Shup Up. I'm Food Drunk!

Rosebud - Somerville, MA
http://rosebudkitchen.com/

      Finally! I got to go to Rosebud in Davis Square. I've been wanting to since before their remodel last year? The year before maybe? I can't remember. Jimmy asked me on Sunday if we could go to Rosebud someday. I said, "how about tomorrow?" Deal.

    From the outside, Rosebud looks like a cute little diner with the silver dining car exterior. lnside, however, it's actually very big and extends pretty far back from the street. I was surprised. The decor is not the sunflowers, roosters and pie I anticipated (they are known for their pies), but instead it was super rustic, hipster chic. They had so many different types of lightbulbs, mason jar candle holders and animal sculls and farm tools on the walls, yet these beautiful red leather booths. It had a really relaxing feel, but seemed out of place in the dining car.

Lobster Hush Puppies

     To start our meal, I wanted the lobster hush puppies because hush puppies are about the 10th best thing ever on a menu and lobster is the 11th. The hush puppies hit the spot on a cold day. They were big, which I liked, and had a slight lobster flavor but there weren't any chunks. That part was sad. I liked that they added whole kernels of sweet corn to them. I love when people do that. I wanted more corn and lobster though and less oil infiltrating into the hush puppy itself. I like them when they're a little less oil soaked. They also apparently had bacon in them, but I didn't get that flavor at all. They were served with a smoked paprika aioli which was delicious. It had a really subtle smokey flavor which was really nice. These were good, but didn't compare to those from Hyman's Seafood in Charleston.

Texas Rachel in a Skirt

     For dinner, I went with the Texas Rachel in a Skirt which was smoked brisket, BBQ onions, horseradish sauce, and creamy slaw on rye. AND it was in a cheese skirt. Neither of us knew what a cheese skirt was, but it was just what it sounds like. It was a ring of crispy cheese surrounding the whole sandwich, and it was pretty close to my favorite part of the sandwich. The sandwich itself had incredible flavor. The meat was delicious but it wasn't as tender as I had hoped. It was broken into some bigger chunks and not tender enough to rip apart when I took a bite, resulting in pulling half of the meat off the sandwich with each bite. That could've been mediated by just shredding the brisket a little bit more. The BBQ onions seemed more like just really caramelized onions. They were really sweet, and I loved the way they paired with the creamy slaw. The slaw added a good crunch to each bite too. I'm bummed about the horseradish sauce though. I didn't taste it at all, and I was really excited about it. Admittedly I forgot about it when eating it, but the flavor wasn't enough to stand out to me either. Lastly, the bread was a little too crispy and oily for my liking. It was just pretty greasy, and I would've loved a slightly toasted piece of bread instead, especially because there was plenty of juice from the meat and slaw. Overall a great flavor, but the textures were not where they needed to be.
     Jimmy went with the hanger steak, which was delicious. It felt like a really clean cut of meat, and it was cooked perfectly medium rare. It was paired with potato, pablano, and onion hash with swiss chard. I really would've liked more swiss chard and pablano, but the hash was fabulous. A little salty but super savory.

The chocolate cream pie and Dutch apple pie. 

     Rosebud's is known for their pies. Apparently they're "world famous," but I wouldn't say that were the best I've ever had. I got the Dutch apple pie which was tasty, not too sweet, and the apples maintained a perfect texture. Not too overdone and not too hard. I think they used some more lemon for the insides of the pie than I'm used to, so that slightly sour flavor was different but interesting. I was hoping for more crumbles on top, which is obviously the best part of a Dutch apple pie. I also wished it came warm. The top of the pie was a little warm, as if they they stuck it in the oven for a minute, but the inside was pretty cold. We also tried the chocolate cream pie which was decent, and the dark chocolatey cream was rich and beautiful like a more dense chocolate mousse. The crust wasn't that great though. Sadness. I'm love crust.

Thanks For Putting Up With Me For A Year

Smith and Wollensky - Boston, MA
http://smithandwollensky.com/

Rosemary buns. Look at them. Have you ever seen something more beautiful?

     I wouldn't say we're very traditional, but for our one year anniversary, David and I wanted to go someplace nice for dinner where we could get all fancy, since that is not the normal for us. I spent hours (the day before) doing some extensive internet research and using my phone-a-friend lifeline in order to find just what we wanted. In the end, Smith and Wollensky was just the place. It is one of Boston's best steakhouses, and the location we went to was inside a castle in Back Bay. Yes... an actual castle. It was built in 1891 and served as the headquarters for the First Corps of Cadets. It honestly had a very unique, European castle feel with its intricate wood carvings along the walls and ceilings, statutes, and art. We were so out of our element it was hilarious.
     On to food. I was so excited for the complimentary bread and was ecstatic when it came because it was perfect. It was a bunch of rolls in the shape of a flower, it was fresh baked with a slightly crispy crust, and it had a hefty dose of rosemary and salt on it. Each roll was so flavorful because of the oils assisting with the crispness of the crust and the herbs that there was no need for butter (even though we still used it and it was still delicious). While a necessary element, the only thing I would change would be the coarseness of the salt. Sometimes the salt chunks were far too big that they were almost painful on your tongue.

Too quick of a picture means it smelled too good to
postpone any longer. 

     As an appetizer, we got the Wollensky salad that had a beautiful light dressing, lots of vegetables and little fried potato chunks on the sides. It was the perfect start. For our meal, the highlight was the 24oz dry-aged ribeye for 55 dollars. Yes, 55 dollars. I was so excited for David to have a steak like this because it was his first steak of this caliber. This ribeye was perfectly medium rare and was as tender as can be. Each bite just melted in your mouth but was simple in flavor. It felt clean and was beautifully marbled. It was exactly how I would've wanted him to experience a good steak. 

     We also got the salmon, which was served with garlic kale, wild mushrooms and onions. The salmon had a very unique and crispy crust which I couldn't figure out. This dish was also a tad salty for me, but on its own, the salt level would've been perfect. My favorite part was the mushrooms. They were some sort of different wild mushroom that I'm not sure I've had before. But they were soft and chewy and full of flavor.
     As a side, we got the truffled mac and cheese with the little cracker crumbs on top. It was like a big fat rich punch in the face. So rich. So delicious. Salty again, but delicious. the cheese and noodles were on the more dry side, which I like as opposed to the noodles swimming in a goopy cheese sauce.
     I'm sure dessert would've been spectacular, but there was no way. Smith and Wollensky will probably be a once in a lifetime thing (primarily because of the $$$), but it's worth it. The atmosphere is great, the people watching is fabulous and the food is even better.

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Al Dente - Boston, MA

http://www.aldenteboston.com/

The Al Dente Special

     For Head of the Charles this year, we had more alumni than ever before come into town. It was like a big happy reunion. Add rowing and it's one of the best weekend's of the year. Plus, it gives me excuses to go eat at restaurants with the nomads. This year Kevin organized a dinner at Cambridge Brewing Company (which I've written about before) and Meagan organized one to Al Dente down in the North end (Boston's little Italy). I've heard this place was good before, so I was very excited to finally true. It's a very typical north end restaurant in that its a small, family run restaurant with a dimly lit dining room and charming music playing overhead. The free bread was abundant and the dipping oil (which unfortunately showed up when I was already 4 rolls deep) took me 6+ rolls into a bread coma before the food even arrived. 

     David and I split a meal, which was smart financially and logically (especially after the bread fiasco). We ordered the Al Dente Special which was sautéed chicken, veal and shrimp tossed with broccoli, mushrooms, red and yellow peppers and artichoke hearts in a white wine vinegar butter sauce...all over pasta... obviously. Another win for wine sauces in my book. They're making a comeback with my taste buds (I'm sure the whole "butter" part of "white wine vinegar butter sauce" probably helped it out a bit). All of the meats and veggies were perfectly cooked and went so well together. I liked how many elements there were to the dish and the variety of flavors. I all tasted very fresh, with the slightly rich sauce to level it all out. I was very impressed with Al Dente and would definitely say it's one of the best restaurants I've been to in the North end so far. That gnocchi from Euno still writes my love songs.