French Bulldogs are such an endearing breed, and I am completely smitten with NikaBleu.  My previous dog, Maggie, was a Boston.  Maggie was so well-behaved; her happiness seemed to depend on mine.  She would never jump up on furniture, and actually turned her head away in shame if admonished for watching me eat ("No begging!" did the trick).

Nika came along as Maggie was declining.  This tiny puppy romped and played, chewed and jumped, rolled and flipped, and climbed.  She climbed everything; one day I spied her gazing back at me from the top of the barbecue grill.  Nothing fazed her; the shake of a finger caused her to pounce at my face.  After finding 7 shoes chewed (none of them as a pair), I semi-jokingly started calling her Satan.

My friends weren’t so sure.  "Nika just needs some discipline."  I protested; look how well Maggie behaves.  I knew I was right.  Nika is just more willful than other dogs.

Right?  Umm, …watch this video when NikaBleu spent the week with Uncle Jeff.  Grrrr…

You can recognize the owners’ touch when you walk in; the ambiance is Caribbean casual; nicely lit and definitely gives off a good island vibe.  Hula Ranch is extremely spacious as well; diners are scattered about on different levels and there is a nice deck overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

We were greeted warmly, drinks arrived, and then came the problem I love to have; what to choose from the menu!  We selected a couple of appetizers (and held onto the menu), starting with crab cakes and coconut prawns.  Flavorful and generously portioned.

My boyfriend loves coconut, so we had to try a dish with coconut rice as a side.  I was not overly enthused (Darryl is the cocnut-nut), but let me tell ya.  It was perfection; the waitperson generously brought another large portion when we asked.  Wow.  The coconut is browned and it makes it taste, well, delicious.

The evening went on to become a lot of fun;  my boyfriend’s name is Darryl, and the waiter’s name is too (although it is spelled differently.  Then we find out the chef is another Darrell (I may have messed up the spelling).  Anyway, we were introduced to him by Joe, the Manager,outside the restaurant . We raved about that rice.

 Turns out the Coconut Rice has had a lot of attention:  Rachael Rae visited the Hula Grill and really wanted the recipe.  Guess what?  She couldn’t get Darrell to talk.

And, again, …Guess what?  Darrell gave us the recipe, late on a windy Saturday night outside the Hula Grill, and me with my Flip Mino.

2-8 oz blocks of cream cheese, softened; 1/2 c chopped onion; 1/2 t black pepper; 1 t crushed red pepper flakes; 1 c chopped artichoke hearts ( a can, after trimming stems); 1 t garlic powder; 1 t Tabasco sauce; 1 c fresh grated Parmesan.

Mix all ingredients, and heat in a small crockpot for 2 hours.

It's nice and zippy, without being too hot.

Duration : 0:6:26