Little Napoli - Carmel, CA

While in San Juan Bautista over Christmas I got to spend a night out with James and Kate in Carmel. We kicked off our evening at the Caraccioli Cellars Tasting Room. Kate and I enjoyed a glass of their award winning Brut Rose. It was lovely, blend of not too sweet and not too dry. It was the perfect start to our meal to come!

Little Napoli is an Italian restaurant located in the heart of Downtown Carmel. James and kate like coming here so they wanted me to experience their little spot. We had late reservations but I was amazed at how packed the place was. I love a restaurant that serves late into the night. It was a quaint space, the lights were low and I felt like I was transported to somewhere in Italy.

When I saw that they had an appetizer special of Truffle Gnocchi I knew instantly that is what I wanted to start our meal off with. I ordered up the baked pillowy clouds of awesome intending to share but found myself pretty much polishing off the dish on my own. It would make an excellent entree order! 

Hey guess what y'all?! I didn't order seafood for dinner! This has got to be a first in a long, long time. I saw the New Zealand Lamb Shank "Osso Buco"on the menu and decided that sounded great. My lamb shank was very tasty, totally tender and the perfect amount of food for me. It came with mashed potatoes and they were a tasty compliment to the rich sauce made from the braised lamb and vegetables.

Kate did something every little foodie loves... She ordered off a secret menu! She almost spoke in code with our waitress! So cool. Kate wanted: roasted chicken, no skin, with special pink sauce and potatoes. It was amazing. The potatoes that usually come with the dish are oven roasted however they did not have them on hand that day so mashed potatoes were substituted and they just kind of disintegrated into the sauce. I think pasta might have been a better substitution because that sauce was so good.

 James ordered up the Chicken Parmigiana and it was jam packed with food. The "gravy" that the fried chicken was topped with was very good. The right amount of tang to sweet ratio. A healthy blanket of mozzarella was broiled on top. I switched plates with James at the tail end of our meals so I could sample his meal, and he could try mine. Bites of the chicken entree and tender house made pasta were delightful.

At this point we were almost uncomfortably full so we declined on dessert. Little Napoli was a great place for our little night out on the town. I enjoyed the ambiance, food and most of all the time i got to spend with my brother and Kate!

Lonesome Dove - Fort Worth, TX

So I miss my brother and Kate. They were the life of the party during their stay and willing to try any restaurant. I constantly reminded them how much I loved Lonesome Dove so one one of their last days in Texas we went their for lunch.

Yay! God bless Texas.

 We started off our lunch with a sampler of sorts... From left to right: Blue Corn Lobster Hushpuppies - These were fantastic. They were light, fluffy and savory. In the middle was the Rabbit-Rattlesnake sausage on a spiced Rosti - It was fine, a little game but we all were happy for the experience. On the far right was the Elk Sliders with Foie Gras and Blueberry Jam - These were tasty and I would highly encourage you to order them. They tasted quite decadent.

Cowgirl Kate ordered the Garlic Stuffed Tenderloin with a Western Plaid Hash. She thought it was nicely cooked and totally edible but lacked that something special to make it completely memorable. 

And now for this bomb and I do mean BOMB. Do not and I mean NEVER order the Lamb Pozole Stew here. I love pozole and I love lamb but the creation that Lonesome Dove creates is the nastiest thing i have ever put in my mouth. Imagine hauling a load of sheep in a trailer, you then take that trailer and lift up the nose, drain the contents into a bowl, heat it up and them serve it. That is what it tastes like. I even asked the waiter to have the "day chef" taste what we were served and they were convinced that is what they wanted it to taste like.

So there you have it, a nice restaurant with a fantastic reputation can even have some issues. Caution, caution and approach with care when ordering at Lonesome Dove.

Robert's - Paso Robles, CA

Last night, after a long day at the PCCHA Futurity, we went to go seek out some dinner. We always visit Robert's at least once, so we decided to have dinner there. I love the black and white photos on the wall, so classic.

Melissa Good Taste

I started with the daily soup of Potato Leek. The crunchy potatoes on top made the first few bites were gloriously salty good. As I made my way to the base, it tasted more of garlic than anything else.

For my entree, I settled on the Crab Cake appetizer and it was good. I enjoyed the sweet chili sauce with each bite of the crab. It was solid, not the best ever but definitely good.

My mom had the Rack of Lamb and it sure was beautiful. She requested mint jelly but hey didn't have it on hand, they did have a delicious pan sauce that was served of the scalloped potatoes it was served with. 

Scott had the Salad Special - Spinach Salad with warm bacon, mushrooms, hard boiled eggs with Dijon. For a guy who stays away from mushrooms and spinach, his order surprised me. However, he loved it and even gave his compliments to the chef!

I tried the Pumpkin Cheesecake because I was inspired by the Fall weather... It was fine.

Kathy had the Apple Cobbler and was not satisfied. The desserts could be improved.

I was not blown away by this visit but maybe another visit back, with some tweaking on the order could solve the problem! 

Circle Oak Dinner - Petaluma, CA

We always have fabulous meals at Ron and Sara's while staying in Petaluma. This night was no exception to that. The wine is always terrific too, Ron has good taste!

On the menu this particular evening was lamb! Ron worked his magic with garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil. He kept it simple!

After a quick trip on the barbecue this is what we looked forward to enjoying!

This is the loaf of bread we got at Della earlier that morning. It was fantastic! Chewy and carbolicious! Great for sopping up stray lamb juice too!

Our plates were perfectly colored, a sign to a healthy meal! The side was a curried squash which was amazing and green beans to finish. It was a lovely evening shared by friends. 

This ended our trip to the Circle Oak Ranch... Can't wait for next year!

Sandrini's Restaurant - Bakersfield, CA

Our good friends, Pete and Lisa, took Scott and I out on the town during our first night in Bakersfield for a horse show. It was a warm evening, so when we got to Sandrini's and we stepped down stairs into a cool, welcoming cave I was very excited! This restaurant was Italian Basque, so I knew it would be good eats.

We started with Sliced Tongue pickled with a secret family recipe. It was perfectly tender and made a nice little sandwich with roma tomatoes and fresh baguette.

We also tried the Italian Sausage Bread, a favorite of Pete and Lisa's. I could see why, it ate like a meal!

Scott started with a fresh salad with in house croutons.

And I of course did the soup - a spicy, Basque soup with softly cooked vegetables.

This is my plate and isn't it a beauty?! I saw Halibut, spinach, risotto and reduced balsamic vinegar... How could i go wrong? It was perfect, there was nothing it could be improved on. I will return for this meal again.

Pete and Lisa split the Rack of Lamb and it too was stunning. This is half of one order, the chef so kindly brought it out on two plate for them.

If you live in Bakersfield and have not been here yet, you need to go. It is located downtown and has a cool old school vibe. They have cigar room, which probably used to be for miscellaneous gambling transactions so it has extra cool points. I here when the sun goes own it is a popular spot for Bakersfield youth to shake their groove things, so come early and enjoy their fine food!

Easter 2013 - San Juan Bautista, CA

 I love being able to hop and my car and go back home for visits! This Easter we were actually home and not at a horse show so I was thrilled to be able to spend some time with my family. Just the drive brings back happy memories of a wonderful childhood. My Mom had everything nice and festive for our Easter Sunday so it made celebrating easy.

Also, my parents remodel was done so it was really great to see the final look. It looks fantastic! I am jealous of all the granite, built in's and layout. It belongs in a magazine!

Appetizers were light, I loved the Deviled Eggs with pimentos. 

They were my favorite!

My mom always makes these stuffed jalapenos. My brother and Kate found them irresistible...

Kathy and James worked their magic on the stove right before plating.

My sister brought a salad and it was filled with all kinds of wonderful toppings. Almonds, cranberries, avocado and seasoned pretzel bits. A very tasty and creative salad indeed!

Our main meal lacked vegetables and no one seemed to be bothered. I loved the creamy polenta with lamb shack. The gravy was thick and paired with the polenta perfectly. Also on my plate was a lamb chop with mint jelly and a twice backed potato. I declared the shank and polenta as winners of this entree throw down.

My mom makes the best pies in the world. I am can say that confidently and would gladly pay her entry fee into a competition. Her Lemon Merguine is one of her classics so she made that for our happy family.

The Easter treat was truly our new wiener dog, "Teddy". I adopted him from a rescue and I have never felt better about this act of good will. He will have a loving family and a life long home.

I hope your Easter was as blessed as mine was.

Del Mar Rendezvous - Del Mar, CA

It was a beautiful day in Del Mar on Saturday so my mom and I made the most of the day by exploring in town. We became hungry for lunch so my mom suggested we go to the "Rendezvous" as she read some good reviews about it online... 

My hunger and desire for food stopped right here with this dish. It was supposed to be a fresh crab and mango salad. This was nasty. We took one bite and our bodies told us silently to stop, just stop. The crab tasted like canned tuna, there was tons of mayo (and I love mayo), unripe mango and absolutely no seasoning. We politely pushed the dish to the edge of the table, encouraging the busboy for rapid pick up. The manager came to our table and asked what was wrong with it, I didn't have the heart to say, "What was right with it?" - I just said it tasted like canned crab, there was no seasoning and the fruit was really hard. She didn't seem like any of those things were a problem, I hope she had it for it lunch.

With our appetites really gone and potential sickness coming on we trudged through a decent Cashew Chicken and white rice. It was ok.

We had ordered the lamb and it was very tasty. Very well cooked. We just were so turned off by food at this point and wanted to get out of there!

Imperial Shrimp on a bed of fried noodles. Done. We were so done. Nothing was tasting good so we ate a shrimp and jammed.

Paid the billed and just left feeling flabbergasted that one plate of food could just turn you off like that. Well, I guess it happened - We hit our food wall in Del Mar, California.

Suzanne's - Ojai, CA

Suzanne's is a special place in Ojai. A table in the garden area in the evening is just so enchanting. The weather was gorgeous and we played hostesses to my cousin, Drew.

I started off with a martini because it was chic and so am I, or at least I try to be.

A Crab and Corn Cake went perfectly with my Lemon Martini. 

My husband ordered an Asparagus and Smoked Salmon Salad with a toast point with caviar. We are just living it this evening aren't we?!

Scott continued on with the fish theme and ordered the Ahi with Asian style vegetables.

So did I! Miso Butterfish for the lady!

Drew stuck to his New Zealand roots and ordered the Rack of lamb. Apparently he loved it, claiming it was the best lamb he has had in quite awhile.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Torte. I went ALL out on this one. Calorie City for Melissa Good Taste, I figure I am only 30 for 11 more months so I better have fun with fattening food as long as I can! It goes all down hill from now on is what I have heard. So I will continue to order dessert until the wheels fall off.