You know how there are people out there that don’t do much to try and impress others? They just do their own thing, don’t make …
steak
Los Arrieros Restaurant
If you follow me on Twitter, you probably are aware that I’ve recently traveled to New York. Today’s restaurant review is from a Colombian restaurant …
This post will save you at least $45; How to make Kobe’s Japanese Steakhouse @ HOME!!
Kobe’s is good, really good. But Kobe’s made at home can be just as good and WAY cheaper!
Jack & Diane’s in Fernandina Beach, FL
As I search for this place on Google I am surprised to see so many mixed reviews. I personally REALLY enjoyed our drive into Fernandina and the brunch we had at Jack & Diane’s this morning.
The drive to Fernandina Beach was so relaxing. My husband drove the whole hour while I just took in the scenery in the passenger seat. Ruben never minds driving long distances and for that I am so thankful. I had no idea what our destination was – just that we were going to eat breakfast somewhere new. This week we were in Mayport because I was on duty and this morning was my time to rest in between nightly watch shifts.
During the drive we took the St. Johns River ferry – this was my first time ever riding a ferry in a car. You are allowed to get off the car while the ferry is crossing the river and take pictures or just take in the waterway.
After a little more driving we got into a little town that for some reason reminded me of Stars Hollow (a pretend Connecticut town of the old show Gilmore Girls) even though the city in the show wasn’t near a beach – but this area of Fernandina didn’t scream beach town (no surf board & bathing suit stores in sight).
Side note that has nothing to do with the restaurant in this post: I always found it interesting that Gilmore Girls ended and Gossip Girl started in the same year (2007). Two words; similar titles. The end of one type of show and the beginning (to me anyway) of a new show for teens to watch that was so racy. I still love Gossip Girl. But shows that started up after this like 90210 (among others) were just too sexy for me to deal with. The dirty drama is so bad for teenagers to watch. They are adult shows (please make sure you know what your kids are watching). *End rant*
BACK to this post…
So we get to Jack & Diane’s and right away I feel a good vibe. There was so much to describe about this place so I took a lot of photos (sorry if you feel that’s lazy on the writing portion here hehe).
The feel of the small place is very homey. My husband and I discussed that it is obviously a home with a couple walls knocked out to make the open space of the dining area. I wouldn’t host a wedding reception here, but the place is very comfortable and the staff was very friendly.
+Cool Points & +Community Points
The walls are covered with local art for sale. There is also a small little area where collectibles are sold (travel memorabilia of the town, wine made locally, and business cards of a few local entrepreneurs).
The first (and only) negative I saw to this place was how extensive their menu is. A place that has more than 30 options sounds ridiculous. BUT after eating the food I realized that every entree must be good if they feel it’s important to leave it in. This means the ONLY negative of this place is retracted and I actually found nothing wrong with Jack & Diane’s. I would definitely recommend.
My meal was the Carne Asada & Eggs ($11) (hash made of regular and sweet potato, really diced up fries, eggs, steak/carnita in jalapeno)
I could not get enough of my food. This came with flour tortillas for me to build my own and everything tasted so great. Each piece was individual and full of flavor but complimented each other so well. I would definitely eat this again.
Ruben’s meal was the Mel’s Bagel Sandwich ($8) (bagel, ham, egg, and cheese) which came with the house remoulade, in addition he ordered the mango salsa to try – it’s obvious he went a little safe here, but he did say it was all very good.
I would say give them a try, but don’t bash the place for not being your “type” of place. Make sure you describe things constructively. I really did enjoy this place.
Related links:
St. Johns River Ferry (Website), (Here is the schedule)
Gilmore Girls (website with information if you’ve never heard of the show)
Trip Advisor (reviews) – I could recognize the table’s design so I know the picture on there is legit.
Urbanspoon – I cannot believe the “Like” percentage is so low. Hopefully my review will show more detail of the ambiance before some people head over with the wrong expectations.
Jack & Diane’s (official site)
Thanks for reading,
Zulaika H.
Marco Polo
Ruben and I have a weak spot for hibachi style restaurants and that’s basically how we got to this place. It isn’t fancy, but the prices are really good and if you know what to order you will leave happy.
 |
| Art hanging in the restaurant |
 |
| Restaurant interior |
My main advice is do not eat from the buffet – at least not as late as we went to the restaurant. They’re hibachi (made to order meals) are good, but I did notice that their meat was previously frozen. The more I type the more I realize why this place has mixed reviews. The last tip I’ll give is to have the staff mix your sauce for you based on your description. They are much better at the seasonings (I did not do a good mix for my second round).
 |
| A closer look at my noodles with beef and broccoli. |
Not sure if you will be ther best fan, but I liked it and would go again. Let me know if you have gone and what you thought.
Related Links:
Urbanspoon page for Marco Polo
Thanks for reading,
Zully
How to make Bistec Empanizado, "empanao" (breaded steak)
This is one of those entrees that make my mouth water. When I was younger, I didn’t eat any meat unless my mom made this. I don’t know if it was because it looked like a big chicken nugget or just the flavor – but even ’til this day it’s a favorite. (more…)
Something a little different
A few days ago, I was thinking since moving into our new place we hadn’t had a taco night yet. Well it was more of a burrito – but does it really matter?
This is the sauce Ruben used to marinate the steak last night – it was so good, we decided to make the meat again for our taco night tonight.
When marinating meat, we’ve found taking as much air out of the Zip Loc works best – the only way out for the sauce is actually INTO the steak 🙂 My mouth actually waters thinking of how good they smell when they’re in there for just a couple of hours.
Always remember, even if you just have an hour or even 30 minutes to marinate your meat – it’ll be well worth it in flavor when it’s time to eat.
One of my favorite things to put in my burritos are grilled peppers and onions. They’re so sweet and balance out the taste of the meat you put into your burrito. I sliced green, yellow and red peppers and yellow onions (1 of each). This would be enough for 4-6 burritos.
I put them in a pan with a small amount of extra virgin olive oil, which was already warm. After about 15 minutes at medium heat, this is what I got.
Here’s the picture of everything set on the table for the fiesta! The tallest container has the grilled peppers and onions, then there’s sour cream, grated cheddar cheese, grated mozarella and chopped tomatoes (clockwise).
Maybe next time you can come over for some! Just kidding 😛
Thanks for reading,
Zulaika H.
Steak, alfredo penne with broccoli and roasted asparagus
Tonight we had Grilled skirt steak, penne rigate pasta with broccoli in alfredo, roasted asparagus and garlic toast. This is one of those meals that are very filling.
I’m blessed to have a husband that enjoys grilling – and does a great job as well. Below are photos of the skirt steak (or churrasco in Spanish) Ruben prepared tonight. The meat was marinated for several hours and the end result was really tasty.
Grilled asparagus is one of my absolute favorite vegetables to eat – I’ve learned many vegetables taste great this way. First, it’s important to “snap off” the bases of each asparagus spear. Just bend one and it’ll natually snap at the point it should. The bases are thrown out (or used for fertilizer in your garden soil if that’s your thing). Next, I moisten them with extra virgin olive oil. And lastly, I season with salt and pepper. Put in the oven (uncovered) for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees. That’s it!
Here are a couple of garlic flavored Texas toast served alongside the roasted asparagus (below). A long time ago, we got my daughter to try these by telling her they just tasted like “green” French fries. She still really loves them.
I made the penne pasta by boiling the pasta and some broccoli spears (each in seperate pots) until tender (for 10-12 minutes). Once they were done I combined them with alfredo sauce. For an added touch it is good to add freshly shredded Parmesan cheese.
Mmm… here’s what it all looked like right before we ate. It was very good.
There really is nothing better then getting to see your family enjoy the food you cook for them 🙂
Thanks for reading!
Zulaika
