Killer Shrimp brings killa seafood to Hermosa Beach

Sasaki Time was recently invited to try out Killer Shrimp in Hermosa Beach. My friend Matt and I met up with Danielle (Director of Communication for Killer Shrimp) for dinner. The Hermosa Beach location is literally a hop, skip and a jump from the ocean and believe it or not, the food outshines the view.

We started with the signature Killer Shrimp dish that they prepare six different ways. We went with the shelled version. The enormous and delicious shrimp bathe in a spicy broth made from a secret blend of ingredients. You also get this massive portion of french bread to soak up the broth.

Look at the size of the shrimp! Juicy and full of flavor will make you order this dish time and time again!

We also got an order of the Crab Fries. Think of a generous portion of In 'N Out's Animal Style Fries topped with crab and you have one of the most amazing dishes ever!

Seasalt Woodfire Grill Brings Santa Maria-Style BBQ to Huntington Beach

Santa Maria-Style BBQ is one of my all-time favorites and it's great to see it here in the OC. Seasalt Woodfire Grill brings this style of cooking to Huntington Beach. What sets this style of cooking apart is cooking meat seasoned with sea salt blends over red oak coals.

The bar has farm crafted cocktails, wines and a good selection of locally crafted beers. The first cocktail we tried was the The Grilled Pina which has tequila, pineapple and jalapeno. A great blend of flavors and I loved the kick of the jalapenos.

The second cocktail we tried was the The Boozy Horchata which has vanilla vodka, spiced rum and horchata. I am a huge horchata fan and this cocktail won me over with it's flavor and smoothness.

The Smoked Pork Belly Mac N Cheese is simply quite amazing. The smokiness of the pork belly goes perfectly with the mac n cheese.

When in doubt, you try all the various cuts of steak they bring out. The tri-tip, ribeye and the New York strip are all amazing and melt in your mouth delicious!

Take a look at the 28 oz bone-in ribeye. Doesn't it just make your mouth water?

Some of the most flavorful ribs I have ever experienced.

The linguisa is unreal. So much flavor and spice that will keep you coming back for more and more.

Even the seafood offerings are rubbed in the unique sea salts. The shrimp is perfectly grilled and salted.

The jumbo tiger prawns and snow crab is unbelievable. You won't want to share what's on your plate.

The last cocktail we tried was the Salty Hog which has vodka, grapefruit and bacon. A great blend of sour and salt. Typically not a flavor combination I typically would enjoy but this has changed my mine.

We ended the meal with this delicious vanilla ice cream with Central Coast Olive Oil and topped with black lava seasalt. The flavors blend together seamlessly for a totally unique experience. The perfect ending to our meal.

So, if you love Santa Maria style BBQ or just interested in experiencing it (and you will love it), then head to Seasalt Woodfire Grill. It will be an unforgettable meal from start to finish.

To learn more about Seasalt Woodfire Grill, check out their site at the link below:
seasaltwoodfiregrill.com

Restaurant Event: Summer Fest Open House at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen (2014)

Once again I was invited to the Summer Fest Open House at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen in downtown Disney in Anaheim to enjoy food, drinks, entertainment and of course to check out their 6 Festive Private Rooms!

The highlight of the evening was that Ralph Brennan himself was there! It was a wonderful opportunity to not only meet the man but to talk with him and of course get a photo!

My friend Kristen and I attended the event and we started the evening with a hurricane! Not only is this one of their speciality drinks but this is also one of the best ones I have ever had. It is blended perfectly and you can hardly taste the alcohol.

There were several excellent appetizers being served including this fantastic buffalo chicken and waffle slider! The perfect combination of sweet and savory! I could have had about ten more of these! Plus, the staff carrying the appetizers were all fantastic and offered a Disney style level of guest service.

A delicious shrimp gazpacho came by next. The delicious tomato base with the fresh shrimp made for a perfect appetizer on a warm summer evening!

Deep fried okra became one of my favorites! Great earthy flavor made this an item I could also eat all evening!

Another favorite was the deep fried artichoke hearts! I love artichoke, so to have it deep fried made it even better!

Out on the balcony area, where 80 seated guests or 100 guests can gather for a reception, there was an impressive assortment of fresh seafood! The largest collection was this wooden canoe of shrimp! It was sweet and buttery! I could eat this shrimp all night long as well!

Next to the shrimp was the mussels! Don't they look delicious? Mussels are another one of my favorites!

And next to the mussels were clams! It was like they made a menu with me in mind as these are another one of my favorites! Look at all the vegetables and bacon with these clams!

This was my first time having a buffalo oyster! The oyster is perfectly meaty and plump. They are crispy on the outside but rich and creamy on the inside. Top that with buffalo sauce and ranch dressing and you have a wonderful appetizer!

Also out on the balcony was this mac and cheese station. I had them combine both the crawfish and the andouille sausage.

Watching the magic happen right before my eyes!

Doesn't that look amazing? What a perfect combination of flavors! The sweetness of the crawfish combined with the saltiness of the sausage made for a fantastic mac and cheese!

In the Wine Room, that seats a party of 18, they had this martini salad bar!

You just told them what ingredients you wanted.

Then they combined it into a martini shaker! Shaken and not stirred and you got an amazing salad with dressing mixed perfectly throughout the entire salad!

There was also a carving station for moist and juicy prime rib. There were various sauces to try with the prime rib and a fantastic Zinfandel au jus!

Here is my martini mixed salad with prime rib with the three olive salad and the Zinfandel au jus! Perfect dinner and perfect presentation!

In the Queen's Room, that seats 50 to 60 people or 80 for a reception with a private balcony, was the dessert room as well. There was cotton candy!

As you can see I am a big fan of cotton candy!

Butter! Lots and lots of butter for the next dessert!

Toss in some alcohol and you get...

Flames! And a New Orleans classic, bananas foster!

Who wants some bananas foster with vanilla bean ice cream? I thought so! This was so amazing! One of the best bananas foster desserts ever!

The Voodoo King and I wish you a fond farewell from Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen!

Thank you to the awesome special events team for the invite once again! Another night of amazing food, friends and entertainment!

So keep the Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen Downtown Disney in Anaheim in mind for your next special event:

- 6 amazing rooms for your next special event

- 5 hours of FREE parking with validation plus all day parking packages are also available

- mention SUMMER FEST while booking and receive a complimentary passed appetizer during your event!

Book today by calling (714) 563-7261

Also check out their web site: Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen: Private Events

*Disclaimer: Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen invited me to their Summer Fest Open House but the opinions and photos are strictly my own.*

Restaurant Review: Slapfish Brings Fresh, Sustainable Seafood to Laguna Beach

Slapfish has taken seafood to a whole new level with boat to table fresh seafood. They found their audience with their food truck. That audience then wanted a restaurant, that became a reality in Huntington Beach. Now, that audience is craving more.

Slapfish responded with a new location in Laguna Beach. This location is about as true to a seafood shack as you can get. Located across the street from the beach, this is a "grab and go" concept for those heading to the beach or on their way home. There are also a few tables outside to enjoy the ocean breeze and eat some of the best tasting seafood around.

The menu here is a back to basics approach. Everyday there are three fish options that rotate out depending on what is available. Their commitment to sustainable seafood sets them apart from other seafood restaurants. They work hard to make sure that the seafood they use is acquired through responsible fishfarming and does not use anything that is over-fished or uses harmful fishing practices.

You simply choose your fish, how it's cooked (crispy or grilled), and how you want it served (slapwich, taco or roll). There are also some of Slapfish's best selling items such as chowder fries, lobster rolls and fish and chips.

We started with the chowder fries. This was my first experience with the chowder fries and all I have to say is why have I waited so long to try these? One of the best tasting things I have ever experienced! Fresh cut fries and fresh clam chowder topped with bacon bits is something I need to enjoy each and every time I am at Slapfish!

We also ordered the lobster dip n chips. Nice chunks of lobster mixed in a rich, creamy dip. The chips are  fresh and crispy with some seasoning on top of them. So delicious and we made short work on this tasty dish!

Brian ordered the shrimp and chips. The shrimp was deep fried in a light tempura style batter. So fresh and addicting. The fresh shrimp were rich and buttery tasting.

I went with the grilled mahi slapwich. Buttery brioshe with tomato, lettuce and pickled onions bring this slapwich together. Adding the appropriately named "Awesome Sauce" (creamy smoked pepper) to the mix brought a flavor explosion! The delicious fresh made kettle chips went great with my slapwich!

Oh, one more thing! They have Batch Craft Soda as well! Check out the soda they offer on the far left! That's right it is Shirley Temple on tap! One more fantastic reason to come and have amazing seafood and one of my favorite drinks on tap!

Fantastic fresh seafood awaits you! What are you waiting for? Who wants to go with me? I need more chowder fries!

Slapfish is located at 211 Broadway in Laguna Beach

Website:
http://www.slapfishrestaurant.com/

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Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen Open House!

Sasaki Time was invited to an Open House at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen in Downtown Disney to enjoy food, drinks and check out their private dining rooms!

 

This is already one of my favorite themed places in Downtown Disney. I do admit that I stop more often at the Jazz Kitchen Express for their amazing beignets! That is one of my favorite snacks when visiting the parks!

I love these statues! It makes me feel like Mardi Gras is here all year round!

The open house took place upstairs, where they have four different rooms for special events. There is one more room downstairs that can be used for special events as well and that one is the largest as it can hold seating for 120 people or a reception for 200 people plus a stage for entertainment.

The four rooms upstairs can be used for any event you may have from a small private event to a large party!

The Parlor Room featured live jazz this evening! This room can hold between 100-120 seated or 180 for a reception. 

Out on the balcony,where 80 seated guests can be accommodated or 100 for a reception. This evening though they were using it to prepare for us a crawdad broil! I love crawdads!

The crawdads were nice and spicy! They were served with potatoes and corn on the cob! So good!

Next to that they were making a BBQ shrimp. Not sure where the name BBQ shrimp comes from since it is not barbequed nor is there BBQ Sauce but I could eat these buttery, spicy shrimp all day long. I admit I had to go back and getting another helping! They were just as amazing as the crawdads!

Don't those shrimp look mouthwatering?

They were also passing out these fantastic catfish sliders! Catfish is one of my favorite cooked fish so I couldn't pass these up!

There was also this refreshing watermelon gazpacho like item (sorry I couldn't remember the name).

In the Wine Room, which seats 18, they had prime rib and ham.

The prime rib was paired expertly with three different sauces for you to enjoy. Starting from the left, there was an olive pickled relish (amazing), horseradish (it was really creamy and mixed with something but I couldn't tell what it was), and the last one was a fresh tomato salsa (nice and refreshing). My photos of the ham didn't come out so I will skip that one but one of the sauces was a pineapple and mango salsa that was so sweet and paired perfectly with the saltiness of the ham.

They had one of their specialty drinks, the Hurricane for us. This was easily one of the best ones I have ever had but also very dangerous as it was blended perfectly where you could hardly taste the alcohol.

There was also a nice sampling of their red and white wines on hand. The white of course perfect for the seafood dishes and the red perfect for the meat courses.

We ended up dining in the Queen's Room that seats 50-60 people or holds 80 for a reception with a private balcony. This was also the room with the beignet bar! They dished up ice cream and piping hot beignets with your choice of sauces! 

One last look at one of the trays of beignets!

This was a wonderful event filled with great food and drinks. It was a great atmosphere to spend with my friends and to make new ones!

A perfect place to have lunch or dinner or your next special event or wedding!

Thank you to the special events team for the invite!

To learn more about hosting your private event here, check out their website:
Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen: Private Events