Eating Newport

If your not eating well in Newport, Oregon, you've got one of two problems:

a. you haven't left the house in years

b. you've never ventured outside of Mc Donald's and Taco Bell

Newport boasts some of the freshest and most unconventional offerings on the Southern Oregon Coast. This afternoon Phil and I had the pleasure of stumbling onto the Village Market and Deli. The word "market" lured us in, the cheese list kept us there for hours.

Co-owners Robert and Deborah Trusty graciously answered all our questions about their meats and cheeses. Robert cut us wafer-thin slices of heavenly sopressata to try. At our request he also obliged our interest in the large chunk of real Monchego from Spain. Robert and Deborah have a delicious assortment of artisanal breads and an impressive wine list.

It had been our intention to sight see in the Nye beach area, but when the rain started to fall heavily, hubby and I hunkered down at the deli for coffee and conversation. Phil was astounded to learn that Deborah had graduated from the very same high school he attended in California. And just one year ahead of him. Even odder, He and Robert shared a common friend from the Fairfield area.

Another favorite of ours is Sada's. We discovered it years ago and daydream about it's gorgeously decadant millenium rolls. But Sada's is not just another ubiquitous sushi joint. It has real japanese cuisine. I have tried for years to get them to tell me what they put in their spinach/shitake dish. It is so unbelievably good.

Once my son asked them for zaru soba, which isn't on the menu, and they were happy to oblige. Now, back to that millenium roll: Imagine generous chunks of lobster, in a cream sauce, rolled into sushi rice and baked in the oven. mmmmmmm.......

The restaurants here are understandably proud of their fresh seafood. You just can't go wrong ordering salmon, clams, or dungeness crab.

If it sounds like we've spent most of this vacation eating, that's not far off the mark. I complained to Phil after dinner that I'm sick of eating and don't want to ever again. Then I realized what I had uttered, panicked, and repented.

-EJ