Pacific Grill in Wildwood

Now Playing in my I-Pod: Streets of Bakersfield by Dwight Yoakam.

What can I say, it was that time of year for Pinky and I to do our summer vacation in Wildwood, NJ. That's right, I drove right by Atlantic City without even the slightest need to stop at the casinos and throw the cards around. O.K. truth be told, I fell asleep before we passed A.C. and of course Pinky didn't think it was a good idea to wake me so I could try and persuade her to stop for a bit.

So what did we eat. Well of course there is the pizza on the boardwalk which is some of the best pizza in the world. I have to say, it plays second fiddle to nobody's pizza. I hate to say this and I say it with the possibility that some NYC people will probably want to kill me, but Jersey Shore Pizza is better than many New York City joints. Not all, but a good majority. It is something about the crust I suppose.

In any case, we did make a nice night of it at a place called: Pacific Grill. I don't have many notes from the night, but I do have pictures and sometimes pictures are worth millions of words.

The Starting Dish:



Caesar Salad: Hearts of romaine, garlic croutons, and parmesan.

They do make their own croutons in the house which I could taste right away. Odd as it may sound, but when you have a homemade crouton you can tell right away. I even made sure and asked our really nice waitress if they were home made and she was quick to say yes and mention the seasoning. A well informed staff scores big points in my point of view.

The Main Course:





First Picture: Seared Dayboat Scallops; served on lobster risotto, baby spinach and lobster oil.

Can you say, yummy! I thought the scallops were a bit grainy in that they still contained some tiny sand grains in them, but it told me more that they were fresh and not all processed. I'm a huge fan of risotto and this was probably the best part of the meal. The risotto had nice sized chunks of lobster and the lobster oil wasn't too over powering as I've sometimes found lobster oil to be.

Second Picture: Seared Ahi Tuna; Pepper-coriander crust, Asian noodles salad, nori powder, soy-mirin glaze, wasabi aioli.

I thought this was by far the best meal. I liked when Pinky couldn't decide how she wanted her Tuna the waitress (pissed I forgot her name) mentioned how the house suggest you have the Tuna. I like mine rather rare, but I didn't want to have an influence on Pinky's dish as I sometimes do. But the plate was done just right and what I found to be really delicious were the sauces that this place came with. It didn't take away from the Tuna but it did give it a most complex taste, without the wasabi over powering the light and tender tuna. The noodles were a nice touch and fresh and didn't taste bland for cold noodles, I sometimes find with cold noodles I can tell if they were sitting in the back for hours on end...these weren't of that callibar.

Dessert:



Key Lime Cheesecake; Pecan coconut crust, fresh whipped cream.

I'm not one for Dessert to be honest, that is Pinky's specialty. Serious, and when it comes to Cheesecake I look to her for an expert opinion. Yet, on this one I knew from the first bite it would pass her test. It was soft and creamy, but more importantly, it had a crust that was just perfect: room temperature, wasn't too hard or too soft, and it had a very unique flavor; not bland like so many cheescakes one finds today. Even the dots of flavor on the plate weren't too over powering and they weren't trying to use them to give too much flavor to the dish as many places do. Many locations think that one should use those drops to bring flavor to the dish, not as much to compliment it as Pacific Grill did.

In closing, I just wanted to say that the service at Pacific Grill in Wildwood was the best. The kids serving us were young and locals (I think Pacific Grill is only open during tourist season), even the manager looked rather young to be holding down such a nice place and I thought that to be good in terms of letting the youth get involved in such a project. In the end, great decor and service makes for a great night, throw in great tasting food and you have the makings of a summer staple for Pinky and me. Also, make sure and pack a great bottle of wine for this dinner, yes, Pacific Grill is BYOB. There is a small liquor barn across the street, but I'm sure what they sell won't do this place justice, so make sure and pick something nice for a special night and pack it before your drive out to Wildwood.

Pacific Grill
4801 Pacific Ave.
Wildwood, NJ
609-523-1800

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