Fanizzi's Supports the "Provincetown Fitness Challenge" with Healthy Meals

Fanizzi's delicious Lemon-Basil Baked Cod weighs in at just 340 calories.

Through March 22nd Fanizzi's restaurant is offering their "fitness friendly" entrées in support of the annual Provincetown Fitness Challenge.
More than 100 local folks from all walks of life have committed to the 12-week program designed to help them get stronger and healthier through making changes both in the way that they exercise and in the food choices they make. Fanizzi's is helping out by offering your choice of four meals emphasizing greatly reduced fats, lots of veggies, and whole grains.
I tried the Lemon-Basil Baked Cod, served with sautéed spinach and mushrooms and mixed steamed veggies. It was a very satisfying dish with hardly a drop of fat and only about 340 calories in the entire meal. I'm lobbying to keep this offering on the menu even after the end of this wintertime fitness challenge, which finishes on March 22nd. Other special menu choices during the event include a whole wheat pasta with veggies, a baked salmon dish, or an Italian herb chicken.
Fanizzi's sits right on the beach in the East End, at 539 Commercial Street, offering an unparalleled view of Provincetown Harbor. They are open daily year-round, closing only on Thanksgiving and Christmas. They have space to park just a few cars, but in the off-season parking isn't difficult. Lunch and dinner are served daily, along with their famous Sunday brunch buffet. Early Bird specials are available from 4:30 PM till 6 PM, with a very popular Friday night fish fry for $13.99.
There's a cozy, well stocked bar featuring over a dozen specialty martinis and that gorgeous harbor view. Desserts are homemade, served in legendary portions. Call for reservations at 508 487-1964, or take a chance and just drop in, and do me a favor…
On your way out, ask them to keep this cod dish on the menu permanently.

TheYearRounder's "PTown Quest for the Best" Leads to the Mews for Striped Bass

Chef Laurence deFreitas' pan seared Striped Bass over a summer slaw

During the brief season for Striped Bass every summer,
I will eat out every night, ordering this wonderful fish in every restaurant where I can find it.
The commercial fishermen are very limited in the amount of Striped Bass they can land during the summer, so this beautiful, meaty, juicy white fish is found on Provincetown menus for only a short time, maybe for just 3 weeks or so every summer. So each night when the stripers are running, I go from one restaurant to the next, as long as they have the bass on the menu, and order it wherever I can find it, regardless of what other delectables might be listed as entrees that night.
On this particular night I had returned to The Mews Restaurant and Cafe, where I had found a delightful bass the week before, and I knew I would find a different preparation, equally as creative as the previous one. On this night this noble fish was pan seared and finished in the oven, served on a bed of summer slaw made from shredded red and Chinese cabbages, fennel, heirloom tomatoes and pineapple, dressed in rice wine vinegar. The slight crunchiness of the cabbage and the fennel was perfect with the fork-tender fish and its crispy skin, and that bit of sweet flavor from the pineapple balanced out the slight acidity of the tomatoes. The modest sweetness of this mild vinegar dressing pulled all these flavors together while still letting each one be distinguished, and the fish was cooked perfectly, making this a faultless dish, and a Best Bite. Chef Laurence deFreitas has the inborn ability, and a natural talent, for combining ingredients and flavors, often with a bit of an Asian influence in his dishes.
The Mews is a ten-minute walk from the center of Provincetown, in the Gallery District in the East End, at 429 Commercial Street. You'll find two waterfront dining rooms, a very welcoming, professional staff, and a wonderful bar with a collection of more than 280 vodkas from around the world. I had the delightful Pomegranate Martini this evening. Parking is sparse but occasionally possible, along Commercial Street. In the summertime you can also take the Provincetown/North Truro shuttle bus along Bradford Street and
get off the bus at Bangs Street, which will lead you south, toward the harbor and the Provincetown Art Association and Museum at the corner of Commercial Street. Spend some time there before or after your dinner at The Mews and enjoy the wonderful Motherwell exhibit, which runs through September 30th. From there you'll walk less than a block to the west, along Commercial Street, to The Mews. You'll find a bike rack there as well. In fact, chef Laurence deFreitas bikes to work. Ya gotta love a town like this.
The Mews is open yearround, with reservations recommended even in the off-season. Phone them at 508 487-1500.
Watch for another post soon about the best striper dinners I've found in PTown restaurants over the past couple of weeks.