Charleston Eats! Peninsula Grill

A few weeks ago Alan and I tagged a few days in Charleston to the end of a family Myrtle Beach trip. Packing in a couple of new restaurants & bars was easy from our centrally located historic Inn on Kings Street (King's Courtyard Inn, 198 King Street - highly recommend).

To kick off the weekend we popped over to Peninsula Grill for a glass of champagne and an appetizer. This was a repeat - we'd been there for dinner at the bar back in September of 2012 and remembered it fondly. We shared the Lobster “3 Way” ~ Lobster Ravioli, Lobster Tempura, and Sautéed Lobster with Warm Tomato Basil Vinaigrette. Plus lots of warm, soft, fresh bread to mop up all the broth. Excellent dish! We paired this with a glass each of bubbles: Taittinger "la Française", Brut, Reims N/V and the Dumont Pere et Fils, Brut Rosé, Aube N/V.

Because we already had dinner reservations elsewhere, we kept ourselves to the single dish. Still a great looking menu and a popular place that fills up quickly. Give it a try it you're in town but if you've been there before and remember the extensive by the glass champagne list from a few years ago, be prepared to be underwhelmed.

~ July 2014

Pluckemin Inn, Bedminster NJ - Winter Menu 2014

We saw that Pluckemin Inn had made some changes to the menu for winter including bringing French Onion Soup back which had been a favorite of ours years ago. So a few weeks ago (Jan. 18th) we went up for drinks & to meet friends for dinner.

While drinking champagne by the glass at the bar I sampled a dozen Maine oysters with a simple mignonette, cocktail sauce, citrus & horseradish accompaniments. We also had a dozen wild caught shrimp. The oysters - two different kinds - were briny and succulent. Wonderfully paired to the bubbly. The shrimp were quite large and the cocktail sauce had a nice bite to it.

For dinner we ordered two courses including the Lobster salad with castle valley farro, cucumber, meyer lemon, radish and fine herbs see below. Meaty, generous lobster was not overwhelmed by the citrus dressing & herbs but rather supported by them. Quite a nice dish.

In addition, tried the French Onion Soup (Jeff's serving was a better balance of broth to bread than mine both both tasted wonderful), Spanish Octopus with green olive, chorizo, hakurei turnip, pine nuts and salsa verde and the Mahi Mahi with heirloom carrots, hen of the woods, braised lettuce, hazelnut brown butter.

Thought these four dishes were a wonderful additions to the menu. Alan's Mahi was the standout of the evening; cooked to perfection (sous vide?) with a beautiful depth of flavor that can often be missing in fish preparations. The side order of French Fries with trio of dipping sauces for dessert didn't hurt either.

National Pasta Day: Marea, NYC

We didn't know that the day we decided to meet after work at Marea (midtown, Central Park South & Broadway) for a casual dinner that it was National Pasta Day. Had we known, there probably wouldn't have been anywhere else we would have picked to honor this incredible carbohydrate.

Arriving at 5:00pm to grab to seats at the bar - coveted, quickly snatched up, seats. They start serving the full menu at the bar at 5:30pm which makes it a popular choice at this restaurant who's reputation and two Michelin stars make it hard to get a reservation in the dining room.

We went low key - crudos and pasta dishes. So to start, three bite size pieces of perfection. After much contemplation & discussion, we choose, from right to left, the Scampi (Pacifi c langoustine, Murray River pink salt); Ono (seared wild Pacifi c wahoo, wild mushroom, lobster roe) and the Dentice (Pacifi c snapper, mandarin orange, pistachio, carrot vinaigrette). The selection of crudos on the is stunning and diverse.

SIDE BAR: One night I'd like to go and order every single selection in a Crudo Taste Off. It would cost $407 before tax and tip and would consist of 21 different kinds, 4 pieces of each....if anyone wants to take me up on that just say the word!!!

The scampi was light, buttery soft with a cucumber it's sitting on giving a hint of crunch to offset the wonderfully mushy texture of the langoustine. Excellent.

The Ono was a more earthy flavor if you can say that about fish. The seared edges added smokiness while the mushroom gave it that forest flavor. Very nice.

And our favorite, the snapper with the citrus of the mandarin orange and nutiness of the pistachio was just perfect. Could have eaten those all night.

Then came the pastas. It's almost as hard to choose these as the first courses. We knew we wanted our favorite, the fusilli. But what else? After contemplating all we went for the agnolotti which were piemontese meat ravioli, veal sweetbreads, wild mushrooms in a brown butter. The kitchen was kind enough to split both pastas for us and serve them one after the other - our casual dinner was a three course meal!

First up was the fusilli...red wine braised octopus and bone marrow in a perfect red sauce.

This is hands down THE BEST pasta dish I've ever had. Ever, anywhere. There's something magical about the crispiness of the octopus; the decadence of the bone marrow and the perfect al dente fusilli that just creates perfect culinary harmony. I've had it four times now and it's always flawless.

The second, new pasta was the ravioli.

A much heavier pasta, the sweetbreads were tender; the mushrooms gave depth and the brown butter added a sweetness. Also an amazing dish. We were glad that they split the dishes for us - a full plate of the agnolotti would have proven to be too much for one person. In this manner, it was exactly the right amount. Full but not uncomfortable - a wonderful dinner once again.

I can't say enough about Marea. If you get the chance, you need to go. And then go again.
Jenn's Rating: 91
Michelin: Two Stars
Zagat:28-26-26

Le Bernardin, NYC

Last week we went back to the country's best fish / seafood restaurant, Le Bernardin in New York City. Unlike the previous times we've been, we did not opt for the chef's tasting menu but instead all tried the prix fix four course menu. Being five of us it meant we could cover almost the entire menu.

Since the last time we were there with Susan & Rich, the restaurant has gone through a pretty major renovation. It now has a larger bar area with lounge seating for a more casual dining option. The decor is a bit lighter overall than it was with honey colored wood accents and a giant painting of the ocean covering an entire wall.

We were seated at a table that was likely for four people that they managed to get a fifth chair around. It didn't look like it would be comfortable but we fit pretty well and never felt cramped. Except perhaps Alan who got the middle seat on the sofa.

To start off our evening they brought a trio of amuse bouche:

From the left, a salmon "roll"; tuna tartare on Parmesan crisp; lobster bisque. The salmon bite was nice - the tuna was great and the bisque was excellent!

For our first course which we selected off the Almost Raw portion of the menu:

Hamachi “Sashimi”; Sea Beans and Daikon, Black Garlic-Ponzu Sauce. Octavio ordered this; it was extraordinary, fresh fish dressed perfectly in the ponzu sauce. I loved this dish and could have eaten all of it.

Fluke “Sashimi”; Micro Watercress, Baby Carrots Ginger-Citron Vinaigrette. Alan's fluke was also spectacular. Fluke has such a gorgeous flavor raw and the citrus preparation allowed the more pronounced taste of the sea to come out.

Single Variety or Assortment of Oysters (Six Pieces). I went with the oysters after having a tough time picking... but thought, if I'm going raw let me select one of my most favorite raw foods. These were six different types of oysters from mostly the Atlantic. It wasn't as special or different as the rest of the appetizers but I really love oysters - great course.

Layers of Thinly Pounded Yellowfin Tuna, Foie Gras and Toasted Baguette, Chives and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This was the selection by Nick's business school friend, Nick who joined us for this dinner. A carpaccio of tuna, basically with crumbled foie gras all over. I don't remember bothering with the toasted baguette when trying this. Look at it - just beautiful and wow, what a taste!!

Thinly Shaved Geoduck Clam and Osetra Caviar,Wasabi-Citrus Mousseline. The final dish of the first course was Nick's giant clam. We've tried giant clam before- it's more of an acquired taste than anything else on the menu. A slight chewiness and a distinctive "fishy" taste, it needs to be sliced very thin and served with something that can stand up to the flavor profile without getting lost. The accompaniment of caviar and wasabi were a great pairing. I don't recall enjoying giant clam nearly this much in the past. Excellent!

On to our second course - this time from the "barely touched" section of the menu.

Surf & Turf Roasted Bone Marrow; Sea Urchin, Fleur de Sel. Both Nick and Octavio ordered this dish served with toast points for smearing the urchin and marrow on. I liked it - very different take on serving sea urchin that traditionally comes to you in the hollowed out urchin shell. Good but it didn't blow me away.

Langoustine with sea foam, bacon(?) and greens. Alan's choice of langoustine was a good one. The pieces were much closer to the consistency of lobster than usual (often they come off as big, plain shrimp). The flavor was mild and delicate with a decidedly French twist.

Peekytoe Crab “Choux Farcis”; Chili-Crab Broth. In case you didn't know this - peekytoe crab is one of my all time favorite things on this planet. I am in love with the peekytoe salad that Daniel Boulud serves at his namesake restaurant. Seeing it on this menu was too hard to pass up. The preparation was unexpected in the broth of chili and crab with the leaves of brussels sprouts covering even more crab. I really liked this dish though it didn't stand out to the rest of the party as a favorite of the evening.

Ultra Rare Seared Tuna; Marinated Fennel, Basil and Capers. Nick's second serving of tuna was a whooper with the seared fish being covered by almost a salsa of fennel, basil and capers. The brine from the capers set off the tuna resulting in a lovely dish that you'd like to have twice as much of.

For our third course off the lightly cooked section of the menu:

Poached Skate and Warm Oysters, Brussels Sprouts-Bacon Mignonette, Dijon Mustard Sherry Emulsion. Skate is a polarizing fish - even when cooked it has a fatty, mushy texture that can throw people off. If you are familiar with it and love sushi anyways, it is unique, delicate and very decadent in the mouth. I thought this was a standout dish with incredible flavor. The sauce added complexity and saltiness to round it out.

Baked Red Snapper in “Citrus-Rosemary Papillote” Preserved Lemon-Mashed Potatoes, Natural Jus. This is a perfect illustration of why Le Bernardin is the only restaurant in New York City to have received a four star rating from the New York Times for more than twenty consecutive years as well as being the only one to have garnered three Michelin stars in 2005 (the debut year for the US) and every year after. This dish Alan chose was heaven - you just can't prepare fish any better than this in the light citrus sauce. And whoever thought to combine lemon with mashed potatoes was a culinary genius. Amazing!

Maine Lobster; Light Potato Gnocchi Braised Pearl Onions. Yeah, I went with the lobster. Sometimes I just can't pass up on the shellfish. This gorgeous course with the tail meat deconstructed into slices and rebuilt was excellent. The secret to lobster is to have it be cooked to just opaque so the flavor is there and it takes on that delicate nature while still tasting like lobster. I loved this dish. Serving gnocchi on the side was just the cream on top!

Red Wine Braised Short Ribs; Winter Vegetables,Wild Mushrooms, Parsnip Purée. Nick was the only one to go off the beaten path and order something not from the sea. The short rib was so good - fork tender, obviously cooked forever to get it to have that much infused flavor. The wine reduction sauce is a classic pairing that will never go out of style. This was a standout dish.

Crispy Black Bass; Roasted Shishitos and Acorn Squash “Ceviche”, Peruvian Chicha Sauce. And the final dish was Nick's crispy black bass...wow! Amazing. The skin was fantastic - you could just eat that all night.

And for dessert...

Madagascan Chocolate Ganache, Candied Peanuts, Popcorn Ice Cream

Hazelnut, Madagascar Vanilla, Chocolate, Vietnamese Cinnamon ice creams

Dark Chocolate Cremeux, Kirsch Bavaroise, Belgian Kriek Beer Sorbet

Assortment of Cheeses "4 pieces" with apricot compote and toast points.

Earl Grey Mousseline, Orange Purée, Blood Orange Sorbet (no picture)

Petit fours

Throughout this dinner was champagne and wine:

• Marie Courtin NV Resonance Extra Brut
• Peter Michael Sauvignon Blanc L'Apres-Midi 2011
• Aby Harris Anthill Pinot Noir 2010

I don't remember having the Anthill before but really liked it and the Marie Courtin was really good for a non-vintage - something you can drink a lot of and not have heart palpatations when you see the price.

Le Bernardin is one of the best restaurants in the country, no doubt about it. If you love eating things that come out of the water, this is your Nirvana. I thought our dinner was one of the best of 2012 but by not having the chef's tasting menu and by going with an early seating when you know they are going to turn your table takes a little off an otherwise exceptional experience. Service was flawless and the ambiance lends to a romantic or special occassion. I hope you get a chance to go!

Zagat: 29-28-29

Michelin: 3 Stars

Jenn's Rating: 96

Herbsaint, New Orleans

For our final dinner in New Orleans over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend we went to Donald Link's Herbsaint. Located on Saint Charles Street in the warehouse district this little bistro has both indoor seating and outdoor at little tables on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. It was a beautiful evening out so we sat outside.

We started with a bottle of Delamotte blanc de blancs non-vintage. And I learned something I didn't know from my husband; Delmotte is the sister winery of Salon. In years when Salon doesn't produce their top line, vintage champagne, the grapes from there single vineyard will go to Delamotte. This particular bottle was truly lovely. Off to a good start!

Our main server was a jovial young woman who was happy to share her thoughts with us on some of the dishes as we navigated the menu. After making our selections they brought us out warm bread and an amuse bouche that was a little shrimp and mango tartlette. Very good.

Our first course was the gumbo of the day (chicken with andouille sausage) and the Louisiana jumbo lump crab meat with mustard frill and toasted brioche.

Nothing makes me happier than a simply done dish that can let the delicate flavor of crab meat shine through. Louisiana blue crab has a distinct flavor profile in line with the Maryland blue crab; this preparation was excellent. I loved every single bite. Alan's gumbo was hearty and very good though after having eaten gumbo a few times he did comment that he likes it a little better when it's more stew like and less soupy.

Next round we tried was the beef short rib with potato rosti and salsa verde along with a dish of burrata with city ham and herb pistou.

The short ribs were FANTASTIC. Super tender - slow cooked for what must have been a seriously long time to get that much infused flavor and that perfect consistency. So good!! The burrata was also very nice and I loved the city ham. The two aspects of the dish were quite good by themselves though I'm not sure they were better if you paired them together.

For our entrees Alan ordered the Kurobuta pork belly with cajun grain risotto, grilled pok choi and shrimp broth.

This is one of those dishes that just makes you happy that some people are gifted when it comes to cooking. Look at that beautiful pork with the distinguished fat layer and the dark crust. Excellent. The risotto was also out of this world. The entire dish was one of the best of the trip.

I hoped to go two for two on pasta dishes by choosing the house made spaghetti with Guanciale and fried, poached farm egg.

Oh Lord...this was an amazing dish. It might be the best pasta I've ever had in my entire life. Yes, I'm saying that this one might knock Marea's fusilli with crispy octopus and bone marrow off the pedestal. It is that good. Cheese, creole spices, creamy sauce, a runny and fabulous fried, poached egg... perfection. Pure and simple.

Herbsaint was the best of the restaurants we ate at start to finish. Every dish was on the mark and a few of them were blow-you-away fantastic. This should be on everyone's list of places to try. There's no way I'd go back to New Orleans and not eat here again.

Zagat's Rating: 27-23-25
Jenn's Rating: 92

GW Fins, New Orleans

Our first dinner in New Orleans was at a little place on Beinville Street right in the middle of the French Quarter called GW Fins. With a new menu every night to take advantage of the freshest available catch, this is a fish lovers dream come true.

We started off there early to have a drink at the bar. Alan had a Tanqueray martini and I a glass of Belle Glos pinot. My wine as a little too warm but nice flavor. The bartender was a fun, upbeat lady with enthusiastic recommendations about the menu. I knew it was going to be a special evening when she said that whatever I ordered I could ask them to put a sauteed soft shell crab on top!

As you can see from this picture, not a large place. There are less than twenty tables in the dining room (you can also eat at the bar which has about eight seats) in a semi-circular layout. Calm colors, upbeat staff and a comfortable feel, this seems to be both a tourist and a locals hangout.

To start off, I ordered the soft shelled crab done with a simple butter and lemon. The batter was light but with distinctive tastes. The crab was phenomenal - tender and perfect...not too crunchy. I loved, loved, LOVED this dish.

Alan ordered the blue crab pot stickers with country ham and creamy pea shoot butter. YUMMY!! Nicely prepared, lots of crab...awesome sauce of butter and pea. Really, really good!!

Next round, I went with the house specialty, the smoked sizzling oysters served simply with butter and lemon. These enormous shells are heated up to over 500 degrees and the raw oyster put back on the shell right as they are served. This means there is an interesting conflict of raw and partially cooked. Super fresh, excellent texture and clean. Other than leaning too far over the plate and getting a nose full of sizzling smoke (oops) this was a great course.

Alan tried the Louisiana yellow fin tuna tartare appetizer with watermelon relish, avocado, mango, pine nuts and Wasabi cream. Very fresh with a nice combination of melon to offset the fish but also not a knockout dish. A little expected; bland.

For our entrees we both ordered fish. I went with one I'd never heard of before - Drum fish. It was lightly battered and served over creamy, whipped potatoes in a simple butter, lemon style sauce. Drum is a delicate, white fish much like flounder and local to the shallow Gulf waters. It was a nice dish - not earth shattering but good.

Alan tried the sauteed red snapper with shrimp etouffee, Louisiana jasmine rice, lobster butter. This was superb. Great flavor and the combination of etouffee gave it that Creole spin that is different from anything we get at home. I really like his dish a lot.

This was a wonderful dinner - great dishes, fun bar and the service was great (something we'd remember not to take for granted over the next few days). Alan had a cocktail with dinner called a Cancun cooler that he enjoyed quite a bit while I paired up with a Plowbuster Pinot. If we were going back this one would be on my must list. Truly enjoyable evening all the way around and not to be missed.

Zagat rating: 28-26-27
Jenn's rating: 90

Emeril's Restaurant, New Orleans

Alan and I just got back from a four day, Thanksgiving holiday trip to New Orleans. The focus was food & exploration of a new city. The weather was gorgeous and we were able to fit in a lot of dining experiences all around The Big Easy.

The first one, lunch at Emeril's original namesake on Tchoupitoulas Street, was right in the middle of the Warehouse district; just a few blocks up from our hotel. The space used to be a pharmacy and has an odd, interesting decor of exposed metal beams, brick walls, bowed wood ceiling and lots of glass & mosaic work around the open air kitchen.

This was the meal I was the most wary of. We've only eaten at one other Emeril restaurant (Emeril's Fish Restaurant in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas) and it was SO bad that we'd almost written off his places all together. But a strong recommendation by Paul and a desire to see how different (and hopefully better) the original might be, we took a chance.

The menu is a nice size - not so small you feel cornered and not so large that it's like being in a Cheesecake Factory. We were mostly interested in appetizers and small plates and wanted to try a few different things. Along with my sangria and Alan's Creole Collins, we ordered the crawfish pasta and gumbo of the day. The fresh angel hair pasta with Louisana crawfish tails in a Creole cream sauce was fantastic! Rich, full of flavor, unique with the distinctive taste of crawfish generously strewn about - this turned out to be one of the best dishes we'd have on this trip.

Alan's gumbo of the day was chicken and andouille sausage; thick with plenty of rice and smokey flavors. Alan thought this one was the best of the gumbos he tried while we were in New Orleans.

The next course was a salad for each of us. I tried the truffled Gulf shrimp "Louis" with  iceberg lettuce, asparagus, smoked bacon, chopped egg and Louisiana citrus. This was a pretty nice dish...I really liked the creamy, citrus dressing and the mixture of the bacon for salt and vegetables. Where I did myself an injustice was thinking I was going to magically start loving shrimp just because it was in lovely salad. I had a few bites of the shrimp and it was fine, but I'm the first to admit that it's my least favorite food that comes out of the ocean. If you are a shrimp lover, you'd probably really dig this dish.

On the other hand, score a big win for Alan's yellow fin tuna and bacon in butter lettuce wraps with plenty of jalapenos, grapefruit, citrus hoisin and crunchy Asian noodles. This dish offered a fresh bite with a clean flavor and lots of kick thanks to the peppers.

To end the meal we split a sandwich...the BLFGT. Benton's bacon, butter lettuce, fried green tomatoes on brioche with boiled shrimp and a mustard aioli served with sweet potato chips.

This dish didn't do it for me. There was an interesting blend of flavors and textures - the fried green tomatoes are a little crunchy with a significant bitterness; the mustard aioli was up in your face; the bacon was barely there and the lettuce was (not being iceburg) on the wilted/soft side. I'm not saying it was bad...it was just a combination of flavors and textures that I didn't appreciate. It didn't fit my palate well. I'm also not a fan of sweet potato anything and there was a awful lot of the boiled shrimp which as we've already covered, not my favorite thing. So this was just ok.

Our conclusion - Emeril's New Orleans, pretty good! Loved the pasta and the yellow fin tuna wraps and the gumbo was good. The other dishes we'd pass on next time in favor of trying something else.

Zagat's Rating: 26-25-25
Jenn's Rating: 84