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We’re Back! Sorry for the Lack of Updates…

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011 by virginia

We did have internet access some of the time during our European vacation but to be perfectly honest, I was feeling lazy. It was nice to take a two week break from everything. Don’t worry, we took lots of pics and I kept detailed notes of every single meal we had.

Every city we went to was so different and special in its own way. We loved the beauty of Prague, the historical parts of Bratislava, the hustle and bustle of Budapest, the quaint feel of Zagreb, the impressive walled city of Dubrovnik, and the stunning sea views on the coast of Croatia. We really lucked out with the weather and had gorgeous sunny days the entire trip.

Food-wise, there was a lot of overlap in terms of the style of dishes. Goulash, schnitzel, and chicken paprika were on a lot of the menus we saw in multiple countries, though we did try to mix things up as best as we could. Our favorite meal was in Bratislava, but honestly, most of the food on our trip was very tasty.  We didn’t really go to fancy places, preferring local homestyle restaurants or bustling beer halls. While beer was dirt cheap (half liter mugs averaged about US$2 in all the cities we visited), the food was pricier than I expected, though still inexpensive by NYC standards.

We had an absolute blast on our trip, and surprisingly, we did our best to take it easy. Our days were only hectic because of the shorter daylight period (sunset was around 4 pm), but every night we relaxed, wandered, and enjoyed hearty meals with lots of food and drink. Hopefully it won’t take me too long to post about it!

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Two Fat Bellies Hit the Road – Central European Vacation

Thursday, November 3rd, 2011 by virginia

Josh and I are leaving soon for a journey through parts of eastern central Europe. We’ll be hitting up Prague, Budapest, Bratislava, and Croatia, with lots of good eating and drinking along the way (I hope!). This was sort of an impromptu vacation for us, as we were originally supposed to go to Portugal, Spain, and Amsterdam over the summer. That trip was unfortunately cancelled, and we started planning an African Safari instead. Those plans were put on hold when there was potentially an opportunity for us to move to Argentina for a few months. Even more sadly, that move fell through.

And so here we were, trying to figure out what to do with our remaining vacation days. We tossed around a bunch of ideas, like a skiing/eating trip to Andorra/Basque country, or a culinary adventure through Vietnam and Cambodia, among others. As always, food was a big part of our thinking. Ultimately we decided to take advantage of the still relatively cheap offerings of eastern Europe, where we plan on drinking lots of quality beer and eating lots of potentially fattening foods.

We’re trying not to jam too many things into our trip, although it’s hard for us to do vacations at a leisurely pace. Nevertheless, we hope to have internet access during our journey and will try to post a few updates along the way.

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Hilton Head 2011 Day 4 – Old Fort Pub

Tuesday, September 20th, 2011 by virginia

On our last day in Hilton Head, Josh and I were supposed to fly out at 7 pm from Savannah, which would have gotten us back to NYC at around 9 pm. Around 1 pm, however, a few hours before we were headed to the airport (which is about 45 minutes from the island), Josh got notification that our flight had been cancelled due to weather. We weren’t sure where exactly the “weather” was, given that we were sitting at the pool at the time and the sky was clear and blue. We figured the bad weather was in NYC, where it was raining, but nothing out of the ordinary. After trying to figure out alternative routes home, including flying through Charlotte, we ultimately booked a flight for first thing in the morning. I was worried that we would get stuck in Charlotte and have to spend the night at the airport, whereas if we stayed in Hilton Head, at least we had a guaranteed place to sleep.

The cancellation of our flight was kind of bittersweet. I was looking forward to getting home and having a night to readjust before heading back to work the next day. Flying out at 6:30 am meant that we would have to get up around 3:30 am and take a 45 minute taxi ride from Hilton Head to Savannah. Our flight would get in at 8:30 am and I would have to go straight to work feeling tired and looking disheveled. On the upside, we got to finish out our day at the pool, and we were able to join everyone for dinner at the Old Fort Pub.

During our trip to Hilton Head last year, the Old Fort Pub was my favorite restaurant of all the places we went that year. Even though I was dreading our early departure the next day, I was excited to have the opportunity to go back to the Old Fort Pub. Luckily they were able to add us to the reservation on short notice without any issues. As we left for the restaurant, the sky grew ominously black, and it started to pour. In retrospect, perhaps our flight was cancelled because they were anticipating this rain for around the time our flight was scheduled to take off. In addition to the downpour, there was plenty of thunder and lightning.

The torrential rain slowed us up quite a bit, as it was hard to see out the windshield because it was raining so heavily. We wound up being late for our reservation, and the restaurant called to make sure we were still coming. We assured them that we were on our way and quite close, but that we hadn’t brought any umbrellas. They said it was no problem, and that someone would be out front to meet us. Sure enough, as we pulled up, there was a person (who later turned out to be our waiter) standing in the rain holding several umbrellas for us. Now that’s what I call service!

We all finally made it into the restaurant, safe and mostly dry. It did get a bit hairy when a lightning bolt must have struck very close to where we were standing; the thundering crack that it made was absolutely deafening (I almost jumped out of my skin), and we were all pretty spooked by it. Nevertheless, we were happy to finally be inside, and we settled in to enjoy our meal.

In a departure from our usual tactic of ordering two different things per course and then going halfsies, Josh and I both decided to order the she crab soup. She crab soup is probably our favorite lowcountry dish and it’s something we always want to eat when we’re in Hilton Head. The version at Old Fort Pub is a bit different from most other versions we’ve tried. It’s very thick and creamy, which I like, but it has a very strong sherry taste to it. While the sherry flavor cuts through the richness of the soup, it masks some of the crab flavor and is slightly bitter. I thought when we tried it last year that we had just gotten a particularly boozy batch, but it was exactly the same this year. It’s not a bad version, but I definitely prefer less sherry flavor.

She crab soup

For our main course, we shared the lamb chops and the bouillabaisse. The lamb chops were cooked rare, as requested, and served with a pea and bean cassoulet, braised collard greens, and roasted tomato jus. I’m not sure if the sauce on the plate was the tomato jus because it was dark red in color and syrupy, both in texture and in taste. It was slightly too sweet to match well with the lamb and clashed with the cassoulet and collards as well. The flavors really didn’t meld, and I was pretty disappointed with the dish.

Lamb chops with pea and bean cassoulet, braised collard greens, and roasted tomato jus

We enjoyed the bouillabaisse much more, which featured shrimp, scallops, crawfish, mussels, tasso ham, roasted tomatoes, and collards. The seafood was all nicely cooked, especially the scallops, and the broth was rich and flavorful thanks to the ham. I think there was some cream in there but it wasn’t overwhelming, and the bouillabaisse was hearty and comforting.

Sea Island bouillabaisse

Overall I have to admit that most of us were pretty disappointed with our meal at the Old Fort Pub. Perhaps we had high hopes and expectations coming in, especially since we all had great prior meals there, but this particular visit didn’t measure up. The lamb chops didn’t work and there were also issues with the dishes that some other people in our group had. The upside to the experience was definitely the service. In addition to being nice enough to stand outside in the rain with umbrellas for us, our waiter was friendly, attentive, and efficient. I’m glad that we were able to spend an extra night in Hilton Head, though this meal was kind of a downer to end our vacation with. I don’t know if it was just an off night but for the price, I definitely expected more. It may have been our favorite restaurant last year, but now I have mixed feelings about the place. I think next year we’ll probably seek out some new restaurants to try.

Old Fort Pub
65 Skull Creek Dr.
Hilton Head, SC

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Hilton Head 2011 Day 3 – A Lowcountry Backyard

Sunday, September 18th, 2011 by virginia

I did do a little bit of research on Hilton Head restaurants before we went down, and one restaurant that I found was called A Lowcountry Backyard, which featured local lowcountry cuisine. My brother, sister-in-law, and nephew left that afternoon so we had a slightly smaller group for dinner, though there were still 12 of us. This restaurant also does not take reservations, though they said that if we called ahead they would put our names on the list and try to accommodate us. We arrived at the restaurant, they told us the wait wouldn’t be too bad, but we ended up waiting for over 45 minutes. The restaurant is on the smaller side so we had to stay outside. There’s a pretty garden with tables and chairs but the wait was uncomfortable because the mosquitoes were relentless.

We were bitten up and slightly annoyed by the time we sat down. Again, we had to split up into two tables because they didn’t have anything large enough for a group of our size. Josh and I sat with Jessica and Eric while the “adults” were squeezed into the other table. We started off with a round of local beers as we perused the menu. The menu wasn’t very long but there were lots of things that I wanted to try. We ended up getting a few appetizers to share. First up was the fried green tomato stack, which was pretty self explanatory. A few pieces of lightly breaded and fried green tomatoes were stacked together and served with pickles and ranch dressing on the side. The breading was well seasoned though slightly soggy. We could taste the sweet/sourness of the green tomatoes though, and overall we enjoyed the flavors of this dish.

Fried green tomato stack

We also shared the blue crab dip, which was lump crab meat blended with cheese to make a warm and creamy dip. I always thought that seafood and cheese shouldn’t go together, but the combination worked well in the dip. We could taste the sweet brininess of the crab meat while the cheese added a rich tang. The texture was smooth and creamy, with little lumps of crab. There was flat bread and tortilla chips on the side for dipping.

May River blue crab dip

Lastly, we got an order of pimento cheese with grilled flat bread and tortilla chips. I was curious about pimento cheese since it’s pretty popular in the south, but I hadn’t really ever tasted it by itself. Basically it’s a combination of cheddar cheese, mayo, and pimentos all blended together. To be honest, I wasn’t a fan. I found the spread to be too chunky and the texture was slightly off-putting for me. There would be little lumps of cheese and little clumps of mayo, and the flavors didn’t meld for me. We ended up passing the dish over to the “adult table”, where it was quickly gobbled up. The adults raved about the pimento cheese, preferring it over the blue crab dip that we liked. I guess it’s just a matter of personal taste!

Homemade lowcountry pimento cheese

For our entrees, Josh and I shared the shrimp and grits and the Bischick. The Bischick was a lightly breaded and pan fried piece of chicken breast served over a homemade biscuit and topped with lowcountry gravy. The chicken breast was thick, juicy, and tender, and the breading was well seasoned. The homemade biscuit wasn’t as salty or as buttery as the fast food biscuits that I’m used to, but it had a nice fluffy texture to it and stood up well with the chicken. The gravy was thick and creamy, adding seasoning and richness to the sandwich, though the amount was slightly overwhelming and I ended up scraping some of it off. I did enjoy the dish as a whole, as it was fun and flavorful.

The Bischick

The Bischick came with a choice of one side dish so I opted for macaroni and cheese. It was a very good version with lots of tangy, sharp cheese. The noodles were al dente, the sauce was creamy, and there was shredded cheese on top that added an extra punch of flavor.

 

Macaroni and cheese

The shrimp and grits were a combination of sauteed shrimp and sausage slices mixed with a creamy bacon sauce and served over grits. This dish definitely packed in a lot of flavor, though it was on the border of being just slightly too salty for my taste. But the shrimp was cooked perfectly so that they still had a light, bouncy texture. The bacon cream sauce was truly decadent, and the creamy grits had soaked up all the flavor of the other ingredients. It was a pretty heavy and rich dish so I was glad that we went halfsies, since I think it would be hard to polish off a full portion of this by yourself.

Shrimp & grits with sausage and bacon cream sauce

We also got an extra side dish of collard greens, which definitely helped to counteract the richness of our two entrees. The greens were just a little bitter with a slight tang to cut through the rich gravy on the Bischick and the creamy bacon sauce on the grits.

Collard greens

Jessica ordered the potato chip meatloaf for her entree, which was something I really wanted to try. She generously gave us tastes of her dish, and although I couldn’t taste the potato chips (which they use instead of breadcrumbs), the meatloaf itself was well seasoned and flavorful. They use a combination of ground pork and beef, and they grill slices in a skillet before serving so that there’s a nice outer crust while the inside has a softer texture. The meatloaf was glazed with a peach barbecue sauce that was sweet and tangy.

Potato chip meatloaf

Overall I really did enjoy the food at A Lowcountry Backyard but the wait for a table was kind of ridiculous, especially since we had called before we went and they said we should be ok. It seems unavoidable to wait because the restaurant doesn’t take actual reservations and the place is pretty small. The food was flavorful and well seasoned, though the preparation is simple. It’s definitely home-cooked food, hearty and comforting, but not refined or mind-blowing. Portions are big and prices are extremely reasonable. Perhaps that’s why the restaurant is so popular; I just wish they would take reservations. If you have the time and the patience – go. If not, you might not think it’s worth the wait.

A Lowcountry Backyard
32 Palmetto Bay Rd.
Hilton Head, SC

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Hilton Head 2011 Day 2 – One Hot Mama’s

Saturday, September 17th, 2011 by virginia

One of the restaurant suggestions made to us by a reader was One Hot Mama’s, a barbecue restaurant whose chef, Orchid, participated in The Next Food Network Star competition. I don’t watch that show so I had no idea who she was, but the menu looked good and I always like to try barbecue when we’re in the south.

The restaurant doesn’t take reservations but you can call ahead and put your name down, telling them approximately what time you want to come by. They’ll try to accommodate you as best as they can but it’s not a guarantee. Since we had 15 people in our group, we ended up waiting past the time they said to come in. We actually ended up splitting up into two separate tables to shorten our wait. The “kids” sat at one table while the adults sat at the other.

We decided to get a few appetizers to share. The restaurant offers a wide variety of wings, including their award-winning “Hot Asian” wings, so we knew we had to try some of them out. We ended up getting a mix of Hot Asian, Backyard BBQ, and regular Buffalo wings. The Hot Asian and Backyard BBQ wings ended up being pretty similar. They both had a smokey grilled flavor and sticky sauce, though I think the Hot Asian wings were a tad sweeter with maybe just a hint of spice. The buffalo wings were pretty standard with a vinegary buffalo sauce that had a decent kick to it but wasn’t too spicy. They were served with blue cheese dressing and celery sticks on the side.

Hot Asian and Backyard BBQ wings

Buffalo wings

We also shared a platter of pulled chicken nachos. The chicken was tender and flavorful, and there was lots of it piled on top of the tortilla chips. There was also cheddar cheese sauce, melted monterey jack, pico de gallo, scallions, and jalapenos. The flavors were well balanced and we ended up polishing off the entire plate.

Pulled chicken nachos

Josh and I wanted to try as much of the barbecued meats as we could so we split a rack of baby back ribs (also award winning) and a BBQ combo with hand pulled pork and sliced beef brisket. The rack of ribs was simply ginormous, and the meat was falling off the bone tender. It was slathered with Mama’s Red BBQ sauce, which was a good mix of sweet, sour, and spicy. I really enjoyed these ribs but there was so much food that we only ended up getting through half the rack. We boxed up the rest for lunch later in the week. The ribs came with a side of french fries (perfectly crispy but standard), honey jalapeno cornbread (a bit crumbly), and coleslaw (crunchy, tangy, and not too mayo-y).

Baby back ribs with cole slaw, fries, and honey jalapeno cornbread

The BBQ combo was also supposed to come with fries and cole slaw on the side but we were allowed to substitute for two other sides. We ended up choosing collard greens and macaroni and cheese. The collards were great – intensely leafy but not bitter at all and soft but not mushy. The mac and cheese had a nice tangy, cheesy flavor to it, and the pasta was perfectly al dente. It was a good combination of creamy and gooey, and one of the best mac and cheeses we’ve had. As for the barbecued meats, the pulled pork was soft and melt in your mouth tender while the brisket was smokey in flavor and quite tender as well. We did douse more barbecue sauce on both for extra flavor, a vinegary bbq sauce for the pork and more of the fantastic Mama’s Red BBQ sauce on the brisket. Again, the portions were enormous, and we took home lots of leftovers.

BBQ combo platter

Slice Texas beef brisket

Hand-pulled pork

Macaroni and cheese

Collard greens

We also got an order of onion strings to share for the table. In retrospect, that was definitely way too much food, but the onion strings were actually really tasty. They were very sliced thin, lightly battered, and perfectly fried to a nice crisp. The strings were not greasy at all, and they were perfectly seasoned. There was ranch dressing on the side for dipping but we were happy eating them plain.

Onion haystack

We were much, much too full for dessert, plus we had eaten Spiderman birthday cake before dinner. We also had tons of leftovers that we ended up doggie bagging for lunch later in the week. Overall I think everyone was pretty happy with the food at One Hot Mama’s. It wasn’t anything fancy but the food was hearty and solid. Prices were incredibly reasonable, especially for the amount of food we received. The only downside of the evening really was the fact that they don’t take actual reservations so we ended up waiting a long time, plus we had to split our party into two groups. Nevertheless, once we were seated, the service was fast and efficient, and the food was really good. Authentic barbecue? Perhaps not, but I’m no expert. I have to admit, I had some reservations, especially since the place and a commercial, chain restaurant vibe to it, but in the end, I was won over. I don’t know how well Orchid did on The Next Food Network Star, but I definitely have to give her props. I would happily come back here the next time we’re in Hilton Head.

One Hot Mama’s
7 Greenwood Dr.
Hilton Head, SC

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Hilton Head 2011 Day 1 – Red Fish

Thursday, September 15th, 2011 by virginia

As I’ve mentioned, we don’t really have a “favorite” restaurant in Hilton Head right now, but Red Fish probably comes the closest. We went there last year and enjoyed our meal so we decided to go back again this year. We had quite a large group and they were able to accommodate us easily, giving us a large table in the back room where we had plenty of space.

For our appetizer, Josh and I shared the special of the day, which was fried green tomatoes with cherry tomatoes and mozzarella. The tomatoes were crispy on the outside and slightly tart on the inside, though I wish they had given us more than just two small pieces. The mozzarella was fresh and soft, and the accompanying cherry tomatoes were sweet and juicy. I was worried that the fried green tomatoes wouldn’t work well with the cheese but the textural contrast was pleasant, and there was a bright basil pesto sauce on top that tied all the components together.

Fried green tomatoes with fresh mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, and basil pesto

Eugene and Chris shared an order of crispy calamari with smoked tomato sauce, which they enjoyed. I nabbed a piece and the calamari was fried perfectly, with a crispy, non-greasy coating, and the calamari itself was tender. The smoked tomato sauce kind of reminded me of barbecue sauce, and though it seemed a bit strange, it did work well with the calamari. Jessica and Eric raved about their tuna tartare appetizer, which was served on edamame wasabi wontons.

For our entrees, Josh and I went halfsies on a special of the day, a pan seared grouper, and the Cajun shrimp and lobster burger. The grouper had a nice blackened crust that was flavorful but not too spicy. It was served on a bed of grits, which I love, and covered in a rich, creamy sauce. There were also little shrimps on the plate that were sweet and delicately meaty, as well as some slightly bitter collard greens that helped cut through the richness of the dish.

Blackened grouper over creamy grits with shrimp and collards

The Cajun shrimp and lobster burger was huge, with a thick patty made from chopped up shrimp and lobster. Although the flavor of the seafood kind of melded together, it was definitely a meaty burger without too much filler. The burger was served on a ciabatta roll that I thought was slightly too big and dense for the patty but it did its job of keeping everything together. There was a sort of remoulade sauce on the side that I enjoyed slathered on the burger. The dish came with french fries on the side that were well seasoned with lots of salt and pepper but sadly, the fries were kind of limp. Alexander absolutely loved them though and would make ecstatic faces every time I handed him a fry. Too cute!

Cajun shrimp and lobster burger with seasoned french fries

Autopsy shot

Josh and I also shared a side of lobster macaroni and cheese. The first dish we got was pretty cold and the cheese sauce had kind of congealed into an unpleasantly gritty paste. I asked our waiter if he could have them heat up the dish for us, and we were presented with an entirely new plate that was much hotter and creamier in texture. The pasta still had a good amount of chew to them, and there was definitely lots of lobster in the dish. We were too full to finish the serving so I had them box it up for me and we ate it for lunch a few days later. If anything, it was even better later on, as the lobster flavor infused into the sauce, making it a truly rich and decadent dish.

Lobster macaroni and cheese

Overall I think that we all enjoyed our meal at Red Fish. For the most part, the portions are pretty generous and the food is well executed. Service was friendly and efficient, and I thought they did a good job of handling our table of 15 people. The restaurant isn’t cheap but prices are reasonable, especially given the quality of the ingredients used. There’s a wine shop inside the restaurant and you can purchase bottles to drink at your table for a small corkage fee, or you can just order from the wine list. I would definitely recommend Red Fish if you’re looking for a nice restaurant that still has a casual vibe and good food.

Red Fish
8 Archer Rd.
Hilton Head, SC

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Two Fat Bellies Hit the Road – Long Weekend in Hilton Head

Thursday, September 15th, 2011 by virginia

I know my posts have been pretty all over the place lately. I’m way, way behind and trying my best to catch up. Basically there’s no rhyme or reason to the order, it’s just whatever I’m in the mood to write about. Hopefully you all bear with me!

So in early August, Josh and I made our annual trip to Hilton Head, South Carolina for a long weekend. We definitely needed the break and enjoyed relaxing by the pool (surprising for me, I know). It was really hot and sunny though, almost oppressively so. I used liberal amounts of sunscreen and still managed to get burned.

One of the nicest parts of the trip was that my brother, sister in law, and nephew made the trip from Charlotte to meet us there for the weekend. We ended up celebrating Alexander’s second birthday while we were there, though he was more interested in playing with a Kindle than eating his Spiderman cake.

Of course, we also had a lot of nice meals out during our trip. I got an email from someone who came across the blog because of my post about The Studio, a Hilton Head restaurant that we had gone to in 2009. The writer was pretty well versed in HH restaurants and made a few suggestions that we and Josh’s parents ended up trying. Overall the food we had was pretty good, though we still haven’t really found our “favorite” place just yet. No matter, as there’s always next year!

A few pics of the marshy area in between our villa and the beach:

Pictures from the beach:

During our last day on the beach, Josh and I decided to create a sand sculpture depicting our kitties, Stewie and Rupert. We had a hard time getting the details to “stick” so it’s definitely more of a modern, interpretive sculpture, but we had fun making it and then watching the tide wash it away shortly thereafter.

The original two fat bellies: Stewie and Rupert

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Bonus Cayman Post – Singh’s Roti Shop

Saturday, August 20th, 2011 by virginia


So on our way from Georgetown to Seymour’s Jerk Centre, we passed by a place called Singh’s Roti Shop. It was another local joint that I had read about before coming to Grand Cayman. The shop features Trinidadian and Caribbean cuisine, and I really wanted to try a roti, a sandwich wrapped in a flaky flat bread.

Because we were already on our way to Seymour’s for lunch, I knew I wouldn’t have much of an appetite if I ate a roti immediately beforehand, so Josh suggested that we get a sandwich to go and eat it later, since our hotel room had a refrigerator and a microwave. I knew it wouldn’t be quite the same as eating the roti fresh, but it was still better than not trying the sandwich at all.

The woman at the counter who took our order was very friendly, and when we ordered the curried chicken roti, she said we would love it so much that we would be back again the next day. That’s a pretty confident statement, and I liked that she seemed very passionate about her food. We also tried to get an order of doubles, which is curried chickpeas sandwiched between two fried flat breads, but unfortunately they had run out. It’s only served on Saturdays so I guess it’s very popular.

The menu

I really wanted to tear into the warm roti right away but I exercised some restraint. The next day, before we headed out to get marinated conch at Alfresco, we briefly microwaved the roti until it was warmed through. The flat bread was still flaky, but probably not as flaky as it would have been had we eaten it fresh. I was also surprised by the size and heft of the roti, since it looked pretty small when it was all wrapped up tightly in foil.

Curried chicken roti

When we cut it in half so that we could share it, the smell coming from the curried chicken was absolutely incredible. The chicken was still tender, and it was layered with soft, mashed potatoes. The curry was the typical yellow curry, but this version was extremely flavorful and complex. We could see all the layers of the flaky roti, and each bite was a wonderful mix of spices and textures.

Autopsy shot

Josh and I absolutely loved the curried chicken roti from Singh’s, and the woman was right, I absolutely would have gone back the next day to get a fresh roti had we not had a flight to catch. The shop itself is very casual, though there are tables where you can sit and eat inside. The curried chicken roti was C$7.50 so while it’s not dirt cheap, it’s pretty reasonable and one sandwich will definitely fill you up. The roti was one of the best things we ate on our trip, which says a lot considering we ate it after it had sat in a refrigerator all day and was reheated in a microwave. I would definitely recommend trying it out, and if we’re ever back in Grand Cayman, I would go there again in a heartbeat.

Singh’s Roti Shop
Corner of Dr. Roy’s Dr. and Shedden Rd., George Town
Grand Cayman

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Grand Cayman Day 5 – Alfresco

Thursday, August 18th, 2011 by virginia

Sadly, day 5 was our last day in Grand Cayman. Most of the crew left after breakfast so we said our goodbyes over waffles at the Comfort Suites. Josh and I had booked a flight in the late afternoon so that we could have some more time to explore the eats on the island. The main item I wanted to try was marinated conch, which is sort of like conch ceviche. I asked the woman at the front desk for recommendations and was told that it wasn’t conch season so she didn’t think we’d be able to find it anywhere. Drat!

In the hotel lobby, there were copies of a magazine that had menus from several dozen restaurants. While Josh packed up our stuff, I combed the magazine from cover to cover in search of a place that listed marinated conch. I found it on the menu of a restaurant at the other end of Seven Mile Beach called Alfresco. When we checked out, I asked the woman at the front desk if she would call the Alfresco to see if they were indeed serving marinated conch that day, as I didn’t want to make the trip out there for nothing. She made the call and gave us the thumbs up, so off we went.

We headed up West Bay Road and caught a bus almost immediately. The driver knew where Alfresco was and dropped us right in front. The restaurant has two seating areas, one inside and one outside. We checked in with the waitress inside, who told us to sit anywhere we wanted, so we headed for the outdoor area which is a deck right along the beach. The view was simply stunning, and there were umbrellas and trees around to keep us in the shade.

The tables on the deck right along Seven Mile Beach

There were some sort of grape-like fruit dangling from the trees above us

Lizard on the deck

Even though it was pretty early in the day, I ordered a frozen strawberry daiquiri to drink. Hey, it was our last day of vacation! Josh got a Caybrew, and we sat back to enjoy the view. We saw Eric (one of Josh’s former coworkers who we were hanging out with all week) walking up the beach and called him over. He apparently had taken a stroll along the entire length of Seven Mile Beach (which is really only about 5.5 miles), and he definitely looked like he needed to sit down and drink some water. He ended up joining us for lunch on the deck.

Caybrew and strawberry daiquiri

My bad luck with restaurants continued, as we learned from the waitress that their fryer was broken. This meant that I couldn’t tried cracked conch, another Cayman specialty that is kind of like fried calamari, but with conch. They also only served turtle on Fridays, and it was Sunday. At least they had the marinated conch though, which was our whole point of going to that particular restaurant. Since it was early, and we had just eaten breakfast, we decided to stick with just the marinated conch while Eric ordered a jerk chicken sandwich.

The marinated conch was prepared in a traditional style, with strips of peppers and onions and mixed in a spicy tomato sauce. The conch itself didn’t have too much flavor, but it did have a chewy yet crunchy texture that I enjoyed. It reminded me a bit of the texture of jellyfish, which I love. The sauce wasn’t too spicy, more sweet and tangy. Josh thought it was a bit too ketchup-y but I didn’t mind. The conch was served with saltine crackers, which was an interesting combination, though I preferred eating the marinated conch on its own. It was a refreshing dish on a hot day.

Marinated conch served with saltines

I was disappointed that we weren’t able to try cracked conch or some form of turtle, but I did enjoy the marinated conch. I think I was expecting more of a traditional Peruvian style ceviche, which is marinated in citrus, but this was an interesting dish. I liked the ambiance at Alfresco, and the view on the deck really couldn’t be beat. Eric enjoyed his jerk chicken sandwich immensely, so I think Alfresco is definitely a place worth checking out. The menu was pretty reasonable, with most dishes under C$15.

After we paid our bill, we went down to the beach to take some more photos before heading back to the road to catch the bus. While we were waiting for the bus, we saw a green iguana sitting in a tree above us, which was pretty neat.

Looking all the way down Seven Mile Beach

Swimmers enjoying the water

Looking up the beach the other way

Iguana dangling from a tree

We ended up catching the bus heading in the wrong direction, but the driver said we were near the end of the line and he would be turning around soon. It gave us an opportunity to see a bit more of the island so I didn’t mind. The turnaround point was Boatswain’s Beach Adventure Park and Turtle Farm. Funny story about the farm – one of my coworkers went to Grand Cayman as part of a Caribbean cruise. They took the excursion to the turtle farm, except she thought it was for turtle conservation. They went through the tour and saw all the baby turtles, etc., and at the end of the tour, they asked her if now she wanted to taste turtle. Needless to say, she was shocked, and only then realized that it was a farm, not a conservatory.

I wish we had time to visit the farm, but we had to get back to the hotel to pick up our bags and catch a cab to the airport. We had to make a stop first at the Beach Suites to pick up our camera battery charger from the front desk, and ended up walking back to the Comfort Suites via the beach one last time. We walked quickly, as we thought we were running late and we had been told that the airport in Grand Cayman gets really packed on Sundays so it takes a long time to get through security. We shared a cab with Eric and arrived at the airport only to find that our flight had been delayed several hours. Awesome.

So it turned out we had plenty of time, and got through security pretty easily. We did a little duty free shopping to kill some time. Josh bought a nice rum, a nice scotch, and a bottle of cheap rum for me. We also picked out some rum cakes, a Grand Cayman specialty. Tortuga is the name brand of rum cakes, but we opted for the cheaper Blackbeard brand. We did pick up a mini Tortuga rum cake and plan on doing a taste test to see how different or similar the two brands really are.

When we checked into our flight at the desk, they told us that no meals would be served on the plane so before we boarded, we picked up some Jamaican patties to go. They only had chicken left, and only one that was the local Cayman Island Taste brand. The other was a Jamaican brand, though I don’t remember the name. The two brands were actually pretty different. The Island Taste patty had a richer brown sauce in the filling, while the Jamaican brand had more of a classic yellow curry flavor. Both had flaky pastry crusts, and I enjoyed both of the patties.

Two different brands of Jamaican patties

The flight home was pretty uneventful. Ironically they did end up serving food on the plane, some jerk chicken that was nowhere even close to Seymour’s jerk chicken. I stuck with the Jamaican patties. We arrived back in NY much later than we planned since our flight was so late. We quickly got in a cab, eager to get home, and wound up with the worst driver ever. He missed the exit for Manhattan and ended up driving us 20 minutes into Long Island before figuring out how to turn around. He also had no concept of changing lanes, and would almost come to full stop on the highway when it was time to switch. I was terrified the entire ride.

We finally got home much, much later than expected, finally concluding our five day trip to Grand Cayman. We had a blast hanging out with everyone and were thrilled to take part in Claire and Sean’s wedding. It was definitely a trip we’ll always remember, full of good food, great fun, and even better company.

Alfresco
53 Town Hall Rd., West Bay
Grand Cayman

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Grand Cayman Day 4 – Seymour’s Jerk Centre and Myrtle’s

Monday, August 15th, 2011 by virginia

We were pretty tired the morning after Claire and Sean’s wedding but probably not as tired as the people who partied on the roof afterward. Claire and Sean had organized a brunch at their hotel so we made our way over to the Beach Suites, via the beach of course. After a hearty breakfast of eggs, bacon, potatoes, and pancakes, plus some slices of leftover wedding cake, we felt re-energized. Silva, Felipe, Justin, Josh and I decided to head over to Georgetown, the main town on Grand Cayman, to check out the sights.

We took a bus to Georgetown, which we found was the best method of transportation. The buses, which are really just large vans with blue license plates and have stickers on them that say WB1 or WB2, run back and forth on West Bay Road and the fare is C$2 or US$2.50 (they take both forms of currency and will give you change in whichever one you prefer). Although there are bus stops along the road, the buses will pick you up anywhere. You can flag them down like a taxi, or if they are coming up behind you, they’ll give a little honk and you can wave at them to stop for you. They’ll also drop you off anywhere along the road, so it’s almost like taking a taxi, except much cheaper. Taxis are very overpriced compared to the bus, so I would suggest taking the bus whenever you can.

In Georgetown we pretty much just walked around. There wasn’t a whole lot to see – we were a bit disappointed. Sure, there were lots of souvenir stores and jewelry shops, but we were expecting more historical buildings or colonial architecture. The biggest attractions seemed to be Margaritaville and the Hard Rock Cafe. I guess the town mostly caters to the cruise ships that come in. All the stores boasted duty free signs, but only for the cruise ship passengers. We didn’t find anything interesting to buy, but the stores were nice for their air conditioning. It was really hot out and extremely humid. I ended up overheating at one point and had to find a bathroom to run some cold water on my face and wrists in order to cool down.

Random roosters outside the Tortuga Rum store

Pretty feathers

On the coast in Georgetown - there were groups of people snorkeling nearby

Can you see the little crabs along the edge?

A random anchor

Pirate ship!

We had some milkshakes and smoothies at a place called Paradise, which is right on the water. It was nice to sit and enjoy the view and the slight breeze. Afterward, we headed back toward the center of Georgetown, away from the water. There was a post office, a library, and a war memorial, though still not much to see. We took a few pics then continued on our way.

Post office

Pretty square with the library in the background

Peace memorial

I don't remember what this statue was for but it was around the square

Our next destination? Seymour’s Jerk Centre.

I hadn’t done much restaurant research on Grand Cayman before we arrived because I wasn’t sure how much free time we would have. Of the minimal research that I did, however, all signs pointed to Seymour’s Jerk Centre, which is famous for its jerk chicken. I knew we had to go there so we convinced the crew to meet up for a late lunch. I hadn’t seen pictures of the place beforehand and was surprised by how rustic it was. It’s basically a hut that houses the barbecue smokers where they cook the meat, a small kitchen where the workers prepare and serve the meat, and two picnic tables in the back where you eat. We could smell the barbecue from a few blocks away, and let me tell you, it was pretty enticing.

The jerk centre in its entirety - the smokers and the kitchen are on the left hand side, the picnic tables are on the right

The smokers where the meat is cooked - the smells coming off were absolutely incredible

The menu is pretty straightforward. There’s jerk chicken and jerk pork, fried fish, and a handful of other choices. We all got some form of jerk, since it is a jerk centre after all.

The menu

We were the first of the group to arrive but we were surprised to see Claire’s parents already there eating. They both enjoyed their meal, though I think Aine may have found the jerk seasoning to be a bit too spicy. We placed our orders and were just sitting down to eat when the crew from the Beach Suites arrived, including Sean and Claire. The rest of the Comfort Suites crowd followed shortly thereafter, and we all squeezed into the larger of the two picnic tables.

Josh and I decided to get an order of jerk chicken and an order of jerk pork to share. They also do a combo platter for single diners who would like to try both meats. The meats were wrapped in tin foil and served with two slices of white bread. We ended up forgoing silverware and just tore into it with our bare hands. Both the chicken and the pork were absolutely fabulous. I might have liked the pork a bit more, but only because there were pieces of pork belly in the mix, and I love pork belly. All of the pieces of pork were succulent and tender. The jerk seasoning was spicy but not overwhelming. The spices tingled on our tongues and lips but we could taste the different nuances in the seasoning.

Succulent pieces of jerk pork

The chicken was a mix of all parts as well, though I preferred the dark meat thighs and legs. There was a bottle of vinegary hot sauce on the table, which we liberally doused on the meats to add even more zing. I used the white bread to make little sandwiches out of the meat, and even though the portions were huge, I stuffed myself silly until all we had left were a pile of bones.

Tender jerk chicken

I absolutely loved Seymour’s Jerk Centre. The jerk seasoning was the best we tasted our entire trip, and the chicken and pork were obviously slow cooked so that they were falling apart tender. There isn’t much in terms of ambiance though, which might turn some people off. Like I said, it’s basically a hut. You eat outside on picnic tables, and there are lots of flies flying all around. Admittedly, the flies were a bit annoying, but I guess it’s part of the experience. This is an authentic, local joint. Everyone we asked knew about Seymour’s, and it was totally worth the trip. This was definitely one of my favorite meals in Grand Cayman, and I highly recommend it.

After lunch, we took a bus back to our hotel and changed into our bathing suits, then walked back over to the Beach Suites to meet up with everyone. Claire and Sean were finally able to hang out and relax with us for a bit. We hung out in the water for a bit, and then decided to get some exercise in with a friendly yet competitive game of ultimate frisbee. It was pretty tiring running around in the soft sand, so we took frequent intermission breaks and ran into the water to cool down. It was a tight game but our team ended up victorious, which is always nice. It was definitely a fun time, if a  bit exhausting.

We finished the afternoon in the pool, enjoying some frozen drinks from the swim up bar. The sun was starting to set and it actually got a bit chilly in the pool so we started to make our way back to the Comfort Suites. Josh decided to have fun with his wide angle lens on the walk back, taking lots of pictures of the beach, the water, and his footprints.

We took a short break before dinner, taking our time to clean up and relax a bit. For dinner, we decided to try out Myrtle’s, which was recommended to us by a few locals. It was noted for serving authentic, local Caribbean cuisine. We took the short walk over to the restaurant, which is located in a strip mall just down the road from the Comfort Suites. It’s nothing fancy, but we were there to try out the food.

When we walked in, the place was packed with rugby players. There was a tournament going on and a lot of the players were staying at the Comfort Suites as well. I think it was the team from Barbados, and they took up the whole outer room of the restaurant. We put together a few tables near the bar and settled in. We got a round of lemonades, fruit punch, and sodas, and tried to decide what we wanted to eat. I was debating between the turtle burger and a few other items, but then we got some bad news.

Because the rugby players were such a large group, the kitchen had prepared a buffet style feast for them. That meant they didn’t have capacity to cook many items on their regular menu, including the turtle burger, turtle soup, and marinated conch, all of which I really wanted to try. The choices we did have were pretty limited, but there wasn’t much we could do.

Josh and I decided to get conch fritters to start, which were better tasting than the fritters we had at the Beach Suites. There was more conch mixed in that added a chewy texture, and the flavors of the spices in the mixture really worked well. I just wish they had been slightly crispier.

Conch fritters

Josh wanted the shrimp curry from the menu, and fortunately, it was available. The curry sauce was a bit weird though, not what we were expecting. We thought it would be a yellow curry, similar to the curry that came with the curried chicken, but this was more like a brown curry that was sweet and sour. Josh asked for it spicy but it didn’t have too much of a kick.

Shrimp curry

I ended up ordering the stewed beef, which was not on the menu, but I guess it was one of the dishes they had prepared for the rugby players. It turned out to be a fantastic dish, with soft, tender beef that fell apart with the gentlest prodding of my fork. The beef was cooked with potatoes, carrots, and onions, and enrobed in a thick, rich sauce. All of the entrees were served with rice and beans, a small salad, and two pieces of fried plantain.

Stewed beef

Overall I was disappointed that we weren’t able to try out the normal menu at Myrtle’s, but what we had was pretty good. It’s simple, local cuisine, nothing fancy. Prices are a tad lower than some of the more upscale restaurants that we went to, but still kind of pricey compared to NY. I think the shrimp curry was about C$17, and the stewed beef was C$14.50. There’s a small extra charge if you use a credit card, but all the prices are laid out clearly on the bill and you can pay in Cayman or U.S. dollars as well. Service was friendly, and it’s definitely a nice, low key joint. I just wish I could have tried turtle!

After dinner we headed to the Beach Suites once more and hung out at Bamboo, of course. We had a nice semi private area in the corner because the bar was full, and we had a few round of drinks before saying our goodbyes to everyone, since we all had different flights out the next day. The walk back to our hotel via the beach route was peaceful as usual. It was our last full day in Grand Cayman so it was kind of bittersweet, but we managed to pack in a lot of sightseeing, food, and fun.

Seymour’s Jerk Centre
Shedden Road, Georgetown
Grand Cayman

Myrtle’s
Queen’s Court Plaza, West Bay Rd.
Grand Cayman

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