THE BEST OF 2012

It's taken a few weeks to get this blog post together but it's finally here - my annual best of 2012.  The first two were unique and fantastic in every way.  The next three are the best of Puerto Rico followed by the three best in Las Vegas and finally, the two best casual eats, one from a food truck here in Dorado and another from a beach shack in Anguilla.  All in all, 10 of my most memorable meals of the year.  Enjoy and I look forward to more new restaurant discoveries in 2013!

BEST OF THE BEST

Pubbelly (Miami)

A mid-year find on a long weekend mini-break to Miami.  Pubbelly is a gastronomic casual restaurant created by three partners - two Puerto Ricans and one Spanish, which has taken Miami by storm.  After this first foray, they have created four other successful casual eateries - Pubbelly Sushi for modern sushi, Barceloneta for Spanish tapas, Macchialina, an Italian salumeria and trattoria and about a week ago, PB Steak.  These boys have got their concepts down and manage to create a casual atmosphere loved by locals and still serve amazing food.  The menu at Pubbelly is mostly Asian-inspired but there were a few Spanish-influenced tapas as well.  Here's what we had in July.

ABC Kitchen (New York)

Another memorable summer meal was at ABC Kitchen located in the fantastic ABC Carpet & Home. Just over a year old and promoting local and organic ingredients, this was pared down comfort food that was all about the ingredients - assorted lukewarm roasted beets tossed in yoghurt, slices of heirloom tomato with just a sprinkling of salt on crusty bread, just-picked tiny radishes with cold sweet butter and bread - everything was delicious!  The service was friendly, the place casual and the menu so enticing that I can't wait to go back. 

BEST IN PUERTO RICO

Santaella

This was our first dinner out in San Juan, right after we moved to Puerto Rico in March and has remained a favorite since.  Santaella manages to serve a modern take on Puerto Rican cuisine in an unfussy location near the Plaza del Mercado.  Food is good, service is friendly and the place is always packed with locals - what more can one ask for?

Blonda

A recent addition to the Condado scene, Blonda is another casual restaurant that knows what it's doing - simple food in great location with probably, the best brunch in San Juan.  There's valet parking, bookings taken on Open Table and good food in a light-filled space.

Compostela

For classic Spanish fare, there is no place better than Compostela - the interiors are modern but nothing special, come here for the food and the excellent selection of wines.  Every meal we've had here has been exceptional - the menu authentic, the ingredients fresh, the presentation simple, the service efficient and the experience always delicious.   

BEST IN LAS VEGAS

Sambalatte

The best coffee in Las Vegas.  Ever since they opened in 2011, they have been the only place in Las Vegas for proper coffee in all forms and shapes, from espresso to flat white, from cappuccino to mocha, from pour over brewed coffee to Aero Pres,  from granita to affogato - they have proper coffee making and presentation figured out.  I never skip my Sambalatte morning cappuccino when I'm in Vegas and always stop by to say hello to the friendly owner, Luis.

Kabuto

Located in the same nondescript mall as other cult Japanese restaurants, Raku and Monta, Kabuto is a tiny restaurant with just three tables and an adequate sushi counter where the edomae sushi (Tokyo style super fresh sushi) is presented nightly using only the freshest fish and seafood and served slowly, one by one to be enjoyed.  This is the way sushi and sashimi should always be - no tricks, no mayonnaise, no fancy rolls - just fresh fish, perfectly seasoned vinegar rice, crisp seaweed, a tiny dot of wasabi and a dash of premium soy sauce.

Honey Salt

In the same area as Sambalatte, Honey Salt is so new that I haven't even blogged about my lunch there yet (post coming soon) but, believe me, this is the restaurant future for Las Vegas - trained chefs and experienced food and beverage operators band together to create their own restaurant concept.  Honey Salt is homey and the farm to table food is very good, but best of all, the minute one walks in, one can sense that the people behind the scenes know what they're doing from the logos, table settings, decor, menus and seamless service that there really is no longer a need to dine well just in a fancy Vegas hotel. Here's to a burgeoning trendy off-strip restaurant scene in Las Vegas!

BEST STREET/BEACH FOOD

Blanchards Beach Shack
If ever I open another restaurant, this is what I want it to be - simple food, a great outdoor setting and casual atmosphere.  Blanchards on the beautiful Mead's Bay beach in Anguilla is probably the best beach shack restaurant concept I've ever eaten in and for someone who's lived on several islands, that's the highest compliment ever.  Food is simple, containers are recycled, service is quick, prices and reasonable.  Blanchards Beach Shack gives fast food a great reputation.

NanoBox
Last but not least, is this Dorado food truck run by two brothers passionate about food and serving their modern version of Puerto Rican street food.  It's a great way to taste what the island has to offer and although their menu is limited, what they serve is pretty good so it's worth it to stop by for a snack on the weekend when this shiny white brand new food truck is parked just behind the Walgreen's in Dorado.
__________________________________________
Listed by location, in alphabetical order:

Anguilla - Blanchards Beach Shack

Las Vegas -
Honey Salt
Kabuto
Sambalatte

Miami - Pubbelly

New York - ABC Kitchen

Puerto Rico -
Blonda
Compostela
NanoBox
Santaella

BLANCHARDS BEACH SHACK

It's seldom that I stumble on a place that is just perfect in every way and instead of keeping it a secret, I just want to tell everyone about it.  I didn't expect to find a favorite in Anguilla but I was pleasantly surprised with Blanchards Beach Shack - the concept was quaint but well-thought of, the food was delicious and the setting, right on the beautiful beach of Meads Bay was idyllic.  I had read about Blanchards, which was opened in 1994 by Vermont couple Bob (sommelier) and Melissa (self-taught chef), and its' fine dining reputation on the island.  When I had a look at their website, I accidentally saw a link to another place, Blanchards Beach Shack, which seemed more like my type of beach holiday restaurant.  

Opened in December 2011 right beside Blanchards restaurant, the beach shack is just that, a colorful shack with a blackboard menu of simple food that everyone wants to eat.  There are soups (gazpacho and black bean over rice), salads (from a Caesar and curried chicken), sandwiches, seafood rolls, tacos, burgers, hot dogs and big bowls.  They also have a kid's menu requisite sides: fresh-cut fries, coleslaw, garlic bread or Caribbean cornbread.  Colorful picnic tables line the front under umbrellas or under a shady tree and the system is really simple - one window to order, another to pay where you're given a beeper and a last window to pick-up your order when your beeper lights up.

We took our time choosing from the extensive menu and finally shared three items: a flat-top 100% Black Angus hotdog, split on a griddle until crisp, a large portion of hand-cut fresh french fries, a curried chicken sandwich on a toasted homemade ciabatta and a taco trio sampler: blackened Mahi-Mahi, roasted pork and shredded beef which came with warm homemade corn tortillas.  Fresh lemonades accompanied our al fresco lunch which were served on wax-paper lined trays and earth-friendly paper goods and cups made from corn, not plastic.

We were too full to enjoy one of their frozen yogurt twirlers with interesting combinations like Reese's peanut butter cups and peanut butter sauce or toasted coconut, banana, mango and pineapple.  We'll save that for our next visit.  Yes, we're definitely going back to Anguilla and especially to Blanchards Beach Shack.  After our super lunch, we went on the boardwalk towards clear-blue Meads bay and walked slowly back to the Viceroy.  Island life, I could get used to this.
__________________
Blanchard's Beach Shack
(right beside Blanchards restaurant)
Meads Bay
Anguilla
Telephone: +1 264 498 6100
*Open Mondays to Saturdays from 11:30 to 8:30 p.m.  Closed on Sundays
*Eat-in or takeaway
*Beach umbrellas and loungers for rent at $3.00 each

VICEROY ANGUILLA

Getting to Anguilla isn't that simple. There are direct flights from San Juan to Anguilla but it's on small propeller planes so we opted to go on JetBlue via St. Maarten making the journey in a plane, a boat and two immigration checks (in St. Maarten at the airport and in Anguilla at the dock) then finally, a short taxi ride to the Viceroy Anguilla.  We arrived on a beautiful sunny Friday afternoon and went straight to our home for the weekend - a Sea Cliff House right on the water with a clear view of the Mead's Bay's turquoise waters.

The accommodations at Sea Cliff House were luxurious - three bedrooms (two on the upper floor and one on the ground floor), a study, large living and dining area, fully-equipped kitchen and a large terrace with a barbeque grill, plunge pool and table.  Interiors are by designer Kelly Wearstler and are in muted shades of beige, white, grey and "greige" punctuated by funky accessories, gold garden stools, driftwood lamps and cowhide rugs.

After freshening up and unpacking our mini suitcase, we headed to the Sunset Lounge for a quick dinner at the bar.  We settled into a corner of the big square bar and started off with some edamame and crispy spicy plantain chips with mango chutney dip then had some sushi, soft-shell crab rolls and tempura rolls as an appetizer followed by a cheeseburger slider each (three in a plate) with some delicious sweet potato fries.  Perfect bar food for a Friday evening.  By the time we finished our dinner, the Friday night movie was about to start - Vicky Christina Barcelona - which we skipped to head back for an early night in at our fabulous residence.

Bright and early the next morning, we had a quick breakfast at Aleta then walked over to Meads Bay beach which is at the other end of the hotel.  The waters were clear (like a swimming pool) and calm and the sand was powdery white.  I had only ever seen another beach like this in Boracay (the south of the Philippines) and finally realized why Anguilla was so special.  We sat in the shade till lunch time then walked on the beach following the coastline towards the other end where we had lunch al fresco at Blanchards Beach Shack (more on that on my next post).  We walked back to the hotel afterwards and cooled off in the swimming pool before checking out the hotel's kid's club, NBA court and rock-climbing wall.  I had a quick reflexology at the spa then went back to the room for a rest before sunset drinks and dinner.

On our second evening, we had dinner at Coba which has a fantastic location right on the bay.  The menu is classic Italian.  We had the roasted endive and goat cheese salad and the squid ink and polenta to start then had pastas: fettuccine bolognese, gnocchi and spaghetti vongole for our main course.  We finished off with the dark chocolate tart with banana ice cream and an amaretti tiramisu with illy espressos.

Sunday morning was spent enjoying our last hours in Anguilla and lunch on the beach at Bamboo Bar & Grill  where we had superb sandwiches - crispy soft-shell crab with caper mayonnaise and the grilled prawn and slaw - both served on crunchy buns with a side of those addicting sweet potato fries.  A quick ride to the dock, another fast boat to St. Maarten and a short flight back to San Juan and just like that, our weekend in paradise was over.
___________________
Viceroy Anguilla
Barnes Bay 
P.O. Box 8028 
West End, AI-2640 Anguilla 
Phone: +1 264 497 7000 
Fax: +1 264 497 7100