. The rest of us obviously value chowing down on delicious eats rather than enriching our lives with new exciting experiences the way 3SB does it.
The Annoyer is pretty easy going about things. He doesn't have a strong opinion about many things, but when it comes to Eskimo Candy, he won't consider any other place for poke. You can try to reason that the poke at Eskimo Candy is too sweet, too saucy, too anything but he'll argue and disprove your opinion. In actuality, it's my opinion so there is no right or wrong, but he won't have anyone speaking badly about his precious Eskimo Candy.
So after a long flight we finally arrived in Maui. The weather was a very welcome change. Not that SoCal is like Siberia or anything but I'd take 70-80 degree weather over 50-60 degrees weather any day. And it turned out that we traded a week of rain for a week of sunshine as well! Good fortune was on our side. Our first stop was the ever popular Maui establishment, Coconut's Fish Cafe. I remember very little from my previous, but I do remember the wait was long and that remains unchanged. Luckily, we chatted up another couple during our 15-20 minute wait for food, so the time passed by quickly.
I had been wanting to go to Woodsman Tavern for a long long time and finally got around to it thanks to some friends. Verde, Perpetually Underwhelmed, The Gunner (though she's not doing much of that anymore these days), Big Spoon, joined me for some good ole grubbin'.
Marinated Octopus pickled lemon, oregano capers
This was a big disappointment. It had a fishiness to it that I could not overcome. Big Spoon and Verde did not seem to mind it. Texturally, it was meaty without being too rubbery or too soft. I'll give this one a pass but I wouldn't order it again.
I cook a lot. I only say that because I don't know anybody else who cooks as much as I do. As a result, I get really tired of my own food. I try to cook as many new things as possible but I run out of ideas and I certainly get tired of chicken, beef, and pork. I was excited to FINALLY get a date night for the first time in a while and definitely wanted seafood. Somehow, trying all that is new and delicious in Portland is not so much a priority for Dumpling Man anymore. Yeah, sadface.
Tuna Pallard green goddess dressing
Our decision to come to Riffle was somewhat of a last minute decision so we didn't have reservations and had to be seated at the counter. It actually turned out nice because we were up close and personal with the kitchen. Maybe the chefs felt sorry for us being the lonesome couple at the counter while everyone else got a table so they gave us free food! It wasn't even like we were waiting for a long time. Anyways, the tuna was just seared on one side and served very simply with a lightly dressed salad. It was a nice starter and two thumbs up for being free!
I apologize for my long break from the blogger world. The holidays left me with little time to blog. I was flying back and forth from Portland to LA during my time off, and when I get to LA all I do is eat and hang out without much time for blogging. Plus, a lot of my free time has been spent trying to plan The Big Day. Although it's quite a ways away, I like to peruse the internet seeing all the wonderful possibilities. It's amazing to think what life would be like without the internet.
I still have to finish up blogging about my SF trip so many moons ago. After Bottega and Gary Denko, were done with the White Man's food, and really need to color things up a shade of yellow. Dim sum at Hong Kong Lounge really hit the spot and we wanted to keep the momentum going. Weeners recommended PPQ which turned out to be disappointingly mediocre so I'm going to have to reconsider her recommendations from here on out. PPQ is really know for their crab and garlic noodles. I'm not sure if the restaurant is Vietnamese or Chinese since the food is sorta Chinese, but there is Vietnamese on the menu. We decided to go off the set menu stuff and order a la carte. Maybe thats where we went wrong because none of the things were ordered were very good.
Papaya Salad with Shrimp
I love papaya salad, but I didn't like this. It was just sorta bland. It lacked an adequate amount of acid or even salt. It was just a sweet bland taste. The shrimp were flavorless. The papaya had a good crunch I suppose, but the flavoring left much to be desired.
So after the previous nights less than impressive seafood, I got lazy and did not take pictures of the ONE meal with what ended up being the best tom yum kum soup I've ever tasted and freshest most tender prawns in red chili sauce. What I believed to be Aroonsom Food Park, was actually probably the Patong Seafood Park that was serving this amazing food. In any case, what's done was done, and I only have the memories in my head to remember that meal.
For our final dinner in Phuket, we really wanted excellent seafood even if we had to pay out the nose for it. We were tempted to walk back to the Patong Seafood Park, but instead opted for something different and went with Savoey at the recommendation of the concierge. We had an inkling it would be pricey especially after seeing it was an indoors, air conditioned, bright, and clean dining establishment. By the time we had braved the ladyboys and ping pong show offerings of Bangla Road, we were hot, tired, and hungry and just wanted to eat.
Prawns in Red Chili Paste
Dumpling Man, Panda Bear, and Token Bear went off to hand select our seafood that was to meet its doom at the hands of boiling water and vats of scalding hot oil. The prawns were good, but they just weren't as amazing as the previous night's prawns. They seemed a bit tougher, perhaps from being overcooked I suspect. The sauce also didn't seem to penetrate the meat as well, just lacked that punch.
Can you believe people are too busy to eat? For me, the world stops just so I can eat. Some how though, I have a hard time getting people to gather for a good meal. Always some ridiculous business about work, feeling sick, feeling tired, journal club, I mean the laundry list of excuses is endless. I mean, uhh, priorities people?? Anyways, I finally got a reservation for Son of a Gun and gathered a small party of people. Apparrently there is only 1 table that accomodates large parties so I had to keep my party small. Of course, The Bottomless Pit was first in line. Buff Bear, who is not as robust as his name would suggest, finally got over his umpteenth sinus infection and brought gf, Cher Bear along.
Shrimp Toast Sandwich herbs, siracha mayo (MUST HAVE #1)
WOW, best mother^%@!ing shrimp toast sandwich EVER!!! This was my FAVORITE dish of the night. I totally wished there were more of it to go around. We ordered 2 to split between 4 people and if I were to return I would suggest each diner get his/her own shrimp toast sandwich. Sadly, the sandwich is definitely smaller than a 4x4 gauze pad. The exterior of the toast was well toasted with the help of a generous slathering of butter I am sure. The bread itself was so fresh and soft. All the bread that night was perfect! Now the combination of the shrimp and siracha mayo was a harmonious combination of my favorite ocean protein with a dyn-O-mite creamy and spicy sauce. It dripped down onto my plate and I seriously wanted to lick it up! LOVE LOVE LOVE.
Lobster Roll celery, lemon aioli (MUST HAVE #2 per popular opinion)
Somehow I imagined this, and pretty much all the sandwiches to be much bigger than they actually were. This seriously was no bigger that a White Castle Slider, and again we only got 2 to share among 4 of us. Anyways, these didn't have as much kick as previous dish. Similarly though, the bread was super fresh and soft and toasty. The lobster was creamy without being overwhelming and heavy. The potato chips were a nice touch but didn't add all that much. I think it could have used a touch more lemon to balance out the cream. Don't get me wrong, this was another winner in my book!
Since Smooth Obturator moved to beach, he's been trying to embrace the true "California fun in the sun" lifestyle and culture. He goes running on the beach, bike riding up to Santa Monica and down to Redondo Beach, and occasionally surfing if he feels like looking like a fool. It's been nice to have a place to go to that's right on the beach, even though it's not my own place. On one gloomy weekend, my mom, Smooth Obturator, and Triple T rode bikes down to Redondo Beach to catch a chowder cook-off near the pier. Also in this area, there is a small seafood market that sells fresh shellfish like crabs, oysters, and clams and fry joint next door that sells prepared foods like ceviche, fried shrimp, french fries, fried oysters, etc.
Fresh Seafood
You can select the different sorts of oysters you'd like to be shucked. You can also pick from a good selection of different crabs to be steamed on request.
Chowder Cook Off
I'm not really sure which "charity" they were raising money for and I forgot to ask. For $7 you got to have 5 samplings out of the 12 vendors serving chowder. Only one booth was offering Manhattan Clam Chowder. Everyone else was serving your regular New England Clam Chowder. In the end you vote for your favorite.
For the most part, none of the chowders were that amazing. The ones that stood out were the ones that had a nice use of herbs like rosemary and were chunky with plenty of potatoes, veggies, and clams. The one in the bottom middle was frankly offensive for being watery and salty. I was the only one that paid the $7 for the chowder sampling. Smooth Obturator would have preferred I sample all the chowders and then tell him which one was worth buying a big bowl.
If you think about Seattle, 2 things probably come to mind: endless rain and GREAT food. When we decided to make a weekend trip to Seattle, I immediately started looking up places to eat. What is good travel without good food? That's my philosophy anyways. I'll probably never visit a place for the sole reason of visiting unless its got something good too eat.
Pike Place Market has to be one of the main tourist attractions in Seattle. I don't know why it's so famous exactly because it seems like any other farmer's market, fresh produce, meat, seafood, handmade goods, and ready made eats. Maybe its the fish tossing? Missed any of that action. Pike Place Chowder happens to be a great little attraction in the market for its award winning chowder and crab roll.
Instead of going with just the famous New England clam chowder, I opted for the 4 chowder sampler. Four 5 oz cups of any 4 chowders of your choosing for $10.95. I went with all the chowders except the salmon chowder, and swapped it out for the seafood bisque instead. All of the soups were good but nothing to write home about it. They certainly hit the spot on the cold rainy day we were having.
Southwestern Chicken & Corn Chowder grilled chicken, corn, assorted vegetables, creamy southwestern style broth
Creamy with a great grilled chicken flavor, accented by sweet kernels of corn in every bite.
DineLA descended upon the hungry citizens of Los Angeles last week. For $26/$34/$44 (depending on where you dine), you are offered a pre fixe dinner menu from a wide variety of restaurants throughout LA. My previous experience with DineLA has been really hit and miss. Locanda Veneta was superb, but Craft was stinkin'!. Sometimes Dine LA may not be reflective of a restaurant's true quality because you may not necessarily be offered the best things off the menu or the restaurant gets lazy and does a half ass job (ie Craft). So I made reservations at various restaurants hoping for the best, but not surprised if I got something average.
The Water Grill seems like a restaurant that has been around for ages. As you could imagine, a well established restaurant serving more traditional American cuisine doesn't generate much buzz in the food community. I was hoping the food would quell any doubts I had about dining at a place nobody talks about. Besides, Amanda works here, and I was very much impressed by her sous chef skills.
Amuse Bouche spicy tuna
Served on ice cold spoons, the amuse was a singularly harmonious bite of perfectly brunioused accoutrements and tuna wrapped in a thin cucumber slice. It was refreshing and clean with well balanced light flavors.
