We started with the aforementioned favorites, along with a plate of fall-off-the bone costillas, or pork ribs; a snapper sashimi appetizer (the least memorable of the night); a fantastic mixed seafood campechana; a delectable chilpachole de jaiba, or softshell crab soup; and the signature ceviche de caracol, or conch ceviche, the sea snail after which the restaurant is named.
Sliced up into long, thin rectangular slivers, the conch is placed on the plate in five small mounds, steeped in a marinade of pineapple, red pepper and ginger. The spice hits you at the onset but disappears immediately, and what you're left with is a kind of spicy sweet and sour taste as you absorb the wonderful textures of the conch itself. Imagine the quick bite of a fresh squid sashimi, the slight elasticity of a clam and the meaty chewiness of abalone all at the same time — that is what you experience when you chew on the conch.
On the libation front, Sean Beck — who oversees the beverage programs at Hugo's, Backstreet Cafe and now Caracol — has done a superb job creating a wine and cocktail program that effortlessly marries with the food at Caracol. For the ceviches and lighter dishes, he has by-the-glass options and full-bottle choices that were selected to enhance the food experience. This is what happened when he suggested a Jankara Vermentino Italian white from a small producer in Italy. Crisp and dry, with a fruity-floral nose and a light, easy finish, the wine paired well with all our ceviche and light fish dishes. When our blue crab soup came out, he suggested a slightly effervescent Riesling that was so perfect it had my girlfriend proclaiming, just as I did when I'd tasted the oysters: "I could just come here and have this soup and this wine, and I'd be happy."
It was a mantra that I could apply to the desserts as well. There's a strawberry rhubarb empanada served with a pale pink rose petal ice cream, a modern version of strawberry pie à la mode that is delightful. But the pièce de résistance is a genius creation by pastry chef Ruben Ortega called El Coco. Yes, I could visit Caracol just for that. A large six-inch chocolate sphere arrives at the table, complete with a small wooden hammer. When you hammer it open, it breaks apart to reveal layers of meringue, cream and textured crumble that perfectly captures the taste of a fresh coconut.
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Food Fight
Anonymous Yelp Reviews
Not so anonymous anymore.
Kaitlin Steinberg
So much for free speech.
Two weeks ago, a Virginia court ruled that Yelp must turn over the identities of seven anonymous reviewers of a carpet store because the commenters may not have been actual customers. According to Yelp's terms of service:
"You may expose yourself to liability if, for example, Your Content contains material that is false, intentionally misleading, or defamatory; violates any third-party right, including any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, moral right, privacy right, right of publicity, or any other intellectual property or proprietary right; contains material that is unlawful, including illegal hate speech or pornography; exploits or otherwise harms minors; or violates or advocates the violation of any law or regulation.
The part that stood out to the court in Virginia is the bit about "material that is false." According to the court, such statements aren't protected by the First Amendment right to free speech. By that logic, neither are your restaurant reviews on Yelp or your anonymous comments on blogs unless they're clearly non-libelous opinions or verifiable statements of fact...Right?
I hope you saved those dining receipts.
In the case in Virginia, the 25-page majority opinion was written by Judge William Petty, who said, "The anonymous speaker has the right to express himself on the Internet without the fear that his veil of anonymity will be pierced for no other reason than because another person disagrees with him."
However, he went on, if "the reviewer was never a customer of the business, then the review is not an opinion; instead, the review is based on a false statement." As such, it's no longer subject to First Amendment protection.
That makes sense in theory, but how do you police something like that? Yelp is concerned that its users will no longer feel sufficiently safe to express their opinions without fear of retribution. After the ruling, the company released the following statement:
"We are disappointed that the Virginia Court of Appeals has issued a ruling that fails to adequately protect free speech rights on the internet, and which allows businesses to seek personal details about website users — without any evidence of wrongdoing — in efforts to silence online critics. Other states require that plaintiffs lay out actual facts before such information is allowed to be obtained, and have adopted strong protections in order to prevent online speech from being stifled by those upset with what has been said. We continue to urge Virginia to do the same."