As I walked the 65 miles or so around town I could feel my energy getting lower.
I needed to eat and when in Paris you do as the Parisians do so I decided I needed wine with my lunch. The Captains Croc provided me with a delicious plate of salmon pasta in cream sauce and some wine to help keep me going. The staff was friendly, the food was great and I’d certainly go back.
If you are in the area then I recommend you walk over, just across the river from Notre Dame, and eat lunch here. You won’t be disappointed by the quality food, reasonable prices or friendly service. Merci Captains Croc.
At the web site listed below you will find the information to the first sign I saw upon exiting the Métro at Place des Fêtes . Having left Santa Monica, CA 15 hours earlier you can imagine the surprise this sign caught me by. I laughed and knew I must go check it out.
After traveling for 15 hours I was ready to drop my bags off, eat and wander around Paris. The Santa Monica pizzeria was closed so I didn’t get to eat there until the second night of my stay and found Ismail and the staff to be friendly and hospitable. I went back as much as I could while in Paris. Merci Santa Monica Grill.
If you like to be refreshed with a delicious fresh squeezed orange juice mimosa, then you need to get yourself over to the Border Grill in Santa Monica one of these weekends. Bartender Geronimo will keep an eye on your glass so you can concentrate on what awesome dish to order next.
Once you get your whistle wetted, it’s time to settle into an entree section with some incredible dishes to choose from. Chef Alex prepares these dishes with a full spectrum of forethought and care. The meats are naturally raised. All of the produce is organically grown on local farms.
The shrimp grits were pretty good and a great way to begin. The shrimps were big and they had a cajun taste to them that reminded me of Drew Brees and the Saints. The Yucatan eggs benedict stoked my taste buds pretty hard. The flaky crusted bisquit was light and perfect.
The next thing I had was another mimosa, and the steak and eggs. This experience was cool.
It seemed I just couldn’t go wrong.
The beef came and reminded of that delicious skirt steak from the Brazilian steak house. It was tender and tasty with a perfectly cooked egg on it.
I was loving it.
Geronimo brought me another mimosa and chef Alex made some machaca chilaquiles for me. I was having a really good time just hanging out and enjoying really delicious food. The chilaquiles and mimosa came and my day just kept getting better. The tender chunks of beef were in a tasty sauce with guacamole, light eggs and pico de gallo. Delicious.
The next thing I tried were the Oaxacan pancakes. These were super yummy. They were light and had Mexican chocolate chips and coffee caramel syrup with whipped cream on them. Like I said, they were really good.
The staff at the Border Grill is amazing. I have tried both the downtown and Santa Monica spots and have found everyone to be really friendly and knowledgeable. This proved true again and my crush on the Border Grill became stronger.
The next item i tried was the peanut butter & jelly with bacon, egg and jalapeno sandwich. It was not my favorite thing, but I have to say it was pretty good. Standing on it’s own it was good, but the other dishes were just so tasty that they all couldn’t be the best.
Chef Alex came out and introduced himself and was another really nice person from the Border Grill tribe.
He was real cool, knowledgeable and hospitable. He let me in on a secret and made me the daily special ‘special’ which was a pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon with an egg. Again my taste buds danced and my good time continued.
The level of awareness is respectable. These folks have earned their places and a lot of thought and preparation goes into this operation to ensure your good experience.
A friend of mine arrived and she tried some of the things i hadn’t so I tasted the bisquit and gravy and the bread pudding french toast. The french toast is another favorite.
This brunch happens in Santa Monica from 10am-3p and if you like food or mimosas, then the Dude highly recommends you give this a try. If you don’t like this you’re still a caveman.
Big Bear Lake, CA is home to a Mexican hacienda called the Sonora Cantina. Here is what their menu states about their ‘Big Juan’.
“Big Juan Burrito $13.50
Not for the faint of heart and one of the largest regularly made burritos in the world. If you can finish it in 45 minutes or less you become an instant celebrity and will win a T-shirt proclaiming your victory over ‘Big Juan’.
The burrito contains 4 meats, cheese, beans, lettuce, rice, sliced olives, green onions and tomatoes. Bon appetit gringo.”
Halibut, Chilean sea bass or shrimp work well. In this photo you see thick fresh halibut fillets and fresh sea bass fillets after having been soaked overnight in a delicious marinade I found at a local Santa Monica market.
The marinade is an island blend sauce that was perfect. I then topped the mix with a pineapple ring, covered and let sit in the fridge. The ingredients pictured in the pan were thrown on a grill for a few minutes on the patio of a local architectural firm for a ‘Friday Fun Lunch’ organized by a cool office manager. The fish was served with potato salad, grilled shrimp, grilled salmon with a rosemary lemon sauce and a side of mixed fruit chutney and it was simply delicious.
