tmab's Profile
New Sichuan Restaurant in Chelmsford
Lipoff -- I agree that Sichuan Gourmet and Sichuan Garden are excellent Sichuan restaurants, but do either offer Sichuan hot pots? I have not been impressed by Red Pepper and I only found a handful of very good dishes at Chili Garden, but I didn't notice any Sichuan hot pot dishes at these restaurants either.
Mantis Shrimp Siting...
If these are "pissing shrimp" then watch your fingers when you handle them, and spear them before putting them in the fry pan.
Lobster Prices
Can't say no for sure, but I'd be surprised if they do and Ive never seen anyone getting a lobster steamed there. It is really pretty easy to steam lobsters (just take the rubber bands off) as long as you have a pot with a cover that's big enough.
Salts in Cambridge
Salts is definitely a great special evening kind of place. But it's also great for just a night out. Although the entrees are around $30, I often end up spending more for dinner in the North End, at a steakhouse, or for sushi.
The last two times I had a weekday dinner there, there has been more than one open table all night. So if you're thinking about where to go for dinner, give Annalee a call to see if they have any openings and what Gabriel's planning for the evening!
Best place to buy shellfish in boston
When I want quantity as well as quality, I think it's worth the trip to Fish Pier. Stop at Cape Cod Shellfish for clams and mussels, and whatever else they have. They are a wholesaler, so just ask what they have and how much you have to get. There's a few other markets on fish pier, so you can also check for the best price on the shrimp, crab legs, and scallops. Then go over to PJ Lobster on Northern Ave for lobster.
The shops on fish pier are definitely open on Saturday until at least noon, not sure about Sunday.
But if you just want lobster and blue crab, stone crab, or dungeness crab, go to Chinatown or a Super 88.
Chili oil
If you ask for extra hot sauce at the Sichuan Garden in Billerica, they will bring you chili oil that has good heat and some nice smokey flavor. They roast or fry the crushed chili until it is quite dark. The oil may be similar in color to the storebought and homemade verions in Rubee's picture, but the mixture that settles on the bottom looks quite different.
I don't know if they sell it, but I have gotten extra hot sauce to go with large take out orders.
Recommendations for dim sum at Windsor
Agreed. It may be listed as "Chinese fried dough in rice noodle," ja leung, or 炸兩.
Lobster Prices
The tanks at the Super 88 in Brighton have been restocked and are full of very lively lobsters of all sizes, many quite large. The posted price is $4.88 per pound and they looked like hard shells.
Greek?
What do you recommend to order or to avoid at Greek Corner (North Cambridge) and Steve's.
And any thoughts on Farm Grille in Newton?
Great Sichuan IN Boston?
If you are stuck in the city and desperate for Sichuan food, you still find a few good dishes at Anise, near Kendall Square.
Anniversary Dinner - Tasting Menus?
I haven't had the tasting menu at Troquet, but otherwise agree with Finlero. The wine and setting at L'Espalier are better than the food, and neither are worth the price tag.
Salts five course tasting menu is $75 and they offer wine pairings for $30. It's too bad that as a party of two, it would be way too much food to add their signature duck for two as a supplement.
Although the flavors and combinations at Salt's are generally better than No 9 Park, I give the nod to No 9 Park because of the cocktails, cheese plate, and service.
If you choose Salts and are sure that you will do the tasting menu, definitely let them know in advance. That will give you a chance to coordinate your tastes and allergies with the chef, and make for a much more special occasion.
Whatever you choose, happy anniversary and please post back with your experience.
Gift Certificate Deals
Icarus was offering $50 gift certificates for $30 last month. Not sure if they are still doing it though.
hey buddies-know any great/unique brunch place?
Although the wait can be long, I think that the ECG Sunday brunch is both unique and special -- bloody mary bar, oysters on the half shell, grits, eggs, fish tacos, and wet bones!
No 9 Park report -- short
Thanks for posting on your 3 course. I've always enjoyed the tasting menu, but never noticed a 3 course option. Is this on the menu? For lunch, dinner, or both?
Need a Korean market - desperately!
hey youngho, could you post more info on the place in ayer with oxtail and kalbi? is it a meat market, korean market, or asian market? do you have a name or location? thanks!
where would you break a 36-hour fast?
Sushi would be my choice too, but I'm surprised by the Samurai rec. My recs would have been Douzo or Sakurabana. Btw, I assume you mean the Samurai in the old Gyuhama space?
Hotoy, how do you rate Sakurabana or Douzo versus Samurai? I'm consistently impressed by the freshness of the fish at Sakurabana.
At Sakurabana, I'd recommend against any of the sushi combo plates such as sushi fave, sushi/sashimi combo, sushi love, etc. But to me, their rolls with fresh fish (such as the rainbow roll), the sashimi combo plates, and the a la carte sashimi items are amongst the best in Boston. My only quibble might be that the pieces can be on the large side.
Atasca or O'Cantinho?
Their plants are still in the window, and at first I thought they might just be on vacation. But there is a big handwritten sign on the door directing diners to Atasca and asking for mail to be delivered next door. Also, their phone number has an outgoing message saying that O'Cantinho is closed and directs diners to Atasca.
In the past, I thought O'Cantinho's versions of the caldeirada de peixe and the mariscada were better than Atasca's. Any recs for good versions of these dishes in that area?
Atasca or O'Cantinho?
Stopped by O'Cantinho for lunch this weekend. How disappointing -- was really looking forward to their presunto with sharp cheese sandwich.
When did they close? Anyone know how the Atasca sandwiches compare, or what's going into the space?
SoJu
Blanchards carries chamisul in 1.75 liter bottles (and in six packs) and the mark up on the 1.75 liter bottle is not nearly as bad as the mark ups on the 375 mL bottles. They also carry baek seju, pokbunjasul, and sansachon in the small bottles with the steep mark ups.
SoJu
Super 88 carries hon mirin. Post back if you have trouble finding it -- the kanji on the label reads hon mirin, but I don't think the English does.
Fyi, it's not the same hon mirin you'll get in Japan because they add a small amount of salt to it to make it not fit for alcoholic consumption and legal to sell in supermarkets. But the salt isn't noticeable to me in my cooking, and I haven't adjusted the salt in any of my dishes because of it.
No 9 Park and Toro Recommendations?
Yes, the seven courses is more than sufficient. It's been a while since I've had the lunch and dinner tasting menus, but iirc correctly, for at least one if not both of them, the larger tasting menu has some upgraded courses in addition to the extra two courses. And the upgraded courses have always been too tempting for me to pass up, so I always end up with the tasting menu with the larger number of courses even though I'm not a huge eater.
I agree that the experience is not the same without either the wine or cocktail pairings too.
But what a great suggestion, Clos! I never thought of adding in a signature dish course to the tasting menu.
Oishii- Top 5 of My Life
I'm not native Japanese, but it seems not uncommon in Japanese to have -san appended to your first name in a sort of friendly honorific form such as David San or Timothy San.
Anyway, I thought his first name was Ting and his last name was Yen, with most everyone calling him Ting San in that friendly honorific way.
I have discovered the wonders of Wang's Dumplings
The traditional method for boiling dumplings is to bring a pot of water to a boil, then drop the frozen dumplings in one by one. Stir and bring the pot to a boil again. After the pot comes to a boil, add a cup of cold water, stir, and bring to a boil again. Repeat with a second cup of cold water. Repeat again with a third cup of water. This time when the water comes to a boil again, the dumplings are done (and floating).
Btw, this method is used to prevent the dumplings from bursting and also leaves the wrapper with a slightly more toothsome final texture.
SoJu
Blanchards in Allston carries soju in a variety of brands and sizes. They also have Korean specialty wines and Japanese shoju.
http://www.blanchards.net/
Frozen Xiao Long Bao
The Brighton Super 88 carries Wei-Chuan brand and Prime Food brand xiao long bao, although the Wei-Chuan ones are often sold out. IMO, the Wei-Chuan xiao long bao are on the sweet side, but are otherwise not too bad. I don't like the Prime Food xiao long bao.
This link has a picture of the Wei-Chuan xiao long bao, packed as "Pork Mini Buns" .
http://www.weichuanusa.com/a_product_new.htm
I'm not sure what name the Prime Foods xiao long bao has on its package, but you could look for a package with the same characters as the on the Wei Chuan picture.
Chinese rose whiskey
I assume you don't mean moutai, so I'll guess that you want mei gui lou jiu (玫瑰露酒). You might also try asking for rose baijiu, rose wine, or rose essence wine (jiu is often translated as wine instead of spirits, even when it's distilled from sorghum and the alcohol content is 80 to 120 proof!).
Any updates on the All-Star Sandwich Bar?
They may look open, but they are not serving food today. Monday is their new expected opening day.
Anise update?
Thanks for the info on the Globe review.
http://www.boston.com/dining/globe_review/1406
Although I wouldn't go so far as to say that the food at Anise is spectacular (Alison Arnett's comment), one or two of the main dishes and many of the appetizers do approach that level. Right now, I'd rate Anise second to Sichuan Gourmet in Billerica for authentic Sichuan food.
Two of the better main dishes at Anise were the aromatic duck (not spicy), and the rabbit dish (not the tangerine one that Arnett reviewed).
For the appetizers, the flower tofu dish is a bowl of very soft tofu served in a delicious sichuan chili sauce. The lavender fern appetizer that Arnett reviewed is really a delightful mix of the delicate ferns with a spicy chili oil dressing.
Other solid (not spectacular) appetizers were the pork bellies, beef shanks, cold numbing chicken, and dan dan noodles. There was some variability in the preparation of these dishes each time I ordered them.
Unfortunately, the boiled beef (named something else on the menu) was only okay and the mapo tofu was very disappointing. Arnett's review of the salt battered beef tenderloin was right on the mark. It is an odd mix of a thick chewy yet flavorless batter covering something that looks just like beef but doesn't taste like meat. And stay away from the duck with chives! It uses some type of pre processed or pre cooked duck which is remarkably flavorless.
The menu also has a page of Frankie's specialty cocktails. Frankie's ginger margarita, orange mojito, and dark and stormy all complement the food quite well. Frankie will also mix cocktails to match your food. But if you don't like overly sweet drinks, be sure to let Frankie know. And if it's Frankie's golf day (Wednesday?), then there is a reasonable selection of wines matched to the cuisine.
But Arnett hit the nail on the head when she said that Anise is a bit of a puzzle. I really don't understand how a restaurant striving to serve authentic Sichuan food can refuse to include the Chinese names for any dishes on the menu and have no Chinese waiters or staff to answer questions about the dishes. Until recently, if you asked a waiter or waitress about a dish, they would just repeat the name of the dish back to you.
The good news is that things seem to be improving at Anise, and this is a good time to give them a try. They have a new manager, Cedric, who will explain the dishes to you, warn you not to order the duck with chives, send your dishes back to the kitchen if they are not prepared properly, or comp disappointing dishes. If you get there and Cedric isn't around, you may be better walking over to Emma's or up Cambridge Street for a better meal.
Or better yet, call first and see if Cedric is there before you go. If you want to eat at one of the outdoor tables, there could be a wait, but I've never seen more than four tables of diners inside.
Btw, I think that Anise is a big step up over the new Zoe's in Brookline and the original Zoe's in Somerville. Although the Sichuan dishes at Brookline Zoe's are okay, none rose above that level. Considering how close they are to Sichuan Garden, I won't be heading back to Brookline Zoe's until the Yunnan menu is available.
Ocean Wealth
Ocean wealth is still open. Its posted closing time is 4 am and I am pretty sure that they are still staying open well past 2 am, despite the Globe article claims.
Ocean wealth might be the least clean restaurant in Chinatown (especially the floor and bathroom), but the table tops, plates, cups, and cutlery are generally clean.
The live shrimp tanks face the entrance (along the wall at the base of the stairs) and are great when they have them -- order by the pound. The seafood hotpot, razor clams, crispy flounder, roast chicken, and lobster special are also very good. The lobster special is two fairly small lobsters prepared either with ginger and scallion, salt and pepper, or black bean sauce.
They also have live stone fish tanks, and if you like stone fish, they make a very authentic and delicate stone fish soup. Although many of the seafood specials are on a Chinese only menu, there is generally someone by the door who speaks English well. So if you have some dishes in mind, you could probably ask. But be sure to ask about the price too -- many of the dishes on the Chinese menu are a great deal, but many others are priced per pound.
