The Sleeper burger – Poe’s Tavern

Posted on June 12, 2012 by vicentesf

The Sleeper burger - Poe's Tavern
Half-pound burger ground in-house and cooked to order. Served on a freshly baked bun, with lettuce, tomato, pickles, fried onions, and a side of hand-cut French fries. Topped with roasted garlic blue cheese and Buffalo shrimp. $11
Poe’s Tavern, Sullivan’s Island SC

The Sleeper burger - Poe's Tavern
What was I thinking ordering this super heavy burger? It was delicious, but super rich and large! I wasn’t very hungry at the time so perhaps this wasn’t the best choice. I will say that the patty had a weird texture. It was very crumbly underneath the sear and fell apart quite easily. The Buffalo shrimp was great though!

The Sleeper burger - Poe's Tavern
These fries were delicious, but they got soggy as they cooled down.

Gun powder room at Fort Moultrie. In the middle of the Fort, they had a reconstructed powder house containing barrels of gun powder. You can’t go inside, but I snapped this pic through the bars of the door window.

Shanghai pan fried noodles – Xiao Long Bao Kitchen

Posted on June 2, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 119

It was so weird being back at work today. I guess I wasn’t in Europe for very long, but I feel like I need a few days to get back into the groove. I tried out the new-ish restaurant The Dancing Pig tonight with David against advice from friends, and the reviews I’ve heard were correct – it’s not very good! The service was HORRENDOUS (it was super slow and sporadic and the server forgot our drink order) and the food was just ok. Don’t think I’ll go back.

Shanghai pan fried noodles Xiao Long Bao Kitchen
Fried egg noodles topped with beef, chicken, shrimp, scallops, bok choy, carrots, and mushrooms.
Xiao Long Bao Kitchen, South San Francisco CA

I read somewhere that using egg noodles in a dish like this actually makes it Cantonese instead of Shanghainese. I learned something new! You really need lots of sauce in this dish to help soften the fried noodles. This tasted pretty good and I’m glad they don’t skimp on the proteins.

Taquitos de camarones al ajillo – Toro Salao

Posted on May 30, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 113

Omg, the bathroom in our room is SO small. I’m not a big guy, but even I feel claustrophobic in it! I wonder how Kryan and David do it!? The complimentary breakfast at the Abbott Lodge Guesthouse is pretty decent. You get coffee, juice, toast, eggs, bacon, sausage, and cereal. The service is kinda slow but there were only 2 older ladies serving all the guests so I don’t want to complain too much.

Today we took a bus to the Guinness Storehouse which is an awesome museum with a great bar (Gravity Bar) at the top of the building. It’s self-guided so you can go at your own pace. I liked the displays and everything was super clean and interesting. We also took the Guinness “Perfect Pour” class and it was actually really cool. I learned a lot about the beer and our instructor was nice and friendly. He was from Michigan though – I would have preferred an local Irishman with a cool accent, hehe. Later in Gravity Bar, we saw none other than Susan Boyle! Omg, that was SO random. I was just about to go politely ask for a photo with her when a group of 15 school kids mobbed her. I was able to snap a blurry photo of her anyway.

Later, we had a late lunch/early dinner at the Bachelor Inn with a decent looking server with straight teeth (lol), then headed back to the guesthouse to relax. I think tonight we’ll hit up Front Lounge for drinks, then The George for a drag show!

Taquitos de camarones al ajillo Toro Salao
Crispy garlic shrimp taco rolls with a citrus aioli. $10
Toro Salao, Old San Juan, PUERTO RICO

Taquitos de camarones al ajillo Toro Salao
These were SO good! They were nice and warm, and perfect with the citrus aioli. Noms!

The Plaza of the Heritage of the Americas with sculptures by Jose Buscaglia. Statues from left to right: Heritage of Faith, bronze, 9’ high, 1975; Heritage of Blood, bronze, 9’ high, 1976; Intellectual Heritage, bronze, 9’ high, 1975; Hispanic Heritage, bronze, 9’ high, 1995.

Ceviche – St. Germain Bistro & Cafe

Posted on May 25, 2012 by vicentesf

Ceviche St. Germain Bistro & Cafe

Mahi mahi, shrimp, red onion and bell peppers cured in lime juice. Garnished with apple slices. $11.68
St. Germain Bistro & Cafe, Old San Juan, PUERTO RICO

This tasted all right, but the mahi mahi was starting to get squishy and have a grainy texture. The flavors were there though.

Looking out onto the San Juan Bay along the Paseo de la Princesa. This was near the start of a pleasant waterfront stroll on the Paseo. The shade trees were abundant in this section, but were nonexistent on the latter portion of the Paseo.

Mixed hot pot curry – Do Brazil

Posted on May 23, 2012 by vicentesf

Do Brazil's hot pot
Shrimp, chicken, and mahi mahi in a mild curry, served with white rice, wasabi, and pickled ginger.
Do Brazil, Gustavia, SAINT BARTHELEMY

Do Brazil's hot pot
This dish was ok, a bit on the bland side. I did appreciate the presentation and the large pieces of protein inside.

Decorative elephant door handles. The houses and buildings around Gustavia were very cute, and for the most part bright. These antiqued handles looked great against the white doors.

Sea island shrimp & Plantation pork – Waterfront Cafe

Posted on May 20, 2012 by vicentesf

Sea island shrimp & Plantation pork
Cajun spiced and char-grilled shrimp with a ginger soy glaze. Ripe plantain stuffed with ground pork, capers and herbs, deep-fried and served with a tomato salsa. Part of “Tapas for Two” $64 (Barbados dollar)
Waterfront Cafe, Bridgetown, BARBADOS

Plantation pork Waterfront Cafe
Mmm, this was very good! The shrimp was surprisingly tender even with that amount of char on the outside. The fried pork balls were different, but very yummy. I don’t think I’ve even had something like it before. Both items were packed with flavor.

Captain Thomas Henry Sealy grave
Looking down in the grave of Captain Thomas Henry Sealy, located at the cemetery at St. John’s Church. Our taxi driver tour guide told us that we wanted to be buried standing up and facing the sea so he could remain on the lookout for approaching enemy ships. What a diva, lol!

Popcorn shrimp combo – Patty Shack

Posted on May 19, 2012 by vicentesf

Popcorn shrimp combo Patty Shack

Breaded and deep fried shrimp served with a side of French fries and sweet and sour sauce. $9.50 (East Caribbean dollar)
Patty Shack, Roseau, DOMINICA

So Patty Shack is a fast food chain on Dominica, and I wasn’t too impressed. I guess I’m used to the speed of American fast food chains, and this place was slower than I’m used to. It took a good 15 minutes for me to receive my order. The shrimp were hard and dry and the fries were limp and soggy.

Roseau Dominica
View of downtown Roseau. This was not my favorite island of the trip. We were verbally harassed by a group of locals and generally felt uneasy thereafter. While there aren’t too many tourist attractions in downtown Roseau, I would definitely suggest walking in groups.

Hokkaido sea cucumber stuffed with shrimp – Benu

Posted on April 24, 2012 by vicentesf

With cucumber, onion, and fermented pepper. Pre fixe dinner $180
Benu, San Francisco

Um, this was the first time I’ve had sea cucumber. I was dreading it when I saw it on the menu and again when it arrived at the table. It actually wasn’t that bad. It didn’t have much of a flavor, but the texture didn’t appeal to me. The red sauce also didn’t taste like much, but the white gooey blob was kinda gross. I’m glad I tried it, but I don’t think I’ll be ordering sea cucumber again. If they couldn’t make me love it at Benu, I doubt I’ll like it from somewhere else.

Pan fried seafood pot stickers – Wang’s in the Desert

Posted on April 4, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 85

Another ho-hum day at work. I had a great workout afterward, then swung by Dinosaurs for a banh mi sandwich before grabbing the J Muni back home. The prices were SO cheap there that I bought an extra sandwich to bring to lunch tomorrow. They were very tasty! Pics to come once I’m caught up, lol!

Pan fried seafood pot stickers Wang's in the Desert

Shrimp and scallops with water chestnuts and scallions (4 pieces). Served with a ginger soy dipping sauce. $10
Wang’s in the Desert, Palm Springs CA

These pot stickers looked promising on the menu, but they were a little dry and dense. I really wasn’t all that impress with the food at Wang’s overall. Their happy hour is a lot more fun and a better value than their actual dinner.

Bun with grilled prawns – Hometown Noodle 2

Posted on April 1, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 78

Finally, we’ve made it to Gustavia, Saint Barthelemy (St. Barths)! We had a small breakfast at the Oceanview Cafe, then met the gang to tender to shore. Gustavia is really clean and pretty and EXPENSIVE! Everything is also in Euros so it’s more expensive than you think. We made our way to Shell Beach and rented chairs for the day. Thank goodness because there were a few downpours but we stayed mostly dry. We had a fabulous lunch at Do Brazil, laid out and swam all day, did some shopping in town, had coffee at a cafe, then tendered back to the ship. So sad to leave such a beautiful and relaxing island. We relaxed in our cabin for a little bit, then I went for a snack at Oceanview Cafe, met Silverfox for drinks at the Martini Bar, had dinner with the gang in the main dining room, took a disco nap, then partied the night away at the White Party!

Bun with grilled prawns Hometown Noodle 2

Bun tom nuong. Cold vermicelli, a thin rice noodle, is call “bun” in Vietnamese. With pickled carrots and radish, cucumber, and garnished with toasted peanuts and green onions. Served with fish sauce and choice of meat. Large $8.25
Hometown Noodle 2, San Bruno CA

Shrimp spring rolls – Hometown Noodle 2

Posted on April 1, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 77

Roseau, Dominica! The exclamation point means “get me out of here!” No joke, this place was super scary and the people were NOT friendly. I had 2 breakfasts this morning, one at Oceanview Cafe and the other at AquaSpa Cafe. Then we were stupid enough to go explore Roseau by ourselves instead of doing an excursion elsewhere on the island. The town was pretty dirty and some of the people were scary and mean. We walked around town just checking the non-existent sites, looked for a bookstore, visited Our Lady of Fair Haven Cathedral, had a Jamaican beef patty at Patty Shack, then ran back to the ship. We tried to decompress in the solarium while eating food from the AquaSpa Cafe and the Pool/Mast Grill. We then attended the 70’s T-Dance, had drinks at the Martini Bar, had a couple’s dinner at the main dining room, watch Mario Cantone, then went to the Oceanview Cafe for ice cream.

2 large rolls with boiled shrimp, lettuce, bean sprouts and rice noodle are wrapped in thin rice sheets. Served with house special peanut sauce. $5.25
Hometown Noodle 2, San Bruno CA

Green tea. Complimentary.

Garlicky gambas – Canela

Posted on March 12, 2012 by vicentesf

Shrimp with smoky paprika, sherry and lemon. Tapa $9
Canela, San Francisco

This was a different take on the gambas al ajillo that you normally get at other Spanish tapas restaurants. The smoky paprika added a lot of flavor and gave the broth a beautiful red color. The lemon wedge is also cooked into the sauce and gave the broth a nice citrus-y taste. The shrimp were cooked a little more than I would have liked, but the sauce made up for it. Ask for additional bread to soak it all up!

Vittle Monster

Feed me!

Tag Archives: shrimp