LE BISTRO

The ad in the newspaper read, "Opening Saturday!  Le Bistro fine dining with Executive Chef Christopher Maravelas."  How excited was I to try out our city's newest eating place.  Maybe this would be the one.  After all, when an executive chef is mentioned, one would expect superior food.

Le Bistro is housed in the same place that Stacia's Lieu Secret was.  I wondered if Stacia's went out of business.  As the three of us walked inside, we saw that the inside had not been redone.  It looked just like Stacia's.  In fact, Stacia was there!  It turns out that the restaurant took on a new name, but everything else remained the same.  Stacia's outdated decor didn't seem to fit a bistro theme.

Fussy linen tablecloths don't seem to fit with paper napkins, but that's what you get.  And what are all those Victorian accents on the walls?  This looks more like a Victorian tea room than a bistro.  But I'm being picky again.  Well, Stacia's was always known as a place for ladies to lunch.

My luncheon choice, chicken salad on a croissant with potato salad, looked appetizing.  I asked for the potato salad to be wrapped to go so I could take it home for hubby to eat.  The croissant that I was salivating over was disappointingly cold and tough instead of warm, flaky and tender.  When I mentioned this to the server, her reply was, "I'll tell the chef."  Tell the chef?  How about a warm croissant for me?  It didn't happen.  My disappointment didn't stop at the croissant, though:  the chicken salad was totally bland and tasteless.  (Later, at home, hubby took one bite of the potato salad and dumped it, saying it had no flavor.)

Carole ordered Vegetable Rice salad with her chicken salad sandwich.  In Carole's own words, "...the veggies were invisible and the rice a scoop of mush. The chicken salad was average but the side was not tasty at all."  

Rita's Portabella sandwich had Cremini mushrooms (baby bellas) instead of the large Portabellas.  Worse yet, the baby bellas were few and far between.  The fruit salad side was just okay.

The prices at Le Bistro are too high for their inferior food.  Your lunch will cost you about $9 plus drink and tip at Le Bistro, but you can go downtown to Captain Ratty's or Morgan's for a consistently decent lunch that will cost about $7 plus drink and tip.  Just down the road from Le Bistro, Bella Cucina offers an array of tasty salads and entrees for lunch that range from $6.50 - $8.49.  Stacia's may have a new name, but what is really needed here is a complete makeover of the menu and decor.  Robert Irvine, please come quickly.

SUPER-EASY MUSSELS DINNER

Here's an idea for a super quick, easy and delicious dinner.  Pier 33 Gourmet fully cooked frozen mussels are available at Harris Teeter in two flavors.  We like the tomato and garlic sauce version.

When they go on sale, I always buy a few and stash them in the freezer for when I don't want to cook.  Directions are on the box.  I usually just put the unwrapped frozen mussels in a skillet and heat them up.  Serve with some crusty bread and dipping oil.

FISH TACOS AT CAPTAIN RATTY'S

We recently went back to Captain Ratty's so that I could try their fish tacos.  I've been spoiled, after having tasted some of the absolute best at Noisy Oyster in Charleston, SC, and The O'Bistro Cafe in Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA.  It's been a tortuous wait since then, hoping that local restaurants would catch on (no pun intended) to this craze.  With an abundance of fresh fish in Eastern Carolina, it would seem like a no brainer.

Captain Ratty's makes their fish tacos with their "fresh catch" of the day.  It happened to be salmon the day we were there.  We all know there is no salmon in our local waters, and I particularly like to avoid Atlantic salmon since it is always farm raised and loaded with antibiotics, hormones and other yuk stuff.  But I wanted to try the fish tacos, so that's what I ordered.

What can I say?  These were not the best fish tacos I've had, but they were okay.  The salmon was grilled, not fried, which is my preference, but the seasonings were one dimensional.

Guy's not fond of salmon, regardless of the source, so he ordered the shrimp wrap thinking it would be a shrimp taco.  (The fish taco I had at Noisy Oyster was wrapped and it was unbelievably good.)  But Guy was served a cold sandwich wrap, not what he expected.  He didn't finish it, but I didn't think it looked that bad.

Captain Ratty's has good prices, great service and their food is okay, so it's a good choice for a quick and decent meal.  But I'll eat my fish tacos at home.

TAVERNA MYTHOS GREEK RESTAURANT & BAR, MOREHEAD CITY

We had been wanting to try the fairly new Greek restaurant in Morehead City, Taverna Mythos, but they're only open for dinner.  Guy's birthday was last week and he decided it was worth a 40-minute ride to check it out.  The restaurant opens at 5PM, so we made reservations for 5:15.  The rush-hour traffic was heavy in spots, but we still got there in under an hour.  Mythos is directly across the street from the waterfront and has some decent views from two of its dining areas.

Inside, the restaurant is dark but cozy.  One dining room is completely enclosed with no views; the other faces  the parking lot but has views of the water.  The bar has the best views, but only two tables.

We decided to sit in the bar area.

Service is friendly and attentive, and the menu is limited and easy to read.  Greek specialties (spanokopita, hummus, tzatziki, dolmadakia, melitzanosalata, bougiourdi) are available as appetizers.  You can also order a "sharing" platter with calamari, dolmadakia, hummus, tzatziki, cheese and spinach pie.  Gyros made with lamb and beef, chicken or shrimp are available, as is souvlaki.  All are served as sandwiches on toasted pita.  There's also an assortment of pastas, including Greek pastitsio and mousaka, and specialty pizzas.  If you have children, 12 and under, you can order from the children's menu.  What's not available:  choices for smaller eaters, such as hubby and me.

We were served warm crusty bread and rosemary olive oil as we waited for our entrees.

The bread was good, but the oil was disappointingly bland.  Some salt improved the flavor somewhat.
The birthday boy ordered "Greek Grill," a 14-oz. ribeye steak topped with shrimp sauteed in butter and wine, with spinach and feta cheese.  All grill entrees are served with lemon potatoes and veggies.

This was a gastronomic feast -- the steak was done to perfection, served with a nice sauce.  The lemon potatoes were cooked perfectly, as was the spinach, and everything was seasoned nicely.  The only problem was the steak was too large!  More  than half of it, plus half the shrimp and most of the potatoes came home for another meal.

I ordered the lamb chops, charbroiled and topped with olive oil and lemon sauce.  Three lamb chops arrived and each was cooked perfectly.  I ate all three chops, Guy's zucchini, my spinach and some of the potatoes.  The zucchini was especially good. 

Prices at Mythos are fair for the quality of the food.  Guy's entree was $26, mine was $23.  Wine is $6/glass. The chef/owner is 100% Greek and definitely knows how to cook.  Chef Pia's in little Washington is still my favorite Greek restaurant, but I would gladly return to Mythos any time.

PORK TONKATSU

The South has the corner on pork, and New Bern is in the heart of pig country.  But the new pork that's being marketed is leaner and meaner.  This means you must take care when preparing it, or you will have tough meat.  Brining the meat overnight in a salt-sugar-water solution all but guarantees moist, flavorful meat.

Don't be put off by the title of this recipe.  Pork Tonkatsu is just breaded, fried pork chops using those flaky, crispy Japanese panko crumbs that you can buy just about anywhere nowadays.  Harris Teeter even sells whole wheat panko, if you're inclined that way.

Once the brining is done, this is actually a quick entree to put together, and one that I'm sure you'll enjoy as we did.

Pork Tonkatsu  
Adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine
Rating:  8 out of 10


INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup coarse kosher salt
2 Tbsp. sugar
4 cups water
2 (4-oz.) boneless center cut loin pork chops, pounded to 1/8" thickness
1 egg
1-1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 to 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
lemon wedges, if desired

Stir kosher salt, sugar and water in a bowl or pot till salt and sugar are completely dissolved.  Add chops.  Cover and refrigerate overnight, turning chops occasionally.

Remove chops from brine; pat dry. Whisk egg and mustard in medium bowl.  Combine panko, 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper on a large plate.  Dip chops in egg mixture, then in panko, pressing to adhere.  Heat up to 1 Tbsp. oil in a large nonstick (or cast iron) skillet over medium heat and cook pork until golden brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side, adding up to an additional 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil after turning.  Drain on paper towels.  Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

TWO CRAB PARTIES AND LOIS SEAGRAVES’ LOW-COUNTRY STEW

We went to two crab parties in August.  At the first, we were given T-shirts made by a neighbor.  My hub, Guy is the photo on the left.  At the second party,  we came away with an heirloom recipe for Low-Country Stew.  Read about it....

PLANKED WHOLE FLOUNDER

Fresh flounder is mild and light-tasting, and in Eastern North Carolina, it's plentiful.  B&J's Seafood on Route 70 in James City is my go-to fish monger when hubby isn't catching.  They'll scale, clean and dress the flounder so it's ready to cook.  Harris Teeter sometimes has dressed whole flounder, too.  Planks can be purchased at Lowe's and at Harris Teeter.  Look for special sales.  For instance, at Harris Teeter, the planks go on special for $4.99 for a pack of two planks.  Sound pricey?  It's not too bad when you consider that you can use the planks several times.  After grilling, scrub the plank the way you would a pot, with dish detergent and water.  Dry and reuse until you can't.  Each of my planks last through about 4 uses.  The trick to this is to soak them longer than the recommended 1 hour.  Hubby starts soaking our plank in the morning for an evening use.

Don't be afraid to try this method of cooking fish.  It's very forgiving.  Even if you cook it a little too long, the fish will still be moist and tender.

Planked Whole Flounder
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INGREDIENTS:
1 grilling plank
1 whole dressed flounder with head and tail, about 1-1/2 lbs.
1-1/2 tsp. kosher or sea salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 medium sweet onion, peeled, thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
3-4 sprigs fresh parsley

Soak plank in a clean sink with warm water for at least 5 hours.  Weigh down with a gallon jug of water or a brick wrapped in tinfoil.

Heat gas grill to 400-425F.  Turn one burner off and maintain grill temperature at 400 - 425F.  Remove plank from water, drain.  Rinse fish under cold running water; pat dry with clean paper towels.  Approximating where fish will be on the plank, place onion and lemon slices and sprigs of parsley.  Sprinkle fish inside and out with salt and pepper.

Stuff fish cavity with onion and lemon slices and sprigs of parsley.  Place fish on plank over lemon and onion slices.  Tuck any stray lemon and onions slices under fish.  Use remaining onion and lemon slices for top of fish.

Place planked fish on turned-off burner; cover grill; cook about 40-45 minutes,or till fish skin is dry and papery and fish is cooked through.  You can check that the fish is cooked through by inserted a fork through the skin into the flesh.  The plank should not catch fire when used on a turned-off burner.  In the rare event that the plank should catch fire, just wet edges with a Tbsp. or two of water.  Transfer plank using grill mitts and tongs.  Let rest 5-10 minutes.

To serve:  Peel back skin; remove.

With fork, gently push fish away from the center of the bone towards the outside, exposing the bone.

Lift the bone and remove, exposing the bottom section of the fish.

A 1-1/2 lb. whole fish will serve 2-3 people.  Leftovers are delicious the next day, cold or heated.