Chimichurri & Petite Pains au Chocolate - NOT together!

Woke up early on Sunday morning to walk Rolex, one of our Home Buddies customers. Then I headed out to the supermarket so I could get the ingredients for 2 non-related recipes I have been dying to make. 

The first was for “Pains au Chocolat” or “Chocolate Croissants”. Most recipes take a few hours, but this one, is for the lazy like myself!

 I first tried these in St. Barths and my favorite memory is of one night (or morning… as it was about 5am) after a leaving the club, my friends and I waited for the bakery to open. It was pouring down rain, we were in a golf cart, they were fresh out of the oven… nothing was more perfect!

I love these things so much that I must consume them on my birthday. Locally, the French Bread Oven & Norman Love Confections have the best! However, if you are (a) on a budget, (b) feel like making some for friends or (c) feel like eating a lot in the privacy of your home… all you need is a few simple ingredients: puff pastry sheets, bittersweet chocolate (if you like dark) or semi-sweet (milk chocolate), 1 egg & a little bit of sugar. That’s it!

 As far as presentation is concerned...

practice makes perfect!

The other thing I was dying to make was “Chimichurri Sauce”. 

Chimichurri is a sauce that is usually served with steak in Argentina. It is available at the supermarket. We’ve tried different brands, but we never seem to like any. This recipe is the solution to our problems!

It is EXTREMELY EASY! All you have to do is buy the ingredients, clean & cut them and throw them in the food processor! Nothing taste better than fresh ingredients too and after you’ve made it a few times, you can tweak it. We liked it as the recipe states.

I bought some skirt steak, pounded it to make it tender, covered it with chopped garlic, sprinkled some adobo (all-purpose seasoning) on it, squeezed a lime on it and let it marinade for a few hours. When we were ready to eat, I threw a bag of Mexican Rice on the stove and grilled the steaks.

It was one of the least expensive and most succulent meals we’ve made at home. AND… it was the first time Dominic’s parents, Frank & Emma ate something of mine that I didn’t screw up somehow. Overall, a great success! 

Mixed Feelings about Baleen @ La Playa

For our 7th Anniversary, Dominic wanted to go to The CapitalGrille, probably the best steakhouse around! However, I wanted to try a new place. I wanted it to be memorable so I went on the TripAdvisor.Com website and did a search for “romantic restaurants” in Naples. At #10 was Baleen, the restaurant at La Playa Beach & Golf Resort. I had heard some of the Camp Bow Wow customers talk about it so I visited their website. The menu and photos of the view really caught my attention. “You can sit on the sand! How romantic!” I thought.

I called to make reservations and that’s when the lack of “warm and fuzzies” began. I remembered how Dominic had told me that when he called Roy’s to make my birthday reservation, they had asked if it was a special occasion and afterwards, they surprised us with a complimentary dessert. The receptionist at Baleen was cold, didn’t ask anything more than the usual and after I requested outdoor seating, she informed me that it was “not guaranteed”. 

The day arrived and we were so excited!!! Luckily, they did have a table for us outside. Wow! What a view! I had made the reservation for 8pm hoping it wouldn’t be too hot to sit outside and the timing was perfect. The sun was beginning to set and we got to enjoy one of the many beautiful west coast sunsets!

Even though the view is VERY beautiful, the restaurant was full and loud. Because it is in a resort, not everyone there is having a romantic meal so you can hear other conversations and there are kids playing in the background. I would have preferred a more intimate setting.

Our waiter, even though polite, was not particularly friendly. I don’t know if he introduced himself. He certainly did not engage in any type of “small talk”. He assumed we were tourists and perhaps that’s why he didn’t think to ask if we were celebrating any special occasion. After he brought us our initial drinks, he disappeared for about 10 minutes. Then, he appeared to take our appetizer and entrée order. The bus boys were definitely friendlier. They brought us delicious bread and took our photo.

Dominic & I both ordered the “Lobster Bisque” soup. It was delicious with chunks of lobster, but it was definitely on the SALTY side. 

For his main course, Dominic took our waiter’s suggestion and ordered the “Roquefort Crusted Filet of Beef,
Short rib ragout, asparagus, potato crisp, natural jus”. He was very pleased with his selection and so was I! 

 

I ordered the ½ portion of the “Florida Keys Snapper with Yellow tomato fondue and green onion and Lump Crab Hash”. The fish was a bit salty, but then, the hash had a sweetness to it that balanced it all very well. 

I definitely appreciate a restaurant that serves ½ portions since I am usually full after the first course and Baleen had 3 appealing ones. 

We skipped dessert even though they had a warm dark chocolate cake with caramelized bananas & banana foster ice cream with banana caramel sauce that screamed “ORDER ME!” We may have to come back one day just for that, but we probably won’t return for the food. Dominic & I are all about good customer service and places that stand out above the rest. Our waiter didn’t go the “extra mile” for us and the food, even though good, was not extraordinary.

I would gain a LOT of weight if we lived near L'Apetito

A few weeks ago, I had a Home Buddies job in North Naples taking care of 3 funny cats (Asia, Hunter & Jade) and a very sweet Greyhound named Koby. 

Near their home is L'Appetito (2542 Northbrooke Plaza Drive, Naples). A small pizza shop & deli that can do no wrong in my eyes. It was Friday night, we had worked a long day at Camp Bow Wow. We were hungry, but FULL of patience.

The restaurant was full. One of the waiters had called in sick (or something) so the other two waitresses were scrambling to take care of all of the customers. Dominic and I sat down and waited. Within a few minutes, one of the servers greeted us and told us they would be with us as quickly as they could. This meant the world to us! Recently, we decided to give Naples Flatbread a try. We waited for about 10 minutes and watched about 4 servers pass us by. Not once did anyone greet us or make eye contact. We left.

At L'Apetito, it didn't matter "whose" table it was. The servers were working as a team and soon one of them was advising us on their many pasta dishes. Dominic went for the "Chicken Marsala" and I, knowing well how good their pizza is, opted for the personal pizza and a small order of their boneless chicken wings... HOT... should have gone for the "inferno". As we feasted on the tasty food in front of us, we sipped on the classiest of wines... "Carlo Rossi's Paisano". 

We were very disappointed in the end because despite the fact that we were strategically seating in front of the cannoli shell storage and kept drooling at the anticipation... they were out of the filling and we were unable to indulge!

Sadly disappointed by Salsa Brava in Naples Park

A few days before trying out Salsa Brava (10265 Tamiami Trail North, Naples), I had walked into Amigo's on the East Trail with pessimism and after reviewing the seemingly "gringo-friendly" menu, my pessimism got worse. Luckily, that day, I was very pleasantly surprised.

The complete opposite happened to me when we visited Salsa Brava. It is a simple and clean restaurant. All of the patrons were Mexican until we walked in. The menu was full of promising choices and then... we asked the waitress for suggestions and advice and she didn't seem confident in her descriptions of the menu items. She was very slow and unengaging. 

They were out of "gorditas", so I ordered 2 sopes, one steak and the other "al pastor" (pork). They were very disappointing.  Its a bit hard to describe, but the "massa" didn't taste great. It tasted like it had been fried once and then again later on. It tasted a bit stale in our opinion.

 

We also ordered the steak "a la Tampiqueña" which was very good when we ordered it at "El Rincon de Mexico". The dish consist of cheese topped steak on top of cheese enchiladas with salsa verde, rice and beans. 

The enchiladas with the salsa verde were DELICIOUS!!! However, the steak's seasoning was heavy on the black pepper, something I DESPISE! The only way I was able to eat the rest was to cover up all traces of pepper with the beans and the salsa verde.

Perhaps the tacos are good, but with so many other better choices, we probably won't return soon to find out.

Negative Nancy is Pleasantly Surprised at Amigo's Mexican Cafe

 Dominic and I are obsessed with Mexican Food. The more authentic, the better... even if the 's exterior is somewhat scary. There are 4 restaurants on the East Trail in Lely within a rock's throw from one another.

Twice, we have eaten at El Tapatio (11157 Tamiami Trl E) and enjoyed its authenticity especially their sopes, which are hard to find in SWFL. Their gorditas are also really good! I can never remember if we like the steak or the pork. Unfortunately, we like one, but not the other!

Last weekend, we decided to try one of the other neighboring restaurants. We chose Amigo's (11263 Tamiami Trl E) since our friends and Camp Bow Wow customers, Dan & Katie Varano have eaten there. Dan, who owns and operates AAmco Transmissions on 3030 Davis Blvd, shares our love for Mexican food. We constantly share recipes and suggest new restaurants to one another.

We walked through the door of this uninviting strip mall unit and found a large inviting restaurant with several tables and booths, a huge assortment of hot sauces and a stocked bar! Much more elaborate than El Tapatio.

I was very tired and cranky over the weekend so my attitude was not very optimistic as I read the menu. It had Cuban items, Mexican items, Tex Mex items... I felt like it wasn't as authentic as I had hoped. There were no "traditional dishes" or "specialties". Just your basic burritos, enchiladas, tacos & fajitas.

I cringe when I there is no "asada" for the tacos and they use "lettuce & tomato" instead of "cilantro & onions" to top them off. I prefer corn tortillas, but it's not the end of the world if they only have flour tortillas. To me, these are all indicators that the food will not be as authentic and that the flavors will be bland.

Again, we were pleasantly surprised! Dominic ordered a Burrito with steak & guacamole. He was very happy. I could not decide, so I ordered a combo with a Chicken Enchilada with Salsa Verde (had a kick, but not by Mexican standards), Pork Tamale (really delicious... even better with a bit of the Salsa Verde) and a Pork Taco (I should have started with the other two!). The dish came with the best Mexican rice I've eaten in a while. 

It goes to show you that you cannot judge a place before you taste the food. Even though the items on the menu seem very "gringo friendly", the flavors are definitely worth coming back again!

Exceptional Service @ Roy's Hawaiian Fusion

For about 10 years now, every time my mother has gotten on an airplane to visit us, she has clipped the Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine ad from the airplane magazine and begged us to take her! I am ashamed to say that to this day, we haven't! We finally decided to try it for my birthday. 

                                                                               The most impressive thing about Roy's, in our opinion, is the service. We checked in with the hostess and they greeted me with "Happy Birthday" wishes. They also had this greeting card made especially for me!

We ordered the "Crunchy Golden Lobster Pot Stickers" as an appetizer and we were less than thrilled about them. The waitress, who was as sweet as pie, brought us a sample of "Lakanilau Roll" to help alleviate our slight disappointment. We are not fond of cold sushi rolls, so it wasn't our "cup of tea", but I am sure those that do like cold sushi rolls, would love this appetizer!

Dominic ordered the "Hawaiian Misoyaki Butterfish with Lemon Ginger Soy Beurre Blanc" which he LOVED!!! The rice helped soak up the sauce which made for a nice match. I do not care for the texture of the Butterfish, but the flavors were delicious!

                                                I ordered "Roy's Roasted Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi with Maine Lobster Essence". Mine was a much lighter dish than Dominic's and I enjoyed it very much. 

  Even though the service at Roy's is above most and their fish was fresh and their sauces were delicious, Dominic & I both agree that we would return to USS Nemo before returning to Roy's as their flavors were superior in our opinion.

To end the evening, we were surprised with a complimentary decadent chocolate souffle... and a few weeks later, we received a hand-written Thank You card in the mail from our server. So many details made it an extraordinary experience ideal for a special occasion. 

Pedrosa Family Favorite - Waffle House

When I was a teenager, my mom, my brother and I would road trip around the south east and commonly ate at various Waffle House locations along the way. We loved walking in through the door to hear about 5 different staff members yell out: 'Morning! 'Morning! 'Morning! It was the best start to the day! 

So for those of you who find the Waffle House disgusting or dirty, I must disagree with you. Maybe it is because of the many fond memories that I relive with every visit, but I just LOVE eating here... and the low low prices cannot be beat!

 

 

Dominic & I like
  sharing the Breakfast All-Star Special, which includes eggs, a choice of meat (yummy crispy bacon), toast,  a waffle and hash-browns. We usually get the regular (plain) hash-browns, but on this occasion, we felt like trying something new. We got them "capped" (mushrooms), "peppered" (jalapeños) & "smothered" (sauteed onions). We should have also gotten them "covered" (melted cheese). We originally thought it would be too much, but it may have been better with a little bit of cheese!

 

While I like pancakes, french toast and the like, I never order them at restaurants because I get tired of too much "dough". That's why I love the waffles at Waffle House! They are so thin, you do not get full immediately!

To complete our meal, we also order a Texas Toast Egg Sandwich. Every single item was delicious. The service is always superb even if they are full and running at top speed. 

Yeah, the coffee ain't great... but as far as being considered "dirty"...  I think its hard to be dirty when your kitchen is open for the entire restaurant to see.

Rosedale Brick Oven Pizzeria - Food OK. Service, not so much

Rosedale recently opened up at 1427 Pine Ridge Road in Naples. Dominic stopped by one afternoon to get lunch take-out. It took longer than he expected.

He had ordered an Italian Sausage Sandwich, which he enjoyed. He did say he would not order it because it was too messy to eat with your hands. I ordered a Margherita Pizza, which was very tasty. Neither one of us was overwhelmingly impressed, but when we heard that our friend and Camp Bow Wow customer Mark, had joined their team, we knew we had to try it again!

Last week, we were in the area and decided to grab a bite. Unfortunately, it was Mark's night off. When we walked in, there were a few other patrons, but within minutes, we were the only customers in the restaurant. Even though I could have ordered something different, I ordered the Margherita Pizza. I can eat pizza every day so its hard for me to pass it up when I see it on the menu. Dominic ordered the Rigattoni Pasta with Vodka Sauce and Meatballs.

Although we were the only customers in the restaurant, we had to call out for the server so that we could get our waters refilled and so that we could receive a basket of bread. Dominic We were somewhat surprised when Dominic did not get a salad with his pasta, but since not all restaurants include a salad with your meal, it was no big deal.

When Dominic's meal arrived, it came with sausage instead of meatballs. We waited for the waitress to check to see if everything was good with our meal, but no one came. I finally got up and let her know there had been a mistake. By the time the meatballs arrived, Dominic had pretty much finished his meal.

On a positive note, both entrees were very flavorful. Dominic enjoyed the Vodka Sauce and my pizza's ingredients were obviously fresh. The problem is NOT the food. It's the service.

We believe it was the owner that was nearby our table and quickly passed by to ask if we were doing well. We said "yes" since by then, our glasses were full and we were enjoying our food, but I feel, he could have asked for more "in-depth" feedback as to our experience.

The next day, I saw our friend Mark and let him know about our experience. We truly hope they can re-train their staff and turn things around because they have a good product, but customer service is crucial!