Falling for Fish

I've always been a huge fan of shrimp, whether it's sauteed, baked, breaded and fried, shrimp can do no wrong but I've never been a huge fish fan and that's probably attributed to the fact that I grew up in Wisconsin and anytime I ever had fish, it usually tasted like Lake Water aka Fishy.  My Grandma always made Fish on Friday's and it was good and there was a fancy restaurant in Charlesburg, Wisconsin that my family and I would go to and if I wasn't ordering Steak, I would order the Haddock with drawn butter.  Both were yummy but I felt like they were anomalies. 

As the years passed and I started working in restaurants I started trying new things, I believe I had my first ever Salmon and Tuna when I was working at Siebkin's in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.  Still, the fish always had some sort of sauce and depending on the chef and day of the week it would range from being great to just ok.  Then I worked at The Bull in Sheboygan Falls and that's where I got my first consistent tasting of fish but I was only there for a few months before I moved to Los Angeles so I didn't really get a chance to be adventurous.

Upon moving to LA, I remember my first sushi experiences and being very careful about what I was eating; it was a lot of California rolls, Shrimp Tempura, and Spring Rolls which really aren't sushi.  Then I dated a guy who took me to Nagao which was my first ever real Sushi experience.  I had raw fish rolls like yellowtail and spicy tuna and really liked them.  Next it was Katsuya which is still one of my favorite restaurants to get Sushi at and I had the Miso Glazed Black Cod which was always perfectly cooked and tasted delicious.  As time has gone by here in LA, I find new sushi restaurants all the time, but one of my current favorites is Wabi Sabi.  They have the best yellowtail sashimi I have ever had.  Not to mention, I love their scallop salad and lobster curry.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago when my friend, Jamie (you may remember her from my Karaoke posts) and I went out to Dinner at one of her restaurants, Ocean Avenue Seafood in Santa Monica.  She asked if I was an adventurous eater and I said yes, I would try anything she suggested.  We started with the raw food first, Oysters, Clams, Scallops, Shrimp, and Sea Urchin.  I had just seen Sea Urchin on an episode of 'Top Chef' and was excited to try it but to me, it tasted like Ocean Water in the sense that I felt like I was at a beautiful beach in Mexico, sipping a Pina Colada, while sitting in the sand and getting a tan.  It was a little fishy but I would definitely try it again with a different preparation.  I didn't like the clams, way too fishy for me, but I fell in love with the Oysters.  I'd had Oysters a few times, back in the day when I worked at Hooter's, and with my friend, Thi, and both times I was unimpressed.  Here at Ocean Avenue Seafood they had fresh Horseradish, Cocktail Sauce and Mignonette (which was like a scallion vinegarette, I think) and they just enhanced the flavor of the Oysters.  The Scallops were in a ponzu with chives and were amazing as well, and of course, I loved the simplicity of the shrimp.  For Dinner, Jamie suggested I get the Halibut since it's a milder fish.  It was cooked perfectly but could have used a little kick to it to elevate it a notch.  Needless to say, the entire meal was incredible (and I'm only telling you about the seafood parts)! 

Last week, Jamie, Amy, and I had a Girl's Night at Water Grill in Downtown Los Angeles, another restaurant that Jamie works for.  By the way, she's a rockstar!  We all started out with Signature Cocktails and they were awesome.  I had an Amaretto Sour which was by far the best Amaretto Sour I've ever had; I'm not sure what they did, but I wouldn't ever order another one unless I was at Water Grill!  Once again we started with the Raw Food, getting Oysters, Scallops, and Shrimp.  This time the Scallops were sweeter, being served with a mandarin orange, pesto and a pistachio.  These Scallops nudged themselves ahead of the ones at Ocean Avenue because of the flavor.  Once again I loved the Oysters!  Our adventure that day was trying Ceviche-Style Loup De Mer.  It was raw fish with olive oil, red onion, and cilantro.  It was incredible to have such a great fish that didn't taste at all fishy in the slightest.  It was so surprising!  This time, I got a Steak for Dinner because the waiter boasted about how great it was, and he was absolutely right.  That Steak is now in my Top 5 best Steaks EVER!  It was perfectly medium rare and my Pinot Noir was paired perfectly with it.  Since we're all foodies and wino's we discussed every aspect of the meal, and after we had our fill of an amazing meal, we were content and happy.  

Before our Adventure at Water Grill in Downtown Los Angeles

Never in my life did I think I would be ordering fish at a restaurant or looking for recipes so I can cook fish at home.  Never did I think that I would want to order Oysters when I go out for Dinner.  But I want to do all those things because of my recent fish excursions.  Now that's  a big Thank You to Jamie for opening my eyes to all these fabulous choices and treats :)  I can't wait for my next Adventure!