Sante Fe Dinner at El Dorado Royale

Dinner on Wednesday night was at Santa Fe. Some highs and some lows.   Please remember that these are my opinions.   

Service was excellent.  They offer still and citrus infused water.  Very quick to take our order and food arrived promptly.  

While most of the menu is included in your room rates, there are a number of higher end steaks and lobster that have an upcharge.  I have never felt the need to pay extra for a steak in Mexico since I am never certain of the sourcing  Posting those menus in case anyone is curious.  

Ordered a bottle of Eclipse which was a decent cab for $55USD.  Wanted to try the Rose but was a bit nervous when the waiter confirmed it was from 2018.   Rose is not a wine that should be aged.   

The beef carpaccio tasted fine but it was not anything close to a carpaccio. Instead of rare, tender beef this was more like a seared tenderloin.  

 If I was in Philly, I think I would have ordered it "provolone with".   Very disappointed that they would call this a carpaccio. 

The prosciutto flatbread had potential since the apple and goat cheese tasted so good together.  But the bottom crust was burned and the top was doughy and undercooked.   

 The chorizo croquettes had great flavor but the texture was strange.   I expected them to be fried and crispy. Instead they were soft and pillowy. 

The octopus was the star attraction. Buttery and so tender.  I should have ordered a couple.

The beets were also very good.  They were cooked "al dente" so still had a little bite and the sweetness paired well with the feta cheese.   

For mains, the Zarandeado fish was excellent.   I didn't expect it to be a whole fish.  A huge portion!!  The breading was flavorful with a slight punch of spice but didn't overpower the mild flaky fish.  A well done dish.   

The pork belly was dry and bland which is a shame. No pork flavor. I could only detect cinnamon. 

 The chicken thigh had a grilled, almost burned flavor.  Whatever seasoning was intended may have been left on the grill.   

A disappointing first meal.  However I have never been disappointed by octopus at a Mexican restaurant.   The chefs here really know how to respect it and cook it properly.  

Dinner at Emiliano's at Sandos Finisterra

Good start to our stay!!  Dinner was at Emiliano's.   Our starters were an artichoke antipasto with Serrano ham, beef carpaccio and cream of tomato soup. Beef carpaccio was very tasty with crumbly parmesan. The artichoke antipasto had deliciously marinated artichoke and salty ham. Good combo and I think the best dish of the night.    Mains were beef lasagna, veggie ravioli and mushroom risotto.  The risotto was some of the best I have ever had.  Beef lasagna has some good flavor but I would have liked more Italian spices.   The veggie ravioli dough was very thick and pasty.  Really detracted from the filling which was very good.  

Went to Cupcake Cafe for a really great mini lemon meringue pie.  The meringue was very much like marshmallow and was a nice contrast to the slightly sour lemon filling.  Finished the night at Whale Watchers with a Tamarind Margarita.

Dinner at Oceana at Secrets Los Cabos

Here in Los Cabos, the landscape is so different than the east coast of Mexico.  Where Riveria Maya is mostly flat, Los Cabos is almost mountainous.   Such interesting terrain.  So while we were excited to eat at Oceana since we have dined at the same venue at other Secrets resorts, we weren't expecting such a great view from our table.  

What a great table!!   So many things to try.  I think I could have ordered one of every appetizer but decided it would be prudent to narrow it to three so we'd have room for mains.  

First up was Shrimp Aguachile Sinaloa style.  I had not had this dish before so excited to try it.   It is similar to a ceviche except it is shrimp and not fish.  Also, the shrimp is whole with tails in.  The liquid is a blend of lime juice, sal, chili peppers and cilantro.  It also has sliced cucumbers.   The acid really brought out the shrimp flavor. 

Next up was Peruvian ceviche.  This was more you think of when you order ceviche. Small bite sized pieces of fish that is marinated in lime juice and pepper.  I loved the addition of the pickled onion and fresh slivers of peppers. 

My favorite appetizer was Esquites which is commonly refered to as Mexican street corn.  I have had this dish a few times.  The traditional preparation is where the corn is grilled in the husks and then the corn is covered in mayonnaise, chili flakes and cojita cheese.  Cojita has a similar texture and flavor to feta cheese. I have also had it where the corn is taken off the cob and then mixed together with those three additions.  I had not seen such a creative version as what was served at Oceana.  You had a dish if fresh corn with nicely cooked shrimp.  And then separate dishes of mayo, chili powder and cojita cheese.  And you then made your own perfect bite of Esquites.  So creative and so delicious.  

Our first main was the butter octopus. 

Over many years of travel into Mexico, I have always found the preparation of octopus to be so much better than any I have had in the United States.  And this dish was no different.  It can be easy to have octopus be tough and chewy.   Here it seems that the octopus has been braised and then grilled briefly.  It came in a buttery sauce with just a hint of garlic.  People will always say that lobster is their idea of an indulgent, succulent bite of food. I would strongly disagree.  Octopus, cooked properly, is so much better.  

Our other main was a fish fillet.  And like most great fish dishes, this was simply prepared.   Grilled but still moist.  

And the best part of the dish was it had been topped with minced pieces of octopus and shrimp.  Those had been also grilled separately in butter and garlic.  They were slightly crispy so it added some needed texture.  A real clever preparation. 

With such a great view, we didn't want the evening to end so we ordered two desserts.  First was a passion fruit cheesecake.  

Mild cream cheese flavor, punched up with a slightly sour passion fruit sauce. I loved that this wasn't overly sweet.  

Second was a chocolate mousse.  

Smooth chocolate inside a crisp outer shell.