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Gulfport eatery a real treat
We were greeted at the entrance by Jason Lonigro, general manager and Wendy Torrington, manager and our hostess for the evening. Wendy escorted us through the beautifully decorated restaurant to a plush, padded, curved booth facing the Gulf. The view was of lush cool greenery and palms leading your eyes past the warm sand and leaving them fixed on the shining gulf waters waving at you with its whitecaps. We were gently brought back into the room by our head waiter, Richard Peck, who immediately made you feel invited. Our drink orders were taken and after eyeballing the massive wall to wall wine cooler, I knew I wanted to choose a good cabernet. Erin chose Dr. Pepper and Dean had a Bud Light. To our surprise, the drinks were accompanied by tapas consisting of shrimp ceviche and ahi tuna slices on fried tortilla wedges over a one hundred year old balsamic vinegar. That was enough to tell me I was in for a real treat. It was so good Erin wanted the ceviche served with her meal, when Mr. Peck told her it was raw shrimp and tuna, she never even flinched. The soup and baked oysters were served next. I chose the artichoke and crab soup while Dean and Erin both chose the seafood gumbo. Before the main course, we were given our choice of waters to clean the pallet. Erin chose sparkling water so we were served Pellegrino. For the main course Dean and I both chose the exotic fish of the day which was Mong Chong while Erin chose beef tenderloin tournedos. Our fish was steamed and served with a creamy crabmeat sauce over a bed of maple rice. Erin's steak was so tender she barely had to cut it. She said it melted in her mouth. The flavors of our fish were merged into something my taste buds had never experienced. It was delicious. We all thought we were not going to eat for at least two days when the dessert chef brought us Emeril's Dessert Storm. Anyone who knows me knows my severe sweet tooth. The storm was amazing! Warm bread pudding with a cream sauce, Emeril's signature banana cream pie topped with chocolate curls, fresh berries and the very best dish in the house, pecan pie topped with Jack Daniels ice cream. Chef Steve D'Angelo did a wonderful job, the manager, Jay Cox was very outgoing and pleasant to be around, the service was truly, truly amazing. To me, if the service is good, I've had a good experience. The ambience was ideal for the evening out that you always hope for and the food surpassed anything that I could imagine. The drive from here is only about 2 1/2 hours and you can enjoy the rest of the evening at one of the casino attractions. The various casinos feature top name entertainers each weekend. Dress up and have an evening on the town, and include Emeril's Fish House Restaurant in your plans. You'll be so glad you did! To make your reservations you can call the restaurant at (228) 314- 1515. Jack Daniel's Ice Cream 1 c. heavy cream 1 c. whole milk 1/2 vanilla, cut and scraped 4 egg yolks 1/2 c. sugar 4 oz semisweet chocolate chips 1/4 c. whiskey Combine the heavy cream, milk and vanilla bean and seed scrapings in a medium saucepan over medium high heat and bring to simmer. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until pale yellow and thick. When the cream mixture reaches a simmer, ladle 1/2 cup of the hot mixture to the egg yolk mixture and whisk to combine. Slowly whisk the egg yolk mixture into the hot cream mixture in the saucepan and reduce the heat to medium low. Cook the custard, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the spoon. Remove from heat and strain through a fine sieve into a bowl containing the chocolate chips. Allow to sit undisturbed for one minute before whisking to incorporate. Add the whiskey to the custard and blend. Transfer to a refrigerator and chill thoroughly then follow the manufacturer's instructions for churning in an electric ice cream maker.
Chill until firm then serve over warm pecan pie.
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