Pasta Lover Dinner at Woody’s Bar & Grill at the Monterey Airport in Monterey, California by Ruth Paget
I love going to Woody’s at the Monterey Airport for a family night out to share news about books, films, and creative projects being worked on for the weekend.
I especially like to do this while eating comfort foods like chicken pot sticker deep-fried dumplings as a starter dish. Woody’s serves these pot stickers over peppery arugula lettuce along with thick, soy-miso sauce. That is a tasty combination. 9 pot stickers come with the orders so everyone can sample on these goodies.
My husband Laurent and daughter Florence Paget both ate cups of clam chowder as their signature Monterey appetizer. I think Woody’s could can or sell this soup in a paper package that tourists could heat up in their rooms when they first arrive in their rooms.
Florence ordered the prime rib special, which is always tender and served with a twice-baked potato with butter, sour cream, and chives and seasonal steamed vegetables doused in butter. Her English beefeater ancestors would be happy the family traditions are being maintained.
Laurent ordered fish and chips, which comes with three large pieces of Pacific rock cod deep-fried in beer batter with a large order of pub fries and creamy coleslaw.
I ordered what Laurent at the last time we went to dinner at the airport: Woody’s tomato-fennel fondu pasta made with rotini pasta served in a sauce made with lightly sautéed fennel strips, shallots, and tomato slices. The sauce covered every nook and cranny of the rotini pasta and had a slight flavor of anise (licorice) from the fennel.
The pasta was topped off with burrata and Parmesan cheese and thin grilled toasts. I used the toasts to make crostini with the remaining sauce. I loved every bite of my meal and ate everything including an extra order of mashed Yukon Gold potatoes.
The Woody’s Tomato-Fennel Fondu Pasta did a wonderful job showcasing the organic produce of Monterey County and neighboring San Benito County.
If you like pasta and the flavor of anise (licorice0, I would recommend trying the tomato-fennel fondu pasta at Woody’s Bar & Grill at the Monterey Airport in Monterey, California.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks, Marrying France, and Europe’s Lessons written during overseas duty in Germany + 5 other books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Classical Western Civilization Games
-developer of food and beverage knowledge games
-creator of online exhibits about San Miguel Arcangel Mission, French baguette making, and the Carmel Valley History Center
-creator French travel and culture games
-writer of 1800+ Central Coast California lifestyle blogs
-family genealogist
-developer of 9 music theory games
