Dining in Bermuda

[Smithy]

As always, the photos are beautiful. The menus and food are inspiring! This bit surprised me, though:

 

2 hours ago, liamsaunt said:

We both got the local fish sandwich, which comes on raisin bread.

 

I would be annoyed at raisin bread with fish or any other savory filling that I can think of. Do you like it? Is this common in the islands? What am I maybe missing?

[TdeV]

Growing up, we always ate fish on Fridays. I used to really like raisin bread fish sandwiches.

 

Edited to add that was in Southern Ontario.

Edited September 29 by TdeV (log)

[gfweb]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

As always, the photos are beautiful. The menus and food are inspiring! This bit surprised me, though:

 

 

I would be annoyed at raisin bread with fish or any other savory filling that I can think of. Do you like it? Is this common in the islands? What am I maybe missing?

 

Its a (weird) Bermuda thing.

[liamsaunt]

23 hours ago, KennethT said:

I hope the weather gets better soon!

 

It's nice here rain or shine.  My husband and I honeymooned here for 10 days (27 years ago!) and it absolutely poured for the first six days.  We saw every single museum and attraction on the island, except for the beaches.  😂

 

23 hours ago, Smithy said:

As always, the photos are beautiful. The menus and food are inspiring! This bit surprised me, though:

 

 

I would be annoyed at raisin bread with fish or any other savory filling that I can think of. Do you like it? Is this common in the islands? What am I maybe missing?

 

I know it's polarizing, but the raisin bread is traditional here.  I actually like it a lot.  You can ask for regular bread if you have a raisin aversion.

 

Yesterday we picked up an electric mini car for a few days.  We should have timed it differently, since my husband has to work during the week this week (he's on vacation next week), so we won't get much more use out of it.  We tooled around yesterday and went to our favorite beach, Warwick Long Bay.  All the cruise ship passengers go to the two beaches with amenities like rental chairs and snack bars (Horseshoe Bay and Tobacco Bay), so we had the place to ourselves.

 

 

Eventually husband got hungry and I forgot to pack snacks, so we went back to the Reefs for lunch.  The main restaurant was completely filled with locals dressed to the nines enjoying the sumptuous Sunday brunch, so we took our casually dressed selves  down to the beach cafe.  (As an aside, Bermuda is very different from the other Caribbean islands in that people still dress fairly formally here, and tourists are expected to also.  It's illegal to be in a swimsuit anywhere except the actual beach, and casually elegant attire is required at the nicer restaurants for dinner.)

 

Menu

 

 

The view from our table.  Our apartment is in the furthest building to the left.

 

 

Drinks.  Continuing my exploration of the mocktail menu, I got a mango puree mixed with lime, mint, and club soda.  Pretty good.

 

 

We got some shrimp tacos with fries to share.  We have to get all our shrimp eating in before my nephew arrives on Friday!

 

 

We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming on the hotel beach.  We probably should have taken advantage of the car to drive to a different beach, but...lazy.

 

Speaking of lazy, we just went back to the same restaurant for dinner.  Menu

 

 

 

Drinks.  This mocktail was ginger beer blended with ice and grenadine.  It was too sweet for me, so I switched to club soda water after a sip or two.  I am determined to try all the mocktails though, so at least I got it out of the way early.

 

 

Table view.  We were seated on the far side with an ocean view.  On a less cloudy night, this would have been a good spot for the sunset.

 

 

Husband had angel hair with wahoo

 

 

and I had the same with shrimp

 

 

It's another mixed bag day, weather wise, but the view is not bad from here anyway

 

 

 

[liamsaunt]

Yesterday we popped out for lunch to a fish sandwich stand up the road.  We shared a sandwich since we had a large dinner planned.  The local fish today was snapper. 

 

 

After husband was done working for the day, we took the car to the next beach up the street for a quick snorkel before it got too dark.  This is Church Bay

 

 

It was a little stirred up, but there were lots of fish.  Here are a couple.  Orange stoplight parrotfish

 

 

Blue parrotfish

 

 

Bermuda chubs

 

 

Sand diver

 

 

Our dinner was at Fourways, which is probably the most traditional restaurant on the island. It's in an old farmhouse building and features a large menu with lots of flambeed items, a live piano player, etc.  Here's one side of the interior before it filled up

 

 

And the massive menu.  Appetizers

 

 

 

mains

 

 

Classic dishes. The veal seemed to be the most popular, and it is flambeed table side.  I also saw some steaks being flambeed.

 

 

There's even a vegan menu

 

 

 

Amuse bouche.  Seared tuna with mango sauce and beetroot

 

 

Husband chose foie gras for his appetizer

 

 

I had the tuna tartare

 

 

Husband ordered a half bottle of wine for his dinner.  They did the whole candle thing

 

 

I had the catch of the day, which was wahoo. This is an example of Bermudian sweet and savory that I do not like.  Bermuda restaurants often serve banana with their fish.  I have tried it many times, and really do not like banana with fish.  It's easy enough to push to the side though.

 

 

Husband had beef wellington.  He said it was perfectly cooked.

 

 

Dessert.  They are famous for their souffles

 

 

I chose the lemon, and it was much better than the one we shared at Tom Moore's Tavern the other night.

 

 

Edited October 1 by liamsaunt
extra photo (log)

[TdeV]

Those dishes look particularly scrumptious. You are a fabulous photographer and I always feel like I'm right there with you.

Sorry if you explained this already, @liamsaunt. What is MAP or Dine Around Surcharge?

[liamsaunt]

On 10/1/2024 at 10:34 AM, TdeV said:

Those dishes look particularly scrumptious. You are a fabulous photographer and I always feel like I'm right there with you.

Sorry if you explained this already, @liamsaunt. What is MAP or Dine Around Surcharge?

 

 

MAP is modified American Plan.  Some of the hotels on the island offer this as an option.  You pay a higher daily rate, and then your cost includes full breakfast at your hotel and a three course dinner at a participating restaurant. It does not include alcoholic beverages, and some dishes have a surcharge, as you can see on the menu.  Most people seem to think that if you choose your restaurant carefully and order well, it is a deal to get the MAP plan.  All I know is that when my husband and I honeymooned in Bermuda as young whippersnappers, my parents paid for our trip and got us the MAP plan thinking we would have a free visit.  Between the meal surcharges and the drinks we ordered, we had quite a hefty fee to pay to our hotel at the end of our vacation. 😂 

 

The dine around plan as it exists today is a plan offered only in the off season.  It's like a gift card.  You pay a flat fee and it covers three multi course meals at any of the participating restaurants.  If you don't use it by the end of the season, you can carry it over to next time for a small fee.  That one is definitely considered a deal, but it is only good October-May.

 

Yesterday I spent the day reading a book here

 

 

Husband came down at the end of the day for a quick swim before we headed to dinner at Blu.  The view is lovely

 

 

and the menu is large

 

 

 

 

vegan menu

 

 

There's also a full sushi menu here but I guess I did not take pictures.  

 

Drinks.  My mocktail was cucumber, strawberry, and lime.  Husband had a cucumber martini

 

 

I ordered my appetizer from the sushi menu.  It was yellowtail with mango and jalapeño.  The portion was larger than I was expecting, but it was very good.

 

 

Husband had a special appetizer of grilled local guinea chick lobster

 

 

I ordered shrimp salsa verde with grilled vegetables for my main.  They are under the shrimp, but it came with grilled asparagus and assorted peppers.  It was very nice, and light, which I appreciated.

 

 

Husband had the catch of the day, which was wahoo with grilled shrimp and a parsnip risotto.

 

 

The sun went down as we were eating

 

 

 

 

 

Dessert menu

 

 

We, of course, got the soufflé to share.  This was my favorite soufflé so far, light and fluffy.

 

 

We don't have any set dinner plans tonight.  The wind is starting to pick up as there is a low system passing by to the east over the next few days which is going to bring some unsettled weather, higher winds, and rough seas.  

 

Edited October 2 by liamsaunt (log)

[liamsaunt]

Yesterday was fairly uneventful.  My afternoon views

 

 

 

 

Neither my husband nor I felt like a fancy dinner, or really even going anywhere, so we just went to the Clubhouse for a casual meal.  Drinks: cranberry lime spritzer mocktail for me, martini for husband

 

 

Shrimp seveche to share (nephew arrives tomorrow, so this might be it for shrimp)

 

 

Burger for husband

 

 

grilled wahoo sandwich for me

 

 

and a show from the sky during our meal

 

 

Hurricane Kirk is passing by to the distant east today and tomorrow, so the weather will be impacted a bit. I'm not complaining though.

[KennethT]

I love the rocks on that beach.  Also, what's between the burger patty and tomato? It kinda looks like fish sliced for sashimi to me!

[TicTac]

5 hours ago, KennethT said:

I love the rocks on that beach.  Also, what's between the burger patty and tomato? It kinda looks like fish sliced for sashimi to me!

My bet is carm. onions.

[liamsaunt]

16 hours ago, KennethT said:

I love the rocks on that beach.  Also, what's between the burger patty and tomato? It kinda looks like fish sliced for sashimi to me!

 

Me too!  They are beautiful, but sharp.  My sister cut her foot wide open climbing up one when we were teenagers.

 

11 hours ago, TicTac said:

My bet is carm. onions.

 

Good guess!  You are correct, and the sauce was a truffled blue cheese to put on top.

 

Yesterday I snorkeled out around the rocks and was stunned to see the shape of the coral.  Compared to what I have been seeing on my trips to the USVI, this coral was dense and lush.  I was practically crying inside my mask because I was so happy.  Here are a few pictures

 

 

 

White spot phase Bermuda chub

 

 

The Reefs Club from the water.  The round section is the reception and dining part of the original hotel, with the hotel rooms beyond to the right.  The Club section was built about 15 years ago.  I think there are around 60 hotel rooms, plus the 15 or so apartments at the Club, that make up the property.

 

 

After snorkeling I went back to reading on the beach, where I was attacked by a beach umbrella.  The umbrella set up by the couple next to me was lifted out of the ground by the wind, and the sharp end of the pole smashed right into my thigh.  Luckily I was still wearing the thick swim leggings I use while snorkeling, which helped to mitigate the damage to my leg.  There's a nice hole in the leggings now, but I only have a nasty bruise, not a cut on my leg.  It's always something!

 

 

Dinner last night was at Aurora.  We had reserved a table on the patio, but the wind was so strong that eating outside was impossible. 

 

 

Menu

 

 

 

and the view from our indoor table

 

 

We ordered two appetizers to share. Tuna tartare

 

 

and a special of rainbow runner crudo

 

 

Husband had the lobster linguini.  They offered it with Bermuda lobster, but it was twice the price of the Maine lobster, so he passed

 

 

I had local tuna au poivre with scallion mashed potatoes and a side of grilled asparagus

 

 

Dessert menu

 

 

We ordered the chocolate soufflé to share.  They brought out some complimentary shortbread, an espresso for me, and a Grand Marnier for my husband while we waited for it to cook

 

 

The souffle

 

 

I prefer non chocolate desserts, but this was good.  We ate about half.

 

Today my sister and nephew arrive, and we also move to a larger condo in the Club since we need a third bedroom.  We have no set dinner plans, but I am guessing we will end up at the pub up the street for a curry.   Time will tell!

 

 

Edited October 4 by liamsaunt
remove duplicate photo (log)

[Senior Sea Kayaker]

Great snorkeling photos.

 

[liamsaunt]

Friday my sister and nephew arrived, and we moved to our new condo.  All the three bedroom condos are on the first floor, so the views are not as good, but you can still see the ocean.

 

 

Unfortunately for me, the condo is the unit right next to the Club pool.  I am not a super social person, so this is a big negative in my book.  Some people love this location, but not me.  Luckily the pool closes at 6 PM, so at least there's nobody there at night.

 

 

I thought about asking them to move us, but we don't have much bargaining power.  You can only stay in the club if you are an owner, or if you book through Third Home or Elite Alliance, which is what we did.  The owners of course get first dibs on which units they want to be in, and the three bedroom condos look like they are all occupied this week.  It's still nice, so I will stop complaining now. 😂

 

Nephew, as I suspected, wanted to go to the pub for dinner on Friday.  Menu

 

 

 

 

and their special lobster menu for lobster season

 

 

Nephew could not have any of the appetizers he would have liked off the pub menu, and he really wanted an appetizer, so we ordered a few sushi rolls to start.  This pub is actually half traditional pub, half sushi restaurant, and you can order off the sushi menu in the pub side and they'll bring it over to you.

 

 

I had the catch of the day, which was wahoo

 

 

and my sister had the other catch of the day option, which was pan fried snapper (note the dreaded banana on top)

 

 

Husband and nephew both had curries.  Nephew had chicken vindaloo

 

 

and husband had the tikka masala

 

 

Nephew was still hungry, so we ordered dessert.  Sticky toffee pudding

 

 

 

Bread and butter pudding

 

 

Yesterday we spent the day swimming at the hotel beach.  It was too rough to snorkel.  For dinner we went to Hamilton to have dinner at 1609 at the Hamilton Princess hotel.  Approaching the restaurant

 

 

Menu

 

 

They told us that normally nephew could have had most things from the fryer, but that night they were only operating one since they were not expecting a large crowd.  He was a little disappointed that the chips were off the option list, but he had lots of options regardless.  Everyone but nephew had some wahoo seveche

 

 

and he tried the jalepeno cornbread

 

 

Drinks.  Mine is the mango rosemary mocktail in the front.  I made my nephew order the drink in the fish glass because I wanted a picture of it 😂

 

 

This was called a frozen goose I think.  It was frose with a bottle of frozen vodka in it.  Weird, I say

 

 

There was a nice view from our table

 

 

 

Entrees. My sister and husband both got the fish tacos, which were made with wahoo

 

 

nephew had the carne asada

 

 

and I changed my mind at the last minute and ordered the cauliflower al pastor.

 

 

Dessert

 

 

Nephew had the cuarto leches

 

 

and the rest of us split a sundae

 

 

The ocean is extremely swelly today with huge waves breaking on the beach.  It's too dangerous to go in the water, so we are planning on doing a little hiking.  Nephew is advocating for eating dinner at the hotel clubhouse so he can watch football.  We will see...

[KennethT]

28 minutes ago, liamsaunt said:

Friday my sister and nephew arrived, and we moved to our new condo.  All the three bedroom condos are on the first floor, so the views are not as good, but you can still see the ocean.

 

 

Unfortunately for me, the condo is the unit right next to the Club pool.  I am not a super social person, so this is a big negative in my book.  Some people love this location, but not me.  Luckily the pool closes at 6 PM, so at least there's nobody there at night.

 

 

I thought about asking them to move us, but we don't have much bargaining power.  You can only stay in the club if you are an owner, or if you book through Third Home or Elite Alliance, which is what we did.  The owners of course get first dibs on which units they want to be in, and the three bedroom condos look like they are all occupied this week.  It's still nice, so I will stop complaining now. 😂

 

Nephew, as I suspected, wanted to go to the pub for dinner on Friday.  Menu

 

 

 

 

and their special lobster menu for lobster season

 

 

Nephew could not have any of the appetizers he would have liked off the pub menu, and he really wanted an appetizer, so we ordered a few sushi rolls to start.  This pub is actually half traditional pub, half sushi restaurant, and you can order off the sushi menu in the pub side and they'll bring it over to you.

 

 

I had the catch of the day, which was wahoo

 

 

and my sister had the other catch of the day option, which was pan fried snapper (note the dreaded banana on top)

 

 

Husband and nephew both had curries.  Nephew had chicken vindaloo

 

 

and husband had the tikka masala

 

 

Nephew was still hungry, so we ordered dessert.  Sticky toffee pudding

 

 

 

Bread and butter pudding

 

 

Yesterday we spent the day swimming at the hotel beach.  It was too rough to snorkel.  For dinner we went to Hamilton to have dinner at 1609 at the Hamilton Princess hotel.  Approaching the restaurant

 

 

Menu

 

 

They told us that normally nephew could have had most things from the fryer, but that night they were only operating one since they were not expecting a large crowd.  He was a little disappointed that the chips were off the option list, but he had lots of options regardless.  Everyone but nephew had some wahoo seveche

 

 

and he tried the jalepeno cornbread

 

 

Drinks.  Mine is the mango rosemary mocktail in the front.  I made my nephew order the drink in the fish glass because I wanted a picture of it 😂

 

 

This was called a frozen goose I think.  It was frose with a bottle of frozen vodka in it.  Weird, I say

 

 

There was a nice view from our table

 

 

 

Entrees. My sister and husband both got the fish tacos, which were made with wahoo

 

 

nephew had the carne asada

 

 

and I changed my mind at the last minute and ordered the cauliflower al pastor.

 

 

Dessert

 

 

Nephew had the cuarto leches

 

 

and the rest of us split a sundae

 

 

The ocean is extremely swelly today with huge waves breaking on the beach.  It's too dangerous to go in the water, so we are planning on doing a little hiking.  Nephew is advocating for eating dinner at the hotel clubhouse so he can watch football.  We will see...

My wife and I are similar to you in our extreme dislike of bananas.  On our honeymoon about 20 years ago, we were in Hanoi and were told that one "must try" item was a banana blossom salad - which is made in a similar fashion to a green papaya salad.  When we said that we didn't like bananas, we were told that it actually didn't taste like banana at all - but when we had it, we didn't agree.  My wife described it as a salad of "banana strings" - you know the strings that are there in between the sections of peel?  I don't think I'm as sensitive - I didn't mind it so much - I thought it was vaguely reminiscent of banana but I liked the texture.

 

But a slice of bruleed banana on the fish.... we'd run screaming.. haha...

[TdeV]

@liamsaunt, your photos are always delightful. And I get full just looking at the food. (kidding 😅).

 

How many of the components of the menus in Bermuda are grown there? I'm guessing fish and seafood is local, lobster when in season. Chicken? Beef? Pork? How about vegetables and fruits?

[liamsaunt]

20 hours ago, TdeV said:

@liamsaunt, your photos are always delightful. And I get full just looking at the food. (kidding 😅).

 

How many of the components of the menus in Bermuda are grown there? I'm guessing fish and seafood is local, lobster when in season. Chicken? Beef? Pork? How about vegetables and fruits?

 

Some things are grown here, but most are imported like many other islands.  There are some local crops that are generally widely available: bananas, pineapple, watermelon, coconut, papaya, dandelion greens (yuck), onions, potatoes, carrots off of the top of my head.  Milk is local, there is an island dairy and they produce the milk, eggs and cream for the stores.  There is a farm for mutton, pigs, and goat.  Local fish are always available in the markets and restaurants.  It is also sold on the side of the road (this is regulated too).  There is one organic vegetable farm operation that also raises chickens and has a CSA.

 

So yesterday the ocean was too dangerous to swim in.  In the morning the beach was completely covered by the ocean waves.  I took a photo from the top of the stairs

 

 

At this point they were not even letting people down on the beach.  We went for a hike, then walked up to the golf course where my nephew is playing this morning, so he could time how long it would take him to get from the hotel to the check in area.  Of course, since it was football Sunday, he then persuaded my husband that we should go inside the adjacent sports bar and watch a bit of the game.  Sigh.

 

Mocktail menu

 

 

 

Sunday brunch menu

 

 

Lemon drops menu

 

 

I got the cucumber coconut drink

 

 

Everyone else just had a beer.  Nephew also wanted nachos

 

 

And the rest of us split a mushroom flatbread

 

 

I went back to the beach later in the afternoon, when it was a bit calmer and they opened it back up, and took a few more pictures

 

 

 

 

 

 

We just went to the clubhouse for dinner.  Drinks

 

 

Fettuccine with spinach and wahoo

 

 

Teriyaki vegetables with wahoo

 

 

Nephew had a pizza

 

 

Key lime tart

 

 

Ice cream cake

 

 

 

Edited October 7 by liamsaunt
duplicate photos (log)

[YvetteMT]

Oh that Key Lime Tart!!! Thank you for the beach shots, I am a sucker for angry water. Is it the resort that closes the beach when its rough?

[FauxPas]

On 10/6/2024 at 6:39 AM, liamsaunt said:

 I made my nephew order the drink in the fish glass because I wanted a picture of it 😂

 

Hahahaha. I'd do the same thing! 

 

Thank you!  🙂

 

[curls]

On 10/4/2024 at 8:03 AM, liamsaunt said:

After snorkeling I went back to reading on the beach, where I was attacked by a beach umbrella.  The umbrella set up by the couple next to me was lifted out of the ground by the wind, and the sharp end of the pole smashed right into my thigh.  Luckily I was still wearing the thick swim leggings I use while snorkeling, which helped to mitigate the damage to my leg.  There's a nice hole in the leggings now, but I only have a nasty bruise, not a cut on my leg.  It's always something!

Yikes! What a freak accident. Very glad to hear that you are mostly ok!

[liamsaunt]

21 hours ago, YvetteMT said:

Is it the resort that closes the beach when its rough?

 

Yes, the beach at the resort is private, and there are only two access points, one from the club side and one from the hotel side.  They put up signs when they don't want people in the water.  The pubic beaches also put up signage.  I took this picture yesterday.  There are only two beaches on the island that have lifeguards, so swimming at the others is at your own risk.

 

 

Yesterday was definitely calm enough to swim, so I think the workers just had not come around to remove the signage from the prior day's big waves yet.  Calm Church Bay yesterday

 

 

The water was still too stirred up to snorkel, so we walked down to the beach, but did not go swimming here.  

 

I took this close up picture of the sand to show you why it is pink.  The sand is a mix of coral, shells, sea glass, pebbles, etc.  It is illegal to remove sand from Bermuda as an FYI.  They check people's luggage for it when you leave, and will confiscate any that they find.  They dump it all in a massive pile at the airport.  If you really want some, you can buy it from local artisans in small bottles or holiday ornaments, etc.  

 

 

 

Nephew golfed in the morning (nobody else plays), and then we spent the day swimming.  Dinner was at Little Venice, the oldest Italian restaurant in Bermuda.  I think it's been around for 75 years.  I picked this one for my nephew, as he loves Italian food.  They are famous for their cacio e pepe prepared table side in a giant cheese wheel.  None of us wanted that particular dish last night though.  Many people around us ordered it, so we got to watch the show.

 

Menu

 

 

 

 

 

Nephew and husband shared a plate of Iberico ham and burrata

 

 

and my sister and I shared a plate of tuna carpaccio

 

 

We all wanted pasta for dinner.  Nephew got the veal ragu

 

 

My husband and I both got the truffle paccheri

 

 

and sister had the linguini with clams

 

 

Dessert menu

 

 

Nephew chose the tiramisu

 

 

I had an affogato.  The presentation was very neat, with a frozen chocolate shell perched on top of the gelato.  You poured the hot espresso into the chocolate to melt it into the gelato.  It was very delicious, but unfortunately after about four bites, the side of the glass shattered.  I think the glass was too thin to handle the cold gelato, hot espresso, and metal spoon combination.  They offered to make me another one, but I didn't want any more after picking glass off my lap.

 

 

 

Sister ordered the baked Alaska, flambeed table side.  There are lots of flambeed things in Bermuda, so we figured we should try one.  Being flambeed

 

 

after

 

 

The ice cream inside of it was delicious. It was a nice ending to a good meal.

 

 

Edited October 8 by liamsaunt
photo order (log)

[liamsaunt]

Yesterday we spent the day swimming, and I did not take any pictures.  My nephew and husband went snorkeling, but said the visibility was terrible.  I guess it's good that we got some good snorkeling in at the beginning of this visit.

 

Last night we had dinner at Cafe Lido at Elbow Beach.  It was too windy to sit outside, but they did have the windows cracked in the glass house we were seated in, so at least we got some nice breezes.

 

 

Menu

 

 

 

 

They had a couple of mocktail options

 

 

I tried the Mollins, but it did not taste like much, so I switched to club soda.  Everyone else enjoyed their drinks.

 

 

Tasty olive bread

 

 

Nephew wanted a sushi roll for an appetizer

 

 

and the rest of us shared the tuna tartare

 

 

Sister and I both got the catch of the day.  They had a choice of amberjack or snapper, so we got one of each.  Snapper

 

 

Amberjack

 

 

Husband got the tuna.  There was an olive tapenade under the shaved snow peas that was really delicious.  I am stealing this idea for cooking at home.

 

 

And nephew, unsurprisingly, chose a pasta. If there is pasta on the menu, he is ordering it.

 

 

Dessert

 

 

Sister and husband ordered affogatos.

 

 

I wanted one too, but did not want the kahlua in the featured dessert, so just ordered a dish of vanilla ice cream and an espresso and made my own.

 

 

Nephew had flourless chocolate cake

 

 

Today is pretty much a washout, weather wise, but a day out of the sun is OK.

[rotuts]

@liamsaunt

 

Bermuda has some top notch menu's

 

and fine presentations from those menu's

 

thank you for sharing.

[Smithy]

3 hours ago, liamsaunt said:

I wanted one too, but did not want the kahlua in the featured dessert, so just ordered a dish of vanilla ice cream and an espresso and made my own.

 

Could you have ordered hazelnut ice cream instead of vanilla, or else asked them to leave out the Kahlua? (I realize that last might not be possible, since they may make the affogato ahead. Or maybe alterations are frowned upon there.) At any rate, it all looks delicious and wonderful.

 

I'm intrigued by the watermelon with the tuna tartare. It seems as though watermelon is working its way into more savory applications -- watermelon and feta salad is another example -- than it used to. How did you like the combination?

[liamsaunt]

20 hours ago, Smithy said:

 

Could you have ordered hazelnut ice cream instead of vanilla, or else asked them to leave out the Kahlua? (I realize that last might not be possible, since they may make the affogato ahead. Or maybe alterations are frowned upon there.) At any rate, it all looks delicious and wonderful.

 

I'm intrigued by the watermelon with the tuna tartare. It seems as though watermelon is working its way into more savory applications -- watermelon and feta salad is another example -- than it used to. How did you like the combination?

 

 

I am sure I could have, but I decided that vanilla sounded better than hazelnut, so I was happy with my choice.

 

Watermelon and tuna has been a popular combination on Cape Cod for a few years now.  I am ok with it, but don't really see the point.  I know it's clever that they are the same color but have such completely different textures, but frankly I would rather just have all tuna.  Some restaurants on the Cape compress the watermelon to make it more firm, but I don't really think that is so great either.  I do love watermelon, feta, kalamata olive, mint, and red onion salad.

 

Yesterday was a pretty poor weather day.  We got over six inches of rain, and there was a lot of flooding. We all got a lot of reading done.  For dinner, we returned to Blu since we enjoyed our first meal there so much.  We should have just left it at that because the meal was problematic.  First off, they brought my sister the wrong cocktail, and it took over 20 minutes for the bar to replace it, which threw off the timing for the whole meal.  Then, no one could agree on appetizers.  That's our fault, I know!  Nephew wanted a sushi roll.  I didn't try it and am not sure what was in it

 

 

I ordered a salad with watermelon, plums, and burrata (feta would have been better haha). It had bresaola on it too, but husband ate that part of it.

 

 

sister wanted oysters Rockefeller

 

 

and husband ordered a guinea chick lobster

 

 

For entrees, nephew had lamb chops.  He very much enjoyed his meal.

 

 

sister had seafood fra diavolo with the shrimp omitted. She said the fish in it was woefully overcooked.

 

 

I had sole almondine. The fish was good. The potatoes with it were cold.

 

 

Husband ordered carbonara.  This was a solid, gloppy mess.  I could not believe they served it. The server never came to check on us after the runner dropped the food so he did not have the opportunity to send it back within a reasonable window.  I shared my fish with him instead.

 

 

Nephew ordered a tiramisu for dessert

 

 

and the rest of us shared a lemon souffle, which was very delicious.

 

 

Not every meal can be a winner, I guess.  The weather is much better today, and I am sure our dinner will be too.  That said, we fly home tomorrow, and I am very much looking forward to home cooked food for a while.

 

Edited October 10 by liamsaunt (log)

[rotuts]

re: tuna & watermelon 

 

''   they are the same color  ''

 

and thus , one can plate less tuna .

 

Economics .