Coastal Get-Away with Great Food

Life has been hectic, to say the least. Work, school, errands...life. Yes, I've been cooking plenty but I've had little time for writing about it and photographing it. And sometimes you make a delicious dish but it's not in the least photogenic and you're really bummed because you want to tell the world about it but you don't want them to see the pictures. But I'm working on it, really. I will have some food posts in the very near future. I've just put to bed a big school project and I have a tiny window of breathing room before I must begin the next one.

We did, however, manage to run away to the Oregon coast for a couple days to Manzanita. We needed to be someplace where we couldn't get online, talk on the phone, worry about the yard work or have the cats jump on us while we slept.

So nice and quiet. So close to the ocean. Such nice shops and what delicious food. Speaking of food, along the way we had lunch in Gearhart, OR at the Pacific Way Cafe & Bakery. Neither item we had for lunch is on the current menu on the web site. S had the fish tacos and chose to have the fish sauteed, not breaded and fried - a nice option to have in a restaurant. And they weren't wrapped in double tortillas either. A really delicious and healthier version of one of our favorites dishes.

I had the gyro, couldn't resist. I wasn't disappointed. And the slaw was really tasty. I rarely order it because it's usually swimming in mayo. This slaw was lightly dressed and well seasoned. Very fresh. This meal held us until the evening. We had planned to cook a yummy lamb curry once we arrived at the vacation rental. But we were too full and too tired after our looooooooong walk on the beach.

A shop we enjoyed so much we went twice in two days is T-Spot Yarns, Teas and Chocolate. What a trio! We purchased two out of three. I opted for the Askinosie chocolate, specifically the Davao Dark Milk with fleur de sel. Do not chew this chocolate. Just let it melt in your mouth.

The next night for dinner we made a reservation at Bread and Ocean. The place is very tiny, I think it was 6 tables. Cash only. It's all organic and local and all the breads, dressings, mayo, etc. are made on the premises. I had leg of lamb on a flatbread over cous cous and wild greens with a spicy harissa. I couldn't finish it. It made great road food the next day on the trek home. S had a baked polenta and squash cup over wild greens. The polenta and squash was almost like a mousse, it was so creamy. For pics of the ocean, check out this.