Like No Other...

Tradition:

The first definition according to Merriam Webster: “an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action or behavior “.   In our case there are a couple of things that we have fallen into the habit of doing on any trip to San Diego.  According to Merriam, I guess that puts us close to making them a tradition.  One has to be careful of turning tradition into tyranny, as in “damn it, here we are so we have to……”; so far we have avoided that…

Anyway we seem to always find time to visit the timeless Grand Dame of Coronado Island

Which you should know is the Hotel Del Coronado.  It holds sort of a magic draw on us, to the point where a visit to San Diego without touching base leaves kind of a hole in the experience.  I think it has changed ownership a few times since we began visiting years ago, but it remains stately and grandiose.  It just has a majestic feel about it. And part of the tradition is to have a bite and sip on the Ocean Terrace which is now called Sheerwater (why, I don't understand), a restaurant with open air seating completely outside, or on the porch, or altogether inside.  The weather while not balmy, was warm enough to stay outside.

 It is a lovely setting offering views of the ocean and a parade of passerby’s which is always rewarding.  Before I go on, you might notice the ball cap on the gentleman in the above picture.  I will not fault him for this in this instance, because the place is popular for dining to all sorts of creatures.

The avian customers have been a fixture since we first experienced the Del, but by and large the staff and customers shooosh them enough that they are not a huge problem.  We were seated at a table, the water glass immediately filled and presented with menus.  It is a one sheet affair with drinks on one side and food on the other.   Guess which side we looked at first!

It is left as an exercise for the reader to decide who had what drink..  And I guess this is as good as time as any to mention the service there.  Again harking back years and years, the service has always been gracious.  The food may take a while, but the table service is always timely and attentive.  When one thinks of the hordes of tourists and characters that come through the place day after day, it is amazing to me how they maintain the level of friendly servers.   You don’t see inside their minds of course, but outwardly they make you glad you came.

So fortified with liquids we turned the menu over to the food side of things (and I apologize to my support team for the stupid shadow in the picture)

It is a pretty good menu because you can find most anything to suit your appetite and mood.  After waffling back and forth a few times I settled on the penne pasta, and MFO chose a lamb burger (not pictured on the menu) and a side salad.  Somewhere a second glass of the Pinot appeared and we enjoyed the passing scene and reflected on our trip  (living well is still.....).  In the morning we “did” the San Diego Zoo with our friends (more to come on that) so just sitting and sipping was very welcome.  Water was kept filled (with lots of ice, thank you) and pretty soon the food was there.   What’s not to like about pasta…

The rock shrimp were good, there were several kinds of mushrooms not just crimini, and the brandy lobster sauce was true to its description.  The pasta was just nicely cooked, not at all mushy.  I couldn’t finish it all…. because, you have to save room for dessert!  After more waffling (that second glass of wine) we decided on a lemon curd and two spoons.  How’s this for a presentation?

The lemon curd was tart and creamy, berries fresh, and the pistachio merangues were a welcome foil. A cappuccino finished off the meal. I suppose it shouldn’t be a shock, but all the food was very good, nicely served and presented.  In a “crank ‘em out” setting, wandering tourists, some regulars.  Nice job.  The tradition continues..

Speaking of which, another visit that is becoming on the verge of a tradition is a "big deal dinner" in La Jolla at Tapenade.  We have always enjoyed meals there and our hosts suggested we do it again.  No Brainer.  Long time readers will recall I have reported on it before in glowing terms.  This visit gave me no reason to revise my opinion.   I believe the chef may have changed but the food and service have not.  Exquisite in both departments, servers in crisp white shirts, bow ties and black vests, muted tones on the wall, tables set far enough apart to allow some sense of privacy, gleaming crystal, the whole package of what a great restaurant should be.

Our server inquired about drinks and she soon delivered three glasses of Sancerre and a perfectly made DMOTRWAT.  The menu is divided between “Les Classiques” and “Seasonal Flavors” for both appetizers and entrees.  Sort of an imaginative way to give the kitchen some latitude while retaining classic French dishes (Escargots de Bourgogne au beurre d’ail; Bisque de Homard) as well as some seasonal dishes (Celeriac "remoulade", poireaux vinaigrette, truffe; Civet de Sanglier à l'Ancienne).  After enjoying our drinks we got down to food.  

There were tough choices all around.. appetizers were the snails (MFO); Assiette de Charcuterie Maison; Lobster Bisque and Salade de mesclun, croustillant de chevre, chutney de poire.  My plate/assiette contained paté, salami, and prosciutto along with the requisite Cornichons and crusty bread.  For entrees we had a classic coq au vin, MFO also stayed on the classiques side and followed her escargot with Homard au maïs blanc, cèpes et vanille Tahitienne .  I had a lovely plate of roasted loin of venison presented with slices and bacon wrapped noisettes, and the fourth was a ravioli dish.  At this point I have to admit I stopped taking notes as the bottle of Latour 2005 Cote du Beaunes gradually filled our glasses.  At some point you just have to enjoy the food and the hell with the little notebook.  Consequently some of the details have escaped me.   What hasn’t escaped me was the enjoyment of the company of our good friends enhanced by food and service.  When it’s done right, you just flow.   Wonderful..And in deference to the establishment the Canon stayed in the pocket except for a parting shot of a lovely chocolate dessert.. beautiful.

So the tradition continues and grows.  It is nice to know they’ll be there the next time we visit.. and you betcha we were

DFD