I can’t believe I’m already done with the 1st month of this challenge!  Don’t you just love how I sat down for 4 meals over the course of 30 days and referred to it just now like I ran a half marathon with John Goodman on my back?  Well, gentle reader, get used to it.  That’s the tip of an iceberg of self-praise you’re gonna encounter over the next 11 months.  I closed out January with a visit to Searsucker; a “New American Restaurant” founded by Top Chef Season 3 finalist, Brian Malarkey.  Whom I discovered through a 5 second glance at wikipedia my research shares a birthday with yours truly!  Awesome!

I’m a big Top Chef fan, not to mention a former reality show contestant myself (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_World_Series_of_Pop_Culture_(season_2), so I was eager to see what Malarkey’s eatery in my hometown offered as were my dining companions:

Abby-Swim instructor, Disneyland buddy, Stresses about making food for my other food-savvy friends

Aimee-Roommate since the 90’s, BFF, allergic to hot dogs and therefore labeled a commie by many

Amy-Vegetarian Belle, Author, Event Planner

Anna-Educator, flannel wearer, still mad at us for going to Snooze without her

David-Technical writer, singer, robot super villain

Harry-Wise guy, master of the grill, loves camping for some reason

There are actually 2 Searsucker locations in San Diego, the first in downtown San Diego and the second in Del Mar.  I opted to pass on the impossible parking, scores of tourists, bros and hos and the always colorful homeless transients of downtown and instead chose to visit the location in the swanky town of Del Mar (think the spoiled Nephew of rich uncle La Jolla).  Parking was surprisingly bad here as well.  More than half the lot was blocked off for valet, which left the other half of the lot jam packed.  Valet was only 4 bucks but still.  We were quickly led in to our massive, Nordic table with giant chairs at either end resembling a mad tea party or the board room at the secret lair of a movie villain.

The artsy-medieval style decor had me wondering both what culinary wonders awaited me and which of the 3 suitors Princess Merida would choose as her King?  The 1st glorious hint of what was to come arrived in the form of cheddar popovers.  Light, delicate and sweet.  As luck would have it, Searsucker offers a wide variety of small plates AND it’s restaurant week in San Diego, so we had the opportunity to sample much of what this place had to offer.

David and Amy wasted no time in sampling the cocktail menu (which is extensive).  They both started with the Coyote: a house-infused apple cinnamon bourbon mixed with ginger beer, lime and bitters.  They both enjoyed it.  Amy shared that her 1st foray into mixology included apple, cinnamon and bourbon so this concoction was a welcome stagger down the road of booze past.  I thought it was okay and mostly just smelled like a Glad scented candle.  Round 2 of cocktails brought Amy Searsucker’s version of an Old Fashioned.  It’s called Bad Bad T-Roy Brown and featured sweet vermouth, orange and Luxardo cherries.  It was tasty and very very flammable.

Amy also ordered the only appetizer of the table; Brie with fig jam.  As far as I’m concerned, there are only 2 type of cheese on Earth: Brie and Not Brie, so this won me over with no effort.  Amy enjoyed the nice spice and just the right amount of bread with which to spread this warm, gooey delight all over.  Re-reading that sentence made me realize I got a bit more porn-y than intended.  Oh well.

Aimee and Abby went balls out on their first plate and ordered bone marrow.  While I understand it’s considered a delicacy, it’s just not my type of hype.  Label me unadventurous if you must, but when you start your own blog feel free to suck the bones of whatever carcass you’d like.  To ensure this dish was 100% Anthony-proof, they added a fried egg on top.  If the whole thing had just then been slathered in re-fried beans, it would have been the embodiment of my personal hell.  That having been said, the girls were crazy about this dish.  Aimee said it was perfect with a beautiful presentation and the accompanying saffron sauce was to die for.

Several of us at the table chose from the restaurant week menu.  For a starter, Abby got the Poke:  Tombo tossed with macadamia nuts, pomegranate seeds, shallot and ponzu, served with a siracha vin and a giant pile of tortilla chips.  She loved it and I gotta say it was pretty damned tasty.  It reminded me of great Tuna tartare.    Anna got the Calamari, which she was not blown away by but gave kudos to the really good lemon sauce with it.  David and Aimee both ordered the Duckfat Fries with house made ketchup.  The duckfat definitely gives these fries a more textured skin outside and a more dense interior.  They were good but it’s hard to go wrong with french fries, y’know?

The starter for my meal was the shortie: beer braised short rib with jus, mash potatoes and fried onions.  A simple dish to be sure, but lord have mercy it was masterfully done.  It tasted like the world’s greatest pot roast.  Tender, rich and juicy.  The Jus sang with the mashed potatoes and the fried onions on top brought it home.  Superb comfort food.

My second course was called simply “Filet”: A steak served with melted leeks, white beech mushrooms, mash, lobster butter and brandied demi.  I was not super satisfied with my last steak encounter (okay, it was Outback Steakhouse, but still!) so this was a blast of fresh air.  I’m kinda of blown away by how much harmony I found in all of the food, but particularly this dish.  I remember thinking the frills were a bit unnecessary but it came together musically.  Melted leeks are amazing by the bye.  Just sayin’.  David also had this & found it perfectly prepared.  Abby also had it and found the filet well prepared and the portions to be perfect.

Aimee’ had the pork butt with sauteed apples, red onion and bacon emulsion.  It was melt in your mouth tender.   She loved the perfect level of saltiness in the dish.  Harry ordered the Flat Iron chuck with chimichurri and bernaise over fingerling potatoes.    While he enjoyed everything, Harry felt the real stand out was the sauce.  As someone who regularly grills red meat, he’s harder to impress than most in the steak department.  Fucking show off.  Amy ordered the only vegetarian dinner offered; Farro with golden beet puree and seasonal vegetables.  She shared some of the dish with me (I’m a fan of most ancient grains) and it was sweet and delicious.  Amy also really enjoyed the herby-ness of the dish but could do without the sprig of Thyme she found.  It would have been nice to see more than one vegetarian option but the one offered certainly impressed.

I could write a whole separate entry on the desserts at Searsucker, so I’ll try to keep this love fest brief and with as little crying as possible ( much like my actual love life).  David and I both ordered the S’more for dessert.  It was a mix of chocolate cake, salted caramel marshmallow mousse and pure unconditional love.

Abby and Anna ordered Searsucker’s version of red velvet cake.  I’ll be honest, red velvet cake is my favorite but I feel like everyone has done it at this point, which is funny considering when I first moved to California in 1998, I couldn’t find it here for years.  I should’ve figured out at this point that this dessert staple in my life would of course be given the Searsucker remix treatment but frankly I’m not that bright, so there’s that.

It is crafted with a dehydrated raspberry puree with pop rocks candy and in the middle, a sweet, fluffly and tangy GOAT CHEESE FROSTING.  Dude.  I can’t even.  While Abby wasn’t feeling it Anna was at a loss for words to describe the experience of eating this masterpiece and I don’t blame her one bit.  Her words said it best…

The dessert parade continued down at the other side of the table with Amy’s Passion fruit Cheesecake with coconut sorbet.  She loved it, stating that it more than satisfied her lilikoi obsession.  I tried it and it was phenomenal.  The sour puree with the richness of the cheesecake and the coconut sorbet was out of this world.  The other notable dessert was Aimee’s Jameson Sundae.  The ice cream was infused with Jameson and ALOT of it.  Also featured were cashews, hot fudge, bananas foster and topped with a slice of bacon.  From the beautiful place where dessert and alcohol intersect comes this dish.

The final word on Searsucker is: amazing.  The bar has been set impossibly high so early on in the challenge.  I really can’t get back there fast enough.  Yeah it was loud, crowded and the parking lot was kind of awful but all of these things become so minor once you dig into their food.  Brian Malarkey has himself a fantastic restaurant in my hometown and it’s now one of my favorites.