The Gypsy Kitchen - Week # 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Day Sunshine, Good Day Sunshine…” – The Beatles

 

The "Gypsy Kitchen" is a traveling culinary adventure by John and Cindy Hughes who are cruising the back roads and forgotten highways of America in a 36 foot motor coach searching for unique, interesting, local, regional and hopefully delicious culinary treasures.

For information and/or directions for any of the following establishments, please visit our interactive “Gypsy Kitchen Tour ‘09” map.  Make sure to log onto www.cookwithjohn.com and subscribe to receive FREE weekly recipes (this week’s recipe: “Frogmore or Less Stew”) and chance to win a 3–course dinner for 10 guests performed by the Gypsy Kitchen in the comfort of your own home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Day Sunshine, Good Day Sunshine…” – The Beatles

 

The "Gypsy Kitchen" is a traveling culinary adventure by John and Cindy Hughes who are cruising the back roads and forgotten highways of America in a 36 foot motor coach searching for unique, interesting, local, regional and hopefully delicious culinary treasures.

For information and/or directions for any of the following establishments, please visit our interactive “Gypsy Kitchen Tour ‘09” map.  Make sure to log onto www.cookwithjohn.com and subscribe to receive FREE weekly recipes (this week’s recipe: “Frogmore or Less Stew”) and chance to win a 3–course dinner for 10 guests performed by the Gypsy Kitchen in the comfort of your own home.

 

Right now, I’m sitting in an lounge chair overlooking the clear blue sea from our perch here at Curry Hammock State Park in Marathon, Florida.  The weather is a lovely 78 degrees with a slight breeze blowing…One could get very used to this!!!

Before we arrived here on the Florida Keys, we visited the Everglades National Park and stayed at Flamingo Park for 4 days…Did we see any alligators or crocodiles?  Check out the GYPSY KITCHEN Photo Album to see just how many we saw…and up close and personal.  On our last day in the park, we visited an area known as Royal Palm and took a 1/2 mile stroll and literally saw dozens and dozens of alligators.  But I’m getting ahead of myself already.

Last Saturday,we spent the day exploring the historic downtown area of St. Augustine, watching the street vendors and visiting several of the areas many interesting shops and boutiques.  While checking out the Visitor’s Center, we learned that a small restaurant named “DECO” was voted best gourmet restaurant in St. Augustine…we made the decision that this would be our destination for lunch.

“DECO” is a bit out from the downtown city area but was well worth the short drive out Route 1 to 980 Santa Maria Boulevard.  Chef/Owner Sandy Krebs is a talented, creative workhorse of a chef.  She starts out most days in the early morning baking her own breads and desserts, simmering her sauces, making her dressings, cooking outstanding meals for her lunch guests all the while prepping for dinner service…Sandy is a chef’s chef and also one great designer as she purchased the land and designed and built this hi-tech, modern facility which clearly “fits” into the Florida scene beautifully.

We started out with a lovely baked wheel of brie with Fiji and Granny Smith apples and house prepared walnut brittle.  For our entrees, Cindy choose the Omelet Special of fresh crab, avocado and feta cheese, which she loved and I opted for the Club Sandwich which was built upon fresh in-house baked ciabatta bread, piled high with thick cut bacon, vine ripened tomatoes, crisp romaine lettuce, beautiful ham and roast turkey and finished with both Cheddar and Swiss cheeses…accompanied by a delightfully crisp and snappy pickle and house made potato salad which is the best we’ve had on the trip so far.

Gigi, our served told us that we had to save room for Sandy’s Grandma’s Lemon Cake, which we did…wonderful is a word that quickly comes to mind.

“DECO” rates:We would definitely go out of our way to revisit!!!

After lunch, we headed out to St. Augustine Light House and a nice stroll out onto the small causeway that leads out over the bay and watched the fishermen work their skill reeling in various species of local catch…the pelicans were among the best fishermen we witnessed.

We opted to skip dinner all together after this exceptional lunch at “DECO”

Sunday, we packed up and headed out on Route A1A South and stopped at a recommended eatery “Martin’s” on Flagler Beach for a nice Sunday afternoon meal.  “Martin’s” is one of those places that when you walk in you say to yourself…”Is this a mistake?”  I would say that this restaurant dates back several decades as do most of the patron’s sitting amongst the many tables and booths.  Service is provided by young (probably first waiting job) personnel who look as nervous as school-kid’s waiting for the bus on the first day of school…but they are friendly and pleasant.  Our food was surprisingly GREAT and the prices are unbelievably low.  Cindy ordered the Shrimp Special (A la Scampi) – $8.95 and I picked the Bone-in New York Sirloin Special – $9.95.  Both meals were cooked perfectly and my sirloin was advertised as 12–ounce but had to be actually closer to a full pound, full of flavor.  We learned that “Grandpa (80+ years old) cuts all the meat daily, Grandma handles the Hostess functions, Son and daughter-in-the are the current managers and a few of the grandkid’s help bus tables and work in the kitchen…this is the epitome of a family run business.  We had a fantastic meal complete with fresh brewed ice teas and our total bill was a whopping $28.00 including gratuity!!!  No wonder the place was the busiest dining we have experienced on the GYPSY KITCHEN Tour ’09.

Martin’s rates:A great bargain for really good food.

Again, we opted for some sliced brie and crackers for dinner because we simply couldn’t even consider dinner.

Sunday evening through Tuesday was spent at Jonathan Dickson State Park, an 11,000 acre preserve where we were able to capture one of the most picturesque sunsets I’ve seen in years.  We had a great time walking the trails and learning about the Loxahatchee as it meanders through freshwater creeks, down into a brackish estuary, and finally empties through the Jupiter Inlet into the Atlantic Ocean.  If you ever find yourself traveling through Hobe Sound, make sure to spend a day or two at the Jonathan Dickson State Park…you will have a wonderful time and learn a lot while enjoying every minute of your stay.

Tuesday afternoon, we entered the Everglades National Park and then traveled 38 miles to Flamingo campground which we learned had the unfortunate honor of being hit by both Hurricane Katrina and then Hurricane Wilma a short period after.  The park is still in the “rebuild” stage and one can still see a lot of the destruction caused by these two mammoth storms but it was still a beautiful place to call home for 4 days and nights.

One note:  The only cell service which is available is AT&T (which is extremely spotty at best, we are told), so we found one of the only places in America that the Autonet Mobile WIFI system could not get a signal in order to broadcast from.  There is one pay phone located at the Marina Store if you must be in contact with the outside world.

The Everglades is again a fascinating place, full of life and learning, and all kinds of exotic birds, fish, plants and yes alligators and crocodiles…and yes you get to see them up close and personal (sometimes a little too personal).

Because the park is so large and so vast, we did not venture out of the park until we were leaving so we did not have a chance to visit any other restaurants to review but we were invited to a neighbors campsite on Saturday evening to join about a dozen or so folks for a splendid Fish Fry…all locally caught fish – WOW it was wonderful.

So that just about covers The GYPSY KITCHEN – Week # 3…although this might be a good place to point out a quick observation:  As we have traveled from Maine to Florida thus far, it is VERY apparent that many, many of the restaurants that we have encountered on our travels are certainly experiencing the “economic slow-down” and in some pretty big ways.  We have eaten in some GREAT places and been 2 of maybe 6–10 guests in the entire place.  I know that we ALL are suffering and having to watch our pennies very closely – but I feel that I have to do a shout out for your local eateries…folk’s the only stimulus package these hard working Mom & Pop, husband & wife, brother & sister businesses are going to get is by people like you and me stopping by and partaking in a lovely meal.  No government bail-outs, no federal appropriations programs.  The only “pork” these businesses see is on their respective menu’s.

Please support your local favorite restaurants and let them know how much you enjoy their hard efforts.

Okay, that’s it for my “soap-boxing”!!!

Have a great week, I know that I’m going to as 2 of our kid’s are coming down for a few days.

For information and/or directions for any of these establishments, please visit our interactive “Gypsy Kitchen Tour ‘09” map.

Make sure to log onto www.cookwithjohn.com and subscribe to receive FREE weekly recipes (this week’s recipe: “Frogmore or Less Stew”)  and chance to win a 3–course dinner for 10 guests performed by the Gypsy Kitchen in the comfort of your own home.

Until next week,

Chef John
in the “Gypsy Kitchen”

www.cookwithjohn.com

john@cookwithjohn.com

 

Ratings Scale:

= Needs Work, Most Likely Would Not Return

= Good Basic Find, Things Could Be Improved, Would Probably Try Again

= As Expected, Good Choice, A Few Things Could Be Better, Almost Certainly Visit Again

= Better Than Expected, Great Choice, Would Definitely Revisit

= Totally Blown Away, Every Point Exceeded Expectation, Would Drive Out-Of-Way To Revisit

Tags: traveling, eating, seafood, shrimp, lighthouse, St+Augustine, new+york+sirloin, florida+keys, everglade+national+park, jonathan+dickson+state+park, fish+fry, loxahatchee+river, DECO+restaurant, Marathon+Florida, crocodiles, alligators, heron, curry+hammock+state+park, sandy+krebs, martin's+restaurant, flagler+beach

The Gypsy Kitchen - Week # 2

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

“For tomorrow may rain, so I'll follow the sun…” – The Beatles


The "Gypsy Kitchen" is a traveling culinary adventure by John and Cindy Hughes who are cruising the back roads and forgotten highways of America in a 36 foot motor coach searching for unique, interesting, sometimes odd, and hopefully delicious culinary treasures.

For information and/or directions for any of the following establishments, please visit our interactive “Gypsy Kitchen Tour ‘09” map. Make sure to log onto www.cookwithjohn.com and subscribe to receive FREE weekly recipes (this week’s recipe: “Limping Susan Gets Her Groove On”) and chance to win a 3–course dinner for 10 guests performed by the Gypsy Kitchen in the comfort of your own home.

This past week has been challenging as we have tried to venture further and further south, searching for warmer weather with little to limited success. We reached Florida on Thursday only to experience two nights of hard frosts. Today, Saturday has finely begun to change coarse as it was in the mid-60’s today here in St Augustine, the country’s oldest city.
Like the weather, our dining experiences started out a bit uncertain but have certainly improved as the week progressed.
Our goal is to highlight culinary establishments that we would recommend to friends and family members – not find fault with establishments that might not have lived up to our expectations. So, although I will give all restaurants we dine at a score of 1 – 5 wooden spoons, I will most likely simply give just the basics on those establishments that were not “on par”. For those establishments that we would suggest, I will most likely go into more detail.

Cindy and I absolutely loved our time at Hunting Island Sate Park in South Carolina and we could not recommend it enough for anyone looking for a beautiful place to spend an afternoon on the beach or a whole week exploring the nature trails, fishing dock, lighthouse, science center and more. We originally checked in for a 2 night stay but quickly extended it for an additional 2 nights.

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

While there, we decided to dine out on two different evenings. Our first evening we headed north on Route 21 for less than a mile to dine at Johnson River Tavern. We shared a bowl of She Crab Bisque which was very tasty. Cindy had the Crab Cake Entree and I tried a local favorite Frogmore Stew. We felt that both lacked flavor and seemed extremely plebian.
Johnson River Tavern rates:

From Blogger Pictures

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

The following evening we headed a bit further north along Route 21 to Boondocks Restaurant where we shared the Calamari Appetizer which was typical but good. Cindy had the Blackened Bass Special and I had the Baby Back Ribs…we both enjoyed our meals, the service was pleasant but this place is certainly on the “casual” side complete with paper napkins and plastic water tumblers but the food was of good quality and properly prepared.

Boondocks Restaurant rates:

From Blogger Pictures

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

On Monday we packed up and headed down Route 17 to Savannah, GA for two nights. We stayed at the Skidaway Island State Park which was nice and quite and a bit more rustic then Hunting Island. Tuesday was spent visiting Savannah, which is a terrific little city with so much history and culture. We especially enjoyed the River Street area with so many restaurant choices. As we attempted to walk along the cobblestone streets, bundled in our warmest jackets, Huey’s New Orleans Cafe caught our eye and I’m certainly glad that it did. Our table was right on the window overlooking River Street so we had a grand time watching the boats navigate the river, the trolley stroll along the rails and the tourists struggle down the cobblestones. We shared an order of beignets (delicate French style doughnuts) served warm with powdered sugar and pecan-caramel sauce – wonderfully sinful. Cindy then had the Shrimp and Grits and I opted for the Muffuletta Sandwich served with Red Beans and Rice. Patrice did a lovely job of attending to our needs in a friendly, informative and hospitable Southern way.

Huey’s New Orleans Cafe rates:

From Blogger Pictures

(I would highly recommend this one!!!)

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

After lunch we visited several of the shops and then drove out to Forsyth Park for a leisurely walk with the dogs. This is a beautiful park in the heart of historic Savannah with a majestic fountain and lovely park benches. Make sure to visit if you find yourself in the Savannah area.

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

On Wednesday, we packed up the coach and continued our travels further down Route 17 towards Florida and hopefully warmer weather. As we made our way towards the warm rays of sunshine we found ourselves passing through the small town of Midway (midway between what I’m not really sure) and we happened upon this local roadside eatery Ida Mae and Joe’s Restaurant. This is your typical old time roadside dinner…totally nondescript both inside and out but if you want to experience real good home-style cooking – this is the place. Cindy had the Roast BBQ Chicken and I opted for the Chicken Finger Plate…each comes with two sides of your choice because the food is served on the old style Corelle plates with the built-in 3 compartments. Our meals where very well prepared, full of flavor – nothing complex but still delicious.



Ida Mae and Joe’s Restaurant rates:

From Blogger Pictures

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

After lunch, back on our way we came upon the “Smallest Church in America” on the north side of Route 17. This adorable chapel seats a total of 12 and is a non-denominational church…well worth a pull-over.

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

Our original goal was to make our way into the northeast corner of Florida to Fernandina Beach but as Cindy was studying the map she noticed that we would be passing by Jekyll Island which was originally the private winter playground for the Rockefeller’s, Crane’s, JP Morgan family, the Pulitzer’s and others, so we decided to check it out. Once on the island, we decided to spend the night so we could explore – Florida could wait one more day! This is a jewel of an island, the history, the beaches, the people, it also is home of the very first condominium in America. I’m so glad that we stumbled upon this little slice of America.

Thursday, we crossed over the Florida state-line and made our way onto Route A1A (Atlantic Coast Highway) and out to Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island for the night.

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

Once we set camp (hooked up the electric power and water, and push-out the power slides) we jumped in the car and headed into the historic downtown area where we enjoyed lunch at “29 South Eats”, rated the best restaurant in the Jacksonville area for 3 years in a row. It was a tad after 2:00pm when we arrived and were greeted by a friendly, energetic young woman named Melissa, who took good care of us throughout our meal. There was a bit of a mix up on Cindy’s meal (she ordered the pasta special but she server ordered the salmon special). Once she realized the mistake, she happily offered to redo the order but we declined. Cindy enjoyed her dish although it was not what she had set her sights upon. I opted for the Irish Club Sandwich with Guiness Whole Grain Mustard – wonderful! The restaurants signature dessert is a must try, Coffee and Doughnuts (a bread pudding made with Krispy Kreme doughnuts served with coffee ice cream and a caramel drizzle – WOW!!! We also enjoyed a lovely bottle of Longboard Pinot Noir which made for a really pleasant meal.

29 South Eats rates:

From Blogger Pictures

(Probably 5 spoons if not for the ordering mix-up)

After lunch we explored the downtown area as well as the beach area and had a chance to give the dogs a nice walk, although the bread pudding made us want to take a nice afternoon nap!

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

Friday we broke camp and headed down A1A to Fort George Island State Park to visit Kingsley Plantation (the last remaining antebellum plantation in Florida) complete with slave quarters, the Kitchen House and Plantation House. This site is off the beaten path but well worth a visit.

From The Gypsy Kitchen Adventures

We made our way into St Augustine by mid-afternoon and visited the historic downtown area for dinner where we stumbled upon this tiny little eatery, Casa Maya (Mayan cuisine). With a total of about 24 seats, this establishment has been serving breakfast and lunch for a few years but has just started serving dinner. We each started with a delicious Mexican Hot Chocolate, which is probably one of the best hot chocolates I’ve ever had. Cindy opted for Shrimp and Tamale special and I was tempted by the Carne Asada. Cindy thoroughly enjoyed her dish and claimed that it was the best dish so far along the trip! My Carne Asada was delicious, not the best ever but still pretty darn good. The young woman who acted as hostess and server informed us that in a few weeks the dinner menu is getting a major make-over to include an additional 20+ items!!! I hope that the quality does not get lost. This was certainly a hidden jewel worth anyones trip. In addition to the 8 inside tables, there are another 4 bistro style tables on a small patio area which would no-doubtedly be a wonderful way to enjoy a meal when the weather was a bit more cooperative.

Casa Maya rates:

From Blogger Pictures

(Highly recommended)

For information and/or directions for any of these establishments, please visit our interactive “Gypsy Kitchen Tour ‘09” map.

Make sure to log onto www.cookwithjohn.com and subscribe to receive FREE weekly recipes (this week’s recipe: “Limping Susan Gets Her Groove On”) and chance to win a 3–course dinner for 10 guests performed by the Gypsy Kitchen in the comfort of your own home.

Until next week,

Chef John
in the “Gypsy Kitchen”

www.cookwithjohn.com

john@cookwithjohn.com



Ratings Scale:

From Blogger Pictures

= Needs Work, Most Likely Would Not Return

From Blogger Pictures

= Good Basic Find, Things Could Be Improved, Would Probably Try Again

From Blogger Pictures

= As Expected, Good Choice, A Few Things Could Be Better, Almost Certainly Visit Again

From Blogger Pictures

= Better Than Expected, Great Choice, Would Definitely Revisit

From Blogger Pictures

= Totally Blown Away, Every Point Exceeded Expectation, Would Drive Out-Of-Way To Revisit

The Gypsy Kitchen - Week # 1

A Traveling Culinary Adventure

Oh what a wonderful feeling…

Right now I’m sitting in our motor coach with a cup of hot coffee, watching the sunrise over the Atlantic at beautiful Hunting Island, South Carolina.  It reached a high of 58 degrees yesterday…not exactly HOT…but it sure beats the 11 degrees in Maine a week ago!!!

We left Maine with over two feet of snow in our yard and were happy to see grass, albeit brown as early as New Jersey.

(Actual shot from just outside our coach.  Beach is no more than 20 yards away.)

Our goal with the Gypsy Kitchen is to seek out interesting, unusual and/or simply fun culinary excursions by traveling some of America’s forgotten highways and byways and to hopefully bring them to life here on these pages.  Another goal of ours is to try and bring some of the local flavors and cuisine from various regions of the country in the form of recipes and how-to videos in the very near future.  (Watch for those to begin soon).

With these goals in mind, once we cleared Washington D.C., we set our GPS for North Carolina’s Outer Banks, or OBX as the locals refer to them.  We had never visited this area before and thought it could make for an interesting “first stop” on our adventure.

Before I go on, let me get a few things out of the way…

1) Cindy is capable of driving the 36 foot motor coach as adequately as I certainly am, perhaps better.  The fact of the matter is that I make a horrible passenger and a worse navigator…whereas Cindy is very content being a passenger and is a tremendous navigator. 

2) For some unexplainable reason, it just takes longer to get anywhere in a motor coach then in a car…don’t ask me why, but I have quickly found that a car and an RV both traveling down the same road at the same speed DO NOT arrive at the same time – I think it’s one of those weird time-space vortex things.  Cindy and I are already questioning how we ever drove from Maine to Florida in a car packed with three kids in less then 36 hours whereas we have been on the road for a week now and are a little over half way to Florida?  (Actually, we are in absolutely no rush and are taking our time going from place to place – but the time-space thing still applies). 

3) Another fact we are quickly learning is that most RV Parks provide water, electric, sewer, and often cable and internet hook-ups.  Many offer other amenities like pools, playgrounds, activity centers, are pet friendly, etc. Many State and National Parks that offer RV camping provide water and electrical hook-ups, a dump station on site but usually no cable or internet but DO offer superior scenery and a real sense of being a part of nature. Many have hiking trails, biking trails, nature walks, are pet friendly and have a real nice neighborly feeling.  We will be attempting to stay at more State and National Parks during our adventure, but many book out months in advance so we will have to see how well we do.

4) Speaking of internet, right before we left on this adventure, we installed a brand new device called “Autonet Mobile” in the coach which somehow mystically grabs signals from all sorts of towers i.e. cell, EVDO, GSM, CDMA (whatever those are) and converts those signals into a secured traveling “WIFI” for automobiles and vehicles.  We saw this highlighted on the Today Show's piece on the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and said that’s just what we needed.  So we contacted Natalie at Autonet Mobile and she assisted in getting us the unit in time for our departure.  I did the install myself which took about 45 minutes start to finish – pretty basic red wire = positive, black wire = negative and we instantly had our own traveling WIFI!  We have not encountered anywhere yet that we have not had a signal, sometimes it’s slow but sure beats having to find a Starbucks or trying to use a Blackberry as a modem.  Anyone who travels a lot and needs access to the internet should check this out.  Their web address is www.autonetmobile.com  Remember that it is never suggested that one uses cell phones, computers or other electronic devices while operating a motor vehicle.

But back to our first week on the road…Within minutes of setting our sites on the Outer Banks, Cindy had located and booked us into one of the only RV Parks open in the area this time of year.

Because of the aforementioned time-space vortex, what appeared to be a 5 hour trip turned into a 7+ hour journey.  By the time we had made our way out to Hatteras Island, it was well after sunset and we were restless, tired and hungry.  About a mile before the RV park, we stopped by one of the only convenience stores open to top off the propane tank in the motor coach and asked the young attendant if he could recommend a place to eat locally and he pointed to the little dive joint next door, the “Hot Tuna”…his comment was that the food was always good and fresh – I hadn’t even noticed the place as the facade was -nondescript!!!

Our choices were few, we were starving so we figured “what-the-heck” and made our way towards the joint.  Upon entering, the inside decor matched the outside perfectly – “nondescript”.  The Hot Tuna is made up of two even-sized square rooms, one the bar which was obviously that local “hang” and the other the dining room complete with a small chalk board sign stating “seat yourself anywhere”.  Cindy and I found a small booth in the front corner with a window overlooking the parking lot.  Formica tabletops atop a brownish vinyl floor, paper napkins rolled with the generic diner patterned flat-ware, the typical plastic salt & pepper shaker and bottle of ketchup completed the table setting.  The dining room was occupied by 9 guests including Cindy & I – the bar had approximately 18 happy guests – all of which appeared to know one another.  After adjusting to the atmosphere and the smell of tobacco, the Hot Tuna actually began to sooth these two tired, weary travelers.  The place had a nice “vibe” to it and everyone seemed to be in a great mood – there was a buzz about the Hot Tuna!  Within a few minutes the bartender/waitress appeared with a mile-wide smile and menu’s, took our drink orders and with a dash was off to attend to ALL of the guests in the entire joint.  A few minutes later she had returned to take our orders and made a few suggestions of what were the “house specialties” – the Seared Tuna Basket & the Crab Cake Basket (the Baskets come with your choice of potato salad or French fries, cole slaw and hush puppies and are considered the “entree” selections on the menu).

While Cindy and I enjoyed our beverages and awaited our respective “Baskets”, we had time to watch as more and more guests arrived, both for the dining room and the bar area and we watched as this happy-go-lucky server danced from guest to guest…maybe she was one of the “buzz” factors as she just seemed to set the pace as slow and comfy, by now the place had about 35 guests total.

Within 10 minutes from placing our order, our “Baskets” arrived complete with our cole slaw, potato salad and tartar sauce sitting in their own Styrofoam cups complete with plastic lids (very diner-ish).  At first I thought that the food just tasted this good because we were both so hungry, but as I took the time to examine my crab cakes, it was clear to see that these were certainly home-made and full of fresh sweet crab meat, gently seared and golden brown…hey – this was really good and tasty.  I looked over at Cindy’s Seared Tuna to see that it was beautifully cooked with a nice ruby red center – I also noticed the look of content on her face…she had picked a “winner” with this “Basket”.  Okay, we were in this dive kind-of joint which is nothing to write home about and we are eating really excellent food served in those ugly red plastic baskets with the waxed paper, we’re enjoying the now “live” guitarist playing James Taylor, Crosby, Still, Nash & Young and others…people are happy and content and heck – it’s not 11 degrees outside!!!

The Hush Puppies were a tad over cooked but still tasty, the potato salad could stand a bit more seasoning and the tartar sauce was, like the place “nondescript” but whoever was cooking the actual proteins knew their stuff.  (Actually, the cook/chef appeared from time to time to help serve some of the courses to guests, bus a table here and there and to say hello to several of the locals occupying the bar area.  It appeared as though the chef and bartender/server were the only two employees serving now up to about 40+ guests.

Service was certainly not what anyone would call formal and there were gaps between visits – but the service was attentive, friendly and warm.

All-in-all, I would have to say that we enjoyed “Hot Tuna”, when we left our appetites had been satisfied, our bodies re-nourished and our spirits lifted.  If we found ourselves back in the OBX area, the Hot Tuna would certainly be a contender for a repeat visit.  I might suggest that the Styrofoam cups for the potato salad and other condiments is unnecessary and probably costly and wasteful (Styrofoam does not break-down in landfills EVER) – I can see it for take-out (perhaps paper cups) but not for table service.  Adding a bit more care in the flavoring and seasoning of these same condiments could really improve the entire dish rather then simply accompanying it and watch the Hush Puppies…golden brown – not dark brown.

Overall I would rate the Hot Tuna:  Worth a try, good quality food, friendly service, nice vibe.

Hot Tuna
23500 NC Highway 12
Rodanthe, NC 27968

   (Hatteras Lighthouse, Outer Banks, North Carolina)

After two days resting up, we headed out of the Outer Bank making our way towards Charleston, South Carolina…again the trip somehow took about 50% longer then we anticipated.  Maybe some of that is due to stopping every couple of hours so the dogs could enjoy the scents of the area (any dog owner knows of what I refer).  Perhaps stopping at several little shops along the way adds to the travel time.  One stop we made was to this impeccably clean fish market “Full Circle Crab Co.” located on Highway 64 in Columbia, NC.  This is a must stop for any seafood lovers traveling through this area of the country.  Although the name is Full Circle Crab Company and apparently they handle tons of crab in season, this retailer/wholesaler has a wonderful array of seafood both local species as well as some varieties brought-in from other parts of the world.  Wow, the yellow fin tuna and and sweet bay scallops looked too good to pass-by…we cooked them up over the next 2 nights and they were both delicious.  This place is so clean and well maintained that you actually could eat off the floor.  The woman behind the counter could not have been nicer nor more informative.

Full Circle Crab Co. gets:     Impeccably clean, the freshest of fish, selection, quality.

Full Circle Crab Co
1366 Highway 64 East
East Columbia, NC 27925

Unfortunately for us, Charleston was cold, foggy and dreary while we were visiting, not common for them according to several of the locals.  We did venture downtown to the visitors center and to Market Street (where the slave auctions took place in earlier times…now an outdoor market with all kinds of vendors).  We wanted to find a place that served fare of a local variety and found ourselves moving from menu board to menu board until we happened upon the “Noisy Oyster” on North Market Street.  BBQ Shrimp BLT Po Boy and Shrimp & Okra Gumbo sounded like just what we were seeking.  Largely due to the weather, this place was virtually empty upon our arrival around 12:20PM.  We were greeted by an extremely friendly crew, enjoyed a couple of well prepared Bloody Mary’s (this is all work folks!!!).  Our server pointed out the Seafood Trio Appetizer Special of a dozen local Oysters, a dozen steamed shrimp and some seared yellow fin tuna – we were sold…delicious, wonderful, fresh.  Some of the best oysters we have had in a while – large plump, tangy sweet…the shrimp beautifully steamed so they were fully cooked but still had a nice snap to them and the tuna, again a lovely ruby red center.  Served with cocktail sauce, sweetened soy sauce and wasabi…WOW a definite home run.

   (Noisy Oyster, North Market Street, Charleston, SC)

The BBQ Shrimp Po Boy was messy and delicious as well although the bun was a bit dry, perhaps a day old.  Cindy loved the shrimp & okra gumbo with the snappy shrimp, rice, okra, onion, tomato, etc.  We were stuffed as the appetizer would have been enough for the 2 of us for lunch…we skipped dinner altogether.

We wish we had more time to explore this wonderful little city, perhaps on another visit.  If we find ourselves in the area…we are sure to visit the “Noisy Oyster” again.  This time we won’t pig-out like this time.

The Noisy Oyster gets: Great regional food, nice staff, good drinks.

Noisy Oyster
24 North Market Street
Charleston, SC 29401

From Charleston, we made our way down to Hunting Island State Park, South Carolina which we absolutely love.  We originally reserved 2 nights but have extended our stay through Monday, February 2^nd.  The weather is improving daily – actually high 50’s right now, sun shining.  Here are a few pictures of the area.

  (Hunting Island Light House, Hunting Island, SC)

  (The beach at Hunting Island, SC)

  (The dogs enjoying the beach, Hunting Island, SC)

(Dinner in the coach – Beef Tenderloin with Syrah-Herb 
   Reduction, Haricot Verts with Garlic and EVOO
   and Sweet Florida Corn)

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Until next week,

Chef John
in the “Gypsy Kitchen”

www.cookwithjohn.com

john@cookwithjohn.com

Ratings Scale:

= Needs Work, Most Likely Would Not Return

= Good Basic Find, Things Could Be Improved, Would Probably Try Again

= As Expected, Good Choice, A Few Things Could Be Better, Almost Certainly Visit Again

= Better Than Expected, Great Choice, Would Definitely Revisit

= Totally Blown Away, Every Point Exceeded Expectation, Would Drive Out-Of-Way To Revisit

Tags: traveling, eating, seafood, Outer+Banks, North+Carolina, South+Carolina, Charleston, OBX, Hunting+Island, Hot+Tuna, Noisy+Oyster, Full+Circle+Crab+Co, Po+Boy, Gumbo, shrimp, yellowfin+tuna, scallops, beef+tenderloin, lighthouse, Hatteras+Island

New Years Resolutions We Can Handle...

Okay, it’s that time of year…again. And I’m sitting here in front of my keyboard thinking…again. I can’t begin to count the number of times I have pledged to loose weight as my New Years Resolution. For those of you that may not know me well, I have been called “portly” on more then one occasion! My intentions are good, it’s the delivery where I need the help…the trouble is - I love food!!!

I have been a chef for over 35 years…I love working with food, I love the smells and aroma’s of food, I love the textures and varieties of food and I adore the taste of food…I love the taste of pan-seared foie gras with toasted brioche bread as much as I love the taste of a crisp Granny Smith apple. I savor every morsel of a filet mignon with a pinot noir reduction with Bleu cheese as much as I savor fresh figs with prosciutto. I adore a delicious hot dog steamed in beer with grainy mustard on a toasted bun as much as I adore fresh sushi. I crave kettle potato chips as much as I crave a bowl of grapes…I love food!!!

So here I am thinking…how do I address my portliness without having to give-up or sacrifice that which I truly love - food? I honestly know that if I try to convince myself that I will forgo the chips, the hot dogs, the foie gras and the rich sauces and only have what is “good for me” then I will fail, and fail miserably!!! I would be so depressed having to sip on some nice herbal tea when what I really want is a nice glass of Argentinean Malbec. Then I think…hey, I’m sure that I am not alone - there must be plenty of us “portly” people who want to trim down but cannot see ourselves giving up what is so near and dear to us…”flavor”!!! I’m sorry but I’ve already tried the “low-fat” cream cheese on my bagels and no thanks!

Hey, I’m a professional chef…if anyone can come up with ways to prepare great tasting food while reducing the fat, then shouldn’t a professional chef??? Come on John, step-up to the plate - if not you, who? If not now, when? (Aren’t you happy you don’t have to live in my head?) Let’s see…I should be able to come up with a program where I can still enjoy “most” of the foods I love (which is most) and yet still dramatically cut back on the FAT intake…and yes, I’m going to have to get out there and exercise (which is something I really like to do - but just don’t seem to work enough of it into my schedule).

So, here I sit at my keyboard with food thoughts running through my head…and I think that maybe, perhaps many of you would like to do the same…keep the flavors and tastes alive - just cut a lot of the FAT out of our daily lives. Not only would it most likely improve our waistlines (and other body parts), it can’t help but help our hearts, cholesterol, diabetes, etc.

Now I’m getting excited…I can think of all kinds of ways to reduce the FAT without having to sacrifice the flavor…here are just some of my thoughts”

1) 1 ounce of Neufchatel cheese contains 6.6 grams of FAT compared to cream cheese which contains 9.9 grams of FAT in the same 1 ounce. Neufchatel cheese is readily available in most supermarkets, right next to the cream cheese - tastes great on my “Everything” bagel and I can reduce 33% of the FAT. That’s a “No-Brain-er”.

2) When I make a 3 egg omelet, if I omit just one of the yolks, I’m still going to have a light, fluffy and delicious dish and save almost 30% of the FAT. This isn’t as difficult as I thought it might be.

3) I love shrimp, it’s a great carrier of flavor…3 ounces of shrimp contain only 1 gram of FAT! Now if I pair that with some fresh garlic, peppers, onions, some vine ripened tomatoes, a little white wine and some vegetable stock and serve it with some Basmati rice,,,I’ve got a wonderful dinner in minutes and with almost no FAT!!! I could serve this up at least once per week, don’t you think?

4) When I feel that I must make a cream sauce or whipped cream for dessert, I can substitute canned evaporated milk for the heavy cream and cut away 9 grams of fat per 1/4 cup (10 grams for heavy cream, 1 gram for evaporated milk).

5) When I want to bake a pie or make a tart…if I substitute phyllo dough (1.7 grams per ounce) instead of pie dough(9.3 grams)or puff pastry (11 grams), I can save my waste-line a whole lot of added FAT!

6) Speaking of baking…if I use apple butter (available at most supermarkets) instead of oil in most baking recipes, I can instantly reduce 30% of the FAT and still have a delicious moist and flavorful dish.

7) If I spread only jam on my English Muffins or toast instead of butter and jam… still get most of the flavor and eliminate 11 grams of FAT for every tablespoon of butter I would use.

8) When I want to make myself a grilled sandwich…if I spread the outside of the bread with “Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil” instead of butter - I cut out 1/2 the FAT…and the toast gets a nice golden color without getting dry.

9) If I use my micro-plane or the small holes of a box grater for cheeses like Parmesan or cheddar I will actually use much less cheese then if I purchased shredded cheese at the store. I not only save money but dramatically cut down on my FAT intake.

10) Although buttermilk sounds like it’s high in FAT, actually it has the same amount as 1% milk…so I should use more buttermilk when baking or when I want to make creamy salad dressings.

11) When I make stews, soups and stir-fries, I can cut back the meats I use by 1/3 and add more vegetables, rice, beans or pasta. The taste will still be great and and I again will have omitted a fair amount of the FAT.

12)Lastly…if I prepare just one dinner per week which is a “meatless” (beef, poultry, seafood) meal and instead create a vegetarian stir-fry, chili, roasted tomato-caramelized onion and feta tart (using phyllo dough) with a little pesto - I will cut another huge amount of FAT from my weekly diet.


My head is spinning with all these different ideas on how to reduce and/or eliminate FAT from my diet without sacrificing flavor, taste or creativity…and you can do the same. Now all we have to do is simply “Do It”!!! Take the leap of faith and get on with our lives without hauling all the FAT along with us.

Here’s an honest confession…I much prefer a sip of Port much more then I like being called “Portly”.

I’d love to hear your ideas and/or thoughts about how we can cherish the flavor and cut the FAT…please share them for ALL of our sakes.

Until next time, Happy New Year!!!



Chef John
john@cookwithjohn.com
www.cookwithjohn.com