The Best Food & Atmosphere in Baja!

Ophelia’s Restaurant and Lounge in Ensenada is a favorite destination of the local-elite. Chef and proprietor Rosindo Ramos has a unique talent among the many Baja’s culinary choices; his menu is anchors itself with Latin flair while integrating Asian, American and European styles and spices. Ophelia’s has yet to disappoint anyone I've referred; often drawing people from Rosarito Beach. Baja’s most basic of condiments, Pico de Gallo, is a fresh combination of tomatoes, onions, cilantro, jalapeños, lime juice, salt and pepper; very simple and easy to prepare, equally difficult to have stand out. As chef myself, I have the knack for what I describe as “the alchemy of cooking”. Immediately I picked up on the unique ingredients; the simple things are often the most dramatic. Rosindo’s Pico de Gallo is simply addictive. His ability to combine flavors and textures is impressive, resulting in dishes that excite the pallet. Ophrlia’s shitake mushroom miniature-tostada appetizers have a beautiful balance of flavor and crunch; the pork skewers are marinated and pan-seared with a caramelized onion and wine glaze. On the lighter side, the Ensalada Ophelia (House Salad) can be topped with or without the fresh fish of the day and tossed in Rosindo’s fresh cilantro and citrus dressing. The menu focuses on pork, beef and fresh fish, often yellow or blue fin tuna, sea bass or shark; all hand selected each morning by Rosindo at the port of Ensenada’s famous fish market. Don’t pass on the Rib Eye if you’re a steak lover; choice beef brought in fresh from the US and paired with fresh vegetables and fingerling potatoes sautéed in garlic, olive oil and bit of real butter. Ophelia’s offers a fantastic selection of Mexican wines from Ensenada’s Guadalupe Valley. Rosindo and his wife Rosa will gladly help you match one of their many wines or sangria with appetizers, entrées and Desserts.

Ophelia’s Restaurant and Lounge

Rating: Excellent (#1 Pick)
City: Ensenada
Location: KM 104 Tijuana-Ensenada Scenic Toll-Highway
Phone: 646 175 8365
Hours: Tue-Sat (12PM - 11PM) Sunday (12PM - 8PM)
Currency: Peso & US Dollar
Credit Cards: Yes (Visa/Master Card)
Corkage: $10.00

Guacamole is Cuisine

This humble food can be spectacular!

This post tells you how to make authentic Mexican Guacamole... enjoy

How to Make Authentic Mexican Guacamole

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Much of what passes for Guacamole in the US is far from the authentic Mexican spread. South of the border, this delicious concoction is dolloped onto steak and chicken, added to Fajitas and Carnitas, or spread on a sandwich instead of mayonnaise. Here's how to make it authentically Mexican.

Ingredients

• 3 ripe Hass avocados
  
• 1/2 medium white onion, chopped fine (green onions or chives may be substituted)
  
• 1 clove garlic, chopped fine (if you like it)
  
• 1 fresh Serrano or jalapeno chile, seeded, deveined and minced fine
  
• 2 to 4 Tbls. fresh cilantro, chopped fine
  
• 2 medium plum tomatoes, chopped
  
• 1 tsp. fresh lime or lemon juice (use small Mexican or key limes)
  
• 1/4 to 1/2 tsp. salt (to taste)
  

Steps

1. Put the blender away, far away. Real guacamole should never be pureed to mush. It should be chunky.
   
2. Put the onion, garlic, chile and cilantro in a bowl. Using the back of a heavy spoon (or a mortar and pestle), grind the ingredients together until the juices mix and they begin to form a paste.
   
3. Cut the avocados in half and scoop out the flesh in big chunks with a spoon. Add to the bowl and mix well, mashing the avocado slightly but keeping it chunky.
   
4. Add diced tomatoes, lime juice and salt to taste. Mix gently, and serve.
   

Tips

• Start with one small serrano then test for hotness. If you like your guacamole fiery, add more. If fresh serrano chiles are not available in your area, you can substitute fresh jalapenos, but the flavor will be slightly different.
  
• Do not add sour cream or mayonnaise to the mix - this only dilutes the avocado flavor!
  
• Never make guacamole in advance. Avocado discolors quickly on contact with air. You can mix up the first ingredients a few hours in advance if you like, but wait to add the avocado and later ingredients until just before serving.
  
• And no, plopping the pit into the bowl of guacamole will not keep the guacamole from turning brown - I have tried this and it absolutely does not work. And furthermore I cannot believe where this ridiculous statement came from!
  

Warnings

• After cutting up any fresh chiles, scrub hands very well. Chile oils can cling to your fingers for some time. Be careful not to rub your eyes after handling fresh chiles. And please mothers, do not touch your babies until you know for sure that you will not hurt them - touch you finger to your eye if you must!
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Prepare Healthy Snacks and Meals for Guests
  
• How to Make Microwave Popcorn Extra Buttery
  
• How to Make Seafood Sauce
  
• How to Make Spanakopita
  

Sources and Citations

• Learned at La Cocina Cooking School in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. For more info: http://www.experience-san-miguel-de-allende.com/cooking-classes-in-san-miguel.html
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make Authentic Mexican Guacamole. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

Baja Cuisine Is Great!

Part of the pleasure and excitement of owning Baja Real Estate and visiting Baja is discovering great places to eat and sharing them with people who enjoy the same.

There is great cuisine at every level of dining. We enjoy telling you about the best street taco's we have found as much as the most elegant of dining experiences and the great food in the mid-range. By our definition… great food, the experience and the hospitality are what makes a restaurant a place you remember and want to share with friends.

For this post – I want to share with you a restaurant that few people would ever know exists – the food is so good, the hospitality so extraordinary and the experience so memorable that I hesitate to share the pearl with you for fear of them becoming popular and being unable to get a table! This restaurant has no more than four tables, a private chef, a diverse menu with local seafood, and meats to suit most preferences. They have an extraordinary wine list featuring wines from the nearby Guadalupe Valley, home of Baja's wine country.

This was our third visit to Casa Natalie, http://www.casanatalie.com/ a small boutique hotel with seven room on the way into Ensenada at about KM 103, which makes it 60 miles from the border, but a great place for dinner if you find yourself that far south… Ensenada is worth the trip. Here is the secret: If you call in advance, you can reserve a table unless the hotel has been "taken over" as certain groups occasionally do - including Hollywood celebrities.

My wife and I recently entertained another couple there. We all had appetizers and a main course and split a desert - we shared a bottle of Adobe wine (excellent), drank a couple of mixed drinks and three additional glasses of wine. They pour Casa de Piedra vino tinto as their house red (Awesome – a flavor blast). We were there for two glorious hours, our private chef prepared every meal to perfection, the service was very good and all thoroughly enjoyed the evening and look forward to returning. The check was $275.00 – pricey but an extraordinary value for the money as the check would have been nearly double in Southern California. Our friends, who I would consider gourmets and wine experts, with a European perspective, were delighted and impressed –as you will be.

Other blogs: http://bajaswines.blogspot.com/ All about Baja Wine
and http://ownbaja.blogspot.com/ All about owning Real Estate in Baja

Robert Donnell http://www.elmilagrobaja.com/