Dinner at Marshside


Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod


Michaela & Jessica :: Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod


Rachelle, Julie, Jessica :: Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod


Crab Cakes, Haddock, Clams Linguine, Scrod :: Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod

After going to Eden, Michaela came over to our house and we spent the day at the beach (what else is new!?). Then we went home and got ready and went out for dinner at Marshside in East Dennis. I heard that not too long ago they totally brought down the whole restaurant and rebuilt it. It’s really pretty. Big decks outside (too bad there wasn’t any outdoor seating) and inside was kind of a modern rustic, if such thing exists. There were many, many windows through which you could see the marsh, hence the name Marshside. All of the windows kind of made it so that the marsh was very much a part of the decor of the restaurant.

Michaela and I shared a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and Julie and Jess shared a red wine at the bar while we waited to be seated at a table. We shared dinner appetizers. I ordered the crab cakes (of course), Michaela got the Cesar salad, Jess got the clam chowder, and Julie got seafood stew. The crab cakes were so much better than I’d had a few days earlier at Skippy’s Pier 1. The clam chowder was really good. Definitely better than Skippy’s but we still favored The Skipper’s chowdah. In hindsight, we really did not enjoy Skippy’s, which is a shame because Jess’s aunt Mau, who we stayed with my last trip to the Cape, works there.. but she’s a bartender.. nothing to do with the food.

Jess and Michaela both got Scrod entrees, I got the haddock and Julie got clams linguine. To be honest, I found the dinner we had at Colombo’s to be more memorable as far as how the food tasted. I know haddock is kind of a bland fish, but the way this was prepared.. if you didn’t take a bite right on the sauce, there was no flavor at all. However, the mashed potatoes were delicious. Jess really enjoyed the scrod and we applauded her for ordering it. She had never really liked fish, but is trying to expand her horizons because a lot of it is mental. I think Michaela and Julie enjoyed their food, too.

Dinner at Colombo’s


Portobello mushroom, goat cheese, garlic bruchetta :: Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, Hyannis, Cape Cod


Clams casino :: Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, Hyannis, Cape Cod


Meatballs with fresh ricotta and Parmesan :: Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, Hyannis, Cape Cod


Salad :: Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, Hyannis, Cape Cod


Pepperoni Pizza :: Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, Hyannis, Cape Cod


Scallops with risotto :: Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, Hyannis, Cape Cod

On Wednesday we tried to go to the beach but it was really, really windy. We were getting pelted with sand. Finally we just gave up and went home. After getting all the sand off of us, we decided to go shopping. At TJ Maxx I picked up a really discounted dress, some sandals and a floppy beach hat.

For dinner we went to Colombo’s Cafe & Pastries, which opened up in Hyannis that day. Jess’s cousin Michaela is a hostess there so we went to visit her and check out the new restaurant. The concept is kind of something for everything. There’s a bar, a lounge, inside dining, outside dining, a pastry case, gelato, lunch sandwiches, nice dinner entrees, etc. I guess time will tell if this strategy works.

We really liked that all of the pasta was whole wheat and you could get a honey whole wheat crust on the pizzas. The food there skewed towards Italian and healthy, which differentiated it from the other Cape restaurants we’ve been to. Overall, we really enjoyed the food, but as to be expected on opening night of any restaurant, there were some service kinks to work out. I’m sure they just need practice to get everything running smoothly.

Just Another Day At The Beach


Lobster Roll, Chowder, Fries from The Skipper, South Yarmouth, Cape Cod

Yesterday I walked two miles to and from the post office. It was hot and sunny and felt good to get some exercise. After that I met up with Jessica and Julie at the beach. We stayed there all afternoon and evening. It was gorgeous outside. Partly sunny and with a nice breeze. Great beach weather.

For dinner Julie went to our house and got a bunch of beer for us to drink with our take out order from The Skipper, which we enjoyed while sitting on towels on the beach while the sun went down. We all got clam chowder and confirmed that it is the best chowder we’ve had so far. Delicious flavor, rich and thick. Jess had the clam strip roll and Julie and I had a lobster roll. What about Steph? She had to go home this morning. Sucks, but at least she got to hit up some outlet malls on the way!

Fourth of July at the Beach


The Skipper, Yarmouth, Cape Cod


Town of Yarmouth Park, Yarmouth, Cape Cod

Fourth of July at Cape Cod was not that warm and overcast, but it didn’t stop us from hitting the beach. For lunch we ate at The Skipper, which is across the street from the beach were were relaxing on. We all had the “award winning” clam chowder. It was good, but could have been served hotter. Julie and Stephanie had the lobster roll and said it was great. Jess and Jen had the clam strip roll and I had the scallop roll. It was good, but the clam strips and the scallops were both fried and I think that when you fry seafood like that it all kind of tastes the same. After lunch we went back to the beach, of course.

Get in my Belly!

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year
Vivian & Yvan Trying to Order, Oriental Garden, Chinatown, Manhattan

A trip to the aquarium? No! These were just a few of the lovely creatures waiting in the tanks at Oriental Garden to become our dinner. Yvan, Jeannette, Sarah, Tien, Michael, Vivian, Yim and I were out celebrating the Chinese New Year yesterday. $198 may seem like a lot of money for dinner but not when you’re getting almost 10 courses of seafood for 8 people. We had:

– Full-bodied, freshly steamed shrimp (gnarly too look at, but very tasty)
– Seafood soup (didn’t care for this one too much – Tien ate mine!)
– Sauteed clams
– Mixed seafood platter (really good scallops & conch on here)
– A whole fish in a brown sauce (very tender and yummy)
– Lobster (delish but hard to eat with chop sticks!)
– Sauteed mussels
– Sauteed oysters (may be the first time I ate an oyster – I didn’t really like it)
– Seafood fried rice (big chunks of scallops, very tasty)
– Lo Mein (I was told it’s tradition to order this for longevity)
– Sauteed Pea Pods (I think that’s what it was – really sweet and tender)
– Oranges for dessert, of course

After adding Tsing Tao and 3 bottles of sake, the bill wasn’t all that reasonable any more, but still the dinner was so delicious and so much fun it was well worth the price.

Note: In a restaurant like this, with a menu where the prices are the only thing not in Chinese, it helps to have someone there who speaks Chinese. After 20 minutes of back & forth with the waiters, Yim finally arrived and within seconds took over the situation and ordered our drinks and food. Thank God for Yim or we’d still be there bickering with the waiter!

More Information:
Chinese New Year, Take II, by Tien