Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Spring 2010 Austin Restaurant Week: Perla's

Perla's

I wasn't sure what to expect on my first visit to Perla's.  To tell you the truth, I had great doubts about seafood at this trendy joint.  Well, Perla's turned out to be my second favorite Restaurant Week venue!

The yumminess started with a basket of delicious corn-filled hush puppies.  I usually dislike hush puppies, but these were exceptional.

Hush Puppies filled with corn kernels

The shrimp and roasted tomato bisque started me off on such a high note than I almost forgot about my mid-term troubles.  There was so much depth and flavor.  It had just the right amount of tang from the tomato and wasn't heavy.  The grilled cheese sandwich was adorable and absolutely scrumptious when dipped into the bisque.  Can I have seconds, please?

Shrimp and Roasted Tomato Bisque with Creme Fraiche and a Grilled Cheese Sandwich

The dish that convinced me that I simply couldn't miss out on Perla's during Restaurant Week was the lobster roll.  The lobster roll is $28 on the regular menu.  However, for Restaurant Week, you can have a 3 course dinner and a side dish to share with your dining companion for $35.  This was certainly the time to try the lobster roll!  I regretted ordering the fries instead of the daikon slaw with my lobster.  I can get fries anywhere, but not really daikon slaw.  The lobster roll was AMAZING.  I was afraid that they were going to scrimp on the lobster meat and mask the freshness of the lobster with globs of mayo.  The meat was plentiful, the mayo to lobster ratio was fine, and the finely chopped onions in the lobster-mayo mixture sharpened the creamy flavor.  The garlicky drawn butter was a nice touch too.

Lobster Roll with Fries

Lobster Roll

The baked shells and cheese was good comfort food.  This was one other reason why I should've ordered the daikon slaw with the lobster instead of the fries.  Carbs overload!

Baked Shells and Cheese Side

The blueberry shortcake was a perfect ending to the felicitous meal.  I strolled out of the restaurant dazed from an amazing dinner.

Wild Blueberry Shortcake with Creme Fraiche Ice Cream, Toasted Almonds, and Thyme

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