Kata Thai Sushi Kitchen - Raw Power

I have been on the search for some of the more exotic sushi offerings...toro, uni etc, and I found a place in Winter Park that offered these goodies - Kata Thai Sushi Kitchen. The menu looked pretty awesome, so I set off with my girlfriend and friend Marc, who has joined me on a number of these escapades. One of the first things you'll notice about the place is that it's dark...very dark. That aside, the interior is fairly austere as well, but I think that suits a sushi restaurant. Enough of this fluff though, let's talk about the fish!!!

























Well, I lied, before the fish proper come appetizers. We all had miso soup and salad. Not a whole lot to say here, as they were both tasty if completely prototypical versions of these sushi staples.
















After this came edamame, which we recieved gratis due to our 'long' wait time for our orders to come out. I didn't think the wait was too long, but hey, I'll take the free food and cheers to the service!! As far as these little green guys are concerned, they were pretty good, but maybe a little too salty.


















My girlfiend ordered two items. This is the first - a sashimi sampler with Salmon, Tuna and Whitefish. All three were great high quality offerings, being great examples of their respective species. The size was also a bit larger than what one might expect, always a pleasant surprise.

















She then had a salmon roll and a house specialty - the Havana Roll. The Salmon roll is what you'd expect, a generous portion of high quality salmon wrapped in rice and seaweed...good stuff. She was a little less thrilled with the Havana Roll though. Consisting of eel, plantain, avocado and Shiso leaf on top, she said that really the only thing she could taste was mint, so that was rather disappointing for her.

















Marc ordered four rolls, with one of them being the most impressive roll I've ever seen. The first roll (from left to right) was the Crunchy Roll (salmon, crab, roe, cream cheese, scallion, tempura fried). He was very happy with this roll; all of the flavors came together nicely in a fishy, tempura'd amalgam of delicious sushi roll goodness. Next came the ever popular Spider Roll (tempura soft shell crab, lettuce, cucumber, tobiko, mayo, sesame seeds). Again, a very large and very tasty example of this very popular roll. His third roll was his least favorite, the Spicy Krab Roll (krab, avocado, tempura flake, masago). While not bad, he didn't think it was up to par, being relatively bland. His fourth roll was his favorite, and indeed one of his all time favorite rolls - the Lobster Volcano Roll (California Roll topped with baked lobster and mayo). I think the pic says it all - a very generous portion of lobster heaped upon a California Roll and covered in that house mayo sauce. The lobster was cooked well and its flavor really came through...a very strong offering for sure, and one of the most impressive rolls I've ever seen.

















I went for the Exotic Sashimi Sampler. It may look like something of a mess, but let me assure you - this is the best sushi I've ever had. Starting clockwise from the nine o'clock position, I'll bullet point the various items -

• Tempura Sweet Shrimp Head - My first experience with these deep fried wonders, they're absolutely delicious, tasting somewhat of crab rangoon, but much smokier and crispier...I could eat these all day!!!
• Salmon Roe - I've never thought too much of Salmon roe, but this was just on another level. Not overly salty like most varieties I've tried, every little orange orb just burst with intense and delicious salmon flavor...I was impressed.
• Scallop - The scallop is diced and tossed in mayo and lemon juice, then placed inside the lemon peel. I'm not normally the biggest fan of scallops, but this was awesome, just a little difficult to eat with chop sticks.
• Surf Clam - Difficult to see in the picture, it's actually nestled in between the scallop and roe. Unlike any other clam I've had, they almost look like little claws. The meat is very sweet and has a very odd texture...somewhere between squid and salmon.
• Japanese Mackerel - I was a little leery about this fish, because the Mackerel I'm used to is overly fishy and somewhat unpleasant...not so with the Japanese variant!! This was very good, similar to Yellow tail...just better!!
• Sweet Shrimp - My first experience with the sweet shrimp body...the head had been great, but what would the rest taste like? Excellence!!! That is what it tasted like, just the powerful shrimpy flavor bursting onto your palate with a large helping a sweetness that just really made it spectacular. The texture is very interesting too - it's creamy, but in an especially pleasing way.
• Tuna Trio - Maguro, Blue Fin, Toro - The dark red Maguro is the classic tuna that most people are used to and this was a capital example of the fish, just delicious. Blue Fin Tuna is actually endangered, but after tasting it I can see why...it tastes like the pure essence of awesome. The flavor and texture is just so much better than the standard Maguro, it opened my eyes and took me to another level. Lastly comes the Toro, or the fatty belly of the Tuna. Perhaps the most sought after cut of fish by sushi connoisseurs, I know what all the fuss is about now. It doesn't have the most intense tuna flavor, but it is incredibly buttery in terms of both taste and texture...I really enjoyed it!!!
• Baby Squid - The last item consisted of a few medallions of baby squid, which I found much more pleasing this way than in their full grown form. Not nearly as chewy as the adult squid, the texture is much more pleasant, and the flavor is much more intense...talk about a win-win situation!!!

For dessert we all decided to share an order of deep fried ice cream. The tempura'd confection was most delectable (well, I've never had a deep fried ice cream I didn't like) and we made sure that the bowl was cleaned in no time at all.


So, our meal at Kata Thai Sushi Kitchen turned out to be an overall incredible experience, with only a couple of slip ups. Service was very good and the place isn't noisy in the least...in fact it's rather quiet. Now, we only ate the sushi, but a full Thai menu is also offered, we just didn't end up sampling it, so I can't speak for its quality...but rest assured I will be back and will find out!!! Go here and get some great sushi.

Cafe Michel - Ze Bistro

Late May brought with it a very special time for my girlfriend -college graduation. A brief back story for context, my girlfriend and I attended two different schools in the same small town of Lexington, Virginia, but I was a year ahead of her. So I returned to the town of my Alma Mater to witness her own graduation...and to work in a blog post har har. Lexington is a very small place pretty far removed from any larger cities or even towns, so the dining options aren't exactly myriad. There are a few restaurants regarded as fine places to dine in the area, and they like to fancy themselves fine dining establishments. Of this handful, the only one I hadn't been to was Cafe Michel, a restaurant serving up mostly traditional French bistro fair. Based on my experiences at the other restaurants, I can't say I got my hopes up for this particular venture, despite French food possessing all of my favorite ingredients in abundance - butter, cream, meat, mushrooms...it's just that...well, it's Lexington. My girlfriend and her family decided on this restaurant for the big graduation dinner though, so here it goes.

Bread was waiting for us on the table, accompanied by butter and an herbed olive oil mix. Pleasant overall, but the white bread and its simple companions seemed a little basic for a restaurant in this price range.

To begin, My girlfriend's parents both decided to indulge in the lobster bisque. It looked pretty good and they said that it was a very tasty example of the ever popular soup. They were also happy that it actually contained great chunks of lobster, something missing from far too many bisques. Bravo

My girlfriend's older sister started with coconut shrimp. Coconut encrusted and paired with a ginger dipping sauce, these little guys turned out pretty well, with a crisp exterior and creamy - not mushy interior, a far cry from the all too common soggy deep fried seafood

The girl of the hour began with a ceasar salad topped with fried oysters. While the salad wasn't particularly thrilling, the fried oysters on top were absolutely delicious, possessing great flavor and pleasing texture.

I started with escargot. The little snails were bathed in a sauce of butter, herbs, garlic and mushrooms...need I say more? Well, I will. It was very tasty, as the flavor combination basically has to be (if you don't like butter, garlic and herbs, I think there's a good chance you don't have a soul) and it was my girlfriend's first experience with snails, but she has now been converted to the ways of the escargot.

Her little sister just stuck with the plain ceasar salad for the night, but it was a bit dry, lacking in dressing. When she asked for more, she was given additional dressing but then regretted that decision because the dressing was an incredibly thick, odd tasting concoction...not good.

For a main course, her parents both ordered the backfin crab cake with remoulade sauce. Mostly crab and not filler, these ckes turned out quite well and my girlfriend's parents were very pleased.

The elder sister ordered the duck, which was a pan fried boneless breast drizzled in a raspberry sauce. Cooked medium rare, the duck was pretty good and the sauce wasn't bad either, if almost too sweet. As an aside, I just don't think restaurants serve duck in its glorious savory nature enough, it's always being doused with fruity sauces...I want heartier preparations!!!

My girlfriend ordered the filet mignon, which was supposed to come with a burgundy mushroom sauce, but instead was presented au naturale. While a good steak can stand on its own, a great sauce always helps a steak in my opinion, and this cut could've used the sauce. She seemed to enjoy the meat, but my taste was not particularly great at all...lacking in flavor, somewhat dry, and tough for a filet.

I ordered the veal, pan-fried and smothered in a rich button mushroom gravy. Tasty for sure, but hardly worth the cost. Too often these dishes lack refinement and finesse to make them the truly delicious dishes they can be, and this is one such example...just a generic mushroom sauce over the veal in the end. This dish, and all of the other plat principals came with mashed potatoes and a vegetable medley of carrots and lemon grass. Decent examples of their kind, but nothing more.

For desert, Creme Brulee made it's way to the table in short order, as everyone except for my girlfriend and myself ordered it. I didn't taste it, but everyone seemed very happy with it.

My girlfriend and I decided to grab the chocolate volcano cake...let's just say it was very disappointing...bland flavor, and no molten interior...meh.

We split a bottle of wine for the evening, and I'm no oenophile, so I won't pretend to know every last nuance of our bottle, but suffice it to say that it went well with the meal and everyone enjoyed the taste it provided. What more can you really ask for in a wine?

Service was a little slow, but it was an incredibly busy night...our waiter actually looked like he was about to burst into tears at any moment, but otherwise we never felt ignored or anything. Ambiance was OK, but nothing special, just a pink room with white tablecloth adorned tables and a couple of paintings of the French countryside hanging from the walls. Overall, a very middling experience, for me anyway. It seems that some items on the menu are much better than others, so you have to be careful of what you order and be prepared for disappointment...but that just makes the good dishes even more of a pleasant surprise then I suppose.

Saigon Flavors - pho sho

Well, I won't beat around the bush...I love pho!! The rich, comforting, beefy soup just oozes intoxicating aromas and boasts some of the most delicious flavors around. A new Vietnamese restaurant, Saigon Flavors, opened on Aloma and I just had to see how their pho stacked up against others I've had in the area...the quest for pho is never over and can take one to all parts of the greater Orlando area. With that in mind, my dining companion and I ventured to this Vietnamese venue do uncover the mystical wonders...or horrors of Saigon Flavors!!

We began with some of the most well known beverages offered in South East Asian restaurants - my friend with a soy drink and me with a Thai tea (yes, I know it's a Vietnamese place, but I've never been to a Vietnamese restaurant that didn't tout their Thai tea as being just as good as any Thai restaurant's). I have to say, the white soy drink wasn't really to my liking. It tasted very much of just straight soy milk, but my dining companion said that the flavor grew on him throughout the evening. My Thai tea was a decent example - creamy, mildly sweet and offering hints of Chai, I would have preferred a sweeter and more strongly flavored tea in general. So, bottom line on these beverages is that they fit pretty well into the OK category of drinks.

My dining companion then decided to jump to his mainstay appetizer at Vietnamese establishments - Summer rolls. He ordered two types - summer rolls with shrimp and pork, and summer rolls with char-broiled meat balls. It has been a while since this meal, so forgive me if I am a little skimpy on details, but I do believe that he enjoyed both varieties, although he was by no means blown away by their quality.

I decided to begin with a dish that I really ordered just for the sake of getting an appetizer, but I was very pleasantly surprised. The dish I speak of is the Ginger-Lime Chicken Salad. This 'salad' consisted of ground chicken, ginger, scallions, chili, peanuts and a lime dressing. It was delicious!!! Every flavor was very pronounced and worked in perfect harmony...the portion was also extremely generous, something that could easily have been shared, but in my gluttony I unabashedly devoured the entire delectable plate in short order.

My dining companion's plat principal was a big bowl of grilled beef with lemon grass and vermicelli, if my memory serves me right. This bowl comes garnished with lettuce, bean sprouts, carrots, cilantro, green onion, peanuts and a house fish sauce. he was very happy with the bowl, saying that it was a great example of the popular dish. In my own tasting I wasn't as impressed though...it really just didn't taste that special to me, in fact it tasted much like a generic stir fry that one could order in any mall food court. Just my opinion though, so on this dish my companion and I stand divided.

Ahhh, the pho...this is what it's all about. This pho is called Tai Nam Bo Vien, and contained flank and round cuts of beef as well as beef balls. I was somewhat surprised by the relatively small size of the bowl; generally I'm used to eating pho out of a bowl that could double as a bath tub for the contestants in the popular reality series "The Biggest loser," but this bowl was no such behemoth. Size aside, this pho was chock-full of more beef than I've seen in any other pho, always a good thing. While not the highest quality cuts, they did taste very good and added much to the broth. Now the broth - unlike any other pho I've tried, it was distinctly sweeter and decidedly foreign upon the first taste, but my second taste in revealed a very pleasant, deep, rich, beefy flavor. I was happy. After throwing in the garilc-chili sauce and a little oyster sauce to augment the heat and flavor to my preferred level of pain and savory sapor, I just couldn't get enough. While not the best pho I've had, this is certainly a very good one, floating around somewhere in the top rung.

Well, that was it for our meal. Some items were much better than others, but overall I would recommend the restaurant, especially for the pho and the chicken salad. As a side note, the ambiance was easily the most chic I've ever seen in a Vietnamese restaurant, and the service was friendly and efficient.

Fujiyama - Awesome Japanese Lunch

Fujiyama Sushi is a little place located in the Suncrest Shopping Center on the corner of Dean Road and University Blvd, and is therefore in a prime location to cater towards the UCF crowd when they get a hankering for sushi. While not the most traditional sushi restaurant by any means, Fujiyama does serve up great Americanized sushi dishes, and the lunch specials are really an awesome deal. That said, if you don't want to simply capitalize on the lunch specials, go ahead and spend a little more to get a taste of some very well prepared sushi staples such as the ubiquitous spicy tuna roll or the less common but equally delicious volcano roll. On this particular visit, however, I went with my parents for a quick lunch, so we indulged in the lunch menu offered.

House Salad and Miso Soup

When ordering from the lunch menu, diners are given the choice of house salad or miso soup to precede the main meal. My parents who frequently eat salads didn't surprise me when they ordered -salad. It's not a bad salad, consisting of iceberg lettuce and a sort of sweet/miso dressing, but it certainly does not set itself apart from any other competing sushi houses. I thought my miso soup was much better than the salad, but again, while a competent preparation it doesn't set itself apart from any other decent miso I've had.

I know I've been emphasizing the sushi portion of the menu, but Fujiyama does offer up many different Japanese dishes as well, from udon and soba, to teppan and tempura. Chances are you'll find what you're looking for, and if you want to go for cooked food rather than the raw sushi, Fujiyama can definitely satisfy.

Teppan Steak

My mom ordered this item which comes with vegetable fried rice and steamed vegetables as part of the lunch deal. Also, two sauces, one a ginger sauce and the other Japanese white sauce are also offered to enliven the food. I did not try the veggies, but my mom liked them and from previous experiences I know the fried rice to be very tasty, much better than your average fried rice. Her meat was cooked significantly more than I would have personally liked, but the flavor was still good, especially when combined with one of the sauces. The only real complaint concerning the meat itself though (it was cooked the way she wanted it) would be that while lean, it was kind of chewy and even a tad dry.

Teppan Salmon

My dad had this special with the same condiments and accompaniments as my mom's dish. All three of us agreed that the salmon was a much better choice than the steak. Moist and possessing a pleasant texture, the only other thing this fish needed to be excellent was some great flavor - which it had!! Slightly sweet with a strong salmon flavor coming through after the initial sweetness, this baby is a winner.

3 Roll Lunch Special - (Hamachi, Spicy Tuna, California)

Yes, I had some of the most commonplace rolls out there, but hey, they're tasty!! (I haven't been to Japan or places like Masa and Urasawa; I'm still allowed to love these Americanized preparations!! ;) ) All the rolls consisted of good quality fish and were generously portioned. One of the best features of Fujiyama's rolls is that they still allow a lot of the constituent fish's flavor to shine through without being muddled by the condiments. The Hamachi was probably my favorite, but I love yellowtail anyway, so that doesn't come as a surprise. The wasabi supplied on the plate is not the authentic stuff, but it does the trick and adds some kick (the waitress, who is familiar with my eating habits, brought me an extra blob of wasabi to satiate my desire to incinerate my intestinal tract - Hooray!!)

Well, that was it for our meal this time. Another satisfying foray into the realm of Fujiyama, and a foray I would recommend to anyone in the area looking for some good Japanese food. Needless to say, I shall return.

Tilted Kilt - More Beer, Lassie!!

Well, unbeknownst to your humble narrator, the Tilted Kilt is actually a national chain...but this fact came to light during the meal, so it's still being logged :)

Well, the first impressions my brother and I had upon entering was - "hey, this is a Scottish themed Hooters!" My friend who later joined our little party had similar thoughts. Yes, my friends, you are greeted by a scantily clad hostess and then directed to the main dining area...or bar should you wish it (it is a restaurant AND pub, after all). All of the waitresses are dressed in wardrobe probably a little more revealing than that of competing establishments, but the mood is exactly the same - this is a sports bar that patrons frequent to enjoy beer, bar food, the game and the wait staff.

Naturally, the service is very attentive and very efficient, but I would say that it caters to the 14+ year old male crowd the most. However, plenty of families and women were present and seemingly having a great time, so don't worry about anything inappropriate here, just enjoy yourself! Of course, this blog does not just dilly dally upon the service and ambiance - A man's got to eat and drink after all!!

TK Signature Lager

Tilted Kilt's own house lager. It's very reminiscent of Killian's Red, but I think it actually has a little more of a malty flavor and I can say that I prefer it to Killian's, so overall not a bad way to start the meal.

TK's Irish Nachos (crispy potato chips, cheese sauce, ground beef, tomatoes)

A bit different from ordinary nachos, the chips in these nachos were somewhat thin potato wedges that had a very pleasing bite and flavor. The cheese sauce, which thankfully was not applied too liberally (it didn't exactly taste that great) was definitely the weakest part of the dish. Ground beef and tomatoes, however, were excellent and mixing potato, beef and tomato produced some awesome "Irish" nachos. In fact, I think I prefer these to the regular nachos available everywhere else!!

TK Signature Wings
(No image...sorry guys, the pic was lost in the transfer from camera to computer)
These 12 wings were tossed in the house medium heat "tilted" sauce. They were awesome!! Any sports bar worth its salt needs to have some great wings, and tilted kilt delivers - great sauce, moist, meaty.

Black and Blue (Blue Moon, Guinness)
(Another fallen image)

At this point in the meal our waitress convinced my friend and me to try a couple of the beer cocktails served by the bar, and my friend tried the "Black and Blue." Well, he didn't enjoy the flavor too much, and I personally would have rather just had a pint of Guinness, but then again, neither of us are huge Blue Moon fans to begin with.

Blacksmith (Smithwick's. Guinness)
(One last fallen image, sorry!! It won't happen again, I promise!!)

I thought my selection, the "Blacksmith," was much better. Combining the creamy nature of Guinness with the somewhat crisper Smithwick's melded into a very pleasant drink that I was happy to have ordered.

The French Connection Burger (Swiss, Mushrooms, Onions, Au Jus)

My friend ordered this sizable burger and asked for it medium-rare, which the kitchen obligingly carried out perfectly. Overall, the burger was more quantity than quality. Don't get me wrong, it was certainly better than many burgers out there, especially when drenched in the accompanying au jus, but otherwise the meat, while there was nothing wrong with it, was not the most flavorful out there. Luckily though, the sautéed mushrooms and onions stepped up and improved the burger's taste substantially. The burger came with fries, but my friend decided to substitute garlic fries for the ordinary ones. This was a good idea, as the garlic fries were rather addictive!!


Chicken Tender Wrap (Chicken Tender, "tilted" sauce, Lettuce, Tomato, Ranch, Provolone, Japapeno Tortilla)















My brother's entree of choice, this was a deceptively heavy and tasty dish. The tilted sauce, exactly the same as what we had on our wings, married beautifully with the chicken tenders. The rest, is history - ranch, jalapeno tortilla, tomato, lettuce...it was a very good combination, and, very filling for a wrap. It came with the same garlic fries that my friend had.

Danny Boy's Shepherd's Pie (Ground Beef, Carrots, Peas, Mushrooms, Gravy, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Parmesan Cheese, Garlic Bread)

Oh Boy. This is one heavy dish, probably best enjoyed by a real trencherman in the winter...the summer is not the time to be relishing in such heavy folly. So, on the one hand, ordering the pie was a bad idea...but on the other it was an awesome idea. Rich, heavy and very flavorful, this incredibly filling course was also tremendously satisfying. My only gripe might be that perhaps too much potato is given in the pot, which does mute the other flavors just a tad.

Tilted Guilt (Chocolate Chip Cookie, Vanilla Ice Cream, Powdered Sugar, Chocolate Syrup)















This was the star of the dinner. My dining companions and I unanimously said "Hell yeah" in reference to this dish. The cookie is served half-baked, and no, that does not mean it has been engaging in some illicit activities, but simply that the consistency is much gooier than a normal cookie, like the cookie dough in cookie dough ice cream. When combined with the ice cream and syrup, one truly awesome dessert is to be had, an excellent recommendation from our waitress.

Your narrator with most of the restaurant's wait staff. Our waitress was Annie, second from right


So, would I recommend Tilted Kilt? Absolutely! We had a great time and devoured some tasty food. The food is heavy, so come prepared for that, but otherwise, I can't think of a better place to watch a game or just hang out with friends, enjoy some of the drink specials on offer and put away some of the Celtic themed classic American bar foods.

Ceviche - It's Tapas Time

Well, my mom decided that she would like to celebrate Mother's Day today rather than on the actual holiday in order to beat the rush of mothers and grateful families jam-packing every restaurant to maximum capacity and creating a scene reminiscent of the now demolished Kowloon Walled City of Hong Kong. My mom's restaurant of choice for this celebratory occasion was Ceviche in downtown Orlando on Church Street.













One of four locations in Florida, the other three being in Tampa and Sarasota, this restaurant has a lot of energy. It's loud and busy, but that works very well here and sort of adds to the dark yet festive ambiance. So, while probably not the best place for an intimate, quiet date, it'll work for almost anything else.













Service is very good, with efficient, friendly and knowledgeable wait staff. Our only real complaint upon being seated was the rather small table which became a little difficult to work with as the meal progressed. Now, on to the most important part - the food.





Bread













The Bread was a simple white bread, but it was soft, warm and pretty flavorful; a good example of its kind. What made it special though was the accompanying green sauce. Clearly made from olive oil, garlic, peppers and probably some cumin and onion, the flavors were intense and delicious and really made the otherwise quite ordinary bread stand out. In this picture you will also see the Moritz beer imported from Spain that I decided to indulge in. I've gotta admit, I liked it! Very hoppy and crisp, the golden libation was a pleasing accompaniment to the meal.







Ceviche de Salmon (Salmon marinated in lemon, lime, sweet onion, cilantro, topped with caviar)













A competent Ceviche, the fish was of good quality and had some of its flavor come through, but the citrus marinade completely dominated this dish, with the onion, cilantro and caviar barely noticeable.







Portobello Relleno (portobello stuffed with spinach, shallots, manchego, drizzled with sherry)














This was awesome. Now, I must admit that I'm an absolute fungophile, so I am a little biased. The mushroom was meaty and tender with a flavorful stuffing. Its sauces elevated it to another level though - the lighter sauce had a strong mushroom savor and the darker one was very beefy. When all of the components were mixed it created a spectacular dish which we absolutely ravaged, leaving no sauce behind. That is one thing about Ceviche - the sauces are phenomenal, so make sure you keep ordering that bread to mop up all that goodness!!




Patatas Bravas (fried potatoes tossed in aioli)













Our starch was good, the potatoes having a pleasing, slightly crisped outside and a creamy interior, but the flavor was a little mild. Using the sauces from the other dishes was a must to give these wedges some needed flavor. After the application of said sauces to the potatoes, these became much more enjoyable.



Churrasco al Cabrales (NY Strip medallions, compote of white leeks and shiitake, cabrales sauce)














Cooked medium rare, the steak was a little tougher and drier than my brother and I would have liked, but our parents really enjoyed it. The meat itself was of good quality, lean and full of flavor. The Cabrales sauce was a very tasty, creamy sauce based on Cabrales cheese. A second sauce was present on the plate, this one a sort of demi-glace very similar to the one used with the portobello relleno. Definitely a heavily sauced steak, this simple liberal arts major arithmetic can demonstrate the winning combination - Cabrales sauce+demi glace+steak=WIN! ;) In short, combining the two sauces and the meat produced an excellent savory flavor. A compote of leeks and shiitake on the side was also very good.




Mahi-Mahi al Papel (braised mahi-mahi in parchment paper with mushrooms and saffron sauce)













Next, a plate with a semi-spherical paper bag was presented to us. Upon cutting open this bag and freeing the fish from its parchment prison, the liberated cooking juices flowed freely and our noses were attacked by the peppery odor of the sauce. Even though the dish description said that the fish would come with mushrooms and a saffron sauce, we clearly had a pepper sauce on our hands...in any case, it was still pretty good, but definitely the weakest course. The fish was moist and had a pleasing texture, but the only flavor to detect was that of peppers from the sauce. Luckily this was tapas style dining, as trying to finish this dish on one's own would have become very boring, unless of course you have a pepper fetish or something like that.




Jamon Serrano (Serrano ham from Spain, figs, diced fruit)













Not a whole lot to say about this course. The ham was good but really nothing breath taking









Pollo al Ajillo (chicken, olive oil, parsley, garlic, Spanish sherry)













Presented inside a sizzling pan came our next dish. Once delivered to our table, garlicky vapors immediately tantalized our olfactory senses...we were excited to consume this bird!! Our noses did not lead us astray - the chicken had a wonderfully tender texture and the sauce it had been sautéed in was ample and delicious. We ended up ordering another round of bread just for this dish to make sure we could get every last bit of the awesome liquid!!!




Torta Valenciana (chocolate cake, vanilla cream, raspberry sauce, orange zest, fresh berries)
















Well, this was the weaker of our two desserts. It was very rich, and very sweet while having a very mild chocolate flavor. The accompanying vanilla and raspberry sauces didn't help much as they were even sweeter than the cake...and tasted more of lemon than anything else. Also, no orange zest was to be found. Oh well.








Almendrado (Crisp almond pastry, homemade vanilla ice cream)













This dessert really satisfied. I'm not normally the biggest almond fan, but here I did enjoy the flaky, crispy pastry and its almond filling. When combined with the ice cream, this really turned out to be a great dessert.




So, there you have it. A sampling of dishes and overall we left very happy. Nothing (well, maybe the torta) was disappointing, but a few of the dishes were excellent. I would have no hesitation recommending Ceviche to anyone and would love to go again. Just make sure you go with a group and maximize the high energy levels of the place and the food sharing tapas concept.