Laurie and I are always looking for new and different restaurants, although with inflation, we’ve avoided some new and costly ‘high-end’ establishments, saving them for when we have company in town, dine out with another couple or just for that ‘special’ occasion.
In any case, this particular building has housed a few different restaurants with a variety of cuisine being offered. The fact that Mariscos Pacifico Nayarit, the latest occupant in this location offers a wide variety of Mexican seafood dishes made especially intriguing to Laurie and me… When we lived in Mount Prospect Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, a top notch Mexican seafood restaurant was just a couple of miles from our home.
FYI,
mariscos…means seafood, pacifico…refers to an ocean and Nayarit refers to
Nayarit State in Mexico.
Our waitress appeared fairly promptly and delivered a basket of tortilla chips and a modestly spicy but tasty salsa accompaniment. We were glad to have the chips and salsa as it took us a long time to work our way through the huge spiral bound menu!
There
were a number of diners in Mariscos despite the fact that it was past the lunch
hour and much too early for those seeking their evening meal.
We started out with the Camarones Rellenos (bacon wrapped shrimp) as our appetizer. ($15.99) As you can see, there were 8 nice size shrimp for us…mostly me…to devour. Laurie thought that the shrimp were overdone but I thought this appetizer was fairly good. I’m not sure how you could make the shrimp tenderer when the bacon has to be thoroughly cooked to crisp it up.
After the tortilla chips and a couple of the Camarones Rellenos, Laurie wasn’t very hungry so she ordered one of her favorites, ceviche…in this case Tostada De Ceviche De Pescado…based on her previous positive experience in Chicago. ($6.99) She thought that this version was bland she felt that only one type of raw fish was involved in this particular iteration. FYI, in case you aren’t familiar with ceviche, the main ingredients is fish/seafood cured/marinated in citrus juices.
My entrĂ©e was the Huachinago Frito, a fried whole red snapper with 2 sides. ($19.99) The fish was nicely done and quite tasty. For my sides I chose French fries and rice… The fries weren’t something I’d order again.
Laurie
wasn’t in love with Mariscos but I’d give it another try especially if we were
dining with other so we could do a better job of sampling the menu. Service was not the best as our waitress
rarely checked in with us.
Mariscos
Pacifico Nayarit Mexican Seafood Bar and Grill also offers a large Tex-Mex menu
as well as an equally expansive selection of adult beverages. This restaurant is located at 9507 Kingston
Pike in Knoxville Tennessee. Phone:
865-288-4129. The large menu can be
found on-line and the Mariscos is on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Seafood-Restaurant/Mariscos-Pacifico-Nayarit-110118521315980/.
Dining at home, we keep trying various prepared/semi-prepared food looking for a winner. In this case, I think that these were from Tyson. In any case, but although there was a little spice/heat, they weren’t amazing, just convenient. I will note that I had a couple of tasty and easy chicken tender sandwiches from the leftovers.
I had my
chicken tenders with a ‘special’ side salad consisting of iceberg lettuce,
yellow squash, and radish, plus…cheating a little bit, a few little pieces of
celery. This medication dictated green
veggie ban is a bummer. Iceberg lettuce
goes a little way toward satisfying my palate…and its ‘legal’ as it contains
little dietary value.
By now
you may be wondering about the title of this post, “Food and Fire”. Well, the fire reference does tie into
food…but not to the cooking or grilling of food, but rather a local disaster
and community loss, at least for the foreseeable future
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The Tanasi Clubhouse with its golf pro-shop, cart rental and restaurant suffered what appears to have been a spectacular and destructive kitchen fire that leveled the facility. Not only was Tanasi Grill a convenient dining venue for Tellico Villagers, but it was a great place for any hungry travelers rolling along TN Hwy 444 from Lenoir City toward Vonore and Madisonville Tennessee.
One bit
of positive news is that no one was hurt despite the fact that the fire
happened during a busy time on the weekend.
The other good news for the staff is that given the labor shortage,
other local restaurants are reaching out to offer immediate employment. Arrangements are already underway for the
resumption of golf on the Tanasi Golf Course.
Fortunately, at the time of the fire…the new golf carts had not been put
into their garage under the building so they weren’t damaged. If they’d been in the garage, their lithium
batteries would have added a whole new dimension to the fire!
Just
click on any of the photo to enlarge them…
Thanks
for stopping by for a visit!
Take
Care, Big Daddy Dave
Good that no one was hurt in that fire. Looked pretty scary. I love both fried whole fish and bacon shrimp! The chicken tenders have too much coating..
ReplyDeleteNever having had bacon shrimp, I estimate that the shrimp would have to be overcooked for crisp bacon...a sad combination. I've had well cooked shrimp and lately some that were maybe not very well cooked...I wondered if raw shrimp was ok to eat. They were grilled, and on a salad, so I ate them all anyway. So sorry to see the restaurant/club house has burned down. It looked like a good eatery. Hope they rebuild soon!
ReplyDeleteToo bad the Mexican place was just so-so. A real shame about Tanasi and I would have thought it would have been equipped with sprinklers that would have doused a fire, especially in the kitchen.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the fire happens there!
ReplyDeleteHow arew you doing David, I was lost and I hope to return now. I miss you hugs
Sorry to read about the devastating fire, Dave, but good no injuries resulted. There is a Mexican seafood restaurant within walking distance of our apt which also serves a whole red snapper. It is one of Grenville’s favorites and the cost here is a few dollars more. We usually find that when we are on the fence about an eatery we will give it at least a second try.
ReplyDelete