Porcupine and Heavenly Sea Urchin

One of the perks of my job is that I get invited to some pretty cool places and as a result, I get to try some pretty great stuff. I was asked to photograph a small part of the Christmas dinner special by Chef Nolvin. I was also invited to eat at O Restaurant and sample the regular menu with a plus one. For now, onto the specific holiday dishes, I was asked to photograph. If you have not booked your holiday meal call O Restaurant to make reservations; 226-4249

Appetizers

Cream of Chaya Soup – sautéed Chaya with onions and garlic in a coconut cream broth.

Cucumber Wrap Salad – fresh slice of cucumber, lettuce, bell peppers & caramelized pecans, topped with goat cheese & Balsamic Dressing.

2 Main Course Choices

Roasted Chicken Roulade – fresh horseradish, dijon mustard, cream cheese filling, with a Cabernet jus.

Fresh Seafood Risotto – saffron-infused white wine, shrimp, conch & flaked snapper topped with grilled lobster tail & fresh basil.

Dessert

Classic tiramisu with Mayan chocolate shavings. Sounds delicious and looks very creamy.

Accommodations

Another job perk is that sometimes along with food coverage, I get to be a bed tester. Which you will see below. Since Jenna was dropping me off at Las Terrazas Resort, we had planned to enjoy the room and our veranda before dinner. Before getting shown to our penthouse suite, we got a surprise treat of a seated massage. Just what I needed.

Weather-wise, because we are acclimatized, it was too cool for the plunge in the pool. However, if you are coming from snow it would be totally fine. If you tend to get cold easy, then you could request a room with an outside jacuzzi instead.

Our suite was roomy and tastefully furnished. Had we been staying longer, I totally would have had us playing backgammon at the big kitchen table and likely splurging on another sea urchin room service. Wait till you see it.

Of course, we had to do a fun photo shoot before dinner, I wanted to get a couple of fun shots to send a Canadian friend. I did change into something more appropriate for dinner.

Heavenly Porcupine and Sea Urchin

For appetizers, we shared a classic Caesar salad with fresh romaine, toasted focaccia croutons & shaved parmesan. Our second appetizer was porcupine shrimp crispy shredded filo & mango lime gastric. Loved the taste and texture.

We both chose the same thing from the regular dinner menu – Filet Mignon Sauce Bourguignonne. Tender beef filet cooked with a rich Merlot wine reduction with bacon, onions, and mushrooms, served with a creamy potato puree and selection of fresh vegetables.

When it came time for the dessert portion of the meal , Jenna opted for the signature passion fruit cheesecake and I knew instantly I was going to have the Baileys infused chocolate sea urchin truffle, a filo crusted dark chocolate delight. This hit the mark for a new dessert on my creativity and craving meter. Not only was it artistically formed, but the crunch and creamy combo was out of this world. Just looking at the picture is making my mouth water.

At night it looked particularly pretty all lit up as we walked back to our penthouse suite after a delicious dinner at O Restaurant.

Jenna decided not to sleep over and opted to go enjoy time with her hubby Herman who was a stone’s throw away. I did not mind. After she left, I lit it up with my portable disco lights and turned my suite into club taco 🙂 With my current favorite modern day mixtape, (a YouTube playlist) and the luxurious robe Las Terrazas provided, I had instantly set the mood for a perfect, relaxing evening.

I even packed special healthy snacks for the night, strawberries and grapes. I say special cause at $15 container, strawberries are a luxury I rarely buy. Grapes at $5 a 1/2 pound is a little more reasonable. It was worth it though as I was spending time at a nice resort and I wanted to treat myself special. Part of the experience for me of resorts is the pleasure factor. Because I work from home, I enjoy the times I get to sleep away from it. It can be refreshing to wake up away from my office.

I thoroughly enjoyed the ultra comfortable king size bed all to myself. I had such a deep restful sleep with no rooster next door, as I do at my apartment in town. I could have slept for a week. I stayed in bed till the last possible second before Jenna messaged that she was coming back for breakfast.

Then I got busy setting up something I had been patiently waiting for – a hot morning bath. As hard as hotels try for perfection, sometimes life happens and you just have to roll with it. We had a minor hot water issue in the master bathroom. It worked out all good though and I was able to get my bubble bath in the end 😀

Soon it was time to head to O Restaurant for breakfast before 11:00 am check out. I always love walking through the grounds at this resort.

We ended up being breakfast twins, again we picked the same meal. Classic Eggs Benedict – poached eggs, ham & hollandaise on a toasted English muffin. I added spinach to mine for extra iron.

We felt welcome and at home right from start to finish. Especially me being greeted by a Canadian cart in the parking lot on our way in. All the staff took great care of us, both at Las Terrazas and at O Restaurant. I just wish we could have slowed down the clock a little more, 24 hours went way too fast.