Chili-Cilantro Prawns

I found this recipe on the FoodNetwork.com by Michelle Bernstein. These little guys were out of this world! I marinated them for about 7 hours and I was sure to reserve about 1/2 cup of the marinade before putting the prawns in. I didn't happen to have any sugarcane (?) skewers so I used Rosemary skewers from my yard. :) After I grilled the skewers, I let them cool for a few minutes before putting them over a bed of lettuce, mache, & ciliantro. I put some avocado on the side and drizzled the reserved marinade over the whole dish. OMG YUM! We had a few leftover that I popped in the fridge and they are almost even better chilled!!! Another way I might serve these next time is in a martini glass swimming in the marinade...kind of like a ceviche cocktail....and with some diced avocado and tortilla chips. Avocado goes perfectly with the lime and cilantro flavors. Next time I plan to use two habaneros rather than one because it wasn't hot enough for me. Also, the marinade made plenty, so I will double the amount of prawns, too! Ok, I'll shut up now and get to the recipe! :)

Chili-Cilantro Shrimp Skewers

(Michelle Bernstein)

"Ingredients

Marinade:

• 1 bunch cilantro, chopped coarsely
• 1 habanero chile, chopped
• 4 shallots, chopped
• 2 lemons, zested
• 2 limes, zested and juiced to 1/4 cup (juice more limes if necessary)
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 vegetable oil
• 16 jumbo shrimp, cleaned, deveined
• 8 sugarcane skewers
• Marinade
• 1/4 bunch cilantro leaves, as garnish

Directions

Puree all marinade ingredients in a blender. Reserve 2 tablespoons of marinade.

Skewer two shrimp per sugarcane and place in marinade and refrigerate. After shrimp has marinated 2 to 3 hours, grill for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side, making sure they are fully cooked.

Serve with a drizzle of the reserved marinade and cilantro, as garnish."

Paradise Bay

My husband wanted to try a new place we haven't been to before for his birthday dinner. I had a hard time coming up with places, but I narrowed it down to Johnny Garlics and Paradise Bay. Since Johnny Garlics was so far away and the menu seemed a better lunch option, we decided to go ahead and try both places. JG for lunch (see below) and Paradise Bay for dinner.

Paradise Bay is located on Bridgeway in Sausalito with a nice big parking lot, so its convenient. They don't take reservations for parties smaller than 6, so we took our chances and walked in at about 7:45 on a Friday night. As we pulled into the empty parking lot, we saw right away that this was not going to be a problem. It kind of worried me that the place was dead on a Friday night, but a lot of people are just "done" with the going out thing and a lot of places are closed on the second of January. Trust me. I've had a lot of difficulty finding restaurants to dine at on the second over the years.

As we walked in, I noticed that sure enough, the place was empty. The hostess greeted and seated us by the window in the back. It was fun to see the boats with their Christmas lights up, but my daughter complained that it was rather chilly. There were actually two other occupied tables all together, so we weren't the only ones there. Whew. The decor was really pretty and this place really has a lot of potential. I was shocked that they had no daily specials.

We ordered two appetizers: a crab, prawn, & calamari cocktail and steamed Manilla clams & PEI mussels in a ginger, coconut-lime cream sauce. The cocktail was ok. There were only 2 prawns, a couple chunks of crab, and way too much calimari, which I left to my husband. I thought that the presentation could use some help. The tall breadsticks sticking out of a high ball glass looked strange and I thought it should have been served in a lower, wider dish. The sauce was just ok. The shellfish, however, was delicious. We all shared it, so I only had one clam and 2 mussels, but they were really good tasting and the texture was perfect. The sauce was aromatic and delicious, but was a little cold. In fact, everything was cold.

I asked the server if he would recommend the filet mignon or the New York with prawns & Mongolian sauce. He suggested the filet. It was a certificed organic Prather Ranch filet, looked to be maybe 6 oz, served with butternut squash & sage ravioli, Maytag bleu cheese, served with Cabernet Demi-Glace & Tempura asparagus. Sounds pretty good, huh? The steak was cooked to order, was very good, but was at the most, warm. Maybe lukewarm. It was served in a puddle of demi-glace, the bleu cheese was too overbearing, and the ravioli were soggy. I couldn't even taste the squash or sage. The Tempura asparagus was laid on top of the steak, which was on top of the ravioli, so the asparagus was not soaked with sauce, but they were so greasy that all I could taste was oil. I couldn't tell if I was eating a green bean, let alone asparagus. The only thing I liked was the steak, and that was all I could manage to eat. I think they would have been better off just putting a drizzle of demi-glace over the steak and keeping it far away from the ravioli. And perhaps serve it hot. Just a thought. Like I said, this place has potential.

My husband asked the server if he would recommend this dish or that dish. His answer did not include either dish, but two other dishes. I thought that was odd. My husband went ahead and ordered one of his own choices, which was the Cioppino. It was served in a large bowl with two breadsticks spearing out of each side. I thought the presentation was beautiful; it looked delicous. It had fresh Dungeoness crab, mussels, clams, prawns and fish in a broth of tomato & fennel. I didn't try it but he said it was pretty good, if not a lot of work! Which is why I didn't order it! I ordered Cioppino at Yankee Pier a while back and it was delicious, but it took me forever to finish. No complaints about the Paradise Bay Cioppino.

Both the girls ordered the cheeseburger. One was ordered well done but came back clearly medium. She desacrated it so much that it was impossible to send it back. Neither of the girls ate more than a quarter of their burger saying it tasted weird. I took a bite, so did my husband, and it was actually quite good. I like my burger to be medium well, but sometimes medium is good, too. I did let the server know that it was not cooked to order, but that it wasn't necessary to send it back at that point.

Overall, I have to say I was disappointed in Paradise Bay. The service was fine but lackluster. The busboy was friendly, but our server just seemed bored. And who can blame him? The place was a ghost town! Its a shame because they have a good menu, the flavor is there, but everything we got was served cold. You would think that since we were one of very few diners that they would have been able to step it up a notch. We didn't bother mentioning that it was my husbands birthday. Just a few little changes could go a long way. Until then, I doubt we will return any time soon.

Its really too bad. Lots of potential (redundant, I know!), great location, beautiful interior, decent service, but cold food, meat not cooked properly (or at least how we ordered it), too much flavors battling against a steak, etc. etc.

Horizons

We went to dinner at Horizons for Mothers Day. We had a reservation. It turns out that it may not have been necessary but it did secure a window table for us!This place has a very cool, yet funky interior. Its very casual and we were a bit over dressed. It's been around for while, but in nearly 19 years of living here in Marin, I've never actually dined there before. I have eaten at Ondine, which is above Horizons and under the same ownership, but much more posh.

We were seating immediately at a table with a gorgeous view of Belvedere, Angel Island, and of San Francisco. We were greeted right away, our cocktails arrived in a timely manner, but they were not garnished and my husbands vodka tonic was lacking vodka and the tonic was flat. So he sent it back and ordered red wine instead. I was bummed that my dirty martini was lacking olives, and my daughter was equally upset about the lack of cherries in her Shirley Temple. No garnish? I ordered her another one and had to request cherries in this one

Our next disappointment was that they were out of steamed clams. However, they kept enough on hand for the paella & bouillabaisse. Hmmmm. We were all looking forward to some steamed clams, but instead, we ordered fried calamari & a Colossal prawn cocktail. I loved the presentation of the calamari. It was battered and breaded, fried a golden brown, and served in a newspaper printed paper cone inside metal spiral cone. It was served with cocktail sauce, a chipotle aioli, lemon remoulade, & cocktail sauce. It was good. The prawn cocktail was not very "colossal". There were only 4 prawns, 3 of which were decent sized, one of which was considerable smaller, and they were very tough. The cocktail sauce was described on the menu as "spicy", however, it was not spicy at all. We love spicy. The hotter, the better.

My girls ordered pasta: one with marinara, one with butter & parmesan. These portions were very tiny and the parmesan was absent. They were still hungry, so we knew dessert were in their future. My husband ordered the Seared Sea Scallops with ravioli and he was very happy with the flavors, but again, the portion was small. I ordered the Surf & Turf after much consideration. I wasn't sure how the quality would be based on our appetizers. But it actually had potential. It was an 11 oz New York steak which I ordered medium well, but came extremely well done, and about a 3 oz lobster tail. The flavor of the steak was good, but because it was so over cooked, it was a bit tough. If I order my steak medium, its always too rare, so its always hit or miss with my medium well preference. The lobster was also tough. The mashed potatoes were of good consistency, but rather salty. The green beans were perfectly cooked and delicious. My entree was a good size portion, and I took home more than half of my steak.

We rarely order dessert, but we did last night. My daughter chose the raspberry & mango sorbet duet, I ordered the Tiramisu, and my husband and other daughter shared a "Fishbowl hot fudge sundae". The desserts were all very good, but the word "fishbowl" implied a larger portion than what was actually served.

The service was slow and just plain bad. It was a holiday and our waiter was busy, but it just took longer than necessary. I know he was trying to be attentive, but he only did what he had to do and was just not overly helpful. I was content just enjoying my time with my family on Mothers Day, so I did not complain. I don't think we'd go back, though. Maybe if we just want a beer and some fish & chips after a long day of touristy sightseeing when in the area, but we won't have high expectations. We really should have gone to my absolute favorite, The Spinnaker. But we went there last year for Mothers Day and we wanted to try something new. One thing I've learned is to not try new places for special holidays. Go to somewhere tried and true.

I've been ignoring this blog for too long. Honestly, dining and writing reviews is a passion of mine, so I need to get here and blog more often.

McCormick & Schmicks Seafood-DC

This place was awesome! It was bustling busy with lots of big Christmas parties, but even without a reservation, we were greeted and seated right away. Our table was set back in a little alcove with lush red velvet drapes so we felt semi private. There were coat hooks on either side so we could easily all fit our coats, scarves, & mittens. We were greeted right away by our waiter, who recommended a nice glass of wine to start out with. He was very attentive! I was very happy with the service!

We ordered 2 bowls of steamed clams for everyone to share and they were delicious. Not too small, not too big. The broth was delicious, not salty like it can be sometimes. It was served with a few toast points on the side. Yummy. I split a wedge of iceberg with my husband. The lettuce was cold and crisp, the bleu cheese was generous, and it was sprinkled with bacon bits and red onion slices. My only complaint would be that the dressing was too heavy, but thats not such a bad thing--unless you happen to be counting calories! ;) For my entree, I ordered the seared ahi tuna off of the appetizer menu. It was very deep red in color; I prefer mine more pink. But it was fresh and very good. It was served with soy sauce & wasabi for dipping, and a garnish of a really good seaweed & sprout salad.

McCormick and Schmicks are located all over the country, primarily on both coasts. I've eaten at the one in San Francisco many times and it is always delicious. The one in DC was equally as good, if not better. Delicious food, excellent service. What more could I ask for?

Sometimes I rate, sometimes I don't. I give this place 5 out of 5 stars!

Thank you Tracy for the great comment! I have a lot more to go! Next time I dine out, I'm going to remind myself that I'm getting tired of writing "I had the wedge and ahi tuna"!! LOL Maybe I ought to think outside the box next time! :)

The Yankee Pier

This is one of Bradley Ogden's places. Its right next door to the Lark Creek Inn, which I think we need to check out again one of these days. Anyway, we were greeted and seated right away. Our server approached us in a timely manner, we ordered wine and fried calamari to start. The calimari was fine. Nothing to write home about, but one thing that I noticed about this place before is their portions are very small. It was served with cocktail sauce and a spicy remoulade sauce.

The Husband ordered a bleu cheese wedge and I ordered 4 grilled prawns for his salad. Wasn't that nice of me? The prawns were delicious, and of course, I've never had a wedge I didn't like. The dressing was on the mild side, though. I had a difficult time deciding on my entree, but I ended up with the Cioppino. Big mistake. For many reasons. The flavor was fine, but kind of mild. It didn't have the "kick" it usually has. I did not enjoy having to work so hard for my dinner...cracking the crab legs and picking it out was kind of disgusting, but at least my family found it hilarious! Unfortunately, by the time I was done picking everything out of their shells, the cioppino was cold and everyone else was done eating. I guess it was a good way to get me to eat slower! :)

The kids had pasta with butter and parmesan. Nothing new there! Again, not sure how I ended up with kids who won't even try fish and chips! Whats not to like? I almost ordered it!

I forgot to ask The Husband if his dish was any good. Can you put a comment here about that? Thanks! xoxo

We all did something we don't usually do. We ordered dessert. The kids had the kid sundae, which was vanilla bean ice cream, chocolate sauce, and whip cream. To Bella's dismay, no cherry on top. Not even for the shirley temples! She got sprite with strawberry syrup instead. The Husband got a chocolate shake with whip cream on top and he said it was just ok. Kind of weak. I had the Black and Tan Sundae. It was also vanilla bean ice cream, chocolate sauce, and whip cream, but it had a drizzle of carmel and some slivered almonds. It was good and the portion was so big I couldn't finish it.

The service was excellent. I didn't catch her name, but she attentive enough and everything came out on time, etc., including the check, which is one of my pet peeves. When I'm done, I want my check and I want out of there. Why most servers don't get this, is beyond me.

I didn't get to steal a bread plate, but I did write down the name of the manufacturer! We were right up front, so there was just no way I was gonna swing it. They are so cute, though. The have a little lobster with a fishing pole..adorable.

There you have it. The Yankee Pier gets a pretty decent review. A little more saffron in the cioppino would be my only suggestion, that and larger portions. I won't be ordering cioppino anytime soon---from anywhere! Too much work and too messy!!

I am behind on my reviews. I need to do Ricky's, and what else? The Husband? Can you remember? There are about 4....Maria Manso, Star...and one more.....?

Flemings Steakhouse-Newport Beach

I've been here once before with the The Husband many years ago, and we fell in love with this place! We've talked about it ever since and have been dying to go back! Thankfully, they will be opening one in Walnut Creek this summer!

But, again, since I happened to be in Orange County this past weekend, and was meeting one of my best friends from high school, I decided to make a reservation at the one in Newport Beach. This place is friggin' amazing!! The decor is so rich and warm. Dark leather, wood chairs, dim lighting, red paint on the walls. Gorgeous! Of course, it didn't hurt that we showed up in my friends brand new 2007 Bentley GT Coupe! Nice!

We were seating immediately...and in not only my favorite room, the library, but at my favorite table! Perfect. Our server, Belinda, was a sweetheart! Let me just start right off by saying that this was the best service I have every had. She was so attentive...not too attentive, just right. I ordered a Merlot Wine Flight, and my friend ordered a Cabernet Sauvignon Wine Flight. She had never heard of them before, and I was astonished! I love, love, love the wine flight! You get 3 (or 6) glasses of 2oz servings of 3 different wines. You can do a white, a red, and a port, or 3 whites, 3 reds...you get the idea. This allows you to decide which one you really like in case you want to order a bottle. Well, I was really interested in some of the reserve wines, but we ended up getting a bottle of BR Cohn Cabernet for $60.00. Not the $800.00 bottle of ZD, Abacus that we really loved!!

I was inclined to try the Wicked Cajun BBQ Prawns to try and get away from my boring addiction to Ahi, but my friend wanted the Seared Ahi Tuna, which, of course, I was fine with! :) And boy, am I glad I did! This was the best tuna I've ever had!! It was tender and juicy, seared to perfection! It was served on a bed of julienned veggies such as zucchini and daikon radish, and a spicy mustard sauce. I do prefer wasabi and ponzu, but this was a nice twist.

My salad was incredible!! After much discussion several weeks ago, The Husband and I determined that the very first Iceberg Wedge we've ever had was here at Flemings and it was also the best one we've ever had. Well, Saturday night, I had the absolute best salad in my entire friggin' life! The Wedge. Surprise! Crisp Iceberg lettuce, grape tomatoes, red onions, crumbled bleu cheese, and just the right amount of bleu cheese dressing. My friend had her fair share of this salad and I still couldn't finish it...thats how huge it was! To be fair, she had the Flemings Salad which was seasonal greens, candied walnuts, dried cranberries, tomatoes, and croutons. This is not my cup of tea, so I didn't try it, be she seemed to enjoy it.

Because I am a creature of habit, I ordered the 8 oz Filet Mignon, without butter. I really wanted to try some fish since I'm trying to stay away from red meat, but since none of their seafood selections appealed to me and this was, however, a STEAKHOUSE, I went for the filet. OMG YUM!! I ordered it Medium and it was perfect! I also had the most perfect order of steamed spinach, which I shared with my friend. She had the special, which was a Potato and Pecan encrusted Halibut served over a bed of broccolini. I meant to taste it, but she had already scraped off the potato and I kind of lost interest. She said that it was just too thick, as far as the potato was concerned. It was a huge portion, by the way. She had that, and my leftover spinach and filet mignon for lunch the next day. Since I was out of town, I couldn't take my steak home to my dogs. I need to start eating ALL of my steak, especially when its this good!

We ended our meal with one final glass of cabernet, received our check when we asked for it, chatted with Belinda some more, and headed out. In her Bentley. Nice.

Giving The Seafood Peddler another chance

We have eaten at The Seafood Peddler on several occasions, but we either got bad service or the food sucked, or both. Since we are more into seafood now, we are always looking for a good place. Saturday night, my husband suggested The Seafood Peddler, so I agreed and decided to see if they can redeem themselves.

I'm happy to say that they did. Upon entering, we were hesitantly greeted by 2 hostesses who kind of ignored us at first, but then told us there would be a short wait. No problem, we were seated by the window in the main room and I don't believe we've ever been in the main room before, so I was happy. Our waitress, who's name I didn't get (pre-blog idea) was very friendly and attentive...always a plus for me since I used to waitress my way through college and believe in good service.

We ordered the Crispy Fried Calamari and Steamed Littleneck Clams for our appetizers. Our daughter, Bella, was with us and she loves this stuff. The clams were good-not too big, not too small. The broth was good, not too salty like I've had before, and it came with 2 garlic toast points, which were also good. The Calamari was served with "marinara fra' diavolo" sauce and tartar sauce. Also good, not greasy at all.

I ordered the Iceberg Wedge, which was more like half of a head, and it was served with bacon crumbles, red onion, some diced hard boiled egg, and way too much bleu cheese dressing, which was also on the watery side. I could have done without the bacon and egg, but the ingredients were fresh and I ate my fair share. My perfect idea of an Iceberg Wedge is the wedge, crumbly bleu cheese dressing-not too much-, some red onion slices, maybe a little tomato, and then I like to add a lot of pepper. Ruths Chris makes a perfect wedge. So does Flemings (coming this summer to Walnut Creek and I can't wait!!).

For my entree, I ordered the Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna from the appetizer section of the menu. The fish was fresh and very tender, and was served with avocado and mango slices fanned out on top of a bed of greens and a lite vinaigrette. Very delicious! I'm not a fan of mango, but my husband is and he loved the dish as well.

Speaking of my husband, he ordered the nut (macadamia? pecan? we can't remember!) encrusted Mahi Mahi off of their daily specials menu, which they seem to update frequently on their website, which is appreciated. His fish was light and moist, and was served on top of very yummy Wasabi Mashed Potatoes.

I have no idea how we ended up doing such a dis-service to our daughters, but neither one of them has ever had Fish and Chips. Nor have they had a fish stick! But they eat clams and calamari. Go figure. Anyway, because Bella refused to try the Fish and Chips or anything else on the kids menu, and because I wanted to try it, we allowed her to order the Petrale Sole Picatta. It was sauteed in butter, lemon, and capers--as it should be!--and served over a bed of garlic mashed potatoes. It was equally delish.

It's kind of funny that I am doing my first official review on The Seafood Peddler and I'm very surprised at what a good experience it was. I'm glad I gave it another chance and it didn't let me down. It isn't every day that you get good food AND very good service, but on Saturday, that is what we got!