First Street Chop House return

Duck Sliders
Grilled Salmon with Maple Glaze and Blueberry Compote
Vegetable Saute
Lobster Gemelli
Grilled Grouper with Pistachios
Deconstructed Triple Chocolate Brownie Sundae
Peach Melba

Our Protagonist returned desiring to cut a deeper swath through the menu to get a better sense of the dinner selection, and at this task he was quite successful.  The duck sliders were quite generous in portion; they could easily have made a light dinner unto themselves (hence their appearance on the lunch menu).  The meat was quite tasty; an almost creamy consistency to the patty.  The Lobster Gemelli deftly treaded the fine line of over-indulgent and flavorful, yet retained some subtlety as well.  The Grilled Salmon was delightful highlight of this meal; gone was the sweet, thick glaze such as the cherry sauce over ham remembered from holidays at Grandma's house.  Rather, the salmon was just kissed with the blueberry compote, a true lesson in less is more, and the barely caramelized outside crust from the maple glaze gave the fish just a hint of crispness.  The Grouper that his dining companion enjoyed was nice, but the Salmon was superior in terms of overall flavor, and at its price proved an excellent choice.  The vegetable saute was serviceable; nothing earth shattering here.  However, the much-touted brownie was just that; moist in all the right ways of the word, chewy in all its possible goodness, and perfectly balanced sweetness to not turn into the usual sugar rush a brownie-based dessert entails.  Lovingly graced with caramel, this was the perfect ending to the meal.  The Peach Melba the dining companion selected had a lovely tang, but our Protagonist was quite satisfied with the choice of chocolate.  Time to dig up more of those gift certificates...there is an "Awesome" Bucco yet to be experienced!

First Street Chop House

1296 1st Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-554-4375

Tropical Thai

Sexy Man Roll
Pineapple Fried Rice
Chicken Cashew Nuts
Banana Coins with Coconut Ice Cream

Our Protagonist had heard lots of good things about this restaurant, but had never gone.  He finally managed to go with a couple who said it was their favorite restaurant.  When he arrived at the restaurant a bit behind schedule, he found that several things had already been ordered, including some decidedly non-Thai items, so there was to be no curry to be had on this instance.  A shame, really, as our Protagonist goes to Thai restaurants specifically for this purpose.  That, and Green Papaya Salad, but that will have to wait for another instance.  So Chinese and Japanese a la Thai it was!  The special Sexy Man Roll was excellent; good salmon topped with a wonderfully crunchy tempura eel, garnished with red and black roe.  Presented beautifully in a serpentine pattern, with a ribbon of spicy sauce daring you to use your fingers.  This should have been the entire meal, but no, there were things to share; the Pineapple Fried Rice had a nice touch with raisins.  The slightly-oddly-named Chicken Cashew Nuts was very mild, but featured straw mushrooms, a favorite of one of the dining companions.  Banana Coins with Coconut Ice Cream was a nice finish, lightly garnished with honey and sesame seeds.  A forklift was then summoned...not really, but for lunch, this was an insane amount of food.  The portions are very generous, and the prices are very reasonable; sushi, excepting, most things were under $10.  A return trip is in order, and curry MUST be ordered...

Tropical Thai
1420 Main Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-364-5775

Caragiulo's

Wild Mushroom and Leek Soup
Open Faced Tuna sandwich with dill, and capers
Tiramisu

Today our Protagonist hit the third of the "Holy Trinity" of downtown Italian resturants; Caragiulos.  Yes, there are others as well, but along with Cafe Americano and Cafe Epicure, Caragiulos is definitely one of the go-to lunch destinations in downtown Sarasota.  Some even refer to Caragiulos as their "second office", and the day's experience provided good reason.

The mushroom soup was loaded with all manner of mushrooms; most wild mushroom recipes seem focus on a single type, calling into question the "wild" moniker.  This one was generous and hearty; a truly great soup.  The sandwich (offered as a special) was good in its simplicity, on perfectly toasted fresh baked Italian loaf cut on the bias, and generously topped with large fronds of dill weed.  The tapanade side of olives and mushrooms was tasty without overpowering the good taste of the tuna.  One dining partner's "Chinese" calamari salad looked and smelled quite interesting, in a ginger dressing and a generous amount of breaded and fried calamari; further investigation may be called for.  The Tiramisu was very light, which was a nice change from typical liqueur-drenched, cloyingly-sweet restaurant incarnations of the dessert.  It was accompanied by berries; unfortunately they appeared to be previously frozen rather than macerated, which was an unfortunate strike against an otherwise fine meal.  

Caragiulo's

69 South Palm Avenue
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-951-0866

Miguel's (Siesta Key)

Coquille St. Jacques
Sopa de Ajo
Vichyssoise
Escalope de Vaue "Oscar"
Salmon Vent
Le Petit Filet Mignon
Chocolate Pecan Tart

A celebration of French food calls for one to participate fully, as the above listing attests.  The Coquille St. Jacques featured tender scallops baked in a bed of mashed potatoes with white wine and cream.  Our Protagonist doesn't make a habit of eating potatoes, but this felt just right to him, somehow; it seemed to have touched the "comfort food" nerve.  The mistake was following this up with the very intense Sopa de Ajo; one should NOT have an appetizer if one is to have this.  This might also be a consideration with La Soupe a L'oignon Gratinee, which is another offering; you won't be able to eat your dinner afterward!  Just like the French Onion soup, the Garlic Soup was prepared with a generous melting of Gruyere on top, which when melted back into the mixture thickened with breadcrumbs, the consistency became not unlike fondue.  Our Protagonist was beginning to question the sanity, the wisdom, notwithstanding, of the Veal that was coming.  The vichyssoise that the dining partners partook of was lovely to taste, and probably would have been a safer following to the appetizer that wasn't shared. 

Veal is always a challenge in terms of the texture, and this one came out a little on the tough side.  The intense lemon of the saute wiped out the flavor of either the crab meat or the Bearnaise sauce.  The accompaniments became the star in this case, including a little vegetable ratatouille that even out-sweet-potatoed the sweet potato whip!  It had been caramelized to perfection, and resembled one of the best tasting baked yams, ever.  The salmon vent was good, but, again, my dining partner raved over the various accompaniments, rather than the dishes itself, and then proceeded to steal them from her husband's plate.  His Petit Filet seemed to hit the spot with no complaints, bedecked in its brandy sauce that seemed to be the house specialty.  Our Protagonist's salad had a maple vinaigrette, which was subtle but good.  In spite of nearly splitting in two from eating too much, he simply had to sample the chocolate pecan tart, for which he was richly rewarded for his previous troubles.  Although, he found himself eying the pineapple upside-down tort for a return visit...

Miguel's
6631 Midnight Pass Road
Sarasota, FL 34242
941-349-4024 

Pistachio Ice Cream Smackdown

Our Protagonist cannot live by eating out alone; no, sometimes he must brave his own kitchen to scrounge up sustenance.  That is, when he doesn't have time to whip up something gourmet-ish.  Case in point; a recent exploration of the eternal question, "Which pistachio ice cream is really the best?"  In order to come to a conclusion, a series of highly scientific tastings ensued involving four different brands, two of which were gelati, rather than ice cream: Ciao Bella and Talenti gelati, and Haagen-Dazs and Ben & Jerry's ice creams.  Here are the tasting notes:

Ciao Bella: decent flavor, but a gritty, not smooth texture.  Disappointing because of the texture.

Haagen-Dazs: very creamy, but the pistachios were chopped up into minuscule chips; the flavor was so subtle to be virtually non-existent!  Not what a pistachio lover would be looking for.

Ben & Jerry's (Pistachio Pistachio): good pistachio flavor and creamy; not as creamy as Haagen-Dazs, but at least it tastes like actual pistachio flavor! 

Talenti (Sicilian Pistachio): Wonderful texture, and overwhelming (but in a good way) toasted pistachio flavor.  THIS is what pistachio ice cream (err, gelato) should be about. 

Hands down, the Talenti was the overall winner; Ben & Jerry's the winner of the ice cream subcategory.  Sadly, this was yet another disappointing strike in the other over-arching question, "Is Ciao Bella gelato worth the price?"  So far, we have yet to find a reason to buy one of their flavors a second time.  Let us know which ice creams you want us to taste-test, and we will put them in our rotation; until then, you can tune in to our next installment; "Which orange ice cream/sherbet/sorbetto is the best?" 

Mozaic

Light Veloute of Green Asparagus with Lemon-scented Goat Cheese Crostini
Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli and Grana Padano with Fresh Sage and Sherry Maple Brown Butter
Braised Petite Veal Shank Tagine and Root Vegetables with Spring Peas, Lemon, Oregano, and Garlic
Morel Mushroom dusted Black Angus Rib Eye with Asparagus Risotto, Cipollini and Mustard Sauce
Spicy Merguez Sausage Couscous with Harissa
Strawberry Almond Napoleon a la mode with Tarragon Ice Cream, Amaretto White Chocolate Creme Brulee
Passion fruit Meyer's rum, Monteimar nuts & coconut sorbets, Gianduja Semifreddo and Tarragon Ice Cream
Chocolate Truffles and Biscotti

This modest list doesn't even include the amuse bouche of a lovely yogurt-y custard with a touch of mango sorbet that began the meal, or the individual ciabatta-like breads that came out fresh from the oven that were devoured with the accompanying oil and vinegar.  The veloute was deliciously light, with the lemon scent of the goat cheese providing just the right accent.  The ravioli-of-the-long-title was remarkable; but that's easily explained by the presence of the sage (etc. etc.) butter.  This simply translates as: pure goodness, i.e. Ravioli in Pure Goodness.  This dish is also offered as a full entree, and our Protagonist has already altered his Living Will to include it in his Last Meal.   The lamb shank and couscous dishes were served in individual tagines, which hides and cradles the delicious flavors inside to come bursting forth upon opening.  One dining partner wouldn't deign to share his rib eye, so our Protagonist will take that as meaning it was acceptable, like the rest of the food.  The staff was kind enough to make the merguez sausage couscous off of the Wednesday menu even though it was Thursday, and it was heavenly.  Err, acceptable.  The harissa was delightfully spicy, and the bowl would have been scraped out with a finger if not out in public. Meaning it was pretty good, average, really.  I'm trying, I mean, our Protagonist is trying to pace himself here.  The dining partners were amused watching every plate of food becoming dismantled as soon as it was set before him.  Our Protagonist had wanted to eat here ever since reading the ridiculous dessert choices last winter; the recommendation of the strawberry napoleon surrounded by strawberry soup, AND tarragon ice cream, AND capped by the the white chocolate amaretto creme brulee...the tears well up in our Protagonist's eyes just recalling it, mourning its passing.  Which means it was just ok...Oh, forget it, I can't help it!  Move over, scribe!  The whole meal was [expletive deleted] fantastic!  Or Fantastastic like I tried to write just now.  Then came the truffles and biscotti, which you bit into and thought, oh, that's nice, and then...oh...wowww...the finish was superb.  When have you had biscotti that did that?  Be honest, now.  The presentation was lovely; the napoleon had to clearly be constructed from just above scratch when ordered, so the long wait for it to appear was easily forgiven.  The wines were expertly suggested, and the choices of 3 or 6 oz glasses help you be able to switch between your favorites, or to drink on the cheap if you want.  You'll spend your money worthily on the food, believe me.  Would it be too soon to make reservations for tomorrow?

[The writer has thankfully been allowed to resume his duties, and apologizes for the preceding outburst.  Our Protagonist promises to keep his thoughts more in check and leave the typing to those with more skill.  Fantastastic, indeed!]

Mozaic
1377 Main Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-951-6272

Americano the Fourth...

Salsiccia saltata con pomodorini e funghi
Insalate tropicale

Again with Americano!  So many lunch meetings here...but at least it was our Protagonist's turn to sample the Salsiccia saltata that had perked his olfactory nerve the last time.  It turned out to be very generous, more like a dinner portion, which justified its higher price than the other lunch offerings.  The sausage was flat rather than in a casing, and had curled up on the edges from cooking rather like bacon (except much larger!)  It was wonderfully spiced and accompanied by sauteed mushrooms and cherry tomatoes.  The only disappointment was when our Protagonist would spear what he thought was a mushroom cap, only to discover it was actually a slice of potato!  As heavy as this dish was, the potatoes could have been forgone altogether to make room for more mushrooms, instead.  The sauce was good enough to require two pieces of bread for supping in order to not leave any behind.  The dining companion had the salad with hearts of palm and avocado, but our Protagonist requires more protein to fulfill the definition of lunch.  Perhaps the salad will find its way into a dinner selection the next time he (inevitably) returns.  Our Protagonist left feeling very full, but high marks were given to the dish, nonetheless; it seems to be a point of consistency at the restaurant, so it is definitely recommended.

Cafe Americano

1409 Main Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-365-1026