VA beach food

Recently the wife and I went to VA beach for a short vacation, this is some of what we ate.

First up.... chicharrones (fried pork skin, or cracklins)

Now most of you think this is just disgusting, but I fuckin love these things, you just cant get them around here. A perfect snack for the pork loving carnivore like myself, these crunchy little nuggets of goodness were great while sitting in stop and go traffic for 3 fucking hours. Dont knock it till youve tried it.

Rating- 7 Ive had better.

Crab pretzel-

On the road we stopped at a MD rest stop and picked up a crab pretzel from Phillips, I couldnt resist. Its a soft pretzel stuffed with a mixture of shitty crab meat and then baked with cheese on top. It was ok, I dont think either one of us were all that into it.

Rating- 5

Watermans Bar and grille-

So this was our first real meal on our trip. We started with a bowl of she crab soup... fucking delicious. Creamy, filled with big chunks of blue crab, and topped with old bay seasoning. I have to say, it was some of the best soup Ive had in a long time. Rating- 9

I decided it would be a good idea to order a burger toppped with a crab cake. Nope... bad idea. Dry over cooked beef, with a dry, bland crab cake on top. It just sucked all around. Rating- 2

The wife got fish tacos- A simple dish that is very easy to fuck up. And so they did. the fish was breaded and fried to the point of losing all of its natural flavor, then topped with cabbage that had barely any dressing in it, served in a flour tortilla. These tacos were served with some sort of corn and black bean mixture, that frankly didnt have much flavor at all. Rating-2 We both had their signature drink (orange crush) which was pretty tasty. A mixture of pineapple flavored vodka and orange drink ( I fucking love orange drink) in a slushy-like crushed ice blend. We both enjoyed it after a long 9+ hour drive.

Big Sam's-

We took a walk just to check out what was going on at the marina by our hotel, and stumbled into this joint for lunch. My old lady got a lobster BLT which was pretty damn good. A decent amount of lobster meat salad, with crisp bacon, lettuce and tomato in between a sort-of herb infused bread. It was however served with cole slaw that was not much more than wet cabbage. Never the less, a great lunch time sandwich. Rating- 8

I thought I'd try the fish tacos..... once again, bad choice. Dry over cooked fish on top of undressed unseasoned red cabbage. They served it with a side of rice and black bean mixture that was mushy and bland. Once again, I lose. Rating- 2

We both had big Sam's signature drink which was like a lime-ade with vodka. good stuff. Refreshing, sweet, and full of vodka. I love vodka.

Mahi Mah's-

Another bar/restaurant near our hotel. We were told that this was the place to go for fresh seafood and sushi. I beg to differ.. We ordered a few rolls and some tuna sashimi. The sashimi was nice and fresh, but the rolls sucked. I dont feel like rating each one, because you dont care anyway. The bottom line was that the sushi sucked. Most of the flavor came from the nori, and thats never good. Also I had what they called a south beach tea. It's a mango flavored vodka mixed with sweet tea. Fucking gross. I dont even know why I ordered it because I dont like mangos or sweet tea. My own dumb ass fault I guess, but for $9 I drank it. Oh, I forgot.. we got an order of "boardwalk shrimp" which is just fried shrimp with a few different dipping sauces. That was good. Just good, not great. after all, its just fried shrimp. Overall the meal was way too expensive for what it was.

Rating- 3.5

Salacia-

Our only fine dining of the trip, this place was awesome. Starting with the crab salad amuse bouche, I knew we would be in for an excellent meal. First up was the tuna tartare.... my god, it was the best tartare I've ever had. Clean and perfectly prepared with cucumbers, tomatoes, topped with creme freshe. Amazing. We both ordered a wedge salad with blue cheese, which was tasty. The wife ordered a filet, which was prepared perfectly, and super tender. I ordered a wagyu strip steak. Fucking excellent. Wagyu beef is rated on a scale of 1-12 (12 having the most marblization of fat) I believe the steak I got was on the lower end of that scale, however it was perfectly juicy and tender, with an amazing flavor that you can only get from wagyu beef. Both steaks were served with a tarragon demi glaze, which was not needed at all. We shared the roasted potatoes with truffle oil and parmesan, which were good, but I think they couldve lost the cheese, a little overpowering, I wouldve rather tasted more of the truffle oil. Then a huge piece of cheesecake for dessert. I think cheesecake is my favorite dessert, but this meal was all about the steak. Both of us had an awesome meal, and it was well worth the $200+ bill at the end. If ever in VA beach go to Salacia. Although its small, and attached to another restaurant inside the hilton hotel, it was like we were in another world. Great food, knowledgeable staff, and overall an excellent meal.

Rating- 8.75

Vinginia Barbeque-

I could go on a whole rant about this place, but I wont. Barbeque might be one of the most contraversal foods, but in my opinion this was not real bbq. I believe its a chain, I believe that the meat is prepared in an oven, and I believe that this place sucks. The ribs were almost tender, but you have to weed through the un-rendered fat and membrane on the backside. The pulled pork was shit, as was the baked beans. The hush puppies were however pretty good. Either way, I needed a break from driving home, so it wasnt all a loss.

rating- 3

Thats pretty much all we ate that was worth writing about, but there is one more non-food related thing.......... WE GOT ENGAGED !!! Yep, I proposed on the beach this past weekend, and she said yes ! I couldnt be happier, I love you bub.