Spike's Profile
Athan's in Brookline, sadly meh
when I first discovered it, I tried pretty much anything that looked interested over the next month...nothing was wow.. :-P
Athan's in Brookline, sadly meh
sadly not much has changed in the past few years...chocolate desserts there don't have much of a rich chocolate taste, but look pretty :-P
Boston Mangowatch 2012
cheaper than South Shore India Market...that was $42/box for kesars. Singles were $4.50 each and they weren't in great shape. Ouch :-P
Got the last decent looking box.
Might have to stop by Patel to try the Alphonso ones next weekend :-)
Boston Japan Festival in Copley
the tickets sold out just as we got there around 12:30, so they were sold out pretty quickly.
The mochi place sold out of all their stuff by 1pm.
It was a sardine can. Word got around far too much and the area was just way too small for the amount of people...they're better off doing it at the Boston Common...not even sure Govt Center is big enough for the amount of people we saw.
It was interesting though...bought a few things to support the tsunami/nuke victims (hopefully...you never know where the money will go). There was a place selling green tea that tasted higher quality than what you can get off the shelf and bought a bag ($15 for maybe 2oz?)
Someone locally is selling freshly made mochi but we couldn't buy anything because they only accepted tickets...they're in Somerville but it's catering/email ordering only instead of a place you can stop by and buy stuff.
CRISPY GINGER, SCALLION CHINESE LOBSTER
I tend to use one chopstick to skewer the meat and pry it out. Some people use their hands, but I hate getting that messy :-)
The pieces w/ the inner skeleton are just chew, suck, and spit out....
Restaurants currently serving shad roe?
New Deal in Cambridge also has it fresh. No idea what to do with it though..
Restaurant Week Boston, Winter 2012 reports?
I've been posting about it...
North 26...big thumbs down and put up a warning about it so people could cancel out
Blue Inc...just ok...
Umbria Prime...big thumbs up and would return w/o RW just for the housemade prosciutto
Gyros in the South End
+1 Billy's.
Tried Emilio's IIRC as well, but it wasn't as good (less tasty).
I actually like the extra tzaziki....sometimes I wish they'd put more on...that and the tasty pre-made stuff is why I like it :-)
I didn't know Giorgiana's had it made from sliced lamb...I can imagine how greasy it must be. Anyone know which is the closest it's supposed to be to authentic greek gyros?
Where can I buy fresh duck?
I think they're formerly frozen...at least the ones at Ming's Market were...you can sometimes see ice on them...
Boston Mangowatch 2012
I totally struck out last year too. They had really bad weather conditions last year, so very few were imported supposedly...
Boston Mangowatch 2012
Yep. Atualfo are called Champagne AFAIK (at least they're the same shape and roughly the same taste).
The Kesar/Alfonso ones are far more fragrant...the flavor lingers in your mouth for a few minutes...sort of like truffles (not truffle oil :-)
They cost roughly $3-4 each compared to the $1 Atualfo/Champagne ones and you buy them by the case (roughly $25-30)...
They usually show up in late may, early june and only for a few weeks. It's part of Spring around here...like the return of the Stripers next month (though they're probably early this year because the herring/pogies/mackeral are back a few weeks early)...
North 26 RW - avoid
Been to it in previous years and have dined there for regular dinner.
This year's RW is blech....went there to avoid the RW=salmon places and they go and substitute salman on top of oversalted spinach and some fried stuffing balls for the mahi dish. Crab cakes were salty...even bread was salty.
Swordfish entree was decent. Molten chocolate cake was too (but everyone has it nowadays). Banana fritters were banana donut balls w/ a pretty bad chocolate dipping sauce.
Just thought I'd note it as "avoid" because it used to be good :-P
Diva Indian Bistro
That makes more sense at least...it was pretty busy at lunchtime on a weekday last week.
Falafel would be a good addition to the neighborhood....everything tastes good fried :-)
Otto's Pizza coming to Coolidge Corner
and good riddance upper crust...never been too impressed w/ them and preferred flatbreads and zing's (RIP)....
Seen Skate in Boston area Asian Restaurants?
there's a malaysian dish w/ skate so you might find it at Penang.
I've never seen it at chinese (cantonese or sichuan) restuarants...
Sichuan Gourmet
Their family style eggplant is good though not spicy...it's more of a Yu Hsiang sauce (a bit sweet)
The Billerica location is the spiciest for me...the Framingham one is good but not as spicy. Haven't tried the Sharon one...
Ga ga Seafood, Chinatown.
FYI surf clams are usually sliced at chinese restaurants. Texture is indeed squid/calamari like...a bit al dente...
Boston-Wood Oven Pizza (Whats the best)
North End's Pizzeria Regina's pizza is *FAR* better than Picco and Coppa's pizzas which have been salty for me the last time I've tried them...
Not sure what they do, but the crust is just lighter/crunchier and the sauce is better...
Seafood Companies in Seaport District that sell shellfish direct (retail)?
Wow...awesome list, Typhoon.
If any of you folks try the places, could you list any minimum requirements they have? e.g., a 10lb slab of fish doesn't necessarily work that well if all you want is 2lbs for a few people :-P
Going to Coppa for the first time! What to order?
Seems like the clam pizza is more prone to this if two random people are posting about it...so it seemed like a fair comment :-P
Going to Coppa for the first time! What to order?
I was just going to post this...lol.
Yep, if you have high blood pressure, stay far away from the clam pizza. It's like they threw clams on and then thought "this should be SALTY because it's seafood", then dumped a crapload of salt on it too :-P
LOBSTER ROLLS: DOES SIZE REALLY MATTER?
The B&G one has shrunk...brought some visitors to it over the summer and was disappointed :-P
Neptune Oyster Feast of 7 Fishes 12/23; Who Else?
The Grotto 7 Fishes was excellent...don't think we had a dish that was bad...everything was cooked well and not overly salted :-)
Presentation was fancier than the typical Grotto dishes too.
Photos attached...should be obvious what they are from the menu above. Sorry about the grainy photos...it's reallllly dark in there so I had to push process them because I hate using flash at restaurants to avoid annoying other people :-P
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Grotto
37 Bowdoin Street, Boston, MA 02114
Neptune Oyster Feast of 7 Fishes 12/23; Who Else?
Ditto....signed up for the 5:30 slot :-)
Razor Clams- Season? Boston Vendors?
Seen them at CMart and Ming's all stuck out like a dog's tongue :-P
Not sure if that means they're ok or dying though...
I always thought they were from Nova Scotia...cool to know they're farmed in Duxbury...
Coming in from Toronto - Dinner Question
lol...that had to be the funniest post I've seen in a while :-)
Is the food any good at any of those spots? I noticed the yelp reviews are all over the place....but with a consistent "nice view", "food meh" tone....
Gran Gusto found a sale on sea salt? :-P
yep...that's why I mentioned it. If they just said lobster w/ papperdelle, I wouldn't be surprised except for the cost ($28) which seemed a bit steep for what was plated :-P
They should probably just change the description...and add "it may might not be for people w/ salt issues depending on how much salt the chef grabs at the time" :-)
The lobster ravioli at Mamma Maria on the other hand were awesome...big chunks of lobster in the big ravioli...and not salty at all with lots of taste...
Coming in from Toronto - Dinner Question
Toro can be a zoo on Saturday night....get there early (6pm) or be prepared to wait an hour.
It's not rustic authentic but it's really good...
I'd also go w/ ICOB and eating at the bar if you want good seafood (something Toronto doesn't have enough of).
Haven't tried Torito so I can't give you a comparison...we mostly stay in the Markham area when we visit and have only hit a few places in Toronto.
Coming in from Toronto - Dinner Question
skip Post 390 IMHO...not up w/ the rest of your list. I'd suggest Toro as well for something different. I don't remember seeing any decent Tapas places last time I was up in Toronto...
