How Do I Afford to Eat Out?

A good friend of mine asked me that question about a month ago. Well, I appear to afford to eat out as much as this blog shows because I post about food from a long span and condense it into 2008 and 2009. For example, all my posts about food abroad were from a collection of experiences from 2006. I actually started this blog in 2009 but dated some, but not all, 2008 stuff as 2008.

I also pinch and save some money for my eating expenditures and keep to eating lunches instead of dinners when I go out.

When traveling, I eat canned food, ramen noodles, and pizza in the hotel room for dinner. The coffee maker in the hotel room is my friend. I always bring packets of Quaker cereal, chamomile tea, and Cup o' Noodles so that I can get hot breakfast and some dinners covered at the minimum fixed cost. I also carve out time grocery shopping at local markets for local products or region-specific imports, park my car in a state park, and picnic in my rental car. That way, you can do better than $40 a day when you average out your vacation days.

So note: The coffeemaker can be used to heat up food, and the free ice and ice bucket can be used as a small fridge.

Pizza from Pizza Hut; $2 canned yummy seafood imported from Spain makes a great side dish for a bowl of ramen in the hotel room

2 Jumbo Stone Crab Claws (as big as they get) for $21.89 total from the grocery store vs. at a restaurant for"market price" + 15-20% tip

crab claw + box of sushi = an affordable seafood meal (considering how the claw is really a luxury item)

Sharing a to-go Cuban Sandwich and a whole fried red snapper from La Carreta (12 Crandon Blvd, Key Biscayne, FL 33149) at a scenic highway rest area in Key Biscayne.

Drinking mango juice imported from Guatemala and coconut water from I forget where both at 3 boxes for $0.99. Hell yeah.

Buenos Aires Bakery-Miami Beach

If you can't tell by now, I love bread and pastries. I love them for their diversity. Miami has a multitude of bakeries-Cuban, French, Continental, and Argentine. Buenos Aires Bakery is a huge bakery with lots to choose from. I bought some for breakfast, and came back the next day for small sandwiches to-go for the drive from Miami to the airport in Fort Lauderdale. The pastries are delicious but once you heat them up, they become very greasy. The sandwiches are stupendously simple, and it boggles my mind how they taste better than my homemade sandwiches. I use fancier ingredients!

Buenos Aires Bakery

Ham and Cheese on sweet croissant-like pastry and Ham and Cheese on wheat bread

Emeril's South Miami Beach Sunday Brunch

Sunday Brunch at Emeril's

I say $32 for a 3 course meal at a celebrity chef's restaurant is a steal. Of course, it's not a L'Os à Moelle deal, but close enough. My best friend thought I was silly for choosing Emeril's in Miami, but I was curious about Emeril's food and he happened to have a restaurant in Miami. Why not? I always thought Emeril was uber cheesy with the "BAM" and hyperactive behavior on camera. Can Emeril really cook? I looked at a few Sunday brunch places, but they all seemed to offer the same as any other brunch venue in Austin. Thus, brunch at Emeril's in Miami didn't seem too off the mark. At least I can't get his take on Louisiana cookin' in Austin.

In the spirit of brunch, I ordered an alcoholic beverage that I obviously couldn't finish. Remember? I'm an alcohol whimp. I'm not qualified to comment on the Cruzan punch, but I can comment on the wonderfully fluffy muffin and coffee cake! Here it is: I want more. Why give us only one of each? Why not a basketful, damn it! Phew. Got that outta my system.

Cruzan Punch-cruzan mango, coconut, banana, and pineapple flavored rums with fresh orange, pineapple, and cranberry juice and Blueberry Muffin and Coffee Cake

Mom had the Gumbo, Steak and Eggs, and Bread Pudding while I had the BBQ Shrimp, Salmon, and Banana Cream Pie. The meal was glorious. The BBQ shrimp tasted similar to my mom's braised prawns which has nothing to do with BBQ. I couldn't help comparing the dish to my mom's prawns. They're both equally tasty, but I do believe mom serves up 2 pounds of prawns at a lower cost than the price of my 4 neatly lined up shrimp at Emeril's. We always expect gumbo to be heavy and hearty, but mom's gumbo was light, which my mom prefers.

Gumbo and BBQ Shrimp-with rosemary biscuit

Both of the main courses were delicious, but I liked the steak and eggs more. I would pick steak over salmon (unless it's smoked salmon) anyday, but mom gets first dibs.

Steak and Eggs-with gaufrette potatotes and Emeril's homemade Worcestershire and Pan Roasted Atlantic Salmon-with grilled watermellon and sweet onion arugula salad and citurs vanilla vinaigrette

For dessert, I would actually prefer more blueberry muffins and coffee cake over my banana cream pie. The banana cream was thick and almost tasteless. It had a texture of fresh cement. I don't understand why people say it's a must-eat. I should have ordered the beignets. Again, mom had the better dish with the bread pudding.

New Orleans Bread Pudding-with brown butter bourbon sauce and praline crumbles and Banana Cream Pie

I enjoyed the brunch tremendously and would return again if I have the chance, but I don't see myself coming for lunch or dinner considering the price and portions.

The Frieze Ice Cream Factory

Yet again, I did my homework before heading out to Miami and found out that I have to try The Frieze Ice Cream Factory (1626 Michigan Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139 Tel: 305-538-0207). I actually did not read a review of the ice cream. I just read about some of the flavors that they offer--Indian mango and lychee, and I was completely sold.

The Frieze Ice Cream Factory

We aimed at 4 scoops per visit starting with Indian Mango, Lychee, Papaya, and Rosewater sorbet. The Frieze got us hooked. Of the four sorbets on our first try, lychee was our favorite. Although it was obviously made from canned lychees (the tougher texture of the canned lychee flesh gives it away), each spoonful of the sorbet tasted like biting into a juicy ball of lychee. The Indian Mango has fruitastic quality. Somehow, I just could not taste the papaya in the papaya sorbet. Papaya usually has such a distinct scent, but it got lost somewhere in the sorbet process. When there's rose flavored anything on a menu, it's a sure thing that I'm going to like it. There's such a deeply rooted rose bias with me that there's really no need for me to discuss how great the rosewater sorbet is.

Papaya, Lychee, Indian Mango, and Rosewater Sorbet

The following evening, we ordered 2 scoops of ice cream-Pistachio and Rum Raisin--and 2 scoops of sorbet--Blueberry and Ginger-Pear. All ridiculously delicious. I resented not being able to bring a couple pints home with me. Like Cole's Peace's bread and pastries, the ice cream and sorbet rely on the natural deliciousness of the ingredients. The ginger-pear tasted like minced ginger straight from the cutting board.

Pistachio and Rum Raisin Ice Cream and Blueberry and Ginger-Pear Sorbet

Sadly, my visits to The Frieze had to end, and we parted ways with Green Tea ice cream, Pineapple, Champagne, and Lychee sorbet. I can only hope that Robert opens another parlour in Austin, Texas. A random place, I know, but hot, treeless Texas needs a Frieze!

Green Tea Ice Cream and Pineapple, Champagne, Lychee Sorbet

Casa Potin: Dulceria, Panaderia, y Cafeteria

On our way back to Miami from the Everglades, we passed by a ton of Cuban bakeries. It was already 1PM and Versailles was still further down the road, seeing how Tamiami Trail has not yet turned into Calle Ocho. We picked out a bakery randomly for a before lunch snack.

I felt ashamed that my high school Spanish has long gone down the drain when the lady behind the counter looked at me incredulously and said, "¿No hables español?" I resorted to saying "uno capuchino" and then using the univeresal language of pointing for ordering the croissant-looking pastry that lacked signage.

The capuchino has nothing to do with cappuccino flavoring. It's sort of like a rum baba but with a lighter cake batter. It's very sweet, but not bad.

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Capuchino

The warm croissant-like pastry has a thinly sugar coated exterior with a cream cheese filling. I would have never thought this combination would taste good together; this was a very pleasant surprise.

Flakey pastry filled with cream cheese

I highly recommend exploring the bakeries on Calle Ocho/Tamiami Trail.

Versailles: Cuban Restaurant

Versailles Cuban Cuisine

I read alot about Versailles (3555 S W Eighth Street, Miami, FL 33135 Tel: 305-444-0240) when researching must-eat Cuban food in Miami. This was on everyone's list, so naturally, it was at the top of mine although my mom had her reservations (She didn't like how the food looked in photos on flickr). I persuaded her with "but Cuban Americans eat here and it's on Calle Ocho so it must be good!"

Well...either my expectations were too high, or having eaten at El Siboney first spoiled it for me. Let's start with the buttered toasts. The basket came dripping with butter. It seeped through the paper lining the basket and made the table slick and oily. Hmmm...Did I dare take a bite? I dared, and it was ehh. It tasted more like a gigantic crouton than toast. El Siboney's buttered Cuban bread maintained a soft inside and is toasted like a Cuban sandwich. This was toasted like your normal breakfast toast.

I insisted on ordering the Vaca Frita because someone had recommended it. I found it chewy, as expected when beef is cooked, shredded, then fried. The beef and onions dripped with oil. I struggled through eating half of it. The plantains were better than the burnt ones at El Siboney and the rice and beans was excellent.

Mom ordered the today's special-ham shank "Lacon" with sausage because of our fondness for Schweinehaxe. The shank was moist, and the crisp pickled onions goes well with the melt-in-your-mouth meat. I detested the sausage. The overly soft texture weirded me out.

Vaca Frita and Ham Shank "Lacon"

Although everyone around us ordered desserts, I felt too full to consume much of anything else. So I ended the meal with a cortadito. Delicioso!

Cortadito

Joe's Stone Crab

I apologize for neglecting my blog for more than a week. I've been vacationing in Miami and the Keys!

Remember when I challenged Florida to knock Hong Kong's Rainbow Seafood Restaurant off its pedestal for best seafood? Well, Miami seafood restaurants are formidable competitors. I thoroughly enjoyed eating my way through the city and surrounding areas, but I couldn't sustain the high prices of Miami dining establishments; even affordable Cuban restaurants became taxing on my vacation budget. I ended up eating pizza, ramen noodles, and cold lunch leftovers in the hotel room for dinners so I can prowl for less expensive gourmet lunches.

The one time I had dinner at a restaurant in Miami was on my first night at the famous Joe's Stone Crab at the southern tip of South Beach. We headed to the restaurant around 6:00 PM, and got a table quite easily. By the time they brought the bread basket over, the place was packed.

Joe's Stone Crab

The bread basket is a delight. I'm all about variety, and this little basket hit the spot. The oregano and sesame dusted croissant roll ("roll" because it's only shaped like a croissant but had none of he flakeyness of a croissant) and the onion rye roll were exciting to eat, which is uncommon for dinner rolls at most establishments. Don't get me started on the recycled, stale rolls that accompany your entree and is charged when you take a bite in Vienna!

Oregano and Sesame Seed Dusted Croissant Roll, Onion Rye Roll, and others

I've read that some people don't think stone crabs are worth the prices at Joe's so I felt like ordering 7 Select Stone Crab Claws at $37 was mighty risky. I didn't regret it one bit. I love crab, and usually fresh dungeness meat puts a smile on my face. I nearly sprained my face when I took my first bite of the stone crab claw. If it weren't for the exhorbitant prices, I would have an insatiable appetite for these babies. The stone crab claw meat is firmer than the dungeness. The stone's little fibers of flesh are more compact, but the meat isn't tough because of its creamy, buttery taste and texture. Obviously it takes little preparation to dress up fresh stone crab claws, but Joe's mustard sauce enhances the sweetness and creaminess of the meat. I knew that if I were to repeat any dish in Miami, it would be these claws.

7 Select Stone Crab Claws (choice of 8 medium, 7 select, 5 large, or 5 jumbo) with Mustard Sauce

Most of the diners focused their dinners on the cold seafood platters. I saw no point in doing the same when I can go to a seafood market in Florida and order a bunch of cooked & chilled fresh seafood for half the price. The Lobster Macaroni and Cheese appealed to me because I like high-end takes on comfort food. I expected measley amounts of lobster meat...Yes, I'm very much a glass-half-empty person. Well, my mistake; I think they used a whole lobster tail! Mmmmmmmm. Mom and I couldn't finish this dish because we could barely finish her cioppino. We ended up eating cold lobster mac & cheese for breakfast the next morning! Decadent and delicious! For a heavy dish, the execution was light. The macaroni could easily get bogged down by the bechamel, but the crunch from the toasty bread crumbs helped to mitigate the strong taste of the cheese.

Lobster Macaroni and Cheese

I forced mom to order the Seafood Cioppino because it was a way for us to have a cooked seafood sampler that actually tests the establishment's cooking more than a chilled seafood platter. You can only critique a chilled seafood platter's freshness and the restaurant's presentation...maybe the number of lemon slices provided? C'mon.

The cioppino was awesome. It contained stone crab claws, mussels, shrimp, a Florida lobster tail, grouper, and clams. I enjoyed sucking the flesh off of the stone crab claws from the cioppino because the meat is puffed from the added juices of the broth. This definitely rivaled my seafood meal in Hong Kong. You can tell that it took the chef substantial time and effort to make this dish by the depth of flavor in the tomato broth. I can't seem to think of the English word for this nuanced taste at the moment, but it can best be described in Chinese as 鲜 (xian1). Zhongwen.com fails to provide an accurate English synonym: savory, fresh, rare, clear, distinct....maybe all of those words rolled into one.

Seafood Cioppino-Stone crab claws, mussels, grouper, shrimp, and Florida lobster tail in a spicy tomato broth