An Evening at Tavern on the Bay

Friday night...finally!  The end of the first week back with students.  Always exhausting!  Thankfully, a musician friend was booked to sing at a little waterfront seafood joint, and a little seafood, a little sea breeze, and a little...no, make that a big...drink was just what we needed.

Even though it has been record-breaking hot around here lately, by 7:00 pm on the bay front, it was lovely.  We watched the sunset over the marina while we enjoyed cold drinks and Jim crooning.

We ordered the garlic shrimp dip.  Warm, creamy, dotted with pieces of fresh shrimp and served with toasty, salty tortilla chips.  Lovely!  Philip licked the bowl.  A little embarrassing, but I couldn't blame him.

After that wonderful appetizer, we were certainly looking forward to our entrees.  They did not disappoint.  Philip ordered the grilled fish skewer.  Large chunks of firm white fish, grilled to juicy perfection and served with a serving of fresh fruit and cranberry coleslaw.

I had the seafood combo, which normally comes with shrimp, oysters, and fish.  However, if you ask, the chef will serve up three types of shrimp instead.  My combo consisted of two each of Panko crusted, pecan crusted, and coconut shrimp.  Each shrimp was served with its own sauce.  The cocktail sauce had a smokey flavor, a little different than the usual red shrimp sauce.  The pineapple sauce (not too tart, not too sweet) was a fitting accompaniment for the coconut shrimp.  However, the raspberry sauce served with the pecan shrimp was way too sweet.  But the pecan shrimp was delicious on its own and really didn't need a sauce anyway.  The combo is served with homemade potato chips and cranberry coleslaw.

 It was a lovely evening.  Nothing beats sitting by the sea, sipping cold drinks, dining on fresh seafood, listening to familiar tunes sung by a familiar voice, and of course, watching the sunset.  Can't wait to do it again!

Tavern on the Bay
108 Peoples Street T-Head
Corpus Christi, TX 78401
(361) 881- 8503

Room for Dessert by David Lebovitz

For over a year I have been trying to find a reasonably priced copy of the out-of-print book Room for Dessert by David Lebovitz.  Oh, I found plenty of copies out there, but they ranged in price from $80 to $800.  Considering the original cover price was only $30, I just couldn't bring myself to pay that much (sorry David!).  But FINALLY, I found a private seller on amazon.com that was selling it for a mere $32, so with shipping, I only paid $36.  I could live with that!

It finally arrived yesterday, and not only was the book in much better condition than I expected, there was a very much unexpected surprise included.  It was a signed copy!  I was so excited that I jumped around like a giddy school girl.  I am such a fan of David Lebovitz: I read his blog, I follow him on twitter, and I follow him on Facebook.  Score!

Stay tuned to this blog, where I will soon be trying out some of the recipes from this fantastic book, as well as some delicious ice cream from his The Perfect Scoop.  I'm going to make his cheesecake ice cream tomorrow, so check back soon for pictures!

Quick and Easy: Jalapeño Pecan Spread

This recipe was given to me several years ago by a co-worker.  It uses jalapeños en escabeche, which are jalapeños pickled with onions, carrots, and spices.  I use the Faro brand, but if you like burning hot jalapeño, use the El Costeña brand.  I have made this spread dozens of times, and it is always a hit.  If you put this out at a party, there won't be any leftovers! 

Jalapeño Pecan Spread

8oz packages cream cheese, softened
1 12oz can jalapeños en escabeche, drained
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Place cream cheese and jalapeños in food processor and process until jalapeños are chopped.  Remove from processor and stir in pecan pieces.  Chill for several hours or overnight before serving.  Serve with crackers.

If you want the pecans to be extra crunchy in the spread, don't add them before chilling.  Chill cream cheese and jalapeño mixture, then before serving, bring spread to room temperature and stir in pecans.

Road Trip for Seafood

When I received an email from Southern Living entitled "The Best Seafood Dives Across the South", I eagerly scanned it, hoping for something along the Texas Gulf Coast.  Bingo!  There is was.  A little seafood dive in a little town I had never heard of.  Luckily for me, we were already planning a road trip to a location less than an hour from that little town.  It was a no brainer.  Of course we would seek out this dive.

We arrived at Top Water Grill in San Leon, Texas at around 7:30 on a Friday night.  We asked for a table outside, and were seated at a picnic table on the dock.  Lucky boat owners can dock right next to their table!

View from our table

Cold draft beer in hand (Blue Moon for me, Shiner Bock for him), we perused the extensive menu.  We chose an appetizer of Smoked Swordfish Pate.  Two large scoops of the pate were served in a stemmed glass along side a basket of crackers, lemon wedges, and a bottle of hot sauce.  The pate was delicious, although I would have preferred it to be smokier.

The restaurant offers several beers on tap

After much consideration, I decided to try the Pecan Crusted Snapper.  The snapper was fresh and moist, pan fried with a crunchy pecan coating.  The crust had that savory, full-flavored nuttiness that comes only from toasting the pecans.  The generous piece of snapper was served with a light lemon butter sauce, which complimented but did not overpower the flavors of the fish or pecans.  The fish also came with two unremarkable sides of rice and mixed vegetables.

Pecan Crusted Snapper

My husband chose the Drunken Redfish.  This thick, fresh piece of redfish was seasoned and grilled, then topped with a creamy white wine sauce studded with shrimp and crawfish tails.  It was simply delicious!  It was also served with the same mundane rice and veggies.

Drunken Redfish

Overall, it was definitely worth the drive to get out to San Leon.  The Top Water Grill was a definite find, although I would never call it a "dive".  The restaurant is large and attractive, the menu extensive, and the prices moderate.  Our total, with two beers each, shared appetizer, and two entrees was $73.91 (including tax and tip).

Front of Top Water Grill

Restaurant from across the canal

Top Water Grill
815 Ave. O
San Leon, TX
(281) 339-1232
http://www.topwatergrill.com/