Back To The City; or, Heading To Margaritaville

It had been months--literally--since I had been to San Francisco prior to Saturday. Ever since the move to Santa Cruz last October, I put out roots like a particularly sedentary house plant and stayed put.

A meal at Tres--formerly known as Tres Agaves--was a great way to go back, especially because Marina and I met up with Emily and Vaughn.

St. Patrick's Day--and a rainy, chilly St. Patrick's Day at that--spent at AT & T Park watching two soccer games amidst raucous fans of Mexico left me hungry. We wanted a place close to the park so we could have an easy walk back to the Cal Train Station at 4th and King. We also wanted a place where we could make reservations, because, well, it was St. Patrick's Day, and judging by the number of people riding the train that morning who were fully outfitted with cases of beers, it was going to be a busy Saturday night.

Tres fit the bill, especially because we could make a reservation en route via an Open Table app on Marina's iPhone, obviating the need for any extraneous human contact. I remembered Tres from the Tres Agaves days, when Jeff and I went there for drinks one night. They are famous for their tequila, and by extension, their margaritas.

They did not disappoint. A pitcher of house margaritas was elegantly divided up by our server into four glasses, two salted, two un-salted. It was elegant in how they were ordered: Marina--no salt; me--salt; Vaughn--no salt; Emily--salt. Alternating not just in salt-no salt terms, but also by boy-girl. How civilized is that on our part?

The margaritas were good, the tortilla chips, salsa and guacamole were excellent and warm, and the shrimp tacos I had were perfect. We were also impressed by the service. Not only was everyone friendly, professional yet relaxed, but they were also magicians. The table we sat at was quite wobbly, and one of the busboys came over with a napkin--a napkin, a tell you--and fixed the issue after a moment's study of the table. Marina or Emily called him the Table Whisperer.

The point of my blog is: go to Tres. You will be very impressed before you can count to three.

So That's How They Do It!

I have just discovered marination. Wow. My fish-life just got a lot more flavorful.

Last week, Local Catch Monterey Bay provided black cod, and I decided to try something other than frying it in garlic and butter. I decided to bake it, and like Robert Frost, I found that that has made all the difference.

I chose the following recipe from the Local Catch website:

Baked or Grilled Black Cod Teriyaki

Quantities are for 2 black cod steaks or fillets.

2 black cod steaks or fillets
2 teaspoons melted butter
1/2 cup teriyaki marinade
2+ cloves minced garlic
black pepper

1 Mix together the melted butter, marinade, garlic, and a few dashes of pepper. Pour the mixture over black cod steaks in a shallow glass dish, and let marinate for at least 20 minutes.
2 Bake at 350 in a casserole or baking dish in the marinade for about 20-30 minutes or until fish flakes easily.
OR
Grill on a stovetop grill pan or BBQ grill, turning carefully once, until fish flakes easily, about 15 to 20 minutes, brushing occasionally with marinade.
3 Serve with rice, with the juices (if you baked) poured on top.

I had to look up marinating, because I wasn't sure what all I had to do. Apparently, not much, which is fantastic, given the results. At the store, I didn't see any plain teriyaki marinade, so I chose a sesame seed teriyaki marinade, and I'm quite pleased with the results. (I also looked up cloves, just to make sure I was right and wasn't going to use too much or too little garlic. Scratch that; there is no such thing as too much garlic, only too little.)

Here are photos of the fish and the marinade before and after baking:






I now love baking fish. All I had to do was prepare it, marinate it, and stick it in the oven, and then serve it up with a packet of Trader Joe's Rice Medley.







From the first bite, I was extremely happy. It was sweet and flavorful, with the marination having done the trick. I paired it with a 2009 Le Cigare Blanc from Bonny Doon, and that was very successful.

In other words, hurray for baking!

Fishing For Perfection

My quest for the perfectly-prepared fish continues. Monday night, I prepared chilipepper rockfish from Local Catch Monterey Bay. Or at least I think it was chilipepper rockfish. The bags aren't actually labeled, and when you get fillets, you can't compare them to a picture of a whole fish. The weekly email from Local Catch said 90% of the fish being distributed was chilipepper rockfish, and damn it, Jim, I'm a doctor, not a marine biologist*, so I'm playing the odds and saying that yes, I prepared chilipepper rockfish.



Marina was out of town, so I didn't attempt any of the more complicated recipes on offer that required glazing or basting or any methods that required a mastery of French vocabulary. I decided to cook it on the stove with my usual mix of butter, a splash of oil, garlic, lemon juice, Old Bay, and salt and pepper, focusing on the advice I was given to cook it hot and fast. Lemon juice was key, because our backyard lemon tree is heavy with lemons at the moment.



So yes, the fish preparation was basic, but I did decide to add side dishes. Nothing complicated, just a bit of pre-mixed salad and some instant risotto, just to make a more complete meal.

There have been two challenges I have found so far since I've started cooking seafood on a regular basis: making it flavorful and preventing it from falling apart into mush. This dish was certainly more flavorful, with good texture, although it still fell apart a bit. The flavor could be a result of combining the fish and the risotto, as the risotto did add a sweet creaminess, but I think the proportions of garlic and lemon juice were better this time. As for the fish falling apart, I may have cooked it just a bit too long, although the structural integrity was still better than my last attempt with rockfish. This is key, because everyone knows that structural integrity is the first qualification that one looks for in a gourmet meal.



Overall, I would say this meal was a success. Tonight I'll be preparing black cod, and since I have the day off, I might actually investigate some more complicated recipes. Marina is still away, so now is the time to experiment with potential disasters, right?

*Also, damn it, Jim, I'm a blogger, not a doctor, so don't come to me for free medical advice.