Mahi Mahi and Marilyn: Duval's New World Cafe (Sarasota, FL) and the movie "My Week with Marilyn"

The top two most read posts on Lily On The Lam are my details about dinners at Duval's Restaurant in Sarasota, Florida.  So when I heard that Duval's had closed their restaurant on Tamiami and opened "Duval's New World Cafe" on Main Street, I felt I owed it to my readers to drive down to Sarasota and check out the new restaurant.

OK and I love Duval's food ... so I'm not 100% selfless here!  (To be honest!)

I think the new location on Main Street is a great fit - lots of foot traffic and Duval's upscale cuisine is a nice compliment to the other restaurants on that end of Main Street.

The menu is very similar to Duval's Restaurant and the food items I discussed in my two previous blog posts (Duval's and Return to Duval's) are still on the menu of Duval's New World Cafe.

The first thing I noticed about Duval's New World Cafe is the decor.  The dining room has around 25 four top tables (give or take a table - I was doing a quick scan!)  It is decorated in purples, grays and black with funky light fixtures.  It looks more upscale than the previous three locations of Duval's Restaurant.  Even though the decor is upscale, it still feels welcoming and homey.

The waitstaff seem more professional in their service than at the previous location.  My server Ron was definitely interacting as if I were at a high end steak house.  Very good quality customer service.  He recommended the mahi mahi sandwich special.  As I was determined to try something new, I went with his recommendation but then ordered a small side of the Napa salad - my favorite salad at the former Duval's Restaurant.  I was very happy to see that it was still on the menu of Duval's New World Cafe.

When my sandwich and side salad arrived, my server told me that the Ceci, one of the owners recommends that you press the sandwich like a cuban and cut it in half.  Very good advice.  The mahi mahi was cooked beautifully and seasoned to perfection.  Duval's knows how to do great seafood.  I have never been disappointed with the way they cook seafood here. 

However the overabundance of what I assume was remoulade sauce completely overpowered the fish and combined with the juices of the fish made for a very sloppy, drippy sandwich.  I ended up taking the mahi off the roll, scraping off the remoulade sauce and eating the fish plain with the Napa salad and that was a much better taste combination for me.  However I will say that the crusty roll the mahi mahi was served on was very fresh with just the right amount of crunch.  I'd recommend asking for the remoulade on the side if you order one of Duval's sandwiches.

This is one huge sandwich with a very thick Mahi Mahi steak!  Bring your appetite!

My favorite Napa side salad - Napa Cabbage, Pesto, Tomatoes, Garlic and other loveliness!  Delicious!

The Napa salad is usually perfect at first bite.  However this side salad was definitely lacking salt and did not have as much garlic as I have had in this salad in the past.  Luckily Duval's has salt grinders and pepper grinders on all tables.  A quick grind of sea salt restored the Napa salad to the wonderfulness I am used to devouring!

The dessert menu includes cheesecake, carrot cake, flourless chocolate cake, a seasonal fruit tart (today it was apple cranberry) and Duval's world famous bread pudding made from homemade danishes.  While I had told myself that I was going to try new things on the Duval's menu, I just could not say "no" to their famous and fantastic bread pudding.

Ultra-rich and will guarantee at least a week in the gym!

The restaurant is one open dining area and therefore the acoustics are not the best.  At the far end of the restaurant is a servers' station.  While I enjoyed the cuisine at Duval's and the great quality customer service from my server, the rest of the waitstaff hung out at the open servers' station and were chatting up a storm.  Because of the acoustics of the dining area, the waitstaff's conversation could be heard loudly through the restaurant.  No offense to the waitstaff, but their chit-chat was not the most interesting and was quite disruptive.  The only wrong note in a lovely meal. 

Otherwise, Duval's in their new incarnation as Duval's New World Cafe, continues to be tops for quality seafood.  Check it out the next time you are on Main Street in Sarasota, Florida.  If you're a seafood lover, you will not be disappointed!

After a wonderful meal at Duval's New World Cafe, I headed over to Regal Hollywood 20 movie theater to see "My Week with Marilyn" based on Colin Clark's memoir of working with Marilyn Monroe on the set of the movie "The Prince and the Showgirl." 

I have seen many different actresses portray Marilyn Monroe, but I have to say that actress Michelle Williams probably did the best job I have ever seen of showcasing Marilyn without turning her into an overt caricature.  In today's day and age, I think it is harder to fathom a delicate, vulnerable shell of a woman, constantly collapsing under the weight of her own psyche.  But Michelle Williams pulls it off. 

Michelle Williams' Marilyn is not one dimensional - needy, vulnerable and delicate - yes ... but also calculating.  Like a modern Madame Bathory, Michelle Williams' Marilyn needs the strength and love of men to keep herself going.  Like all of the other characters in "My Week of Marilyn," I was transfixed at Michelle Williams' portrayal of Marilyn Monroe.  The lighting crew and the make-up artists deserve an Oscar, in every scene Michelle Williams' skin had this amazing glow as if she had a spotlight inside her.  She was radiant and luminiscent even in the darkest of scenes.  The perfect portrayal of Marilyn Monroe.  

RottenTomatoes.com currently gives "My Week with Marilyn" 82% out of 100% on their Rotten Tomatoes scale.  I would definitely recommend a viewing.  I now need to find a copy of "The Prince and the Showgirl" to see if Michelle Williams' portrayal matched Marilyn Monroe in that movie.  

Mahi Mahi and Marilyn ... a great way to spend a day!