Cariera’s Cucina Italiana in Dearborn Heights, Michigan

Posted on March 9, 2013 by thewineraconteur

One Saturday afternoon, I was with a couple of friends and we ended up going out for dinner and we decided on Cariera’s Cucina Italiana.  We arrived just as they were opening the doors, which was a good thing as we did not have a reservation.  We were led to our table and then we started looking at the menu.  While we were looking at the menu, the owner/chef came by as he knew my two friends.  I asked him how was the Gnocchi, as this is a dish that I really liked.  He said let me make you a special side for each of you, where I will do the Gnocchi first in oil and garlic and then top it off with a Bolognese Sauce, which we all agreed sounded very tempting.

 

After the salad and fresh bread we were served our side plates of Gnocchi.  It was a wonderful preparation of this special pasta, and this Gnocchi was light, not the doughy lumps that one sometimes encounters from indifferent Italian restaurants.  We received a delightful dish just as we were promised.  Then came our three different entrée plates; Shrimp and Scallop Limon, Pollo Tosca and Filet Marsala.   Each dish while not fancy in presentation was prepared properly and we then shared each other’s dishes using side plates, so that we could savor the experience even better.

Gascon Malbec Mendoza 2011

 

One of my friends said that we have to try the Malbec wine they have on the menu, because it is so full bodied.  The wine was just as described, it was a Gascon Malbec 2011 from Mendoza, Argentina.  It was a good classic bottle of Malbec with a lot of taste and spice, and yet it did not overpower any of the dishes.  Afterwards we enjoyed canolis and coffee, and finished a fine dinner and a good conversation.

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DeLuca’s Restaurant in Westland, Michigan

Posted on March 8, 2013 by thewineraconteur

It was my sister’s birthday a couple of days ago, and I wished to take her out for dinner.  I asked if she had any suggestions, and she said she loves Italian food and DeLuca’s was one of her favorite restaurants and it was near her home, as she is not partial to long drives.  So it was a done deal.

 

This is a restaurant that has been in business since 1957 and has become an institution for the area as a local Italian eatery.  When we arrived in the parking lot on a Sunday afternoon, you may have thought that they were giving food away, as the lot was nearly full.  This is a sign of the popularity of the locals that dine there.  There were several parties going on, as we entered the establishment, but there was no wait for a table as the restaurant is very large and the tables are arranged for maximum usage.

 

We ordered several plates of food, an order of “baked ziti,” an Italian version of sirloin tips on pasta and an order of barbequed short ribs.  The main entrée dishes all were accompanied with fresh rolls, salads and a side order of pasta with a Bolognese sauce.  Nothing pretentious, just plates of food, as this restaurant just keeps rolling along giving what its customers expect and the pricing was what I would definitely call popular.  My only complaint would be that as soon as we were seated the waitress immediately appeared and requested our order, even before we had picked up the menus; one would have to presume that most of the clientele knows the menu by rote and can order their selection without the guide of the menu.

Ruffino Chianti 2011

 

The wine list was almost like a step back in time, as there were wines offered by the glass, and about eight more wines that could be ordered by the bottle.  What intrigued me most was that most of the bottles of wine were listed as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot with a brand or country of origin.  What did strike me funny was that Reunite Lambrusco was listed as such, and I had to presume that it must have been one of the most popular brands even up to today for the restaurant.  When I asked our waitress the brand of some of the generic designations, she could not answer me, and had to go to the bar to get the information.  When she returned with the proper information, I decided to order one of the other branded wines on the list.  It was Ruffino Chianti 2011 and since I have had other Chianti wines from this large producer, I felt that it was the safest of the choices.  The wine had a deep color and good nose, but it tasted “light” for Chianti, but it was fine for our selection.  All in all, we were there for the celebration and not to write a review and the dinner was relaxed and the company and conversation was the highlight.

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Winter Park Art Festival

Posted on March 7, 2013 by thewineraconteur

Wine is art, especially when it is well crafted.  Wine and art are two of my favorite subjects, and when the two can be found at the same time it is even better.  I have written about a couple of art fairs that we have attended over the years, and while we were in the Orlando area, we found another juried festival and we had to check out the works.

 

FL Winter Park Art Festival Brochure

 

Winter Park is a suburb of Orlando, and this was the 37’Th Annual Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival.  The festival was situated on a large park setting along the backside of the tracks from the Amtrak Station.  There were over two hundred and fifty exhibitors, with a couple of areas for food and drinks as well as a children’s workshop area.  It was very well structured and organized affair.  There were even some exhibitors whose art we have seen up in Michigan, so some of the artists have some major tours around the country.

Wine Cage

 

While we were walking around, we found a fun item, something we really didn’t need, but that is half of the fun, is finding something that tickles your fancy.  We found a “birdcage” wine and liquor rack, which would fit perfectly above our liquor cabinet in the dining room.  The biggest problem was we had then had to find a shipping agency that could box it, and ship it to us, as we had flown into Florida.  While we were done with the art fair, as we searched the business section of Winter Park to find a shipper, which we did, we also found a little bistro and had a quick lunch and a bottle of wine to celebrate our good fortune.  We got a chance to enjoy a bottle of Saint-Emilion wine, which is not the usual district wine that one would find.  Normally a generic bottle of Bordeaux, and since I am very partial to the wines of Saint-Emilion even a negociants blended wine was a nice find and great way to finish the afternoon.

Saint-Emilion Moueix 1990

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Church Street Station in Downtown Orlando, Florida

Posted on March 6, 2013 by thewineraconteur

On one of our evenings while we were in Orlando, Florida we went to downtown Orlando, and discovered the Church Street Station.  The actual structure was a train station at one time and the one street was blocked off for traffic and was only for pedestrian use.  It was akin to walking in the French Quarter of New Orleans.  There were crowds of people milling about and everyone was having a grand old time.

 

FL Church Street Station Voucher

The complex was a series of buildings which at one time was a seedier part of the city, which was transformed into a three story complex of restaurants, taverns and stores.  From talking to some of the locals and employees there, they claimed that Downtown Disney was formed after the Church Street Station blossomed as a tourist Mecca in Orlando.  There was a per person charge for the entire area, and then you could discover all the nooks and crannies that were there.

FL Rosie O'Grady's Garter

 

Rosie O’Grady’s Goodtime Emporium was most memorable with a “Red Hot Mama” singer, Can-Can dancers, a Dixieland Jazz band and singing waiters and waitresses.  There was the Orchid Club with Swing Dancers and the feel of the 1940’s.  There was the Cheyenne Saloon and there was also Lili Marlene’s.  It was a place to relax and enjoy the festivities.

Marques de Riscal Rioja Reserva 1987

 

It was a whirlwind of a night, and I cannot remember which establishment we stopped and ate and had a bottle of wine at.   I do know that in the binder of memorabilia that I saved from this trip for the Church Street Station was a label of one of our favorite wines.   Marques de Riscal Rioja Reserva has always been one of my “go to “ wines, and when we saw this bottle of Vintage 1987, I guess I stopped looking at the wine list and went with a guaranteed pleaser of a wine.   The most unique aspect of this particular wine is that I have never paid any attention to the vintage year, as I have yet, never encountered a bad bottle of this wine.  I think this says a great deal for the wine maker and his craft.

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Fulton’s Crab House/ Stone Crab Lounge at Pleasure Island

Posted on March 5, 2013 by thewineraconteur

Once again, we tempted the fates to see if we would end up braying with pointed ears and tails.  Happily that was not the case.  We were going to another restaurant at Pleasure Island and this particular restaurant was owned by the same corporation that owned a restaurant in Chicago that my Bride just loved, and they had the greatest Crème Brulee and she was hoping for a repeat.

FL Fulton's 1 MB

 

We were going to Fulton’s Crab House and the Stone Crab Lounge.  As in all venues in the realm of Disney, this restaurant was unique in that it replicated an old steamer ship that would have plied the Mississippi River in another era.   Think of Fulton’s steam boat and then add seafood and a grill and you have the makings for a memorable destination.

FL Fulton's 2 MB

 

I would venture to say that this was the finest meal we had on the grounds and environs of Disney.  We started off our dinner with Lobster Bisque with the proper lacing of Sherry.  We then shared a plate of Stone Crabs.  For our main entrée my Bride enjoyed an Ahi Tuna “Nicoise” salad with an olive tapenade, which pleased her very much, and I had a wonderful order of Crab Cakes, which I was pleased to find were not over cooked and dry, which can happen with this dish.  When we were having coffee and ordering our dessert, we discovered that they did not have the Crème Brulee that we had enjoyed in Chicago, but they served a Chocolate version of this dish.  It was just as good as we had remembered the classic version to be.  With all of this seafood we were dining on we had to select a bottle of white wine.  We settled on a very nice bottle of a California chardonnay.  It was a Beaulieu Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay 1998 from the Carneros district.  The “oakiness” of this chardonnay was very pleasant with the selection of dishes that we enjoyed.

Beaulieu Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay Carneros 1998

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Planet Hollywood at Pleasure Island

Posted on March 4, 2013 by thewineraconteur

When I think of Pleasure Island I still have visions of little boys doing all of the bad things that they could do, from the cartoon film Pinocchio and remember how in the end they all became donkeys.  Thankfully the Pleasure Island on the Disney grounds does not end in such an ominous fate.  There is an adult life to Disney after dark.

 

FL Planet Hollywood Orlando MB

One of the restaurants that we tried while we were in Orlando was part of a larger chain, but one that we had never gone to, until then.  We went to Planet Hollywood in Orlando, Florida.  This is a very large structure that had three floors to it, with as I recall a zebra like covering on some of the panels and chairs.  I think most of the fun was during the time, we were waiting to be seated, even with a reservation.  I strolled around the many nooks and crannies of the restaurant looking at all of the movie paraphernalia and memorabilia that was on display.  I remember seeing Dorothy’s dress and the ruby slippers in one case, and then there were several displays from the original Star Wars movies.  Of course for men of my era, what would be more interesting then seeing props from the James Bond classic “From Russia with Love.”  There were vehicles and large props suspended over head of the diners, and there were items to see, almost every where you looked.

KJ Chardonnay 1996

 

We even found time from our gawking to have dinner.  The restaurant is geared for the masses and offer good food, but nothing stellar.  We enjoyed two different entrée dishes, one was a Mahi Mahi plate and the other was a Salmon Teriyaki dish.   The wine list was not extensive, and to be truthful I did not expect a large selection to choose from and we went safe, not that there was anything exotic to choose from.  We had a bottle of Kendall-Jackson Chardonnay 1996.  I find this always a safe and good choice when the choices are at a minimum and I am quite confident that it will beat any house wine that is served in a carafe.  Between all of the film memories, and our enjoyment of being on holidays, the wine just added to the pleasure of the evening, and more important our ears did not grow pointed and we did not develop tails.

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Disney-MGM Studios and the Hollywood Brown Derby

Posted on March 3, 2013 by thewineraconteur

We made a third amusement park on the one trip, and we had the best wine and lunch at this destination.  The lines were the longest, as this was a new park when we got there.  The big hype was The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and the Star Tours (Star Wars) ride.

FL Brown Derby Photo

 

I think what I enjoyed most about the Twilight Zone attraction, was how they took old television clips of Rod Serling and through the magic of computers had him introduce this new ride.  I was just mesmerized by it.  The ride was fun, and we even bought the picture of us that was snapped so quickly.

 

 

The Star Wars ride was really a 3D film and surround sound, and even the chairs were wired to enhance the film.  I am sure that these were all done to see if in the future if it would/could work in a theatrical setting.  Every time we now see a 3D cinematic film, I think back to this “ride.”

FL Disney-MGM MB

 

I think by this time we were all worn out from the rides and the parks, but we ended up having a wonderful lunch at the Hollywood Brown Derby.  This is a recreation of the famed establishment that is part of Hollywood’s glorious past.  There were the ink caricatures of Hollywood’s royalty of days of yore.  Some where in the labyrinth of cookbooks and recipe cards here in the house are the recipes of the meals that we enjoyed that day.  The meals and the wine were most enjoyable, but with out the actual souvenirs, I would not wish to hazard a guess.  We only had wine by the glass at the restaurants at the parks, because it would have been difficult to carry the empty bottles around.  Suffice it to say, that if you are there, and enjoy food and wine, this is the place to sit back and relax.

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EPCOT and Wine

Posted on March 2, 2013 by thewineraconteur

On another day in Orlando, we ventured off to EPCOT the educational part of the Disney complex.  This is a huge complex geared more for adults, but still with a good nod to the children.

 

 

I must say that there was a lot to see and study at this park.  It also felt like a merchandiser’s dream.  Most of the pavilions were sponsored by major corporations like General Motors, AT&T, MetLife, Exxon, United Technologies, Nestles and Kodak to just name a few.  Then there was the World Showcase with stops at Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, The American Adventure, Japan, Morocco, France, the United Kingdom and Canada.

FL EPCOT photo

 

We decided to have lunch in the French district at a “sidewalk” café called Au Petit Café that featured table service.  It was as charming of a place as one could dine at in a commercial setting.  We had a salad and a light lunch of a French sandwich.  The wines were from the Barton & Guestier firm, and we each had a glass of Bordeaux, before we continued on to finish the park.  Even at an amusement park my Bride and I try to be civilized.

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Magic Kingdom

Posted on March 1, 2013 by thewineraconteur

My Bride and I went to Orlando, Florida for holidays once.  She had been there before and I had never been.  While she was enchanted with the venues, all I could think of was where can I eat and more important will there be some decent wine for our lunches?  I mean when you are at the Magic Kingdom is there a chance?  I mean we could not realistically run over to the Grand Floridian for lunch.

 

FL Tony's Town Square MB

In the world of Disney, families were everywhere and one had to learn to maneuver around all of the buggies.  Since we were not so encumbered, we could make haste in certain areas.  Most of the locations that were for food, were geared more for families, and with families, the children are royalty.  I had hoped for a more adult venue for dinner.

 

 

When we arrived and looked at the map, and after questioning some people at customer service, we decided to have lunch at Tony’s Town Square Restaurant on Main Street, U.S.A.  It was hosted by Contadina, so I joked that it would be Italian food for the American masses.  I know that it sounds a bit snarky, and I know that one should not be expecting gourmet food at an amusement park, but one can hope.  We also immediately went and book a reservation for lunch, just in case.

 

FL WD Tickets Envelope

 

Tony’s Town Square Restaurant was based on the classic Disney cartoon film “Lady and the Tramp.”  In case you didn’t know the reference before you got there, you knew it upon arrival.  The references were everywhere, and I guess it was in an attempt to create romance, and it was cute.  We had a salad and a pasta dish, and if memory serves me right, we each enjoyed a glass of wine, though if we did, I can not remember the wine, but I know that if we could we did and that was our reason for having lunch there, during our day at Disney.  Afterwards my Bride was back in her childhood “It’s a Small World.”

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Wine, Sipping Bourbon and Cigars

Posted on February 28, 2013 by thewineraconteur

Where ever I go, I can always find ways to amuse myself.  My Bride and her girlfriend were going out shopping and I was left to fend for myself in this shopping plaza.  It was the trifecta for me.  This retail shop had wines, liquor and cigars, but what was really exciting was that it was also a lounge.  This shop did not fit the usual criteria for a plaza shop, it was upscale.

 

AZ Magnums MB

I was able to buy some of my favorite “intermission” cigars for my stay.  The humidor was filled with all types of cigars that caught my fancy.  The wine selection was superb; I was like a kid in a candy store, as I picked out some wines to take to our host’s home.  There were some very interesting items, some beyond my means, but that is always the case, when my eyes are bigger than my wallet.  I was also informed that I could go into the lounge and enjoy my cigar and that I could also enjoy my bottle of wine for a five dollar corkage fee.  I declined, but decided that after I made my purchases that I should check out the lounge as well, since the ladies were still shopping.

 

 

The lounge was not only for cigars, which is unique in these days and a very reasonable corkage fee, but they had an excellent selection of single malt scotch whiskeys, single barrel sipping bourbons and a very fine selection of exotic tequilas.  Since I had a few moments more to relax and enjoy my cigar, I decided that a brandy snifter of Booker’s Bourbon was in order.  The good thing is that the ladies took a while shopping, so I did not have to rush, and that is good when one is on holidays.

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