MARIANI’S
Virtual
Gourmet
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IN THIS ISSUE EATING AROUND RHODE ISLAND By Robert Mariani NEW YORK CORNER THE ROYAL MUNKEY By John Mariani NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR THE ART OF WINERIES by Mort Hochstein ❖❖❖ EATING AROUND RHODE ISLAND By Robert Mariani Seafood Stew at The Boathouse, Tiverton, RI
MILLS TAVERN
Back
in the 1970s, before Rhode Island’s capital of
Providence began its Renaissance, the Mills
building was just another mis-used old brownstone
retail space on North Main St. But, as the city
began its re-birth, with a diverted river that
brought vitality downtown, Mills was among the
earliest landmark buildings to shed its dusty past
and advance into a new life. Mill’s Tavern is open Tues.-Sun. for
dinner. Appetizers $9-$22, main courses $24-$46.
THE BOAT
HOUSE Rhode
Island is the smallest state, but when it comes to
dining venues with spectacular views of busy
harbors, sailboat races, beaches, summer mansions
and lighthouses, the Ocean State can hold its own
on the national level. The panorama seen
from the Boat House restaurant in the small, rural
town of Tiverton (about a 45-minute drive from
Providence) has been recognized as “one of the Top
Ten Scenic Views in the United States” by Open Table
Diners in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
But, as special as the restaurant's view of the waterfront is, the food is what keeps natives and tourists coming back. Through the summer months, many devotees arrive on their boats, and there are indoor and outdoor tables. A perusal of the menu tells you that a good deal of thought and creativity have gone into each and every dish. The appetizer lists offers a lobster fritter with sweet corn and chipotle aïoli; Littleneck clams are steamed “Portuguese-style” with chouriço, onions, garlic and tomato in a Viñho Verde broth. The braised beef sort ribs are embellished with root vegetables, mustard greens, celeriac puree and a red wine jus. One of the favorite starters at the Boat House is steamed mussels artfully paired with roasted peppers, scallions, garlic, parsley and pine nuts in a smooth white wine and butter broth, fresh as an ocean breeze. Another favorite is the crispy Point Judith calamari served with house-pickled jalapeño peppers, cilantro, harissa and citrus rémoulade. The perfect texture of the breaded squid and the complementary dressings make you realize why calamari has been recently voted “Rhode Island's Official Appetizer.” The entrées are predominantly seafood, like a pan-roasted Atlantic salmon with a rich Swiss-chard-mushroom risotto; or a “seafood scampi” of poached lobster meat, shrimp and squid drenched in a roasted garlic-herb butter and served with some perfectly al dente linguini. Of course, there are alternatives to seafood, including an eight-ounce grilled Certified Angus Beef filet paired with a goat’s cheese-potato cake, asparagus and creamed leeks. The perfectly grilled beef is doused with a Port wine-rosemary demi-glace. For “Surf & Turf” fans, the Boat House offers sirloin with a choice of grilled scallops or shrimp. The baked lobster is lavishly stuffed with shrimp, scallops, crab, and herb bread soaked in lemon butter. Of course, if you're feeling like something a bit lighter, there's a soup and salad menu, and the requisite lobster roll and fish tacos on a corn tortilla. The dessert menu at the Boat House pretty much covers the waterfront (pun intended) with items like crème brûlée with a glassy burnt sugar crust, and a coconut spice cake made with Key lime cream, coconut crumbs and mango sorbet. The Boat
House Restaurant serves
lunch and dinner daily, and brunch on Sundays.
Dinner appetizers $7-$16 and main courses
$19-$39.
BRISTOL OYSTER BAR Located
on the first floor of a stately old brick building
that had once been the town’s post office, the Bristol Oyster Bar
is a great addition to this small harbor town’s
interesting culinary scene. The owner, Pete
Sebring, has spent most of his adult life fishing in
and around Rhode Island waters, which gives him the
experience to seek out the very freshest seafood
available from local providers.
❖❖❖ NEW
YORK CORNER
By John Mariani THE
ROYAL MUNKEY
438 2nd Avenue (near 25th Street)
646-863-2249 www.royalmunkey.com
The
Royal Munkey is open for lunch and dinner daily
11a.m.-2 a.m., with brunch on weekends.
There is a
dinner prix-fixe is $34 and includes a choice of
cocktail or wine. ❖❖❖ NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR
THE ART OF
WINERIES
by Mort Hochstein
Painting by
Franz Gertsch at Hess Collection
You may pay to sip wine
and dine throughout Napa, but savoring art is
often a delightful and free experience. Many
wineries have become showcases for art in all
its forms and worth visiting for their cultural
aspect.
The
art at Hall
Winery in
St.
Helena is more limited, about half the number on
view at Hess, but pieces are displayed in more
dramatic fashion in a strikingly modern visitors’
center. Floor to ceiling windows looking out on
green vineyards provide an airy feel to the
tasting room, while also allowing visitors natural
light exposure to the art as well as another view
of giant stand-alone pieces which greeted them on
arrival (left).
Cliff Lede, founder of the eponymous winery in Yountville, is a rock music devotee, so the art here includes six signed guitars and 30 paintings by Jerry Garcia, part of an exhibit which changes periodically. Two giant sculptures greet visitors and other contemporary paintings are scattered throughout the winery and in private tasting rooms in the state of the art facility.
Mumm Napa,
which was the first sparkling wine producer to be
founded in Napa by a French champagne company,
pays homage to the great American photographer
Ansel Adams. Mumm’s art gallery features 27 silver
prints of scenes at Yosemite, the Western desert
and national parks and lakes (right). Turnbull Wine
Cellars in Oakville is also home to
dramatic photography by Adams. His breathtaking
nature pictures are mounted throughout the winery,
many of them in spaces between barrels. Del Dotto Venetian
Estate Winery at St. Helena lives
up to its name as an Italian castle in wine
country. It celebrates the family’s roots, traced
back to 1150 Venice. The rooms and caves are
lined with Italian marble and ancient tiles
depicting the history of wine. ❖❖❖ ALL THE MORE
REASON MORNING COFFEE
BREAKS SHOULD LAST AT LEAST AN HOUR A study by Yale and U. Connecticut in Pediatric Obesity followed 600 middle-school students for two years with regard to their eating patterns and weight, if they had zero breakfast, breakfast either at home or at school, or breakfast in both places. They found that weight gain among second-breakfast eaters (one in ten children) was no different from the average gain seen among all students. Kids who didn't eat breakfast, or ate it only sometimes, were twice as likely to be overweight or obese as double-breakfasters.
You also write about consuming your
daughter’s placenta in dried, powdered form. You
characterize that as a difficult decision to make.
Was there some cultural taboo that was holding you
back? ❖❖❖
This article is sponsored by Banfi Wines.
Celebrate
National Grilled Cheese Month with Pesto
Mozzarella Grilled Cheese If you
were to ask me about my favorite cuisine I would hands
down say Italian. All things Italian. Pasta, pesto,
delicious cheese, you name it and I love it. Perhaps the
fact that I’m half-Italian plays into this love. I was
also born and raised in Wisconsin which means that I’m
also a lover of cheese so the fact that April is
National Grilled Cheese Month has me swooning over
deliciously cheesy sandwiches. Recipe: Pesto Mozzarella Grilled Cheese Serves 2 Ingredients: 1/3 cup pesto 1 medium tomato, sliced 1 8-ounce mozzarella ball, sliced 2 tablespoons butter Directions: Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Butter 1 side of each of the 4 slices of bread. Place two slices of bread, butter side down, in the heated pan. Divide the pesto between the two slices and spread evenly. Top the pesto with cheese, tomatoes and cheese again and place the second slice of bread on top, butter side up. Cook the sandwich until it is golden brown on each side and serve immediately. ❖❖❖Any of John Mariani's books below may be ordered from amazon.com. The Hound in Heaven (21st Century Lion Books) is a novella, and for anyone who loves dogs, Christmas, romance, inspiration, even the supernatural, I hope you'll find this to be a treasured favorite. The story concerns how, after a New England teacher, his wife and their two daughters adopt a stray puppy found in their barn in northern Maine, their lives seem full of promise. But when tragedy strikes, their wonderful dog Lazarus and the spirit of Christmas are the only things that may bring his master back from the edge of despair. WATCH THE VIDEO! “What a huge surprise turn this story took! I was completely stunned! I truly enjoyed this book and its message.” – Actress Ali MacGraw “He had me at Page One. The amount of heart, human insight, soul searching, and deft literary strength that John Mariani pours into this airtight novella is vertigo-inducing. Perhaps ‘wow’ would be the best comment.” – James Dalessandro, author of Bohemian Heart and 1906. “John Mariani’s Hound in Heaven starts with a well-painted portrayal of an American family, along with the requisite dog. A surprise event flips the action of the novel and captures us for a voyage leading to a hopeful and heart-warming message. A page turning, one sitting read, it’s the perfect antidote for the winter and promotion of holiday celebration.” – Ann Pearlman, author of The Christmas Cookie Club and A Gift for my Sister. “John Mariani’s concise, achingly beautiful novella pulls a literary rabbit out of a hat – a mash-up of the cosmic and the intimate, the tragic and the heart-warming – a Christmas tale for all ages, and all faiths. Read it to your children, read it to yourself… but read it. Early and often. Highly recommended.” – Jay Bonansinga, New York Times bestselling author of Pinkerton’s War, The Sinking of The Eastland, and The Walking Dead: The Road To Woodbury. “Amazing things happen when you open your heart to an animal. The Hound in Heaven delivers a powerful story of healing that is forged in the spiritual relationship between a man and his best friend. The book brings a message of hope that can enrich our images of family, love, and loss.” – Dr. Barbara Royal, author of The Royal Treatment. ❖❖❖
❖❖❖
FEATURED
LINKS: I am happy to report
that the Virtual
Gourmet is linked to four excellent
travel sites: Everett Potter's Travel Report: I consider this the best and
savviest blog of its kind on the web. Potter is a
columnist for USA
Weekend, Diversion, Laptop and Luxury Spa Finder,
a contributing editor for Ski and a frequent contributor
to National
Geographic Traveler, ForbesTraveler.com
and Elle Decor.
"I’ve designed this site is for people who take
their travel seriously," says Potter. "For
travelers who want to learn about special places
but don’t necessarily want to pay through the nose for
the privilege of staying there. Because at the end
of the day, it’s not so much about five-star
places as five-star experiences." THIS WEEK:
Eating Las Vegas
JOHN CURTAS has been covering the Las Vegas
food and restaurant scene since 1995. He is
the co-author of EATING LAS VEGAS – The 50
Essential Restaurants (the fourth
edition of which will be published in early
2016), as well as the author of the Eating Las
Vegas web site: www.eatinglasvegas.
He can also be seen every Friday morning as
the “resident foodie” for Wake Up With the
Wagners on KSNV TV (NBC) Channel 3 in
Las Vegas.
MARIANI'S VIRTUAL GOURMET
NEWSLETTER is published weekly. Editor/Publisher: John
Mariani.
Editor: Walter Bagley. Contributing Writers: Christopher Mariani,
Robert Mariani, Misha
Mariani,
John A. Curtas, Edward Brivio, Mort Hochstein,
Andrew Chalk, Dotty Griffith and Brian Freedman. Contributing
Photographers: Galina Dargery, Bobby
Pirillo. Technical Advisor: Gerry McLoughlin.
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