I'm a fat guy. I like to eat. Always have, most probably always will. I grew up on the farm so no fancy food for me. I like to look at the menu and know what the hell is going to show up on my plate. It is Restaurant Week on Tybee Island. The participating restaurants are:
Coco's Sunset Grill
North Beach Bar & Grill
Sting Ray's
A-J's Dockside
Rock House
Sundae Café
80 East Gastropub
Tybee Island Social Club
Spanky's
Bernie's Oyster House
Ok, so you want to set yourself apart from the crowd. Show off what you can do for the special week. The deal for the week is that you get a "prix fixe" three course meal for $25 per person not including drinks or tip. It seems to me that you would just want to focus on what you do best. Crab stew at A.-J.'s for example. Some places- which shall remain nameless have gone down another road.
"Grilled Krispy Kreme Doughnut with chicken foie gras and lavender/orange scented custard" Really? Sounds to me like chicken liver with a grilled doughnut and pudding. WTF is that?
"Lobster Bisque with aged sherry and parmesan tuile" What the hell is a parmesan tuile? I had to look it up. Some that there frenchy cookn that the rich folks are all gaga for. It is a thin crisp wafer that is named after its shape which is similar to a roof tile. It's a fancy cracker. I guess cracker wasn't a fancy enough word for their menu. When I order bisque I expect to get crackers not tuile.
"Agedashi Tofu Stir Fry with fresh ginger, radish and white rice" What is agedashi tofu? It is the Japanese way to serve hot tofu. Silken firm tofu is cut into cubes, dusted lightly with potato or corn starch and then fried until golden brown. Maybe for us ignorant farm folks you could just call it fried tofu.
"Seared Rockfish with lime/cilantro coulis, Yukon gold rosti and white asparagus linguine" Coulis? Well that is a thick sauce made from pureed and strained vegetables or fruit that is commonly used on meat or vegetable dishes. Okay, Rockfish with lime/cilantro sauce. At least then I know what to expect. Rosti- well basically that is the Swiss version of hash browns. Potatoes are coarsely grated, pressed and fried. I guess if you are going to call sauce coulis you have to call hash browns rosti.
"Lightly fried squid tossed in a sweet chili roasted red pepper aioli" First, fried squid? Ewww! Good news there is whatever aioli is to make you forget it is squid. Aioli is a Provencal sauce made of garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, egg yolks and seasonings. Okay sounds like garlic mayo.
"Airline Chicken Breast Picatta- French cut boneless breast with drummette. Pan seared and finished with a lemon caper butter sauce" What the heck is "airline chicken"? It is a boneless chicken breast with the skin on with the first wing joint and tenderloin attached. Where did the name come from? If you guessed airline you win. The term "airline chicken" became popular in the 1960's when the major commercial airlines included full service meals in your fare. Airlines required a small breast portion and it was felt that including the portion of the wing made the portion look larger than it actually was. So there is your history lesson on chicken breasts. It also was referred to as a "hotel cut", "supreme" and "French cut". So the use of the term airline chicken and French cut above on the menu is unnecessary repetition.
Personally I think A.-J.'s Dockside did it right. Here is there menu for the week
Appetizers
House Salad
Caesar Salad
Cup of Crab Stew
Entrees
Fried Shrimp
Bowl of Gumbo
Stuffed Chicken Breast
Crispy Scored Flounder
Desserts
Key Lime Pie
Chocolate Mousse Pie
Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake
Nothing fancy here just normal sounding food done very well. Great place to eat and a menu an old Midwestern farm boy can understand.
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