Taking it to a Whole New Level- Foodie Friday

 Agent Daddy and I have been fans of Hard Rock Cafe for many years. Not neccessarily the food there but the ambiance and the story. Having been an ex pat, I connected to the overwhelming desire to just get a great burger. Agent Daddy had actually been to the original Hard Rock in London and had made it his mission to get the Hard Rock T- Shirts where ever they exsisted.

He even took me to The Hard Rock Beverly Hills ( Which no longer exists) on one of our first dates 9,000 years ago. So when we found out that Hard Rock was re doing their menu we were intrigued. Would it still be diner food? Could you still get a great burger? So we headed up to Hard Rock Hollywood.

Hard Rock Hollywood is a destination in of itself. It is snuggled into the Graumans Chinese  Theater Complex and across from the El Capitan. Both Iconic Hollywood, Both places that should be on your bucket list. I have lived here 30 years and never lose my sense of wonder being on Hollywood Blvd.

I spoke with  Executive Chef Leonard Delgado at Hard Rock Hollywood about this new menu. Fresh made was the first word out of his mouth. Everything is from scratch.

“We’re undergoing a renaissance,” Chef Leonard says of his tweaks to the traditional menu. “We’re still loud, we’re still fun and we’re still rock and roll, but I want our guests to say ‘I went there and the food was phenomenal – oh, and I got a t-shirt too.’”

And Phenomenal is exactly what this menu is.  So let talk food Baby.

We started with appetizers. Really you could go to Hard Rock and just get appetizers and drinks and have an amazing experience.

Balsamic Tomato Bruschetta, Hot wings, chicken tenders, hand cut onion rings and spinach artichoke dip. I loved the bruschetta and the hot wings. Those are my go to appetizers anyway. The was perfect. Tomatoes tangy, the bread crispy and the flavors a happy dance in my mouth. The wings were not only good but surprisingly good. I love hot wings and Agent Daddy loves sweet wings. We usually have to compromise but here we BOTH got what we wanted. And of course we had to have a little something to drink....

How about a Magical Mystery Mojito. Hendricks and ST GERMAIN Elderflower Liqueur, muddled with lime juice, mint and Monin Cucumber. This is the perfect last afternoon summer cocktail. Light flavorful and oh so good.

Or you could order...

Air Mexico- Three signature mini margaritas with a personal sized portion of chips and Salsa. I had the blue caracao one. Think blue Hawaii meets Margarita and WOW. just perfect.

Now that you ate all the appetizers you might be thinking you should go light. Well you would still have an amazing entree if you chose...

 The Grilled Norwegian Salmon. This 8 oz filet is wrapped in cedar paper, grilled tender and drizzled wqith a sweet and spicy barbeque sauce with maitre de butter. Served with Yukon Gold mashed potatoes and seasonal veggies. Now the salmon was perfect. A lot of times in restaurants salmon is dry. but the process they use to cook the salmon infuse the salmon with flavor and seals in the moisture. The potatoes are a rock star on their own. Hard Rock has a guy in the kitchen that just makes these mashed potatoes all day long so your potatoes are fresh and perfect.

Now this salad works as an entree as well. For my Vegetarian friends , you know who you are, you can also order this with out the chicken. The Grilled Chicken Arugula Salad is baby arugula, thinly sliced grilled chicken, spicy pecans, dried cranberries and fresh oranges tossed in a lemon white balsamic vinaigrette, topped with crumbled feta cheese. This was one of my favorites from all we ate. It was flavors gave a top note and a bottom note that perfectly melded to great perfection in a salad. Usually salads in restaurants are nothing to write home about. A bunch of iceberg with some cheese and chicken. This is not that salad. This is a destination salad. You will come back to Hard Rock again and again to get your fix.

Okay so we did the healthy thing. Now lets talk Friday Boys/ Girls Night Out food.

For the gentlemen.Hickory Smoked BBQ Chicken and Ribs combo. This ribs fall of the bone and the chicken is juicy and wonderful. They are smoking this stuff in house and you can tell that flavor is the top priority for everyone. These are messy folks so I owuld not recommend them as date food. But if you want to ditch your date in favor of a great meal this would satisfy.

Then there are these new Grown up Burgers-

The Original Legendary Burger-Smoked bacon Cheddar Cheese and a Handcut hand breaded Onion ring finished with crispy lettuce and a vine ripened tomato slice. Every thing that was right aobut the burgers here coalesces on this burger. The ground beef is juicy, not stringy or filled with cartilage. No cheap meat here just perfection on a bun.

The Fiesta Burger-Roasted jalapeno salsa melted jack cheese and freshly made guacamole on top of a toasted brioche bun. Don't forget the vine ripened tomatoes and crisp lettuce. I loved this burger. Yep I ate everything I have showed you, plus some. See how I have your back? So if you like Mexican food this is like nachos on a burger. It is spicy and wonderful and a step above plain old avocado on a burger.

And if you get thirsty might I recommend the Red Berry Press? Great for sharing it is homemade lemonade with SVEDKA Clemintine Vodka, fresh lemons, strawberries and raspberries. Great for sharing. Be sure to have a designated driver.

This bit of loveliness is the Veggie sandwich. This litterally took my breath away. I liked it best of everything on the menu and I am a meat kind of girl. I do not have all the particulars of this sandwich as it was not supposed to be part of our tasting menu but we had a vegetarian at our table and Chef DelGado wanted to show off. Well he has every right to be proud. There was cheese and  red bell pepper. I believe there was some squash or cucumber and asparagus and all of it was grilled and yummy. Please do not miss this sandwich. It was awesome.

Are you full yet? 'Cause it is DESSERT TIME

Hot FUDGE BROWNIE anyone? This brownie melted in your mouth. Many times I order a brownie and it is a little dry and the ice cream kind of covers up it short comings. Not this brownie. This brownie seriously turns to chocolate fudge in your mouth. No need to chew. Just take a bite, hold it in your mouth and experience chocolate nirvana. Oh and jus tto blow your mind....Ben and Jerry's ice cream on top.

The Fresh Apple Cobbler- Now I am a southern girl and we southerners are serious about our cobbler. My mama made cobbler from a recipe that was 200+ years old. So when I say this was amazing cobbler I know of what I speak. The apples were not mushy or hard, the cinnamon and Carmel were in perfect proportion. Agent Daddy loves him some appple carmel and he was ready to steal mine because he didn't think I would do it justice after he saw me having chocolate orgasm over the brownie. Usually there is no contest between chocolate and cobbler for me but Chef Delgado makes this a hard choice for favorite. I am going for a tie. You cannot lose ordering either one.

Well what are you waiting for? Its Friday night go get you some of this!