Second Time Is the Charm...? Sufi Revisited

Although Preston, Audrey, and I all liked El Violli the best out of all the restaurants in Puerto Vallarta, both Mr. and Mrs. Han preferred Sufi. For our last dinner in Mexico, we revisited Sufi.Usually people say the food doesn't taste as good the second time around, so it was our opportunity to test that theory. After we made our order, the waiter brought each of us a little cup of Asparagus Cream Soup with crouton. The taste of cream was overpowering so I just took a little sip and put it down. Cream makes my stomach gaseous.

Beef Carpaccio: Angus beef carpaccio, served with roasted portobello mushrooms, arugula, and parmesan cheese shavings. Drizzled with truffle oil and a touch of balsamic vinegar

The beef carpaccio was so tender that it melted right in my mouth! The beef surprisingly went really well with truffle oil and balsamic vinegar, as well as with the mushroom and bitter arugula. I am a huge fan of rare red meat, so this dish did it for me.

Shrimp Risotto: Arborio rice (cooked perfectly) simmered in a parmesan cheese and guajillo chili sauce. This wasn't technically in the appetizer menu, but offered as a side dish. I was really craving risotto at the time, so I decided to order it.

I was surprised by the portion! On a normal day, I could just have this as my main course and be quite satisfied. Don't be fooled into thinking that the piece of shrimp on top is the only one in this shrimp risotto. There were bunches of shrimp pieces mixed in the risotto.

I honestly can't praise this excellent, excellent risotto enough. The arborio rice was cooked to perfection (not too mushy or too coarse...the key is to strike the balance!). I also skipped the butter and cheese, yet the risotto still maintained its full flavor. I am really curious how they did it...

The shrimp was also seasoned perfectly. The shrimps here in Mexico are super plump.

Butterfly Shrimp: served on a bed of linguini with spinach and a creamy guajillo chili sauce

Again, I don't eat anything on the menu with the word, "cream," which helps to reduce my stress when choosing an entree because I am so indecisive. These shrimps were huge! Mr. Han, who ordered the dish, said the pasta was cooked nicely.

Angus Rib Eye (14oz): served with sufi potatoes, tomatoes, and balsamic sauce.

I'm not too crazy about steak. I think the dish could have been improved with better side dishes (sweet potatoes, anyone?), but I suppose the highlight of the dish is the steak and they didn't want to deemphasize that.

Catch of the Day: served with white rice, capers, and toasted almond meniere sauce

I noticed that all the dishes are drizzled with the black sauce, which they explained is a mix of honey and balsamic vinegar. Curiously, it tasted just like chocolate.

Duck Carnitas: in black mole with essence of blackberry, arugula, and mashed sweet potatoes

I was a bit confused when I got this dish. Where is the duck? Well...

...it was hidden under the pile of arugula! I expected the dish to be slices of duck carnitas rather than the whole drumstick. The skin was really crispy, and it made me wonder if it had been confit.

The duck carnitas was disappointingly fatty and greasy. I had to manuever through the tendons and wipe the grease with napkin before eating it.

To be honest, the main reason I chose this dish is not because of the duck, but because of the sweet potato!

I am a huge fan of sweet potato. The sweetness was emphasized with cranberries in the mash.

Profiteroles: Puff pastries filled with vanilla ice cream and served with warm chocolate sauce. We ordered this dessert again per Preston's request.

Dessert Special: Cheesecake with white chocolate filling and vanilla ice cream with passion fruit sauce. This, my friend, was the highlight of the night.

We were completely thrown off guard when the waiter brought the dessert. This is definitely not a cheesecake! When we poked the cake with a spoon, a glob of white chocolate came oozing out.

The "cheesecake"was so decadent and unique. I was a fan of the passion fruit sauce and the seeds. YUM!

Italian Food Is No Good in Mexico

We met a couple and their family from Atlanta who were also staying at the village. We decided to have a dinner with them at an Italian restaurant called Frascati. Excluding the adults, there were four of them (son, daughter, daughter's friend, son's girlfriend) and the three of us. We ordered a glass of sangria for everyone, which tasted artifically sweet rather than fruity.

We ordered Parma Pizza: tomato sauce, mozzarella and prosciutto di parma, for the table to share. I don't eat pork or cheese, so this was possibly the worst dish to order for me personally.

The pizza was extremely thin and didn't look too greasy at the bottom, but the top portion is obviously greasy.

The appetizer bread came with two sauce: olive oil and spicy mayo. The bread was rather plain and dry.

Some kind of tuna bruschetta appetizer? It could have passed off as a main course because the two pieces of tuna were huge!

Grilled Red Snapper and Fettuccine in Balsamic Vinegar. This was the special of the day.

Again, the red snapper was huge! Italian food is all about huge portion, especially family Italian restaurants. Honestly though I much prefer smaller portion and quality food. It's about quality, not quantity!

The homemade pasta noodle was quite tangy and chewy, but the balsamic vinegar ruined it all because it was way too overpowering! I just felt like I was eating plain noodle while sipping soy sauce.

Also the dish was visually unattractive. It was basically some fettucini on a pool of balsamic vinegar with a chunk of red snapper on top.

Arrabiata Capelli D'Angelo: Freshm tomato, garlic, anchovies, and spicy pepper. Apparently the pasta was really spicy.

Tortellini Fatti in Casa: Fresh pasta stuffed with ricotta cheese, spinach, goat cheese with sage butter. Four people in our party got this dish, but the word 'butter' immediately turned me off.

This was the night's biggest disappointment. The corn brownie that I had at the beach club was so delicate with lots of texture, but this "brownie" was so stale and dry and...just NO GOOD! Lesson learned: get Mexican food when you are in Mexico.

Dry Meat in Fajitas

After cruising the Pacific Ocean on a jetski for an hour, we had a lunch at the beach club while assuging our sunburnt & windburn faces.

Tropical Salad: mixed lettuce, kiwi, strawberry, mango, almonds, sesame seeds, panela cheese, and guava dressing. This is by far one of the most colorful salad I have ever seen.

Caesar Salad: romaine lettuce, anchovy dressing, parmesan cheese slices, croutons, and grilled chicken.

Roast Beef and Gouda Cheese Panini: roast beef, roasted red peppers, tomato, red onion, and mealted garlic oil.

It looked like there was way too much cheese and the panini wasn't grilled that well.

Western Fajitas: steak, shrimp, and chicken with peppers, onions, sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo. The guac could have had bigger chunks of avocado.

The chicken and the beef were both dry. The best part about the fajita was definitely the vegetables...

Good Bread, Bad Food at Vitea

While Audrey and Mr. Han went golfing, Mrs. Han and I revisited the Puerto Vallarta pier to shop. We had lunch at a cafe called Vitea. I hadn't eaten anything until our late lunch at 2pm, so I was quite starved. The focaccia bread had strong herb flavor, so I really enjoyed it.

Fish Tacos with pickled vegetables, cilantro and chili sauce. We were surprised that the fish had been fried...seriously, why would they fry a completely wonderful fish?

Crab cannelloni baked with roasted salsa Verde and cilantro. I asked for no cheese or cream, but the white stuff on the top, clearly, was a load of cream. I asked for a new one, and they just brought the canneloni and the sauce separately. The cannelloni was really bland and rubbed with too much oil. The insides had very little crab, and I had to put so much salt for additional flavor. It's a shame that a restaurant with such good bread has really bad food.

?Can You Say "La Palapa" Ten Times?

La Palapa, a restaurant in the heart of Puerto Vallarta, combines gourmet cuisine, friendly service, and the tropical setting of Los Muertos Beach to achieve the perfect balance between fine dining and the warmth and charm characteristic of Puerto Vallarta. It provided a casual, yet elegant, atmosphere. Also, La Palapa is such a fun word to say!

The sun was just about to set as we got there. So bright!

According to the website, "By night the tropical sophistication of La Palapa’s intimate dining area is enhanced by live Latin Jazz and a spectacular view of the moonlit bay. Candlelit tables on the beach lend a romantic ambiance and offer the exquisitely enjoyable opportunity to enjoy fine dining with your toes in the sand."

The margarita with a wedge of lime.

It was very, very strong.

Bread basket with many three different types of rolls. I like having choices :)

Slow Braised Duck rolled in corn tortillas topped with habanero roasted red bell pepper sauce. Not the prettiest dish I have seen.

Over Roasted Beet Salad: warm pecan crusted goat cheese, jicama, arugula, chili ancho and agave vinaigrette

Fresh Spinach and Jicama Salad: tortilla chips, marinated panela cheese, citrus and tequilla vinaigrette

Asian Tuna Stack: sushi rice, three sauces, crispy won ton

The dish sounded good on the menu, especially because I was craving Asian food, but it was so-so. The rice was too sticky and didn't pair too well with the sushi. The three different sauces were spicy mayo, sweet teriyaki, and wasabi mayo.

Grilled Pacific Shrimp: citrus supreme, cilantro gelee and horchata hot foam

Salmon Special of the Day with Sweet Potato. I wouldn't have mind if I had gotten dish because it looked good! I loved the purple sweet potato. Mrs. Han, who doesn't eat raw fish, had to ask them to cook the salmon longer because it was pretty much raw.

Pepper Crusted Yellow Fin Tuna: spinach and tomato, epazote and dried cranberry galette, chilpozontle sauce

I liked the mushroom/cranberry sauce. Sweet and savory.

I love when spinach is cooked down like this.

Cooked rare.

Red meat aren't just for beef.

The mashed potato was too creamy.

I almost fainted on my first bite.

No, not because it was the most amazing thing I have tasted, but because the pepper was so spicy! They really meant it when they said pepper crusted...It was covered in pepper and oh man oh man it overpowered the tuna so much.

Mr. Han is a huge fan of key lime pie, and they had it in the menu! I expected it to be green, but was surprised it looked like a cheesecake. No sign of lime whatsoever.

I thought the sugar cookie/biscuit like base was quite odd. The sugar "Cracker" on top was quite interesting.

Apple tart with sauce and vanilla ice cream

The warm apple tart paired well with the cool ice cream. I am not a tart-person, so i just scooped up a little bit of the apple filling.