To try and decide each week where and what to eat around the basin can be a challenge – there are so many amazing choices. In this feature we’ll dive into dishes that will surely satisfy those hunger pangs and leave you wondering where to go next.

When people say you eat with your eyes first, this week’s feature is the type of dish that gives you a full belly at first glance. Its playful colors are a precursor for what you are about to have hit your tastebuds, and it also happens to feature one of my favorite fishes.

Starting with the pasta, the vegan bucatini (slightly thicker spaghetti) is crafted in-house with the addition of saffron which gives it a slightly sweeter flavor. It’s wrapped in a spicy arrabbiata sauce which includes fresh tomatoes, Calabrian chiles, garlic, red and white wine before getting tossed with a little bit of cream, guanciale, and sun-dried tomato. Once twirled on the plate, it’s topped with a seasoned and grilled Chilean sea bass and topped with curled bell peppers.

The sea bass is cooked to a perfect medium and with its buttery flakiness, provides a stellar canvas to let the pasta and sauce shine. But even with the slight heat and layers of flavor from the sauce, the delicate flavor of the fish is not lost, letting its mild sweetness melt into your palette.

The combination of the fresh and sun-dried tomatoes can write the book on being balanced. Along with the creaminess, the salty punch you get from the guanciale makes this one of the best sauces I’ve had in a while. But I am also an extreme lover of sun-dried tomatoes, so take that for what it’s worth.

Anytime you can give me seafood and pasta, I’m going to have a good time. But when it’s elevated like this, it’s time to party.

Maggie’s Restaurant and Bar is located within the Desolation Hotel at 933 Poplar St. in South Lake Tahoe. For more information visit desolationhotel.com or reach the restaurant by phone at 530-725-0118.