A Really Simple, Tasty, South African Cape Malay Salad

When I prepared one of my favorite stews, Cape Malay Curry (http://viaggiviniecucine.blogspot.com/2012/04/cape-malay-curry-fantastic-south.html) for a visiting friend last week, I found a tasty and easy Cape Malay tomato salad to go with it. I found this recipe at http://www.bcliquorstores.com/recipe/food/cape-malay-tomato-salad.

Ingredients

3 large ripe tomatoes, sliced thin

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp sugar

½ tsp ground cumin

1 hot green chili pepper, seeded and minced

1/2 small white onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp sherry wine vinegar

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

place tomato slices on serving platter.

Mix together salt, sugar and cumin and sprinkle over tomatoes along with chili and onion.

Drizzle with sherry vinegar and olive oil.

Let sit for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

Thai Food Jackpot, Salt Lake City

On a recent trip to Salt Lake City, a colleague and I hit the Thai food jackpot at Simply Thai Restaurant (http://simplythaiutah.com/) in the southern suburbs of Salt Lake City. My colleague and I both enjoy Thai food, although he is much more knowledgeable than me. On the basis of Internet reviews, he identified Simply Thai as a good possibility. It turned out to be fantastic.

We both felt that it was the best Thai food we'd ever had in the U.S. It was so good that we returned the next evening. The second experience was every bit as good as the first.

Our initial impression when we walked into the restaurant made us wonder how much Thai influence there was. There was not the slightest hint of Thai ethnicity among the staff we saw.

Our misgivings were soon dismissed when we tasted our first course - two different soups. He had Tom Yum - spicy hot and sour soup with mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, red and green bell peppers, baby corn, lemon grass, and spicy lemon sauce. He asked that they make it extra spicy. He is normally disappointed when he makes that request. This time, he was not. He said that it was the best Tom Yum he had ever had. He ordered it again when we returned the following evening. This soup can be ordered with chicken or tofu. A cup is $3.95, and a bowl, which serves 2-4 people, is $11.95.

I had Tom Kha - creamy coconut soup with sliced chicken breast, galangal (Southeast Asian ginger), mushrooms, onions, cilantro, red and green bell peppers, baby corn, and lime sauce. I asked that prawns be substituted for the chicken. I love Tom Kha. This was by far the best I have ever had. In addition to the wonderful taste of the soup, the prawns were terrific. I ordered it again the following night. The prices for this soup were the same as those of the Tom Yum.

My colleague's entrée the first night was Pad Gra Tiem Pik Thai - stir-fried meat in garlic and black pepper with carrots, onions, and bell peppers for $12.95. He substituted tofu for the meat. He had the highest praise for this dish.

On the first night, I chose Pad Him Ma Parn - stir fried meat with onions, bell peppers, carrots, scallions, celery, and pineapple for $12.95. I chose beef as the meat. It was fantastic.

Both entrées were served with as much rice as we wanted.

The second night, my colleague's entrée was Gang Massaman, a Thai curry with beef or chicken, coconut milk, potatoes, and roasted cashews for $13.95. He substituted tofu for the beef or chicken. He also asked that the dish be made very spicy hot. It was. He is very familiar with this dish and prepares it at home. He considered it among the best he'd ever had.

My entrée was Ghang Khua Sub Parod Thai, a mild Thai pineapple curry with red curry, coconut milk, pineapple, carrots, bell peppers, Thai basil, baby corn, onions, and cashews for $14.95. As you might expect from the other dishes, this one was terrific as well.

The owner, a woman of Thai origin, was very sweet and very solicitous of her customers. She emphasized that she does not use MSG in her cuisine.

When we were effusive in our praise of her food, she offered us both homemade Thai coconut milk ice cream for dessert. My colleague was too full to try it, but I did. It was very nice.

We had different servers each night. Both of them did an excellent job.

Simply Thai is located in a strip mall at 37 West 10600 south, Sandy UT. The lunch and dinner menus are both available on the web site above.

Ristorante Pizzeria L'Abate, Sorrento - Back for Another Good Meal

One of the restaurants my wife and I enjoyed during our 2007 stay in Sorrento was Ristorante Pizzeria L'Abate (http://www.labatesorrento.it/en/) at Piazza Sant'Antonino. I decided to return there with other family members last month. (The restaurant is associated with Maison Tofani, the wonderful hotel where we stayed in Sorrento.)

L'Abate has tables both indoors and outside. On a pleasant evening, like the night of our dinner, sitting outside is the best choice. Fortunately, we were able to get an outside table even though we did not have a reservation.

The other family members had tasty dishes such as Lemon Scaloppine (€9); Calzone Napoli (€10) with mozzarella, ricotta, and salami; and vegetable risotto - Risotto alle Verdure - (€10) .

I asked the waiter if he would recommend a special local dish. He suggested Pezzogna all'Acqua Pazza (Sea Bream in Crazy Water) with a side of fettuccine for (€28). It turns out that this is a signature seafood dish of the Amalfi Coast, and that pezzogna is one of the most popular types of fish for this dish. Pezzogna is very similar to snapper. 

The dish is apparently simple to prepare - freshly caught fish is sautéed in sea water along with a special type of local cherry tomatoes (pomodorini al piennolo), with garlic, carrots, celery, Italian parsley, and olive oil (http://www.aglioolioepeperoncino.com/2009/04/pezzogna-allacqua-pazza.html).  The dish was absolutely fantastic.

I also asked the waiter to recommend a local red wine. He suggested a 2010 Feudi di San Gregorio Rubrato. It is produced with 100% Aglianico grapes, and is made in the Sannio area north of Naples. The wine was decent and cost (€28).

Heinrich's German Grill - Always Love It

(Update: After a number of nice meals at Heinrich's, we observed inexcusable management treatment of another table of customers. So we stopped dining there. It generally receives very favorable reviews.)

Last night, our family had another delicious meal at Heinrich's German Grill, Sarasota. Although we don't know much about German food, we do know what we like. All seven of us enjoyed our meals last night. We normally dine there once or twice a year.

I had white borscht, one of the two soups of the day. It was terrific.

My entrée was goulash served over a giant crispy potato pancake and with a side of red cabbage for $24.99. It was wonderful.

One of Heinrich's menu options involves choosing two of three types of wurst (sausage) with two sides. The price varies depending on the sides. My wife chose weisswurst, which is made with veal and pork, and bauernwurst, made with beef and pork.  Her sides were potato pancakes and red cabbage. She enjoyed her meal very much.

The wine list is fairly short and contains mostly or all German wines. There were four reds, and we chose one of them - Kallstadter Spatburgunder - a pinot noir. It was very nice.

Heinrich's offers a variety of schnitzels. I have had several of them and have always been delighted.

They have a variety of German beers on draft. Three family members each chose a different beer. All were delicious.

Most of Heinrich's menu can be viewed at http://www.urbanspoon.com/u/menu/1282935

Our server, who has waited on us before, was excellent as always.

Heinrich's is located at 8420 Lockwood Ridge Rd. Phone 941-355-5453.

Jpan (sic) Lakewood Ranch - Mediocre, Pseudo-Japanese Cuisine

Jpan (aka J-pan) Sushi Restaurant, Lakewood Ranch, would be near the bottom of my list of Sarasota-area Japanese restaurants. (Vizen and Kazu would be near the top. Another place where we have had good sushi is Peking-Tokyo, who sushi chef is Japanese.)

My wife had an appetizer of shrimp and vegetable tempura for $7. The batter was not as light as tempura batter should be, but it was tasty. She said it could have used a little salt.

She ordered two types of sushi - california roll and tempura shrimp  for $5 each. Neither had much flavor.

I started with an appetizer of shumai, a stuffed dumpling of Chinese origin for $6. This version was tasteless.

I was delighted when I saw Charsiu Ramen on the menu because I love Japanese ramen, and I don't often find it on menus of  Japanese restaurants in the U.S. However, this version was a failure. Charsiu ramen derives its name from having at least one large piece of pork in the ramen. This version had some tiny pieces of mushy pork fat. I actually had to search for them and try to identify them. The taste of the ramen broth was so-so and ingredients other than the noodles and broth were sparse. It cost $10.

 (If the owners of Jpan want to try real Japanese ramen, they should try the ramen at Kazu, or at Katana-ya in San Francisco (http://viaggiviniecucine.blogspot.com/2011/10/delicious-japanese-ramen-katana-ya.html) or at Matsuchan (http://viaggiviniecucine.blogspot.com/2010/09/michigan-taste-treats.html) in Canton, Michigan.)

One insensitively named dish on their menu was "JapWrap."

We lived in Japan for 4 years and have dined at Japanese restaurants throughout the U.S., so we have a reasonable basis for making judgements about Japanese cuisine.

Fantastic Views and Good Food at Da Giorgio on the Isle of Capri

When it was time for lunch in the town of Capri high up on the Isle of Capri last month, I chose Da Giorgio at Via Roma 34 (http://www.dagiorgiocapri.com/en/restaurant), mostly because of the view and because I felt the food would be decent or better. The views were spectacular, and the food was good, albeit a bit expensive. I expected the food to be a bit pricey because of the location, and the fact that we were in one of the most popular Italian tourist sites at the height of the tourist season.

We were seated at a table next to large open windows, with soft cool breezes blowing in. We had beautiful views out over the Bay of Naples in the direction of Mt. Vesuvius, down toward the harbor below the town, and at the hillsides to either side of the restaurant.

One View from our Table

The atmosphere inside was very nice, with beautifully set tables.

Three of us had the Ravioli alla Caprese (Capri-style ravioli) for €13 each. One had a cheese omelet for €10. In addition to my ravioli dish, I had Caprese salad for €11. (I couldn't visit Capri without having its eponymous salad.)

Ravioli alla Caprese

We had a large bottle of mineral water for €5, and I had a half bottle of Taurasi wine for €10. Taurasi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taurasi_DOCG) is a type of red wine that is produced from Aglianico grapes in Avellino Province in the Region of Campania. Campania includes Naples, Sorrento, the Amalfi Coast, and Capri.

We were each charged a cover charge of €3 and a service charge of 12%.

Great Gelato with Homemade Waffle Cones on the Isle of Capri

When we were on the isle of Capri in mid-July we had terrific gelato at R. Buonocore at Via Vittorio Emanuele 35. While we had lots of great gelato on our trip, this is the only one where I saw them making homemade waffle cones. I had my gelato in one of those cones, which I watched being made right before I placed my order. My wife and I also had wonderful gelato there in 2007. I highly recommend it.

R. Buonocore also serves meals.

See Trip Advisor, where it is rated number one out of 105 restaurants on Capri: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g187783-d2342249-r136320794-Buonocore_Gelateria-Capri_Island_of_Capri_Campania.html