kingfisher: tucson, az.
It's too bad I didn't think of creating a Tucson restaurant blog until I was dozens and dozens of restaurants into my culinary adventure here. I don't hit enough new ones these days to really warrant a full-on blog just for restaurant reviews, but I thought maybe I'd start writing about fantastic meals I've had around these parts.
We headed to Kingfisher tonight to use up a Tucson Originals gift certificate I had purchased back in June, set to expire later this week, and enjoy a veritable orgy of seafood. For the uninitiated, the quarterly sale of gift certificates by Tucson's independent restaurants is the best bargain in town. You pay $30 for a $50 certificate, or $12 on $20, or $15 on $25. I set my alarm just to wake up in time ('cause these babies go FAST!) when they go on sale. Alas, you've just missed the first quarter of 2007 sale, but there should be another in March or April.
We were seated quickly (we had a reservation, though the restaurant wasn't terribly busy when we first walked in, it did fill up with a basketball crowd pretty fast) and perused the drink menu while a busser filled our glasses with iced water. Kingfisher's lights are low and the furniture is quite beautiful. The entire restaurant is pretty small, which gives it a very intimate feel. Aaron ordered a mojito ($8.50) and I got a diet Pepsi. A few minutes later, we still didn't have our drinks, but we did have a lovely platter of rosemary artisanal bread.
When our waiter reappeared with our drinks, he took our order. I started with the grilled and chilled Gulf shrimp ($12) and Aaron ordered the calamari ($8), accompanied by a marinated cucumber salad and spicy tartar sauce. We both ordered the grilled sea scallops ($20), marinated in basil and garlic infused oil, but skipped the accompanying lentils in favor of our favorite potatoes (oven roasted for me, red skin on garlic, goat cheese on special for Aaron).
Our first courses arrived promptly. Six large shrimp adorned my plate, accompanied by a standard cocktail sauce, and a small container of a citrus sauce. The chef had sprinkled parsley over the shrimp and garnish it with a lemon wedge, which I took advantage of. The shrimp were well chilled, very flavorful, and rank among some of the best I've had. Though they were grilled, they weren't overcooked, nor were they overpowered by the grill smoke.
Aaron's calamari was pure heaven for him. It was lightly breaded and fried, served atop the cucumber pepper salad. All of the vegetables had been confetti-chopped, so they looked really colorful and inviting. I had a small bite of the calamari and it was the most tender I've had in Tucson. The salad was delicious, too. He who hates most raw vegetables even enjoyed it, though the spicy tartar was the hit of the dish, next to the calamari.
Strangely, though the bussers refilled our drinks regularly and replenished the bread often, our waiter never came to check on our firsts, or our mains. He was largely absent from the entire experience, actually, so I'd say the service ran hot and cold.
Our main courses arrived. 4 large sea scallops had been skewered and then grilled over an open flame. They sat above a mound of julienned vegetables (squash and carrots) that were tossed with butter. The scallops were amazing. The flavor on the outside gave way to the buttery interior. I also particularly enjoyed the veggies and we thought maybe we should always julienne veggies to cook and serve them. Aaron's mashed potatoes were delicious and had a strong, tasty flavor. My oven roasted spuds were pretty standard and a little lackluster--they didn't seem particularly fresh and were a little overcooked. I ended up not finishing them because I was getting pretty full anyway.
We digested awhile and then ordered dessert--vanilla bean creme brulee for him ($8), and apple cranberry cobbler ($7.50) for me. The creme brulee was a pretty standard presentation, though it was accompanied by two baby macadamia nut cookies (we later realized we'd left these untouched and Aaron, lover of the m-nut, was very sad). Aaron said it was quite decadent. My cobbler had a lovely, soft crust on top and was filled with tart apples and cranberries. The caramel ice cream it was supposed to accompany was actually vanilla, but if I had to guess, I'd bet it was made in-house.
It was a lovely meal, food-wise. I'd only been once before, but had enjoyed that meal just as much. The menu changes seasonally--or so they say--but in my experience, many of the seafood and turf options remain year round, while their accompaniments and preparation often change with the season. The service was mixed; our waiter was largely absent from our table the entire evening, but his support staff were quite attentive with refills and whatnot. They also wished us a good night as we walked out, which is a mark of good service as far as I'm concerned.
We headed to Kingfisher tonight to use up a Tucson Originals gift certificate I had purchased back in June, set to expire later this week, and enjoy a veritable orgy of seafood. For the uninitiated, the quarterly sale of gift certificates by Tucson's independent restaurants is the best bargain in town. You pay $30 for a $50 certificate, or $12 on $20, or $15 on $25. I set my alarm just to wake up in time ('cause these babies go FAST!) when they go on sale. Alas, you've just missed the first quarter of 2007 sale, but there should be another in March or April.
We were seated quickly (we had a reservation, though the restaurant wasn't terribly busy when we first walked in, it did fill up with a basketball crowd pretty fast) and perused the drink menu while a busser filled our glasses with iced water. Kingfisher's lights are low and the furniture is quite beautiful. The entire restaurant is pretty small, which gives it a very intimate feel. Aaron ordered a mojito ($8.50) and I got a diet Pepsi. A few minutes later, we still didn't have our drinks, but we did have a lovely platter of rosemary artisanal bread.
When our waiter reappeared with our drinks, he took our order. I started with the grilled and chilled Gulf shrimp ($12) and Aaron ordered the calamari ($8), accompanied by a marinated cucumber salad and spicy tartar sauce. We both ordered the grilled sea scallops ($20), marinated in basil and garlic infused oil, but skipped the accompanying lentils in favor of our favorite potatoes (oven roasted for me, red skin on garlic, goat cheese on special for Aaron).
Our first courses arrived promptly. Six large shrimp adorned my plate, accompanied by a standard cocktail sauce, and a small container of a citrus sauce. The chef had sprinkled parsley over the shrimp and garnish it with a lemon wedge, which I took advantage of. The shrimp were well chilled, very flavorful, and rank among some of the best I've had. Though they were grilled, they weren't overcooked, nor were they overpowered by the grill smoke.
Aaron's calamari was pure heaven for him. It was lightly breaded and fried, served atop the cucumber pepper salad. All of the vegetables had been confetti-chopped, so they looked really colorful and inviting. I had a small bite of the calamari and it was the most tender I've had in Tucson. The salad was delicious, too. He who hates most raw vegetables even enjoyed it, though the spicy tartar was the hit of the dish, next to the calamari.
Strangely, though the bussers refilled our drinks regularly and replenished the bread often, our waiter never came to check on our firsts, or our mains. He was largely absent from the entire experience, actually, so I'd say the service ran hot and cold.
Our main courses arrived. 4 large sea scallops had been skewered and then grilled over an open flame. They sat above a mound of julienned vegetables (squash and carrots) that were tossed with butter. The scallops were amazing. The flavor on the outside gave way to the buttery interior. I also particularly enjoyed the veggies and we thought maybe we should always julienne veggies to cook and serve them. Aaron's mashed potatoes were delicious and had a strong, tasty flavor. My oven roasted spuds were pretty standard and a little lackluster--they didn't seem particularly fresh and were a little overcooked. I ended up not finishing them because I was getting pretty full anyway.
We digested awhile and then ordered dessert--vanilla bean creme brulee for him ($8), and apple cranberry cobbler ($7.50) for me. The creme brulee was a pretty standard presentation, though it was accompanied by two baby macadamia nut cookies (we later realized we'd left these untouched and Aaron, lover of the m-nut, was very sad). Aaron said it was quite decadent. My cobbler had a lovely, soft crust on top and was filled with tart apples and cranberries. The caramel ice cream it was supposed to accompany was actually vanilla, but if I had to guess, I'd bet it was made in-house.
It was a lovely meal, food-wise. I'd only been once before, but had enjoyed that meal just as much. The menu changes seasonally--or so they say--but in my experience, many of the seafood and turf options remain year round, while their accompaniments and preparation often change with the season. The service was mixed; our waiter was largely absent from our table the entire evening, but his support staff were quite attentive with refills and whatnot. They also wished us a good night as we walked out, which is a mark of good service as far as I'm concerned.
posted by Alison Inaz @ 11:02 PM
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