Sushi Rock Grill
1163 Ninth St. N.
St. Petersburg
727/898-7625
Sushi Rock Grill is committed to presenting the specialties of the Pacific Rim, everything from shrimp tempura to negimaki, razor-thin slices of excellent beef tenderloin, pan-fried and wrapped around spears of asparagus, with scallion and cream cheese for bonding and teriyaki sauce to heighten the flavor. Then there's orange chicken; the Laotian treat of Lop, thanks to the chef from Laos, thin slices of grilled beef with various Laotian herbs and spices spread over an inviting bed of mixed greens; soba buckwheat noodle salad with crab and shrimp, mingled with spinach, sesame and scallions in a punzu sauce; teriyaki chicken; filet mignon; New York strip; salmon or tuna; and something spicy called O-Jing Ah Bokum, a blend of calamari chunks and mixed veggies stir-fried with Korean sauce and white rice ($8 to $15).
The red and yellow curries are excellent and so too the teriyaki salmon served with perfectly stir-fried vegetables, good rice, preceded by very good miso soup or a small salad, flattered mightily with a delightful dressing.
Not to be forgotten, of course, is the front room sushi bar and the extensive offerings of sushi and sashimi.
Cafe Ponte
13505 Icot Blvd., Suite 214
Clearwater
727/538-5768
Cafe Ponte sports the best-looking kitchen in Tampa Bay, a gleaming, spacious spread along the back wall, and it has an extremely attractive couple in charge. Chef-owner Christopher Ponte and wife, Jenny, are straight out of central casting. They met 10 years ago when Chris was breaking into the business at Clearwater's Pepper Mill and Jenny was out front. In charge was owner Nancy Lowrey, and today she serves ably as cafe manager, working smoothly with her one-time protégés who have come a long way since those early Pepper Mill days. Chris realized his dream of studying at the most prestigious of all culinary institutions, Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, graduating at the head of his class and then working alongside some of the great ones at Paris' temple of haute cuisine, Taillevent.
Chris did not have much trouble finding similar positions in New York City's finest French outposts, then worked for a time as a private chef on land and aboard yachts for some of New York's wealthiest while Jenny spent two years at the International Wine Center before they returned to their roots and their favorite Clearwater.
Chris, Jenny and Nancy converted a glitzy overdecorated loser to a slice of sophistication. Jenny's wine cellar is quietly on view, stacked with the carefully selected bottles complementing perfectly the creations that stream from Chris and his highly competent staff, noon and night.
It's a Frenchified parade of the classics that could loosely be labeled "continental." Starting with the most sensually satisfying mushroom soup that's ever passed my lips -- the wild mushrooms and the dollop of light truffle-infused cream and Chris' impeccable taste make the difference. He also does a roasted butternut squash soup with caramelized apples, chestnuts and a cranberry coulis; a salad of endive with Asian pear, candied walnuts and gorgonzola saluted with a fine honey poppyseed vinaigrette; jumbo lump crab cake with scallion oil and chile-lime pepper sauce; incomparable beef carpaccio blessed with white truffle oil and a foie gras aioli; and an absolutely outstanding tart featuring figs and prosciutto, caramelized onions, gorgonzola and a port balsamic glaze ($3 to $9).
For the main action, we selected from a dozen choices, a superlative braised osso buco with a marvelous wild mushroom risotto, some caramelized chipoline onions in porcini sauce and a walnut-encrusted rack of lamb with peerless roasted butternut squash, some root vegetables, the great counterpoint of dried cherry chutney and a fine shallot zinfandel sauce. Other temptations include pan-roasted yellowtail snapper with bean sprouts and baby bok choy in tomato-ginger broth, duck breast with caramelized mango and foie gras accompanied by a duck egg roll, and salmon lacquered with balsamic glaze, served with curry couscous crowned with crispified leeks ($18 to $29).
The oak-burning oven is used for the quintet of pizzas ($8.50 to $9.50), served at night as well as for lunch, when there are also burgers on the menu.
Seven 17 South
717 S. Howard Ave.
Tampa (SoHo)
813/250-1661
Seven 17 South's menu boasts the heading "Kitchens of Italy & the Pacific Rim." That means starters of tempura prawn martini with yuzu dipping sauce and wasabi walloped creme fraiche; spring rolls made with a surf and turf Maine lobster and beef tenderloin fill; and sesame-seared Hawaiian yellow tail tuna served rare with a salad of daikons, pickled ginger and lillakoi ponzu wasabi ($6 to $8).
Among the mains, there are more Asian specialties -- sizzling whole fish with Chinese black beans in lime-cilantro spiked butter and yuzu sticky rice; roast duck with baby bok choy and fried rice timbale; tempura of tofu Napoleon in a smoked tomato sauce with black beans and grilled vegetables; a miso and sake-cured catch of the day with wasabi-zapped yukon gold potatoes and kaffir lime butter; mesquite-grilled prime beef tenderloin with maui onion ragout and poi pancake; and guava-marinated pork tenderloin with mango reduction and root vegetable gratin.
Korean-born chef Robert Masson displays a sure mastery of all ports and parts of the Pacific Rim. On the flip side of the menu he shows similar confidence with eight starters and pasta/pizza ranging from $5 for a superior soup with cannellini beans, eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes with meat dumplings floating about to $21 for a memorable seafood risotto.
Entrees range from $15 for chicken breast filled with gorgonzola and fresh thyme plated with grilled polenta and caponata, to $24 for an excellent veal chop complemented with prosciutto and fontina flavored with sage and marsala reduction, presented with angel pastini.
Masson demonstrates that he's able to follow the trails laid by the opening chef, the restless Joseph Chouinard, who did what he had previously perfected at short-lived posts at Redwoods and Pacific Wave in St. Petersburg.