As I've mentioned in previous reviews on the Mustard Seed here and here and on Village bakery here, it's clear that Sal Parco is one hell of a restaurateur. His culinary empire includes six unique restaurants that span the tri-county area. Taken directly from the Dine with Sal site, descriptions of his restaurants are:
1) Mustard Seed - the freshest ingredients for an eclectic ensemble of dishes
2) Village Bakery - cozy and warm, not just for baked goodness
3) Sette - a quaint escape for authentic Italian
4) Long Point Grill - creative cuisine that speaks volumes in flavor
5) Uno Mas - a decidedly moderate twist to traditional Mexican
6) Boulevard Diner - local favorites served up in classic diner style
I've been to the first three on this list and have always been impressed by their offerings. With it being Grammy's last night in town before heading bank to Yankeeland, we decided to go out for another family dinner on Wednesday. All kidding aside, I would have suggested we go to Mustard Seed again, but I had just eaten there on Tuesday. (It's true. I went to lunch with a friend and had the most amazing tuna & salmon cakes. Photographing was not an option at this lunch as I didn't want to scare this new friend into thinking I had a food obession or something, because really, who does that? Oh. Me.) Anyway, I mentioned Long Point Grill because I had heard that it was similar to Mustard Seed and I needed to give my taste buds a whirl. The LPG is kid-friendly and had outdoor seating. What's not to love? The fam trekked out to my side of the world (aka Mt. Pleasant) for a lovely outdoor meal.
Just like his other restaurants, the to-die-for specials were written on the chalkboard that is carried to your table for you to look at while you peruse the menu. The chalkboard is so tricky. You can sit there and read the menu for a whole hour trying to decide what you want, but the chalkboard sits behind you haunting you, whispering "You know you want one of these..." I had chosen a special the last two times I went to Mustard Seed, so I was feeling the need for a classic menu item. After many suggestons from our sweet waitress, I decided on the item that stood out to me the most: Pistachio Crusted Chicken, whipped potatoes, grilled asparagus, sun-dried cherry sauce for $14. As usual, I swapped the whipped potatoes for brown butter sweet potatoes.
The chicken was tasty but the cherry sauce was soooooooo good. It had a deep, rich flavor instead of a sweet, tangy one that I was expecting. I love love love sauce (always want more of it) and this dish had plenty. My sweet potatoes were incredible, as were the slightly crunchy asparagus.
Grammy must also have obsessive issues, because she ordered crab cakes again! A little different than Mustard Seed's, these were Sourdough-Herb Crusted Crab Cakes, with a southern tartar sauce, whipped potatoes, and grilled asparagus for $18. We were in love with her crab cakes, as they plump with huge chunks of crab meat.
My family always shares our dishes with each other by putting little samples on the bread plates and passing them around. Auntie Kelly got a chipotle crema ravioli special with shrimp and seared scallops and Uncle Johnny got the short ribs with whipped potatoes and veggies, and the kids got a simple pasta with cheese.We all enjoyed each others' meals -- even the kids'! For dessert, we were extra disgusting and ordered four slices of cake. The photos are less than stellar bc we couldn't keep our hands off of them before I was smooth enough to whip out my camera, but you get the idea...
Coconut cake:
Strawberry Shortcake Cake:
These monster slices can be found at any of Sal's restaurants and are made at Village Bakery. You can order them too. Oh god, my birthday's coming...I can already smell a carrot cake. We also got a slice of both the Pecan Mocha Torte and the Chocolate Cake.
The Chocolate Cake was devoured by this hungry baby:
Gabrielle and I showed some affection for each other...
...and the chocolate cake.
Sal is my culinary idol. The night we returned from Italy, Brandon and I couldn't think of anything we wanted more than Mustard Seed. Thank the heavens we came home when it was still open because my heart would have exploded into 45 pieces. We ordered it to-go, because let me tell you, a 12 hour flight back really kicked our booties, and I ran in to get it. While I was waiting, Sal was at the bar and I, all star struck and sparkle-eyed, made it a point to say hi. (I'm aggressive like that.) He was really sweet but damn it, he was wearing a ring. So, Sal, if you're out there, I know you're married, but do you have children in their late 20s? That would be fantastic. ;)
