Azure at The Shores Resort and Spa

I would say that this is some of the best scenery you can have while enjoying dinner at a fine dining restaurant, wouldn't you?  This is exactly what you will see at the Azure restaurant located in The Shores Resort and Spa in Daytona Beach, Florida.  My husband and I enjoyed a mini-vacation here and were pleasantly surprised at how amazing the food was.  We arrived on a Monday afternoon just in time for lunch.  I guess we were expecting typical "beach food"; fried grouper sandwiches, hush puppies, etc.  Here is what we discovered instead:

Shrimp Parppardelle Carbonara with asparagus, crispy panchetta and a light cream sauce.  This dish went quite well with the white wine the server suggested for me.  I ate every last bite.  The flavors delivered perfectly!  My husband was eyeballing my pasta so I gave in and let him have a few bites...of course he did the same for me:

Grouper Tacos made with locally caught grouper, pico and a delicious chipotle sauce for dipping.  Needless to say, we were quite satisfied after this glorious lunch.  What a way to begin our vacation!  Perfect service, an elegant setting and a view to die for.  We could not wait to see the dinner menu at Azure.  At around 8:00 we were hungry for more...

After driving around Daytona Beach to find that perfect "beachfront seafood joint", we ended up back at the resort with empty stomachs.  Daytona just doesn't have those local eateries that you expect from beach towns.  (However, go north to Ormond Beach or south to New Smyrna Beach and you will find what you're looking for!)  We walked into the dining room ready for a cocktail and appetizer.  We had the place all to ourselves as every other customer was sitting on the patio.  Unfortunately, I did not take many pictures of the food since we were starving!  We started with the crispy calamari.  It was pretty standard fried calamari with a cocktail sauce.  Nothing exceptional about it other than it was cooked perfectly.  Then we had a little surprise before our entrees - a loaf of their 'famous' Thyme and Rosemary bread topped with melted Asiago cheese.  Appetizer?  Calamari?  Not necessary when there is exceptional fresh bread with whipped butter!  I wish we could have bought a case of this bread.  It would be perfect for breakfast...and lunch, dinner and 11sies and what-have-you.  Okay, onto the finale. 

I was pretty stuffed after my over indulgence in bread, so I opted for the Jumbo Lump Blue Crab Cake whereas my husband went head first for the Atlantic Seafood Etouffee.  The aroma was enticing but I couldn't have eaten such a heavy dish.  He claims is was BETTER than anything he'd had in Louisiana!  We sent good comments to the chef in admiration of his dish.  It was truly a work of culinary art!  But my poor husband desired a Bloody Mary with his meal which filled him up too much to finish his meal.  He tried so hard and was very disappointed that it would go to waste. 

Ah, my crab cake.  This one we did get a picture of:

Beautiful.  A crispy top and creamy bottom.  I ate every bite and was perfectly satisfied.  What a meal!  We cannot wait to go back to Azure.

As a side note, we also ate here for breakfast the following morning.  While it was beautifully done, it was just 'breakfast'.  We decided to take a light start to the day after our two 4 star meals the day before.  All in all, we were 100% satisfied with every aspect of Azure and The Shores Resort.  If you are ever in the area, please give it a try.  It can be hard to find such wonderful restaurants when you're out of town.