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21 Degrees North, a closer look
Aloha!
12/9/09 - Aside from the salt spray floating throughout the entire North Shore, there was a whole lotta special in the air this past weekend. I definitely have something to be thankful for. Anyone know what it feels like to escape the clutches of death by the hairs of your chinny-chin-chin? Ok, it wasn't as bad as, say - reaching for your board while getting tossed and turned every which way, 10 feet underwater, not knowing which way is up, only to find absolutely nothing at the end of your leash! Not something I'd wanna live through again! No, I guess it wasn't quite that bad, but lemme tell ya - losing your camera comes pretty darn close!
Kumi and I were having so much fun, first at Twenty One Degrees North, then at Bay Club in the Turtle Bay Resort, I didn't even realize till the next morning that my camera was nowhere to be found! Talk about dread. Talk about total and complete anguish. Talk about an awful, horrifying realization. I mean, first, it's the checking of the room. Then the frantic scrutinization of every step taken the previous night. And then there's the thought of being completely violated, of someone else rummaging through your most precious belongings. And it wasn't just the thousand dollar camera (almost), the thousand dollar lense, and the pricey camera stand given to me by a friend. Inside my camera bag, we're talking about priceless pics stashed on SD, my car keys, my cell phone - it's a good thing I still had my wallet!
After checking with security, lost & found, the front desk, and the Bay Club restaurant/bar personally, I called and left a message on my voice mail, threatening whoever it was that I knew they were still in the hotel, and that I'd be watching out for them. Kumi happened to get a good look at the party next to our table, so we were camped-out in the lobby looking for the culprits, prepared to stay there all day long to catch them! Meanwhile, we had been filing a report with security when the guard said she'd check the Bay Club once more. We told her we had already scoured the place, but she went anyway. Not more than a couple of minutes passed when surprise, surprise - she came out with a familiar-looking camera bag and camera stand! Hallelujah!!! Praise the Lord!!!
You cannot believe the happiness that flooded my soul at that very moment! It was like dying and coming back to life! After profusely thanking the security guard, I sat there for at least ten minutes with a silly smile on my face that was so big, someone actually came up to and asked why I was so happy!
Being so relieved and over-joyed, I didn't care to find out who had held the camera, but whoever it was, I can imagine they're in big trouble. That person had left it in the employee's back storage area - waaay sketchy, and a very big no-no! Anything missing is supposed to go immediately to security or lost & found, especially something this valuable! I mean, anyone could have taken it in the employee room, and the person responsible could easily be fired right there on the spot! But aaah, water under the bridge, as far as I'm concerned - I got my camera back, so it's aaalll good!!!
However, there's definitely one thing I still have a problem with here at Turtle Bay, and I'm not gonna forget nor be quiet about it! The problem comes from the Palm Terrace restaurant/buffet, which is the main restaurant for the hotel:
Not that the food was bad or anything. Not that the service was terrible, either. In fact, you can't go wrong with this kind of view overlooking the Bay, and we always enjoy the breakfast buffet here when staying at the resort. The problem was...
Domestic beer, $5.50.
Imports, $6.50.
Kirin? TEN BUCKS!!!
Whaaa??? Besides being bummed that I couldn't have Kirin that night, I didn't really think much about it at the time, but the more I pondered the situation, the more I thought hey, this is nothing more than discrimination, along with a total disrespect of a single country and race, yes? I even called the manager on it, and she replied by saying that their mark-up's were the same across the board. Yeah right! I told her I knew what the cost of Kirin was as opposed to other beers. Kirin is actually bottled in LA under contract, and there's absolutely no way in the world that Kirin is gonna cost 35% more than imports, much less anything coming from the Kona Brewing Company, that's for sure! Who knows - maybe she's lying or maybe she just doesn't know; I can't tell for sure. I just let her know that I did have a web presence, and encouraged her to talk to someone who had the power, to let them know that what they were doing was completely and totally WRONG. I even told her that while they list prices of other beers on-line, their website says nothing whatsoever about Kirin! Pulling a fast one, are we? Under the radar? The Japanese tourists spend more money per person per day than visitors from any other country, and this is how we treat them? I don't know if all the restaurants at Turtle Bay sell Kirin for $10, but this kind of discrimination should never be allowed, period!
I'm sorry, but I've been in the food/hospitality business for a long time, and I really get sick at this attitude sometimes prevalent around here that says oh, it's just the Japanese, so don't worry about it, they won't complain about anything! Actually, that's totally taking advantage of them, and it really should be the other way around - Oh, it's the Japanese, so let's take extra special care of them! After all, like I said, they do spend more per person on local businesses than anyone else. Yeah, they sometimes don't tip as much (sometimes not at all in extreme cases!), but that's only because in Japan, tipping is not part of their system, and they are not accustomed to the practice. There, service is beyond excellent just about everywhere you go, without them receiving even a single dime of tip, so can you imagine yourself in their place, paying $10 for a Kirin, while every other beer is $5.50 - $6.50, and then having to drop a tip? It's a slap in the face, if you ask me.
Turtle Bay, please re-consider this unfair pricing policy! I've never seen it done anywhere else on the island! I'll keep an eye out in the future, and if they don't change their prices, I just may consider doing something more. If any of you out there have up-dates on the situation, or wanna voice an opinion, please let me know!
Sorry, I had to say something. Hopefully, things will change there real soon.
But anyhow, and moving right along, let's get to something a little more pleasant, ey?
Yep, we're finally on the subject of Twenty One Degrees North, a fine-dining restaurant I've had the pleasure of visiting a couple of times now. I won't beat around the bush for a while like I normally do - I'll tell you right off the bat - everything was faaabulous! Views of the gorgeous bay are excellent from anywhere in the two-tiered dining room, the top section being the bar area. Of course, the ocean gets pretty dark on a moon-less night, so make sure you get there early enough to catch some sunset action. And remember that it's much darker here than the pic reveals, making for some romantic candlelight dinners and scenes worthy of any special occasion, including our 4th anniversary and the large group of Kiwis celebrating a wedding on the bottom floor:
After being led to a perfect seat right next to the window, our kind server laid-down a plate of two different breads, complemented by several cloves of luscious roasted garlic and an herb and sun-dried tomato paste for dip. The bread wasn't presented warm, but no worries - with the tangy dip and, especially, the soft cloves of garlic that spread like buttah over the slices, this complimentary platter set the tone of the evening in a most positive way. Hey, it's already better than a good majority of fancy restaurants, where lottsa times, you'll only get bread and butter, right?
As for the menu, it's not the biggest around, but you'll certainly find most of your favorites from this type of restaurant. Before getting into the main entrees, for starter's, to name just a few, there's French onion and fennel bisque, grilled mango and goat cheese salad with arugula, macadamia nuts, and balsamic vinaigrette, Hau'ula tomatoes with crab endive radicchio salad and sesame dijon vinaigrette, oysters on the half-shell, and, of course, the always-found blackened ahi, this time with wasabi and ginger buerre blanc. For the whole menu, check out the dining section of the Turtle Bay website at http://www.turtlebayresort.com/Dining/Dining.asp. And remember to grumble to them about the Kirin! Juuust kidding...
We began with a beautiful seafood medley platter, with a trio of ahi sashimi, tiger shrimp cocktail, and oysters on the half, sitting on a colorful salad of romaine lettuce, red cabbage, lemon wedges, and pickled ginger. Three small containers carried a wasabi horseradish sauce, a cocktail sauce, and a cilantro sesame vinaigrette:
What more can I add to this gorgeous combination? The seafoods were sweet and as fresh as could be, the greens crisp and light, and the taste? Every bit as good as it looked!
But movin' on to an even more exquisite dish, we went all the way to the top, to the pinnacle, the summit, the zenith, the absolute tip-top of decadence in the food world. At least to me, that is. In my humble opinion, the traditional trinity and holy grail in dining, consisting of caviar, truffles, and foie gras, is only a third correct! If left to my own devices, I'd replace the caviar and truffles with genuine Kobe beef rib cuts and premium o-toro sashimi. But even in my newly-established order of importance, foie gras still runs supreme over anything and everything!
Quite honestly, I can't stand liver of most types, cooked or raw, like the raw beef liver Kumi enjoys so much. The taste of raw beef liver runs from ok with a slight touch of nastiness when fresh to the most horrible thing I'd ever eaten when not (fresh). I have no idea why goose liver, when cooked in all the delicate, sophisticated sauces it usually comes in, is so unbelievably unbelievable, that sometimes I just can't believe it. That being said, and without further ado, I present you with... foie gras:
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These amazing cuts of fattened goose liver came soaked in a thin but rich jus, with tiny portions of baby greens, vanilla'd pineapple, and roasted pearl onions. The sauce alone would have been delicious over a scoop of white rice, but all signs pointed towards the foie gras, as the two of us leisurely tasted morsel after tiny morsel, allowing the melt-in-your mouth texture of the meat to slowly dissolve on our tongue, the juices dripping down the sides, the concentrated flavors coming alive as if your sense of taste were becoming all at once sensitized to identify and appreciate every tissue, every globule of fat, every salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and yes - umami flavor! You know, I've read tons of definitions on what umami means, but till this day, I've never met a term that has been described so vaguely. I mean, it's something about savoriness, something about earthiness, something about meatiness, and even something about pungency, to list a few descriptions, and is often associated with such things as anchovies, blue cheese, mushrooms, shoyu, green tea, and monosodium glutamate (MSG).
Actually, I kinda like the fact that it really can't be defined all that well by anyone. Judging by the other-worldy, almost spiritual experience afforded by the perfect food type, eaten at the perfect time, and in the perfect place - it's perfectly fitting that a sense of mystery and enchantment only serve to surround the word with a surreal, magical kind of aura and presence, yes? And because we all experience things differently, it leaves everything open to interpretation, and like the wise man contemplating his navel, we, too, can forever look deeper and deeper into such delights as truffles, o-toro sashimi, caviar, fatty Kobe beef, and yes, of course, goose liver, and forever be in awe and wonder at the heightened state of awareness such finer delicacies in life can seemingly propel us into. There are an infinite number of facets to even the smallest of matters, my child.
Uh... Yeah, it really was that good!
But after that highlight reel, Kumi ordered the one glitch of the evening, the one setback that, at least in the world of fine dining where everything is supposed to be without reproach, could possibly have become a game-breaker for the losing side:
If you can get past the challenging lighting situation of the above shot, it may look as great as any tenderloin of beef, with its bed of mixed vegetables, truffle mashed potatoes, and wild mushroom demi-glace. The only problem was, we asked for medium, but what we found was a steak almost well-done! My bad, though, as Kumi actually first requested a medium rare, and changed only after I thought it may be a little too bloody. I mean, at home on hibachi nights, I always cook steaks medium, with just a little red and a mostly pink center. There was some pink in there, but not nearly enough!
But even besides this huge no-no, the taste of the filet was actually still incredible! Super-soft, tender, moist, and with a seasoning that saturated well into the meat itself, I suppose they could have presented it completely well-done, and it still would have been great! Yeah, it woulda been over-the-top if pulled-off the grill a bit earlier, but neither of us were about to complain over a delicious steak like this!
As for other entree choices on the menu, knowing that I always seem to gravitate towards duck, I passed on the muscovy duck breast, served with Pupukea stir-fry vegetables, spiced duck sausage, French lentils, and vanilla plum sauce. I mosied-on-by another selection I often fancy, a roasted rack of lamb, served here with a garden fresh ratatouille and blue cheese potato cake. Braised Kona lobster? Nah, not at Market Price, which is always too high in a place like this! Opakapaka and moi? At $36 and $32, not too shabby, but I'll pass. I almost went with the porcini dusted pork tenderloin, at a very affordable $27, with spinach, Asian pear, sunchokes, and dried plum compote, but changed last-minute, not to the popular pepper-crusted ahi ($29), with Kahuku corn fritter, sesame miso slaw, watercress, and ginger puree, but to yet another fish variety:
That-there's a crab-crusted Hawaiian sea bass ($29), served over cannellini bean cassoulet, spinach, and roasted Big Island tomato, then topped with a garnish of some type of sprout and fine slivers of green onion. Now, these fish may be ugly when alive, but lemme tell you, they taste a whole lot better than they look. Here's a shot of the creature, taken from the latest Hawaii Fishing and Seafood Festival, which is often identified here in the islands by their Hawaiian name, hapu'upu'u:
Unlike Kumi's steak, this fish was cooked perfectly, revealing a light, flaky, super-moist white meat flesh. In fact, it was surprisingly delicate, comparable, almost, even to a young opakapaka or onaga in taste, but perhaps a bit less silky in texture. The tomato and bean-based cassoulet was an excellent pairing for the fish, also coming with a light, natural taste and a balanced acidity that rounded-out the meal perfectly. Underneath, a small collection of white cannellini beans served as a kind of starch, even though beans are not considered a starch, actually.
Whatever the case, it sure did work!
Though the portions were small (this is fine-dining, you know!), the prices were right in-line with other restaurants in this caliber (we are talking the premier restaurant in a beautiful resort hotel!), and comparable to most better Hawaii Regional Cuisine restaurants. The service was fine and our waitress, very kind and helpful, as well. Despite the tenderloin mishap, the two of us were very happy and well-satisfied with the excellent meal we enjoyed here at Twenty One Degrees North. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone.
And on another note, I'll make another recommendation right here and now - you all gotta go see an Eddie at least once in your life! Yep, even after our wonderful Turtle Bay weekend filled with Triple Crown action, Tow-in's, and in-place river surfing, we made the trek once again to the North Shore just a couple of days later to see the contest, because, as you probably have already heard - THE EDDIE WAS ON!!!
I'll get you some shots of Kelly Slater, Andy Irons, Michael Ho, Jamie O'Brien, and more!
Until then, take care and Aloha till next time!
Aku
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