Lolita Bakery

I think I may have a new favorite lunch spot near my work. Me and half the town based on the line of people waiting for a table. This cafe has genuine small town charm and friendliness, with just amazing food. The menu changes daily, and the breads and desserts are made on premises. When I asked for a cup of coffee they said "medium or dark roast?"

The waitress recommended the special, chicken pot pie - so I had that, while my friend had the open-faced egg salad sandwich made with farm fresh eggs (from down the street). My pot pie had the biggest, most tender pieces of breast meat in it....I mean, it was almost ridiculous, I had to take pieces out and put them on my plate to cut them up, not that I am complaining! The gravy was so savory and rich, but not too heavy on the cream, and it was also brimming with veg, lots of sweet red peppers that balanced the savory/saltiness of the gravy. The crust was pie style, not commercial puff pastry like what they used at VI.

The salad is also worth a mention, fresh greens with slivered almonds, just a touch of goat cheese, and dried cranberries in a light vinegrette. Normally I don't do dessert, not with lunch, but I saw a homemade pie on the way in that I knew I had to try, and my friend had one of their fresh baked oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

The pie was a dark chocolate cream, thicker than regular "pudding" type pies, with great fresh whipped cream on top. My friends cookie was rich, chewy, with a strong vanilla flavor. Okay, probably the best cookie I have had in a very long time. The pie was also fantastic, but so rich I could only eat about 4 bites and took the rest home (my husband and I split it after dinner later on). Next time, I might go in just for pie and coffee, but probably wouldn't order dessert again after a meal.  I noticed many people ordering the cookies to take home.

The tab for two sandwiches with side salads, two cups of coffee, and two desserts, with a generous Christmas-time tip was $32, which makes this place a bargain when you consider that everything is farm fresh and made from scratch. I am taking my husband there to try it out himself some time next week, and I am looking forward to going back myself.

The Sea Grill

It has been a while - much traveling and holiday fun sidetracked me and prevented me from meeting my goal of finishing "the project" by years end. No matter. Delayed but not forgotten, I went with my friend Nancy to The Sea Grill, the #1 rated restaurant in Eureka according to TripAdvisor, for lunch yesterday.

Based on the other guests, The Sea Grill caters to the business-lunch and senior crowd. The atmosphere was fairly formal, linens and polished presentations, etc., but there were something odd about it too. For example, the first options on the wine menu (tasteful leather-ette binder) was Ingelwood Chablis or Blush wine by the half or full carafe. Half carafe of blush now goes for $6, in case you are curious. Once inside the wine list though, there was a reasonable selection of decent wines - nothing outstanding. Why put carafe of blush on page 1 unless you think that will be the first choice of those who are eating at your restaurant though? Now the tables of nicely dressed 70-year-old women are starting to make more sense.....

The building is well lit and decorated - there was no background music, we were able to easily carry on a conversation without raising our voices, and we were never disturbed by the conversations of the other diners. Pleasant...not so formal that I felt like I could not relax, yet fancy enough to feel like a bit of a treat.

I was not very impressed with the lunch menu...all the usual, fish and chips, french dip sandwiches, crab melts - and had made up my mind to get a grilled calamari sandwich with a side salad, when the server came over and announced the specials. Grilled salmon entree, for $17, or mahi-mahi tacos for $12. I love fish tacos, so decided to allow the chef to 'wow' me with his special. Nancy ordered the snapper almondine, this came with a cup of chowder to start, then rice pilaf and vegetables, $14.

First mine. Two small tacos, about 2 oz. of seasoned, grilled mahi-mahi on each, topped with some shredded cabbage, a white sauce, and lime wedges. They were fine. I did enjoy the spicy rub on the fish...no need to reach for the hot sauce - so well done there. Having said that, I left hungry, and so we went down the block to Ramone's Bakery, where I enjoyed a macchiato and a cupcake for dessert - but that's another review.

Nancy's snapper was very tasty. Moist, nice crust, sweet almonds, just a hint of garlic in the sauce. The green beans were just crunchy enough, and she reported that the chowder was excellent. I didn't taste the chowder or the pilaf so can't fairly report on those.

Bottom line - The Sea Grill is fine, but I can't see myself going back really. I guess if my mom was in town, she would probably enjoy it so I would go with her. It is a notch better than other local options....I guess I wanted to like it more than I actually did. I don't know if it is the chef's fault - maybe in trying to appeal to a wide-enough audience to keep his business going he lost touch with what he was trying to do in the first place?

Oberon Grill

Quiet Wednesday night, but the start of a long weekend so it seemed like a good time to check out the Oberon Grill in Old Town Eureka.

Sat down and ordered a round of classic Manhattans to see what their bar was up to. Then we decided to split the Chef's special appetizer of Shrimp Cakes with a pesto sauce to start. I ordered the apple and brandy glazed pork with mashed potatoes, and Geoff went with the roasted chicken breast, pan seared in white wine and served in the Mediterranean style with sundried tomoatoes and olives, with a side of rice pilaf.

The drinks were watery. The bartender got distracted while making them and let the bourbon sit and melt the ice. I know this because Geoff watched her make them, and saw her walk away to double-check the recipe mid-stream. It wasn't bad enough to send back, but lesson learned: skip the bar.

The shrimp cakes had very little shrimp in them - and what there was was the cheap tiny pink bay shrimp. They were cooked okay, but were almost tasteless under the pesto sauce. For a special, well, doesn't say much for the kitchen does it?

For my entree, the pork chop was not glazed at all, it was just covered in apple sauce, and I could not taste any brandy. Geoff's chicken was not roasted. It came out white as snow, and the only flavor was from the sundried tomato and olive topping. Both our vegetables were dripping in butter and we didn't enjoy them much, but the rice and potatoes were tasty and got eaten.

Geoff said during dinner that this was essentially overpriced conference food meets Trader Joes, At first I thought he was being a bit harsh, but really, it was just standard hotel entrees dressed up with Trader Joe's style garnishes. It would be fine to get this if I was stuck eating a dinner at a hotel during a business event, but to have this at what is suppose to be one of the better and more expensive restaurants in town....well, this is the sort of thing that makes people have a dim view of their dining options in Eurkea to begin with.

On a bright note, the service was the best we've had in town. We asked for the entrees to not be served until after the drinks, and he came back and asked when he could have the chef fire the dinners - and didn't act like we were being pains about it. He was attentive without being obnoxious, and I know this shouldn't be a big deal, but believe me, I've grown so accustomed to bad service I forgot there was another option. Oh, and I did tell him that the pork was not glazed...that apple sauce is not glazed, and he said that yeah, other customers had said the same thing and that he would mention it to the kitchen because the meal was not described well on the menu. In retrospect, would have been nice if he had said something earlier.

Half way down the list for this project, and this is the first restaurant that I definitly will not returning to.

VI

We had tickets to see my fellow thespian, Kyra, star in 'Brides of Dracula' at the Ferndale Repertory Theater, and so I decided this would be a good opportunity to check out the one Ferndale restaurant on the list - VI. That is an odd name, and it is not "6," but rather, the restaurant in the lobby of the 100+ year old Victorian Inn Hotel.

Beautiful building, very elegant, and since I made a reservation, we got a table in the bay window with a view of the street. Period-style wall paper and chandeliers, table lamps....very special. I was going to order wine, but when I glanced at the bar list and saw one of their specials was a negroni (a favorite drink from my trip to Italy), I decided I had to try that. They served it up in a martini glass with a thick twist of lemon peel, and it was good - bitter and just sweet enough without going overboard.

For lunch I ordered the chef's special: chicken and mushroom pot pie with a side salad. I could have picked any number of delicious sounding dishes and pot pie didn't sound all that special, but the server said it was hearty and perfect for the weather, and she liked it...so why not. She also recommended the green apple balsamic dressing for the salad over the more traditional choices, and I decided to trust her again. Geoff was more adventurous, and opted for the Portugese-style seafood paella.

The rolls were baked that day and were very good - served simply with softened, whipped, unsalted butter. I forgot to ask if they were made in house. My salad was mixed greens and tiny-tiny tomatoes, and was actually tossed - they did not just pile a bunch of dressing on top like I have come to expect. I was afraid green apple would be too tart for the Spring greens, but there was enough sweetness so it worked.

The pot pie was topped with puff pastry instead of a pie crust, which was pretty, but the underside got too damp and became sort of gummy. After a few bites I moved it to the side with my fork. The stew inside was delicious - they used lots of shiitake mushrooms, baby potatoes, wee bits of diced carrots and peas, with the occasional fleck of bacon. Lots of cubes of white meat that had been pre-seared to keep in the moisture, so the texture was firm and the meat juicy. But in the end, it was all about the gravy! Thick, creamy, slight taste of onion although there was no onion in the stew itself, lots of pepper and I think rosemary and parsley.

The paella came out in a mini paella dish - loaded with mussels, clams, scallops, shimp and Portugese style linguica. The rice was bright from all the saffron, with good tooth, and just enough peppers cooked in to add flavor without being too spicy. The rice was easily the best I've had in a paella, mostly because they were so generous with the saffron and they didn't overcook it. The seafood - well, some was frozen, like the shrimp and scallops, but that is to be expected considering our location. I am pretty sure the clams were fresh and the mussels probably were - but the linguica was the best, I am sure made locally from Ferndale meats down the street for the large local Portugese population.

Service was prompt, friendly and non-intrusive. We were dressed up for the theater, but most of the other patrons were pretty casual, and the servers wore button-down shirts and slacks. Without drinks or tip, it was just under $40, which is expensive for lunch, but that was our choice - there were plenty of options in the $10-14 range, like fish & chips, assorted grilled sandwiches, and an artisan mac & cheese.

VI is much better than your standard "hotel" restaurant. The menu is old-fashioned, but they know what they are doing in the kitchen, they don't skimp on ingrediants, and I like they have negroni and paella for those who want to go beyond Cosmos and steaks. I can definitly see going back for drinks after a play, or for a sandwiches on my way back from playing at the Eel River.

Brick & Fire

Dinner: 10/10/10

I tried to eat here last week but was told that since we didn't have a reservation we couldn't get in. Really? In Eureka? Okay, so I made a reservation for the following week with the determination that if this place really is this 'hot' that I was going to work my way around the menu and see what the fuss was about.

I was impressed with the wine list that featured lots of Italian varietals, and decent bottles in the $20 range, and everything available by the glass. The bread basket had three types of bread, each made in-house that morning. I recall a 3-seed bread (poppy, sunflower and pumpkin), a heavier barley style, and one with sweet onion and cumin. The olive oil was really fruity and a great accompaniment - but I didn't eat too much bread because I didn't want to ruin my appetite for what was to follow.

We started with the roasted oysters and the mushroom cobbler. Both were excellent, prepared and seasoned well, and very tasty. Also not too large, which is a good thing because I hate getting filled up on the appetizer so I can't finish the entree. For dinner I ordered one of the rotating dishes, the organic pork chop served with stewed apples, a gorgonzola sauce, and steak fries with homemade ketchup. Geoff ordered one of the regular items, the brick-fire game hen with a fig/wine sauce and rice pilaf. We split a side of kale and red peppers (you have to order vegetables separately, no veggies come with the entrees).

The pork was perfectly cooked, the sauce was not too rich or salty, and the apples rounded the whole dish. I thought the fries were good - but not necessary and would have prefered the potatoes cooked another way, garlic-smashed maybe? We both agree the game hen was the BEST we'd ever had. The server said it was one of the best things on the menu, and for the price (under $20) this was a bargain considering the care in the sauce and the preparation. Neither of us liked the kale and peppers because they had a sour aftertaste - this was the only thing that did not work at all. If I could get a do-over, I would have gone with the roasted cauliflower.

We split a creme brulee, lightly flavored with orange and vanilla, and garnished with a slice of strawberry, a blackberry, and a green leaf that I assumed was mint, but after careful inspection (and finally asking the server who asked the chef) turned out to be fresh oregano leaf from their herb garden. They chose too deep a dish for the brulee which made the top of the custard get too hot during torching. The crust was perfect, but some of the custard was runny. We still ate the whole thing in under 5 minutes - I really like creme brulee!

Now the really, really picky stuff. The plating was unimaginitive. I tried to take a picture of one dish and everything just looked brown. Brown hen, brown pilaf, brown sauce, on a plain white dish, served on a white tablecoth. The interior is really beautiful and the sound level was lively, but we could still hear each other without raising our voices. The restaurant was warm because of the wood-burning ovens - something the server said right up front with a nod suggesting I take off my wrap (which I did).

We had a $25 bottle of wine, two starters, two entrees and one dessert, for $97. Pricy for Eureka, but the same meal in San Francisco would run at least $50 more. There was a family across from us - parents in University sweatshirts with a toddler, and they were all just spliting a pizza and a salad. Again, I love the range of offerings, and can see stopping by after work to sit at the counter with a draft microbrew and some pizza, as well as going back for special occasions.

I am batting a thousand so far, and am glad that I started this project. Next up, Folie Douce on the 19th.

Renata's Creperie - Sunday Brunch

Renata's Creperie is right off the plaza, and always crowded. I hadn't given it much thought but then had two friends recommend it so it made its way onto the list for 'The Project.'  We arrived at 10:50 and waited 10 minutes to be seated. The staff was friendly without being overly chatty, which I appreciate. The ambiance is artistic/funky with original artwork, murals and mobiles, and the female waitress favoring vintage-style dresses. 

I ordered the Crepe Provencal with almonds and spinach instead of ham. The other ingredients were jack, chevre, sundried tomatoes and basil.

Geoff ordered the Crepe Del Sol, which was a scrambled egg, jack, spinach, creme fraiche and spring onions.

I had Earl Grey, and he ordered Chai to drink.  The tea was tea....but the chai was fantastic, he almost didn't get it back after I had a taste.

I normally don't like chai because it is always so sweet, but this was not very sweet - mostly spicy. The honey in the picture was for my tea, not the chai. The drinks came in five minutes, and only another 15 for the food, which is a testament to the efficiency of the kitchen because the restaurant was full.

The food was perfectly prepared. The crepes were buckwheat, and best I had since actually being in France. Definitely better than the crepe place I go to in Portland. The almonds were the best part of the Provencal crepe, I never would have thought to add them, but the crunch was perfect with the soft chevre, the slightly gooey jack, and the sweetness of the tomatoes. The Del Sol was one of the few times that a big serving of creme fraiche actually works, especially topped with the slivers of the best part of a fresh spring onion. We were both afraid that the food would be too rich, but it was not because the flavors and textures were so well balanced.

I am impressed, and am batting a thousand here - both places were excellent and worth a return visit. I bet Renata's sees us back at least once a month.

Cost per person, including drinks: $12

NorthCoast Co-Op Cooking Demonstration

Chef Brett Shuler presents "Late Summer Locavore"

First Course:
North Coast Salad Nicoise
Wine Pairing -  Moonstone Crossing Sauv.Blanc, '07 (Trinidad)

Second Course:
Grilled Goat Chop with Huckleberry Sauce
Potato & Artichoke Hash
Glazed Varietal Carrots
Wine Pairing - Cabot Red Table Wine, '05 (Klamath)

Third Course:
Poached Figs with Blackberry Sauce and Vanilla Ice-Cream

Cost: $30 (member price)


This is an odd way to start the project, but I heard from so many people that the guest chef's cooking demonstrations at The Co-op were brilliant and so I had to try it out. Plus, one of the huge benefits of living here is all the incredible local foods and this event just seem to fit the bill.

As I am walking in I stop by the butcher counter and ask if they have any goat. Assuming the goat chop is tasty, I wanted to know if I could get some to try the recipe at home. They don't have goat. In fact, she told me they only get goat meat at auction after the County Faire, and once they are sold, that's it. Hmmmm.

The room itself is a cooking demonstration room, but nice because their are cameras set up over the stove and prep areas so you can see everything that is going on on the large flat-screen TV mounted on the wall. Chef Shuler did a good job - but I think this might have been his first time in this kitchen because he said he wasn't familiar with the grill and some of the other kitchen tools. For example the seive was too fine to strain the blackberries.

To the food....after all that is what this project is about right!  The nicoise was nice - all local products including the albacore tuna, from our very own Katy's Smokehouse in Trinidad.

The greens were fantastic, and at first I was disappointed that he used oil-cured olives instead of nicoise, but they were also really good too. I thought the dressing was a bit bland and asked those seated around me and we all agreed it could use a bit more lemon and salt. The 11-year old boy to my left said for me to be sure and try the onion, tuna and potato in one bite.  Great idea, and where else do you get suggestions like that from the kids at the next table? If this were a restaurant I would have just asked for that - really picky and a matter of taste I am not complaining at all, just noting it. The wine was a bit too tart for the bitterness of the greens...but again, others liked it more than I did.

During the preparation of the second course I asked the Chef where he got the goat, and sure enough, the County Faire. I told him the Co-op didn't actually carry goat, and he said oh, well this wasn't a great choice for a locavore dinner then, but then he noted the recipe works just as well with lamb, and we have plenty of great local lamb here.

The Huckleberries were picked in Trinidad, and the heirloom carrots and potatoes are all from local organic farms. He admitted the artichoke hearts were canned, but that was due to the time constraints of the demonstration. Here it is

This was truly fantastic. I have never had goat, and at first I found it a bit tough, but the meat closer to the bone was a bit rarer, and oh my, that sauce. I was afraid it was going to be sweet what with "berry" in the name, but it was not sweet at all. The recipe is shallots, thyme, peppercorns, red wine, and beef stock, reduced forever, and then the berries come in about half way and they are fairly tart. The potatoes were very good (bit light on the artichokes), and the carrots were sweet but well balanced with the other flavors. The wine was one I was not familiar with, and it was again, perfectly paired and just that one extra flavor that brought the whole thing together.  My only quibble is that there was not enough salt on the meat - could have been because the Chef was having a problem with the grill and it burned off to fast, I don't know. How good was it? The 11-year old boy asked for (and got) seconds. Where else would that happen?

Now to dessert - the only dish that while tasty, did not work because it was just a poor choice for the environment.  The blackberry sauce called for a bottle of red wine and should have taken over an hour to reduce, but there was no time, so the chef used half as much and reduced it as much as he could in 20 minutes. It was okay, but obviously lacking the intense flavor that was needed to infuse the very mild figs with some umph.  He also didn't have enough time to allow the figs and sauce to cool sufficienty so that the ice cream just melted away - the picture is a sloppy mess, and the chef admitted that visually the dish just didn't work. 

He should have picked a recipe that could have been done in the time allowed. Bet he doesn't do that again!

Overall - best value in the County, hands down. Probably a tie for the best meal I've had since we moved here (that I didn't cook). Atmosphere was truly unique - this is not a fine dining experience, but you can ask questions of the chef, exchange opinions and tips and you get copies of the recipes -- unique and fun.  In fact, I liked it so much that I am going to go back and take Geoff with me!