Taco Tuesday at Terrapin

February 13, 2017

If you know me, you know when someone asks me what my favorite restaurant in Virginia Beach is I'll say I have a few! Yeah, it's a cop out but there are so many places to eat in Virginia Beach and I've only visited a fraction of them I can't say for sure what the best one is out there. It's also a very subjective topic, we're all different!

OK, evasive talk aside, I will say that one of my favorite places to eat in the city is Terrapin. Hands down! I've posted and written about them a lot over the years but I just found another reason to visit the shop - TACO TUESDAY! Shelby saw it out there and said we should try it. $10 for hand-pressed tortillas with a carnitas plate and $6 Blood Orange Margaritas! You can't beat that for a meal at Terrapin.

I'm sure most of you have heard of Taco Tuesday it's basically an excuse to go out and eat tacos on a slow night for restaurants. It's been around since the early 80s and maybe earlier according to some stories.

That being said don't think that Terrapin really has slow nights, we went the second week of this taco celebration and got there about 5:45, 45 minutes after the door opened and had to be put on a waiting list. I swear the regulars, most whom appeared retired, must have been waiting at the doors and rushed the bar! Oh, forgot to mention Taco Tuesday is bar service only.

I'm not complaining about the wait because that gave Shelby and me a chance to check out the drink menu, chat, and eyeball what Rodney (ownder/chef) and crew were cooking up through the open kitchen's window. Love how he works, super chill. While we waited we sipped on a Little Italy and a Carré Me Home. The Little Italy has bourbon, cocchi barolo chinato, angostura bitters, and a lemon twist; the Carré Me Home is made with bourbon, triple sec, Drambuie, sweet vermouth.

Terrapin has a high-speed menu system :)

After finishing our drinks and chatting with Rodney a little bit we finally got our seat at the bar. We asked for the tacos, of course, and a couple of Blood Orange Margaritas. The oranges were hand-squeezed and the drink itself was great. The carnitas were perfect, not that I expected anything less from Terrapin. The portion was nice, I was able to get four tacos out of my serving and left feeling full.

Basically, make an effort to hit Taco Tuesday at Terrapin. I don't know how long they'll do it and it's an easy way to get a quality meal at a great price.

Merroir Terroir at Terrapin - Jan 2015

February 9, 2015

This past January's Merroir Terroir at Terrapin was a good one. Local oysterman Chris Ludford and Terrapin's sommelier Daniel Kieser were at the helm of the event with a nice line-up of West Coast oysters and bonus appearance of a local favorite.

We arrived just in time to sit and catch the beginning of the event. We were lucky enough to be sandwiched in-between friends and aquintances—Rex and Lisa Hamaker to our left and the Jo Ann and Buzzy Hoffheimer to our right. Chris talked a bit about oysters and some techniques in enjoying the experience. Looking at the oyster being served, the color of the shell can give you an idea of the environment it was raised in, the size and shape are good indicators of what region they came from, etc..

When it came to tasting you want to smell the oyster, sip it's liquor and then slurp it in. You can pick up the different textures of the oyster when you chew it. Some parts are strong then others, some sweeter. He also talked a little bit about umami. Umami has been classified as one of the five basic tastes together with sweet, sour, bitter and salty. It was founded in Japan, hence the name, and was only officially recognized in the 1980s. It is savory and can be found naturally in tomatoes, aged cheese and dry cured hams among other things. Oysters are packed with it!

As we listened to Chris the plates of oysters started to appear from the kitchen. We didn't know what we were going to be having, so it was a pleasant surprise to see what was going to be our launching point.

The first oyster we were having was one of our favorites, the Kusshi. These are from the West Coast and have small, deep bowls. The oysters form these types of shells due to tumbling that breaks off the edges. This prompts the oyster to grow a deeper and thicker shell. Blonde, lavender to dark hues color the scalloped shells. The batch we had were very varied from one to the next. Chris suggested that they might have mixed up several batches from the farming area which caused the differences. Variation in color is due to bottom sediment make-up. Daniel poured a 2012 Domaine Pichot Vouvray Le Peu de la Moriette Demi-Sec from Loire, France with this oyster. The pairing was perfect! Sipping a little bit of the white with a little bit of the oyster in my mouth blended well and highly complimented the flavors of both. Great finish and lingering aftertaste was very pleasant.

Second, we were poured Sokol Blosser Evolution 18th Edition, a white blend from Oregon. On our plates were the Rolls Royce of oysters – the Kumamoto! These were raised in Humboldt Bay, CA and had salt up front with a sweet, butterly flesh. The bite was crisp and fruity—think green grapes or light melon. I've only had these a couple of times so this was a treat. They are small but pack a punch, I could imagine eating a bag of these by myself. The wine was bright and paired well with the initial saltiness of the oyster liquor; I think the Evolution would definitely be good with spicy food.

Our third course was another variety of Kusshi known as a Shigoku (which means something along the lines of “outstanding” in Japanese), this particular oyster is being marketed under the name “Fat Bastard.” What separates these from other Kusshi oysters is that they are tumbled by the tides themselves. The oysters are put in bags that are suspended by floats so they never touch the bottom. Twice a day when the tides change the oysters are tumbled. I expected the shells to be bright without coloration, but they were lined with thick, dark stripes. Regardless of what the shell looked like (which was pretty!) they oysters were delicious! Shelby said it was her favorite oyster of the night. Meaty with a strong melon finish. We had a 2012 Côte Bonneville Cabernet Franc Rosé from the DuBrul Vinyard in the Yakima Valley, the arid desert region of Central Washington hold ideal growing conditions for certain grapes. It was citrusy, a little strong for the oyster I thought; still a good bottle though.

We actually got a fourth course and we made our way back to the East Coast with Chris' own Pleasure House Oysters! Salty liquor, juicy, these were bred especially for Terrapin restaurant. Smaller and easier to eat, these were started in 2013. The standard Pleasure House Oyster is huge, the idea behind farming these a little smaller was that it would be a lot less oyster to handle from one shell. The big ones are called chokers for a reason. Daniel poured a 2012 Bollini Pinot Grigio from Trentino, Italy. It went well with the five Lynnhaven mollusks Chris generously gave us. It was my lucky night too, one of the patrons at the end of the bar had a pea crab in her oyster I got to eat. About eating it herself, she said something along the lines of "maybe next time."

Daniel pouring the Bollini Pinot Grigio — Daniel pouring the Bollini Pinot Grigio

While we enjoyed out oysters and wine Chris described some of the recent conditions of the Lynnhaven. In 2013, Lynnhaven Inlet didn't have as much rain which in turn increased the salinity of the water. These conditions directly affect the flavor of an oyster. The tide has a huge influence on how an oyster tastes too. Tide creates flow, the flow of the water provides food for the oysters. Like most of what we eat, the animal's diet can be detected in its flesh. He said we should consider the oyster when we purchase animals to eat. Try to know where they came from and how they've been handled. The Pleasure House Oysters we ate that night were only touched 15 times before we ate them.

Oh, another nice thing about Merroir Terroir that night is that it was Shelby's Birthday. They brought out a little Valhrona Cocoa Chocolate Pudding with Sea Salt and Olive Oil. Next to the pudding was a single candle that glowed warmly at the low-lit bar. A great way to cap off the evening of great oysters, wine and company.

Click here to view the rest of the photos from the event.

Merroir Terroir at Terrapin - Jan 2014

February 9, 2014

We made it to January's Merroir Terroir at Terrapin. If you'll remember Merroir Terroir is the oyster and wine pairing dinner the restaurant hosts. Once again, Chris Ludford was our captain on our journey to enjoy our favorite bivalve—the oyster. Terrapin's Brian Williams perfectly paired our wines to compliment the oyster selection for the night.

Chef Rodney Einhorn, his parents and Shelby

Chris started off by talking a little bit the oysters we'd be having that night. Of course, we would be enjoying some of his delicious Pleasure House oysters and a couple of new ones—new for us at least. He also explained how oysters were, until recently, primarily eaten cooked. It wasn't unitl after the 70's and 80's that a shift in the market came about with more people opting to eat them raw. Cooked is still the preferred serving for the majority but fresh on the half-shell is appreciated more now than ever before.

Erika came around and help set our places and assisted in the direction of the servers. We were seated at her space, so she made sure things moved along smoothly. After everyone was in place, Brian started pouring the first wine.

Our first pairing consisted of a L'Oiseau D'or Muscadet with a Grand Pearl oyster from the Eastern Shore. The Muscadet was a natural pairing with the oyster—light, crisp and a great finish. The bayside oyster marketed with the trademark name Grand Pearl has a salty liquor and a light, thin shell.

The second course paired Domaines Schlumberger Pinot Blanc and a nice James River Oyster. The oyster had a dark flesh. The lower salinity contributes highly to fooling your mouth into thinking you're eating something sweet, but it's the lack of salt letting the oyster come through. It's a very opaque, winter oyster. The fat (glycogen) is high to protect the oyster in the cold water. The Pinot Blanc went well with the James River Oyster, it's high acidity and clean finish showcased the oyster.

Our last pairing had a bonus treat. We were given two oysters: Keeling's Pride and Pleasure House. We've had the Pleasure House Oyster from Chris' farm before—love them. Big, juicy, very satisfying to eat. The Keeling's Pride were new to us, these are an old oyster that grow wild in the Lynnhaven. Somewhat rare but hopefully making a comeback, it was a treat to eat them. Keeling's Pride Oysters are meaty, salty with a sweet connective muscle. The Pleasure House Oyster is huge, sweet and a little sandy. Brian poured a bubbly, something he wouldn't normally do, but the dry Crémant drew out the flavors of the oysters. A little bit about the Cote Mas Crémant De Limoux, though it is French and like a champagne, it is not made in the Champagne region and cannot be designated as “champagne.”

Comparing the Keeling's and Pleasure House

Once again, we had a great time at the Merroir Terroir dinner. Terrapin never disappoints. I do have to give an honorable mention to the Charcuterie plate one of the diners had in lieu of oysters. It looked delicious and something I need to try in the future.

View all the photos from our dinner here.

Merroir Terroir at Terrapin

November 14, 2013

We had a great night at Terrapin's Merroir Terroir event hosted at the bar. The restaurant has been hosting these exploratory dinners that allow guests to sample the affect “merroir” has the flavor of the clam. Climate, water, the beds the oysters mature in, all effect the flavor the bivalve. Brian Williams of Terrapin paired our oysters with a select wine that complimented the three different oysters we were served.

Brian Williams and Erika Caylor of Terrapin

Merroir Terroir starts a little early before the dinner crowd shows up. At the bar, our places were set and the resident mixologist—Erika Caylor—helped Brian and staff get us ready. Our oysters were provided by Chris Ludford of Pleasure House Oysters. Chris is a local oyster farmer and firefighter; he’s been seeding and harvesting oysters since 2009. Before farming his own oysters he was a crabber, fisherman, and he sold other peoples oysters from stands around Virginia Beach.

After the seats became occupied, Chris began to give us some info about oysters and harvesting them. I learned that oyster harvesting starts around October here and ends April 30th. He talked about the different spots he liked to start his oysters and talked about the waterways in the area. He also told us a neat tidbit about oyster shells—oysters from the West Coast tend to have a scalloped shell while those on the East Coast do not. Before we started to eat the oysters he suggested we sniff, drink the liquor, then eat the oyster. Easy enough, let’s go!

While this was happening Brian poured our first wine, Domaine Jolly Petit Chablis 2011. He explained to us how the Chablis he served was from Portlandian soil, young and steely. The wine itself was unoaked to prevent it from overpowering the oysters. That brings us to the oysters: Kusshi oysters imported from the West Coast. They are small with thick shells, ours were tumbled and lost most of the frill outside of the shell. The thick, deep shells of the oysters held clean, sweet meat and a tasty liquor. West Coast oysters, at least the ones we ate, tended to be smaller than what we’re used to in the East.

The next wine we drank was a Louis Jadot Steel Chardonnay 2012, again this was unoaked and had fruitier notes. The sweetness of this wine was perfect for the salty Pleasure House Oysters, Chris’ own brand he breds in the Lynnhaven. In addition to the pronounced saltiness of the oyster, they were crisp, juicy, and had a little citrus. I like how that paired with the Chardonnay too. I loved the liquor in the huge shells on the plate. I think I heard the term “choker” used in reference of the size of these things.

Our last wine was a Lincourt Steel Chardonnay 2012. From the Sta Rita Hills in California, fermented in steel, fruit forward and low mineral. The oyster paired with this was the Kumamoto or “Kumis”. They were harvested from cold waters of the Puget Sound in Washington State. These were delicious—buttery, crisp, and nutty. I could have eaten a couple dozen of these myself. The shell on these were very scalloped, unlike the Kusshi we tried earlier and the color variation went from off-white to black.

After finishing our oysters Chris and Brian mingled with the patrons of the dinner and answered any questions we might have had. While Shelby and I got our things together I was already thinking about next month’s Merroir Terroir, hoping I’ll be able to make the event again.

Click here to more photos from the dinner.

Fried Chicken and Pinot Night at Terrapin

September 12, 2013

Terrapin has a Wednesday night Fried Chicken and Pinot special—it’s not to be missed if you live in the area! After dinner we treated ourselves with a Bon Bomb and S’Mores.