All Set in Massachusetts

Perla's: Gulf Seafood Deep in the Heart of Austin

Last time we were in Austin, we had apps and cocktails on the deck of the previous incarnation of Perla's. If I recall correctly, the menu was Asian and marginal, and the cocktails were good but overpriced. But what I really loved about the spot was the outdoor deck, the vibe, people watching, and the massive oak trees that shaded us form the brutal Texas afternoon sun.

Now Perla's has taken over the space and enhanced the deck and ditched the trendy Asian cuisine for Gulf seafood and an oyster bar. While the raw oysters are mainly from Massachusetts and Maine, I would try a Gulf Fried Oyster Po-Boy and a double order of Fried Okra. I've noticed a recent uptick in upscale, yet down-home, raw bar-type establishments opening up around the USA. The Asian-influenced dining trend that started earlier this decade seems like it might be waning, and the raw bar is ready to take its place.

Fine Dining In Paris

Next time you are in Paris here is a to do list of some of the 3-star Michelin restaurants in Paris. There are 10 three-star establishments in Paris.

Meurice

L'Astrance

Le Bristol

Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee

Les Ambassadeurs

Pieree Gagnaire

Guy Savoy

My first stop would be L'Astrance followed by Pieree Gagnaire.

The Reefs - Bermuda's Best Hotel?

Over Labor Day weekend, we made our first trip to the island of Bermuda. The direct Delta flight from Boston was GREAT - only 1 hr. 40 mins. to paradise! Overall, the island is beautiful and very lush, even at the end of a scorching summer season. Poverty is almost non-existent, and the island's hillsides are dotted with multi-colored estates.

After much debate, we stayed at The Reefs hotel in in Southampton. The hotel is about 30 minutes from the airport and 15 minutes from the capital city of Hamilton. This lovely pink hotel is built into the cliffs and features a stunning pink-sand beach. The water is a beautiful turquoise blue, and the beach has striking coral and rock formations - making for some excellent snorkeling.

The staff at the hotel is friendly and accommodating. We enjoyed a complimentary rum swizzle upon our arrival, and received great drink service on the beach and in the hot tub. The concierge helped arrange much of our taxi transportation, as well as a day boat rental. Our only issue was when the guy manning the towel stand at the beach told us to only take one towel each due to "supply issues." With the amount we were paying per night, we should have been able to get two towels (not to mention more comfortable beach/pool chairs)!!

The infinity pool was slightly small but had beautiful sunset views of the beach and cliffs. The hot tub was right next to the pool and could be used at any hour. Our room overlooked the pool and hot tub with the ocean as a backdrop. We enjoyed the spacious patio off the room, although it didn't give us much privacy as it faced directly out to the pool. We were in room #305 (appropriately named "On the Rocks"). The bedroom was fine, but the bathroom was somewhat outdated. Also, our king-sized bed was actually two twin beds pushed together. Although certainly not ideal, it was still quite comfortable.

The hotel rate included breakfast and dinner. We had breakfast served on our patio most mornings, which was absolutely wonderful. For dinner, we dined twice at Ocean Echo, once at Coconuts, and once at the Pompano Beach Club. We were divided on whether Ocean Echo or Coconuts is better, but both of us agreed that the Pompano Beach Club was not worth the trip (although the sunset views are spectacular). Try the rockfish at Ocean Echo!

The Reefs is an interesting hotel to try to rate and review. On the one hand, it had one of the prettiest beaches and some of the most spectacular views of any hotel we've ever stayed in. The natural beauty and the friendly feeling of a boutique hotel couldn't be beat. On the other hand, it lacked some of the service and accoutrements that you would expect to find in a five-star hotel. With some basic improvements, it could be unparalleled.

We loved Bermuda for its convenience, cleanliness, and pristine beauty. However, be warned that it is very expensive! We hope to go back and check out some of the other hotels we'd considered such as Elbow Beach (a Mandarin Oriental property) or the Fairmont Princess Southampton.

 

Kicking outdoor patio -- Grand Canal, Boston

Ready for summer and Happy Hour?

www.thegrandcanalboston.com

Between Haymarket and Da Garden

"Go Fish" at Joe Fish

On Thursday night, we met an old & dear friend at Joe Fish, a seafood restaurant in North Andover that has been getting a lot of buzz from the likes of the Phantom Gourmet and other area foodies. Apparently, we're not the only ones who've heard heard about it, because the restaurant was packed when we arrived a little after 8pm. We waited about 20 minutes for a table, sipping a glass of Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc at the bar and snacking on multi-colored goldfish (nice touch!).

Joe Fish gets its seafood delivery daily, so everything on the menu is super fresh. For starters, we had the Sashimi Flower and Fried Oysters. The sashimi was good (very spicy), but the fried oysters were amazing! We highly recommend them. For dinner, we all went with the grilled entrees. The trout was a huge portion and absolutely delicious. The yellow-fin tuna was lightly seared and very tasty. The "chef's choice grilled trio" was a fun way to taste three types of fish - tuna, salmon and swordfish.

For dessert, we all shared the grape nut pudding and brownie sundae. The brownie sundae came in the form of an ice cream cake and was one of the biggest desserts I've ever seen! Very decadent...

The menu at Joe Fish is huge, so we look forward to going back again sometime & trying something new. The only downfall is that the place completely shuts down by 10pm... guess that's part of dining in the suburbs!

Cupcake Comfort on the Lower East Side

When our friend, Jen Goldfinch, found out that we were staying on Rivington Street in Manhattan's Lower East Side, she said we had to try the cupcakes at Sugar Sweet Sunshine. And try we did! Over two days, we sampled four different types of cupcakes (the shop's menu boasts 10 creatively named varieties). The four we tried were: Sunshine (vanilla cupcake with vanilla buttercream), Bob (yellow cupcake with chocolate almond buttercream), Sexy Red Velvet (red velvet cake with white, whipped cream-like frosting), and Lemon Yummy (lemon cupcake with lemon buttercream). The shop is busy and product turnover high, so the cupcakes are always fresh, moist, and delicious. We really enjoyed all four types that we tried, but thought the frosting was best on the the Sunshine and the Lemon Yummy. Thadd liked the Red Velvet cupcake the best. For those of you who don't know (we didn't until we looked it up), Red Velvet cakeis typically a chocolate cake (made using cocoa) with either beets or red food dye to give it its color. While cupcakes are certainly a specialty at Sugar Sweet Sunshine, the bakery also makes cakes and an assortment of muffins and other baked goods. If you're on the Lower East Side, don't miss the opportunity to brighten your day by treating yourself to a visit!

Cape Cod Summer '08 Wrap-up

This summer, we spent quite a bit of time on the Cape and have lots of great recommendations. We mostly stayed in the Eastham/Orleans area but also ventured to Wellfleet and Chatham. Here are some of our favorite spots:

Best Restaurant (Dinner) - Mac's Shack in Wellfleet. This restaurant has an amazing and extensive menu that features lots of local fish and produce. We've been there three times and still feel like we've barely scratched the surface in terms of what this restaurant has to offer. If you go there in the summer or early fall, definitely request outdoor seating. The atmosphere is great, and there are heat lamps for chilly nights. Plus, you can enjoy a glass of wine and some Wellfleet oysters at the outside bar/raw bar while you wait for your table. For appetizers, the tuna tatare featured with big chunks of tasty tuna and avocado. The heirloom tomato salad is also fresh and delicious - and big enough to share. For entrees, we enjoyed both the scallops and striped bass, and our friend also praised the flounder. Most of the entrees are served with some interesting vegetable combination. We've yet to dig into the restaurant's sushi menu, but bet that's good, too! Bottom line, it's hard to go wrong at Mac's Shack.

Best Lobster Roll - Finbars in Orleans. We'll caveat this recommendation by saying that we've tried only a handful of the thousands of lobster rolls that are served at various dining establishments on the Cape. However, this unassuming roadside stand offers what we consider a top-notch lobster roll - lots of fresh lobster meat, just the right amount of mayonnaise, and a toasted bun. We're not sure you can ask for much more from a lobster roll!

Best Beach Food - Liam's at Nauset Beach. If you're not up for packing a picnic and in the mood to indulge in some great fried seafood, check out Liam's at Nauset Beach. The fried oysters, clams and scallops are all fabulous. We also really liked the world-famous onion rings - even Alice who typically does not like onion rings. Maybe it's something about the salt air that makes this food taste so good! Word-of-caution: the lines at Liam's can be very, very long so be prepared to wait.

Best Bar - Beachcomber in Wellfleet. The Beachcomber is one of the few "beach bars" that we've discovered on the Cape. There are beautiful views of the beach from the parking lot, and the outdoor area of the bar has a lively atmosphere. The Goombay Smashes were the best we've had outside of the Straight Wharf in Nantucket. We did not try the food, and therefore can't comment on it. Our only beef with this hot spot is that you can't see the beach from the bar. We think they should build a roof deck!

Best Beach (Daytime) - Nauset Beach in Orleans. Nauset is a majestic beach with nice sand and decent waves - although the water is very cold (typical for the ocean side of the Cape). The beach can sometimes be very crowded near the main entrance, but if you face the water and walk to the left, you can find parts of the beach that almost seem untouched. Nauset is a great walking beach! There's plenty of parking right next to the beach (as opposed to Coast Guard where you have to take a shuttle), and bathrooms and refreshments are readily accessible. Parking is $15 and also gives you day-access to Skaket Beach on the bay side.

Best Sunset Beach - Skaket Beach in Orleans. If you want to see a great sunset, we higly recommend the bay side of the Cape. We saw a spectacular sunset at Skaket Beach over Labor Day weekend. As an added bonus, the tide was low, and you could walk at least half a mile through out to various sandbars (and the water was almost bathwater warm). It's a great place to take some family photos or enjoy an evening cocktail on the down low. The picture speaks for itself.

Katrin - A Classic Mykonos Restaurant

Last night, we dined at Katrin, one of the nicest and most established restaurants in Hora/Mykonos. We had a true Greek dining experience, as we sat at a little candelit table right on the sidewalk in the winding, narrow alley way and got to do all sorts of people watching. While the food at Katrin is a little more expensive than some of the restaurants in Greece (we paid $50 for wine, as opposed to the $20-$30 that we've been spending other nights), the food is definitely unique and excellent. The appetizers, in particular, were delicious. We shared an artichoke heart stuffed with mushrooms, spinach, crab, and melted cheese, as well as an avocado filled with seafood and topped with cheese. Both were as delicious as they were described on the menu. The sliced cherry duck breast with camelized apples was a very good entree choice, and the lamb chops were tender and fresh. It's hard to go wrong with lamb in Greece! We took a break from white wine (which is by far the dominant type of wine in Greece) and had a nice bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon that was recommended by the waiter. We skipped dessert in favor of one of the many more affordable ice cream shops in town. If you're spending time in Mykonos, put Katrin at the top of your restaurant list!

Dining "Event" in Athens

On Wednesday evening, we arrived in Athens, hungry and exhausted after nearly 24 hours of travel (including a tortuous 6-hour layover in London Luton airport). Upon checking in, we asked the guy working the desk at the hotel where we might be able to find an authentic (and nearby) bite to eat, and he vehemently recommended a restaurant called Event. What ensued can be described as nothing less than the classic experience of two overtired people in a foreign city. We walked the narrow winding streets for nearly an hour trying to decipher the names of the roads and locate the restaurant. We asked numerous people for directions, only to hopefully turn down an alley and find a row of enticing restaurants by other names. We were about to give up when we finally stumbled upon it. And we're so thankful we persisted - the meal was outstanding. We had delicious appetizers, including a salad with the freshest feta cheese imaginable and ripe summer tomatoes, and a shrimp dish with homemade tomato sauce. The entrees were fantastic as well - white fish from the Aegean Sea and rack of lamb with baby artichokes. Thadd declared it the best and most flavorful rack of lamb he's ever tasted! The white wine (a specialty in Greece) and Baklava dessert rounded out this fabulous introduction to Greek cuisine. For anyone who is in Athens in the near future, this restaurant is a must - and be sure to ask for Alex, the waiter. He'll take good care of you!

When in the Hamptons...

We recently made our first trip to the Hamptons to attend a wedding and visit our close Duke friends, Sam and Cristina. We had a fantastic weekend staying at their lovely home, playing in the waves at the beach, and exploring the town of East Hampton. On Saturday night, we dined at the renowned eating establishment, The 1770 House. The setting was quaint and the meal was outstanding - from appetizers to dessert. We tried a range of appetizers, including the Jumbo Lump Crab Summer Roll, which had a delicious thai chili spice that was softened by sweet, juicy mango and green papaya. Thadd enjoyed his usual Foie Gras, which was served with a vanilla and bing cherry sauce - a combination that even made Sam and Cristina Foie Gras converts! We both enjoyed the Pan Seared Diver Scallops for an entree, which were served with a sunchoke and truffle veloute, wild mushrooms, and spring peas. If you like scallops, you will not be disappointed with this choice. Cristina had the Roasted Wild Alaskan Salmon, which she also raved about. For dessert, we shared the Molten Dark Chocolate Cake and a Peanut Butter Chocolate Special, both of which were rich yet delicious. We complemented the meal with several bottles of the 2005 Sauvignon Blanc, Saracina from Mendocino, CA - which had a delicate balance of fruit flavors (we're picky Sauvignon Blanc drinkers - and we liked this wine)!  All in all, a fantastic meal and even better company - a night to remember!