Gudhjem Rogeri @ Bornholm, Denmark (Smoked Herring)

Bornholm is a tiny fishing port located 200km east of Copenhagen. It is officially the sunniest part of Denmark, blessed with picturesque streets, sandy beaches and glorious food. 

After our visit to the Baltic Sea Glass and Round Church, we travelled back to the town center where we were treated to a sampling of smoked mackerel before returning to our ship.

Built in 1910, Gudhjem Rogeri is the oldest smokery in Bornholm. Here you will find herrings hanging over an open alder wood fire, smoked for a good three to four hours. 

 The golden smoked herring was served with rye bread, chopped radish, onions and chives, along with some coarse salt and butter. The texture of the herring was firm and crisp, packed with smokey and delicate flavors.

We concluded that the herrings were well worth sinking our teeth into, despite all the tiny fish bones that occasionally find its way into our mouth. 

VERDICT: TOTALLY SMITTEN

Gudhjem Rogeri

Address: Ejnar Mikkelsensvej 9, Gudhjem, Bornholm 3760, Denmark. 

Phone: +45 56485708

Website

R & G Lounge @ San Francisco

While most restaurants serve formulaic renditions of Chinese food, R&G Lounge sets a different expectation, playing with fresh ingredients and spices to create flavorful Cantonese dishes. It is arguably the best Chinese restaurant in San Francisco. 

Soya Sauce Bean Curd (US$9) - Dredged in light soy sauce seasoning, the tofu struck a harmonious chord of sweet and salty. 

Live Crab with Salt and Pepper - After being tossed with salt and pepper, the crab was flash fried for texture. We were smitten by the light crispy batter and finger licking good crab meat. 

Soya Sauce Duck (US$16) - Tender pieces of duck are marinated in Chef's special soy sauce. The result? Juicy meat under a veneer of well seasoned skin.

Fresh Lobster with Ginger and Scallions - Noodles are tangled in between sweet chunks of lobster, ginger and scallions. The dish was phenomenally layered with surprising texture and a catchy combination of flavors.

Bright leafy greens danced beautifully with a bowl of rice. 

Steamed Clams with Egg - Fresh clams submerged from a bed of silky custard - A reminder of how simple food can be so sophisticated. 

Few in this town can conquer Cantonese dishes quite like R&G Lounge do. In the end, we fell hard for all the dishes we ordered. 

Verdict : TOTALLY SMITTEN

Brophy Bros. @ Santa Barbara

Established in 1986 by the Bennett family, this lively restaurant has a beautiful backdrop view of the ocean and harbor. The menu was relatively straight forward, with a daily fresh fish menu served along with seafood appetizers. Our expectations were high since Brophy Bros has won every Best Seafood Restaurant and Best Clam Chowder award from Santa Barbara Independent News press over the past 22 years. Not to mention, it is also ranked #1 on Yelp Santa Barbara. 

Stearns Wharf is located at the bottom of State Street - Fabulous view of the harbor, islands and mountains

Enjoying the ocean breeze....

Night view of Santa Barbara waterfront

We managed to catch a glimpse of the fishermen unloading their fresh catch on the pier - very cool! 

New England Clam Chowder (US$4.50) - The chowder was served in a mug with a nice balance of potatoes and clams. Nevertheless, it wasn't the best bowl of clam chowder. We much prefer the chowder at Lure Fish House.

Hot combo appetizer (US$14.95) contained beer boiled shrimps, garlic baked clams, oysters Rockefeller, steamed mussels & clams with broth. The broth was rather salty but overall it was a decent starter. 

Scampi - jumbo shrimp sauteed with white wine, lemon, garlic and a dash of tomato. The garlic sauce was divine, I'm a big fan of clear broth as compared to cream, which tends to be heavy and overpowering.

Seafood Pasta - Gulf shrimps and sea scallops sauteed with a Madeira and spinach cream sauce. As you can see, the portion was HUGE. The scampi and scallops were fresh sprinkled with a generous amount of cheese. 

Local Halibut - Grilled and served with roasted garlic, basil and tomato vinaigrette. The fish was tender and moist but nothing to rave about. 

Crab Cakes - Lightly breaded, sauteed and served with a tarragon and mustard cream sauce. I much prefer the crab cakes from Bouchon. 

The service was excellent and the food portion was very generous in size, with each main served together with coleslaw, a choice of soup or salad and fries or rice pilaf. Nonetheless, the meal was nothing mind blowing. It was rather forgettable and I wouldn't bother waiting 40mins for a table.  

Verdict: SOMEWHAT SMITTEN

Lure Fish House @ Camarillo, Los Angeles

After a whole day of shopping at Camarillo Premium Outlet, we were looking forward to our meal at Lure Fish House. The restaurant specializes in Mesquite charbroiled seafood. Mesquite is a form of hardwood, which is notable for its aromatic wood, creating a sweet and rich flavor.

This thick chowder consists of clams, potatoes, onions, all stewed together to yield a bowl delicious and traditional New England Clam Chowder

Lobster Tail Spinach Dip - This cheesy, garlicky seafood dip is truly one of its kind.

Best Calamari Ever - Fresh squids lightly battered, served together with Chupotle Aoili and Thai Chili Sauce.

Live Maine Lobster served at its very best

Charboiled Grilled Swordfish accompanied by cilantro corn salad and black bean.  

Idago Trout Almondine - Broiled with light butter and toasted almonds. Served together with pineapple  coleslaw and steamed spinach

All the appetizers we ordered was a Bang, each has it own unique flavors, setting new standard for our seafood culinary experiences in California. 

Verdict : SOMEWHAT SMITTEN