DirectorGi's Profile
Breakfast and dinner for large group in Wildwood
My mom's side of the family is having a reunion this summer down in Wildwood, and we are looking for a breakfast/brunch location and a nicer dinner location for about 35 people (including 12 kids ages 2-15 and one baby...mine!). I haven't been down there in about 6 years, and I've never been with such a large group, so any recs would be greatly appreciated.
First Anniversary Celebration Recs
Some good recs so far, although some of them are a bit more money than we want to spend. With me not working (not by choice, mind you), I don't want to put too big of a dent in my husband's wallet. If people could focus their recs on the maybe, let's say, $40/person or less range, that would be majorly helpful. Thanks! :-)
First Anniversary Celebration Recs
My husband and I are in the beginning stages of planning something to do for our first anniversary. We moved up to the Boston area in early August of last year and have been pretty budget-friendly ever since, especially since we had to buy all new furniture and things like that. Now we are looking to live it up for a day/night and do something really nice for our anniversary. We will be coming in to the city on the rail line from Ashland, so we're looking to stay more in the Back Bay/South Station area. Also, we don't want to COMPLETELY break the bank (but we can still do something relatively nice). We're both fairly picky eaters (my husband more so than I), so we don't want something incredibly off-the-wall.
Any help you foodies could give would be great! Our anniversary falls on a Sunday, so I guess keep that in mind since I've seen restaurants not open on Sundays. We can do any meal time also. Thanks! :-)
Good b'fast between Boston and Framingham?
I second J&M Diner. I was up in Framingham looking at apartments with my fiancé in December and found out about the diner on these forums. I'm a huge diner person because hey, when you want hot breakfast at breakfast time and are too lazy to make it, they are ideally perfect. J&M lived up to everything people said about it. The omelette I ordered was HUGE, light, and fluffy with gooey cheese. Fiancé ended up not feeling great, and the waitress was very helpful in getting his breakfast packed up to go. The atmosphere was really cute with family pictures and Betty Boop goodies all over. You could tell it was a place that both locals and out-of-towners were both appreciative of, and I was very much so, especially since it brought warm food and a warm atmosphere to a snow-filled morning.
I will be moving up to Framingham in late July and cannot wait to go back to J&M for breakfast. Perhaps we'll have to try some other meals too! :-)
P.S. Prices are not bad AT ALL! I always worry about diners charging too much, and J&M did not do that.
Medieval Manor or a Theme Dinner
The best advice I could offer is to do a Google search. I just typed in "murder mystery dinner Boston" and up popped a whole slew of options. I cannot vouch for the food at any of the places (the first one that popped up is Mystery Café) as I do not yet live in MA (moving there in July), but if you do a search on Google and then a second on the forums on this site, you might find some good options. Two cents from a Google-a-holic.
Take-out wings for the Pat's game?
Wing It is on Commonwealth Ave. in Brighton. I went there when I visited the area in summer of 2006 on the recommendation of a local to the area and LOVED their lemon pepper boneless wings. Way too much food for one meal (if you get the meal deal you get fries), but hey, two meals in one isn't bad either!
Here's their website:
http://www.wing-it.com/
Tasting for Two during the holidays
I wanted to see what Troquet was all about, but when I went on their website it said they are closed until further notice...bummer. :-(
Pei Wei in springfield??? Any other good Chinese in Delco.
I actually just wrote up a post about Pei Wei here:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/468193
Hope you find it helpful.
Crazy night at the new Pei Wei in Springfield
This past Saturday evening I went with my fiancé, my parents, and my aunt and uncle to Pei Wei in Springfield, PA (Philly suburb). Pei Wei is a new restaurant by the people who own P.F. Chang's, so expectations for this new restaurant are pretty high. Let me tell you, our evening was quite an experience.
My dad started calling the place a "glorified McDonald's" for Chinese food because essentially you place your order at the register (we're talking for eat-in)--mind you this is only when they have found a table for you, which is near impossible if it's busy since the eat-in secion is tiiiiiny--and then you sit at your table with your number, and they bring you the food. You pick either a meat (chicken, beaf, scallops) or vegetables and then either a noodle type or a sauce/veggie combo (you'd have to see the menu to fully understand, but it made more sense to me at first glance than to my dad and aunt who are very clearly siblings and think about things in the very same way). You have to get your drinks at the fountain yourself, as well as any utensils you might want, since they only put chopsticks at the table (which I don't mind but no one else with me seemed to find helpful). I was one of the last ones to sit down, as I offered to get my mom's drink for her as well as my own (she'd had a long day), and by the time I got there my uncle already had his soup. Almost immediately after I sat down my aunt's spring rolls came as well as both of my parents' orders of soup. While my uncle said his soup was hot, neither of my parents thought theirs were particularly so.
Within I would say the next five minutes or so (couldn't have been more than ten) we had all 6 entrées as well. The portions were a good size for the price (I think entrées, depending on what meat/veggie you picked were anywhere from $6.50-$9, but don't quote me on that), and I must say that I got two meals out of my lemon pepper chicken, which was served with your choice of white or brown rice (I went with white) and topped with shredded carrots, green onions, and green beans. However, while I did enjoy my meal, my aunt found the lemon pepper too tangy for her taste (she had it with scallops) and had to send it back and get plain. (The dish was not labeled "spicy"; it was just my aunt's taste buds, I guess. I tasted a small kick but nothing egregiously spicy.) My fiancé and my mom both got what was labeled as a "spicy" dish with chicken, but upon trying a bite of it myself, I found it even LESS tangy than my own non-spicy dish (and I don't generally go for spicy options). My mom said she tasted a little "heat," but neither my fiancé (who typically orders chicken with garlic sauce when we get Chinese) nor I were convinced of this fact.
My dad ordered something with an orange sauce, I believe, but he didn't seem to be terribly thrilled with his dish (thought it was okay, but nothing special), and at once point I remember him comparing the food quality to that of the Panda Express at the Granite Run Mall (which I must admit has pretty decent orange chicken for being a more typical fast food Chinese place, but I don't think the comparison was meant as flattery). I didn't get my uncle's take, but he's not a huge talker or very opinionated.
None of the "older" generation folks ever want to go back, sighting that this was their "one and done," but my fiancé and I figured that the food was pretty decent, and we could see ourselves doing take-out when we're back up in the area over the summer.
I figured that since this place is owned by the P.F. Chang's people, and since they are really trying to hype up the place by sending out coupons for a free entrée, I would write up a detailed review so that people don't go in with different expectations than they ought to. If in-and-out in less than an hour with little space between tables is good for you, I'd say give it a shot for eat-in, but otherwise, try take-out.
Keep me updated in the coming months on whether things have settled into any kind of groove there.
Reception Type Room for Baby Shower in Newark, DE area
Hello Chowhounds!
A coworker of mine wants to hold a baby shower for her daughter in the Newark, DE area. However, she is looking specifically for a reception room in a place where they are not forced to use an on-site caterer (she just wants to bring the food herself). Lastly, she is expecting to have approximately 40 guests for this shower.
Any help you can give me to pass on to her would be great! Chow has provided me with lots of help in the past, so I figured I'd try to spread the love and help a coworker in need!
:-)
Has anyone tried the new place "110 House" in Media PA?
I have not been to 110 House yet, but perhaps on one of my trips home (grew up right near Linvilla Orchards, now living in Newark, DE, with my grad student fiance) I will have to stop in. A few people in the thread at http://www.chowhound.com/topics/430693 mentioned "House" as well, so I'm thinking it's definitely worth a go before I move to the Boston area in July.
Any good restaurants near King of Prussia?
Ya know...I feel like I saw one in Boston the last time I was there. Good that I have a memory...or not.
Anyway, you are very right in saying that it does not have that "chain" feeling. I think part of that is probably due in part to the fact that each place will have its own distinct beer.
Newark, Delaware restaurants
Yes, I recognize that I am coming to this post a few years too late, but I figure for the sake of anyone who might currently be in the same position as the original poster I will share my thoughts on the matter.
First, in reply to Rachel, the Crab Trap actually just closed some months back, and the building was destroyed not too long after. Star of India is correct for the other restaurant, although they are moving according to a sign in their window. Deer Park and Kate's are still pretty popular places, although I've never been to either for food.
As for places I -have- been, I first recommend Cucina di Napoli on Main Street. When I found out I was going there the first (and sadly only) time I've been, I went online to see if they had a menu, and while I didn't find one, I found a post about the restaurant on, you guessed it, Chowhound. I don't have the link to that post, but the person recommended the chicken lasagna, and let me tell you, I rave about it to this day. They give you this HUGE portion of lasagna that is totally cheesy and filled with tasty white meat chicken. If memory serves, they use what appeared to be a blush sauce...so tasty. The whole dish was wonderful. I had bruschetta to start with, which was also phenominal, so I had leftover lasagna to take home...perfect!
Another place of a totally different ilk is Saigon Vietnamese restaurant. It's in what I believe is called the Main Street Shopping Center. I had never had Vietnamese food before, but the chicken dish I had was very tasty, and the noodles were these delicious light-as-air angel-hair-like noodles that were great. The ambiance was also very nice. My fiance and I went there for our 4-year anniversary thinking we would order there and take it back to our apartment, but when we got there we decided to stay because of how nice it was.
Lastly, I'll throw into the mix Ali Baba on Main Street. I -believe- it's either Middle Eastern, Morroccan, or both. There were also spanicopita and tzatziki on the menu, so it's got a good mix of stuff. You sit around round tables, some people along the wall and some people on little stools, so if you have back issues, I suggest being one of the people along the wall. I sat at a stool, and for the first time my feet hit the floor (I'm very short), so I had no problem with that. Many of the dishes, like the one I ordered, came with what I believe they call a green and orange salad. This "salad" is actually cucumbers and carrots dressed in a slightly tangy oil-based dill dressing of sorts, but whatever it was, it was delicious! The veggies were very fresh, and the dressing suited them perfectly. Again, I had a chicken dish (I love chicken, what can I say) that when it came out I knew I would not finish due to the sheer size of it. I forget if it had anything else on the plate aside from extra of the delicious lemon sauce, but it really didn't need it after the veggies. My fiance's dish came with rice, which he did not finish, so when I took home the extra chicken, I just put his rice with it, and the rice went just fine and reheated pretty well.
Just thought I'd give some recent contributions to a thread that needed updating.
Food recommendations for apartment hunt
Still have 12 days 'til we leave, and I'm still open for suggestions. Please send your thoughts because, like I said in the original post, I'd rather know that I've got some Chowhound opinions on my side than leave things to chance. I say that mostly because I can tell that there are so many more options up there than down here (currently in Newark, DE but grew up in the Philly suburbs, which are slowly developing food-wise).
Any good restaurants near King of Prussia?
I would recommend Rock Bottom for steak and beer. I think there might be one or two more of these, but I wouldn't consider it a "chain." The location near you is actually at the KOP mall.
I preface this with the fact that I don't really drink beer, but the few times I've been with my fiancé and his brother and their friends we have gotten a sampler, which comes with I believe 6 small beers and sometimes an extra one or two specialty ones...and I've actually liked some of them! My dinner of choice are the steak tips, which they serve over mashed potatoes in a brown sauce...mmmmm tasty!
Hope that's helpful! :-)
Food recommendations for apartment hunt
I hope to be working at a theatre somewhere in the more downtown type area, so we're working out a compromise of location...so you were half right! :-)
Food recommendations for apartment hunt
My fiancé will be working in Boxborough, so we see the Fitchburg line as more direct between there and Boston but the Framingham line as having more of the retail stuff around that we're used to, having grown up in the Philly suburbs. Plus, our current top choice of apartment complex (having found it online and it pretty much being everything we are looking for) is in Framingham, so...we'll see how it goes.
Thanks everyone for all the help so far. Keep the posts rolling! :-)
Food recommendations for apartment hunt
Hello Chowhounds!
My fiancé and I will be up in the western Boston suburbs from Dec. 19-21 to hunt for apartments for our move to the area in July (super excited!), and I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations of places we can eat for two breakfasts, one lunch (possibly two, but we hope to be on the road before lunch on the 21st), and two dinners. Breakfast should be somewhere in the Framingham area, as that is where our hotel is, but the other meals can be anywhere from the center of Boston to any point along either the Fitchburg or Framingham rail lines (these are the areas in which we are looking at apartments, so if we find a restaurant in the area where we end up settling, we will most certainly go back once we are up there permanently). Any advice would be great, since neither one of us has spent any significant time up in the area.
I figure, hey, might as well get some recommendations instead of leaving it entirely to chance, right? ;-)
~Gi~
P.S. I realized I should mention that we're not really looking for anything on the fancy side and that we are up for trying interesting things. We've done plenty of Italian, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Middle Eastern/Moroccan, and Vietnamese among others in our food ventures thus far.
