The MaiTai Tom Dining Guide:
In Search Of Excellence In Restaurants
MAITAI’S FOOD FOR THOUGHT
If there’s anything that Tracy and I like, it’s a good meal. We will share our restaurant experiences as we discover new restaurants and revisit some of our old favorites. Whether it’s breakfast, lunch or dinner, we’ll give you some ideas to chew on.
October 5, 2024
Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay Chowder Barge – Wilmington, CA July 2024 On a hot summer Sunday afternoon, after a quick stop at Point Fermin Park and Lighthouse (celebrating 150 years!) in San Pedro … […]
May 8, 2024
Don’t Judge A Restaurant By Its Cover The Cave – Ventura, CA New American – Last Visit: May 2024 Following is the true tale of discovering a very good restaurant thanks to a passage in an engrossing novel, while making an embarrassingly expensive error when we returned for a second […]
April 14, 2024
Quintessential Neighborhood ItalianBlairs – Silver Lake (Los Angeles), CA Italian – Many times – Last Visit – April 2024 Blairs is the quintessential neighborhood restaurant, which has been nestled in the Silverlake community for 18 years. We have visited on numerous occasions and this is a compilation that starts in […]
January 22, 2024
Stunning Centro Histórico Dining Azul Histórico – Mexico City, Mexico April 2023 One of the best things about our marvelous Mexico City trip included the number of fantastic dining experiences we encountered, and we had many. After our first full day of exploring Mexico City’s Centro Histórico, it was time […]
July 10, 2023
Fresh From The Sea Mariscos del Patio – Mexico City Seafood – April 2023 We had many excellent meals in Mexico City, and one of our favorites took place at a family run restaurant in Coyoacán called Mariscos del Patio (Patio Seafood). Our good friends, who we spend many holidays […]
July 1, 2023
Family Affair Sabores ao Rubro – Tomar, Portugal Typical Regional Cuisine with the good taste of Ribatejo – September 2022 When visiting charming Tomar, the former seat of the Order of the Knights Templar, I remembered that a friend had recommended Sabores ao Rubro (Rua dos Moinhos 76 A). I […]
June 28, 2023
Give This Lisbon Gem A Shot! Taberna Moderna – Lisbon, Portugal Portuguese (with a modern twist) – September 2022 Before leaving for Lisbon on our 2022 fall Portugal trip, I had jotted down “Gin and Tonic” on a piece of paper next to a restaurant named Taberna Moderna, but it […]
May 23, 2023
The Old Ones At “The Old Ones” As Velhas – Lisbon, Portugal Visited: September 2022 So many great dinners in Lisbon! We stayed at the Altis Avenida hotel, across the street from Praça dos Restauradores, the square that commemorates Portugal’s liberation from Spanish rule in 1640. It sits at the […]
August 26, 2022
Roman Influenced Dinner In L.A. Bacetti – Echo Park (L.A.), CA Last Visited: August 2022 Every so often, I turn to a website called The Infatuation to get some ideas of places to dine. I’m so happy I did not look at their review of the relatively new Italian restaurant […]
August 20, 2022
Ooh La La: Best Damned Steak Tartare … Ever! L’Escargot Bleu – Edinburgh, Scotland French – Visited May 2017 & May 2022 While staying at our lovely b&b in Edinburgh (Millers64, which has subsequently closed due to the pandemic), our hostess Louise told us about a French restaurant (you can […]
July 28, 2022
Bamburgh & Warenford RestaurantsDining In Northumberland, England We stayed in Bamburgh for three nights on our England/Scotland trip, and each evening we had a great dinner at three separate restaurants. Since they were so good, I thought I’d do one post that includes all three. The Lord Crewe Restaurant Although […]
July 9, 2022
Très Magnifique! Rustique – York, England French • May 2022 Danny at our York B&B, St. Raphael Guesthouse, recommended Rustique near Clifford’s Tower for classic French bistro fare. After stopping by the restaurant, the only reservation available on Friday was for 5 p.m. and we felt lucky to get that […]
July 4, 2022
So Good We Ate Here Twice! Lucia York – York, England Italian – May 2022 We hit it out of the ballpark on restaurants in York on our 2022 England/Scotland journey (link to trip report here). The first night we visited Lucia York for Italian food and liked it so […]
May 10, 2022
Caloric Burger Quest Mai Tai Tom & Tracy’s Best Burgers: 2021/2022 May is National Hamburger Month and, just for our loyal subscribers and readers, Tracy and I have consumed quite a few burgers throughout the past year, compiling a list of our favorites and adding a few extra pounds along […]
March 24, 2022
Inviting Italian In “The City” Fino Ristorante – San Francisco, CA Visited: February 2022 • Italian San Francisco definitely does not have a shortage of very good Italian restaurants, so to help us decide upon which one to visit, Tracy enlisted a friend who works in the city to aid […]
February 11, 2022
Legendary Burger & Coastal Seal Sanctuary Hike The Spot & Carpinteria Bluffs Nature Preserve – Carpinteria, CA Visited: February 2022 Very early on a recent Saturday morning, Tracy informed me she was in the mood for a hamburger … but not just any hamburger. She wanted us to drive 90 […]