Sea and Smoke

I'm not the type that runs out whenever a new restaurant opens. I usually wait until I've heard more about it, or until the initial crowds subside, or at least until the kinks have been worked out. But I had been hearing about Sea and Smoke from a couple different sources and made the mistake of checking out their website. First, I learned that it was owned by the same people that do Solace, in Encinitas, one of my favorite venues in north county and the home of my all time favorite veggie burger. Second, I looked at the menu. It made me want to eat my computer screen, and I was only looking at the descriptions of the offerings.

After plans for a weekend trip to Temecula got shot at the last minute, I felt the need to do something extra special to make up for the fact that I was no longer going to be sipping on wines in a perpetual state of buzzed bliss. Which is how Marc and I ended up at Sea and Smoke on a Friday evening.

We sat on the back deck at a cozy table for two, and instantly began scrutinizing the drink menu. No matter what your poison, you would be well satisfied here. Extensive wine menu, quality LOCAL beers (always bonus points for that in my book), and unique cocktails. I myself tend to be a beer or wine girl, in that order, and it's rare for me to pass on a menu that has so many good craft beer choices, but I decided to emulate my husband and go outside the box for this one, ordering a Cuke Mule (cucumber infused voda, ginger beer, and key lime), while Marc settled on the Bison Smash (buffalo trace bourbon, honey, lemon, mint basil). Water and drinks came, and I instantly began picking up on the details that to me make a dining experience unique and worth the trip (and the money). The water glasses looked like redesigned mason jars, stylized with the sea and smoke logo, the centerpiece was a simple gravy boat with a bit of greenery spilling out, and each drink had unique garnishes. And, I must say I greatly enjoyed my cocktail. I tend to avoid cocktails because I like to taste something, and often I feel like I get a mix of sugary somethings with an alcoholic after taste. But the mule was refreshing, not sweet, and easy to drink. Most of the drinks on their cocktail list seemed to follow the pattern of creating a unique taste based on the alcohol, not covering up alcohol with sugar. So far so good.

We decided to order an appetizer, and our waiter recommended the cast iron prawns. The appetizer consisted of four charred prawns, served on a black bean puree and ancho aioli, with avocado and coriander. For me, the char on the prawns was what brought out the taste and went well with the puree and aioli. Marc and I enjoyed the appetizer thoroughly before we realized we forgot to take a picture.

Sea and Smoke is based on a more family-style approach for dinner, with meat entrees served a la cart and sides ordered separately. There were also four vegetarian full sized entrees for those foregoing meat. Marc and i were a little unsure how much to order, but we decided on an entree each and then two of the sides to share. Marc ordered the salmon with a pomegranate gastrique, I ordered the scallops with a black olive crust, and for our sides we decided on the multigrain risotto and the oven roasted mushrooms. The entrees were fabulous. Each of my scallops came in its own individual clam shell, a small bowl marinating and capturing any stray bread crumbs and sauce. Marc declared his salmon the best he'd ever had. In my opinion, this would be a great place to come with more people, because I would have liked to have tried more of the sides. The multigrain risotto was creamy, but I really loved the mushrooms. I love mushrooms when they are done right, with that deep umami flavor. I would have liked to have tried a little bit of a few more sides instead of being limited to just the two (we could have ordered more, but it would have been too much food on a bill that was already going to be high). Regardless, Marc and I were extremely satisfied with our meal.

We wrapped up with dessert, ordering the "Mini-Bites" option. What a wonderful idea. We were given several different items with different flavors and tastes, so we weren't overwhelmed with an intense chocolate cake or left wishing we had gotten someone else's dessert upon sight. It was perfect for sharing, and apparently the offerings rotate, so you can order again and again and be surprised by new tastes each time.

At the end of the day, Marc and I had a great experience, both food-wise and atmosphere (Marc's only complaint was that the chairs were not very comfortable). The bill ended up coming in relatively high, but when we broke it down to what we got - drinks, appetizer, entrees, sides and dessert, it seemed about right. Definitely not a place I would be able to go to all the time when on a budget, but definitely worth it to spend the money when you do. We'll be going back.

Fish 101 - Oyster Bar and Fish House

I had heard good things about Fish 101 - Oyster Bar and Fish House, but Marc and I had not yet made the journey to Leucadia to check it out. For me, part of the reason was that I was envisioning a fancy-ish fish joint where you pay a lot of money for some fancy shmancy fish plate in a quiet upscale setting. Not that there's anything wrong with that particular type of venue for a nice romantic evening, but it just wasn't the vibe that I had been craving lately.

But I was in the mood to try something new, and gave Marc the choice of a couple different restaurants for dinner on a Friday evening, of which Fish 101 was the only location we had not yet been to. So, after a quick debate over what we felt like eating, we found ourselves cruising up Highway 101 ready to experience something new.

I was extremely surprised to find that Fish 101 was nothing like I had expected. It was a much more laid back, relaxed environment. The mood was instantly set by the communal tables on the patio out front and a line of hungry customers line up from the front counter and going out the door to order food. There are additional wooden tables in a patio out back, as well as some limited indoor seating.  This was a definite break from the white tablecloths or frou frou waiters I had thought we would be encountering. In fact, they proudly display shirts over the counter stating that "This place shucks."  And instantly we have character!

Marc and I placed our orders at the front counter where the menu was displayed, as well as the daily specials, on a large chalkboard in the back. They also had paper menus at the entrance, cutting down on the ever annoying customer that waits to decide what he is going to order when he arrives at the counter. Efficiency people! When I am hungry I appreciate any attempts to streamline the process. 

Fish 101 has an extensive local craft beer menu, both on tap and in the bottle. Being focused on fish, the wine menu targeted more white wine than red. Once we placed our order, we were given a number to display and found a table out front that we shared with another couple. I instantly oogled their food. "Damnit! I should have gotten the corn! That looks awesome." I was pleased by the implications of the look of our neighbors food. What hadn't looked exciting to me written out on the chalkboard specials list looked amazing in person.

Despite being jammed, service was quick. Our drinks showed up almost almost immediately after we sat down. I was again pleasantly surprised to find that not only was Marc's beer served in a mason jar, but my white wine also came in a mini mason jar. I'm a sucker for details like that. Nothing bunks pretentious fish house like wine in a jar. The details were all coming together to paint picture of a intimate, friendly laid back fish house. We sipped our drinks in the glow of the heat lanterns, enjoying the communal atmosphere.

No sooner than I had snapped a few pictures of our drinks, our albacore tuna poke appetizer arrived. Marc and I were both impressed. It was fresh, crisp, and the perfect size. We were left properly primed for the arrival of our dinner.

I ordered the mahi mahi, with a side of black beans and the seaweed salad. Marc had the fried shrimp po boy and ordered the seaweed salad as well. Fish 101 states that it sources all its fish in accordance with the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch Program, which is a huge added bonus that eliminates the necessity of digging out the iPhone app to aid in my decision making. When ordering, nothing was off the table for eco-conservation issues. The fish was cooked perfectly, and that seaweed salad was the perfect accompaniment. If you go, get the seaweed salad. And Marc's sandwich was very well balanced, perfectly fried shrimp, with a good tang from the pickled red onions on bread that had just the right amount of crunch. 

We will definitely be going back. There were plenty of other sides that I want to try, as well to see how their other fish offerings stack up. In addition, we didn't order any oysters, which considering the joint was a fish house and oyster bar was probably a mistake on our part. But now we have something new to look forward to on our next visit.