Dining with Derencia: Shima

I am just so excited to finally be able to dine at a restaurant again! Like, y’all don’t understand. I have literally been craving a culinary experience for months. I know that some people have missed watching movies at the theater, lounging on the beach, having a blast with their friends at fetes, but for me it was really the dining out. You know the “I’ll be taking care of you guys tonight, can I start you off with any of our signature cocktails?” Whew yes, I need it.

If you read “My After Quarantine List“, you may remember that number 10 was Dine at Shima. I’m so happy to have finally ticked that off the list! Shima is located at The Island House, almost directly across from Lyford Cay, so realll west. Reservations are definitely recommended. We were greeted with a friendly welcome and a temperature check before even being allowed behind the gates and self parked. As you make your way to the entrance of The Island House, signage and a hand sanitizer station were present. My date and I were sanitized and immediately seated with a menu card that was to be scanned via our phones. Service was great the entire night. But, let’s get to the real reason you’re here…

The food was exceptional. You know when everything you eat is amazingly good? This was it! Heaven in my mouth. I couldn’t believe that all of this time I just allowed Shima to pass me by. I was in disbelief, that the food had been this great for so long and this was my first visit. To celebrate, we got a bottle of 2019 Walnut Block Wines Sauvignon Blanc, it was delicious and paired well with our dishes. I thoroughly enjoyed this wine.

Of course, being the person that I am, I had already previewed the menu and knew what I was ordering way before I even arrived. For appetizers, we ordered the Pork & Prawn Dumplings. If there is anything you absolutely have to order, it’s these. The dumplings are on the menu as “To Share”, but it is only 4 of them. I would definitely be getting my own next time; they were so delicious. We also ordered the Thai Crab Roll as a starter, it was tasty.

Let me tell you about the tenderest, juiciest piece of short rib you will ever have. I got the Twice Cooked Beef Short Rib and it was so delightful. The meat was falling off the bone and it was in this sauce that just ignited a party in my mouth. My date chose the Chargrilled Salmon and it was served in the cutest little banana leaf, with this amazing sauce and tasted so fresh. Both dishes were served a la carte and paired wonderfully with Egg Fried Rice.

As dessert time approached, I was already feeling sad that the evening was coming to an end but excited for the next course. For dessert, we ordered the Thai Tea Creme Brûlée and the White Chocolate Cheesecake. Dessert was my least favorite and it was still pretty good.