Writing a weekly restaurant column means that you eat at dozens of new eateries each year and taste hundreds of dishes.
In the year since our last Food Issue, I’ve had many wonderful plates made from the freshest ingredients and cooked with perfect technique. However, while a great fillet (of fish or meat) may put a smile on your face and satisfy your hunger with culinary goodness, it rarely brings you up short.
Here are nine dishes and one wine flight, listed alphabetically by restaurant, that stopped me in my tracks. Some are simple. Some rely on cutting-edge techniques. But they all make me sit back and say, “Wow.”
This is part three of a six-part series in CL's annual Food Issue.
Chip Weiner
Harry Waugh Dessert Room at Bern’s Steak House, Tampa
INNISKILLIN ICEWINE FLIGHT
Grapes are left to shrivel on the vine, concentrating the sugar, and can’t be picked until the temperature dips below 20 degrees. The resulting wines from Canada’s Niagara Peninsula ware heavenly nectar. One ounce each of Vidal, riesling, Gold (oak-aged) and cabernet franc. 1208 S. Howard Ave., Tampa, 813-251-2421, bernssteakhouse.com.
Nicole Abbett
BRGR Kitchen & Bar, Treasure Island
THE NOONER
The custom-blended beef grind is a perfect medium rare with smoked bacon, aged Cheddar, fried hen’s egg, grilled portobello mushroom, crispy onions and cultivated greens with roasted shallot-truffle aioli on a toasted brioche bun. Every element is perfect, and the combo is disorienting. Treasure Island Beach Resort, 10800 Gulf Blvd., Treasure Island, 855-660-6366, brgrkitchenandbar.com. (Reviewed 05/11/16, 3.5 stars)
Nicole Abbett
The Cider Press Café, St. Pete
AVOBLT
A PolyScience Smoking Gun creates “bacon,” without chemicals, from eggplant. Add fresh lettuce, tomato, avocado and sun-dried tomato pesto on dehydrated vegan “bread,” and you’ve got this vegan dish. All the wonderful flavor is there, but the fat is gone. Miraculous. 601 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, 727-914-7222, ciderpresscafe.com. (10/01/15, 4 stars)
Chip Weiner
Grey Salt, Tampa
ROASTED DUCK BREAST
Roasted duck breast cooked on a block of Himalayan salt renders the skin so crisp and flavorful that a bite of the pink gamey bird is swoon-worthy. Delicious dark candied cherries and some baby greens are in perfect synchronicity. Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, 5223 Orient Road, Tampa, 813-627-8100, greysalt-restaurant.com. (12/10/15, 4 stars)
Nicole Abbett
Happy’s Bayou Bites, Dunedin
HUSH PUPPIES
Nearly a year later, I still recall the smells wafting from these warm, golf ball-size orbs — melting away my resolve as I raise a crisp, asteroid-like hush puppy to my lips for an ecstatic bite. The soft and spongy interior is wonderful, with a real spicy kick on a lingering finish. 431 Skinner Blvd., Dunedin, 727-240-1102, happysbayoubites.com. (06/25/15, 3 stars)
Nicole Abbett
Hawkers Asian Street Fare, St. Pete
KIMCHI FRIED RICE
Fried rice, which is often safe and/or pedestrian, is a revelation with a Korean twist of savory kimchi. The crunchy tang melds perfectly with juicy strips of steak, stir-fried onions and eggs. 1235 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, 727-521-7253, eathawkers.com. (03/24/16, 3.5 stars)
Chip Weiner
Mise en Place, Tampa
WARM OLIVE OIL PISTACHIO POLENTA CAKE
Chef Marty Blitz works magic with rustic and warm olive oil pistachio-polenta cake, blackberry-basil jam, pistachio butter and creamy olive oil-sea salt ice cream. 442 W. Kennedy Blvd. #110, Tampa, 813-254-5373, miseonline.com.
Nicole Abbett
Sacred Pepper, Tampa
SACRED MEATBALLS
Huge handmade veal and pork orbs with fresh ricotta and marinara sauce from owner Candy DeBartolo’s family recipe — displayed for all to see in her own handwriting on a giant floor-to-ceiling mirror. The result is scrumptious, but it’s the unexpected lightness and superfine texture that take you by surprise. 15405 N. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa, 813-609-8000, sacredpepper.com. (05/19/16, 4 stars)
Nicole Abbett
Selene, St. Pete Beach
GRILLED OCTOPUS
The tentacles are cooked low and slow in a sous vide water bath before a quick grill sear to add some delicious char, then served over julienned sticks of red onions tossed with EVOO, red wine vinegar, oregano and fresh dill to make your mouth come alive. 4945 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach, 727-317-2064, selenerestaurant.com. (03/03/16, 3 stars)
David W Doonan
Urban Comfort, St. Pete
FRIED CHICKEN
A three-day process produces unforgettable fried chicken: 24-hour sea salt brine with garlic, lemon and herbs; an additional day in buttermilk to tenderize; and hand-pressed spicy flour filling every pore. The juicy result bursts with crunchy flavor. 2601 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, 727-623-9823, urbancomfortstpete.com. (08/13/15, 4 stars)
