Where Do I Put This Lime?

Roxy's Grilled Cheese - Allston, MA
http://www.roxysgrilledcheese.com/

How cute it this?

     So Roxy's started out as a food truck and now has a brick and mortar location near my apartment! Bummer! I've never been to their food truck, but I've seen it around town a million times and never heard a bad word about that heavenly childhood staple... the grilled cheese. Meagan went a few times when she lived here, and she never understood why I didn't just walk down the street and go get a grilled cheese if I wanted to try it so bad. She had a good point. I don't know why.
     Regardless, David and I were starving after a sick concert out on a boat in the Boston Harbor (we went to see Knife Party... but they never really came on... wth). We got an uber straight from the cruise back to Roxy's in Allston trying to beat the clock and make it there before they closed at 11. The restaurant is typical of a sandwich/burger shop with a long counter and plenty of wooden tables along the side. It's all very simple, and the workers were very accommodating to us taking part in this grilled cheese experience even though they probably just wanted to go home at 11pm on a Friday night. We're the worst.
     Of course, David wanted the grilled cheese with the braised short rib. It came with fontina cheese and caramelized onions. I love all these things (fontina cheese is one of my favorites). They really loaded in this nice and juicy shredded rib meat, and it was delicious. It wasn't so juicy that it got the bread soggy, and it also wasn't dry. It had the perfect moisture level, they melted that cheese like pros, and the caramelized onions added a subtle sweetness to the sandwich. It was heavenly.
     Just to be different, I ordered the Allston, which was goat cheese, fig jam, caramelized onions, and arugula. This sandwich had so many unique flavors in it. It was crazy complex, but almost too much. While I love caramelized onions, I don't think they belonged on this sandwich. You lose their subtly sweet flavor because they were overpowered by the sweet fig jam. I would've preferred less of the fig jam simply because of how sweet and overpowering it was. I loved the fresh addition of the peppery arugula. Another bummer about this sandwich is that, because goat cheese naturally gets rather runny when heated, it's tough to keep it contained within a sandwich. It's especially tough when the sandwich makers have grilled the bread to such golden perfection that the edges of the bread stiffen up (great job guys), and therefore each bite becomes a eruption of goat cheese and fig jam. But the runniness of the cheese is no fault of Roxy's. This sandwich idea is a great one, but I just wish I could have kept more of the contents in between the two slices of bread and not all over my plate and table.

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Ariana - Allston, MA
http://arianarestaurantboston.com/

Manu, flatbread, and the dipping sauces

     First, a small story. Araiana used to be over in Brighton, and I remember seeing it when I first moved to the area. I have wanted to go since, but they moved over to Allston. Jimmy and I were looking for a place to go eat once, and I wanted to try Ariana so I called to make sure they were open after their move. They said they'd be open in two weeks, and guess what... two weeks later they called me back just to tell me they were open now, and I could come in. How cool is that? Who does that?!? I was so impressed.
     So finally, after going to Antonia's art show just up the street, David and I went into Ariana to check it out. It's a fancy little place that serves up Afghanistan cuisine. Their dim mood lighting, white table linens and blue water glasses made us feel elegant in our running shorts and t-shirts.

Korma Challow

     They brought a basket of (what looked like) homemade flatbread and served it with a sauce trio that included some sort of a walnut pesto, a sweet chili sauce and a cucumber yogurt sauce. That walnut pesto was the bomb. Too made David couldn't eat it without exploding. As an appetizer we ordered the Mantu, which was kind of like a ravioli. It was their homemade pastry shells (that's impressive in itself) filled with onions and beef, served in a shallow pool of yogurt and topped with carrots, yellow split peas and beef sauce. Excuse me? These were incredible and so full of flavor. The pastry shells were very thin and tender and the combination of the veggies and beef was so delicious and savory. It was all very light too. Generally in American/Italian cooking, things involving pastry dough and meat sauces tend to be pretty heavy and filling, but this was light and the perfect little appetizer.
     For the meal, I ordered lamb. Duh. I got the Korma Challow with was leg of lamb sautéed with onions, tomatoes, garlic, green beans, potatoes and spices. It was incredible. It was basically what I expected as far as Afghanistan cuisine in that it was some sort of meat in a tomato based sauce with veggies and a multitude of spices. One thing I noted right away was the complexity of spices in everything. Afghanistan food must generally use a variety of spices we don't use here because there were flavors I couldn't label. Anyway, the lamb was so tender and full of flavor like a good quality chunk of lamb. You won't get that everywhere. The dish was served with rice and lentils. Normally I'm not crazy about rice, but this long grain rice was fluffy and rich with flavor and a unique individualized texture. The little cumin seeds added a great flavor too.
     Ariana was quite impressive. From the atmosphere, to the water glasses, and to the food and flavors, I was impressed each step of the way. I was even more impressed with David's willingness to expand his palette. He's getting there.

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Stephanie's Village Pancake House - Rowley, MA
http://www.villagepancakehouse.com/

     Before heading out to see some of the mansions for the Massachusetts Trustees of Reservations free open house day, I let David pick a breakfast spot. Normally this is my job, but I was "busy" or something and wanted to see what he could come up with. He knew that if we were traveling out of town (or basically whenever), I definitely wouldn't want to go a chain restaurant. He was right, and he picked a great place! We went to Stephanie's Village Pancake House, which is actually an old house that was built as a saltbox in 1660. It was renovated into a colonial home 40 years later and is still nearly the same today. When you walk in the front door to the restaurant, you're actually walking into what looks like the old living room of the house. As our waitress guided us to our table, we wove our way through hallways, the dining room, and other various rooms until we got to what looked like an old bedroom with a fireplace. It was literally the cutest restaurant I've ever seen, and it was jammed! Everyone was there. I was so excited. I was so proud of him.

All breakfast. All the time. 

     For breakfast I ordered the Quick Start which was very simply a small omelette with cheese, bacon, homefries, and a fruit bowl. I also got a side of pancakes with strawberries on top because I couldn't not get pancakes at a pancake house (unless it's Ihop...ew). The omelette was kind of silly, to be honest, but I should've expected it. The menu said it was just a plain omelette with cheese and that really was it. Just eggs folded in half with a sprinkle of cheese. The homefries were pretty good with their crispy uneven edges. Bacon is bacon. The fruit was fresh and great, and I love ending a breakfast meal with it. But my favorite part was the pancakes. They were light, fluffy and mildly sweet with strawberries on top (and no not the stupid syrupy type strawberry topping that shouldn't even be considered strawberries anymore). The only thing that would've been better would be fresh strawberries. The best part though was that they served REAL maple syrup. You never see that. Ever. Unless you want to pay extra for it. Not here. Stephanie knows what's up.
     I'd highly recommend Stephanie's if you're ever up in the Rowley/Ipswitch area and are looking for good food. Come for the pancakes, the atmosphere and the history.

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Rosa Mexicano - Boston, MA
http://www.rosamexicano.com/boston

What a goof. Carnitas were great though.

     Meagan is such a weirdo. Look at this picture. This was taken after our waiter grabbed Meagan's lime that we sneakily put in a cup/candle holder thing in order to hide it. I don't know why it was so funny but it was.
     Rosa Mexicano is a big restaurant down in the Seaport. I've seen it once or twice, but I honestly assumed it was a chain so I never went. However, today was different. We had just gotten out of the Institute for Contemporary Art, we were weirded out by the things we saw and needed to eat things to feel better. This is when I learned it was in fact a chain, but it was delicious, and I will tell you about it anyway.
     First of all they gave us a complimentary appetizer sampler which was some sort of shrimp on a corn chip with a mango sauce and pickled cabbage. It was ok, but it's the thought that counts. The thought to refill the delicious, hot chip basket gave them a few more points too. We just split an entree which was their Carnitas; slow-braised pork with cilantro, white onion and grilled pineapple. It came hot to the table in a cast iron skillet with handmade corn tortillas. We were given a generous portion of pork, nice hunks of pineapple, and a separate bowl of baked beans, rice, salsa and three kinds of sauces included a spicy habanero one, a thin salsa verde and sour cream. I'm completely guessing on those first two sauce, but it's what I'd guess they were.
   

The complimentary appetizer. Had to be careful not to fill up before the meal.

     The presentation of this whole dish was beautiful and quite overwhelming! There were so many flavor combinations to make. It was thrilling. Pork and pineapple always amazes me. It's such a great combination. The pork was moist and peppery and the pineapple had the subtly caramelizing edges. Those refried (black) beans were incredible! Honestly the best refried beans I've ever had, and I don't know why. They were so smooth. Maybe they were so good because they were black beans rather than the other beans that are generally used. I was so happy there were leftover beans because I wanted to eat them by the spoonful while sitting on my couch.
     The whole meal was excellent and filling, even when split between two people. The atmosphere was lively. The diving man sculptures affixed to the wall fountain behind Meagan were mesmerizing. All in all a good time.

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Ironside Grill - Charlestown, MA
http://www.ironsidegrill.com/

Veggie Burger from Ironside Grill

     I don't think I experienced Ironside Grill for all that it can be. Mantas and I went for lunch one day when we were on a job in Charlestown.  Although its name has evolved, Ironside is one of the oldest remaining restaurants in Charlestown, dating back to 1950. Now, Ironside is a little classy sports bar-like place in the heart of residential Charlestown. It's named after Old Ironsides (the USS Constitution) that sits in the Boston naval yard in Charlestown.
     I expected to encounter a bunch of tourists just out of the Bunker Hill monument and that's exactly what we encountered. Out of fear of feeling too full and gross (and about to move a ton of furniture), I opted for the veggie burger, which was was really just a pre-made patty that wasn't their own. So when a restaurant throws something like that together, you're not really experiencing what they can do, in a culinary sense. However, rather than fries, I got their grilled asparagus, which was probably one of the best simple veggie side dishes I've ever had. It was perfectly tender and just seasoned with salt and pepper. They were great. Ha. Easy to please.

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Tresca's Eating Place - Watertown, MA
http://www.yelp.com/biz/trescas-eating-place-watertown

Denver Omelette, home fries, scali toast and pancakes.

     I ask Jimmy if he wants to go to Wegman's. He asks if we're getting breakfast first. Uhhh.... of course. We intended to go to Deluxe Diner out in Watertown, but the line was out the door. No time for that. So we walked to Tresca's just up the street and sat down right away. Tresca's was a nice open restaurant with a typical diner feel and a bunch of tables. We were greeted by a woman with a charming woman with a heavy Irish accent and quickly confused her with a starving incoherent mumbles. I ordered the Denver omelette which had green peppers, onions, ham and american cheese. I wished it wasn't american cheese, but this was an amazing omelette. Normally I find omelettes, especially a mostly veggie omelette, kind of bland at restaurants, but this was a really flavorful omelette through and through. It was big and stuffed. The veggies were fresh and the slightly crisp edges of the eggs had an amazing flavor as if they had put a little extra butter in the pan. Definitely one of the best simple omelettes I've had at a restaurant. Their homefries were ok. Nothing fantastic. The omelette was also served with Scali toast, which was fabulous. Scali bread is a type of braided Italian bread made primarily in Boston (I just learned this on the world wide web).
     Then as breakfast dessert, we split a stack of 3 HUGE pancakes. I loved them. I don't know what was so different about them, but the batter seemed different. They felt like something more than just white flour, egg, and milk. More rich. Maybe it was the butter.
     As far as breakfast joints go, Tresca's was pretty impressive. I loved the atmosphere and the food was great and super filling. Very pleased. Plus the Irish lady was the cutest.

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Chocolate Chunk Almond Butter Blondies - My Kitchen, Allston, MA

I wish I had a prettier picture of just how amazing these chocolate chunk almond butter blondies were. 

     THESE BLONDIES. THESE BLONDIES ARE THE BEST BLONDIES I'VE EVER HAD. This is a recipe from Oh Lady Cakes. I love her. I made them for Jimmy, Karl, Kevin and I for our road trip to Philly back in May, but I'm sure I ate 90% of them. They were delicious. They were dense, they were fluffy, they were rich in almond flavor, and they were moist. The chocolate chips I used, Ghirardelli 60% bittersweet, were key too. Definitely one of the best things I've made myself in a while.

Chocolate Chunk Almond Butter Blondies

Oh Lady Cakes

3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon potato starch
2 tablespoons refined coconut oil, melted (but not hot)
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons almond milk or milk
1/2 cup almond butter
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup unbleached flour
Dark chocolate, roughly chopped (or Ghirardelli 60% bittersweet chips)
Raw almonds, roughly chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a 5×8″ baking pan with parchment paper; set aside.

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and potato starch, followed by the coconut oil and vanilla extract; mix for about 30 seconds to ensure the starch absorbs any excess oil. Whisk in the milk, until completely combined, then whisk in the almond butter and mix until smooth.

3. Add the baking powder, sea salt, and flour, and mix with a wooden spoon or spatula, just until combined.

4. Scoop the batter into the prepared pan then level with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with chocolate chunks and chopped almonds. Bake at 350˚F for 34-38 minutes. For chewy blondies, bake for 28-30 minutes. For blondies that are completely baked through, bake for the full 38 minutes. Once baked, transfer pan to a wire rack to cool. After 10 minutes, lift bars out of the pan by the parchment paper and cool completely. Cut into 8 squares and store in an air tight container.

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Marbled Peppermint Crunch Cake - My Kitchen, Allston, MA

     

Looks a little rough around the edges. 

     I am awful at frosting cakes. Simply awful. Look at that thing. However, based on the outcome of this cake, I guess I'm not so awful at making it taste good. It was the bomb. I wonder though if it was the perfect texture and consistency because I used cake flour from King Arthur Flour up in Vermont. That place makes exceptional products. The cake was beautifully moist and rich. The peppermint flavor throughout the cake itself and the frosting was subtle. I wished the peppermint candies on top stayed crunchy a few days later, but if you're serving most of the cake the same day you make it, you won't have that problem. 

     I found this recipe on Crepes of Wrath and saved it for a special occasion. This special occasion was really just a thank you to David for trying to figure out what was wrong with my car while I had to work. I was really appreciative. 

Marbled Peppermint Crunch Cake

Crepes of Wrath

Chocolate Cake:

     1½ cups all-purpose flour
     1½ cups granulated sugar
     ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
     2 tablespoons espresso powder (optional)
     1½ teaspoons baking soda
     1 teaspoon baking powder
     1 teaspoon kosher salt
     ¾ cup whole milk
     ¾ cup room-temperature water
     2 eggs
     3 tablespoons vegetable oil
     1 teaspoon peppermint extract

Peppermint Frosting:
     2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
     5 cups powdered sugar
     ½ teaspoon peppermint extract

Chocolate Ganache:
     1½ cups bittersweet chocolate
     2 teaspoons heavy cream

Decoration:
     1½ cups crushed candy canes or peppermint candies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add in your milk and water, beat to combine, then add in your eggs and beat to combine. Add in your vegetable oil and peppermint extract, then beat to combine, scraping down the bowl as needed.

3. Cut out 3 pieces of parchment to fit into 3 8-inch cake pans. Pour the batter evenly among the 3 pans, then bake for 25-30 minutes until set. Set aside to cool.

4. While the cake cools, make the frosting. Beat together the butter, powdered sugar, and peppermint extract, scraping down the bowl as needed, until light and fluffy. Set aside.

5. Place a dollop of frosting on your work surface, be it a cake board or a plate. Place your first layer of cake on the surface and level it off with a serrated knife. Place a large dollop of frosting on the first layer, smooth it out, and sprinkle with ⅓ of your crushed candy canes. Repeat with the second layer, then with the third layer, level it off and use the rest of the frosting to coat the cake. Let the cake chill in the fridge for 15 minutes, then scrape off any excess with a cake scraper or crumb scraper for a "naked cake" look. Place the cake back in the fridge.

6. While the cake chills, melt your chocolate in a medium pot over medium heat, stirring often so that it doesn't burn. Add in the heavy cream very slowly and stir to combine. Spread the frosting over the cake again, and use the cake scraper to scrape off any excess for a marbled, "naked" cake look. Sprinkle with additional crushed peppermint candy, if you'd like, then chill for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

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Paparazzi - Boston, MA

http://www.paparazzitrattoria.com/papa-razzi-restaurant-locations/papa-razzi-italian-restaurant-boston/

Tomato Mozzarella sandwich

     We had a three day move with a great guy in Boston who treated us to lunch three times at Paparazzi, a fancy Italian restaurant over on Newbury St. Day one I had their Pollo sandwich which had grilled chicken breast, basil pesto, tomato, fontina, toasted ciabatta, mixed greens and lemon vinaigrette. This was probably my favorite of the three days. The chicken was super juicy, the pesto was fabulous and I loved the fontina cheese. The greens and lemon vinaigrette added a nice freshness to the savory side of the sandwich. It was a beautiful balance. Day two I got their Polpetta Panini sandwich which had beef meatballs, mozzarella, pecorino romano, pomodoro, mixed greens, and lemon vinaigrette. Now this one was rich. The beef meatballs had a great salty and herb rich flavor and were great with the melted mozzarella and nutty pecorino romano. This sandwich was a little heavier than the chicken though so I needed to save half if I wanted to continue moving furniture all day. Plus I had also gotten their hand cut herbed french fries. So savory. So good. Day three I got their Tomato Mozzarella sandwich with fresh mozzarella, beefsteak tomato, basil pesto, balsamic reduction, toasted ciabatta, mixed greens, and lemon vinaigrette. This sandwich was also great, but I wanted it to be bigger. I loved the freshness, and you can't beat the mozzarella, tomato, balsamic combination. The first two days our customer also ordered some Margherita pizzas. They were very simple. Super thin crust, crushed tomatoes, light cheese, basil and oregano leaves. A great little side snack to pair with the sandwiches. 

Margherita pizza

     Unfortunately, I don't know anything about the inside / atmosphere of Paparazzi, but the food was delicious. 

See Ya Never

Anthem - Boston, MA
http://www.anthem-boston.com/

Orecchiette with roasted veggies and steak

     The Boston Marathon came and went... and so did the all you can eat pasta deals. Sad face. This was the second year that David and I (as non-runners) took advantage of the all you can eat pasta deals that restaurants in the area offer the night before the race. Last year we went to Bambara, which was honestly better than Anthem. Even though it's pretty pricey, Anthem has a beautiful, modern-rustic space in the heart of Quincy Market, and it's often teeming with tourists.
     For the marathon, Anthem had an unlimited pasta deal, but you had to pay extra for meat with each additional bowl. So we got steak added to the first bowl, which was delicious, and we were sad for the rest of the bowls. However, I really liked the combo sauce made of marinara and pesto that they added to the orecchiette pasta. It gave the pasta a much more rich flavor than straight marinara would have. They also mixed in some roasted squash, zucchini and carrots. Bonus.

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BISq - Cambridge, MA

http://www.bisqcambridge.com/

Bazz Hook-Up Board

     After work/school, Zach and I met up for our bi-monthy feeding. We both wanted to try out Bisq, which is a tiny, hip, "restaurant and wine bar" that recently opened near GG. Bisq seems to be semi farm-to-table and focuses on unique, natural, whole ingredients, similar to Commonwealth (which Zach and I also went to once). It's a wooden furniture and mason jars kind of place that serves up a non-Spanish version of tapas, or small plates. 

Top: N'Awlins shrimp toast, Bottom: Lamb ribs

     The waiter sold us on the Bazz Hook-Up Board, which is their head chef's version of a charcuterie board. They had three homemade meats: something similar to a procuitto, a blood sausage like variety, and another resembling salami. All of them were served with toast and absolutely delicious. Salty, melt-in-your-mouth meat. The board also had a chicken liver patte topped with house-made granola, kale and (what I think was) a pomegranate sauce. Crazy combination, but it worked. There was also a glob of lard that was whipped with cinnamon sugar. Yes I said lard. I think it was cinnamon sugar and it was strangely sweet, but delicious, especially when spread on the toast. THAT was melt-in-your-mouth because it was straight fat. That's ok, right? Lastly, they had a few small pieces of house-pickled okra and a whole grain mustard. I liked the pickles because they helped cut the fat in your mouth after eating the other board items. I wished there were more. 

     For the meal we ordered the lamb ribs... obviously. I don't think I've ever had lamb ribs, and these were incredible. I don't know how they even got them onto the plate without the meat falling off the bone because it was out of this world tender. They were super succulent and topped with small pieces of crispy kale and a sour orange glaze, adding some unique texture elements. That glaze was a surprisingly fabulous addition to the lamb. The sweet but sour flavor was delicious with the savory flavory of the lamb. As the second dish, we order the N'awlings barbecue shrimp toast which was mind-blowing. It seems next to impossible to deconstruct this. It was served as two pieces of toast with a thick, rich, cheesy layer that had grilled small shrimp in it. It wasn't barbecue as in the tomato-based barbecue sauce you're probably thinking of, but rather it's considered barbecue because it was cooked on a barbecue. On top they drizzled another slightly sour but sweet glaze and some "sexy scallions." So good. 

     These types of restaurants are difficult to describe because the flavors of things are so intricate and complex. It beautiful. I couldn't believe that lamb. It was so good. Like mind-alteringly good. 

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The Banshee - Dorchester, MA

http://bansheeboston.com/home/

Black angus burger and pub fries

O'Malley's Gaelic fries

     After a year and a half at UMass Boston, I finally hit up The Banshee, the local, favorite bar of a lot of my classmates. After my last grad GIS class I was teaching, all of the students and I went out for some food and beers as our final farewell. I anticipated standard bar food, but this was far from. The Banshee was a cozy little dark Irish pub with a really chill vibe. I loved it, and the menu was so much more than I expected with a little bit of everything from pizzas to burgers and bangers and mash. I'm still in this I-need-a-burger-everyday phase (where I'm not actually eating burgers everyday but I want them) so I ordered their black angus burger that was served with sautéed onions, peppers and mushrooms on a brioche roll. The burger was beautiful. Thick and juicy and the sautéed goodies were the perfect addition. It was served with a side of great salty fries...some soft, some crispy, some a little burnt. I ate half of it all partially because it was 9pm and partially because I destroyed a plate of their O'Malley's Gaelic fries. These were their pub fries topped with cheddar cheese, butcher's cut smoked bacon and a drizzle of ranch. It was stupid good. Stupid good and stupid artery clogging I'm sure but that cheese though...

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The Linden Store - Wellesley, MA

http://www.bisqcambridge.com/

The Linden Special

     There aren't many surprises in my life that are more exciting than when customers offer to buy us lunch when we're working. This time we were doing a job out in Wellesley and the wifey offered to get us some deli sandwiches from The Linden Store. It was their favorite local deli. My lightweight days made me appreciate a deli sandwich I can sink my teeth into more than the average person, so I was pumped. I ordered the Linden Special which was mortadella, prosciutto, salami, provolone cheese, marinated peppers, tomatoes, and oil. It was simple, but delicious. There were so many delicious salty meats that paired so well with the marinated peppers, again that cut the fat of the meats. I think it would've been a little better with some more greenery. Maybe some spinach or arugula. But it was still tasty. A step up from Jimmy Johns for sure. 

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Greenhills Irish Bakery - Dorchester, MA

http://www.greenhillsirishbakery.com/

Irish Breakfast Roll

     A pro to working with such diverse crews is that a lot of them often know where to get great food from their home countries. We finished an onload far too quickly down in Dorchester a couple weeks ago and Mark knew just the place to stop for second breakfast. There's nothing wrong with second breakfast. It was this hopping place called Greenhills Irish Bakery serving up a variety of pastries, breads, and INCREDIBLE breakfast sandwiches. I got their small Irish breakfast roll which was a homemade buttered roll that nuzzled a fried egg, Irish bacon (which is more like what we consider ham but better), Irish sausage and black and white pudding. I couldn't believe how good the sausage was. It was 100% different than the type of sausage you normally buy here in that it was less greasy, more meaty and tasted like it had more spices in it. It was the same story with the blood sausage/black and white pudding. The blood sausage had an incredible flavor partially due to the caraway seeds, which are not a commonly used spice. In both sausages, I really felt like I was tasting the meat itself rather than fillers or fat. Throw it all together with the salty Irish bacon and the egg and it was something dreamy. 

Who Throws A Muffin?

Blue Frog Bakery - Jamaica Plain, MA
https://www.facebook.com/The-Blue-Frog-Bakery-100867203291726/

Bread Pudding Muffin

     I admittedly hate delivering boxes alone on Box Express days. One benefit though is seeing a delicious bakery and immediately stopping without needing to consult the crew. I had just dropped some boxes off in Jamaica Plain and was waiting at a stoplight when I saw this enormous blue frog sculpture popping out of the side of a red brick building. I love frogs, so I was instantly intrigued. I was in the door before I even finished reading the word "Bakery" on their sign.

The Ciabatta

   
     Blue Frog Bakery is a tiny little shop with standing room for only a couple people. They had some incredible looking pastries and a bunch of fresh, organic breads. I saw a muffin that looked like a morning glory muffin (the ones with carrots, raisins, pineapple, apple, coconut and who really knows what else) so I asked for "the crazy looking muffin." She says "oh the bread pudding muffin?" Um... excuse me? Um yes. Give me this godly bread pudding muffin. It was incredible. It was clearly fresh because it was still warm. It had chocolate chips throughout that were still melty. It had a stiff muffin top crust supported by its incredibly dense, and moist core. It was just like the kind of bread pudding you scoop out of a casserole dish. I lost my mind eating it in the van. "Having said that, I do have some thoughts." (name that reference) While I loved the inclusion of chocolate chips, I think they may have detracted from the uniqueness of the muffin. No one makes a bread pudding muffin, so I wanted to taste more of the bread pudding. The chocolate chips were rather abundant throughout the muffin and were very sweet. Their sweetness and abundance seemed to mask the bread pudding flavors. As a suggestion to Blue Frog Bakery, I'd suggest fewer chips or more bitter chips, so they're not as overpowering and masking your ingenious and inventive bread pudding muffin.

      I intended to only get a muffin, but then I read that they won "Best Bread" in Boston for 2015. I got a loaf of their Ciabatta bread which was incredibly soft and delicious. It was so simple and didn't have this distinct mildly crunchy shell you picture most fresh breads having. This bread was so good. Good to the point where I could easily just sit there and eat it plain.  I couldn't stop with the bread and butter. Then again, ciabatta generally has a decent amount of holes inside which make the best little receptacles for your melted butter. No shame.

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Michael's Deli - Brookline, MA

http://michaelsdelibrookline.com/

Michael's Corned Beef Sandwich

     So excited. I've wanted to go to Michael's Deli for a long time, and the time finally came! Cecil and I were out on a Nippon Express job and Nobu dropped us off in Brookline to forage. I brought my lunch, but as soon as I saw Michael's I knew there was no point in trying to fight the urge. Michaels is a tiny New York style deli in Brookline with a delightful staff. The man behind the counter was quite charming and super patient dealing with my indecisive self. I needed the corned beef sandwich though. That's what they're known for. They're a pretty famous name in Boston, as they've been named to Boston's "Best of" list many times and featured in countless magazines and award lists. 

MEAT

     It was delicious. It was rich, succulent, salty and had that little sour hit from the sauerkraut.  I'm trying to compare this corned beef sandwich to that of Katz's Deli in New York, but they're different. Let's start with the meat. Michael's meat was thinly shaved whereas Katz's was thick cut. I think Katz's meat was more flavorful and richer, but I also liked the thin shaved meat at Michael's. It was unique and different, and oh man they loaded it up. It held together in the sandwich better, and I think they layered the sauerkraut and thousand island dressing throughout the layers of meat. Genius. That was the coolest part of the sandwich. I love inventive sandwich makers. Because they dispersed the sauerkraut and dressing throughout, it never got pushed out, which is clearly one of the worst things to happen whenever you're eating a sandwich. The one downside to Michael's sandwich was the bread. Because the meat/kraut/sauce combo was rather juicy, the thin sliced bread got soaked and fell apart quickly. I would've loved a more hearty slice. 

     I also got a spinach kanish to go and had it for dinner the next night. I'm not sure if I've had a kanish before, but it's basically like my grandma's sfeeha; a hunk of dough stuffed with anything you desire. The spinach kanish was pretty tasty, but I wanted a lemony bite with the nutty flavor of pine nuts, like that of grandma's spinach pies. 

     I love Michael's Deli, and I want to go back for that sandwich... or the conversation. 

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In-House Cafe - Allston, MA

http://in-housecafe.com/

     This past Sunday was one of the best Sundays and most "Sunday" Sundays I've had in probably 2 years. What I mean by this is, I woke up, made myself some toast, Jimmy called and we went to breakfast, and I returned home to watch some shows and movies with various people filtering in and out the rest of the day. I did run down to the park to kick a soccer ball around with Tresser and her kids later in the day, completing the great Sunday picture. Anyway, it was just really relaxing because I submitted my thesis the day before and had no guilt (ok minimal guilt) about not doing anything all day. 

     Back to breakfast. Jimmy and I went to this little cyber-cafe looking place over on Harvard Ave which is not really a cyber cafe at all. Idk why I thought it was. I think just because their logo looks like it has a play button in it. I chose them because they had a "fourteen page breakfast menu" which would've been 2 pages if they had put more than 3 items on each page. I'm not mad, it was just kind of funny. Anyway, it was a cool little place in that there were random sized tables and chairs scattered throughout, kind of like you'd expect to see in someone's living room. Maybe that's why it's called In-House Cafe? Anyway, I ordered the Soprano Omelette, which was decent. It had sliced Halal Italian sausage, provolone cheese and caramelized onions. I think I would've liked more onions, more caramelized, and I would've liked them in strings rather than diced up so small. You didn't really get the unique caramelized onion flavor because they were just cooked (if that makes sense). The sausage was tasty, but had the texture of a hot dog. It wasn't a hot dog, but I like when breakfast sausage has that chunky texture.  I felt like the omelette overall was missing some substance. It had a ton of cheese, but I'm thinking the addition of maybe some multi-colored italian peppers would've taken it to that next level and complimented the italian sausage. It was served with some really delicious home fries and toast. However, I wished the toast was buttered. All it had was this little dime sized squirt of who knows what on top. Weirded me out a little. We were going to go for the banana caramel and pecan french toast, but we decided to wait until we got our first breakfast before ordering our breakfast dessert. However, in true Jimmy and Laurissa fashion, we were too full by the end and not patient enough to stand in line to order the french toast. Next time. 

     Overall, In-House was a decent little breakfast joint. Nothing fancy. Nothing special. But a cute little place to pop in for a quick order at the counter breakfast. 

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Dumpling House - Cambridge, MA
http://www.dumplinghousecambridge.com/

     I have a confession. I briefly considered quitting On High Heat. Sometimes I just want to go out to eat or cook something and not take a picture. Sometimes I just want to enjoy the food, and I did just that for the Dumpling House. Long story short, I don't think I'm going to give up just yet. So here goes... Dumpling House is stuck in that mysterious area between Central and Harvard Square in Cambridge. It doesn't get as much as attention as the squares, but it boasts some pretty amazing restaurants like Zoe's, Mass Ave Diner, and Dumpling House.
     I've seen this place quite a few times, and it's always full, so when Alyse came to town and suggested meeting at Dumpling House, I was beyond excited. Not to mention I was coming from work and was starving. I was so surprised how big this restaurant was! And boy did they need all the space they could get. It was packed. We sat at one of the big circular tables with the spinning center table thing. What the heck are those called? Either way, it was great because we got everything family style, meaning we could all share everything and spin it around to each other on the swively table top.
     I want to apologize though, as I have a very limited idea of what we ate. I was starving, got there late and never looked at a menu. Nor did I snap a photo. Either way, we had one plate of some sort of lo mein with chicken which was tasty. Salty. I needed it though. We also got another plate of some sort of fried chicken in sauce (that same food court style asian food you know you crave sometimes but hate yourself after eating) which was delicious and a higher quality than Panda Express type fried chicken. The best part was the dumplings. Hence the name I'm assuming. We got two different kinds. The first serving were seafood dumplings which came steamed in these silver stackable containers. I'll admit I have no idea what's going on when I eat dumplings. You can never see what's inside, so it's always a surprise. These seafood dumplings were good though. Pretty simple, but tasty.
     The other dumplings we got were soup dumplings which Alyse has mentioned many times before. She says they take a cube of some sort of condensed soup, put it inside a dumpling, cook it and it liquifies so that when you bite into the dumpling, it's filled with soup! How cool is that? These were delicious, savory and bursting with flavor. Like chicken soup in a dumpling. Probably my second favorite next to the sauce fried chicken nonsense.
     I wish I had some sort of photo to show them to you, but I don't. You'll just have to trust me when I say, if you're looking for good dumplings, you don't have to go all the way down to Chinatown.

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Punjabi Grill - Cambridge, MA
http://www.punjabigrillma.com/

     Rolando made me do it. Or I could blame Guillermo or Rob. For lunch once day in the middle of a job out in Davis Square, Rob decided he wanted to get Indian food. I brought my lunch, as always, but I agreed to go with them anywhere. We ended up at Punjabi Grill in Davis for their lunch buffet. Buffet. NEVER get a buffet for lunch when you're moving furniture all day. NEVER EVER get an Indian buffet for lunch when you're moving furniture all day. Or maybe just have some self control. Or just don't go to a buffet. We were all dying after, but it was delicious.
     Again, this was during my "I'm not going to write about food anymore" phase, so I have no pictures. Only memories. And because it was a buffet, I have no idea what I ate. So, I'll write about Punjabi Grill from a general standpoint. Everything was super fresh, delicious and exploding with flavor. Their samosas were fresh out of the fryer and the naan was fresh out of the oven. It was incredible. Even the rice pudding was excellent. What made it even better was that my bill maxed out at $10 for unlimited delicious food. This experience just reminded me how amazing lunch deals can be. Forget getting dinner... wanna go get lunch?

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Brown Jug - Revere, MA
http://brownjugrestaurant.com/index.php

     So it's funny because the other day David and I were talking about my food blogging and how some people go to a restaurant, try one thing and then just assume the restaurant is total junk because the one dish they happened to try was not so good. What's funny about it was that quite soon after that we went to The Brown Jug in Revere and had the absolute worst pizza I've ever had. It was their taco pizza. Now I've had an exceptional taco pizza before in East Lansing at Georgio's Gourmet Pizza. Brown Jug's pizza was so far from exceptional. On the menu it said it had hamburger on it. Well... it sure did. They cut up hamburgers and put it on the pizza. If you're going to make it a taco pizza, use ground hamburger and at least add some taco seasoning or something that even remotely resembles the taste of a taco. They used shit cheese. There were a couple chunks of obnoxiously large tomatoes through on top milling about with shards of white iceberg lettuce. Literally nothing about the pizza was good. Not even the crust, and I'm easy to please when it comes to crust. It tasted like trash and made you feel like trash. Tacos would never be that mean.

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Chickpea Sauté - My Kitchen, Allston

Full disclosure: This is not my picture. It's from Girl Versus Dough.
But I couldn't not show you how pretty this dish is. 

     Yes, I'm finally writing about something I cooked! I've been so unenthused about the things I've made recently. However, this chickpea sauté got me out of my funk. I found this recipe on Girl Versus Dough and tweaked it a little to fit my Lebanese heritage with zatar instead of caraway seeds. I think it turned out exceptional and I'd suggest following my recipe. The mint is key. Don't skimp. This is a nice light, but filling dish that's super satisfying. And don't be scared of the olive oil, pepper, yogurt mix. It's a strange but great addition to the whole dish when you dollop a little bit on top.

Chickpea Sauté

1 bunch (about 8 cups) Swiss chard, leaves separated from stems
1/3 cup olive oil, plus more for garnish
4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1-2 tablespoons Zatar
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon olive oil

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Toss in a small handful of sea salt, then add Swiss chard stalks. Blanch stalks for 3 minutes, then add leaves and blanch another 2 minutes. Drain and rinse chard under cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels, then transfer to a cutting board and chop roughly. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add carrots and zatar and saute for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chickpeas and chard; cook another 6 minutes. Add garlic, herbs, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat; add more salt or pepper, if desired.

3. Stir together Greek yogurt, olive oil and some salt and pepper. Transfer chickpea mixture to a serving plate and top with yogurt mixture, an extra drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of black pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

We'll Take the Toucan Pizza Please.

Classic Cafe - Arlington Heights, MA

http://www.arlingtonclassiccafe.com/index.html

The Albanian Omelette 

     I started "training" for a triathlon back in January, and today was race day. It was great. David, Rachel and Catherine came as my little cheering section, and it was perfect. It was a super hot day, but I was ready and super excited for it. Before I knew it, it was over, and I took second in my age group! That was fun. My most proud accomplishment I think was taking third out of all the women competitors for the swim portion. The swim was the hardest part for me to train for because I was slightly over it after swimming in high school for so long. So swimming laps again... alone... with no music or things to look at... wasn't easy from a motivational standpoint. Anyway, this has nothing to do with food. However, after the race we went to the Classic Cafe in Arlington Heights for brunch. This cafe was in a cute little section of town on what seemed to be a main street, but was relatively quiet. It was a family neighborhood restaurant with maybe 15 little tables and had a cute combination of young girls working their first jobs and older ladies who've been waitressing for eons. 

Appleman Tri, Littleton, MA

           Our toast came out first, which was kind of funny. I've never seen that before. I mean, it came out way early, way before the rest of our food, kind of like an appetizer. It was just your standard store bought "wheat" bread with real butter packets (yay!).  For the meal I ordered the Albanian omelette because it had leeks in it! You rarely see leeks at restaurants. Now that I think about it, I'm not quite sure why. They're delicious and add a really unique flavor to egg and potato dishes. This omelette also had meatballs and feta cheese in it. I liked that there were meatballs rather than sausage because sometimes I feel like sausage can make an omelette greasy and that's not what I wanted post race. My only complaint would be that I felt like the feta cheese may be on its way out. I know it can sometimes have a little bit of a bite, but this was definitely sharper than it should've been. The home fries were good. Big chunks of potatoes, slightly cooked with no intention of crispiness, which is fine. They just needed a little salt and pepper. What in the world is that reddish seasoning everyone and their mother puts on homefries? Cajun? Paprika? I need to know these things. 

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Wicked Restaurant and Wine Bar - Dedham, MA

http://www.wickedrestaurant.com/

The Tuscan

     Now that I'm not a lightweight, I generally enjoy going to restaurants when given the opportunity. So when David asked if I wanted to go to this Wicked place to meet a couple of his friends, I happily agreed! Wicked is a very trendy little spot in a big shopping plaza out in Dedham. They've hopped on the band wagon when it comes to locally-sourced, organic ingredients which I think is awesome. It was pretty dimly lit inside, but there were a lot of red, yellow and orange lights and accents throughout giving it a real fire-y feel... appropriate for the pizza focus.

     For an appetizer, we ordered two little baskets of french fries which were so delicious. I don't eat fries often, so when I get them and they're fabulous it makes me happy and feel like they were worth it. They had tons of salt on them, and I like salt. There were a bunch of fry nubs, and I like fry nubs. They were hot. I like it hot. I just really like when there are a bunch of smaller fries and nubs because that means more crispy surface area within a certain volume.

     For dinner, David and I split a pizza. I was in the mood for your standard greasy cheesy pizza, but what we got was much different, but really interesting. We ordered the "Toucan pizza".... well that was David's first attempt at the Tuscan Pizza. It was adorable. Anyway, this pizza had roasted garlic and white bean puree, mozzarella cheese, house smoked pork belly, tuscan kale, red peppers, roasted fennel and a fig glaze. There were so many different things happening on this pizza that it became a little overwhelming for me. The white bean puree didn't bring much flavor, but it added a pastey texture to the base of the pizza that I wasn't real keen on. The combination of the smoked pork belly, kale, peppers and fennel was the best part, in my opinion. You know, pork belly is loaded with fat, so it added this salty, rich flavor to the lighter veggies. As far as the fig glaze, I definitely could've done without that. It was really sweet, and it didn't seem to mesh with the rest of the ingredients on the pizza, especially the salty pork belly. I like figs, but it was almost adding a dessert-y element to it. It could've gone really well with the rest of the ingredients (minus the pork belly) if the pizza had goat cheese on it instead. Don't get me wrong though, the pizza was delicious and unique, the crust was simple, and had the perfect amount of tearability. That's not a word, but I don't know how else to describe what I'm thinking because I'm thinking of tearability. The fries were awesome and the atmosphere was lively and inviting. If you're out that way, I'd definitely recommend a stop at Wicked. 

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The Galley Diner - South Boston, MA

http://thegalleydiner.com/

Kielbasa, homefries, eggs and toasts

     Sometimes I add restaurants to my list for some reason, and then I forget why. Maybe I read about them someone, maybe someone told me about them. Who knows. In this case, I think I read that they were voted Best of Boston in 2014 for something. After my trip home to Michigan, David picked me up from the airport and took me to breakfast (but I chose the place). Since I was heading to school, we stopped at the Galley Diner in South Boston. On the way there, we both definitely thought we were going to wrong way because we were heading down some slightly run down residential streets. We turned the corner, however, and there she was. A white cinderblock building with an old sign out front. This place was your typical back alley diner, with a few tables and a long bar with stools, where the workers have been on deck for 25+ years. They were super nice and the food came really quick, which is always a plus when you're getting breakfast. No time for messing around. 

Outside of The Galley Diner

     I ordered the kielbasa, 2 eggs, homefries and toast. The kielbasa was good, but it was much more fatty than I'm used to and not as good as the kind my family gets. I'm a little spoiled in that respect though because my grandpa knows where to get the good stuff back in Detroit. The homefries were pretty good, but I would've liked a little bit more of them, and more of them with some crispy edges and things. In the most lame way, my favorite part was the pumpernickel toast. Why? Because it was real butter. They used real butter on the toast which wins you HUGE brownie points from me. You just don't see that all that often. Overall, the Galley Diner was good, but nothing crazy special. Admittedly, I did order your standard run of the mill breakfast, but I think it's safe to say they're a good place to go if you're looking for a quick, satisfying breakfast when in the area. 

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Fire+Ice - Cambridge, MA

https://www.fire-ice.com/

     Birthday. It's my birthday. Well, it was and for your birthday, Fire+Ice gives you a free meal (if you sign up for their newsletter... which I did... along with nearly 10 others in order to get free birthday food). So on my birthday, I went there with David, Mary, Jimmy and Eric. Fire+Ice is very similar to Mongolian Barbecue in that you fill a bowl with meats, veggies and things and take it to a big circular stone grill where they cook it in front of you. Basically it's a big stir fry station and it's amazing. Plus, it's unlimited, so you're meant to feel almost miserably full when you leave (right?).

     The Fire & Ice we went to in Harvard square is one of 5 locations throughout the country, so it's not as big as the Mongolian Barbecue chain. The restaurant itself was in the basement but the general atmosphere is pretty lively as people are wandering around grabbing food and the chefs are situated in the middle cooking up 10-20 dishes at a time. Because each bowl is different and unique, it's tough to describe each. However, overall, I didn't think it was as good as Mongo. Fire and Ice had a decent amount of meats, but most of them were coated in some sort of marinade or spices. Normally this would be fine, but there's a station with a bunch of other sauces you choose to throw in to the whole dish, so it was tough to choose a sauce that would go well with, for example, the "chili lime chicken." Honestly I can't remember if that was a flavor of chicken they offered, but there were a few meats with very specific flavors that made me question how you'd pair that with a sauce. They had a bunch of different sauces, but many I wouldn't have thought to put with this kind of food, like alfredo or honey mustard. I assume, however, that this allows for more customization, in that, you don't necessarily have to get a typical stir fry like dish (more like Mongolian) but that you can also create a dish like a chicken, broccoli alfredo or something. I was bummed though that they didn't have as many shaved meats, like shaved pork. I like them thinner, and I think that's more typical of a lot of authentic stir fry. And they didn't have lamb. That was the saddest part. 

     All the dishes I made were very tasty, and I loved the fresh fish options they provided, like big hunks of tuna. They also had a sandwich bar, where you could get full burgers and other things if you wanted to. I didn't partake in that (or the salad bar) but this place provided a huge variety of cuisine options. I'd definitely go again, and maybe take a photo next time. Until then, this old, blurry picture from an MSU Crew fundraiser at Mongolian Barbecue will have to do. Go Green!

It's Hard To Hold Back When You Know

Frank's Suffolk Diner - Revere, MA
http://www.frankssuffolkdiner.com/ordereze/default.aspx

FEAST

     Go to Frank's Suffolk Diner. This is the cutest, nicest, most delicious diner I've been to in Boston. Maybe ever? David and I were on a quest to use up my free coupon (yes another coupon) for a stack of Ihop pancakes but the line was so far out the door and we didn't have time for that (literally... I had a plane to catch). So we headed back to Frank's Suffolk Diner, which we had passed on the way. Frank's is in this little tin box with red accented windows. It's adorable. Inside, it's your standard red, white and black diner colors and is kind of shaped like the inside of a train car. The kitchen was right behind the counter, so you could see them prepare all of your food, which I thought made it feel extra home-y. The staff was also super friendly right off the bat, and our waiter was actually the owner. She wasn't Frank, but she bought the place and fixed it up, as it had been closed for 4 years or something.

Banana chocolate chip pancakes

     Anyway, they had an incredible breakfast menu with some really unique things. I ordered the Airport Special... well... partly because I was going to the airport and partly because it sounded great. It was two eggs any style with bacon, homefries and a "short" stack of banana chocolate chip pancakes. First of all, the bacon was great. It was meaty, thin, and crispy just like I like it. The homefries smelled so good and really were HOMEfries. By that I mean that they were cut there (as opposed to coming frozen in a bag), they had the skins on them, and they were cooked on their grill. Some places deep fry them and I think that's just silly. I think my favorite part was the stack of pancakes. They were not "short" as described. They were fat and fluffy (but not too dense like a buckwheat pancake), full of freshly sliced bananas, and had the perfect amount of chocolate chips in them. Sometimes too many chips make it feel too much like dessert, but these were still light, sweet and didn't even need syrup.
     David got some tasty items he let me try too. His Tex-Mex omelette was HUGE and full of beans and ground beef. Uh. Yum. Protein. His s'mores stuffed french toast was insane. They took two slices of bread, dipped in egg and GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS, stuffed chocolate and marshmallow between the two and cooked it. Simply madness. It was delicious, but super sweet. A few bites was plenty. I wanted to put peanut butter in it.
     As I said, go to Frank's. Even though it's not owned by Frank. This lady knows what she's doing.

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Earl of Sandwich - Boston, MA
http://stores.earlofsandwichusa.com/massachusetts/boston/boston-common.html

     Right after finishing the Walk for Hunger (my first walk for hunger) I thought... eh, 20 miles wasn't that bad. Within a few hours of stopping however, I realized I was in for more pain than anticipated. Regardless, once we finished, the Gentle Giant gang broke up and I headed straight for Earl of Sandwich to use my free sandwich coupon (love the coups) I got for signing up for their email list. I went through a newsletter binge a couple months ago and signed up for all the different restaurants that give you things on your birthday, but many of them require you sign up well before the actual day.

The Full Montagu

     Earl of Sandwich sits in the middle of the Boston Common (America's first public park) in a octagonal concrete building. It's odd. I wonder who Earl is. Anyway, you just walk up to the window to order and can go watch the goofballs play Quiddich is the field behind it (I DO NOT UNDERSTAND). To get the full bang for my lack of bucks, I got their Full Montagu which had roast beef, turkey, swiss, cheddar, lettuce, tomatoes and mustard sauce (not sure what that really means). Now I figured this sammie would be pretty standard. Maybe like a step up from Subway, but not as good as the mom and pop deli down the street. It was much better than I expected though! They did something genius I've never seen before. So I have two meats and two cheeses right? They put one type of cheese on one side of the bread and topped it with the meat. Then did the same thing on the other side with the second meat and cheese. In the middle the put all the veggies. Why was this great thinking? Because then when they went to grill it, the cheeses were the closest to the heat source (whether flipped or not), while the veggies were in the middle just chillin' and staying cool. So smart! I could tell the deli meats weren't super high quality, but the construction of the sandwich was just so impressive.

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Met Back Bay - Boston, MA
http://metbackbay.com/

Short Rib tacos, Pork Carnitas taco, and chips & salsa

     Every now and then Malcolm and I like to get together and catch up since we don't live together anymore...which is sad. It was a Tuesday, and apparently he's a big fan of the Taco Tuesday special Met offers. So I headed down to this swanky, dark joint at the corner of Darmouth and Newbury St, felt really out of place and just all around not fancy enough for an evening on Newbury. Either way, the inside of Met was really unique. In the downstairs area, there were two bars. Hanging from the ceiling around each bar was a glass case with goodies inside. The larger bar had bottles of liquor sitting inside the glass, and the smaller bar had mason jars full of veggies and other pickled things. Also hanging near the smaller bar was an enormous leg of meat that looked like it was aged. I have no idea if it was real or not, but it sure was strange. This second bar was definitely meant to give off a sort of butcher/wine & cheese/farm vibe but in a classy way. I dug it.
     For Taco Tuesdays they do 3 tacos for $6, so we got two different kinds and split them up for maximum flavor experience. I ordered the pork carnitas tacos which came in a grilled, soft shell and had a pleasantly surprising amount of carnitas in them. This meat was very different than other carnitas I've had before in that it was much more juicy and stuck together, rather than being moist to dry but fibrous and breaking apart. This also had a slightly smokey flavor from the chipotles. The best part was the roasted pineapple chunks they threw in. The caramelized edges added a sweetness that went perfectly with the spicy meat. Malcolm ordered the short rib tacos, which were served in a larger than normal crunchy taco shell. Inside, they stuffed their short rib meat that was apparently braised or marinated in coca-cola. Yes. Coke. I've never heard of that before, but it makes sense! It probably tenderizes the meat and breaks it down. I knew there was a slightly sweet taste I couldn't pin point when I was eating them. I also loved the charred onions they added in this one. They lent a nice roasted flavor that went well with the jalapeños.
     We also ordered chips and salsa which was excellent. The chips were definitely homemade and if you've read any of my nonsense about chips before, you know that gets a restaurant a big high five from me. I was also in love with the salsa. The chunks of tomatoes and onions were on the bigger side and roasted, but the tomatoes had the consistency and texture of stewed tomatoes which was different. This salsa didn't have the fresh, cilantro lime flavors you'd normally experience in a salsa. Instead it had a darker, roasted and rich flavor that was really excellent.
     Not only were our tacos $6, but they have a meatball bar on Sundays and $4.99 burgers on Mondays. So obviously that needs to happen because their burgs and fries looked deadly. Can't wait.

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BurgerFi - Boston, MA
http://burgerfi.com/

BurgerFi build your own burger :]

     BurgerFi went in on Comm Ave last summer maybe? I'm not sure, but I've wanted to go since I first laid eyes on it, regardless of the fact that it's a chain. David made a good point that it's very similar in look and feel to Shake Shack. They both serve burgers, dogs, custard and brews, and use the same color palette and look. Also, they both are focused on the principle of revolutionizing the world of fast food, cooking from scratch, using fresh and quality products, and instituting sustainable practices within their businesses. How can you not support that?
     Anyway, Meagan and I had planned to go together, but it never happened, so one day on my way home from work I called Eric and asked if he wanted to meet me there. The inside of BurgerFi kind of has that clean, modern industrial feel with a lot of wood, metal and simple light fixtures. It's pleasing to me. I decided to build my own burger with 2 patties, lettuce, tomatoes, sautéed mushrooms, and pickles. As I ate the burger, I was comparing it to the Shake Shack burger and came to many conclusions. 1) The veggies on the Shake Shack burger were much fresher and more crisp, which is huge for me. 2) The burger patty at BurgerFi was much less greasy and more satisfying. 3) The pickles were a big deal sealer, leading me to conclude that the BurgerFi burger was better. Shake Shack's fries were better though, in that they were more crispy and salty. I like the hand cut, real potato look of the BurgerFi fries, which made me think I'd like them more (that's generally how that works), but they weren't done enough and needed some more salt. Kind of just ... meh.

The concrete was pretty solid

     For dessert (never forget), we got a concrete which is custard mixed with a ton of stuff. This economically makes so much sense rather than that self serve froyo because you pick your custard flavor (chocolate... duh) and can mix in as many toppings as you want. We got a bunch: oreos, brownies, chocolate chips, reeses pieces and whipped cream on top. It was overkill, but incredible. I just wished it didn't melt so fast. You can't screw something like this up. It was spot on.

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Kowloon - Saugus, MA

http://kowloonrestaurant.com/

     So then I went to Kowloon. I went to Kowloon, and I was sad. It looks so cool on the outside though, and actually really cool on the inside too with fountains, volcanoes, and boats everywhere. But the food was definitely some of the worst asian food I've ever had. We went after Catherine's graduation with David's family, so at least the company was good. 

"Who ordered the Pu Pu Platter?"

     Now, I love some good mediocre asian food, but this didn't even hit that mark. For starters we ordered two platters of meat. One was the Pu Pu platter (haha) including things like ribs, chicken fingers, egg rolls, crispy wontons and fried shrimp. But really it was all nearly fried... and all made you feel awful. The best part was the flame in the middle. The ribs were actually decent (they were the only thing that wasn't fried), but I'm curious as to what they were marinated in or what the sauce was. Tasted like applesauce. I'm doubtful that it was. 

     For the rest of the meal we got a couple different combinations of chicken, shrimp, rice, lo mein and other random meats like SLICED DELI HAM or hard dry peas. I don't understand what was happening. Things were covered in some sort of slime. The flavors were partly blah, partly awful. However, the sesame chicken was good. I will say that. It was just intensely fried chicken strips coated in a tasty sauce and sesame seeds. That's the kind of mediocre asian food I like. Thank goodness Catherine ordered that, or else it would've been nearly a complete failure. 

      On their website, they have tons of awards listed for "New England's Best Chinese Food" and such and the hallways within the restaurant were lined with celebrity photos. I do not understand. What was I missing?!