Dinner Review @ BLT Steak Waikiki

Just had dinner at BLT Steak Waikiki at the Trump Tower tonight.

Starting w/ the valet, I had a great personable experience, no ticket and problem attitude.  Cute boys.

We decided to sit at the bar tonight, because the restaurant was pretty quiet and the bar had a little more excitement going on.

As "pupus to go with your drink", you are given 3 little bowls of flavored popcorn, roasted almonds and herb marinated olives...which is a value, because my date got full on the popcorn, because they fill it up everytime it goes empty.

For appetizers we decided on the sashimi sampler and an ahi tartare.  Before the appetizers came out they gave us a delicious crispy & moist popover each w/ a side of butter.  Also a mason jar of chicken liver pate w/ toasted bread, which was really tasty.

The sashimi sampler was a selection of salmon, hamachi and ahi w/ pickled ginger & wasabi.  It was pretty regular, nothing special in taste and presentation - $22.  Then the ahi tartare was a perfect layered 2" square of diced ahi and avocado, in a pool of ponzu sauce.  A beautiful presentation, but the taste was okay, nothing special.

For dinner we decided to share a meal, because we were getting full on the pre-pre-pupus, pre-pupus, and pupus.  We had a caesar salad, hanger steak and sauteed cream spinach.  The caesar salad was light and tasty w/ parmesan crisps - basic.  The hanger steak was perfectly prepared and yummy - loved it.  The steak came w/ 2 sauces - a chimicurri sauce and a 3-mustards selection, which I got to pick from a list of sauces, when I ordered.  And the sauteed creamed spinach was not prepared like your usual creamed spinach.  It was fresh spinach thinly sliced and sauteed in light cream.  It was mostly spinach and very light on the cream, but very tasty and hearty - I would try another side next time.

The wine selection is still going through it's growing pains.  I ordered a wonderful Albarino for pupus and a fruity bordeaux for dinner, but the selection by the glass is slim.  The bartender commented that they are still tweeking it.

All in all, the ambiance of the restaurant is very big city steakhouse with warm browns, golds and rust colors - very inviting.  The bartenders were engaging and personable, service was prompt and timely.  The neighboring customers fun and colorful - new best friends.  Prices seemed reasonable for a good experience.  I would go back and try the restaurant experience instead of the bar experience, to really get a good example of the place.  Rating 7+.

2010 Restaurant Week in NYC starts January 25th

In over a week, Restaurant Week Winter 2010 will begin.  This will be the first Winter Restaurant Week that I won't attend in the last 3 years....sad face :(

I feel that this is the best way to eat at restaurants that you only read about in magazines and see on foodtv, on a budget.  Lunch is $24.00 and dinner is $34.00 for a 3 course menu.  YUM!

To view all of the participating restaurants and to make reservations go to www.opentable.com.

Here is a link to one of the exciting and wonderful restaurants: http://www.artisanalbistro.com/

I wish I was going to be there.

Here are some pictures from Restaurant Week past:

 

TTT, Third Tuesday @ Tango - next week

Here is a sneak preview of Tango's wine dinner next week:

Presents
“ T T T “
Third Tuesday at Tango
 Argentina / Chile “Happy New Year” Wine Dinner
Tuesday, January 19th, 6:30pm

MENU

Crispy Fried Calamari
on Buenos Aires, Hearts of Palm Saladwith Tomato and Avocado

Callia, Torrantes 2008  (Chile)
~
Grilled grass fed new york strip loin
With prawn skewer, kalamata olive chimichurri

Diseno, Malbec 2007 ( Argentina )

Escudo Rojo 2007 ( Chile )
Cabernet/ Carmenere Blend

~
Apple strawberry crepes with dolce de leche
 Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Pisco Coffee Royal ( Argentina )

$40.00 plus Tax and Gratuity
Limited Seating- Reservations confirmed by Credit Card ( 593-7288 )

A lot has happen since my last post!

Dear Friends,

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

I have not been on my blog since November - SORRY!  Lots have happened in my life and I am proud to say all GOOD!

I have a brand new granddaughter, Kalena and she is gorgeous!!!  And a month old yesterday.  I love her so much.  Did not know a granddaughter was going to be different than my love for my grandsons.  No more or less, but different.  Can't explain it, but will try throughout my journey.

And my other change in my life is my new job as Marketing Manager for Whole Foods Market @ Kahala Mall.  It has been such a fresh & wonderful experience.  It feels like the early days of Starbucks Coffee Hawaii and Jamba Juice Hawaii.  I get to work with creative and talented young people and I get be be creative and the best thing of all, I get to work with natural, organic and delicious FOOD!!!  My true passion!!

Today is my day off and I got to have brunch with my dear friend, Tony, and we had a delicious meal @ Downtown @ HiSam.

We shared everything...

started w/ a salad sampler (their salad ASAP bar is unbelievable)
a farro & fennel salad
a cabbage slaw w/ almonds, olives and herbs
a Molokai sweet purple potato salad w/ herbs
OMG!!!!
and ahi stuffed piquillo peppers....... 

then we shared a bottle of wine from Jumilla, Spain....

for lunch, Tony had a ahi club sandwich
and being that we were on a Spanish theme,
I had the Fideos (a paella dish w/ noodles & a poached egg)

Then for dessert we had an almond cake & gianduia (hazelnut & chocolate) gelato.

Hey, I know it is a little indulgent, but it is my day off and I deserve it!

It's great to be back!!!!!

"calitalian" wines - November 25, 2007

Last night we tasted "calitalian" wines with John Behler. Italian grapes grown in California. This tasting was awesome, because of the different characteristics of a wine. Where a grape is grown determines how it will taste, just like a person.

Astoria Pinot Nero ’07 (Italy, Veneto)
paired w/ Beet green ravioli

Peter Dipoli Merlot ’04 (Italy, Alto Adige)
paired w/ Wild boar sausage patty

Opolo Sangiovese ’05 (California, Paso Robles)
paired w/ Lambwich

Graziano Moscato ’07 (California, Mendocino)
paired w/ Moscato gelee, local fruits

To Brine or not to Brine

It is two days before Thanksgiving and want to try a new turkey recipe. I have been brining turkeys for the last 10 years and I thought I would do a practice turkey - a salted one. With the great prices on turkeys for Thanksgiving, I bought 4 turkeys, but could only fit 3 in the freezer, so 1 defrosted in the refrigerator and I needed to roast it.

The turkey came out moist, juicy and really tasty. And I did not have to mess with a brining solution or make room for a big container in my refrigerator. And it was so easy....see how I did it.

I researched several salted turkey recipes and found one that was simple and easy...Clementine Salted Turkey. Because I did not have Clementines, but have a tangerine tree going crazy with fruit, I decided to use the tangerines instead. I also had a container of culinary lavender from Maui and ended up changing the recipe to incorporate products I had in my possession. And trying to keep it as local as possible.


Here is the salt rub recipe:
Chopped rind from a medium Wilhelmina Rise tangerine (about 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon of Maui grown culinary lavender
1 tablespoon of course ground black pepper
3/4 cup kosher salt

Mix in a bowl.

This recipe is for a 12 lb. turkey. Sprinkle tangerine/salt mixture all over the turkey, also in the cavity. Cover turkey with plastic wrap and refrigerate turkey overnight (24 hours).

Take the turkey out of the refrigerator and rinse thoroughly, also in the cavity. Coat the bottom of your roasting pan with extra virgin olive oil (2 tablespoons). Place the turkey in the roasting pan and pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Let stand out for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

With a stick of butter that has been also sitting for 30 minutes, rub the turkey evenly. Cut 2 tangerines in half and stuff in turkey cavity. Tuck wings under and turn the turkey over to its breast side down, sprinkle turkey with pepper and ground sage, more salt is not necessary.

Roast turkey breast side down for an hour, then lower the heat to 350 degrees, turn turkey over breast side up and roast for another hour and a half. Baste the turkey once at this point.

The turkey is ready when your therometer reads 160 degrees in the thickest part of the turkey, usually the breast.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!!

Not All Persimmons are Created Equal

It is almost Thanksgiving and that means you are now seeing those strange, little pumpkin looking, orange fruits in the produce department of your grocery store or at the local open markets....yes, they are persimmons. For many years, I've stayed away from eating these fruits, thinking they were just ornamental, like those little pumpkins and gourds you use to decorate your Halloween, then Thanksgiving table.

But to my surprise, they are sweet, juicy, crunchy, jellylike, and delicious. So every November, I look forward to eating these seasonal jewels.

There are three varietals of persimmons available here in Hawaii and two of them are grown on Maui....Hachiya, Fuyu and Maru. A friend of mine just came back from a weekend trip to Maui, he brought back some Fuyu and Maru persimmons, and shared them with the crew at work. He informed me that these persimmons are grown on the slopes of Haleakala - upcountry Maui. I did not know that. I always thought they were all grown in California. The farm in upcountry Maui is called the Hashimoto Persimmon Farm. I lived in upcountry Maui for a year and worked back and forth from Oahu, for 11 years, and I did not hear of this farm...go figure.

So I am doing a taste test of the 3 varietals of persimmons. The first is the Hachiya. It looks like a heart shaped orange tomato. This persimmon cannot be eaten unless it is fully ripe. Ripe is when the fruit is a dark rust color and very, very soft to the touch - when it is almost ready to pop & the skin is very thin. Like a very ripe tomato. Warning - if you eat it before it's time, it is like biting into sticky cotton balls. So sticky that you have to brush your teeth, at least twice, to start getting the cotton feeling off your teeth and the sides of your mouth. Yucky. So ripen your Hachiya on the counter until soft (up to 2 weeks) and must be eaten within 2 days. Or you can freeze your unripe Hachiya, then thaw (this hastens ripening).

But when you eat it at it's perfect ripeness, it is like eating a sweet, satiny, jellylike strawberry papaya peach nectarine - but with a hint of cinnamon. Hachiya's are usually from California and not that readily available in our Hawaii markets.

The next tasting is the Maru persimmon. The Maru looks just like the Fuyu, a plump orange tomato, but lighter in color and not as pretty (it's the one on the right). You can eat the Maru crunchy and not fully ripe, not like the Hachiya. But you can wait until it is fully ripe. When you eat it not fully ripe, it is like eating a perfect peach and nectarine, but with a smooth apple texture.

And now the Fuyu persimmon. This is the pretty sister of the Maru, in appearance, not as plump, the skin is clear and deeper in orange. But comparison in taste, I think the Maru has a sweeter taste and creamier texture. The Fuyu might be prettier to look at, but the Maru has the better taste. It's the pretty/plain girl philosophy.

So run to your closest market now and get your seasonal jewels, before it is gone, like Fall.