Marina Kitchen Restaurant and Bar

Recently I had the pleasure of staying at The San Diego Marriott Marquis and Marina. It was a great experience from the moment the car was valeted till the moment we departed. The weather was a perfect 79 degrees and in the middle of February no less. Ya gotta love San Diego. Of course I was poolside the entire afternoon! We ordered margaritas and pina coladas and beer. And to eat we had albacore fish tacos and a chicken quesadilla. This was all from Tequila Bar and Grille. The food was excellent, especially the salsas and pico de gallo that came with it. Delicioso.

After a wonderful afternoon of lounging around, we headed to Marina Kitchen for dinner. I will definitely be back. The bar area had a gorgeous view of the hotel's famous pool which was perfectly lit. The dining room had a view of the bay, also beautiful. Our server was delightful, as was the hostess and the manager, who brought us a couple of glasses of Spanish prosecco.

Now let's get down to the food. Important information here. Below you'll see that we feasted like kings. Seriously. We decided to order from every section of the menu to really live it up, appetizer, drinks, desserts. Yes, plural desserts. Don't judge me. Anyhow, check out the menu and you'll see that it's stepped up American comfort food. The breakfast menu also looks great. We planned on dining at Marina Kitchen the next morning but we woke up still full from this meal. We'll have to go back for brunch one of these weekends.

Charcuterie plate. It's three artisan meats & two cheeses served with grainy mustard and buttery toast. 

This right here is the soup of the day. Oh man was it rich and delicious.  It's a cauliflower and potato soup with vanilla poached LOBSTER. If this soup is being offered, you better not pass it up. 

Rib eye steak served with Brussels sprouts and mac n cheese.  Take note of that crunchy top on the macaroni. As I write this post, and look over the online menu for reference, this is not on the menu. (That's what I get for waiting a month before writing this.) That's ok, there's a different rib eye which comes with bone marrow, another fave of mine. 

This is the Daily Roast. It's an herb roasted prime rib with a twice baked potato. 

Here my friends are the TWO desserts we ordered.  Maybe we finished them and maybe we didn't. Don't worry about it. I had the Oreo cheesecake and I loved every bite. The mister ordered the brownie sundae. Of course Mr. Chocolate ordered a brownie sundae. He wasn't disappointed.  I did try his and I liked mine better. So, there.

AppTivity Toy for iPads at .99 Store

Look what I saw today at the La Mesa .99 Store!! My kid really wanted the Cut The Rope one but he's not allowed to use the iPad. However, I know there are tons of families who do allow their kids to play with them. Also this is great for an adult who likes these games.
You can't beat paying only 99¢. :)

Posole

My little boy is obsessed with Pixar movies. He has every line and song memorized. It's funny how much these flicks have influenced him, from food to athletics. I can thank Ratatouille for peaking my son's interest in Paris and soup, Linguine soup to be exact.  If you've seen the movie, you'll recall when Alfredo Linguine and Remy add their own touch to the restaurant's soup and a food critic likes it. My son held on to that and now refers to all soups as Linguine soup and asks for it. That's cool with me. I'm happy anytime my son wants to eat something that's not pepperoni pizza or m&m's.  

I haven't had a soup post on The Good Life, well, not too many savory posts at all. I do love baking so much. :)  However, the cold winter weather has been begging me to make soup, so has the Mr.  I got to thinking that my mom makes great posole for Sunday night dinners and my little family really enjoys it. I love it too but I skip the hominy. Since my mom never makes it the same way and makes it up as she goes, I did a little web searching. I found Emeril Lagasse's recipe on Food Network's website and decided I would use it but make my own modifications based on my pantry.  

This is my successful attempt at making posole (Linguine Soup.) This recipe is easy, straightforward, and doesn't require any weird ingredients. Those are pluses for me. Also, this recipe makes enough soup to feed three families for two nights. Really, it's a lot. If you don't have storage for leftovers, consider halving the recipe.  Me? I love leftovers so that doesn't apply.

I butchered this pork shoulder and one more. That was the most difficult part of the recipe. You could skip this and purchase stew meat already cut up but it's more expensive.

I did it! I butchered pork shoulder! It might be the last time though.

This is my pile of onion. I used a box grater to "chop" onions. You can see there are some bigger pieces and I tried to get them smaller with my knife but was satisfied with uneven pieces.  It didn't make a difference in the finished product.

After the meat is browned and the onions have softened, add in your two cans of diced tomatoes. Easy.

Emril's recipe calls for pork broth but this is what I had on hand. I also made some pork broth with the bones of the shoulder I butchered. Add 12 cups of water, 4 tablespoons salt, 4 celery stalks, 4 carrots, and 6 cloves of garlic to the pork bones. Boil and reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes or longer if you have the time. 

Posole! I garnished with cilantro, sour cream, and shredded cheese. 

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 7 pounds pork shoulder
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 cups chopped onions
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes. I think they come in 14 ounce sizes. 
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
• Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
• Pinch of cumin
• 2 chopped chipotle chilies in ancho sauce
• 4 quarts pork or chicken or vegetable stock. Whatever you have.
• 1 29 ounces can of hominy
• Salt and pepper
• Garnishes: cilantro, shredded cheese, radishes, hot sauce, raw chopped onion

Directions

• Butcher the meat. Here's a tutorial. Good luck. Or you can buy the meat already butchered.  Look for stew meat.
• Combine the paprika, salt, pepper, cayenne, and oregano. Rub into the pork. You'll have some leftover. Save it or toss it.
• Heat the oil in a large pot, like one that takes up two burners, over medium high heat. 
• Sear the meat on all sides.
• Add the chopped onions and cook for a couple of minutes.
• Add tomatoes, garlic, red pepper flakes, cumin, chipotle chilies and stock.
• Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for about 30 minutes. 
• Season with salt and pepper. 
• Add hominy and cook for another 20 minutes. 
• It is now ready to serve and garnish. Let me say though, this soup is even better the next day.

Enjoy!!!