Dragonfly Restaurant & Curacao Blues -- Corpus Christi, TX

The Dragonfly Restaurant, located across the JFK bridge on Padre Island, at 14701 S Padre Island Dr,(361-949-2224) has been a favorite of ours for some time. Not to say that they don't have their off days, but those are rare. This particular night they were spot on. We like to eat early -- to avoid traffic and crowds -- so we arrived just a few minutes after 5:00 p.m., which is opening time for dinner. Of course, we were seated promptly.

Our waiter, Romeo, introduced himself and recited the special, which sounded wonderful -- Grilled Tuna Steak with a Garlic Potato Flash. We ordered our wine, and kept the special in mind as we looked through the menu. The dinner menu is divided in two sections -- World Tour by Land which features beef, pork, lamb and chicken dishes of various countries, and World Tour by Sea, featuring, you guessed it, seafood dishes from around the world. We opted for our favorite menu items. For Rob, the Shrimp Skewer with Coconut Sambal Sauce (Malaysia -- $19.95), and I ordered the Crab Cake with Remoulade (USA -- $18.95)

Curacao Blues, the bar, as you enter Dragonfly

Rob's shrimp were tender, smoky and flavorful. Topped with a spicy Coconut Sambal Sauce, the one bite I got of these plump, juicy critters made my mouth very happy. The Coconut Peanut rice contrasts the shrimp with a light, delicate, but distinct coconut infusion with bits of peanuts scattered throughout. The Sweet Potato Plantain cake rounded out the dish. It is deep fried creating a not quite crispy shell around a creamy sweet center. And, as if that's not enough, a healthy salad of mixed greens, dressed with a Soy Honey Sauce creates a beautiful bed on which to display the shrimp. Delicious!

My plate held two 6 oz. Crab Cakes with the remoulade on the side. The crab cakes at Dragonfly are made a little differently than what I've had in other places. First you don't get lumps of crab mixed with filler. It seems as though the crab is blended with  the spices and accompaning flavors, then pan fried. They have a more creamy consistancy than most crab cakes I've had. Now, if someone said to me, "try this crab cake, it has a creamy consistancy," I probably would have turned them down, but trust me on this, they are so good! Crab is the main flavor you get with the other flavors complimenting and submiting to the crab in a most pleasant way. The romoulade is tangy nice, but little goes a long way and could easily overpower the crab cakes. Maybe that's why it's served on the side.  And as good as the crab cakes are, they are served resting on a bed of the best french fries that I have ever tasted. These fries are so good that I refuse to ruin them by putting ketchup on them! I literally told the waiter, "no," when he offered it. These fries aren't flavored or exotic in any way. They are normal fries from normal potatoes fried, in I don't know what kind of oil, to perfection. They are not greasy, yet crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, seasoned with just enough salt. Think original McDonalds fries, but oh so much better. (I would make the trip to Dragonfly just for the fries!) I also had a salad of mixed greens, but mine was dressed with a Garlic Vinaigrette, which was similar to a Caesar dressing, but with a little more punch. Great meal!

Spicy Jalapeno Martini

While we waited for our food to arrive, Rob noticed the signature drink menu and the Spicy Jalapeno Martini caught his eye. So, rather than have dessert, we ordered one of those. This is a tequila drink that is a little bit reminiscent of a margarita without the salt. It's sweet and spicy, but not too spicy, with a slice of pickled jalapeno in the bottom. Of course the closer you get to the bottom, the spicier it gets! We thought it was a great end to our dinner.

As I've mentioned, Dragonfly is a favorite, and although the food is consistantly good, this night's dinner was better than usual. We always recommend Dragonfly. It's worth the drive out to the Island. You can view their menu and even order online at http://www.dragonflycuracao.com/. Several items, such as their soups, wing sauces and salad dressings are packaged and available for sale.

Oh, and so sorry there are no pictures of our plates. We dove in before we thought about pictures. It was that good, but you can find plenty of pictures on the website gallery, and yes, the food really looks like that!

Zia Diner -- Santa Fe, NM

Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives has been in Santa Fe, NM so many times that we felt we had to try a couple of the establishments that they visited. Our first was Zia Diner (ziadiner.com) at 326 S. Guadalupe Street (505-988-7008). It looked a bit more upscale than you would expect. I would not describe it as a diner, drive-in or a dive.  It was a beautiful day and we opted to sit out on the patio.

Buffalo Burger

Fallan, our waitress, was prompt and helpful. Since it was lunch time, we decided to go for burgers. I ordered the Buffalo Burger ($12.95) and Rob ordered the Grilled Chicken Sandwich ($10.75). Both are served on a Brioche bun with carmelized onions, chipotle mayo and sweet potato fries. Fallan asked me how I wanted the burger cooked. I don't know anything about how buffalo is best cooked, so I asked her to advise me. She asked how I liked my steaks and guided me to go a little more rare on the buffalo. We settled on Medium rare -- pink middle.

Grilled Chicken Sandwich

The plates arrived and the food smelled wonderful. The sandwiches are served open faced with lettuce and tomato so you can build your own as you like it. I kept adding more chipotle mayo to mine, I just could not get enough of it. It was flavorful without having too much bite. Rob and I built our burgers and cut them in half, trading a half with each other. The buffalo was good, but overcooked. It was not pink in the middle, which left it a little dry. As far as flavor is concerned it didn't taste much different than a pretty decent hamburger. Rob did not agree with me on this point. He liked it. In my opinion, the chicken was better. It was cooked nicely, remaining moist. The real show stealer was the sweet potato fries. They were slim cut, but not so small that you lose the flavor. Fried perfectly, so that they were crunchy and non-greasy. They were beautiful.

We liked Zia, though I left wondering why it deserved to be on a national food show. Maybe it was an off day, maybe I didn't choose the best dish. Would I eat there again? I probably would, it was nice, the food was good, the prices affordable, but I doubt I'd do the Buffalo Burger again.

Las Cosas Cooking School - Santa Fe, NM

Chef Johnny Vee and Students

This was the clincher for taking our 20th Anniversary vacation in New Mexico. Rob came across a Groupon for a Culinary Vacation package at a very affordable price that included a Flavors of New Mexico Cooking Class and Gourmet Meal, lodging and a walking food tour of Santa Fe (which you'll read about soon). We found the place as soon as we arrived in Santa Fe, so that we would know just where to go at class time. I can't say I was disappointed, but maybe a little surprised that the cooking school is in the back corner of the cookware and gadget shop, Las Cosas, located in the DeVargas Mall. I was a little afraid that it would not be as great as my imagination had dreamed. I need not have worried!

We arrived for class not exactly knowing what to expect. Being the first ones there, we tried to figure which seats around the kitchen counter would be the best and chose the corner. As it turned out, seating wasn't important because after a short lecture by Chef Johnny Vee on New Mexico chilies and cuisine, and an overview of what we'd be cooking, all of the chairs were pushed back against the wall and the cooking commenced.

Chile con Queso and  Green Chili Enchiladas filling in the works

Chef Johnny Vee was our host. He, at one time, hosted a cooking show, and now gives classes on a variety of cuisines at the Las Cosas Cooking School. This class menu: Homemade Corn Tortillas, Chile Con Queso, Great Guacamole, Salsa Roja (red salsa), Tomatillo Salsa, Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas, Grilled Eggplant Adovado, Sopaipillas, and for dessert Chocolate Peanut Tacos. There were eleven of us taking the class, so we were split up into groups of two to three for each recipe. Each recipe had all of its ingredients premeasured on a tray. Each group picked up its tray and went to work on their respective recipes. Rob and I were teamed up with another woman, Diana, and we worked on Sopaipillas and the Chocolate Peanut Tacos.

Frying Sopaipillas

During the process of cooking, Chef Johnny Vee would periodically get everyone's attention to show us the important points of each group's recipe. He is a very good at what he does. He was able to keep up with what each group was doing and still make sure that everyone understood how to make each dish, even though we were working on different dishes. As we worked, we found that, in our group, we had to let the sopaipilla dough rest and ice cream for the tacos set up, so we had a little down time, which we spent helping other groups. I'm thinking we were in the best group because the other groups didn't have that kind of opportunity.

As the salsas, guacamole and queso were finished, we helped ourselves to a bowl of tortilla chips and dug in. So delicious! The queso was so much better than the old standby Velveeta/Rotel mixture that we're so accustomed to. The Chile Con Queso recipe required 16 ingredients, one of which was tequila. Only two tablespoons, but we learned that it helps keep the emulsion of ingredients from separating from the fats. The salsas were mild and flavorful with instructions as to what chilies to use to bump up the heat.

Grilled Eggplant Adovado

According to Chef Johnny, in traditional New Mexico cooking, enchiladas are stacked rather than rolled. Maybe that's why when we've had enchiladas here that were rolled, they were specified as such on the menu. We watched as Chef assemble the first enchilada then turned the process over to the enchilada group. The Grilled Adovado group's dish came out first and we got to sample that with some of the homemade tortillas. Wow! And I'm not fond of eggplant! I think, though, when I try this recipe at home I'll do it with pork. Chef said we'd just have to cook it longer.

By the time everyone had tried the adovado the enchiladas were ready. Oh my goodness! The chicken had been cooked before the class in chicken stock. Our teammate, Diana, shredded the bird during some of our down time and the shredded chicken was then reheated in the Green Chili Sauce. All of this is layered between the Homemade Corn Tortillas and cheese. Unbelievably good!

The Spread sans the Enchiladas and Dessert

Then it was time for dessert. Our team had filled store bought taco shells with vanilla ice cream,dragged the edges of the shells through melted chocolate, then dredged them in chopped roasted peanuts. Yeah, when those babies came out of the freezer everyone who said, "I don't think I can eat a whole one," somehow managed. Chef Johnny showed us how to decorate the plate with chocolate syrup and present the taco with flair.

This class was so much fun and I would do another, even at full price, which generally runs about $80 per person. A bargain for learning new skills, not to mention the confidence you gain from actually making the meal yourself with a master chef at your side. As I mentioned earlier, we did this class on a Groupon, but classes are ongoing and can be booked through Epitourean, Edible Destinations! (http://www.epitourean.com, http://www.cookingvacations.com) For more information on Chef Johnny Vee, his cookbook (which we now own) and the cooking classes at Las Cosas Cooking School visit http://www.lascosascooking.com/cookingclasses.aspx.

Atrisco Cafe & Bar - Santa Fe, NM

After arriving in Santa Fe we thought we'd see where our cooking class was located and stumbled onto the Atrisco Cafe & Bar. It's located in the DeVargas Mall on Peralta St., just inside the entrance. It's a small but lively place serving up New Mexican dishes. The staff seems to take care of each other's tables, so we weren't sure who our actual server was.

We both ordered the Lite Plate which is described as including one rolled chicken enchilada, rice, beans, posole and a choice of sauce. Well, of course, we both ordered "Christmas" since every place has their own sauce recipes. The plates arrived and I was surprised to see hominy on the plate. Evidently, hominy is considered posole, at least in this establishment. I thought posole was more of a soup/stew that often contains hominy, so I looked it up in the dictionary and found I was right. I love when that happens!

Lite Plate

Anyway, the flavors were all there, and it seems that sopaipillas (that's how it's spelled here) are to New Mexico cuisine like flour tortillas are to Tex-Mex -- served with every dish. Both sauces were pretty high on the heat scale and we were not warned about it. Even Rob commented that the heat was more than expected. He loved it, but recognized that most people might not. As a matter of fact, I asked about the heat factor when ordering and was told that the green sauce was hotter. Fortunately, we like heat, but this was almost too much. I don't normally suffer with stomach problems after eating spicy foods, but I carried this one with me for several hours.

We liked Atrisco and went back a couple days later for a glass of wine. The atmosphere is comfortable and colorful, the prices moderate, and the staff are friendly. The food was really good, but if you have a low tolerance for heat order carfully!

Cafe Abiquiu at Abiquiu Inn, Abiquiu, NM

This, and the next few reviews, will be a little shorter as Rob and I continue our New Mexico vacation, because there have just been so many places to try and I'm getting behind. But right now let's concentrate on Cafe Abiquiu. Abiquiu, NM is located about 40 miles northwest of Santa Fe and not very far from Medanales where we were staying when we tried this restaurant. It's right on US highway 84 and the Inn looks beautiful. The restaurant itself is nice, but rather non-descript. I did enjoy that it displays the work of local artists, and many who were very good, but we're here to talk food.

As we entered Cafe Abiquiu, we almost tripped over a table. What should have been a foyer area, in my opinion, held a table for six. No problem, though, we were ushered into another dining room and given a choice of tables since we were early. I was taken aback by our waitress who, I thought, looked a little disheveled in her oversized Cafe Abiquiu t-shirt. I expected a little more formal uniform for the waitstaff, but it's the food that counts. She took our drink orders and we looked the menu over while she tended to that.

Tamale Cake Napoleon

When she retuned, she suggested that we try the Tamale Cake Napoleon ($8). We don't normally do appetizers, but this one sounded intriguing. So, we ordered it. For our entree, Rob went with the Chipotle Honey Glazed Salmon ($18) and I went with the Blue Corn Fried Rainbow Trout ($17).



Black Bean Soup

The Tamale Cake Napoleon is sweet corn cakes stacked with avacado, pico de gallo and roasted red pepper sauce. It was amazing! The pan-fried corn cakes were just a little sweet, almost a cross between polenta and cornbread with a few whole kernels of corn inside, layered with the smooth mashed avacado --YUM! We tried to savor it, but it was gone before we knew it. We, also, both opted for the soup over a salad. It was a wonderful Black Bean Soup with just a little chipotle. Very nice.

Chipotle Honey Glazed Salmon

Rob's salmon was described as "pan seared New Mexico pistachio crusted North Atlantic salmon filet." It was tasty, but I expected the chipotle honey glaze to have more of a kick. What impressed me were the potaoes; sliced thin with just a hint of rosemary. His plate also included roasted asparagus which was in great need of seasoning.

Blue Corn Fried Rainbow Trout

My trout had what seems to be the most important thing, according to the celebrity chefs, a crispy skin. If you are a fan of the Food Network show Chopped, you know that crispy skin on fish is a must and is not always an easy thing to accomplish, so I must give the chef points for that, and the blue corn crust was interesting, but I can't say that it had a lot of flavor. My plate also included mashed potatoes with scallions which I liked very much and the roasted asparagus which was in great need of seasoning.

All in all, the meal was good, but not as good as it could have been. The appetizer was absolutely the best part of the meal and may have set the bar a little high for the entree. Would I recommend Cafe Abiquiu? Yes, but with reservations. No pun intended.

El Farolito - El Rito, NM

Off of US Highway 84 about 12 miles down NM554 is a charming little place – emphasis on little – called El Farolito.  It’s on the right, and don’t blink as you drive through El Rito because you’ll miss it. Park where you can, and enter this little hole in the wall place, with room enough for only six tables.  It boasts of being the four time Chili Champion of the Santa Fe Chili Championship and displays the ribbons to prove it.

Andrea, our waitress and daughter-in-law to the owners, greeted us as we entered, delivered menus and had our drink order before we were seated. The menu was much more extensive than one would imagine. Rob ordered #4 Combination Plate with a beef enchilada, taco, rice and beans, and two sopapillas. I ordered the Chili Relleno which also comes with rice and beans and two sopapillas. Andrea informed me that it is the best Chili Relleno anywhere.  We mentioned to Andrea that we were from South Texas and were familiar with the cuisine. Having once had some amazing Chile Relleno in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, I doubted her, but reserved judgement . As we each ordered, we got the classic question: “Red, green or Christmas?”  Now, for those who don’t know,” Red” and “Green” are your sauce choices with “Christmas” being some of each. We both went with “Christmas.”

Our plates arrived shortly and we were told that they were very hot. We did not need to be told, as the refried beans were still bubbling when Andrea set my plate in front of me.  After blowing excessively on the food gracing our forks, and trying to keep the molten cheese from sliding off, we had our first bites. All doubts evaporated with the steam from our plates. Rob exclaimed that the bite he’d just taken was of the “best enchilada he’d ever eaten.” I thought he might be exaggerating a bit so I reached out my fork and tried a bite. No exaggeration. The beef was so flavorful, but not greasy, cheddar cheese dripping off of the fork and the sauces – wow!.  My Chili Relleno was stuffed with just enough white cheese and topped with cheddar. So good! It truly was the best I’d had, hands down. But let’s not forget the rest of the meal. The rice had just enough tomato with a hint of smokiness and the beans were creamy and covered in cheese. The star of the meal, though, may have been the sopapillas. So soft and pillowy with just a little crunch as you bite into them. Of course, we filled them with honey – really great honey – and ate them along with our meal sopping up the sauce from our plates. Oh, yes, the sauces! The green, made from, well, green chilies, is thin with chunks of pork. It makes you wait a tick before the heat fills your mouth. It’s not a lot of heat, just enough to make you notice. The red is thicker, vegetarian and hits you in the back of the throat to get your attention. Delicious!

As we were about halfway through our meals, a couple of gentlemen were leaving and ask where in South Texas we were from. As we chatted, they bragged on all of the food served at El Farolito. According to them the best burgers were also found there, and the tamales were amazing. As one who makes tamales, I had to know just how amazing, so I asked Andrea to bring me one “green.” I was almost through my meal when it arrived covered in cheese and green sauce. I slipped the edge of my fork through the masa and found that the filling was not as I expected. It was not ground up with various fillers, but filled with shredded pork, seasoned to perfection. The masa, only a thin encasement, melted in my mouth. I think I may be moving soon!

If ever you find yourself in New Mexico, in or northwest of Santa Fe (about an hour drive), make it a point to find El Farolito. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but inside is some of the best cuisine we’ve ever had, and this is just the first meal we’ve had on our New Mexico vacation. I may be ruined for any other Southwest or Mexican food restaurant.