Chef Dave Snyder of The Halyard Restaurant Group has a passion and knack for seafood in The Golden Isles of Southeast Georgia. His idea of a perfect day is fishing in the morning and sharing the morning’s catch with his loyal guests in the evening. Let’s see what he’s up to this week.

So a painter friend of mine and I agree on many things that our different arts bring to this world. None more important than the saying, “Art is not complete until it is shared with others.” That is the main reason I cook for a living. I love sharing new creations with friends, family, and, of course, our patrons at Halyards and Tramici Restaurants.

I am lucky to have great kitchen crews at our restaurants that want to continuously learn new techniques and cook delicious food. The pride they feel in their work makes my job a lot easier as they work very hard to make our loyal guests, happy guests. Whether it’s learning how to filet a forty-pound African Pompano or a three-pound trout, all the cooks are jockeying for position to butcher with me and my Chef de Cuisine on the cutting board. Once we have the fillets in hand, it’s to the stove with the best oils, herbs and spices, vegetables, fruits, and other finds to create mouthwatering memories.

Last week I was able to share our art on a couple different levels. I had seafood lovers from across the country in the restaurant as guests of SeaPak’s Coastal Getaway Sweepstakes. SeaPak is a locally-based brand, but actually produces some of the best-selling frozen specialty shrimp and seafood items at grocery stores across the country. The winners were flown in from Texas, California, Wisconsin, and Virginia and we spent the late morning talking about great tasting seafood and learning how to filet a wild Coho Salmon before sitting down to enjoy our work.

We filleted the Coho and prepared it “en papillote” or “in paper” with local chanterelles, Vidalia onions, haricot vert, and basil butter. We also kneaded our mozzarella. A few guests were brave enough to knead the curd in the hot water and get a feel for how it’s done. We paired up the milky slices with local basil and beefsteak tomatoes for the appetizer course. Dang, my mouth is watering again.

The contest winners enjoyed their lunch before spending the rest of the day on our beautiful island’s beach or just walking through the live oaks and Spanish moss. Eating homemade mozzarella, making your own wild salmon lunch, and walking on beach, that might be my new idea of a perfect day.

It’s funny how a year sounds like a long time. But looking back, this past year has flown by! For example, just over a year ago I was bringing my new baby boy home from the hospital. Somehow I blinked and he has grown from an infant into this walking, talking toddler with his own independent thoughts. Where did the time go?

It was also just about a year ago we started the SeaPak blog. Happy Birthday to us! We started the blog to share quick and easy seafood ideas that fit into everyday life and don’t leave you trapped in the kitchen all day. A lot of things have changed in the past year but one thing has stayed the same – I’m not laboring in the kitchen on Labor Day!

Last year I served up Firecracker Shrimp Dippers along with grilled meat and super easy sides. It was fun and easy and everyone enjoyed it. So why change a good thing? This year I’m planning to put the guys on the grill again, more to get them out of the way than anything! I’ll be serving Popcorn Shrimp Nachos as a starter – they’re easy to whip up and adults and kids love them (you may want to skip the jalapenos for the kiddos). For sides, I’ll whip up a colorful salad with greens, broccoli, red and yellow peppers, red onions, and ranch dressing and have fresh melon slices. I can finish all of the slicing and dicing before guests arrive and just throw everything together at the last minute. See? I told you it was easy.

What are your holiday plans? Going out of town? Spending time with family? Whatever’s on the agenda, we at SeaPak hope you enjoy your day off!