Natalie's in Camden, Maine is worth the trip!

We were lucky enough to stay at the Camden Harbor Inn and had the 5 course dinner at Natalie's in Camden, Maine - one of the nicest harbor towns in the state.  The meal started out with the chef's tasting - which included perhaps the perfect bite of a crab cake puff, light as air, yet full of flavor, topped with a tiny dollop of creme fraiche, one single caper and a pop of a lemon segment! Oh, I could have stopped there - and had about 10 more, and called it a meal.  However, the meal continued with a first course of oysters and a horseradish foam; followed by our second course of an amazing velvety butternut squash soup accompanied by a baked apple slice stuffed with blue cheese and an endive leaf with duck prosciutto.  Heaven!


Our third course was monk fish in a rustic stew of cranberry beans and cauliflower; followed by the fourth course of beef two ways - a delicious Guinness braised short rib that melted in your mouth with a crunchy and salty fried onion ring on top and a hearty rib eye perfectly prepared with a side a sauteed kale.  Oh my!  Our fifth and final course was dessert - a smooth and creamy cinnamon creme brulee with apple sorbet.  I loved the way the two flavors played on the opposite temperature expectations you would typically have with this dessert of warm apple crisp and a cool cinnamon ice-cream.  Simply divine!  Total cost for 5 course dinner for two, including two cocktails (Champagne Cosmo and 007 Martini - which were excellent!) and three glasses of wine was $250.  So, if you are in Camden, don't hesitate to go to Natalie's - you won't be disappointed - it's a treat that is well worth every penny!

Portsmouth Brewery - Go for the Beer, Not the Food

We stopped at the Portsmouth Brewery on a Wednesday night on our way home from the shopping outlets in Kittery, Maine.  I can’t tell you how many times we’ve been here – and how many times we’ve taken friends here, but it had been over a year since our last visit.  It was always a great place to stop for a great beer and great food.   Fortunately, the beer is still great, but unfortunately, the food is not so great.  Sometime over the past year, the quality has suffered and it seemed like the menu was significantly smaller.

For dinner, I had the veggie burger with swiss cheese for $9.  The burger was mushy and lacked flavor, and the sad little piece of swiss cheese had somehow slipped off the burger and burned on the grill, making it completely worthless.  I can say that the side of fries were very good – crispy outside and soft inside – just the way I like them.  My husband had the tofu stir fry for $13, that had too many noodles and not enough vegetables.  The flavor was drab and lacked anything interesting.  Okay, admittedly, maybe these dishes were not the best choices from a brew pub – but nothing else on the menu was even tempting.  The beer was great – we had a saison that started out sweet and had a nice white pepper finish.  I would go again for a few beers and snack food, such as nachos, chicken tenders, or calamari.  Total cost of dinner at the Portsmouth Brewery for one veggie burger, one stir fry and one beer - $29.

Cru Cafe - Go for Lunch and Order the Shrimp BLT!

Cru Cafe - Charleston, SC:  "Go for lunch and order the Shrimp BLT" - that's what a local told me when I asked her where I should go on our last day in Charleston.  I made reservations on OpenTable and was glad I did since people were being turned away when we were seated at 12:30pm on a weekday.  We were offered two seats at the kitchen window and loved seeing how this fabulous little kitchen cranks out amazing dishes one after the other.  If you are a cook or a foodie, ask for these seats!

We followed the advice we were given and ordered the shrimp BLT for $10 which came with our choice of mashed potatoes, fresh fruit, French fries, Asian slaw or salad.   The country bread was lightly toasted, smeared with sauce, topped with bacon, lettuce, tomato, warm grilled shrimp and pepper jack cheese - yes, you read that right! It may sound like an odd combination, but it's that combination that makes it all come together to give you one of the best sandwiches on the planet! There were a few other tempting items on the menu and the dinner choices online looked great too, but follow the advice I was given - get the shrimp BLT!  Total bill before tip for two shrimp BLTs, one beer and one iced tea was $29.  Cru Café is a winner in my book!

Gratzi - For Those Delicious Gnocchi in Ann Arbor!

Gratzi in Ann Arbor was fantastic!  The pasta dishes come in two sizes - primi and secondi.  I had the primi portion of the gnocchi with grilled shrimp in a spicy tomato sauce with bacon for $16 - the entree portion was $20.  The gnocchi was the best I've ever had - light little pillows of potato that magically grabbed the sauce and enough bacon to create a delightful bite.   The shrimp was grilled perfectly and was so big that I could cut it into three pieces!  The sauce was spicy - a definite kick that I wasn't expecting, but the smoky bacon mellowed it out enough for me.  If I was making this at home, I would just fry the bacon to an extra crispiness - there was a piece or two that didn't pass my texture test.

Salad with entree for $5, could have been better dressed, lacked flavor, but the fresh slices of Parmesan cheese provided the pop of saltiness and the wedge of the Roma tomato was nice and ripe.

The wine selections were terrific - at least 10 choices each for red or white from various regions, including California, Italy, French, etc.  I asked for a taste of the sauvignon blanc that I was not familiar with from Mendocino, which was quite good - not as much citrus flavors as some.  You have your choice of 5oz or 8oz pours - and of course, the entire bottle if you want it!

My dining companions also enjoyed their choices as well.  We were there to catch up and spent three hours doing so! Our waitress finally came over to collect the check once we were one of two tables left at Gratzi.  Total bill before tip for three salads, two primi pastas, one entree pasta, three glasses of 5oz pours and three coffees was $102.  I would definitely put Gratzi on my list, but next time I'm getting the entree portion of the gnocchi!