Hope everyone had a nice July 4th weekend. We were fortunate to be on the Plum - I took a few extra days off so Brian and I were there Wed. through Mon. It was like a mini-vacation!
As I was thinking about how I'd sum up the weekend, a few things came to mind: lots of loud fireworks (Brian, Roxy, and Blue disapproved), the First Annual Linger Longer Lodge Open (we won), all of our company (there turned out to be none...it was just us, Kevin, and Sue), our skee ball tournament (we won)...I finally settled on my all-time favorite: food!
It was a weekend full of fantastic fish and seafood.
At the Old Ferry Landing in Portsmouth we enjoyed the best-ever fried scallops along with fried clams, a fried haddock sandwich, and an overflowing lobster roll.
(And, I know it doesn't fit with the "fish and seafood" theme I have going here, but we also had some gellato for dessert from Roly's English Fudge shop. Kevin and Sue enjoyed their vanilla bean and cookie dough versions; Brian's chocolate mint had the very best texture - smooth and creamy; but in my eyes, mine was the winner - Mayan Chocolate! It was super spicy, which completely tricked your mind...you'd take a bite of super cold gellato and as it melted, your mouth turned on fire with all the red pepper! Really unique and delicious - would definitely get it again.)
Seaglass in Salisbury turned out to be the hidden jewel of the weekend. Located right on the beach - and I do mean right on the beach - this beautiful restaurant is part of a large pavilion that also encompasses a music hall I can't wait to check out, an Italian restaurant, and a beach bar & grille. We had an excellent grilled oyster for an appetizer, along with a cool, crunchy tuna spring roll. Brian and Kevin both had the Captain's Platter for dinner, which included the best crab cake (even better than the Fort, according to B!) I've ever had, shrimp scampi, and baked haddock - got rave reviews from both of them. Sue enjoyed her pan seared haddock, and my seared scallops were delicious. The pea risotto that came with them wasn't great, so I'd likely try something different next time. But overall, it was a huge hit and I am confident we'll be back!
We also made some great dishes at the house. For an appetizer one night, Brian marinated a half pound each of shrimp and scallops (in a tablespoon of olive oil, a couple cloves of minced garlic, and a sprinkle of chipotle seasoning) then grilled them. They were perfectly cooked with a nice smokey heat.
We also grilled salmon filets one night. We marinated it in a mixture of 1/2 C light mayo, the zest of one lemon, and about 2T minced fresh dill spread evenly on the flesh side. It ended up marinating a full 24 hours because we weren't hungry for it the first night (I wonder why?!) and I think that really helped make it moist and flavorful. Because we used the zest but not the juice of the lemon, there was no breaking down of the fish. Starting skin-side down, four minutes on each side was perfect. Will definitely do that again!
Kevin even got his favorite drunken clams at the Plum Island Grille! The weekend was a win-win for everyone, for sure.
If ever you're in the Newburyport / Salisbury / Portsmouth area, check out some of these places - you won't be disappointed!
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