We disembarked the MS Oosterdam yesterday, and Samuel was devastated about leaving our Penthouse Suite after a week of luxury and lots of space! The food on board, as always, was pretty good (avoid the overcooked passed hor's d'oevres at the bars before dinner) and we all gained a substantial amount of weight.
Not to belittle the food on board, we planned a fabulous dinner in San Diego last night as we are here for a short visit before returning home. The MARINE ROOM is located right on the water (2000 Spindrift Dr) in La Jolla with a gorgeous view of the Pacific Ocean. Ideally, one should arrive for the sunset, but at this point of the year 5PM is a bit early for dinner. The restaurant does light up the shoreline, and the most adorable seabirds, including a bevy of miniature sanderlings that look like teeny white blobs that ebb and flow with the water as the waves come in. At first, we thought they were fake, but they moved in so many directions and there were hundreds of them scattered down the coast; it was really cute.
After being seated at what had to be one of the worst tables in the restaurant (next to the kitchen exit and a waiter's prep table) we quickly asked to be moved. We didn't mind the 20-25 minute wait at the bar (where a Russell Crowe look-alike was tending) because we ultimately got one of the coziest window tables for two in the place. (We were told that tables were assigned based on arrival time, and they were sorry--every one did their best to make the rest of the evening a stellar success).
We started with a superb bottle of DUE FAMILY CELLARS Chardonnay 2001 from Russian River. This wine is a new find with an okay nose, slight acidity and huge honeydew flavor in the mouth. It has a huge finish, which actually changes in the mouth as you swirl it around! WOW! I hope I can find it at home. We decided to pay for the wine at the bar (so the bartender would be assured HIS tip) and I was totally shocked with the $160-something bill. A computer error had repriced the wine from its $40-something menu listing. Another good reason, ALWAYS to check the bill!
The menu was not huge, but the descriptions of Chef Bernard Guillas' creations was almost daunting. We asked lots of questions and finally settled on our choices. Will started with the ALMOND MUESLIX CRUSTED CRAB CAKE with Beluga Lentils, Butternut Squash, Duck Prosciutto and Watercress Emulsion. The waiter said the dish was very popular, and we did have reservations about the crab (last time in San Diego years ago a nearby 5-star establishment used stringy Indonesian crab--yuck!), but he proved correct and the monstrous tasty crabcake was a huge success. My SPINACH WRAPPED PACIFIC OYSERS with Lobster Mousse, Parsley Myrtle Oil and Caviar Quintet was even more adventurous. Fix gorgeous plump KUMAMOTO Oysters were baked in spinach and presented in a long
canoe-shaped dish each topped with a different caviar: Truffled Whitefish, Ginger Whitefish (with little ginger taste), Paddlefin, Spanish Trout (big red eggs) and my favorite the American Ossetra. A truly stellar preparation.
Wine number two was a substitute as the recommended wine turned out to be out of stock. The maitre d' apologized and gave us the HANZELL 2002 Sonoma Chardonnay at a discount of over $25 so that it was the same price as his first recommendation. It was a French style chard with low oak, hi acidity and steely tones that worked superbly with our intense seafood entrees. Will opted for the CHANTERELLE CRUSTED BARRAMUNDI, Crimson Fingerling, Duck Sausage, Vino Santo Jus and Heirloom Apple Fritter. We don't get much of this intense Pacific fish back east, so he tried something new and it was quite a wonderful combination. My choice was the special, MAINE DIVER SCALLOPS and ARCTIC CHAR with Fennel Pollen, Pistachio Risotto, Apple Fritter, Gooseberry and
Plum-Lemon Myrtle Emulsion. You can see from this description that Chef Bernard really tries to get everything into his huge platters. At $25-45 (except $65 for the Lobster & Fillet) we DID get our money's worth. Apparently, the "fennel pollen" is a creation of this chef and he often uses it, although I couldn't detect any intense fennel taste in my dish. I adored having the one delicious gooseberry on my plate (a rare treat on this continent seen very often in European desserts during the summer), and each bite I managed to take was a wonderful blend of flavors, especially the huge dusted scallops and the perfect
fish.
We managed to split one dessert of BLUE HERON FARM ORGANIC LEMON TART with Morello Cherry Coulis, Rosewater Chantilly and Meringue Kiss that was tasty, especially the gooey cherry coulis. We rolled home and have just one final day left in San Diego today...more later.
Phyllis on the road again
