Florida Trip 2015: Wild Sea Oyster Bar and Grille

When in Florida, eat seafood, right? My friends really wanted to get some seafood during the trip. We ventured into Las Olas Saturday night by the water taxi, that was a pretty cool experience. Sailed by all the super rich people's mansions.

We strolled around Las Olas and came upon Wild Sea. There wasn't that many other seafood options so we decided to give this place a try.

Wild Sea Oyster Bar and Grille
620 E. Las Olas Blvd.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
(954) 467-2555
www.wildsealasolas.com
Price: $$$$

We got some Foccacia to start... it was so freaking good!

Cocktail

Some of my friends wanted oysters... they were pretty expensive but we're on vacation! haha. East Coast Oysters (served with cocktail sauce, Florida citrus, red wine mignonette) $3~ each. We got 18 pieces first round. 2nd Round was 2 dozen (24 pieces). Wow... that's a lot of oysters. They all really enjoyed them.

Wild Sea Lobster Bisque (lobster meat, saffron oil) $10~ Poured table side... I always like that presentation for soups.

Grilled Octopus (garlic aioli, blueberry coulis, slab bacon) $13~ 

I wasn't super hungry, so I went with an appetizer and a side. The waiter told me this was just one tentacle... I didn't expect such a big tentacle. hahaha. Really fantastic. The octopus was super tender and the flavors with the aioli, blueberry and bacon complemented each other really well. And it was super filling. Loved it!

Cauliflower Mac N' Cheese $7~ 

This was my side dish. It was also bigger than I expected. The pasta turned out to be orzo... which I wasn't a huge fan of. Prepared as mac n cheese, the orzo was overcooked and got lost in the cheese. There wasn't enough cauliflower in my opinion. Was an ok dish... if they had used a different pasta, this could've been great.

Atlantic Monkfish Loin (stone ground grits, smoked gouda, sweet corn succotash) $29~ Everyone loved the grits. The fish itself was kind of meh. I mean, it was a good piece of fish, but got shadowed by the grits.

Grilled Ahi Tuna (spicy broccolini, shiitake mushrooms, caramelized shallot-mirin soy reduction) $34~ Gorgeous color on the ahi tuna. My friend enjoyed it.

I forgot what this is... special of the day. But it's a seared fish, skin on. With squash and eggplant and frisee. I loved the plating of this. A pretty tower of food. The squash blend in whatever sauce that was, was bomb!!

We enjoyed this meal... so much food!! haha. And everyone got their seafood fix. :) Service was good, and the decor was nice. I'd recommend it if you are in Las Olas.

Quality of Food:

Service:

Ambiance:

Value:

Overall Experience:

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

Las Vegas - Payard Patisserie & Bistro

Saturday morning in Vegas commenced my friend's bachelorette party. We started with breakfast at Payard Bistro in Caesars Palace. This was in my list of places to go the last time I was in Vegas so I get to try it this time!

Payard Patisserie & Bistro
(in Caesars Palace)
3570 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702) 731-7849
http://www.payard.com/
Price: $$$

It was a last minute change for breakfast location so we didn't even think to make a reservation. The bistro turned out to be quite small and we had a party of 7. The hostess told us it was about a 15-20 minute wait though. That's not too bad... But I think we ended up waiting a little over half an hour.

We finally got seated and they took our drink orders and brought us a bread basket. 

All the breads were yummy. There was one with a roasted garlic in the center, I think a focaccia and baguettes (since it's French and all. hehe) Most people were pretty hungry by now. I was still full from the dessert and dinner the night before! XP

I ordered the Brioche French Toast (chocolate, with nutella, sauteed banana compote, whipped cream) $18~ 

My friend and I both wanted something sweet and savory. So I got the sweet dish and she ordered the savory and we were gonna share. This was good, I think if I was hungrier, it would've been even better. But I still finished a whole piece on my own. The french toast had good texture and I liked the chocolate chips inside. I wanted more nutella on top though. I can never get enough nutella. :P Loved the bananas on top.

My friend got the Classic Monsieur (with ham, Bechamel, swiss cheese, baked tomato, salad) $16~ 

We thought all the prices were pretty steep but the portions turned out to be massive. It was a very large sandwich. I like the melted cheese and crispy crust on the sandwich but I wish Croque Monsieurs had some fresh veggies inside. I ended up stuffing some of the salad into the sandwich. It's quite heavy. The salad on its own was a little too sour, but I liked it paired with the sandwich.

Here are some other things people got...

Eggs Benedict on a Croissant $18~ Looked really good. I got a small bite, but wasn't enough to really get a sense of it.

Omelet (choice of 2 ingredients; with side salad) $18~ Looked pretty healthy. Didn't try it.

Almond Croissant. This is a big seller apparently. It was a large croissant. I got to try a bite, but again, not big enough to really tell how good it is...

The food portions were very large and tasty for the most part. It was a bit heavy for me so early in the day and still full from the night before. haha. But it's good quality French food. Our waitress was really nice and took some group photos for the bachelorette party. If you plan to go, make sure you reserve ahead of time, otherwise you'd have to wait...

Quality of Food:

Service:

Ambiance:

Value:

Overall Experience:

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

Mi Piaci

I had a big holiday get together with a group of friends before the new year. We try to get together once a quarter, but with jobs and babies and life, it's longgg over due! I chose Mi Piaci because one of my friends mentioned to me a few months ago that they had squid ink pasta. Sold! I had to go try it. hehe. 

Mi Piaci 
14854 Montfort Drive 
Dallas, TX 75254 
(972) 934-8424 
http://www.mipiaci-dallas.com 
Price: $$$-$$$$

We had a party of 10 for Saturday night around 7PM. We were immediately seated and they put us in the private room with a giant round table. Felt so grand... definitely like a family holiday dinner or something. hehe. At one point we even closed the curtains so it was completely closed off to the main dining area. 

I was pretty hungry, so I attacked the bread plate when they served it. I think it was herbed Foccacia, garlic Foccacia and bread sticks. The bread was awesome. I loved the pillowy texture and lots of flavor. I had to refrain myself from eating it all. haha. 

We got started with some appetizers and salads. 

One couple got the Calamari Fritti (pan-fried with red chili sauce & cilantro oil) $9~ (in the background...)

I got to try one. It was awesome. The calamari was cooked beautifully and each piece was huge. It was like calamari steak fries. haha. The sauce complimented it well. 

I had the Insalata di Cesare (heart of romaine salad with classic Caesar dressing, garlic croutons, spiced pumpkin seeds) $8~ My favorite part was the pumpkin seeds, gave it that crunch it needed. It was a good salad, nothing fancy. 

A few people got the House Salad. They said it was really good. 

Zuppa Aragosta (Adriatic style lobster bisque topped with house made lobster fritter) $9~ This looked really good. I didn't get to taste it though. But those who ordered it cleaned their bowls. 

On to the entrees... They hand make all their pastas and even have a window into the kitchen where you can see the guy making it. I thought that was pretty cool. 

Spaghettini Neri (house made black spaghetti with butter poached blue crab and chili butter) $24~ 

All the pastas sounded great but I was here for this. You can definitely tell the pasta was handmade and had good texture. The chunks of crab were big and cooked well. I felt there was a bit too much pasta vs sauce though, but wasn't a big deal since I don't like too much sauce anyways. I liked the sprinkle of bread crumbs on top to add some texture. I liked it but I still like the one at Spoon better... It was a pretty big portion too. I took half of it to go. 

I also got a side of Broccolini Fritti di Peperoncino (flash fried fresh broccolini with red chili flake) $7~ I think they prepared it another way because it didn't seem flash fried nor did it have chili flakes on it. Oh well...still good veggies. 

 
Fettuccine al Prosciutto (wide, flat noodles in a light parmesan cream sauce with prosciutto and peas) $18~ 

I was able to have some of this. It's like a alfredo/carbonara... super creamy and decadent. I really liked it. The peas were cooked perfectly and the sweetness paired well with the salty prosciutto. Not for those watching their waistlines that's for sure. haha. 

I didn't get to try anything else, but it all looked yummy. 
Penne All' Arrabiata (hand rolled quill shaped pasta with spicy tomato sauce, pancetta, vodka, basil and pecorino cheese) $18~ 

Pesce Branzino (tamarind glazed Chilean sea bass with lemon basil risotto, radish sprout, with spicy sweet portabella mushroom sauce) $30~ 

Maiale al Forno (spice-rubbed pork tenderloin with parmesan polenta and blackberry demi glace) $25~ 

Osso Bucco alla Milanese (braised veal shank with traditional sweet pea and saffron risotto) $38~ 

Funghi al Forno (oven roasted wild Italian mushrooms) $9~ 

So our main waiter wasn't that great. But the waiter that served our entrees was super cool. haha. I mean the main guy wasn't rude or anything but after they cleared the entrees, the waiter came with the check. We were all chatting so no one realized that we weren't asked if we wanted any dessert or coffee, etc... at first. We thought it was weird so we called him back and said we at least wanted to see the dessert menu. I think he knew he made a mistake so when he brought the dessert menus he gave us some excuse saying he overheard some people talking about cake earlier and thought we had dessert already... Whatever. Even if we had cake earlier, that doesn't mean we don't want the option of getting more dessert!! Right?! There can never be too much dessert! 

And we DID get dessert. I love how all my friends love to eat. hehehe. 

Gelati o Sorbetti (assortment of gelato and sorbet made fresh daily) $6~ 

Torta di Limone (pistachio encrusted lemon tart with fresh berries) $6~ 

Crema Italiana (maple-flavored custard with fresh berries) $7~ 

I got Tiramisu (the Italian classic with espresso and mascarpone) $7~ It was pretty good. Nice and light since I was already pretty full. But pretty standard, not the best I've had. 

Also, just FYI, they don't do split checks but they can take multiple credit cards so I took it upon myself to list out all the totals for each card. Took a while, but I'm used to it. But it would be nice for restaurants to be able to do split checks. Just my thought. Thanks. :P 

It was a good time. The food was yummy and portions were pretty big. I probably wouldn't request the private table again though unless the group is bigger. It was hard to shout across the table. haha. I'd recommend this place for a special occasion. 

Quality of Food:

Service:

Ambiance:

Value:

Overall Experience:

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

Vegas 2012: Carnevino

The last night in Vegas I made a reservation for Mario Batali's Carnevino. I watch him all the time on Iron Chef and The Chew! And I've heard amazing things about his restaurant. 

We arrived on time and were immediately seated. It wasn't packed at all while we were there. The place was quite big despite what it looks like from the entrance. 

Carnevino Italian Steakhouse - Palazzo 
3325 South Las Vegas Boulevard 
Las Vegas, NV 89109 
(701) 789-4141 
http://www.carnevino.com/home.cfm 
Price: $$$-$$$$$+ 

We were greeted by our waiter with menus and served some water. He later came back to give us a background of the food and their specialties. He seemed pretty knowledgeable of the food. 

After we ordered we were served compliments from the chef. Three Cheese Zeppoli (Parmesan, Gorgonzola, Parmigiano Reggiano). It was light and airy. Not bad, but I wasn't blown away... 

Another waitress came by and served us some Rosemary Focaccia (with whipped unsalted butter and Pork lardo butter with rosemary). OMG. The way she described the pork butter was amazing.. but I was underwhelmed with the flavor. They should put some chopped up bacon in there or something. haha. 

For the appetizer we got the Grilled Octopus (pickled vegetables and limoncello) $25~

This is the main reason I wanted to come here. My foodie friends have told me that they have the absolute best octopus they've ever had. The waiter also recommended this... they've won awards I think? And indeed they should. The most tender preparation of octopus I've had. Tons of flavor... hint of spice, hit of acid, it definitely wakes up your palate. Very very good. 

For the entree I already knew what I wanted. The 2nd reason I chose to come here. haha. I got the Spaghetti Nero (crab, jalapenos, and shallots) $25~ 

I love squid ink pasta and I really wanted to try theirs. I mean Mario Batali is Italian, the pastas HAVE to be good right? hehe. I liked the flavors a lot. The jalapenos added just the right amount of heat. And there was plenty of crab throughout. However, I felt the pasta was a tad undercooked. And I love al dente pasta and this was even a bit under for me. And I'm sorry to say.. I found a few crab shells in my dish. That's a bummer given the caliber of this restaurant, they should be more careful... Other than that I still enjoyed it. But I rather have the squid ink pasta at Spoon in Dallas any day!! 

My friend ordered the Spaghetti Ai Frutti di Mare (slightly spicy with clams, giant shrimp, lobster and calamari) $31~ 

It looked really good with all the seafood on top. The pasta was cooked a little better than mine. But the lobster was overcooked and dry. The sauce had nice flavor though. 

Another friend got the Veal Chop (20oz bone in; Rubbed with special blend of sea salt, thyme and porcini powder) $85~ Natural, pasture raised veal from Strauss Farms. 

He ordered it medium rare but I think it was more medium. Still quite tender but for $85 it should be spectacular. The flavor was light so you can actually taste the meat, which I liked. But all their meat dishes are a la carte which I hate. I think if you are spending big bucks on a piece of meat, the restaurant can at least give you some sides to go with it. We're poor young people so we didn't want to break the bank. hahaha. The $85 splurge was already big enough so it was just basically a piece of meat on a plate. haha. 

We were too full to have dessert. But I wasn't really into trying anything either. I guess I had really high hopes for this place with the celebrity chef I watch all the time plus the recommendations by my friends. I wasn't impressed. I would rather spend my money at John Tesar's Spoon right in Dallas!! And the waiter, even though he was professional, wasn't very friendly. It seemed like he couldn't wait for us to finish and leave just because we weren't dropping bank on this meal. It made me feel like we didn't belong there. Sigh~ The other assistant waitress/waiter were all great though. 

Quality of Food:

Service:

Ambiance:

Value:

Overall Experience: 

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~