Everyone has their version of a seafood soup or stew, and one of my favorites is Cioppino, which hails from the Italian immigrants who settled in San Francisco. It’s not a dish one would easily find in a city like Manila, so it was a pleasant surprise to find it in a little gem of an Italian restaurant called Casa Nostra. After a thoroughly enjoyable evening savoring my cioppino, I was determined to make it at home – after all, Manila has some of the best fresh seafood available!

Cioppino was developed in the late 1800s by Portuguese and Italian
fishermen who settled in the North Beach section of San Francisco.
Originally it was made on the boats while out at sea and later became
a staple as Italian restaurants proliferated in San Francisco. The
name comes from ciuppin, a word in the Ligurian dialect of the port
city of Genoa, meaning “to chop” or “chopped” which described the
process of making the stew by chopping up various leftovers of the
day’s catch. At least one restaurant in San Francisco, the
eponymous Cioppino’s, describes an apocryphal story in which the
name derived from the heavily Italian-accented cry of the wharf cooks
for the fishermen to “chip in” some of their catch to the collective
soup pot.

This is one of the best Italian recipes in my opinion (adapted from Bobby Flay), and fairly easy to make, provided you find the freshest seafood possible. Bobby makes sourdough croutons to go with these, but you can just as easily serve it with thick slices of  any country-style bread.

Cioppino

• 6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 5 cups fish stock
• 1 (16-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds bass fillets, cut into 2-inch squares
• 16 large shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 32 clams
• 24 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon leaves
• Few dashes hot sauce

Cafe at the End of the Universe, Los Angeles

This cafeteria style restaurant with a panoramic view of downtown LA and the Hollywood sign is operated by Wolfgang Puck. Its name was inspired by the novel, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe written by Douglas Adams. They serve soups, salads and gourmet sandwiches. Enjoy your meals by the patio or grab a bite before star-gazing through the Observatory’s Zeiss telescope.

Photo Courtesy Of: bredgur

www.griffithobservatory.org

Firefly* Tapas Bar, Las Vegas

Firefly is your typical tapas bar that serves a variety of delicious appetizers and entrees. They also serve house specialty sangria which goes well with everything. It is a cozy place where you can eat, drink and talk as well. It is owned by Chef John Simmons. They started with a small restaurant downtown and they have opened a new one in Fremont Street where you have a good view of the Fremont Street Experience.

Photo Courtesy Of: Just a guy who likes to take pictures

www.fireflylv.com

Elemental@Gasworks, Seattle

Elemental is a hole in the wall restaurant that serves affordable food and 100 different kinds of wines. The restaurant has no signage and it has interesting interiors. Expect the owner Phred, to serve you a glass of wine and ask you to taste it before he tells you what it is. You will be surprised that it matches the meal you ordered. Make sure to come in early because the place fills up fast.

www.elementalatgasworks.com

Serendipity3, New York

Serendipity is the home of the famous frozen hot chocolate. They have many divine desserts and sweets to choose from. If the name sounds familiar, it is the restaurant from the movie Serendipity which starred Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack. The place may be touristy, but Valentines is a time to indulge especially on things that are sweet. You can head there after dinner or you can skip that and just have dessert.

Photo Courtesy Of: Ben+Sam

www.serendipity3.com

Ana Mandara Restaurant, San Francisco

Ana Mandara serves delicious modern Vietnamese food and they boast of an extensive wine list too. The name means “beautiful refuge” that is why interiors are elegant, yet warm and casual with a romantic flare. They have a multi tiered dining room, a patio and private dining rooms as well.  It is perfect for Valentines. They also have a bar where you can enjoy more drinks after dinner.

www.anamandara.com

Joel Antunes is a native of Volvic, France and has brought his heritage to the South. With his mainly French crew, they deliver excellent dishes at Joel’s.  The dining room itself is a treat with richly burnished woods and soaring contemporary spaces.

Antunes cooks using mainly reductions and he blends his dishes with traditional cooking methods combined with exotic seasonings.  The soups are wonderful, they play on the tongue and warm the senses.  They have a particularly nice gazpacho made with tomato sorbet that suggests a true tint of genius.  And my favorite, the desserts, are inventive & rich- just the way I like my men!

With a world-class selection of wine and stylish surroundings, I never wanted to leave.  As they were ushering, pushing me out the door after closing, I couldn’t help but think it was one of the best eating experiences of the year.