Bites from the Road

Long Branch, NJ Eating 2023, McLoone’s, Rooney’s and Turning Point

After Labor Day, my friend and I took a quick one-night trip to the shore. The beach was almost desolate; the weather was perfect even though they predicted rain. We packed rain gear that we only needed after we almost finished dinner. But I digress. After the morning on the beach, we shared a light bite for lunch — fish tacos ($18.94) and fries ($4.95)  at McLoone’s Pier House, along with one of the best cocktails I've had recently. Their Clockwork Orange ($16)  of Tanteo habanero tequila, Cointreau, blood orange puree and a Grean Marnier floater is the right combo of sweet and heat. I highly recommend. At dinner that [...]

By |2023-10-09T12:34:49-04:00October 18th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|0 Comments
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Bostwick on the Harbor, East Hampton, Long Island, NY

We arrived at Bostwick on the Harbor early to be sure we'd get right in instead of on a waiting list. We even got seated on the porch out of the sun as it began setting. We sipped our Flora Dora (Hendricks gin, club soda), Casamigo Blanc Margie and Aperol Spritz,  ($16-$17) while savoring the breathtaking view. We decided to share their delectable lightly dressed in a sherry fig vinaigrette salad ($19) with two warm goat cheese croquettes on baby arugula, sliced grape tomatoes, green apple batons, rounds of dried figs and candied pecans. I highly recommend. Then, each of us ordered Bostwick's hearty cold lobster roll on a warm [...]

By |2023-09-20T16:08:14-04:00September 21st, 2023|Bites from the Road, General Food Info, USA, USA Restaurants|0 Comments
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Caló Kitchen + Tequila, Laguna Niguel, CA

We stopped to have lunch at Caló Kitchen + Tequila restaurant before heading to Barnes & Noble for a book for my granddaughter. My daughter-in-law, granddaughter and I nibbled on their shrimp ceviche ($17) and their warm, wonderful beans and salsa with chips while the adults sipped margies. I tried their Cadillac one made with milagro blanco and Grand Marnier, asking for their spicy twist ($15), while my d-i-l had the grilled pineapple chile one ($16). Both delicious. When ordering from our well-trained waiter, Alex, I realized he knew his Mexican sauces. As a New Yorker, I was fascinated by the enchilada discussion. My d-i-l was hoping for Enchiladas Suizas, [...]

By |2023-09-20T11:48:01-04:00September 15th, 2023|Bites from the Road, General Food Info, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Driftwood Kitchen, Laguna Beach, California

For my last night before heading home, I wanted a casual restaurant with good food where my son and I could sit outside along the Pacific. My daughter-in-law suggested Driftwood Kitchen in Laguna Beach for good food on the ocean. Great suggestion, as the food, service and views are quite good. I sipped a margarita-like upside-down 42 caddy ($16) made with Cointreau, Don Julio 1942 anejo tequila and lime juice while my son tried their high tide ($16) made from Dikel 8 rye,  fresh pineapple juice, ginger, lemon sour mix and fresh mint. We sipped our cocktails as the sun set over the Pacific with a rainbow visual in the [...]

By |2023-09-20T11:50:35-04:00September 13th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|0 Comments
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Rex and Rose Pop-Up, Ladera Ranch, California

While at our cousins' reunion, those descendants of my father were invited to brunch at Rex and Rose Brunch Pop Up at my son Eric's home. We were asked to book a time slot. Upon arrival, our order was taken, then we were given a number and escorted to our table. The neighborhood kids (ages 3 to 11) were trained to be runners. When our food was ready, one brought it to our table and returned the number to the reception desk. The food was phenomenal and served with big smiles! I sampled the breakfast burrito of scrambled eggs, cheese and bacon rolled with potatoes and guacamole inside a flour [...]

By |2023-08-28T12:53:05-04:00September 9th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|2 Comments
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Las Brisas, Laguna Beach, California

I booked outside tables at Las Brisas so those arriving from the East Coast could enjoy dining with fresh ocean air along the Pacific. The restaurant offers California cuisine with a touch of Mexico. The restaurant was also able to accommodate our large group. Our dinner was the night before our "TAG, You're it" cousins reunion commenced in Aliso Viejo, California. Almost fifty relatives worldwide attended, with many cousins' offspring never meeting. We hoped to pass the baton to them to plan our next gathering and stay connected. [It worked. Our kids are now planning the next reunion.] About 25 of us were at dinner, divided among three tables on [...]

By |2023-09-08T23:16:22-04:00September 3rd, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|0 Comments
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Shoreside Meal at the Little Pub, Stratford, CT

Little Pub is a waterside cafe on the Connecticut Sound in Stratford, with good food and friendly service that friends had suggested. I met friends there recently. We sat outside on the deck with the water lapping shoreside, sipping our dirty martinis ($15) while nibbling their crispy fries ($3) and catching up. Our entrees were tasty. I tried the Thai sesame grilled salmon ($17)s over fresh greens with carrots, red onions and Mandarin oranges in a light citrus-ginger dressing, all topped with wontons and drizzled with a spicy wasabi sauce. My gluten-free friend tried the Napa salmon flatbread ($17) — sans bread with her blackened salmon over shredded cabbage, pico [...]

By |2023-08-27T08:37:12-04:00August 28th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|0 Comments
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The Cafeteria at Stone Barns,Tarrytown, NY

When visiting a friend in Irvington, we decided to dine at Stone Barn for lunch and a walk around the grounds. The rain negated that plan! We had prebooked and paid for lunch at The Cafeteria, an intriguing place within Stone Barn where you gather your meal onto a tray. While doing so, I ran into Chef Dan Barber. He's the one who spearheaded the farm-to-table movement. Dan received the James Beard "Best Chef New York City" in 2006 and "Outstanding Chef " in 2009. That same year, he was named among Time magazine's 100 most influential people worldwide. Ferran Adrià (of elBulli fame) penned the Time piece, mentioning Dan's [...]

By |2023-08-13T07:39:18-04:00August 14th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|0 Comments
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Terra Ristorante Italiano, Greenwich, CT

We chose Terra Ristorante on Greenwich Avenue to commence the weekend's festivities. Of course, we started with cocktails with a few of us sharing my love of Old Fashioneds ($18). One had their milky rum drink, the Jungle Bird ($16), with rum, Campari, milk and citrus, another the Old School ($16, a tequila old fashioned) and my grandkids sipped lemonade while my pregnant host had a virgin mojito. We ordered lots, sharing most and digging right in. My daughter-in-law — a sommelier selected our sensuous Tuscan Promis, Gaja, Toscana ($125).   Everything was good, from the wood-fired pepperoni pizza ($25) to the steamed P.E.I mussels ($18) with organic romaine hearts [...]

By |2023-07-29T11:33:46-04:00July 19th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants|1 Comment
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Lunch at Ruby & Bella’s, Greenwich, CT

I hadn't seen my Nashville friends since I visited them pre-pandemic. They met Bryan and me at the train station so that we could start our visit on the walk to Ruby & Bella's on Greenwich's main drag. We stopped yakking only long enough to give our orders at this comfy Greenwich Avenue lunch spot. My son at the juicy Black Label Burger ($24) made from Pat la Frieda house blend, topped with cheddar and bacon on a smoked onion aioli spread brioche. I ordered the unusual buns filled with crispy cod topped with napa cabbage slaw and scallions in a soft pancake reminiscent of the Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwiches. [...]

By |2023-07-16T06:49:51-04:00July 17th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Heavenly Visit to Lodge at Woodloch, Hawley, PA

It was the trip that almost didn't happen. Three times. First, I was injured; second, one of us had COVID. I can't recall the third. I do, though, recall arriving at Woodloch when a staff swarm greeted us, took our luggage to storage until our rooms were ready and immediately escorted us in to register. We then were seated for lunch in the dining room, where we'd consume all our meals. Friendly, welcoming and attentive service is what we found in the dining room. Guests wore casual, active workout clothes or terry robes for breakfast yet dressed for dinner. We only needed reservations for dinner. We squeezed a four-night trip [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:32:47-04:00June 14th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Mediterraneo Restaurant, Greenwich, CT

While visiting my friends' new Greenwich home, we went to dinner on Greenwich Avenue one evening at Mediterraneo. This friendly, warm restaurant combined the tastes of the sea and Italy. Their breads and fresh hummus satiated us as we discussed what we'd have. We started by sharing their tasty appetizers that included steamed P.E.I. mussels in a rich red curry cream ($17), grilled squid with shaved fennel, radishes and cherry tomatoes ($17), crispy crab stuffed artichoke bottoms with tarragon-lemon aioli ($19) and grilled Spanish octopus with smoked chorizo sofrito and diced potatoes ($21). Next, we shared the black squid ink linguine with shrimp and roasted tomatoes topped with lemon breadcrumbs [...]

By |2023-05-07T07:12:06-04:00May 9th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Wine Bar George, Disney Springs, Florida

I was dining with Pam Parks, my Disney publicist from the past, who still works for them as a writer of their cookbooks. Her latest Delicious Disney: Walt Disney World: Recipes & Stories from The Most Magical Place on Earth recently published. George Miliotes, Master Sommelier, happened to be at his namesake Wine Bar George when we lunched there recently.  The wine bar offers more than 140 wines by the glass, bottle and — for the pricey ones — by the ounce! The bar has received many accolades, being awarded the Best Micro Wine List in the World 2019, Best By-the-Glass Wine List With Coravin® in North America and Honored by [...]

By |2023-04-07T09:11:33-04:00April 7th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Rusty’s Seafood & Oyster Bar, Port Canaveral, Florida

One afternoon on a drive to Cocoa Beach, we ended up at a little dive on the water with one of the happiest, friendliest staff I've ever encountered. Even the owner, Rusty, was smiling as he bussed the tables — something, we were told, he frequently did. Rusty's Seafood & Oyster Bar is a dockside seafood restaurant where people come to watch Cape Canaveral launches.  I sampled their Moscow mule — the vodka-ginger beer mixture traditionally served in a copper mug; my dining partner tried Rusty's Relaxer with light and dark rum, banana liqueur, blackberry brandy and orange-pineapple juice. We ordered their smoked fish dip ($10) to accompany that. The [...]

By |2023-03-18T09:19:39-04:00April 1st, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA Restaurants|2 Comments
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Morimoto Asia + Frontera Cocina, Disney Springs, Orlando, Florida

We headed over to Disney Springs to dine a few times while I was in Orlando, as there were more than 60 options to eat, including 25 table-service restaurants. I must be getting old, as I found the noise level at dinner at these restaurants deafening. Not surprisingly, Morimoto's drinks lean toward Asian, with two of our cocktails made with Japanese whisky and sake. I sampled their Old Fashioned ($18) made with Suntory Toki whisky ($18), while another tried the sake sangria topped with fresh Asian pears and apples. Their Mai Tai is more traditional ($18), made with Cruzan coconut rum and a floater of Appleton estate rum. Don't miss [...]

By |2023-03-24T08:09:10-04:00March 26th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA Travel|0 Comments
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A Meal at Arca Worthy of a Visit, Tulum, Mexico

We were supposed to be six at the upscale Arca restaurant from executive chef and owner Jose Luis Hinostroza. This farm-to-table Tulum restaurant opened in 2015, offering open-fire cooking of small plates intended to be shared. Their food represents the flora and fauna of the area. With six, we would have experienced many more dishes. One of our group became ill, and three others opted to stay in their hotel room with him. (He's fine now!)  So the two of us only had room for a  couple of the chef's creative dishes.  I started with their mezcal El Solar cocktail ($7.75), which wasn't too sweet. I'd recommend.  We couldn't resist [...]

By |2022-12-27T08:06:17-05:00January 31st, 2023|World, World Restaurants|0 Comments
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The Beach Club Kanan, Tulum, Mexico

My friend had been in Tulum all week in preparation for her son's wedding. She stayed on the beach at the Ahau, yet ate lunch at The Beach Club Kanan daily. I joined her for lunch the afternoon of the Welcome Drinks and Dinner party. Each day, she ordered the same dish for lunch, their simple shrimp with a white rice garnish and a choice of three sauces. The Kanan offered a garlic mojo, a devil sauce and a garlicky guajillo sauce. We wanted all three, as she did each day. Kenten Marin, their executive chef, had to come from the kitchen to meet us. "Who would order all three [...]

By |2023-01-28T11:15:34-05:00January 23rd, 2023|Bites from the Road, World Restaurants, World Travel|0 Comments
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Toucan Sur Mer, Ixelles, Brussels, Belgium

During my Thanksgiving visit across the pond, we dined with friends at Toucan Sur Mer, a renowned fish restaurant in Brussels' Ixelles neighborhood. What's remarkable about this friendly fish restaurant is their velvety Soupe de Poissons de Roche (14,00 €), a classic French soup similar to Nice's bouillabaisse. It came with grated Emmenthal cheese and rouille, a Provençal variation on aïoli, the traditional accompaniment with bouillabaisse. Don't miss. Other good selections are their oysters  (2.50 € each) and the salmon tartare a la Japonaise (19.50 €) with grainy mustard. Four of us chose their fish & chips (24 €), crunchy fish pieces with a small salad, tartar sauce and a big [...]

By |2023-01-14T15:27:03-05:00January 14th, 2023|Bites from the Road, World, World Restaurants, World Travel|0 Comments
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Cafe Pomegranate, Zeeheldenkwartier, Den Haag, The Netherlands

We ventured out in the rain for brunch to a new women-owned cafe around the corner. It's a family affair, owned by a mom and her daughters who moved to Den Haag from Australia. The smoothie with bananas, mango and lots of cinnamon was a hit with my granddaughter, as were her ricotta pancakes (11.5 €) with Nutella mascarpone, roasted walnuts and fresh berries. Also tasty are the spicy scramble (12.5 €) with burrata, chorizo and arugula, the eggs benny with bacon and asparagus (14.5 €) and a side of parmesan asparagus (4 €). The cafe offers housemade pastries and a local bakery's pan chocolate and fruit tarts. I recommend [...]

By |2023-01-15T11:59:00-05:00January 5th, 2023|World, World Restaurants, World Travel|0 Comments
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Dame Bonnie Tandy Leblang Collection at The Boyd Hospitality & Culinary Library

(With excerpts from the speech given at the library's opening.) My interest in everything culinary started as soon as I could hold a wooden spoon.   I began collecting food-related stuff early and continued most of my life. That extensive collection included cookbooks, menus, pamphlets, booklets, other food/nutrition-related books – and memorabilia, like the My*T*Fine pudding package sporting an image of Howdy Doody!   I even went the food route with my education, studying and getting degrees in food science and nutrition and becoming a Registered Dietitian. When I was getting ready to sell my cookbook-lined Connecticut home and move to Manhattan, I tried to find a home for my extensive library. Most [...]

By |2023-01-02T14:00:48-05:00December 31st, 2022|Big Apple Life, Bites from the Road, NYC Best Bites, Rambling, USA, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|2 Comments
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