Santarpio and Bertucci ... Taking Traditional to a New Level

Santarpio's Pizza - Peabody, MA
http://www.santarpiospizza.com/index.html

     Winner of Boston Magazine's Best of Boston 2011 Award for Best Traditional Pizza, Santarpio's was about to be put to the test. But as soon as I walked in, I knew this place was different from the rest. The name sounded fancy, but this place was not. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I wasn't expecting a place as low key as this was. Plain ol' chairs sat at rocky tables, crooked pictures of boxers hung on the walls (the Muhammad Ali kind, not the dog kind) and you ate with silverware that had been poking and prodding at food for years upon years. Opened in 1903, Santarpio's is a neighborhood favorite. Everything about it lived up to that title... or put it in that category. Random music with no sort of general theme bounced off the wood panelled walls as the older male waiter scurried from table to table boasting a smile from ear to ear.

     We came seeking pizza, but at the last minute Margaret informed me we were also getting the lamb hunks. I was sold. There was no way I was going to be unhappy with this place.

     After browsing their half-page menu, we ordered a half cheese, half peppers and sausage pizza... with the grilled lamb skewers on the side... 2 orders. They cooked the lamb on skewers over an open grill. Hot coals sat at the bottom while the worker twisted and turned the lamb hunks roasting over the heat. Getting that perfectly grilled taste. The lamb came out first. The beautiful sizzling nuggets were oozing with juice and perfectly pink (almost red) inside. It's as if they knew exactly how I wanted it. The lamb was paired with a hunk of fresh baked Italian bread and some sweet cherry peppers that had little bit of spice.

     First bite, and I lost it. I tried to keep it to myself though. A chunk of bread, small slice of pepper, and a hunk of lamb made a tasty little sandwich. It seems as though it had been eons since I'd eaten lamb and this down-right hit the spot. Everything about it was good. Lock me in a prison cell for 40 years, never talk to me again, but give me 4 dishes of this lamb business a day and I'll be the happiest woman alive. Finally... just solid meat in my belly.  Nothing was to go to waste. Once the lamb was gone, the bread simply became a medium with which to soak up any and all of the juices left on the plate.

     Then came the pizza. It was definitely how I would describe "traditional." Not perfectly round, uneven crust and toppings (but in a good way), and cooked a little more in certain areas. I started with the sausage and pepper slice. The sausage was their own home-made recipe and it was phenomenal. Full of flavor and not the fat. What stuck out the most for me was the cheese. The cheese was warm and gooey, as it should be, but it was also a little chewy. You know what I mean? Sometimes when you eat pizza, the cheese hardens a little inside your mouth and becomes a little more chewy. To me, that's what quality cheese does when it's used on pizza. It was delicious. And the thin crust....ooooo-eeeee the crust was good. I love... yes I do love when they use cornmeal on the bottom. After not stuffing myself, yet completely satisfied, we headed out. I wanted more. Their food was delicious and this place was comforting. Very home-y. Definitely a place one would like to be considered a "local" at.

Bertucci's Brick Oven Pizzeria - Cambridge, MA
http://www.bertuccis.com/

     Ok, I realize Bertucci's is a chain, and I don't normally blog about chain restaurants, but I want to ... and I need to.... because I've been wanting to go to Bertucci's for forever. Patrick said they have amazing bread, and Mary always talks about them. So... post-Saturday Brookline practice, all my girls invite me out to go have lunch with them at Bertucci's. I'm pretty geeked... and starving. So why not? Because I'm trying to cut weight, that's why. But I couldn't not go, soooo I gave in. Plus... it'll be fun. So we all walk from Riverside up to Harvard Square and 20 of us squeeze into 4 booths within the cramped restaurant. I didn't really even bother looking at the menu too much, because I knew everything looked amazing, and I wanted it all. So I just let my table decide. First out of the oven was the bread. Yesssssss. It was so warm and dense yet fluffy. That doesn't make sense when you read it, I know... but it makes sense in my head. Maybe it's just that my second half roll wasn't baked all the way through. Either way, the rolls were perfect. Very simple, yet had a kind of whole grain-y taste, texture and color. The bread basket came with a plate with some sort of heavily garlic-ed, herb-y dipping olive oil. Smack me in the face with 20 of those rolls a day, and I'd never be unhappy.

     Next out was the mozzarella fritta. This was breaded mozzarella cheese, pan fried in olive oil and served atop plum tomato sauce with fresh basil sprinkled on top. And I thought the rolls hit the spot. The deliciously crisp outside was a simple housing for the warm gooey mozzarella cheese inside. It was perfect. It had been a while since I had cheese. Again, I could've eaten 500 of these.

     Finally came the pizza and our pasta dish. The pasta dish was simply rigatoni noodles, broccoli, and grilled chicken in a garlic cream sauce. Truthfully, not something to write home about, but the chicken was delicious. I think I'm really just in a meat phase right now.

     As for the pizza, we ordered a margarita pizza. This was interesting to me and kind of exciting because I would never order a margarita pizza if it was just myself or me and other omnivorous friends. I was interested to see how this played out. Needless to say, I was not let down. This pizza gave off "traditional" vibe, being oddly shapen and more brown in certain areas than others. Thank you brick oven. The way it was put together was interesting too. I didn't expect there to be blobs of mozzarella cheese just sitting on top. They were warm, but not brown. Not necessarily super gooey, like normal pizza cheese, but more the consistency of, say, gak. Remember gak? Nickelodeon fans? (See below). I'm guessing it didn't taste similar though. The tomato sauce on the pizza had an amazing sweetness, and the basil gave it a freshness. The pizza was not greasy in the least and left a sort of refreshing feeling on my palette. Ending with the crust was never a disappointment, because it was just as if you were eating another glorious roll.

     It was Danna's birthday, so as we were about to leave, they brought out a 5 layer chocolate cake (I had spied it on the menu an hour earlier and had been daydreaming about it since). I can't even describe this cake. It was 5 layers. With some sort of fudge layer within each layer. Dense and dark and rich. It was just ridiculous. I only had a few fork-fulls... bummer.

Regardless of Bertucci's popularity in the Northeast, I loved it.

She has Great Taste

Great Taste - Boston, MA
http://www.bostongreattastebakery.com/

Beautiful Spread

Lotus bean dumpling

Another perk about my job is that my boss is a total foodie. He enjoys trying new foods and taking his employees! No resistance from me. We all met down in China Town looking for some dim sum for brunch. Turns out, dim sum is more of a brunch food than dinner. News to me. If you recall, I've been on one other dim sum adventure a while back. Definitely a cool experience. I was pumped about this one because 11 people eating means tons of dishes to try. As soon as we sat down we had 2 full pots of
delicious hot tea. This was not a dim sum place where they come around with carts and you choose what you want. Instead they made everything fresh to order. I was ok with it. Each dish came to the table in a different type of container. Bamboo bowls, nice china, large platters, etc. Well, there's no easy way to do this. Gotta go with bullets.

Beef noodle on top, Beef stomach on right, Shrimp dumpling on the left

-Beef stomach: Very different than the last beef stomach I had (It's not every day that you can write that sentence). This stomach was a little bit more mild. Not as much a kick to the face with spice. Still chewy. Still delicious.

-Beef noodle: This was basically beef tucked inside what I think was a thin rectangular noodle. The noodle was wrapped around the beef quite a few times and probably steamed. These flattened log shaped noodles sat atop a pile of fresh steamed greens. What kind of greens? Not a clue. They were good though.

-Beef/pork/shrimp dumpling: This dish was one of the prettier dishes. It was some sort of dumpling pull of all the meats of the world. Interesting flavors as they all rolled around in your mouth. 

Shrimp roll

-Shrimp roll: Basically... a deep fried shrimp roll. Shrimp was wrapped in a thin roll and crisped up perfectly.

Fried radish

-Fried radish chunk thing: Alright, think of tofu and hashbrowns, chilis and parsnips. That's what I would guess this was like. This dish came piping hot to the table (literally burned some flesh in my mouth and left hanging skin... gross). What it actually was was shredded deep fried radish cubes. There was that little spice you normally get when you eat a raw radish, but this was hot. They came in blocks life tofu, looked like squared off tater tots, but were white and looked like shredded parsnips. On top of the stack of radish chunks were some scallions and a little fried something or other. No idea. That's all part of the experience, right?

-Beef balls: Hahah. Same as before. Looked like seagull vomit.

Beef balls on left, stick rice from lotus leaf on right

-Sticky rice in lotus leaf: These were so neat! They tucked sticky rice that was chocked full of some kind of ground beef (maybe) with little sausage slices into a lotus leaf, folded it up and steamed it. It was so good! You could taste the fattyness of it, and that's probably what made it so good.

Rice and beef congee

-Rice and beef congee: This was definitely new to me. The rice and beef congee is a thick soup. Kind of reminds me of some sort of chowder with rice. It had a certain lightness to it though that didn't make you feel like you were eating gallons of cream.

Sticky rice in lotus leaf

Lotus bean dumpling

-Lotus bean dumpling: This was similar to the lotus bean dumpling I had before except that this one had an egg yolk tucked within the sweet bean paste. Just the yolk. Definitely unexpected. I love the fluffy dumpling part of this just because it's sweet and light.

-Egg swirly waffle tasting thing: I have no idea what this was. It basically looked like cooked scrambled egg rolled up. Except... that this tasted like a waffle cone. Mmmm so sweet and good.

Tapioca egg lump in front and egg swirly things in back

-Tapioca egg lump: This takes the cake for the weirdest thing we ordered and no one knew who ordered it or what it was. To me, it basically looked like a huge frog egg. A huge, clear, lumpy ball with something in the center. The thing in the center turned out to be another egg yolk. Interesting. And the clear goo all around it tasted like tapioca to me. We all had different ideas of what it tasted like to us, so ... I suppose we'll never know.

Homemade Muesli Bar - 578 Washington St #3

3 cups Trader Joe's Blueberry Muesli
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup honey


1) In a small saucepan, melt peanut butter and honey. 
2) Stir liquid mixture into the muesli. You might have to use your hands to mix it all in.
3) Line a baking pan with parchment paper or greased aluminium foil and press mix into pan. Flatten with a cutting board or plate. 
4) Sprinkle chocolate chips on top
5) Bake at 375 degrees for around 30 minutes. For a crispier bar bake longer. For a chewier bar, bake less
6) Let cool completely and cut into bars. 

What comes around, goes around.

Cornmeal, Rosemary Butter Cookies - 578 Washington St #3, Brighton, MA

     Looking for a light cookie? Different than the rest? I've got to thank Ilse for these. She introduced me to the majesty of these cookies at Amanda's Cookie Swap around Christmas. Now it was my turn to share the love. The only thing I did differently than this recipe is that I didn't use sugar sprinkles and I only added pepper to a couple of them. I preferred the cookies without pepper and just a sprinkle of sugar on top of each.

2½ cups King Arthur unbleached, all-purpose flour  
1 cup fine cornmeal
½ teaspoon fine sea salt

1½ cups fresh unsalted butter, at cool room temperature (3 cubes)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced

coarsely ground black pepper

clear sugar sprinkles 

1. In a large mixing bowl, mix the flour add the cornmeal and salt. Whisk the mixture well to evenly distribute.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar.
3. Add the almond extract, pepper, and rosemary, and mix.
4. Add the flour mixture and mix very briefly on very slow speed, just until a dough forms.
5. Scoop balls of dough, leveling each ball with the edges of the scoop. 
6. You can arrange the dough balls closely together on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for as long as a couple of days, or proceed immediately to baking.
7. Coat a baking sheet lightly with vegetable spray. Arrange 12 cookie balls, flat sides down, 2 inches apart, on the baking sheet.
8. Gently flatten each cookie ball to a ¼-inch thickness.
9. Coarsely grind black pepper over each cookie and then sprinkle each cookie with clear sprinkles.
10. Bake each sheet of cookies at 350° for about 15 minutes, rotating the pan at the halfway point to ensure even browning.
11. Remove from the oven, loosen each cookie with a thin spatula and let cool for 3-4 minutes on the pan. Remove cookies from the cookie sheet and place on a wire rack and cool completely.
12. Store airtight, in layers separated by wax paper rounds, in a cookie tin in a cool, dry place. These cookies improve with age. They keep for 3-4 weeks. Cookies may also be frozen.

Bartley's Burgers - Cambridge, MA
www.mrbartley.com/

     I really do love exploring new restaurants, but every now and then, you just have to go back to those that capture your heart. Bartley's Burgers in Harvard Square. I went twice. Once with Patrick to just celebrate life and once with Joan, Lauren and Mary to celebrate a successful winter training season. How do I describe this? Have you ever been to Applebees? Well it's nothing like that. This place was small, packed, tables the size of a deck of cards, and more  treasures hung on the wall than you could fully observe during a meal... especially during the meal I was about to have. Guy Fieri hung next to Elvis which hung next to a Red Sox jersey. Completely random but unique. The menu lists about 25 different gourmet burgers to choose from in addition to their simpler burgers that are scribbled on a chalkboard hung near the ceiling. The names of the burgers were unique and varied from "The Sarah Palin" to "The Jeremy Linsanity."
     Trip #1. I rose to the occasion and ordered "The Viagra." A 7oz plump, juicy burger with blue cheese sauce, bacon, lettuce and tomatoes. I could go into why I think it's called the Viagra, but I'm sure you get the picture. Juicy burger. Blue cheese. Just remember the last time you bit into something like that. Could be the size. Could be the consistency and color. I'm done. I find it rare at restaurants when you ask for medium rare that they actually cook it right. It seems like no matter what you tell them, they're always going to torch it. Everyone except Bartley's. The burger came beautifully red. Practically still mooing. Finally. The beautiful burger came with fries. Perfect fries. I feel like I've described so many types of fries, and I'm running out of good fry adjectives other than "soft on the inside, crispy on the outside." But that's just how it was. "You gotta get a frappé. There's no choice." OK. Fine, Patrick. The things I'm forced to do. I went with their special called "The Elvis." Not sure why, but it had reeses cups, chocolate syrup and bananas. Mmm mmmm mmmmmmmm! It was awesome. Nice and thick but not too banana-y. Patrick got the cake batter frappé. Bet you can't guess what it tasted like. Exactly.
     Trip #2. I got the "Tim Thomas." Jack cheese burger, chilli, salsa, sour cream and onion rings. As we waited for our burgers, we discussed our favorite condiments. Topping the list were sour cream and salsa. I knew I ordered right. The onion rings came first. I have to admit, I was a little dissappointed. They looked so good. Thin onion slices with a mild coating of batter. They arrived piping hot to the table, but there really wasn't much flavor to them. It was just fried-ness. Oh well. We also got cheese fries. Fake cheese on top of their delicious fries. The fries were better without the cheese. Anyway... onto the burger. DE-licious... and I was so glad. The thing was loaded. I mean loaded with chili and salsa. Half of it fell out and half covered my face and hands. The sour cream was that key ingredient that brought it all together. I never would've ever thought to put it all together, but it was fabulous. It had a little spice, but not too much. Warm gooey cheese. Man... that cheese with the chili. Top notch.
     Overall. Winning experience. Both times. Very happy. More frappé.

Blue Shirt Cafe - Somerville, MA
http://www.blueshirtcafedavis.com/ 

     Testing week had began. We started off with our first 30 minute piece in months. I dropped 2.3 seconds off my average. I thought, it ever I've deserved the Peanut Butter Delight smoothie from Blue Shirt on a weekday, it was today. This time I went with everyone from work when they walked into Davis Sq for lunch. I ordered it anticipating it would be delicious, but I would feel like a cow after. I was wrong. I felt great because it was light and I didn't feel like I had consumed 3 days worth of calories in one drink. It had peanut butter, bananas, chocolate syrup, non-fat yogurt and low fat milk. It was smooth and light but chocolatey and peanut buttery. It wasn't too thick to drink with a straw and I was rather satisfied. Again, one of those restaurants you just have to go back to.


Clover - Cambridge, MA
http://www.cloverfoodlab.com/

     So my boss says to me, "If you're not busy tomorrow evening, I was wondering if you would like to go to a food truck class for my fiance. I'll pay you for your time there and buy your meal." Sometimes I wonder what kind of job I have. How in the world did I land this? I'm not sure, but I'm very happy about it. So after my workout, I scurry up to Inman Square to the Clover Food Lab for a class called Food Truck 102. I got a meal as soon as I got there because I was practically wasting away after running to get there on time. I got their chic pea place and a small loaf of warm fluffy flat bread. The chic pea plate had a chic pea salad, some sort of other salad with tomatoes and cucumbers, a mountain of hummus and fried falafel balls sitting atop pickled cabbage. Let me first provide you some reference. Clover is a vegetarian food business that began out of a truck. They now have 2 restaurant locations across Boston and 5 trucks out on the streets. Clover prides itself on using local, fresh, and organic ingredients when possible and a menu changes with the seasons. Very cool idea. So everything in my hummus plate was super fresh and refreshing. I truthfully have no idea where to even begin. Each part of the meal had so many flavors and textures. Sweet, sour, smooth, crunchy. I could've eaten 1000 of the falafel balls (not the night before a weigh-in though:/ ). The hummus was great. Not as good as my grandma's but definitely more fresh than you normally get in the store.
     In addition to the chic pea plate I also got a cup of their sweet onion soup. Probably the best onion soup I've ever had. It was just lightly sweet, but maintained every bit of onion flavor. It was dark too. Not sure what made it so dark. I also got the hibiscus tea. It was a maroon color, light and sweet. Again, refreshing.
I left Clover A) Educated, B) Full and C) refreshed. It was great. Not a feeling you can always say after eating out.

Martin's Coffee Shop - Brookline, MA
http://www.martinscoffeeshop.com/

     I love croissants. I love french toast. Never have I ever thought of putting the two together. Genius idea. I went into Martin's thinking, "I'm going to get something light" and was planning on sticking to it until I saw the home fries piled up on the grill.. I really don't want to talk about the reason we went to Martin's coffee shop, but Joan and I went to Martin's Coffee Shop in Brookline village to meet some people. Martin's is just a little hole in the wall cafe that's been voted Boston's best a couple years. They had just about anything you wanted on the menu, as far as standard cafe food. Some really delicious sounding sandwiches. Even thought it was 1pm, I had to get a pile of their "Home Fries." This was their standard potato dish with onions. The onions and potatoes were grilled in a way that the flavors of each infiltrated the other. These potatoes were perfectly tender and seasoned with... maybe paprika? It was red. So delicious and hearty.
     The french toast was so good. Very unique. It had the light, airy, flakiness of a croissant, but the look and taste of french toast. Lightly sweet and light in weight. If only I had real maple syrup.

Cachaca Camaraderie

Deep Ellum - Allston, MA
http://www.deepellum-boston.com/ 



     After the 2x(5x5min) erg workout plus standard 4 mile run and weights, I was feeling pretty pooped. But, chicken tenders had been appearing in my life throughout the week. The smell of them, the thought of them... everything. I needed them. I wish I was exaggerating when I say I spent and hour and a half researching restaurants online. I was debating between three and wasn't really sold on either of them. Then the smoke cleared and I remembered Deep Ellum. Supposedly it was good. The moment I set eyes on the menu, I knew I had hit the jackpot.

     The place was skinny and dark. It was modern, yet gave off a rustic and authentic vibe. But this wasn't your typical bar and didn't have the typical bar menu. Every item on the menu was unique. The pairings of flavors sparked my interest. I figured I'd take a look at their drink menu just for kicks. I knew I had to get it as soon as I saw it. The Sao Paulo was Germana aged cachaca (a sugar cane rum), honey ginger syrup, mint and lime. It was a rarity to see cachaca in anything in the states, as far as I've seen. I first experience cachaca in all its glory in a drink called a caipirinha. I first had this drink in Ecuador but it is Brazil's national cocktail. It's made with cachaca, sugar and lime. It was the very first drink I ever learned to make and the second one I had ever tried. I was super excited to finally try something else with cachaca in it, especially in the states. The drink... was amazing. It was sweet but sour because of the lime and the muddled mint was a great addition. I can't say I tasted the ginger honey, but the whole thing was a palatte pleaser. Very happy with my choice.

     As I had planned I ordered the chicken tenders. They were perfect and exactly what I wanted. I wanted huge chunks of meat that didn't make me feel like crap after I ate them. The batter was light and not greasy in the least. The chicken was clean. You know what I mean by clean? I just mean that it wasn't fatty or oily but it was juicy and just... clean. It came with two really unique sauces. One was their own homemade buffalo sauce that was thinner than any buffalo sauce I've had before. I wasn't a huge fan, BUT I was a huge fan of their Maple Hapanero BBQ. It was phenomenal. You could taste both the maple flavor but also the unique spice of the habanero. I'd like to say I could drink it... but that would be weird.

     Karl and I also decided to get their soft pretzel with beer cheese. Have you ever had beer cheese? Me neither, and I can't believe I've gone so long without it. Our 2 pretzels arrived warm with a little salt and nice sized bowl of this cheese. It was a little more thin than your standard fake nacho cheese and a million times more delicious. Initially you got a hit of the beer and a really sharp bite. As the temperature of the cheese dropped, you could feel a mildly gritty texture and it began to thicken. Small chunks began to form at the bottom. I think it got even more delicious the thicker it got. Ultimate pairing with the salt pretzels.

    Karl got their Best Wurst appetizer with one house-made sausage, whole grain mustard and "seasonal pickles." However, I think they were pickled vegetables. The sausage was fabulous! Definitely homemade. It didn't hold together as well as most sausages that were stuffed with fillers. Once you cut this one up, it had a tendency to break apart. Maybe you could call it dry, but it didn't taste dry. Dry makes it sound unappetizing but it was anything but that. So much flavor and again, perfectly paired with the mustard. I was SO HAPPY with my choice. It was perfect in every way. Drink, food, atmosphere, price. A return visit is definitely in order.



Abbott's Custard - Brighton, MA
http://abbottscustard.com/ 

     The perfect meal must be topped off with something sweet. It was time to finally use my $1.00 off a single scoop coupon for Abbott's. I have passed by it multiple times a day for the last 7 months and have yet to go. We caught them at the door just as they went to lock up. Almost perfect timing. They let us in anyway. I wanted the chocolate almond custard, but she "already cleaned the scooper for that one" so I just got plain chocolate. Bummed, but I couldn't complain. So sweet and smooth. Perfect ending.

Sunset Cantina - Boston, MA
http://www.allstonsfinest.com/allstonsfinest/sunsetcantina/sunsetcantina.swf 

     Post City Sports, Kelly, Patrick and I are famished. We were feeling Mexico. This experience was familiar. Another 3000 page menu. Cheesecake Factory? You got it. I thought about being healthy and I had eaten tacos twice that week. So, I went with their South of the Border Fiesta Nachos. A half order, because I was "watching my weight." Boy was it a fiesta. Thank the lord I went with the half order. It was massive. But boy oh boy did they do it right. There wasn't any of that dump one load of cheese on a huge heap of chips business. They knew how to layer at Sunset. I went with the cajun chicken. Great choice. Chips, chicken, cheese, scallions, jalapenos, black olives, lettuce, salsa, guacamole (AMAZING GUAC) and sour cream and repeat. Over and over. But really, the guacamole was some of the best I've ever had. Not sure how they do it. It was just smooth with a little lime-y bite. Very simple. I feel like there were beans in my nachos too. Maybe some chili was included. Such a great combo. I'd have to say... if any nachos have even come close in deliciousness to those my dad and I used to make at home, it was these. Still not just as good but they were amazing. Again, I don't know why I try to fool myself, but I thought, I won't eat this whole thing. Lies. All lies. I demolished it. And attacked half of Kelly's taco salad bowl. Big cow. Moooo so good. So delicious for a late Sunday night. I rarely have anything negative to say about restaurants do I? Hmm.

RVCC (Red Velvet Cheesecake)

The Cheesecake Factory – Boston, MA

http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/  

     So the Rattlesnake on Boylston sounds a little pricey, but he knows I want bread and he knows where to get it. We stiffly shuffled through downtown Boston after closing up City Sports for the night and bust into The Cheesecake Factory. I’ve been before, but only once in Chicago and we sat outside. This was a new experience. Looking back, I seem to recall everything being gold and shiny. Is that accurate? The place must have left a righteous impression on my mind. The menu was literally 18 pages long I believe. 18. How in the world are you to accomplish such a feat with such an empty stomach? It’s exciting to be presented with so many options; yet choosing what you want is just as much a daunting task. Now, I’m looking for healthy options considering CRASH B’s was now less than a week away. The Navajo sandwich.  Warm fry bread stuffed with grilled chicken, avocado, tomato, lettuce, red onion, and mayonnaise. I had never had fry bread but I had heard about in “Losing it with Jillian” when Jillian Michaels (super crazy fitness instructor) visited a Native American family who was having serious issues with weight primarily because of the fried foods they were eating (namely the fry bread). With a weigh-in looming less than a week away, I pushed that thought aside and justified my selection with the fact that it was mainly protein and vegetables.

     Before the sandwich was delivered we were served the bread. Another tough choice. Do I decide what I want to eat first so we can order and it will get here sooner, OR do I dive into the bread. After minor convincing, I went for the bread. Literally. Went for it. Punched the basket clear off the table onto the floor. Luckily, I know Patrick isn’t the type to waste food… and we’re impatient. So we picked up both loaves, I wipe the tears from my eyes, and we eat them anyway… and then order more. Crisp on the outside, soft on the inside. Two loaves. One French baguette type bread and one darker and sweeter bread. I’m not sure what the latter was, but that was my favorite. I’m thinking it was honey that make it sweet. Slather that thing with some butter… mmm! Plus the butter wasn’t super cold like it often is when it’s served at restaurants. Major bonus.

     Finally, my sandwich arrived. The thing had to be twice the size of my stomach. It was huge. I thought, “There’s no way I’m going to eat all of this.” It’s such a waste of time telling myself things like that because it’s never true. Ever. I dive in. The chicken is prime. Juicy with a few grill marks. Key ingredient… the avocado. Brings in a smooth texture to the whole mix. But then again, any onion other than a red onion would have made this sandwich completely different. The fry bread was amazing. Exactly what I expected. Lightly fried, warm, a little crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Cover that baby with cinnamon sugar (or peanut butter) and bring it back to me for dessert. No. We were at the cheesecake factory. There was no question about what was for dessert.

     Red Velvet Cheesecake. RVCC for short. Alternating layers of red velvet cake, cheesecake, red velvet cake, cheesecake. The top and outer edge boasted a sweet cream cheese frosting with white chocolate shavings. A prized commodity. The blend and balance between the cake and cheesecake was perfect. Dense cheesecake vs the light, fluffy cake. Heavenly.

Blue Shirt Café – Somerville, MA

http://www.blueshirtcafedavis.com/ 

     Finally! Finally I was going to allow myself to be immersed in Davis Square cuisine. I swear, at least one of my coworkers goes to Blue Shirt Café everyday and their food always smells amazing. SO, the Thursday before CRASH B’s, ie three days before I need to weigh in, Kena and I decide we want to get lunch. After perusing Blue Shirt’s menu online, it looks as though this would be a wise choice for me. No burgers or fries would go bounding by our table. I felt safe. I knew what I wanted before we got there. Well, what I wanted was their peanut butter smoothie… but 5000 calories and 25 pounds later, I knew that might not be a great idea (exaggeration). So I opted for “The Davis Square” sandwich. Nestled in between two slices of sourdough bread sat a decent three quarter inch thick chunk of solid chicken breast, plentiful fresh spinach, and huge tomato slices, and a sun-dried tomato spread. In general, I wouldn’t say I’m a huge fan of sun dried tomatoes. Well, at least that one sample I had at Costco eons ago kind of turned me off. Anyhow, they built up the sandwich and put it onto a Panini press, perfectly grilling both slices of bread to a deliciously toasted brown. The heat from the press just barely wilted the spinach and warmed the tomatoes. Do you ever notice how in some dishes there is just one ingredient that seems to pull everything together? One ingredient that would completely change how the dish tastes? For me, it’s the mayo in a BLT. In this case, it was that glorious sun dried tomato spread. I’m not sure what else was in the spread (perhaps mayo), but it was amazing. The way the spread warmed up and mixed with the juices of the fresh tomato and spinach was just miraculous. The warm chicken + fresh vegetable + the spread + the toasted bread… MMM. 1+1+1+1=10. It was such a perfect symphony of flavors. Next mission… peanut butter smoothie.

UBurger - Boston, MA
http://uburgerboston.com/boston/ 

     Every time people walk by the register at City Sports with a bag of UBurger goodies I drool. Not kidding. And the smell lingers for what feels like hours. I've been holding off for so long. Waiting for some occurance that warranted satisfying that craving. CRASH B's reward #1: Burger and fries (except for the reward #0.5 which was the 2 boxes of girl scout cookies I bought right outside the arena. Good strategy girls. Genius). After my race, Karl and I headed over. Again, overwhelmed. I seem to be more easily overwhelmed with food options than I used to be. Everything just sounds so good. After a few minutes I could tell the lady taking my order

wanted me to hurry up and she just started asking me which toppings sounded good to me and she helped me build my own. I felt like a kid that always needed her mom to cut up her chicken for her (I was not that kid in real life). Either way, I got a plain old boyguh, with pepperjack cheese, tomatoes, grilled onions, lettuce and grilled peppers. There may have been more. They may have been less. I don't remember... but hey... I just raced a 2k. It's acceptable to be delusional. I feel like we waited an eternity for the burgers but I'm sure it was only a few minutes. Thank goodness I had the girlscout cookies or I might have wasted away to nothing. The burger was great. Not the best I've ever had, but it was juicy and exactly what I had been wanting. A huge meat wad. Nothing crazy. The fries were even better than the one cold fry I nabbed from someone's abandoned lunch one day in the City Sports break room. They were hot, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, but also skinny. Every now and then skinny fries are good. Like biting into a stack of pretzel sticks. Just feels good. Had to leave my mark on the building. 

Tavern in the Square – Central Square, Cambridge, MA

http://taverninthesquare.com/tavcentral/ 

     Went to meet up for some post CRASH B’s (see left image) celebrations. Not intending to eat there, I demolished some serious girl scout cookies, a bag of pita chips and practically an entire jar of peanut butter before I left. Then again, I know in the back of my mind, I’ll probably eat something anyway. Two baskets of mediocre microwaved rolls later, I see that Chris ordered buffalo chicken nachos for $11 and is willing to share. Largest plate of nachos I may have ever seen. It was gargantuan. One huge mound of chips, sweet corn, shredded carrots, fried buffalo chicken chunks, Wisconsin’s entire supply of melted cheddar and blue cheese, and a larger than life dollop of sour cream. A) I’ve never had shredded carrots in nachos, but it makes so much sense. Just like when you order buffalo wings, you always get carrots. B) Sweet corn? Why haven’t I ever thought of that? It was a winning combination. Every part of it. Grab a chip, make sure it has cheese, chicken, corn, carrot and a little sour cream… it’s like walking through a haunted mansion. Risky. Spicy. Unlocking secret doorways along the way. Different flavors with each bite. Even as the nachos got cold, they were still delicious. I was grateful.

The Upper Crust – Boston, MA

http://theuppercrustpizzeria.com/ 

     Months ago I had a pizza craving and Groupon knew it. They offered a $10 for $20 Groupon for The Upper Crust where I spend $10 but get $20 worth of food. However, it still took me months to use the dang thing. I waited until the day before it expired. Close one. Poor Patrick was still debit card-less, so one evening post-workout we met at The Upper Crust. There were soooo many options. All we knew was that meat was for dinner. “The State House: Created for the meat lover, a combination of hamburger, pepperoni and Italian sausage.” Did it have any veggies on it? Didn’t know. Didn’t care. Might as well have been our obituary because we ate the whole thing. The whole “18 inch” large. I absolutely refuse to believe that thing was only 18 inches. Look at the picture. It’s twice as wide as me. Anyway, the crust was thin, but not soaked through with sauce like one may expect. The hamburger? Crazy. Never have I ever had hamburger on a pizza. It was delicious and interesting. Yes, interesting. The Italian sausage was full of flavor, and it looked like each little slice of the sausage link had exploded. As we licked the pizza tray clean, we both judgementally glanced at the table next to us. Three people, nibbling at a large veggie pizza with minimal toppings had maybe gotten 2/3 of the way through the thing in over twice the time it took us to deee-story our meat pie. Happy and proud. Pizza didn’t stand a chance. Lightweight problems. 

An Epicurean Rendezvous with Andrew

Union Oyster House - Boston, MA
http://www.unionoysterhouse.com/
  

     Coming from the west coast, Andrew was on the hunt for some good clam chowduh. I hadn't a clue where to go, but after doing some research he had decided Union Oyster House was to be our final destination. Established in 1826, Union Oyster House is America's oldest restaurant and is nestled in a little cluster of restaurants and bars that line Union Street next to Feneuil Hall. I had walked by numerous times after they had closed and all I could see was a small counter up front by the window covered in cracked oyster shells, cut lemons, and oyster shrapnel. Finally... I got to ago inside. Unbeknownst to me, this place actually had three floors. Or two and a half rather. Andrew and I were led up to the second floor where I instantly felt like I was on a ship crossing the Atlantic in the 1800s. The ceilings hung maybe a foot above my head and wood beams crossed the length of the room over head. All of the booths were tiny. Fit for 4 at most. The place also seemed almost dark because it was so dimly lit. Small yellow jar-like lanterns hung above every table just barely illuminating the small space. Pictures of old ships and shipping paraphernalia hung sporadically on the walls. The whole mood this place created was magical and seemed to transcend you to a different time and place.

 
     We were here for clam chowder, and that cornbread I had seen in pictures online. But I couldn't find the cornbread on the menu. I was about to get fussy. Finally we were greeted by a big soft spoken woman with a heavy Boston accent. Perfect. You would've thought the gates of heaven had opened when she asked, "Would you both like some cornbread?" YES. Ohyesohyesohyes. It came to our table nice and warm. After shooting a quick picture we dug in.... and time stood still. This was not your normal cornbread. Oh no. This cornbread rose to a completely different level. Super moist, sweet but not too sweet, lightly crisped edges. Though it wasn't necessary, the cornbread was perfected complimented with a little butter. . We had to have more. She brought us each another huge chunk before our chowder even came.

     The chowder was deeeelish! They weren't skimpy on the clam meet (always a bummer when that happens), the potatoes were nice and soft, I think it had corn in it, and it was just downright stellar. OH! And if you broke off a piece of cornbread and let it soak in the chowder for a minute... well you might as well have just died and gone to heaven. Once we were finally done and Andrew had broken his gluten free diet, we were about to head out. But not without more of that cornbread. Our lovely waitress sent us home with two free chunks of cornbread and recommended we grab a recipe for it at the front desk on the way out. Victory. Five stars Union Oyster House.

Saus - Boston, MA 

http://www.eatfrites.com/

     Soooo we walked right out of Union Oyster House and right into Suas next door. Since Andrew spent so much time in Belgium I had to take him to this place called Saus. I've blogged about it before. Saus supposedly has Belgian style street food, including mainly twice fried fries and waffles (however Andrew says the ones we got weren't Belgian). We got a small batch of fries and 2 different sauces. One was their own homemade mayo which was actually pretty delicious. Different that the Hellman's you buy in the store. Maybe more of a bite? I'm unsure. Yummy though. The second one we got was a truffle ketchup. Weird. Good, but weird. Can't say I've ever had that truffle-y flavor mixed with ketchup, and can't say I'd definitely get it again. Andrew did get a really tasty ginger ale there though. It was light. Not overly sweet like most. Completely refreshing. 

Mike's Pastry - Boston, MA

http://www.mikespastry.com/

     We're terrible. I know. Right out of Saus and right into Mike's Pastry. Since I've drooled over Mike's cannolis before, I'll make it quick. I got 3 things. A florentine cookie chip thing. Basically butter, honey, sugar and almonds... dipped in chocolate. A little piece of heaven. I also got a pistacio cookie that was pretty sweet. Maybe too sweet. Not as good as the one I got at Modern Pastry just down the road. Mike's chocolate sandwhich was good though. Two simple shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate, surrounding a little splooge of chocolate in the middle. 

     Andrew got a chocolate cannoli and a lobster tail. Not a real lobster tail, but rather a puff pastry filled with this amaaaaazing cream and covered in chocolate. It was a little bomb of delicious. This was our view while eating th

Marcy's Breakfast and Lunch - Portland, ME

     It was cold, and Andrew and I hobbled in to Marcy's on the corner of Oak and Free. The place was tiny but packed with the locals. On a mantle that circled the room sat lava lamps, old telephones, trolls, coffee mugs, and pretty much anything that didn't have to do with anything else. A scrawny middle-aged lady just workin' to pay the bills and loving it was our delightful waitress. She loved us. Why? Because we ordered a lot of food. Maybe she loved everyone, because that just seemed to be her personality. First of all, as we waited for a table Andrew and I know we had to have one of their homemade muffins. The huge explosions of fruit and grain sat perched above the counter on display for hungry people such as ourselves. Our waitress suggested we get them grilled and butter. By all means, please make my muffin even more unhealthy for me. What the heck. It. Was. Amazing. I got blueberry and Andrew got raspberry and we split them. Both were fabulous. You know how sometimes when you eat muffins you save certain parts for last because they look like they might be the best bite? Well, in this case, the entire muffin was the best bite. Perfectly crisped on the edges from the grill, with just a perfect amount of butter made these muffins a success. Great success.
 
      For the meal I got one of their specials. It was a pot roast hash. It was the bomb (underused phrase). I don't care if it was their lunch-leftovers-from-the-night-before-gone-breakfast. It was fabulous. Potatoes, carrots, onions and huge chunks of roast topped with 2 eggs over easy and an english muffin. I wiped that plate clean....and then ate some of Andrew's hashbrowns, and ham... and eggs... and crack blueberry pancakes. He was "so full" and looked like he was going to fall asleep. Those of you that know Andrew know the look I'm talking about. Marcy's was cheap, friendly, and most of all, delicious. Definitely make it a breakfast stop if you ever head to Portland.





Standard Baking Co. - Portland, ME

     After cruising the shoreline for a while, Andrew and I needed a warm break. We headed into Standard Baking Co., a brick building tucked back from the street, for a little treat. It was warm and smelled like amazing breads and pastries. And everyone was so friendly. But then again, why wouldn't you be friendly if you worked at a bakery. I'd be so fat and happy. Anyway, there were too many delicous options. I wanted them all. I went with what was called a chocolate cork. It literally was a 4 inch tall chocolate cylinder. It was going to be good. It had chocolate. It was like a brownie smushed into a tube shape. The chocolate was dark, dense, and sweet and rich. So good. Not sure if I could have eaten another, which is saying a lot coming from me. It was one of those things where you stop, close your eyes, and savor the taste of every small bite. So great. Andrew got something called pain au chocolat. It was a big croissant that was filled with small chunks of what we think was dark chocolate and perhaps something else. The pastry was light, sweet, and flakey, while the chocolate was rich and so delicious. Standard Baking Co., you are far from standard. You are extraordinary.

Pizzeria Regina - Boston, MA

http://www.reginapizzeria.com/index.php

     It was our last free night to do whatever. Andrew was no longer gluten free, so we hit up Regina's once we got back from Portland. He needed to try this dough. We were seated almost right away (much different than the time that Malcom and I went) and ordered a 10inch (trying to be responsibele) #11 - The Giambotta. It had pepperoni, Regina sausage, salami, mushrooms, peppers, onions, and Mozzarella cheese (with anchovies on half). It was fabulous! I absolutely love the Regina sausage, their mushrooms are always fresh, the salami had such a great flavor and the veggies were just barely cooked. Still a little crisp/hard like I like 'em. The anchovies were different, but we figured we'd give it a try anyway. They were really salty (understandably so), and I don't think I'd get anchovies on a pizza again. Still glad I tried it though. Pretending we were full, we scooted out of there on the hunt for some dessert. Oh... and we forgot to take a picture of the pizza until after we had eaten it all. Oops. 

Bova's Bakery - Boston, MA

http://bovabakeryboston.com/

     Another location Jimmy and I had indulged in once before. Home of  "The North End's famous Italian Bread." I took Andrew and got this little square pastry that was made of phyllo dough and housed a bunch of candied pecans in the center. So much sweetness and goodness . I could've eaten the paper it was sitting on. Andrew got a baklava but said it wasn't the best. Oh well. On to gelato!

Gigi Gelateria - Boston, MA

http://www.gelateriacorp.com/

     Finally, a new place. I'm no gelato connoisseur, but I want to be. We headed to Gigi Gelateria in the north end to get in those last few cals our bodies were needing (joke). The place was quiet. Almost creepy quiet and you could tell the workers just wanted to go home. We didn't care. There were so many choices, but finally we settled on a simple chocolate and lemon. The chocolate was so smooth and rich and creamy. Just what I was looking for. The lemon was refreshing yet sweet and sour. The perfect end to a perfect food exploration week with Andrew.

Always Accept Food From Strangers...

East Side Pockets - Providence, RI
http://eastsidepocket.com/      


     If ever I have tasted something so similarly delicious to that of my Grandmother's food, it slid down my gullet yesterday at East Side Pockets in Providence, RI. Let me tell you. Brown and RISD students really have it good. They're right by the water, and they have East Side Pockets. Owned and operated by adorable little Mediterranean men since 1997, East Side Pockets is definitely a local favorite. It was prime lunch time and the place was packed, but they had no difficulty churning people out of there. I wanted falafel. I needed falafel. But with a 2k looming right around the corner, I knew fried food was not in the books. As I stood longingly gazing upon the buckets of falafel behind the counter, I was hit with a sudden wave a its delicious scent. A tall, round man stood next to me with one falafel ring dipped in humus and tucked in a piece of tissue paper. If that falafel had eyes, they would've been locked with mine at that very moment. He saw me. He saw me eyeing his prize. The man behind the counter had given it to him for free for being such a loyal customer. Round man (the professor type) asked me nicely, "Would you like to try it?" Believe me. I fought it. The largest mental battle of my day waged on in my head. Mom said never to take food from strangers, but he seemed so nice. The falafel seemed so hot. The line was long. I was hungry. He hadn't taken a bite yet. He was very persistent. He asked me three more times, and yes... I gave in. Crisp on the outside, soft on the inside. The little guy looked like a doughnut (the falafel, not the generous stranger), but I got no hummus with it. There was no way I wasn't going to experience the entire package. Once I approached the counter, I ordered the Gryo Pocket and asked if I could try one falafel. He happily gave me the same setup as round man. This one was mine, and the first bite was heaven. The HUMMUS. Oh my word, the hummus about sent me to the floor. Not a clue what made it so good. It was just smooth. The falafel was hot, and I mean hot. Savoring each bite like it was the last, I grabbed my gyro and headed to meet Andrew by the window. 

       Now, normally when you get a gyro (at least the gyros I've had before) they come in a smaller sized wrap, say 8 inches in diameter and the wrap is thicker and a little chewy. You spend more time chewing than you do anything else. Not this one. The wrap itself was the good stuff. It was thin (but still had 2 layers like a normal pita pocket), browned a little more in some areas, and was about 14 inches in diameter. It was like the pitas my grandma buys. The whole gyro had to be at least a foot long and it was not skinny. It was stuffed with their greek seasoned gyro meat, lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, banana peppers, hummus, tabouleh, tahina and their yogurt cucumber sauce. Each slice of gyro meat had a slightly crisp edge and was hot, but the hummus and veggies were cool. Instantly I was lost in its majesty. So many flavors. The cucumber sauce was unlike any other cucumber sauce I've tried before. I seem to recall others having more of a sour taste. But not this one. It was mild, but the flavor was still there. The blend of the hummus, tahina and yogurt cucumber sauce was phenomenal. It was the figurative topping on my gyro cake. I told myself from the start that I wouldn't eat it all. I should've known better. I had no elbow room. This place was slammed and no one was leaving with leftovers. There were signs telling me I'd fall through with previous declaration of limitation. Long story short, I licked the paper. There was nothing left. Not a scrap. I felt fresh and was full. Happily settled in my little post-gyro state of bliss and bewilderment, Andrew and I slipped out the door and were on our way. Props to you East Side Pockets. You've achieved the dream. Or rather, helped me achieve my gyro dream.