Shipwreck Grill Visited 8/27/2016 3.5 Forks

Shipwreck Grill  720 Ashley Ave., Brielle, NJ 08730

Ahh, the Jersey Shore.  It gets a bad rap from the show but if you are lucky enough to have friends who have houses down there, it can be a great weekend get away.  There are some really lovely towns that aren't the GTL crowd.  The great thing about beach towns is that they are usually filled with tons of yummy seafood restaurants.  So this past Saturday night while in Spring Lake, a bunch of us checked out Shipwreck Grill which was close the water and pretty crowded on a Saturday night.  They try to "class" it up a bit by putting a sign out in front saying that they don't allow service to anyone wearing shorts, flip flops, baseball hats, etc but when you're in a beach town, half the population is going to show up in flip flops, so good luck with that.  I guess they were going for a more mature crowd because the demographic here is definitely older and not for the fist pumping crowd. 

The menu here is classic traditional surf and turf fare:  lobster tails, fish, raw bar, and steaks.   As a seafood lover, I was thrilled with the options and had a really hard time deciding between all the fish entrees.  I ended up going for the lobster bisque ($9) to start and Amy and I shared the seared tuna ($28) and the halibut ($35) since we were both deciding between those 2 dishes.  

The lobster bisque was a fairly large sized portion and extremely rich.  It was too heavy handed with the sherry reduction and skimpy on the lobster pieces.  I know it's not a chowder and shouldn't be chunky but it I just felt like I was having a bowl of sherry with a hint of lobster instead of the other way around.  Next time I'll stick with calm chowder instead.  Luckily the fish dishes were better.  I started with the halibut which came with New Zealand green mussels (my favorite!!), potato chunks, pea tendrils, and asparagus all sitting in a light lobster broth.  The halibut was a nice light flakey white fish and was paired nicely with the lobster broth.  I loved the green mussel touch because you don't see them too often and it made me wish they had a whole entree focused around it.  Despite having so many ingredients throw together, the dish was actually very simple but constructed well. Half way through I switched to the seared tuna which was a very classic sesame crusted rare tuna steak served with braised cabbage and pea shoots.  Again, it wasn't anything too complex or sophisticated but it was a very solid and nicely cooked rare piece of tuna.  I would have liked more of the ginger soy glaze on it or perhaps a soy dipping sauce since the edges of the fish were a little dry (I guess I'm just really used to sashimi tuna which is much moister in texture). 

Overall, it was really pleasant adult meal.  While I wouldn't call this a really high end establishment by NYC standards, I can see how they are a bit more upscale than a traditional seafood shack by the water in a beach town where it is ok to roll in with shorts and flip flops.  Total bill:  $99/pp with tax, tip and drinks

Photo Credit:  Yelp 

Da Silvano Visited 8/16/2016 3.5 Forks

Da Silvano  260 6th Ave., New York, NY 10014

Da Silvano is fairly well known in New York as a great celeb spotting place in the spring/summer time.  They have a fairly large outdoor patio on a main drag in the West Village and I've heard that Rihanna and others frequent this place but sadly, there were no famous people on the night we were there. 

The vibe and staff are very old school Italian - the decor is a simple classic decor and the waiters are mostly older gentlemen.  They even bring out the fresh fish and langoustines to your table like they do in Europe.  As you would expect the menu here is more on the traditional side and it's very extensive with a whole separate specials menu that's as long as the actual menu.   We started with fried zucchini blossoms stuffed with cheese and fresh mozzarella with local Jersey tomatoes for the table.  Richelle, April and Jenn all got the lobster gnocchi which sounded amazing but I ended up going for the steak tartare ($24.50) because it was one of the few places where I've seen it listed as an entree and not an appetizer.  The appetizers were pretty standard fare - it's hard to go wrong with fried anything stuffed with cheese but the mozzarella was a bit of a let down as it wasn't as creamy or moist as other really outstanding fresh mozz dishes I've had before in the past.  

I was excited for my main entree because it was a really hot day and I was looking forward to eating something that was a bit lighter in fare.  The size of the steak tartare did not disappoint - it was indeed a full sized meal with a ton of tartare and served with some thin slices of toast, fries and a side salad. It was a simple dish as steak tartare should be - no fuss no muss just cut up pieces of raw beef, onions and other seasonings.  I was disappointed that there wasn't a raw egg with it nor was there any horseradish to it, which is generally how I love my steak tartare.  However, the texture of the dish was spot on and I felt pretty full by the end of the meal but not in a gross overheated way.  I guess I'm just super harsh on how I review my steak tartare dishes as I am with any runny egg dish which is why I am giving this place a sub 4 fork rating.  I had a bit of the girl's gnocchi and if I were reviewing on just that dish, this review may have gotten a 4 fork or higher review.  It was a wonderful potato gnocchi with actual chunks of fresh lobster in a mild tomato cream sauce.  They were pillow-y and not too heavy - it did made me regret a little bit that I didn't order it or at least get a pasta dish.  

We left room for a bit of dessert and got the bongo bongo ($10.50) which are beignets filled with vanilla ice cream and sprinkled with chocolate fudge on top.  It was a nice way to end the meal as it wasn't too heavy or rich and it was just 1 beignet for each of us.  It wasn't a mind blowing dessert and I kind of felt like it was a bit of a waste of calories.  I guess if I was going to have a 1,500 calorie meal, I would have gone with a tiramisu.  Where we did blow our calorie count was on wine.  They had a fairly decent wine line-up and we took full advantage of it but be prepared as it isn't really a cheap list. 

Overall, I'm glad I can finally say I came here, although I was sad to not have even a B-list celeb sighting.  I can see that they try hard to keep it old school here although it's not quite really as sophisticated or authentic as some other places I've been in in the city or Italy.  Total bill:  $120/pp with tax, tip and wine

Photo Credit:  Yelp

Emmy Squared Visited 8/12/2016 4.5 Forks

Emmy Squared 364 Grand St., Brooklyn, NY 11211

I was a bit hesitant to try Emmy Squared since I had such mixed feelings about its sister restaurant, Pizza Loves Emily.  While I loved the brutally overpriced burger there, neither Anuja nor I were in love with the pizza.  But I was so glad I tried this place because the pizza here is way better here and now Aarti and I are totally addicted to it. Luckily for me, it's located in Williamsburg but it's far away enough from my apartment that I won't eat it every day because I could totally see myself shoving my face with it every chance I get. 

Unlike the pizza at Pizza Loves Emily, which has thin crust pizza, the ones here are Detroit style, which honestly I have never heard of before.  What I do know what it's like is old school childhood style Pizza Hut pan pizza with a thick buttery delicious crust.  It's not like a Chicago deep dish where it's completely overloaded and the thickness of a library book but it's definitely got bite to it.  Similar to its sister restaurant, you can get red or white pizza - with the white not having any sauce.  It seems obviously but when we tried to order a white the waiter was like "You know it doesn't have sauce right?" and yet somehow I was still shocked by it.  In any case, we ordered 2 red pies - The Emmy ($18) and the Classic with peppers and mushrooms ($15 + $3 per extra topping).  We started with a kale salad ($12) just to make ourselves feel healthy.

The kale salad was a very simple but solid salad.  It was well massaged with olive oil and lemon juice as it didn't have any of the roughness kale can have if it's not dressed properly.  It was served with some dried cherries and pecorino cheese - basic ingredients but delicious.  It was the right amount of greens as a starter for the main attraction.

If you're not hungry or just bored, you can totally get away with splitting 1 pizza between two people as it comes with about 8 puffy square slices.  BUT why would you?  Order 2 and you can always take the extra home.  The Emmy came with mozzarella, banana peppers, onions, ranch and a side of sauce.  That's right.  I said god damn ranch dressing.  It may sound gross but it was wonderful and mind blowing.  Combined with the buttery, crispy crust and dipping sauce, I could see myself getting super fat eating this every Sunday during football season.  The banana peppers were super mild but added some really nice crunch and tang to each bite.  It was an excellent use of a lesser known pepper. The classic with the basic toppings of mushroom and peppers was also really delicious too. Definitely not as unique but there's something really comforting to me about a really great slice with a few veggie toppings that just hits the spot.

Aarti and I couldn't stop raving about this place.  Although I do have 2 gripes and frankly should have dropped the review down by 1/2 a fork but it's been so long since I've given a 4.5 fork rating, I decided to be generous.  One, the A/C is practically none existent here.  It's been a brutal few days of heat here in NYC and it should almost illegal to have your restaurant feel like someone is just blowing lukewarm air on your neck.  Second, the service was really not up to snuff.  While our waiter was nice enough, we barely saw him.  I had to flag him down for everything:  to take our drink order, to order our food, to get our bill and to pay our bill.  It's no doubt a very busy restaurant but he never really checked up on us during the meal and I find it unusual that a place that must need to turn tables over quickly would ignore us so much.  Regardless, I still love this place and you should too.  Total bill:  $47/pp with tax tip and drinks

Photo Credit:  Yelp

Chandler's Restaurant and Lounge Visited 8/6/2016 4 Forks

Chandler's Restaurant and Lounge  1 Ponto Rd., Carlsbad, CA 92011

Our last group dinner in San Diego was, of course, arranged and planned for by Vivi (event planner extraordinare).  While I generally am not huge fan of restaurants in hotels, they can be good options in cities that aren't flush with a plethora of fancy options like NYC, SF or even Chicago.  Similar to the Poseidon, Chandler's is all about the location and views.  It's got a lovely view of the beach and palm trees, so get there right before the sun sets.  Vivi had reserved the back section along with the fire pit, so we started the night with some cocktails by the fire while watching the sunset.  It doesn't really get any better than that. 

Once we were warmed up, we started with a few pre-ordered appetizers:  ceviche, burrata and heirloom tomatoes, crispy calamari and shrimp, and a cheese plate.  These were the exact appetizers I would have chosen to try if I had ordered on my own  - this is when you know you are in good company!  I went straight for the ceviche and it was surprisingly well done.  It was a combination of halibut, prawns, bay scallops, cucumber, hearts of palm, red onion, sweet peppers and lime with the perfect amount of acidity.  It was also a decently sized dish, so I could have seen myself eating it as a main entree too.  Next I tried the burrata and heirloom tomatoes and that was a winning dish too. What I love about eating in California is the abundance of delicious heirloom tomatoes.  It's one of the best things to eat in the summer time and pairing it with a smooth creamy burrata is one of my a favorite things to eat.  The calamari was a standard dish although I was a bit disappointed that the pieces they used for it were on the small side and the shrimp was more like heavily breaded popcorn shrimp.  I didn't end up trying the cheese plate but it looked like a nice spread of artisanal cheese, crackers and fruit.  There was actually 2 orders of everything so after noshing on all of this none of us were really starving for dinner.  

I ended up getting the ahi tuna poke with quinoa appetizer as a main because I had really just been overeating this entire trip and felt like I needed to slow it down and cleanse my palate a bit.  The tuna was raw sushi grade tuna served with rainbow quinoa, thai chili aioli, cucumber, seaweed, lime and ponzu.  It was exactly what I was looking for - light, refreshing and simple.  The fish had a nice clean taste to it and overall it felt like a really healthy dish to have after a weekend of stuffing my face with chips, churros and tacos. 

While I don't know what the San Diego/Carlsbad restaurant scene is really like, having sunset cocktails and dinner at Chandler's isn't a bad choice.  The menu isn't anything mind blowing or super creative but you can easily find something delicious and satisfying to eat while enjoying a cocktail or two.  Total bill:  N/A - graciously covered for by friends

Photo Credit:  Yelp     

Poseidon Visited 8/6/2016 3.5 Forks

Poseidon  1670 Coast Blvd., Del Mar, CA 92014

Although I have been to California many times before, I've actually never been to San Diego before so when a good friend of mine rented a house in the area for a few days in August, I had to check it out.  While I didn't spend a ton of time in San Diego proper, I did like the overall vibe that the city and surrounding area had to offer.  In true Cali style, it's very chill and with the fantastic year round weather, everyone seems really happy and relaxed with life.

The girls and I had a nice baby shower brunch for Vivi in the Del Mar area neighborhood of San Diego.  It is a really casual and relaxing town with tons of families  hanging out on the beach on a lazy Saturday morning, even on a slightly cloudy day.  Poseidon is right on the beach front so it's got fantastic views.  Definitely ask for a table outside if you are going to come here because otherwise the food isn't really amazing enough to balance it out.  The lunch menu is a mix of seafood, salads and sandwiches and they also had a brunch menu of the usual suspects of french toast, omelettes and benedicts.   Since I was in CA, I went with the traditional Baja tacos ($14) which consisted of panko crusted Alaskan cod, red cabbage, cheese, sour cream, avocado, salsa, and chipotle aioli on 2 corn tortillas.  Health wise I probably should have gotten the grilled Mahi Mahi fish tacos but hey, I was on vacation right?  The tacos were good but I have a high standard when it comes to fried fish tacos (ABC Cocina) and these weren't quite up there but they were still solid.  The fish was a bit too battered and therefore slightly dry but all the toppings did balance it out moisture wise.  Each bite was plentiful and filling (2 were more than enough) but after finishing them, I didn't really think it was worth the calories to have the fried version.  It probably didn't help that the tacos came with thick cut fries too. You're probably better off health wise having the grilled ones instead and you will have just as satisfying of a meal.  I saw a few tables get oyster and ceviche and maybe that's what I should have ordered instead.

Overall, it's a lovely place to come if you're looking to chill out by the beach with some drinks with friends.  If I lived in this cute neighborhood, I could see myself coming early in the morning for some beach time and then swinging by here for a relaxing lunch before going back home for a nap. Ahh, Cali life.  Total bill:  N/A as it was graciously covered by some friends

Photo Credit:  Yelp

City Island Lobster House Visited 7/31/2016 3 Forks

City Island Lobster House  691 Bridge St., Bronx, NY 10464

Holly and I had always been interested checking out City Island because of the focus on seafood and it seemed like it could be a fun side trip from the city.  So we hopped in her car and drove about 45 mins up to the Bronx and landed in City Island.  Yes - it is actually an island and it's tiny, about 1 mile long.  We went on kind of a rainy cloudy day, so there weren't a lot of people out.  But I could see how it could be a cute place to visit as it's got a small community feel to it.

City Island is filled with seafood restaurants, so take our pick of places as they line the entire main street.  We opted for the Lobster House which was right off the bridge when you come into the island.  We got there around 1pm but it was eerily empty and quiet.  Again, probably because of the rain as they have a nice outdoor patio that I'm sure would usually be full of people on a sunny afternoon.  We sat down and before we could even order they start bringing out massive amounts of free appetizers.  They bring out a huge side salad, cheese, olives, marinated mushrooms, blueberry muffin and huge loaf of garlic bread with a knife through it.  It was hilarious because it was so unexpected and random.  The menu is a long laundry list of every kind of seafood dish you can image: fish, shrimp, crab legs, and of course lobster.  If you don't like seafood, they also have burgers, ribs and chicken but if you are a vegetarian/vegan, you are pretty much SOL.  

As a seafood lover, it was so overwhelming but I decided on the scallops ($27) and Holly got the lobster roll ($21) because one of us had to get it.  We also got the coconut shrimp ($17) to start. Before our food came out, I had to try all of these "free" appetizers we got.  The salad was pretty basic - mixed greens with a balsamic vinaigrette dressing (it was a tad overdressed for my liking).  he cheese and marinated mushroom plate was tasty and a nice touch.  The garlic bread was a bit too crusty and could have used more garlic (ok, everything can always use more garlic) but I still managed to devour 3 pieces of it for no reason.   If you're not hungry, these dishes more than make up for any appetizer you will order here. 

Our food came out quickly and true to form here, the portions were huge.  The coconut shrimp was 5 ginormous pieces but after taking a bite you realize that it was huge because of all the batter that was on the outside.  It was way too thick and dry and you had to really peel off a lot of the breading to reach the actual shrimp part.  It was kind of unappealing after 1-2 bites.  As for the scallops, usually when you order scallops you get 4-5 pieces at best, there are at least 10-12 pretty decent sized pieces so that was a pleasant surprise.  I ordered them to be broiled instead of fried (thank god), so they were served with a ton of butter and garlic on it. They were pretty good texture wise - although they could have used less butter (gasp!) and garlic to keep the flavors simpler and cleaner (although that's clearly not their style here) but overall it was a satisfying entree.  The scallops came with a side of curly fries which are always yummy but a bit out of place as a seafood side but hey, you're in the Bronx.  I had a bite of Holly's lobster roll and it definitely had good chunks of lobster in it but if you don't like mayo or celery, you won't like this roll very much.  

I'm still glad we came to check out this part of NY - it's a throw back to what the city used to be and you can tell that it's still a tight knit working class community.  I would recommend going when it's sunnier outside so that you can actually sit near the water and enjoy the views.  Just don't come expecting high end super sophisticated seafood - instead expect really casual family friendly (re:  lots of fried food) seafood fare.  Total bill:  $49/pp with tax and tip