We started out with an antipasti of mixed olives, parmesean cheese, marinated vegetables and roasted garlic served with Italian bread.  We ordered a bottle of Edmeades Zinfadel (this later turned into 3 bottles).  Most in the group ordered Tagliolini with a mushhroom ragu with truffle oil and pecorino ramano.  It was delicious!  I talked Tammy into sharing with me.  We shared a striped bass with castelluccio lentils and artichoke crema with speck( a type of proscuitto).  We also shared a mixed greens salad.  Everything was so good!  We received excellent service from Willy and Alli, the bartender was also very helpful in pointing out her favorite dishes on the menu.

Willy brought over a “sweet” surprise at the end of the meal.  An assortment of about 5 desserts, including tira misu, lemon cheesecake and a chocolate flourless cake.  All were so delicious and decadent!  What a great night out with friends!

When you walk in there’s a bar to the left and one to the right. Here I am, stuck in the middle. We decided to go to the smaller right side and eat at the bar. The bartender was very helpful and went over the menu in sections, giving us his favorite dishes and/or the most popular ones. I ordered a nice glass of Easton Zinfadel and Keoni ordered rum and coke. We decided to order something from each section and share. We started with a tuna tartare on flatbread with Thai miso pesto and avocado. It was delicious and a huge portion! Next we had a mixed green salad which had blueberries, chevre (the best I’ve ever tasted, so creamy!) and a honey lavender dressing. We also had the hangar steak with ginger aujus cooked medium, which was perfection. I told Keoni I only wanted a couple of bites and he said I ate more than he did! We also had spaetzle ( a type of egg noodle found in German cuisine) with petite mushrooms, roasted shallots and grenobloise (sauce of browned butter, capers, parsley and bits of lemon). Next time I would like to try the white bean hummus and the pizza with carmelized onions, olive tapenade and parmesean.

This is definitely a place we would go back to. We loved the intimate feel of the place along with the fresh ingredients and good, simple food!

Atlanta has been exceptionally cold and rainy this winter and Keoni always wants to go play in the sun.  We decided at the last minute to go to Montego Bay, Jamaica.  The decision all had to do with flight availability (standby because of my flight priveliges) and the cheapest hotel that wasn’t a dump.  Keoni worked tirelessly on Saturday while I impatiently waited for his decision.  Usually, I choose our mini vacation destination but I wanted him to just tell me where we were going.  We knew it was going to be an island in the Carribean so the packing was easy.

Keoni found a deal in at the Holiday Inn Susnspree Resort for $204.00 a night which is an all inclusive resort.  We were pleased to find the staff friendly and the room more than adequate.  We even had an ocean view!  It’s nothing real extravagant , the rooms are kind of dated but clean, and really, who spends that much time in the room?

Since it was all inclusive, we wanted to get started on the food and drinks!   There are several restaurants, bars and food stands so that you never go hungry or thirsty.  The main restaurant was run-of- the-mill buffet style and the other restaurant that we went to was Seabreeze, which was Carribean. They also have a couple of higher end restaurants that for some reason did not have availability. At Seabreeze you just ordered off the menu whatever you wanted so we ordered all the appetizers and a couple of entrees.  They serve an appetizer made out of a local fruit called ackee.  It was really good, kind of reminded me of guacomole except it was yellow.  Keoni wanted to try the oxtail stew and I had pork fajitas.  Very good!  I tried the oxtail and can’t say I’m a fan.  Too bony!  One of the stands had jerk chicken that was really good.  Another place had burgers, hot dogs and grilled cheese sandwiches that came with french fries that Keoni thought were exceptional!  There were a few items on the buffet that were unusual.  Boiled bananas, for instance.  I did not try those but I saw people piling them on their plates so somebody liked them.  I did try a fruit that the server called a Jamaican apple that was very red on the outside, very white on the inside and was shaped like an avocado.  I also tried smoked marlin and won’t be ordering that again anytime soon!

Ok, let’s talk about the drinks.  The only beer they served was Red Stripe and after trying it, I decided to make Shandys (beer mixed with a little sprite) Refreshing!  The liquors, for the most part, were cheaper brands.  I did enjoy some pina coladas but kept thinking about all the calories!  Don’t even think about ordering wine unless you like cheap, tasteless wine.  I know it’s not a red wine kind of place but at night the weather was cool and it would have been nice to sit on the deck with a glass of heart healthy red wine.  I’m just saying!

Keoni woke up early and secured chairs and an umbrella (for me).  We stayed out on the relatively quiet beach all day and enjoyed the glorious sun and ocean breeze!

The hotel does have a decent gym with free weights and machines that looks onto the beach.  They also have water aerobics and yoga classes daily.  There is also constant entertainment on the stage near the main pool.  They also have an adults only pool where you can belly up to the bar!

What a fun and relaxing mini vacation!

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Put all ingredients through dried hot red peppers in slow cooker and stir. Cook on low and add potatoes after 2 hours. Cook on low for about 6 or 7 hours. Serve with basmati rice and yogurt raita.

• Yogurt Raita
• 1 6oz. greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup chopped cucumber
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp garam masala

Spread yogurt onto paper towels and cover with more paper towels. Wait about 5 minutes then scrape yogurt into small bowl and add other ingredients. Serve with vindaloo. 

I was going to try to be healthy and use brown rice but I thought what the heck?  I’m eating beef and I like white rice better!

Last night all the wine was from Spain and we tasted 8 wines, 2 white and the rest red. These are blind tastings and we score them and find out later what they are and price points. This helps Neel, the owner, choose wines to put on the menu. The tasting is $20.00 per person and you have to reserve a spot early because it’s limited to 20 people. This includes some light appetizers. The bartender is Katie and she is so much fun, you will have a blast! The next one is Feb. 3rd, 2010 and it’s sparking wines. Make a reservation by calling Neel at 770-485-7440 or go to the website www.creperevolution.com

Tammy and I arrived first and immediately liked the atmosphere. We ordered a delicious bottle of Mettler petite syrah (2005) It was value priced at $27.00 a bottle (most glasses start at $10.00). Once Tri arrived he informed us that he’d recently been there and the food was awesome! The idea is to serve locally raised, high quality meats. We started with a plate of “charcuterie” french for a selection of cured and smoked meats, mostly pork. I’ve never even eaten a scallop and I tried a smoked scallop! All of this came with a crusty loaf of french bread.

Tammy and I shared a marinated beet and arugula salad with housemade ricotta. Delicious! We also shared a slow cooked rabbit with escarole and turnips. It was really good but I never would have believed I would order rabbit in a restaurant! I believe that Tri had smoked duck.

The food and wine was very good, the service was excellent and the experience of trying something new with good friends was priceless!

They’re are lots of Vietnamese restaurants in this area but I totally recommend this one!

The next morning we woke up and headed to the gym.  What a way to start the new year!  It was kind of dreary and cold outside but we wanted to walk around downtown Norfolk and see what there was to do.  It was quiet because is was New Year’s day but we found the mall open and ate lunch at California Pizza Kitchen.  It goes against my grain to eat at a chain restaurant in another city but the independent places were closed.  It does seem to be a nice mall and they have a movie theater so for future reference, it’s a good layover.

Keoni had done some research and found a wine bar on Granby Street called Trilogy.  It’s in a historic building and has a nice wine list and menu.   We sat at the bar and enjoyed a couple glasses of wine but their kitchen was depleted from the previous night (New Year’s Eve).  The owner recommended a place just down the street called Empire that serves tapas.  This is just what we wanted.  We shared three tapas, seared asparagus w/cracked pepper and whole grain mustard, panko fried chicken w/ waffles and sweet soy and  a goat cheese and olive tapenade with grilled bread.  All were delicious!  I also noticed that they have half price bottles of wine on Monday from 5pm to 9pm.

If you’re going to be in Norfolk, Jan 24th thru 31st, they’re having restaurant week and lots of places are offering a fixed price menu for $20 to $30 for a 3 course meal.