Causeway Food – Saturday Night
Tonight, it was a foregone conclusion that the event would have to be inside (due to heavy rains), so tables were set up in the hallways of the Swan’s convention space and most of the alcohol booths (predominantly wine again) were also in the hallways.
The food stations, the band, and some of the wines were inside the large ballroom. This worked much better than we would have supposed. It is possible with a larger space at The Dolphin – this event might work better inside. Kate and Calvin were also at the Food & Wine Classic and managed to get a table for four (with chairs!) near the edge of the crowds – Thank You!
Inside the ballroom
Inside the ballroom
Shrimp Po’Boy, Garden Grove
Nora’s impression of this was that the sandwich was overly salty (and this from a woman who loves her salt!) and the remoulade was simply yuck. If this is the only shrimp po boy you ever eat, you’re seriously deprived.
“Rock Shrimp Po boy, French Bread, Tomato, Old Bay Remoulade”
Spicy Tuna Roll, Kimonos
Kate tried the spicy tuna roll, her verdict was that it wasn’t very spicy and that the ratio of tuna to rice was off. Kate loves her r-i-c-e, but the rice overpowered the tuna in this roll. Nora and Nick took a pass based on her review.
“Spicy Yellow Fin Tuna, Nori, Seasoned Rice”
Lamb Pasta, Il Mulino New York Trattoria
Nora and Kate had this dish first. Kate thought that the flavor was nice and Nora liked that the vegetables in the ragu still had some crunch to them. The pasta seemed freshly made. While this was a good dish, it wasn’t “wow!”
“Hand Cut Tagliatelle, Braised Lamb Ragu, Pecorino Romano”
Abita Lager
We’ve had this before at Port Orleans French Quarter and Port Orleans Riverside. It’s a good lager, but not tops of Nora’s list of favorite beers.
Pork Belly, Cib’s Smoke Shop
All four of us tasted this, the smoked pork belly was the standout for the entire food part of the Food & Wine Classic. Absolutely excellent! We pretty much ignored the texas toast and the baked bean foam. Although we went up to get this repeatedly, there was never a line — too bad for all of the squeamish people, this was definitely fabulous.
“Smoked Pork Belly, Texas Toast, Baked Bean Foam”
Another piece of pork belly, good gawd this was good stuff!
Beet Salad, Todd English’s bluezoo
Kate, Nora, and Nick had this (Calvin may have had a taste of Kate’s) — not bad, not great. Pretty much “eh.”
“Heirloom Beet Salad, Goat Cheese Fondue, Candied Walnuts, Ice Spinach”
Crab Eggroll, Cabana Bar and Beach Club
Nick, Nora, and Kate again (I think by this time Calvin was pretty much done with food). We couldn’t taste the crab, we all tasted cabbage and soy. Kate said that she tasted salt. Kate and Nick (neither of whom tolerates black pepper very well) tasted a lot of black pepper. There was no hint of ginger or seafood. The sweet thai chili was not spicy at all, mostly sweet.
“Crab Eggroll - Blue Crab, Cabbage, Ginger, Sweet Thai Chili, Soy”
Desserts
“Chocolate Tartlet - Chocolate Creameux, Peanut Mousse, Carmelized Peanuts”
"Chocolate Tartlette" - interior view
Nora’s choice – there was a brownie type base at the bottom of this and it was DRY, the chocolate cream, the peanut mousse and the carmelized peanuts were very good.
"Coconut Macaroon" - interior view
“Coconut Macaroon” again…
"Bananas Foster"
Nick’s choice – this was good, but not stellar