Barnacle Bills

North and South Special
Sesame Crusted Salmon Salad
Fried Shrimp Dinner
Key Lime Pie

At this establishment, it's about the seafood, and the quality is good.  Our Protagonist decided to try the North and South special, pitting Alaskan King Crab against Florida Stone Crab.  Just like the Civil War, the north won this contest, but in much shorter order.  Having not had stone crab before, he didn't quite know what to expect,  however, the sweetness of the meat and the ease of which one could peel away that sweet meat from the massive King Crab legs made the stone crab look like a poor cousin. Our Protagonist gave it a good benefit of the doubt, anticipating delicious claws like other crabs he had tried previously, such as in Maryland.  Unfortunately, the meat didn't have the smooth texture of the Alaskan; in fact, he found that he prefers pretty much every other crab eaten to date to the stone crab, and the fact that he was in the presence of greatness from Alaska drove that point home even deeper.

His dining companions enjoyed their shrimp dinner and the sesame crusted salmon salad; it certainly was well encrusted with sesame, and the dressing was apparently very tasty.  The sides in this case were steamed vegetables, which weren't particularly flavorful, but not particularly offensive, either.  They merely served to make one feel less guilty about the "indulgent" meal they were eating!  The key lime pie wasn't bad, especially if you enjoy the taste and texture of lime curd.  Our Protagonist feels this should only be paired with a meringue topping and not the non-dairy topping that was squirted (thankfully) on only one part of the pie, but it was entirely serviceable.  And after the sweet, sweet crab, a little tanginess was just what the doctor ordered.

Barnacle Bill's
5050 N Tamiami Trl
Sarasota, FL

941-355-7700

Selva Grill

Triologia (Ceviche): white fish with aji amarillo, tuna in ginger sauce, Ecuador shrimp
Inca Cod
Skirt Steak
Flan with banana chutney and caramelized bananas

For our Protagonist and his dining partner, the trio of ceviche was a very tempting opening, but they had the best one first; the white fish in the creamy-garlicky aji amarillo.  White fish never had it better.  Ecuador shrimp in a citrusy sauce was a nice turn for second, but not enough to wipe out the memory of the first one.  Tuna in ginger sauce rounded out the trio, being the Asian-inspired part of the lineup.  A superior order would have been the following: Tuna, shrimp, white fish.

Inca Cod was as beautiful to look at as was to eat (actually, everthing was wonderfully presented); the cod was cooked with the spicy tomato sauce, chorizo, and rice in a banana leaf very similar to the Cochinata Pibil that our Protagonist loves so much; flavors were excellent, portion was perfect.  On the side, three skewers of roasted Cuzco corn impaled a lemon half, as though a miniature Picador  had slain a lemon-bull.  But the real star was the fascinating sauce mixture in the center of the plate; the transluscent colors of some idealized orchard fruit with the faintest outline of balsamic vinegar looked for all the world as though a suncatcher had been placed in the center of the plate.  A barely orange mango sauce peaked out on one edge, with a limey green on the other side, and a marmalade-y glaze dominated the center.  Stealing a plantain from the dining partner's plate was well worth it; perfectly caramelized, fork tender.  The Skirt Steak, however, was deemed off-limits, which attests to its own deliciousness. 

On recommendation, the grand finale was the flan accompanied by different preparations of bananas; the chutney would have made the best peanut butter-and-banana sandwiches ever, and the caramelized bananas were just kissed with brown sugar.  The flan was small but with wonderful texture.  Vanilla ice cream on the side was rather plain, especially accompanying a vanilla flan; perhaps banana ice cream would have been a better choice?  But this was the only blemish.  So many good menu choices; our Protagonist looks forward to returning in the not-too-distant future.

Selva Grill
1345 Main Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-362-4427

Caragiulo's Second Lunch

Shrimp Gnocchi with tomato cream sauce
Ricotta-Honey Cheesecake

Our Protagonist has already proved that lunch specials are a good bet at Caragiulo's, and this one was no different.  The gnocchi were very tender, and the tomato cream sauce was beautifully spiced, demonstrating exactly why it's one of his favorites; thankfully, he restrained himself from licking the plate.  The Ricotta-Honey cheesecake was a nice departure from the typical New York style slab of sweetened, pasty cream cheese that our Protagonist has come to identify with cheesecake.  Instead, he found a small round drizzled with an assertive honey and an excellent texture, due to the ricotta.  Bravo.

Caragiulo's

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

First Street Chop House Lunch

Shrimp Tomato Bisque
Lobster Tacos
Roasted Pear Salad
Chocolate-Raspberry Bread Pudding

Our Protagonist, having burned much midnight oil while driving, not to mention his mouth on cheap-but-strong gas station coffee, arrived at lunch full of willing spirit, but unable to taste anything.  However, the zesty flavors of the Shrimp Tomato Bisque were enough to shine through this impediment.   Unfortunately, this was not the case of the Roasted Pear Salad, something that sounded delicious on paper, but lacked the punch to to reach the numbed, deadened taste buds.  Coupled with the fact that the Lobster Tacos came with their own salad, this menu choice became all the more superfluous.  The tacos were quite tasty, and would have made an excellent light lunch unto themselves; the whole grain shells had a satisfying crunch, and the lobster meat was generously apportioned.  To the many thanks of the numbed tongue, the Chocolate-Raspberry Bread Pudding proved to be a wonderful ending for this meal.  The raspberry sauce sang through the chocolate, and the bread pudding, itself, was far above average, being more about the chunky white chocolate taste and texture than the typical soggy version shows for itself.  All in all a very nice lunch; the jury is still out on whether or not to try that particular salad again, though.

First Street Chop House

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

First Watch, Second Breakfast

Roma Frittata

Sometimes it's not about where you go; it's about what you spend.  Today, our Protagonist had a free breakfast coming to him, and having had a good experience, previously, with First Watch, he was happy to share himself with the staff at their expense.  The frittata was fine; think eggs with a side of marinara, and you've pretty much got it.  However, the service was the star this particular morning.  Having not grown up having potatoes for breakfast, our Protagonist asked to switch these out, as well as the toast, which he reserves for special occasions and/or jam.  At no extra charge, out came three fruit cups, one that originally came with the dish, plus two more to substitute for the other items.  How many times has our Protagonist tried to get this very arrangement at other breakfasts to find that he would either be charged extra, or the same when he simply asked for less food.  A nice tip was left to thank the server for her attentiveness to someone who could have been so miserly as to have left no money at all.  Too bad birthdays only come once a year...will have to keep reading the specials board in the meantime.

First Watch
1395 Main Street
Sarasota, FL

941-954-1395

Ceviche

Camarones Aguacate
Tortilla
Pulpo de Gallega
Chorizo al Brandy
Crema Catalana

The first thing one discovers upon opening the menu at Ceviche is that it is staggeringly large.  Not that your table will collapse, but you may go blind from the tiny print describing the, quite literally, hundred-or-so items that march across the page.  One should do their homework before going.  Our Protagonist, unfortunately, had not.  One could return for months, years even, and never work through the menu!  A possible suggestion to management; a sushi bar-style checklist might be in order for the tapas selections. 

Excellent bread began the evening, with lovely outside crispness giving way to a nice, chewy inside.  And not a bad pesto dipping sauce, to boot.  The "creamy" shrimp salad was just that; it proved the answer to the question, "what would potato salad taste like with shrimp instead of potatoes?"  Our Protagonist was expecting a stuffed avocado with a small lump of shrimp, not the other way around.  The Tortilla was exellent potato and onion omelet; served with greens only dressed with a few olives, this could be a vegetarian breakfast or lunch by itself.  As an exploratory gesture to octopus, the Pulpo was chewy but tasty, placed over sliced potatoes with a paprika schmear.  Said potatoes were extremely underdone; these were only eaten in order to get to the paprika flavor.  As was mentioned previously, research should be done in advance; as the Chorizo arrived, and only then was it discovered that it was the THIRD entree to involve potatoes, but clearly the best of all.  At this point our Protagonist began to wish not to have eaten either the potatoes with the pulpo, or the aguacate.  This was because of the extreme fillingness of the brandy sauce the potatoes were prepared in that accompanied the chorizo.  Between the addictiveness of the crispy bread and these potatoes, the stuffing level was at its peak.  While the sausage, itself, was nice, the potatoes were clearly the star of this dish; one should order this and then see if you want anything afterward.

Dessert then became the fun challenge for our Protagonist of what wouldn't simply kill him, a la Monty Python's Meaning of Life.  The Crema Catalana was a nice finish, but nearly did him in; this take on creme brulee was in a crisp chocolate shell for that "extra touch", or, more correctly, the straw that broke the camel's back.  Four pounds later, our Protagonist thinks fondly on the meal altogether, appreciating the inherent dangers of the exploratory process.

Ceviche
1216 1st Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
941-952-1036

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