Bimini Road @ Atlantis

The time has finally come for me to display the WORST meal of the entire trip. Bimini Road. I can't honestly tell you if the food was really that bad, or it was because I was in a bad mood due to the weather. It was very hot and humid that night, and apparently the electricity was going out on the Island, and the restaurant did not have any air conditioning. Apparently the resort chose electricity over air conditioning, I guess that was a smart idea...perhaps?

Paradise Island Spiced Chicken Wings
tastes just like bbq sauce...messy

Tinq'um Platter
[lobster tail, shrimp cocktail, conch salad, crab lettuce wrap]
not impressed...dying of heat exhaustion at this point

Chipolte Shrimp

Jerked Pork
again meh...same flavor in the chicken wings

Conch Chowder
read my previous post as to why i don't like this soup...

Fruit Salad
fruit was not fresh and tasted like it came straight out a jar because of all the sugar and syrup

House Salad
not too bad...something about the dressing...i like

Rib Eye with garlic butter & Shrimp
this was the BEST dish of the entire meal, and still this was the worst meal during the trip. i wish we ordered more of this rather than everything else we ordered. again the steak was cooked to medium rare, perfect, and the flavor was...hmmm

Mahi Mahi
it's not hawaii

Catch of the Day: Salmon
pretty decent

Mole Chicken
i didn't like this...no flavor?

Corn on the Cob

Mac 'n Cheese
this was actually really good, but too bad i was too hot/humid/sticky to fully enjoy it

Onion Rings
sorry it's blurry, didn't focus in time. not the greatest onion rings, they weren't crunchy...probably because the atmosphere was too HUMID, it absorbed all the moisture in the air

BBQ Ribs

dessert time!

Coconut Ice Cream in Coconut Shell
tasty...

Rum Cake
i forgot

Key Lime Pie
still not as good as at The Point

Ok this is officially the last posting for my bahama's trip. this concludes the eating fest in the bahamas...moving on...

Chop Stix @ Atlantis

Why do I keep trying these new "asian fusion" restaurants and hope that they will impress me? I haven't come across any asian fusion restaurants that was good, and when I mean good I mean taking into consideration the food and the price you pay for it. Not only is the flavor either lacking or too powerful, where every dish is basically the same base, they give tiny portions and charge a lot of money for it.

We went to Chop Stix one night, another asian fusion restaurant. While the decor didn't look to shabby, the food definitely was shabby. The portions were generous, but the taste...it all blended together. There wasn't anything distinctive between a szechuan sauce versus a garlic soy sauce, or even a black bean sauce. Why did we think that this restaurant could impress our fine asian pallettes? I have no idea...will never eat here again, or any of its "brothers/sisters" if there is one. However...there was Nobu at Atlantis, and I did very much want to eat there. However, it was not part of our meal plan...and Nobu is well $$$$$$$$$$$. Next time? No more Chop Stix...

dining room

i forgot what this was called...all i know was that it was really good :) skip the silk road mojito or something, tasted too much like licorice

table came with sauces...how to dip or what they were? we weren't informed what each one was, we had to taste and figure it out ourselves. obviously the pot in the middle is soy sauce

Table Setting
nice plate...but disposable (wooden) chopsticks..ick

Complimentary Shrimp Chips
not too shabby, bt how can you fail on this right? you buy it pre-packaged and just pop them into the fryer. we were hungry and ate 3 bowls...

Seafood Lettuce Wrap
[shrimp and lobster]
wasn't too bad...tasted like chicken instead of seafood?

in the lettuce bowl

Avocado Eggrolls
panda likes them avocados and eggrolls...decent

Lobster Siu Mai
horrendous...it was bland and had no flavor. didn't like the wrapper, it just fell apart. where's the fat and the pork? perhaps if it was mixed in with the lobster...then yes

Ahi Tuna Salad with Ponzu Sauce
this was actually very refreshing and the ahi was a nice grade. i really liked the dressing, because it wasn't too mild or too robust in flavor, and was actually sweet too. nice compliment.

Won Ton Soup
not impressed...kind of tasted like my lobster siu mai..again no distinctive flavors between the dishes

Pan Fried Noodles with Mixed Seafood
i was really disappointed. i imagined this beign really delicious, and the type of noodles i have back at home. boy was i wrong...the fried noodles were stale because they stuck to the roof my teeth when i bit down. the seafood was very salty...and just too much going on...simplify please!

NY Steak w/ Garlic Rub
the steak was cooked to medium rare, just as panda ordered it. however, he said it was too salty, and it wasn't much of a garlic rub but more like a teriyaki garlic sauce. he needed rice, and the dish didn't come with, but luckily ash and goo doesn't eat much rice

Mango Curry Chicken
definitely was not good...where's the curry sauce?

Kung Pao Chicken
i didn't try this, but i was told there wasn't much flavor, and it needed to be more spicy. ash liked the peanuts more than anything...haha

Key Lime Tart
another disappointment...it wasn't like the one I had at the Point a few nights before :(

Ginger Creme Brulee
i didn't even try a bite of this because it contained ginger. i'm not a fan of ginger, and i knew this wasn't going to be the amazing passion fruit creme brulee that we had in hawaii

Carmines @ Atlantis

The time has finally come for me to share with you the BEST meal at Atlantis. I honestly don't remember what else I ate while I was there, but I'm sure after looking at my pictures it will jog my memory and I can blog some more.

Upon arriving at Atlantis, we were told that it was strongly recommended that we make reservations because the restaurants get really busy. Well, we didn't know how strict this policy was until we got there Monday morning, and I tried to make reservations for dinner that night. Unfortunately we weren't able to, but still had an amazing meal at The Point. There were two restaurants that were on our meal plan that we could eat at that I really wanted to go to - Carmines and Chop Stix. We made reservations for Carmines on Tuesday at 9pm, and although really late at night, it was COMPLETELY worth the wait. Carmines is a MUST if you go to Atlantis, and definitely make reservations ahead of time.

We were definitely starved when we got there since it was so late, and when at first looking at the menu it just seemed like Bucca di Peppo, but the food was so much more better than Bucca, which after awhile just tastes like cardboard. We looked at the menu, and were like WOW things are really expensive. I don't think there was a pasta dish that was less than $30, and the cheapest appetizer was $13 (garlic bread.) We soon learned that like Bucca, plates are to be eaten family style and a plate of pasta can feed four people, there was five of us. HOWEVER, we informed the waiter that we were on the meal plan, and he said to us that EACH of us can have: an appetizer, an entree, a side, and a dessert. That means we could have a total of 5 appetziers, 5 entrees, 5 sides, and 5 desserts, where one plate is to feed about 3-4 people. Well...we were all like, well we paid for the meal plan, and if we can order what would cost more without the meal plan, why not? We get to taste! So that is exactly what we did. The waiter was ASTONISHED about the amount of food we ordered, because technically we could of just had 2 appetizers, one pasta, and one meat dish and that would feed 5 people. We were greedy, we were hungry, and above else we were asian (but what else is new, right?) There was so much food, that our table could not fit it and we actually had to borrow a neighboring table that did not have guests. We stayed until closing, we were the last diners of the night. Our bill came out to about $4000-$500 that night, but that wasn't the price we paid for...because we were on the MEAL PLAN! $69/person per day, doesn't matter WHAT YOU EAT!! yea! this was my kind of vacation..i love just TASTING food.

Get ready for the extravaganza...

Menu

Wine

Complimentary Bread
we barely touched it because we knew the amount of food that was coming...didn't want to fill up on it

Zuppa di Mussels
omg this was so good...it was so fresh and so smooth tasting. the broth was to die for, where there was a slight taste of white wine reduction with garlic. would have dipped bread into it...but had to save room in the stomach. we ate all of this.

Fried Calamari
one of the greatest calamari i've ever had. the calamari was well bread, well seasoned, calamari was not chewy, and they included the tentacles which are my favorite part. the marinara sauce was exceptional, and done perfectly. this plate was almost all eaten, thanks ash!

Baked Clams
wow...i did not expect how flavorful and fresh it was when i popped them into my mouth. each shell had its individual clam that was seasoned very well, and breaded with bread crumbs. it was baked when it all blended together, and just melted in my mouth. we ate the entire plate.

Garlic Bread with Mozarella Cheese
honestly, you have not had good garlic bread until you have eaten here. just like the other dishes, this was an utter surprise in all our mouth. how can garlic bread be that good? it's just garlic bread no? well it has to do with the bread, it was toasted not only until it was crispy but it had a nice chew and bite. it didn't hurt my jaw to eat it, like some breads are when they toast it too long. i also think the bread was soaked in garlic butter over night until every bit of the bread was covered in garlic-butter-delicious-ness, and then to top it off, a giant slice of mozarella cheese right on top of it. the chef probably placed the bread wih the cheese straight into the broiler until it melted like gooey-ness, because when you take your first bite the cheese stretches for miles on end like a good cheese should. wow...i'm hungry, you?

Chicken Parmagiana
again...a really amazing dish. the chicken was tender, and full of flavor inside, and the marinara sauce...wow...the cheese..ALL of it. i have no more words, just pretend you're there eating it

Mixed Seafood in White Sauce with Angel Hair Pasta
[lobster, mussles, shrimp, scallops, clams, squid]
so there was no price listed next to this item, all it said was "market price," and we asked the waiter if this was included in our meal plan, and he said yes. how much it ended up costing i have no idea, i just know we could order it and just pay our flat $69/person per day which includes breakfast and dinner. my uncle loved this dish so much, that he just kept snacking on it even when he was full. honestly, i took a bite of this and while it tasted really good, my stomach was nearing its end and carbs were just going to expand, and we had a few more dishes to come. i was disappointed in the lobster tail because it was overcooked, but hey not everything can be perfect right?

Shrimp Scampi
i don't think i've ever ordered shrimp scampi and liked it, but this shrimp scampi ranks all the way up above the rest. it wasn't greasy like all other srhimp scampi i've had. the shrimp was cooked to perfect and was very tender, and the sauce...gosh i can't even remember what was going through my head during it. i guess if you put bread crumbs on anything it tastes good right? i just remember it was nearing the end of our meal, and i ate like 4-5 pieces. so delish. i would have dipped my bread if i had room, and we didn't have more things to come.

Veal Scallopine with Lemon and Butter
this dish was ok, but i mean it was pretty good. however in comparing it with the rest of the dishes we ate that night, it just didn't reach the amazing pedestal we put all the other dishes on top of

P.A. Porterhouse Contadina
ok this is like...wow omg orgasmic. i don't know what they did to this t-bone, i don't know what they injected to it...but MAN! not only do they bring the entire t-bone to your table with the t-bone intact, they actually cut the slices for you, so when it arrives at the table you just need to pick the piece you want. but they left the pieces intact, as if it was just the t-bone. the t-bone was broked to perfect, medium rare, and it had minced garlic and butter smothered all over. i believe this was unc and panda's favorite dish of the entire night. they ate ALL of it, and get this...this one plate alone cost $100...and yes we were on the meal plan :)

Side of Meatballs
so you know how i said we were each entitled to order a side, which would mean we would have 5 sides? well when we were ordering our meal, we decided that it might just be too much to order 5 sides considering all the other food we ordered. panda wanted meatballs really badly, so we were like why not? we figured a "side" of meatballs would consist of 4 meatballs at most, and they would be a reasonable size. boy were we wrong! the side of meatballs contained 7 meatballs, and they were HUGE. nontheless, they were really tender, and full of flavor. if our stomachs could only fit it...we would have eaten more than we left here in this picture

dessert time!

Italian Cheesecake
i was not impressed, and i don't like cheesecake.

Tirimisu
this thing was MASSIVE, and we barely put a dent into it. it was good, but too much rum for my taste. this was the ONLY thing we packed togo with us.

Our Table with food - this wasn't even all the food

so this meal was so good...that...we ended up going the next night! yes...there are no pictures of that night...because it would just be too gluttony-ness. we perhaps wasted a lot of food that night, and we would have loved to take things back, but we didn't have a refridgerator and there was no microwave...what a waste :(

are you hungry now?