Saturday, September 28, 2013

Ceppos

Friday, September 27, 2013

Raymond's Bistro has been bought out and replaced with Ceppos. Margie and I decided to have girls night out and try the new owners. I will say I was very disappointed and think perhaps these new people will not make it unless they do some changes to their menu. They changed the menu completely from Raymond's.  Heavy on the pasta dishes with only  4 alternatives. 

Pasta is not bad but they were using commercially made pasta. A small place like this that wants to be known for pasta should make their own. Also have fresh grated parmesan. I had the Seafood Pescatore and the seafood was all fresh. A big plus. But the pasta was nothing special and the sauce was just ok. Margie had the Chicken Alfredo and was disappointed in the sauce, too much butter

Our salads were nice with fresh, crisp lettuce. No problems with those. Service was good. But the place was empty. In the two hours we were there only 2 other parties came in . Plus they have a corkage fee of $12. Their wine list is mediocre, low end wines. Only a red & white by the glass. These are their house wines which I have no idea what label it is. All the other wines are by the bottle only.

I would go back in about a month to see if there are any changes, but if no changes I would cross them off by list.

The Hobbit

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Tonight 7 of us went to the Hobbit in the city of Orange for dinner. This place has been around for a long time. A converted old two story house with prixe fixe dinning. Today was one of the few days that they have no corkage. Normally it is $25 for the first bottle and $35 for the second with a 2 bottle maximum at the table. The Hobbit has a extensive wine cellars with high prices to match.

I rode with CJ and we made it from my house to the restaurant in 25 minutes by taking the carpool lane. We passed at least 3 miles of stopped cars on the freeway. This was a 6:00 pm in work traffic.

Upon arrival they took our wines to open and chill while we went upstairs to the bar / lounge area. The bedrooms have been converted for this. I will say that my cocktail was made very well. I ordered a Sidecar and CJ had a single malt scotch The rest of our party showed up and we saw an acquaintance from the Wine Country who unfortunately did not know it was no corkage night,

At 7:00 we were ushered downstairs into the wine cellar for champagne and appetizers. Had to be careful not to over indulge on the goodies. They were all excellent. People were picking out their wines for dinner. I really have a hard time paying $110 for a bottle of wine that I have in my cellar that cost me $48. Maybe I am getting "frugal" in my old age.

After 30 minutes or so we were ushered back to the dining areas. We had a table in front of the fireplace with all our wines lined up on the mantle. Service was impeccable. Terry was asked what wine he wanted poured with each course. We started out with the Robert Moncuit Champagne I brought and the Roar Chadonnay. 

First course was a Cornmeal Encrusted Smoked Catfish with sauteed Mustard Greens & Creole Sauce. This was very good but personally I like the catfish at Nayada better.

Second course was a Roasted Duck Leg w/Braised Leek Risotto & Maderia Reduction. Excellent dish. Wines paired with this dish was a 07 Testarossa Gray's Vineyard Pinot Noir which I think was the wine of the night and 07 Paul Hobbs Cabernet Sauvignon.  A 87 Cedon Segur was opened but the bottle was corked.

Next came a Watermelon & Baby Mache with Peach Balsamic Vinaigrette. Helped clean the palate

We had a short intermission where we went outside for approximately 15 minutes with any glass of wine we had on the table. When we returned we sat down to a dish of sorbet and then the main course arrive.

 Cote de Boeuf with fresh horseradish. Excellent cut of meat, cooked perfectly, A 2003 Moncoenqut St Emilion Grand Cru  and a 1997 Domaine Lo Piphon, Clos Ves Bonnes Bunche

Dessert was outstanding. A Double Chocolate Lava Cake with Sea Salt & Bourbon Caramel & fresh berries. A Chateau de Leon, St. Lesdad, Loire, Chenin Blanc was paired with the dish. Both are excellent but I am not a sweet on sweet person. My take is serve a dessert wine with a cheese plate.

As for the spelling of the wines, I had a hard time writing with the pen I had, It kept skipping so the spelling may be a little off. But I think you can get the picture that we had had some excellent wines tonight.

Had a tour of the kitchen. The owner/chef is very accommodating. One of our party did not eat seafood so they had a substitute dish for her.  Like I indicated before service was impeccable. Delius's service is excellent but the Hobbit was over the top. My only complaint is the stairs. I take them one at a time and go down sideways. Going up is no problem but down is a killer on my knees.

Looking forward to the next time the Hobbit does no corkage. I noticed on the tables with 2 & 3 people they only had one bottle. Deep cellar, priced to high. But excellent food and service.


September Wino's

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Our monthly get together's theme was Latitude 38 - North being Napa Chardonnays and South being New Zealand Pinot Noirs. All the wines were good today but none stood out as great or memorable.  2 of the wines were duplicates and 1 wine was a triplicate. I brought a Mountford Estate Pinot that was recommended by Southern Hemisphere Wines. It was ok but I expected more from what I was told about the wine.

Weather was good - never know in September what it will be . We lucked out with perfect weather for a wine tasting outdoors.

The appetizers that were brought today made a big hit. For some reason they all seemed to be exceptionally good. I made a new recipe that called for cream cheese, mayo, shredded cheese, ortega & jalapeno peppers. Baked in the oven and the flavors were really good. That one will show up again. Fast & easy with good flavor.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Back To The Himalayan

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

I have decided that six is the ideal number for The Himalayan Grille. 4 would be ok but 6 works perfect for the food dishes and the size of the table. Autumn is just around the corner as I had to put a jacket on tonight. The Himalayan is just two blocks off the beach and we saw no sun today because of the marine layer.

We started out with Samosa's and Momo's. Added Lamb Tibetan, Lamb Tiki, Shrimp Vendahloo, Lamb Saag and two vegetable dishes, Alli Gobi and Vegetables Korma. Along with garlic Naan and rice to round out the meal. As usual all the food was good and left to take home except rice.

CJ opened a bottle of Hansel wine and it was corked. I opened a bottle of Lucia at dinner last Saturday and it was corked.  I will be so glad when everyone goes to screw caps.

Wines on the table were a NV Torley Gala Sec, Sec-Szaraz sparking from Hungary. Actually we were all pleasantly surprised that it was more than a decent wine. For a $9 price tag I was happy - so thank you Steve & Kathy for the giving me a bottle of it and letting me know how good it was in spite of the inexpensive cost.

2007 Sea Smoke Botella

2010 Joseph Blair, Ghetto White, don't know the blend but it tasted like there might be some white Rhone grape in it.. David & Judy did not know the blend but they picked it up Labor Day weekend at the Lompoc Wine Ghetto.

2008 Williams Selyem,  Russian River,  Pinot Noir
2010 Lynmar, Russian River, Chardonnay
2010 Painted Wolf Pinotage
2009 LeCuvier Zinfandel

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Olive Oil Tasting and Dinner at Preveza

Saturday, August 14, 2013

A new place has opened in Los Alamitos. Antcia. They sell Olive Oils, Balsamic Vinegars and Spices. We had a class on tasting the products which was quite interesting and informative. I did learn quite a few new things about oils and vinegars.

I bought a Honey-Ginger Balsamic,  Dark Chocolate Balsamic and a Garlic Olive Oil. It was temping to buy more but the store is close and easy for me to go back to. They have a recipe and pairing  paper that gives you much needed information.

This a definite return place. Prices are reasonable for the quality

Afterwards we headed down one block and across the street to have dinner at Preveza. It has been over year since I ate here. I probably will not go back. The quality of the food has declined quite a bit. I had the "Aegean Sea"  which is pasta with white wine sauce and clams, mussells and shrimp. \The shrimp were either frozen or old. They used to put scallops and white fish in the dish. I also noticed that restaurant was not that busy on a Saturday night. It used to be packed with people waiting outside.

There were 12 of us and they had a very long rectangular table set up for about 20. If they would have taken the smaller table at the end and moved it elsewhere then the seating would have worked better. As it was because it was so tight to get in and out people who came in late were on the other side way at the end.

 So I think that whatever was happening with the universe Wednesday was till in force tonight. A bottle of opened wine got knocked over, a wine glass with wine in it,  got broken. I lost my Nuance wine pourer and a very good ink pen. I also had a bad bout of acid reflux and had to dash to the restroom. That has not happened in awhile.

I brought a 2007 Lucia, Santa Lucia Highlands, Pinot Noit - was disappointed as it was corked. So into the vinegar jar it goes to make wine vinegar for next year.

Other wines brought:
2011 Tobin James, James Gang Reserve, Chardonnay
32003 Tobin James, Silver Reserve Syrah
2011 Pecchenino ,San Lugi Dogliani red Wine
2011 Hart, Huis Vineyard, Temecula, Sangiovese
2011 Meiomi, Pinot Noir
2011 Lynmar, Laguna Ridge Pinot Noir
2012 Cakebread Cellars, Savignon Blanc
2011 Two Hands Gnarly Dudes, Barossa Valley, Shiraz
NV Private Cuvee, Danza del Sol Winery Espumosa , Lodi Sparkling
2011 Weingut Geil, Gerwurztraminer, Kabimett
200 Chateau St Jean, Cing Cepages
2010 Rombauer,  Zinfandel

So a very good day for Margie's Fun Wine Activity for August in spite of a few mishaps. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the Olive Oil place because they bought a lot  of product

Seafood Palace

Wednesday, August 11, 2013

The boys and I met tonight at the Seafood Palace. For some reason things seemed awkward tonight, Took awhile for the conversation to get going. Even after a few sips of wine it was not our jovial group. Maybe something with the moon, sun or whatever. I know traffic was horrendous this evening. Maybe when the freeway construction is over things will improve.

We started out with the Salt & Pepper Calamari. Just like last time it was not the same as before. Not much seasoning. Different cook maybe.

Sizzling Rice with Shrimp showed up. John really liked the puffed up rice. Our old standard Beef with Chinese Broccoli was brought to the table. Always good.

Henry ordered a new dish for us. Roasted Chicken Cantonese Style with Shrimp Chips. Really moist chicken with a very crispy skin. It was very good and I probably would have appreciated it more if I didn't eat so much chicken during the week. I very rarely order a chicken dish when I dine out,

A tureen of the Sweet/Sour soup was set down and ladled up. This soup is always full of many flavors and has always been consistently good. 

By this time I am full but a huge platter of Peking Duck arrives. I can eat one piece but that is it. I did take the leftovers home.

All in all a good dinner but since it was the "Seafood" Palace I was disappointed that more seafood was not ordered. I prefer the duck at the Golden Star so that dish could have been left off the dinner and something else ordered and I would have been happier.

Dessert was a simple tray of sliced oranges and fortune cookies.

Wines brought were:
2009 Terre Valentine, Spring Mtn District, Cabernet Sauvignon
2008 McKeon Phillips Leonardo
2006 McKeon Phillips BPR Cabernet Sauvignon
2011 Tourine Val de Loire, Rose of Pinot Noir
2009 Clos Pepe Chardonnay
2006 Kosta Browne Russian River  Pinot Noir

The Leonardo and the Kosta Brown were first two bottles emptied. By the end of the evening only a small amount of the Rose & Chardonnay were left.

Next month back to the Golden Star.