Oh Morro Bay, where have you been all my life? As I stated in my previous post So Many Wines, So Little Time (Santa Ynez and Edna Valleys), our friend Cheryl had moved to Morro Bay and was working at a winery in Paso Robles, living a great life. Of course we were going to come out and visit her!
One thing I love to do when I visit friends is cook with them, and Cheryl is an excellent cook. She also sells Pampered Chef, so her kitchen tools are top notch – she has everything!
Morro Bay is only about an hour and a half north of Buellton, and I immediately fell in love with it. It has a small town, laid back vibe, and Cheryl (and her boyfriend Ed) have a direct view of The Rock and of course the ocean. Ed calls it “Urban living in a 10,000 population town”. For this Midwestern girl, it was everything!
We arrived in time for lunch, and ate at Bayside Cafe. This is just what I needed! Good food at a great location. They have fried clams, and I am sucker for those. Afterwards we took a little walk and did some bird watching.
Before heading home we needed to shop for that night’s meal. And have a cocktail! Luckily the fish monger and the cocktail place were basically right next to each other. We had a drink a The Great American Fish Company, overlooking the pier. You’ll never believe what we saw – a whale spout! We sat there a long time just watching this whale, so close to land. We found out later it was probably an older gray whale, and luckily made his way out of the harbor and into the wild blue ocean by the next afternoon.
Cheryl had the menu set, and since fresh fish is in abundance, she decided we were going to have halibut. We went to Giovanni’s Fish Market & Galley to pick up some halibut. This place was awesome!
We also picked up some shrimp for an appetizer, and opened a Brecon Estate Albarino to toast our first night in Morro Bay. It was delicious of course! And served with a beautiful sunset 🙂
On to the meal! Halibut was of course the star of the show – and she had selected Guy Fieri’s Halibut Veracruz as the preparation. This was so delicious and easy, and really let the fish shine.
Our side dishes were Braised Fingerling Potatoes with Garlic, Shallots, and Fresh Herbs and Buttery Sautéed Green Beans. Both so easy and so good!
And of course we had dessert! Cheryl made Frozen Mango, Blackberry Cassis, and Vanilla Mosaic. The perfect way to end the meal 🙂
More wine adventures ahead in Paso Robles – stay tuned!
Tales From The Wine Store 