The Black Pearl

Nope, I'm not talking about the well-loved Johnny Depp movie.
I'm talking about the well-loved restaurant on Main Street.

My parents popped over for a visit, and, always in the mood to try new restaurants (like parents like daughter), they booked a table at The Black Pearl.

I didn't know too much about the place before we went, only that it was known for its seafood and extensive martini list. Boy, are they serious about their drinks here. Just check out the bar.

With a tight and concise dinner menu, The Black Pearl is a small place that specializes in delicious and unique seafood. What they do, they do very well. Like this delicious shrimp guacamole appetizer:

So simple, yet so delicious. And with some seriously kick-ass guacamole.

For our entrees, my dad got the mahi mahi.

(sorry for the blur, but I can't ask my dad to withhold digging into his meal for more than a couple of seconds)

Mom got caramel apple salmon (like I said, unique and delicious)

And my choice of the night was the Pasta Gone Bayou. An enormous bowl of penne pasta, andouille sausage, crawfish, shrimp, and chicken smothered in a garlic cream sauce. Served with grilled bread (side note: grilling bread gives it an AMAZING smokey flavor).

And as much as I loved the dinner, I'm a sucker for dessert. Especially when the dessert is a molten lava cake.
I know nearly every restaurant tries to make a lava cake. Even Olive Garden has one. So I'm going to forego describing this one and just let the picture speak 1000 words.

Gooey.

Chocolatey.

Brownie batter.

Enough said.

Food coma.

Goodnight.


(seriously, this place is worth it just for the cake. I recommend stopping in for drinks and dessert at the bar! Or a full meal if you're feeling particularly in the mood for seafood.)

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Isalita

Whew, this post has been a long time coming.
Last week, my friends and I booked a table at a new restaurant in town - Isalita. Owned by the same man who started Mani Osteria, Adam Baru, the restaurant features unique Mexican tapas developed by Mani's original chef, Brendan McCall.

In the spirit of restaurant week, the chef had prepared a special 3-course menu for $28 per person. Eager to sample the spicy goodies that this new restaurant had to offer, my friends and I began pouring over the menu. 
While we waited, we munched on creamy guacamole, fresh pico de gallo, and unlimited homemade chips. 

Needless to say, giving us unlimited chips was a mistake. I easily could have filled up just on those, and almost did, to be completely honest. I have a tortilla and guacamole problem. If it's in front of me, I eat it!

Fortunately for my chip problem, our entrees came out soon. Joanna and I both started with the salad, a crispy, tangy, and fresh dish that took me by surprise due to its taste and size.

Since Isalita is a tapas style restaurant, most of their dishes are quite small portions meant for sharing with the table. This salad easily could have filled me up on its own, though, and Joanna and I both ended up only eating half of ours so we could save room for our second and third courses.

Mallory got adorable little chorizo sopes. So cute and pretty!

For the second round, Joanna and I each went for enchiladas. Hers was a traditional chicken and cheese, topped with sour cream and radishes. 

I took a leap of faith and went for the enchilada verdea - a delicious and melty tortilla filled with lump crab meat, shrimp, cheese, and salsa verde.

I didn't take any pictures of the filling, because it was honestly a gooey mess, but I can say it was delicious and very unique. As a seafood lover, I'm fond of any shellfish, crab, or shrimp dish, but I'm used to them being prepared in a simpler European style. The salsa verde and jalapeno spices took these flavors to a whole new level, and I would come back again just to get these.

Mallory, who seems to have a knack for picking the most attractive food on the menu, got these fresh and colorful fish tacos for her second course. Crispy battered white fish in a small tortilla topped with a sprinkling of radishes and delicately draping avocado - yum!

I'm a sucker for avocado, so these are another dish I'd definitely come back for.

Finally, the dessert, which we were all completely too full to eat but finished anyway (of course).

This tres leches cake was a synthesis of unique but complimenting flavors, including spongey cake, coconut, three different milks, mango, and kiwi. I'm usually a chocolate desserts-only kind of girl, but even I bought into this cake due to its delicate preparation.

All in all, Isalita is the most unique Mexican restaurant in the area. Be aware that portions are small and meant for sharing, so don't come here looking for a quick, enormous, and cheap mexican meal. Also, appearances can be deceiving. Despite the size of the dishes my friends and I were served, we ended up not being able to finish 5 out of the 6 entrees we ordered due to their richness. Don't be afraid to start small, because many of these (like my enchilada) are incredibly creamy and filling. Definitely a good place to head to if you and your friends want to enjoy some drinks and tacos at the bar.

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Steve & Rocky's

It's incredibly difficult to find good seafood in the midwest. With no oceans nearby, shellfish must be flash-frozen and trucked across the mainland, hiking up the price. As a result, most restaurants opt for the cheaper and less-tastier options, like boxed and frozen fish.
However, in this barren space of land and lakes, several beacons of culinary mastery taste as though they have their own ocean somewhere back in their vast kitchen.
One of these beacons is Steve and Rocky's.

Their newly re-vamped decor matches the underwater luxury of their menu. Everything is light, wavy and feels as though you're dining just off the coast.

This restaurant has been a favorite of my parents' ever since they moved here from Florida. So, naturally, it made sense when my mom invited me to Steve and Rocky's for my dad's birthday dinner.

Here's the birthday boy!

The menu at Steve and Rocky's changes daily, but I had to check out their extended summer menu. (Psst! Note the lunch prices! This place serves excellent dishes for lunch at more-than-reasonable costs)

While the summer menu was certainly tempting, I had to try one of their traditional entrees.

First up - fried green tomatoes and prosciutto in a creamy tomato-basil sauce.

It tasted a bit like a fried tomato parmesan!

Next, the dinner entrees. Mom opted for salmon..

The birthday boy got the 28 oz filet and potatoes...

And I got the scallops and gnocchi..

Remember how I said good seafood is hard to get in the midwest? Well, scallops are particularly difficult to keep light and soft without soaking them in salt water, which makes them taste gross. These scallops were so silky and buttery, I felt like I was back in Florida dining off of Lido Key.

Of course, it's not a birthday without dessert, and you really can't pass up Steve & Rocky's dessert menu.

A mascarpone cheesecake for Dad...

And a hot chocolate cake for me and Mom!

An ooey-gooey mug cake with a liquid center and a dollop of melting vanilla ice cream on top. Want to know how molten and delicious this cake was?

Yeah, that molten and delicious.
If you decide to stop by, just get the whole dessert tray sampler! That's my plan for next time I'm in town.

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