A Sneak Peek of Alma

One of the highlights of my recent trip to Hawks Cay was meeting San Francisco chef Johnny Alamilla and getting a sneak peek of his inventive Nuevo Latino eats at the soon-to-open Alma. The restaurant will be similar to the restaurant of the same name Alamilla helmed in San Francisco, serving what the chef terms "West Coast Latin cuisine." Lots of malanga, yuca, green chilis, and jalapeno. The chef speaks Mayan, Spanish and French and this type of cooking jives with his Mexican and South American roots. For this Duck Key outpost Alamilla plans to incorporate local produce into some of his signature dishes. He's got a delicate style but isn't afraid to use spice, which is always a good thing in my book. We tried:
- grouper ceviche marinated in lime and Florida grapefruit and mild green chili (below)
- grilled Cuban bread salad with shards of manchego, argula and citrus jalapeno vinagrette (above)
- pan seared duck breast, sweet potato flan, ancho chili black berry sauce
-dulce de leche pot de creme
All the dishes deftly balanced the spicy, tangy and delicious. I couldn't get enough of the sweet potato flan and the custard-like dulce de leche was a unanimous hit. All in all a nice indication of what is to come in the Keys.

Swank Restoration

The view from my patio at Hawks Cay. This is the "tranquility pool," the adults-only nook where no kiddies are allowed. (There's another larger pool where they can frolic.) The resort just underwent a $35 million renovation after the family that had owned it for decades sold it to a hotel group. The new white cabanas add a dash of St. Tropez chic to the salty Keys atmosphere . I love that I get (free) wifi out here. Can this be my new office?

Hook n' Cook

One of a plethora of watersport offerings at Hawks Cay is the "hook n' cook" option where if you hook a fish on a fishing expedition, chef Tony Glitz will graciously cook it for you for dinner. We dealt with choppy water on our 3-hour excursion and to my regret I didn't pop a motion sickness pill opting instead for the anti-nausea wristbands. Flash forward to me desperately pressing the gray wristbands to no avail as the boat sways like a teacup at the state fair. Fret not, I didn't bail my lunch and the water eventually mellowed a bit. I even caught a few petite yellowtail snapper which chef kindly grilled up for a satisfying fish feast. The pic above is actually a speckled grouper, (petite as well - it was a day for dimunative fish). Not big enough for dinner, but feisty enough for its closeup.

Duck, Duck...Key!

I'm in Duck key for a few days, staying at the renovated Hawks Cay resort, sampling San Fran chef Johnny Alamilla's soon-to-open restaurant Alma, cavorting with dolphins and catching a few yellowtail snappers (the key word here is few). Oh, and did I mention the pina coladas? When in the Keys...