Soxfan49's Profile
Next best option to Nick's Roast Beef Sandwich inside Boston/Cambridge
My favorite roast beef sandwich in the Boston area is Cutty's in Brookline Village; tender roast beef, crisp shallots, and a perfect amount of sauce.
Dinner before Bank of America Pavilion??
I second Lucky's good quality food at a solid price.
Non-beef "burgers"
I know you're not looking for just veggie, but the veggie burger at The Druid is great. Also I know many people rave about the veggie burger at Christopher's, haven't had it myself.
Boston's best burger?
Very good point, it's important to be clear what type of burgers you're discussing. The best guide I've seen is from A Hamburger Today: http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2009/09/a-guide-to-glossary-of-regional-american-burger-cheeseburger-styles-and-cooking-methods.html?ref=skybox2
One night in Boston - Beacon Hill area - where to eat?
The Grotto is an excellent suggestion, the gnocchi with short ribs is one of my favorite dishes in the city and with the sunken location and intimate feel it's very romantic.
Looking for Rittenhouse 100
You know there is something quite baffling about the availability of Rittenhouse. My brother lives in RI and never has a problem finding it. Any time I'm running low I ask him to pick me up a bottle and his liquor store always has it, literally he's never seen it out of stock. My only thoughts as to the reason is either there's lower demand in RI or the liquor store has a very good relationship with the supplier.
Fried Pickles in Boston?
I have to concur with the above posters; CC's fried pickles are wonderful and probably the best thing on the menu.
Davis Square's "Foundry on Elm"
Seems like just the standard bistro menu layout, not very creative, but not a shameless copy of one particular restaurants unique idea.
The Druid Burger
I'm definitely willing to "defend" the Druid burger. It's one of my personal favorites. I think it all comes down to personal preference. If you don't enjoy the spice mixture they add to the mix than the burger is not for you. I've never found it to be off putting or anything but wonderful, but do have some friends who find it to be overwhelming. Now, if they happen to overcook it, (which you mentioned they didn't) than that is another story altogether. If the cooking was on, than I doubt it was an off-night, but rather the burger is just not for you. In fact there are some who wouldn't even consider it a burger, because of the spice mix, but I'm not one of those people ;-)
Rafiki Bistro?
Tried it last night for the first time and was underwhelmed. Had the special fig, sage, and taleggio flatbread pizza and the roast chicken. The pizza was far too chewy. I don't know if it was the dough or cooking method, but it was devoid of any crispiness whatsoever. The roast chicken was juicy and the skin was very crispy, but it was a little mushy. The mashed potatoes where also lumpy. I will say the waitress was very pleasant and attentive. It won't be going on my list of regular restaurants, but wouldn't be opposed to giving it a second shot if friends were headed there.
Anything chow worthy at Fenway Pk?
Love The Sausage Guy, always make sure to grab one before every game.
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The Sausage Guy
118 Dorchester St, Boston, MA 02127
Anything chow worthy at Fenway Pk?
You can get Sam on the left after you enter Gate C, right across from the entrance to section 40. Also you can get Guiness, Smithwicks, and Harp, by Gate D, behind sections 17-18. Not sure where Harpoon is located.
How's the pizza in Boston?
Picco and Gran Gusto produce some wonderful Neopolitan pizza. I'm also a big fan of Armando's, but for their Sicilian, not the normal thin crust.
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Gran Gusto
90 Sherman St, Cambridge, MA 02140
Addis Red Sea
I've been there a few times as it's right around the corner and have always enjoyed the food. The service is definitely lacking. I've always been seated quickly, but after that the service is minimal at best. The staff is friendly but often don't check on us between delivering the food and dropping the check. As far as the food is concerning, it's good, but by no means amazing. Not the type of place I would go out of my way to visit.
Two Lunch Spots Needed near MIT and Lesley U in Cambridge
I would suggest Cafe Rustica, great sandwiches, very friendly service, and a short walk from Lesley.
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Cafe Rustica
356 Beacon St, Somerville, MA 02143
Recent Burgers
I know the Sel de Terre burger has already received plenty of praise on this board, but I'm just going to have to keep adding to it, the burger is amazing. The flavor of the beef is outstanding, cooked to perfection, and with a great crust. When I talked to the chef at the burger bash he said the meat was all sourced from one farm in Maine. It really stands out, even with the pepper remoulade the main flavor that comes through is the richness of the beef. Just a great burger all around.
Cambridge Common - Wow, what a terrible hamburger.
Wow can't believe I'm going to write two post's supporting Cambridge Common.
First point, CC, is much cheaper than HK, the entrees at HK are on average 50% more than CC. You can get a $10 sandwich at HK but the fish and chips run you $16 as opposed to $10 at CC. Although $6 (or $3 for the burger) isn't a huge amount for one meal it adds up after a few outings.
Second point is location. I don't view HK and Cambridge Common as nearby (-ish). I live between Porter and Harvard, less than a ten minute walk from CC and 25 minutes from HK, and in the dead of winter that makes a big difference. Also if I'm going to walk the extra 15 minutes for a burger, I'll head to The Druid.
Don't get me wrong I'm a big fan of HK and go often in the summer, it's just a different beast than CC. Their food is better but they are farther away from me, have higher prices, and a smaller beer selection.
Cambridge Common - Wow, what a terrible hamburger.
I agree that Cambridge Common's food could be better, but you get what you pay for; there aren't too many other places around that offer that wide a beer selection, plenty of entrees around $10, and decent service. Although I certainly wouldn't recommend it to someone looking to impress a date, it's a great spot to meet up with a few friends and throw down some beers, and have a few fried pickles. I can't comment on the 1/4 burger as I've only had the 1/2 pounder, but it's never really stood out, in a good or bad way. They tend to overcook it slightly so I just order it rare and it comes out medium rare.
ISO Authentic Soul Food in or around Boston
I'm a big fan of the Coast Cafe in Cambridge. Very good fried chicken and they offer the full range of sides, I could eat their collards all day long. They are purely a take out place though, the only seating is a couple of stools.
Who won the burger bash?
Well my contention would be that you haven't been eating sliders all the time but rather you've been eating mini-burgers :-) For a less than authoritative breakdown of hamburger types see http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2009/09/a-guide-to-glossary-of-regional-american-burger-cheeseburger-styles-and-cooking-methods.html?ref=AHT1
There is a link in the article to a full rant on the subject of sliders v. mini-burgers. I don't know why I'm bothered by this distinction. I don't think anyone is going to suffer by eating a mini-burger when they think they're eating a slider, but for some reason it bugs the crap out of me.
Who won the burger bash?
Just a minor note, a few people have referred to some of the burgers as sliders. A slider is a thin patty, griddled, with pickles and onions on top. Sel de la Terre, Bristol, and K.O. where serving mini-burgers, just shrunken down versions of their normal burger, as opposed to a cut up burger. Sorry to nitpick, but just didn't want anyone to be confused.
Who won the burger bash?
WOW I'm shocked that Bristol won, I went last night and found the Bristol burger to be near the middle of the pack. They had a very nice presentation (a little onion ring on top) but the burger lacked a good crust and was a little dry. They were sandwiched between Sel de la Terre and Stella which I ranked as the top two.
Stella served their burger on toast, which I'm normally not a big fan of, but it worked with the smaller portions. They had a fontina stuffed burger, with a pickle for the topping. The pickle was a nice complement to the fontina and the burger had a great crust and was very juicy.
Sel de la Terre served their burger as a mini burger, rather then slicing up a full sized burger as Stella did. It had a perfect crust and was unbelievably juicy. The flavor of the beef was what put it over the top. They let the beef speak for itself, and didn't try to add too many flavors to the burger.
Toro served their "messy" burger, which I've come to love after reading Kenji's article. I think it lost a little bit in being cut up, as it's hard to keep all of that goodness on top of a little slice of burger.
A few other notes: KO Primes burger had a giant slice of pate on top that overwhelmed what was a good burger, Green Street had a very interesting double burger with a fried pickle on top, the flavors were good, but blended together and it was hard to taste the burger through everything else going on, Lower Depths burger was cooked beyond well done, Mike’s City Dinner had a great lamb burger, but some in our group found the spices to be a little intense. I know I missed a few but those are all that are coming to mind at the moment. On the whole it was a great event.
Burger Bash: Feb.1
I'll be attending and I imagine it will be sliced burgers. First, I can't see them expecting people to pay $25 just to watch Kenji judge a burger competition ;-) Second, using sliders wouldn't be the most reliable way to test who makes the best burger, by their very definition they aren't burgers and require different elements to be great. My guess is that they'll be cutting the burgers in half or in quarters, but I could be dead wrong and we'll be getting a bunch of mini burger or sliders. On another note I just wanted to thank you for writing such an informative blog, it's always a pleasure to read your posts.
Red Lentil Vegetarian - A pleasant surprise!
I had lunch there over the weekend and concur with all the over reviewers. The food was excellent but the service was a little slow. The beet salad was great, nice to see a few golden beets thrown in, my DC loved her veggie burger, and my portabello sandwich was good, could have used a few more mushrooms for my taste. The staff seemed a little out of sorts, everybody seemed to be doing everything, rather than having designated responsibilities and they'd didn't seem to communicate with one another (three people approached us to ask if we had been helped). I will definitely be back and I'm sure the service will improve as they get more experience. They were featured in a globe article on healthy dining, so I'm sure that has driven a lot of people to the restaurant.
HELP! We need some good food cheap!!
Taiwan Cafe, The Druid, Tupelo, Gourmet Dumpling House, Addis Red Sea
Visitors want classic New England cuisine, suggestions please
We have two visitors arriving next month and need your help in providing them with a few great dining experiences in the Boston area. The couple are Colombian but have been living in Paris for the past 5 or 6 years, they are traveling throughout the U.S. and are looking to have the regional cuisine of each area they are in. Unfortunately that puts me at a loss, if they were looking for ethnic cuisine I'd be fine, but they want classic New England.
As they are traveling on a budget and my girlfriend and I are in grad school we're not looking for anything too extravagant. We live in Porter so we have access to the T and also have a car so location won't be an issue. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance for your help.
Out of Towner trying to find Romantic Restaurant for GF's birthday!
I will always take the time to stop and rave about Hamersley's Bistro. My first experience at Hamersley's was with my girlfriend after she had just returned from a summer in Paris. It was a perfect night after being apart for several months. If my budget could handle it, I'd be there on a weekly basis. The food is outstanding, the staff is attentive, and both the inside and outside areas are wonderful. Also, the place is elegant but relaxed not pretentious at all.
Newport, RI
Just a side note, Aidan's is no longer, it's now called Fastnet. Tommy who used to be the bartended at Aidan's now owns Busker's which is downtown and is a great little pub.
