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Return to Dimillo's Floating Restaurant

Mon, 06 Sep 2010 03:08:00 GMT

DiMillo's Floating Restaurant
PH: 207-772-2216

25 Long Wharf
Portland, Maine 04101

surprisingly enough, i've started to try other items on the floating restaurant's menu, and time and time again i'm being wow'd... not just OK or like eh, but actually WOW'd.

Lobster Ravioli in Sherry Cream Sauce with asparagus: $21.00

The garlic bread that was supplied with it was really good, nice and crispy, perfect flavoring, not overly salty and complimented the sherry sauce really really well. The asparagus was perfectly cooked, and came out really well.

I use to always shun away from lobster ravioli, as there was one time i had a truley awful experience were there was ice chips left inside the ravioli and it was just horrible...but this was not the case with this ravioli...on the outside they looked pretty docile in look. texture and nothing to rave about.

but once i bit in (expecting it to be nothing but cheese) i was betrayed by my prejudices and reprimanded with a plethora of lobster inside. dear god this was ridiculously good. lots of lobster, al dente ravioli skin, and all of it highlighted by the wonderful sherry cream sauce. bite after bite i was waiting for the let down...but ravioli after ravioli i just wanted more.

Summation: this was the best lobster ravioli i've ever had before. and i must admit the whole dish together was really good. every object/ingredient accented the other well. was really surprised by the asparagus, but i HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you eat this dish while it is hot, do not wait for it to get cold, as the plate...changes quite drastically if left to reach room temperature or lower. I definitely recommend the ravioli and look forward to eating it again...

now to some i would agree 21 dollars is a pretty hefty price, but they do put in a lot of lobster. and as you all know i'm a pretty big eater (i also had a cup of chowder with this and two of their ginormous shrimp cocktail) but though the dish looks small, it filled me quite up nicely.

CHEERS!!!

Lunch @ Havana South

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 03:08:00 GMT

Havana South
PH: 207-772-9988

44-50 WHARF STREET
PORTLAND, MAINE 04101

Well it was high time to try some new restaurants, so i ran around taking menu's from everywhere to see what everyone had to offer...and since i was in Maine and it was lobster season, i wanted to try all the interesting lobster concoctions that these lovely restaurants would be coming up with. LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!

Service was wonderful and pleasant, the restaurant is huge and spacious and our food came rather quick.

Maine Crab Cakes (Local crabmeat cakes pan seared and served with a Latin style Jicama cole slaw and a guasaca dipping sauce): $9.00

The jicama cole slaw really stood out on this dish, and accented the crab cakes of this dish.

the crab cakes were a little on the blander side, and not to my liking, as i like huge lumps of crab meat in my crabcakes while this on the other hand was of a more 'minced' method.

the supplied guasaca dipping sauce really helped with the crab cakes alot, as did the cole slaw. I do not recommend this dish if you are a crabcake snob and have been spoiled by the huge lump crab meat of Maryland/Virgina/DC area.

Local Mussels (Frenchmans Bay mussels simmered in a broth of white wine, chorizo and finished with a cilantro garlic butter): these were goooooood. $9.00

the 'breadsticks' with some kind of mayo with pepper in it was a bit stale...and eh....didn't really wow me or stand out.

HOWEVER, the mussels were ridiculously good, the white wine sauce was really good and the stale bread dipped into it was good...but what was surprisingly pleasant was the huge pieces of chorizo in the dish (sorry not pictured) but it went well with the bread, and definitely added a nice flavoring to the 'sauce' which is the maine...er main reason we finished all of our stale bread. lol.

Lobster Quesadilla (Lobster and goat cheese served with french fries): this was one of the dishes that stood out and i really wanted to try and it was surprisingly good. $13.00

the lovely beer battered claw that came ontop of the lovely lobster quesadilla.

I've had swiss with lobster before in omelets and was a tad worried about how this would play out, but the goat cheese worked perfectly with the lobster; and then reinforced by the crispy flaky tortilla....it was a new maine favorite of mine...and again the abundance of lobster was a pleasant extra added surprise.

unfortunately, by the time i made it to the fries, they were kinda limp...as was their flavor...i would definitely not be coming here for their fries...text

Latin Lobster Roll (Beer Battered Lobster, mango mayo and lemon salsa fresca): three words...BEER BATTERED LOBSTER! $13.00

Though at first i felt it was kinda skimpy on the lobster meat, it was actually flavorful enough to handle the thick bread slabs. The beer battered lobster was really good, and the mango mayo and lemon salsa fresca highlighted the minimal lobster to burst with flavor...therefore making the ample bread balance out in taste in your mouth.

yeah...fries still limp in texture and taste...*shrug. (i admit if the fries were better, it would definitely raise the level of the dishes...even if the fries had been crispy outside and nice moist inside...i think the seasoning would have even tasted better with just this single aspect changed...oh well...)

Summation: The main reason i had come to this place was to try the lobster paella, but that was not an option for lunch...however the chef was willing to accommodate us, but i didn't want anything special done to it to askew my findings...so i'd save that for another day.

in the end though, we had a great meal. all the food was good, and the restaurant always seems busy.

I really like the atmosphere and the wait staff is always willing to assist and are genuinely pleasant.

I definitely look forward to coming here again and trying out more dishes.

CHEERS!!!!

*note: coffee was really really good.

Getting Cheesey @ State of Maine Cheese Co.

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 03:08:00 GMT

State of Maine Cheese Co.
PH: 207-236-8895

461 Commercial Street (Route 1)
Rockport, Maine 04856

I've only been to this place twice...and the reason why is that its always closed by the time i get to it...but i've created a better schedule and am able to make it to this joint while its open now. (it closes at 5pm!!!) and the one thing i remember most is the Cheese spreads they make themselves....blueberry cream cheese and a horse radish cream cheese....TO DIE FOR! i have photographs from the last time i went there which was 2005!!

They were nice enough to let me take pics of where the lovely cheeses are made.

And of course the store has huge fridges to store all the different blocks of cheeses in many different flavors for you to partake in.

This is the spread that they normally have there right when you walk in...unfortunately...they sold out of cheese spreads... =(

This is their basic cheddar that they start out with, the machines are right in the back that they use to make this shtuff. pretty amazing, and the website also ships! so you can just click on the links i always have and you'll be good.

The dill cheese was aite...i wish there was more dill in it...but it might be just right for dill noobs.

Last but not least was the Garlic cheese...this was really good and hit the spot in all its garliciness...

Summation: Unfortunately they had run out of cheese spreads...so i was saddened...though i was able to buy a huge chunk of Jalapeno cheese they had which was really really good....yum!!! but luckily another friend that was visiting was able to pick up some spreads for me at a later date. HORSE RADISH CHEESE SPREAD!! THE BOMB!!! but i also found sad news....they no longer make blueberry cheese spread.... =( sigh...oh well...the cheese is still the bomb digs...so i do recommend you stopping by and getting some...works great for a lovely cheese and wine party..and the best part is, if you click on their website you'll find out they DELIVER!...WOOT!

note: honorable mention is the 2 day old cheddar that they have...AMAZING!!!
sidenote: cheese usually has an unpleasant effect on me...however, no matter how much cheese or what cheese i consumed at this place, it had NO unpleasant side effects whatsoever!!!

Sweet Sensations Pastry @ 3 Dogs Cafe

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

3 Dogs Cafe
PH: 207-230-0955

309 Commercial Street (Route1)
Rockport, Maine 04856

I've actually been to this place numerous times but its been renovated and change of owners, and you can never seem to get the same thing twice here...so it prohibited me from doing a review...but now i'm like fuck it so i'm gonna post what i got from this neat little place that's grown so big....(i actually remember when they had a chocolate castle inside before they renovated the joint...and not to mention little hershey kiss mice. lol)

Picked up a bunch of mini tarts. i like blue berry...Maine is known for blue berry...hence lots of blue berry eating while in Maine. woot!

Fruit tart...i didn't have any, but mum said it was really good and the fruit was really really fresh.

no words can begin to describe how good this is...except for mouthgasm.

The first time i ever went to sweet sensations they had this 'blue berry cake' that was so moist and sooo flavorful...it was like the essence and soul of blueberry captured in a cake...unfortunately, i've never had it again in that place and the seemingly new employees have no idea what i'm talking about...sigh...any way...this is blue berry lime bread...which is another moutthgasm...ridiculously good...and i do highly recommend this.

Summation: one of the 100% must go to places if you visit rockport/rockland/camden areas in Maine....i can't wait to go back and try more pastry items...maybe even sit down for their rendition of blue berry pancakes. woot! CHEERS!!!

Dinner @ Bull Feeney's

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

Bull Feeney's
PH: 207-773-7210

375 Fore Street
Portland, Maine 04101

For years i have walked by this place and had been quite intrigued to try it...as Irish pub's always have such great food and i've heard things about Bull Feeney's from the locals...so for once i was finally able to go in and try out the joint.

Décor:

The interior is very nice, and it definitely has the whole irish bar feel...I will definitely be taking groups of people here in the future to get their drink on late at night in the future.

Pretty neat, they sat us right by the big beautiful windows.

the nice view from the window.

had to start off with a captain eli!

Food!

Small Side Salad: We decided to share a salad as its important when in Maine to eat as much veggies as possible to 'balance' out the lobster intake. lol. $1.95 (because it was added onto the lobster meal)

Seafood Chowder (classic Maine chowdah with scallops, shrimps and haddock): this was actually really good. great hot temperature and the flavor was perfect...lots of ingredients, no skimpage and it WASN'T overly salty...which is always a plus to me. $5.95 cup

food came rather fast after our appetizers were done with. service was really good, our server was quite pleasant.

Boiled Maine Lobster (1.5 lb or greater classic boiled whole Maine lobster served with drawn butter on a bed of mussels): the lobster was not only huge, but of the hard shell variety. The lobster was really fresh and very sweet, the drawn butter was not necessary at all. The mussels were really well done...its unbelievable that this dish was $25.95

Colcannon (mashed potatoes & cabbage cooked in Bacon and Onion Butter): I was going to get the garlic mashed pots, but wanted a change up...so i asked our waitress what she'd recommend...and she said this was her favorite side. I cannot iterate how fucking good this side was....it's like the ultimate mashed potato mix...droool. (this came with my meal, however to add to a meal is $1.95 or standalone at $3.95)

Grilled Gaelic Rib-Eye (Twelve ounce USDA Choice Rib-Eye basted in a Powers Irish Whiskey Marinade garnished with deep-fried onion rings): I got it medium rare, and it came perfect. The steak was really flavorful, and the Irish Whiskey marinate accented the great choice cut of meat. the onion rings were good too. but the steak really stood out as really good. $20.95

you can see from this pic that the steak was cooked to perfection, and also the edges had a nice smokey flavor to it...the marinate really soaked into the steak as it was flavorful throughout.

text

Blue Berry Crumble cake (seasonal blue berries and blue berry jam accompanied by homemade crumble cake, home made whip cream, and i asked for a huge dollop of vanilla ice cream): another great recommendation from our waitress...mum said she was too full, but i ordered it anyway and i predicted right, cause mum ate half of it. $4.95

Summation: great food, great environment, this is definitely rounding out to be one of my go to places. I look forward in trying out more dishes from this joint. And i can definitely recommend this place to eat at, AND DRINK AT! CHEERS!!!!

The Best I've ever had...in MAINE!

Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

The Best Blue Berry Pancakes @Marriner's

The best damn blue berry pancakes i've ever had in MAINE!

the pancakes always come out nice and warm (perfect for melting butter). (their ham is also really goooooood).

best part is the blue berries are mixed into the batter, not like alot of places that just clump a bunch of jarred berries into their already made pancake mix.

so flavorful, so good...add some syrup and you're in blue berry pancake heaven. and for $7.95 (including ham) you can't go wrong!

The Best Lobster Omelet @Marriner's

The best lobster omelet i've ever had in Maine is also from the same joint as the best blue berry pancakes i've ever had.

the omelet is HUGE! and stuffed with lots of lobster!

the swiss and eggs work really well with the lobster, as you'll see the contrasting textures and flavor compliment each other in a symphony of yum in your mouth.

best part? its not just claw meat, they put in lots of joint/knuckle meat! and for $10.95 its a STEAL!

The Best Shrimp Cocktail @Dimillo's Floating Restaurant

This isn't just the best shrimp cocktail i've had in Maine, its the best i've ever had in my life! (i love cocktail sauce)

Dimillo's Floating Restaurant sells these bad boys for $4.50 EACH! and you might be wondering why they're so special....

i eat them like i eat steak, with a fork and knife. Questions?

The Best Chowder @Orr's Island Chowder

This is the best chowder i've ever had in my life...and it was at the Maine Lobster Festival in Rockland.

that's right...four ingredients that make it oh so delish....man just thinking about it makes me want a bowl...

best part is i usually buy gallon bags of it that he sells...and put it into my freezer in sandwich bags. so anytime i want chowder, i can either nuke it or warm it up in a sauce pan.

There's so much shtuff in the chowder...sooo gooooood...love how they don't skimp on ingredients...

even better? if you want you can reduce this chowder a tad and pour it right on top of some fettuccini (or any pasta of your choice)....sooooo gooooooood...oh wait...i said that already...

The Best Lobster Roll in the WORLD @Red's Eats

The best damn lobster roll in the world... it was even on Nippon TV in Japan.

as you can see no mayo, no ambrosia sauce, no sauce, no cheese, no bullshit to try to hide bad odors or flavors...

just the pure natural sweetness of fresh lobster...well more than one lobster per roll to be exact...tail, body, knuckle, joint claw...all on a lovely toasted buttered roll...that you can barely even see...and in 2010 one of these bad boys cost $14.95...you cannot beat that price or quality...CHEERS!

Box of Cookies from the Milk Bar

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

Alpha told me that MomoFuku Milk Bar (midtown) had amazing blueberry cookies... and since i love blueberry cookies i got one.

So i got a box of cookies at the office on my desk, twas kind of weird...but cool at the same time...i had wanted to try the other cookies...woot!

wowsers...first up, the corn cookie....

its like a really good cornbread turned into a cookie...it was really good.

next up...the confetti cookie.

this cookie was really soft and good.

and what would a cookie collection be without a chocolate chocolate cookie?

twas like a brownie morphed into a cookie...to all you chocolate lovers, this will definitely hit the fix for you.

but still hands down the best is the blue berry & milk cookies...next up the confetti...then the corn, and lastly the chocolate...but thats cause i'm biased and am not a huge fan of american chocolate...though chocolate in Vienna is a different story... =x. I was also able to try the Compost Cookie...which is actually kind of hard...but really good with their cereal milk soft serve...=) CHEERS!

Early Dinner @ Momofuku Ma Peche

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

Momofuku Má Pêche
email reservations only

15 west 56th street
New York, NY 10019

Ever since i had the lunch special over at Ma Peche, i was kinda very interested in trying out the dinner specials. Finally a convenient time arose that i was able to head to Ma Peche for din din with the older sis. woot! As you can see you could easily miss this entrance as its not too loud...whats great is that the MomoFuku Milk Bar is in there too... mmmmm blue berry cookies...

Décor:

simple décor. wooden chairs...comfortable enough for you to experience a pleasant eating experience, but not comfortable enough for a long stay...smart.

a touch of home...older sister told me that mum use to carry around Maggi wherever they went...and pops would add it to alot of the foods we ate cause they lacked somewhat flavor.

Menu:

- click here for larger menu -

Appetizers:

Crab Salad - (Corn, pickled ramps, and watercress) - I liked the lumps of crab meat. I felt it was well flavored and the medly held together nicely. $16

The dark sauce on the plate added a nice little kick to the crab. Older sis felt the crab wasn't the freshest (she's a crab expert so i trust her when she says it wasn't that fresh.) I agreed, but the dish still sat pretty well with me.

Crispy Pig's Head (Cabbage slaw, peach and hazelnut) - sis and i had to ask the waitress, is it really a whole fried crispy pig's head? hehehe the waitress explained that its not a crispy pigs head as its just made of pork. (hey, with us asians making dishes and eating, ya just never know.) $16

this dish came out hot, so the crispy texture was really good. the nice tender and uber juicy and quite flavorful pork bits and fat were really really good. the slaw was good separate from the pig's head, but the sweet peach chutney went really really well with the savory pig's head.

Braised Tripe (Frisee, howl crouton, and poached egg) - this came in a warm bowl and was served like soup. $16

Top pic the "bacon bits" or jowl croutons were favorited by the sister. the crispy saltiness accented the 'salad' on top. and the warm braised tripe at the bottom accompanied by a perfect poached egg, was really really good. Older sis didn't like the raw egg, but i felt when mixed with the 'tripe broth' it became really really good. I loved how this dish came together and was nice and warm...though once it got a little cold, certain parts got a little overly salty...i highly recommend eating it while its warm-to-hot.

Entrées:

Grilled Swordfish (eggplant, harissa, and herbs) - the whole dish was quite delightful, the swordfish was not overcooked and just all the flavors (including the eggplant) worked really well in this dish. It was quite delightful to eat this. $28

Lamb (mustard green, onion, and cherry) - I love good lamb...though in america it's really hard to get completely non gamey lamb...this case was no exception. $29

Sis doesn't like lamb, so this dish didn't sit well with her at all. lucky she let me try it though. this 'lamb bar' was really good...it was like lamb jerky that was still really juicy on the inside. it wasn't super gamey, but i could see how it might scare away some light lamb eaters.

the slabs of lamb were really good...very juicy and succulent, the onion and cherry accented the dish well, however, the mustard greens might be a little on the harsher side for most in texture. And again, the gameyness, though ever slight, might not sit well with some.

Summation: All in all it was a great experience, I would definitely recommend the restaurant, but would not call it a MUST GO TO EAT place on a visit/vacation in NYC.

And of course this place still falls into what MomoFuku is known for...EXPENSIVE PRICES and SMALL PORTIONS. of course you can get most of the recipes for the dishes on the momofuku recipe website (ask the google gods) and make it yourself...or make it better yourself.

I definitely look forward to trying other dishes at this joint. HAPPY EATING!

CHEERS!!!

Ice Cream Crepes @ Belly Good Cafe and Crepes

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

Belly Good Cafe and Crepes
PH: 415-346-8383

1737 Post Street, #393 (btwn Buchanan St & Webster St)
San Francisco, California 94115

My stupid partner in crime scared the crap out of me cause she disappeared and i couldn't find her, and she wasn't answering her phone. but this is where i found her...she was drawn to all the different styled ice cream crepes she saw...and i admit...i could see why she was attracted to them...

a blurry snap of the artist himself...the crepe masterpiece creator.

Menu:

- click for menu and options -

CREPES!

They come at about 5 dollars and you add the fruit and 'toppings' you want. and he designs them into some kind of creature or cute looking thingy. (of course you can get them the traditional way flat in triangles on a plate, just click on the menu and you can see what i mean.)

the best part is that he doesn't clump up the toppings all into one area...if you look closes in the below picture he sprinkles the toppings throughout the crepe. which made it even better as each bite contained something new and refreshing.

The fruits and crepes were really fresh...no wonder there was such a huge crowd there and a backlog of orders.

Summation: Then once the orders are all cleared the place is like a ghost town...almost as if it was night time in sunnydale and buffy decided to take a vacation...(excuse the buffy the vampire reference.)

This definitely becomes a MUST GO to place on any visit to San Fran, as the crepes are really fresh and really really good.

i highly recommend this place...sooooo good...and then afterwards go to the toystores and look at all the neat transformers

CHEERS!

Cold Soba @ Iroha

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 03:08:00 GMT

Iroha
PH: 415-922-0321

1728 Buchanan Street (between Post St & Sutter St)
San Francisco, California 94115

Originally i had wanted to go for Hawaiian food, but the place little sis recommended closed down...sigh...that was a huge let down...so we wandered around the area for some eats...and i'd never had soba before...so why not? we were near japan town so it must have been fate. Iroha is located on the second floor.

Menu:

- click to see larger -

i picked the Zaru & Nigiri lunch special.

got to love the branding. lol.

Food:

I ordered the Beef Yakitori cause i was pretty hungry and a little fearful that the lunch special might not be enough. You actually get two skewers, but i had gone to wash my hands...and someone decided to devour one...and to even hide the evidence when she realized that i hadn't taken a pic yet...oh well. $5.90

I always find that japanese beef teriyaki is always over cooked..and this was no exception...and i hadn't realized (nor did it say on the menu) that there would be a piece of bell pepper in there...(i don't like bell pepper cause it gives me heart burn... =P) but as usual also the sauce was really good....chew chew chew...

Udon & Nigiri Lunch Special (she changed udon to soba noodles): hot Soba with nori in a tasty hot broth with sushi on the side. $10.80

it was perfect for her as she had wanted something hot to warm herself up. the noodles were good and the broth was definitely siyo based. and got to love some naruto.

Zaru & Nigiri (cold soba with nori and sushi): love the presentation of this dish. $10.80

I was kind of surprised that the sushi was so good. (though was disappointed that there was no salmon in the mix...)

i honestly didn't think the fish would be this fresh.

and the eel was definitely hinting that the eel rice box here is probably really really good. YUM!

and then of course the soba with nori...was really fresh...nice cold texture and not stuck together.

and then i dumped all my wasabi and scallions in and sturred it up, and dipped my lovely soba into my concoction. It was soooooooooo gooooooood.

Summation: as far as cold soba goes, i felt it was really good. I wouldn't recommend the yakitori i had, unless you're into that tough overcooked beef type deal. My cold soba totally hit the spot, and i'd love to come here again. I wouldn't put it as a MUST GO place, but it'll definitely satiate a soba need.

one other thing i noticed was they didn't bring the hot tea/broth to pour into my concoction to drink...which was a tad weird...cause i thought that was the tradition....oh well. still a great meal, and i'd definitely recommend this place. CHEERS!!!!