Road signs look different today. Oh. Wait. maybe it's the NEW WINDSHIELD!!

Some very sneaky elves replaced our windshield while we were away!

Manzanita: San Dune Pub.

Despite big signs at the front door about no minors and a really dark entrance, way less bar-y than I predicted. Very friendly way fast service, TVs with sports on each wall, patio seating, dog-friendly.

Eric liked his fish-n-chips. (Beer batter style) and rated them two notches above solidly good (on the 6 notch scale ranging from solidly good to fantastic).  My blue cheese bacon burger was great and the tots were the perfect salt/fat/potato balance.. Yummy tater tots.

Oh yeah and REALLY good vodka crans. That's all I remember.

Oceanside: Roseanna's

What a surprise!

What I assumed was the small town cafe we all know and love was not. At all. As we walked in this place looked like every coast cafe you've seen before: faux wood paneling, old, yellowed cafe-style curtains across the front window and the standard glass case with t-shirts, some sea shells and a 70's cash register just inside the door.  A rack of post cards sitting beside the counter with 6 or 8 garage sale bar stools.  Upon first look, everything about this place screamed small town cafe: the place you'd go for a solid cup of bottomless coffee and a consistently decent grilled cheese sandwich. 

The grey building was ocean weathered and adorable. The metal backed cafe chairs, mismatched furniture, oak paneling and drab flooring gave it a dark, old feeling.  Old as a comfortable, grandfather kind of way.  Corners were a bit dusty and maybe hadn't been dusted in a while. A whiteboard on an easel announced the daily specials, and a local Oregon wine. 

But it was the big-girl-panties menu hanging in the window that first alerted me that this might not be the cafe I expected. I was intrigued.

We were seated against the wall next to a large picture window. Our hostess set both place settings on one side of the table which faced the beautiful view - sandy beach with setting sun and three big rocks out on the beach (Three Arch Cape).  Service was excellent: we got waters, in old fashioned glasses, right away, and were asked about appetizers within about 2 minutes. 

The way the restaurant was positioned lent itself to as many ocean views as possible - a wall of tables across the back wall facing the beach, tables up both sides against large windows (where we were) and another row of tables up a step, so diners could see over the heads of others out to the view. An empty lot between the restaurant and the beach made a perfect look out, and the post office off to the side ensured that no one would build up into the view anytime soon. A wood stove sat in the middle of the place, an obvious nod to winter dining.

I took great notes until our food was delivered.  Once the food hit our table, I forgot to pay attention to anything else and the stunning sunset immediately took backseat to the inspired food.  I didn't visit the bathrooms, and I stopped taking mental notes about anything else but the inspired creation on my plate.

It was exceptional. My pear, Gorgonzola, cranberry and hazelnut Penne pasta with shrimp and scallops was cooked to perfection - I mean textbook.  There is a reason that Gordan Ramsey gets so hyper about the scallops: overcook and you have rubbery little hockey pucks.  Undercook and you have squishy, slimy nasty disks of gel.  When I raved to our waitress about the scallops, she said "he is really good."  Although I don't know who "he" is, I feel like I should.  "He" has the skills and the food cred to be executive chef somewhere where $50 plates are common.  Obviously he likes the coast.

SM's Parmesean encrusted Sole salad, with almonds and raspberry vinegrette was perfectly balanced. I ate way more of his than the "one bite" I begged for.   We didn't even look at the dessert menu - another white board on the wall listing about 100 different kinds of pie - which is supposedly what they are known for.  Hopefully some day!

SM: Great food. Great view. Wish I had room for dessert.

DM: Spectacular. Unexpected. I would drive far out of the way to come back here again. 

Price: 2 meals/water/$35

Seaview, Wa: 42nd Street Cafe

Wow.

And I really mean it.

Mr. Crow and SM were in charge of picking out a lunch location today. SM drove while Mr. Crow read the Long Beach dining guide and called out random information. After much driving and much discussion, we ended up at 42nd Street Cafe.

And it was outstanding: Local ingredients. Local wines. A very good mimosa. The best creamed tomato soup ever (with blue cheese!). A grilled cheese sandwich for Janice, with aged cheddar and caramelized red onions. Great beer and a fish monger burger for Mr. Crow. Great chowder for SM. Perfect pasta for me (cheese ravioli in an amazing sauce with apples and onions and a hint a maple syrup - complex and simple at the same time... fabulous).

They recently won awards for "best breakfast", "best service" and "best fine dining" (voted on by locals only) to which they responded: "we think of ourselves as 'fine food' not 'fine dining'. I would agree with that whole-heartedly. Unpretentious, friendly, un-rushed, consistently fabulous food. I will eat here again.

Not only that, but the 42nd St Cafe earns a spot on the coveted "Best Ever" list.

Astoria Coffee House

Lunch today was a snack and a coffee at Astoria Coffee House, the quintessential Oregon Coffee House.

Packed in between a couple of industrial buildings, the coffee house and it's customers spilled out over the sidewalk and onto the street through it's huge bay doors. The funky perfect-for-Oregon interior included a clay gnome as a bathroom doorstop and goat-based art on the walls. A row of globes lined the top of one wall and many customers sat around surfing on the free wi-fi. The exterior sign was simply a neon coffee cup high above the sidewalk on the side ofthe building. I was taking notes: this would be the kind of place that would do very well in Nampa.

We ordered dounuts and lattes (made witm Stumptown Coffee). The menu also included paninis and house-made salsa along with cookies and pastries in an old-as-Astoria glass pastry counter. The service was quick but not necessarily friendly. The food was good and the coffee better. I'd certainly come back for good coffee and a snack. Next time, I'll try the actual lunch.

Newport, OR: Rogue Brewery

This is a cool place, but you need to be ready to spend some time.  The brewery is cool:  You walk through it, getting a full view of the brewing process, before arriving at the little restaurant upstairs.

Mr. Crow ordered a sampler, with brews such as Mocha Porter and Bullfrog Ale.   I'm not much of a beer person, but I like what I tasted and I LOVE the marketing.

Although we waited forever for our food (the place was hoppin with tourists of all ages, and some obvious frequent fliers) we got our cheese soup, fish-n-chips (SM seems to being doing a fish-n-chips tasting on this trip) and smoked salmon open face sandwich on Engligh muffin (which was awesome).

The place reminded me of a little pub - not fancy, the kitchen full and overflowing, and the taste and quality of the food much more important than the presentation.

After lunch we toured the gin distillery and did a gin tasting (at least, Mr. Crow and I tasted).  I'm not a big Gin fan, but for gin, it was good.  The tour guide was the best part, making jokes about drinking as much as he answered questions about making gin.

Newport, OR: THe Chowder Bowl

Yum Yum Yum.

Very good chowder, yummy garlic cheese bread, good fish and chips.