Taryn’s at Track’s Surf ‘n’ Turf Menu Brings Back Old Favorites

Time can’t be touched, even though it touches us and sometimes comes bulging from the past to make us feel as if we had been jetted to an earlier era.

A favorite example occurs daily during the racing season at the Del Mar track, when, shortly before the gate swings open for the first race, the loudspeaker broadcasts a recording of Bing Crosby singing “Where the surf meets the turf at old Del Mar.” It is a magic moment, having the eerie effect of making the late Crosby seem a friendly and living presence.

Finding “surf ‘n’ turf” on a contemporary menu produces the same time-warp sensation, at least for those of us who regard this cozy pairing of lobster tail and steak as a dish that symbolizes the culinary spirit of a span of years running roughly from the mid-1960s to the late ‘70s.

An Australian lobster tail and top sirloin combo figures prominently on the menu at the new Taryn’s at the Track in Solana Beach, a handsome hideaway situated just across Via de la Valle from the Del Mar track. The mood here is so contemporary that, upon crossing the threshold, one almost feels to have prematurely stepped into 1989, but the menu has a comfortably recherche tone that recalls the simpler days of Southern California dining. In addition to the surf ‘n’ turf, there are several of the pseudo-Oriental specialties that once caused gastronomic excitement in these parts (as they may again), as well as prime rib and other old favorites.

But--and there seems always to be a “but” or “however” in the stew these days--the presence of such items as beurre blanc and sun-dried tomatoes brings us galloping back at least to the present, if not to the future. Because the kitchen generally acquits itself quite well, the menu therefore can be taken as a rare and happy blending of old and new.

This brand-new eatery is extremely good-looking. The decor takes its cue quite strongly from the Southwestern style that currently is so fashionable (because the menu is not even vaguely Southwestern, we’re dealing with a mixed metaphor), and the dining room is executed in soft sunset colors and soothing earth tones. Well-chosen artworks occupy wall niches above the deep, comfortable banquettes.

Proprietor Celest Burgk said she chose the menu because she felt comfortable with it, having served similar fare for 16 years at the Midnight Mine, a restaurant she owns in South Lake Tahoe, Calif. Old and new play tag and leap-frog happily across its pages, which commence with a time-honored appetizer of snail-stuffed mushrooms, but go on to include such new dishes as opaka-paka breaded with macadamia nuts and finished with a pineapple-and-mint beurre blanc. (This last is an interesting instance of nouvelle Hawaiian that might cause quite a sensation were it to be introduced in the islands.)

Several of the appetizers are quite attractive, but be warned that because meals include a choice of generously portioned soup or salad, and entrees are out-sized, a starter course may be more than the average appetite can handle. That caveat aside, the oysters baked with shallots and almonds under a cloak of Brie cheese are most interesting, as is the Tahitian chicken satay . This last is a true culinary mixed metaphor if there ever was one, since satay , or grilled, skewered, marinated meat, not only is Malayan in origin (and not even vaguely Polynesian), but is unlikely to arrive sprinkled with sesame seeds and placed atop a bed of sauteed bell peppers. Nonetheless, this is a tasty, likable dish, and one that rings bells from an earlier culinary era.

A special appetizer offered recently paired steamed New Zealand mussels with a fine, garlicky marinara sauce of Burgk’s own manufacture that was so satisfying that the guest who ordered it spooned up every last drop of sauce from the bowl.

The soup/salad course offers substantially more satisfaction than is often the case with this decreasingly common lagniappe. The Caesar salad, often a dreary bore when offered as part of an entree package, is rather impressive here, as long as one likes a great deal of anchovy. (The generous use of anchovy also makes this salad quite salty, a fact that many in this sodium-conscious age will not welcome.)

The house salad also is better than most (and again is rather salty), and consists simply of a pleasing blend of chopped tomatoes and hearts of palm spooned over an arrangement of greens. The soup changes with the day, and a cream of asparagus made a strong impression; the depth of flavor was matched by the wonderfully silken texture.

The entree list pays a lot of attention to beef, begining with a plain top sirloin and continuing with the same steak, glazed with a teriyaki marinade and served on a bed of pineapple and macadamia nuts (this may be the ne plus ultra of culinary anachronisms, as it is kind of ‘60s nouvelle ).

There also are a filet mignon with sauce bearnaise and asparagus tips, a grilled New York sirloin with a porcini mushroom sauce, and the quintessential prime rib, which was tried and not found lacking. There is not much that can be said about prime rib--it either is or is not tender, flavorful and roasted to order--but this one delivered the correct impression. It also arrived as a generous slab that challenged the diner’s abilities.

On the more adventurous side, we arrive at the Singapore shrimp, which are marinated in an Oriental chili oil sauce and sauteed with a touch of Pinot blanc wine. This is yet another example of mixed gastronomic idioms, but because it tastes very good and features outstandingly large shrimp, its intrinsic oddness seems unimportant. (I would be willing to comment that flavor, ultimately, is everything, except that I fear I might someday find myself obliged to eat these words.)

Another, and somewhat similar, choice is the dish of sauteed sea scallops dressed with roasted cashews and a ginger lime butter, which sounds altogether a fortunate combination.

In addition to the previous dishes, which all are listed on the standing menu, a supplementary list offers several fish of the day. Among these recently were baked halibut in a lemon dill sauce, and shrimp tossed with artichoke bottoms, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh basil and fettuccine. A thick, lovely swordfish steak was grilled to a moist finish and dressed with a light butter sauce that hinted at the presence of tomato and basil, but was not at all heavy or overpowering. It was a most pleasing dish, and it showed that the kitchen certainly can handle fish.

Plates were garnished with herbed new potatoes and a saute of pea pods and mixed squashes, which on the whole made a flavorful accompaniment to the main events.

The dessert list includes a catered macadamia-chocolate ice cream mud pie--Southern California redux, indeed!--and a homemade, chocolate-walnut tart flavored with a splash of Jack Daniel’s. The whiskey plays a minor, hard to notice, role in this gooey, fudgy dessert, which is very rich but nice if shared by two or three guests.

TARYN’S AT THE TRACK

514 Via de la Valle, Solana Beach

481-8300

Dinner nightly

Credit cards accepted

Dinner for two, with a modest bottle of wine, tax and tip, $45 to $70.