Petersburg restaurant Sauvignon has been perpetually packed since opening in early 2021. It’s the salsa macha - a dark and smoky medley of peppers and peanuts - that really steals the show.Ī seared snapper is served over pea puree with Calabrian chili oil and dragon fruit salsa at Sauvignon Wine Locker & American Trattoria in St. There’s always something in flux, and it’s almost always great.īut while Reinsmith shakes things up seasonally, there are a few mainstays on the menu that have earned their keep: jerk-seasoned octopus plated with lemon jam, fennel and mint chorizo-stuffed dates, wrapped in crispy slices of bacon and nestled in a pool of smoky tomato and piquillo pepper sauce and a dreamy tuna tostada, featuring the perfect marriage of bright, smoky, crunchy and creamy elements. A seasonal burrata salad might feature fresh peaches one day and juicy heirloom tomatoes and cherries on another. A roasted half chicken served with yuzu salsa verde and fries on one visit might be reimagined as a Peruvian grilled chicken served alongside purple potatoes on the next.
Over the last year and a half, I’ve popped by on several occasions, always curious what the ‘burg’s buzziest restaurant will come up with next. This year, we’ve decided to take a different approach again.Īt Wild Child, crispy fish and grits are served with pickled jalapenos, tomatillo, creme fraiche and cotija cheese. Judging or critiquing restaurants at such a tumultuous time didn’t just feel wrong, it was impossible: I wasn’t dining out regularly until a few months ago, when - fully vaccinated and amid dwindling COVID-19 cases in the state - I finally felt comfortable sitting in a packed dining room. But the past 18 months haven’t been easy, either.Īll of this contributed to our decision not to publish a traditional top restaurants list in 2021. Many Florida restaurants fared considerably better than their counterparts elsewhere in the country. And of course, the many restaurant employees that would inevitably contract COVID-19, sometimes prompting a days-long shutdown of the business. The labor shortages, the supply chain lags, the exponential food price hikes. The capacity restrictions and the ensuing social media backlash whenever a restaurant looked too busy. There were the mask mandates, and the staff tasked with enforcing them when unruly customers refused to comply. Many of those surprises came from the restaurant world, where I watched as chefs, owners and restaurant staff worked harder than ever to save their institutions and preserve their livelihoods, constantly pivoting and rolling with the many, many punches that the coronavirus pandemic lobbed their way.
0 kommentar(er)
