It all began with dinner Saturday night with more good friends from the T-dot. Feeling the usual pressure to show them a good dinner, I chose Surfish, a Park Slope Peruvian restaurant I’ve heard great things about…and the chef was on Chopped champions! I thought I could not go wrong with this choice. And I half didn’t. The dinner was off to a rocky start when we arrived for our 7:30 reservation and were seated in the “heated” patio. I use the term “heated” lightly because it was really cold! And when I made the reservation, no one informed me that this could be an option, which I think is poor service on their part. Luckily, there was a table finishing up and after ordering drinks, we were moved inside.
These complimentary plantain chips, blue corn chips, and delicious crunchy corn pieces were a good move in the right directions. And when our ceviche and soup appetizer arrived, I was even happier. I had heard amazing things about Surfish’s ceviche, and it did not disappoint.
Creamy cauliflower soup with tofu, miso, and shitake mushrooms
Trio of ceviches: Salmon, tuna, and white tuna
The soup was also so rich and creamy and perfect for a cold night. Unfortunately, here is where things started to go wrong again. After clearing our appetizers and waiting a very very long time, our waitress came and cleared our cutlery and asked if we were ready for dessert…now this was kind of funny considering we were still waiting for our mains! Finally, the kitchen got things straight and our mains arrived.
Mahi mahi with cauliflower puree, bok choy, and tempura beets
Something just didn’t taste right about the mahi mahi…I thought it was overcooked and dare I say, a tad fishy tasting. The sides were very good, but not good enough to make up for the star of the plate. If I were to go back to Surfish, I would definitely go for a large order of one of the ceviches and a soup…it seems they shine in their tapas section much more than the larger plates. Still a fun night with amazing company…which continued a mere 12 hours later at Locanda Verde for brunch. Now this restaurant was a HUGE hit! I don’t think I’ve ever heard so many “mmmms” at a table before.
Sheep's milk ricotta with truffle honey and burnt orange toast
Every table seemed to have this brunch appetizer and let me tell you, YOU HAVE TO ORDER THIS! It should be a rule at Locanda Verde because the flavor and freshness of ricotta was something I’ve never experienced before. With the slightly burnt orange toast, oh my gravy! Adam and I decided to go with halvsies (and I mean split down the middle exactly) with a sweet and savory item…a good decision on our part.
Zucchini frittata with roasted tomato, basil, and goat cheese
Lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberries and meyer lemon curd
The frittata was perfectly cooked with deliciously creamy goat cheese and the pancakes were so light and airy and went very well with the extra ricotta still on the table. Our four other friends also thoroughly enjoyed their meals and this is one place where I will definitely have to break my “never go to the same restaurant twice” rule.
Sunday evenings dinner out was not a restaurant…but it very well could have been with the quality of food that was had! My food loving (even as much as me if you can believe it) friends invited me over for a meat and potatoes meal…but this was no ordinary meat and potatoes.
Hanger steak with oven roasted potato wedges
The steak was perfectly cooked, seasoned with asian flavors and these potatoes were the crispiest, oven fried potatoes I’ve ever had. Maybe they will post the recipe???? I was told the secret was to soak the potatoes for 10 minutes in warm water before baking and then bake covered for the first 10-15 minutes so the potatoes can steam and then uncover, and flip half way.
Don’t worry, we still got our greens in the form of a very light and fresh, shredded romaine Caesar salad. Thanks friends for an amazing meal!!! Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!
you had me at lemon curd
Thanks so much Dara and Adam for a fantastic weekend! We miss you guys already.. and completely agree with Surfish, the ceviche was amazing, the paella not so much. And Locanda Verde may have been the best brunch I have ever had in my life. MY LIFE.
I’m still disappointed that you didn’t love Surfish after I more or less insisted you go there. But in my defense, we only ever get ceviche and small plates there. I hope our meat & potatoes made up for our less than amazing restaurant recommendation!
Another important secret to the wedges is to **salt the pan** not the potatoes. You can imagine the salt on the pan as little ball-bearings that the potatoes are then sitting on – basically this prevents sticking and makes flipping super-easy – Cooks Illustrated, you are genius!!!
Potato Wedges Recipe (I highly recommend The New Best Recipe. This is a good recipe, but it’s even better if you read the 4 pages leading up to it!):
- heat oven to 475
- soak peeled & cut Russet potatoes in warm water for 10 minutes
- coat baking pan with oil & sprinkle pan with salt
- drain water & dry pat potatoes dry with paper towel
- toss potatoes in bowl with 1 tablespoon of oil
- arrange potatoes in single layer on pan
- cover tightly with foil and bake for 5 min
- remove foil and continue to bake for 15-20 min (until bottom of wedges are spotty golden brown)
- flip each wedge
- continue baking until wedges are golden and crisp (5-15 min)
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