Vacations are an amazing, revitalizing, much needed break, but some things are a bit tricky when away from our cozy home.  Like cooking, which is not that easy in someone else’s kitchen.  After several days of “not-exactly-home-cooking” in a bungalow close to Waimea Beach, we treated ourselves to a dinner last night at  “21 Degrees North,” in the Turtle BayResort.  The name reflects its location on the planet, at 21 degrees north of the Equator.  What a gorgeous setting, we had a table window overlooking the ocean, totally romantic…

Not to detract from the aura, the restaurant lightning was dim,  which meant bad news for blogging.  But, my husband managed to snap a few reasonably good photos (thanks, honey!).  First, the appetizer that we shared, foie gras potstickers, joining two of my favorite things in the gastronomical world.

His main course was a  crab-crusted Hawaiian sea bass served over mixed beans and sauteed spinach, in a lemongrass coulis. Very delicious, with a quite stunning presentation…

I had a fantastic pepper-seared ahi tuna, cooked to perfection (nearly raw inside…), served over thin ribbons of zucchini, carrots,  and summer squash in a miso sauce, with corn crisps (think about a thin corn pancake, crisp on the outside, tender and creamy inside).  Sorry, no pictures of my dish.

Their signature dessert is a chocolate souffle with creme anglaise, a classic that was scrumptious.

And to keep the touristic chronicle going, here are a few photos from the last couple of days,
click to enlarge them.

Turtle Bay

Surfing lessons at Turtle Bay – yes, I was a little tempted…. 😉

Waimea Beach, our favorite

A tree, with fruits and amazing seed pods… called “Autograph Tree” (thanks for the info, Rhea!)

they do look like some extra-terrestrial beings!  Amazing!
(make sure to click on this last photo to enlarge it)