Mango’s Dockside Bistro & Sushi Bar on Marco Island, Florida

Dining Outside the Home: Mango’s Dockside Bistro & Sushi Bar on Marco Island, Florida! It’s a tough decision when you need to think about sitting outside with a backdrop of the local marina or inside where you can watch exotic salt-water fish swim by in a huge aquarium. Try a tropical appetizer like the Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp Jalapeños. Spicy, with a touch of natural saltiness. It’s a nice starter along with the Yellowfin Tuna over Seaweed Salad. Quench your thirst with a crafted cocktail like the Key Lime Pie Martini. It’s more like a dessert for those who enjoy a touch of sublime sweetness. After all, isn’t that the reason you walk two miles along the beach every day? Eating out is fun and something everyone looks forward to for socialization. The Tropical Island Salad makes quite a statement served in a fresh pineapple boat over a bed of mixed greens. A scoop of Mango’s famous chicken salad takes center stage surrounded by juicy strawberries, crushed walnuts, and Gorgonzola crumbles. The menu goes on and on to satisfy every palate.

Laishley Crab House in Punta Gorda, Florida

Dining Outside the Home: Laishley Crab House in Punta Gorda, Florida. For a jaw-dropping view of the waterfront from the open air upper deck, either grab a seat at the wraparound bar or reserve a table instead. Laishley Crab House has a menu that offers everything from incredible seafood and sushi bowls to unique sandwiches, garden salads, roasted chicken, and grilled steak. But way more than that. The freshly baked bread is so warm, butter spreads across it like liquid gold. Try not to gorge yourself because dinner is worth the wait. Sip on a crafted cocktail; notice the way vehicles crisscross on the parallel bridges in the distance as motorboats cut through the flowing waters of the Peace River below. Make dining a total experience worth remembering. Life is good at Laishley Crab House, especially if you save room for dessert.

Luke Bryan’s 32 Bridge in Nashville, Tennessee

Dining Outside the Home: Luke Bryan’s 32 Bridge in Nashville, Tennessee! Check out this popular watering hole named after a bridge that goes over the Flint River and holds special memories for Luke Bryan. As you stroll along iconic Broadway street in Music City, step through these doors where everyone becomes a friend and sunny optimism is a darn fine quality. Raise your glass to live music when single artists and talented bands give their all. Hungry for an afternoon bite? Lukes’s Elk Burger satisfies those pangs with ground elk, red dragon cheese, garlic aioli, pickle, and tomato. It’s mouth-watering goodness in every bite. From starters to sushi, steaks to dessert, Luke’s 32 Bridge has it all.

Hudson Yards Grill in New York, New York

Dining Outside the Home: Hudson Yards Grill in New York, New York! Outside the window stands one of Manhattan’s newest public landmarks called The Vessel. It’s got people talking, which brings visitors to Hudson Yards for shopping and dining. After climbing the giant sculpture of interlocking staircases for a spectacular panoramic view of the Hudson River, Central Railroad, and Hudson Yards neighborhood, you’re bound to be hungry. Look no further than Hudson Yards Grill. Its Pre Fixe meals, Sushi, Salads, and Desserts win raves. And that’s just for lunchtime. Ingredients are fresh, expertly prepared, and served like an artistic masterpiece. Count on coming back for dinner. You deserve it.

Dining Outside the Home: Kintaro Japanese Restaurant in Kapaa, Kauai

Dining Outside the Home: Kintaro Japanese Restaurant in Kapaa, Kauai! When the locals recommend a place to eat, pay attention, especially if they are making reservations for a private celebration behind shoji screens with tatami mat seating. Kintaro is that good. For others, it’s first-come, first-served whether you are seated at the exotic sushi bar, a table for two in the dining room, or family-style seating around the teppan yaki table grills. For starters a plate of complimentary crispy fried wontons were served by the friendly wait staff. They were so yummy, we ordered more. And because using chop sticks is part of the experience, the filet mignon and lobster tail combo were already cut into bite-sized cubes arranged on the plate. The rest is easy. Sit back, bask in the Asian decor, and enjoy the cuisine.

Eating My Way Through the Alphabet: Letter Z

What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? Foodstuff Redefined: Zen Himalayan Plate! Go above ordinary ingredients and transform your palate with a meal on the Himalayan salt plate. Foods pick up a delicate saltiness that transcends the flavor and leaves behind monotony. By creating bite-size pieces of fish, shellfish, and cucumber sushi, nourishment balances out the inner peace from within. Good for health-crazed affenciados as well as those soul-searching for expression. 
ZEN HIMALAYAN PLATE
Ingredients:

3.75-ounce tin Wild Caught Sardines, in olive oil

1 lemon, sliced and quartered

3.75-ounce tin smoked oysters

Fresh lemon thyme

7-ounces prepared crab dip

4 mini cucumbers, seedless

Fresh dill

Assorted crackers
Instructions:

Arrange sardines on a Himalayan salt plate. Drizzle with olive oil from the tin. Place lemon wedges on fish and garnish with fresh lemon thyme. Smoked oysters may be served in individual sea shells. Drizzle with sauce from the tin. Oysters may also be served on a cracker. To assemble the cucumber sushi, slice mini cucumbers into thick rolls. To remove the inside portion of each disc, place the cucumber on a cutting board, use a sharp knife, and rotate the cuke until the center is cut out. Make sure the walls remain. Discard fleshy pulp. Place the cucumber “rings” on the Himalayan salt plate. Spoon prepared crabmeat dip into each ring. Press gently to fill the sushi roll. Garnish with dill. 

Dining Outside the Home: Sushi Bushido in Kapaa, Kauai

Dining Outside the Home: Sushi Bushido in Kapaa, Kauai!  Is it a Japanese art gallery in a restaurant or a Japanese restaurant in an art gallery? Take a peek inside and see. You will be amazed! Located in the center of Old Kapaa Town in a place known as the “Dragon Building”, Sushi Bushido is a blend of everything traditional in local-style sushi through contemporary creations in dinner entrées. And the art, you wonder? The artist has a tiny studio next door, which is why an entire red wall inside Sushi Bushido is dedicated to her paintings. That’s what I call a “Win! Win!” for both parties. Check out the Sushi Bar, specialty rolls, and Tempura dishes along with a nice selection of beer and Sake. Trust me, you’ll be in good company.