LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
EATING Out |
by Barry Becker |
Celsius Offers a New Look and a New Attitude
You really can believe you're eating in the French Mediterranean when you dine at Celsius Restaurant and Tapas Bar (50-C Wilmington Avenue). Fabulous new murals on the walls and lace curtains on the long windows add a very European feel. Each of the three dining rooms offer wonderful intimacy, with great colors and textures. Throughout are sunny yellow tablecloths with a lemon motif, and the place settings feature lemons and olives. It's a tremendously inviting and relaxing ambiance, and really set the mood for our evening of fine dining. And the food? Well, there are just so many options at Celsius, and all of them sound great. We could choose from the regular menu, the Tapas menu, or Jean Luc's Plat du Jour, special selections and recommendations from Jean- Luc Charpentier who, along with Mary-Jane (M.J.) Stanton, are the award winning chefs and owners. With Tapas, one could order cold or hot items, everything from Spanish antipasto platters and shrimp to a mixed grill of lamb chops/filet mignon/chicken/pork loin or mixed paella, seared tuna and more. We chose the lemon pepper and garlic infused smoked trout, which was exquisite with its smokiness and flavor, served with cherry tomato halves atop a divine whitefish salad. The chilled lobster tails featured huge chunks of delicious and tender lobster served with 2 sauces, one a tangy lime chili and the other a luscious coconut mango, served around a bed of fresh greens. Steamed mussels with white wine and garlic, apple smoked bacon and more was one of our hot dishesthe broth so buttery and wonderful we had to dip our fresh bread in it, the mussels tasty and perfect. We also had snails in green garlic sauce. I don't recall having snails before, but they were quite good, served with little star-shaped puff pastry amidst a very garlicky green sauce, the black snails a great contrast in color and texture. The entrees all sounded so incredibly delicious I think it took an hour for us to decide what to eat. Our choices included honey roasted duck, grilled pork tenderloin with spinach and crab in a curried shallot sauce, sweet potato swirled salmon, black angus steak and of course a whole lot more. We opted for seafood crepes, which I'm sure are served in Heaven because that is certainly where the inspiration must have come from for them. They're filled with jumbo lump crab, shrimp and scallops and served in a citrus beurre blanc that is rich and divine, the seafood fresh and beyond fabulous, and there's even a flag of fried plantain waving from the center of the plate. The rack of lamb was served Moroccan-style with harissa spices that just gave it a nice kick, with lemon confit and sun-dried plums that gave it great texture and flavor, in a carrot and celery demi-glace. The lamb was tender, the spicing perfect, the vegetable medley of yellow peppers, onion, tomato and squash was delightful, and the tender lima beans were a perfect complement to everything else that was going on. I actually saved room for dessert for a change. The creme brulee (always one of my favorites) features 3 different kinds (even better!) all of which I could have easily had seconds (or thirds). Today's flavors were chocolate (scrumptious and rich), berry (very light and flavorful, bursting with berries), and coconut (thick with it!), all served with cookies and a strawberry. The White Passion is a heavenly layered concoction of white chocolate and passionfruit mousse, served with a yummy pistachio ganache and raspberry coulee that just gives it an even better personality than it already has. From the artful presentations of creative and delicious food to the very attentive and professional service and the soothing ambiance, Celsius was a delight from the second we were greeted at the door. Jean-Luc and M.J. continue to inspire with this adventurous slice of the French Mediterranean, and there are certainly many more dishes I'll be checking out over the coming months! Hope to see you there! Celsius Restaurant, located at 50C Wilmington Avenue in Rehoboth Beach, serves dinner daily from 5 p.m. and Sunday Brunch from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. For reservations or information, call 302-227-5767, or visit www.celsiusrestaurant.com. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 11, No. 5, May 18, 2001. |