pasuga's Profile
Theater in Cambridge and Hotel in Revere- Recs in between?
Check out the online menus and Chowhound threads for Neptune Oyster in the North End and Island Creek Oyster Bar in Kenmore Square - both get raves here although different atmospheres. You don't say how large your group is - Neptune is tiny and they don't take reservations. If you're a party of 2-4 and going directly from the matinee to the restaurant you shouldn't have too long a wait.
Someone on a recent thread mentioned Mare in the North End for Italian seafood. I've never eaten there but their menu made me want to jump in a cab and go.
Are you coming in to see "Porgy and Bess?"
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Neptune Oyster
63 Salem St Ste 1, Boston, MA 02113
Island Creek Oyster Bar
500 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02215
recommendation for great North End restaurant?
I've had some of the best meals of my life at Neptune. Never been to Mare but the menu looks fabulous. If those are in your price range then look no further.
When I lived in the North End L'Osteria was my go-to place when I wanted a nice meal and didn't want to break the bank. Is it "great?" the way Neptune is exceptional? No - more consistently good and solid. They have a lot of seafood options and I took several parties of friends there over the years. We always had a good time - they don't rush you - good service - and everyone always enjoyed the food. Here's the menu.
http://www.losteria.com/dinnermenu.html
Have fun wherever you end up!
Need Great Chef Driven Restaurant Recommendation Near Fanneuil Hall for our CEO
For an old Boston stand-by and a great wine list- what about Locke Ober?
http://www.lockeober.com/menu.htm
What's the meal made 'specially for you' ...and you have to choke it down?
This really is a funny thread!
My Dad usually made Sunday breakfast and he was a good cook. But there was the day he'd been watching Julia Child make crepes and added orange liqueur to the pancake batter. I was about nine. He didn't think to warn us until we'd all poured maple syrup over and I spat my first mouthful all over the table.
Where should I head to re-stock my bar?
Two places to check out . The small store attached to the Star Market in Allston/Brighton on Western Ave. Their prices for hard liquor are generally a couple dollars less per bottle than you'll see in town. The other is the liquor store on the O'Brien Highway heading away from town - it's on the right about half a mile from the Storrow Drive/O'Brien intersection. Haven't been there for a couple years but I remember their prices were always better than in town. I don't know how the prices compare to Martignettii's.
This is not germane to the discussion but I have a wonderful memory from way back in the seventies. My family was driving from NJ to Lake Winnepesaukee for our annual vacation and Dad stopped at the first state store off Rt. 93 to stock up. Both Julia Child and Henry Fonda were in the store. Julia apparently didn't mind driving an hour back and forth to save $ and Henry Fonda was on his way north to film "On Golden Pond."
What would YOU do with 40 lbs of hierloom tomatoes?
This is a family recipe. I grew up in NJ farm country in the sixties/seventies before the state got paved over. We always made it alternating very ripe red tomatoes and green ones but I think you could adapt it for your heirlooms. If you're not into making pastry a store-bought pie crust works just fine.
Apologies - my zero key isn't working.
9-inch unbaked pie crust
4 cups sliced red and green tomatoes
1-1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 clove minced garlic
Brush pie shell lightly with milk. Bake at 45o degrees for five minutes and remove from oven. Cool for a couple minutes.
Reduce oven to 35o.
Fill shell with sliced tomatoes alternating colors.
Combine mayo/ parmesan/garlic and spread over top.
Bake for about forty minutes.
Restaurant suggestions for vegetarian & non-vegetarian near Copley Plaza?
Close to you - +1 for Vlora and also for Kashmir - Indian - on Newbury Street. Chinatown is just two short T-stops or a fifteen-minute walk.
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Vlora
545 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116
Boston Foodie tours or city/cultural/historical tours
Michelle Topor who runs the North End tours also offers one in Chinatown.
http://www.bostonfoodtours.com/
The Duckboat tours are also kind of fun. And the Boston Public Library does interesting free tours a couple times a week.
Visiting Boston - With a Teenager
+1! All great seafood recommendations - especially NO and ICBO. I can't imagine a 14 year-old getting the hairy fish-eye anywhere in Boston unless you all tried to go someplace formal like the Ritz or L'Espalier in jeans and sneakers.
If you are going to walk the Freedom Trail my favorite spots in the North End are L'Osteria for lunch and Monica's on Richmond Street for dinner. And of course Pizzeria Regina. L'Osteria serves very good basic Southern Italian food. I'm particularly partial to their antipasto and their stratacelli soup. Monica's is more upscale and expensive and only open for dinner. Regina's has probably the best pizza in Boston - pre- WW II brick oven. It's one of those places you'll remember every time you get pizza somewhere else.
You didn't mention your plans. If you are thinking of taking a whale watch trip or a boat to the Harbor Islands there are a bunch of good restaurants right near the Aquarium. And re: that - the guided tour of the colonial fort in Boston Harbor is very interesting.
Really Basic Chicken Curry Recipe?
Once or twice a year I like making it with a half pint of full-fat yogurt and a half pint of sour cream - that's for 4 boneless breast halves. It's decadent and bad for you - but it's yummy! That's using the basic recipe above - onions/oil/curry powder.
The oil soaks up a lot of powder so I'll either take off the heat or let it simmer on very low with a little chicken broth or water while I cook the chicken in a separate pan.. Can be whole or cut up - your preference. Combine and add the yogurt and sour cream. Cover and simmer on low heat for about 25 minutes while you're cooking the rice.
North End Food Crawl
My advice when you go is go early in the week when they aren't so busy. I took my brother there once on a Monday night. He traveled all over the US and South America for business for many years and Europe for fun so eats out constantly. He said it was one of the ten best restaurant meals he's ever had. The food and service are always excellent but it's a different experience when the place isn't packed.
Romantic restaurant near Scullers Jazz Club?
I've never eaten at Rendezvous but I remember it getting a lot of enthusiastic posts about the food here.. The Central Square garage is just a couple blocks away and very cheap. From there it's a quick hop down Western Ave and across the bridge to Scullers. Maybe others can comment on the atmosphere.
Stone Hearth Pizza, Belmont 7/08
Sorry about my mistake - I get the Brighton/Allston borders confused. Great news about SwissBakers - thanks! And that's very interesting about the politics. I'm afraid I don't know your acronyms - what do NIMBYlicious and ACA stand for?
Stone Hearth Pizza, Belmont 7/08
Don't hate me if I'm wrong - but I think there is one coming to Brighton also. I shop at the Star Market on Western Ave a lot. Don't remember the name of the cross street but at the second light after the Harvard Business School - if you're going towards Watertown - there's a building that's been empty for years. It's under construction now and wrapped in plastic but I swear there was a "Stone House Pizza Coming Soon!" sign a couple weeks ago.
Looking for the best Whole Foods in the Boston area
Don't know if it's the biggest or the best as it's the only one I shop at - but there's a WF in Cambridge on River Street. It's not a long diversion from either Rt. 93 or Rt. 1. Assume you'll be taking one of those North. There's also a wonderful organic market in Central Square in Cambridge - it's called Harvest Market.
What's your favorite dijon mustard and where do you buy it locally?
I'm a Grey Poupon fan and just recently discovered Trader Joe's has a good coarse grain Dijon - bigger bottle for less money. Have you checked out the Mt. Horeb Mustard Museum? I order online from them frequently - they have such great variety and have never been disappointed.
http://mustardmuseum.com/
North End Food Crawl
Thanks for this. I was shocked to hear she'd died. She was such a lively person.
North End Food Crawl
I'm SO sorry to hear that! Do you know when she passed? Moved out of the NE about six years ago but before that I lived on Salem St. for years and was in and out of the shop several times a week. Got to know Monica and her daughter quite well - she was a lovely warm and very special lady.
To threedogs: Can't say for sure. The family is originally from Argentina although Monica herself was Italian. My understanding was that they were quite well off there - and during some political troubles her husband's business partner was murdered. They packed up and came to the States with almost nothing and when her kids grew up they started the restaurants and the Mercato was an offshoot of that.
Boston lowest in fast food consumption
I remember - this is years ago so I don't know if it's valid anymore - my brother worked for Proctor & Gamble. He said they always tried marketing their new food products in New England first because the folks here were more conservative about trying new things and if it sold here it would sell in the rest of the US.
Have always been sorry A&W never made it here. Hot days like this a root beer float would be spot-on.
Visiting from Los Angeles
Bearing in mind it's going to be brutally hot and humid here tomorrow.... the first place that came to mind is Neptune Oyster. It's about midway between the airport and South Station. Here's a link:
http://www.neptuneoyster.com/
It meets all your criteria except the price point but the food is really exceptional.
You'd take the Blue Line from the airport to Government Center. From there you can either walk 7-8 minutes into the North End or pick up the Green line and go one stop to Haymarket and walk for three. If you walk from Government Center you will have to walk through the usual Friday fruit/fish/vegetable market which can get quite smelly on a hot summer day. But is also a unique Bostonian experience. Secure your wallet if you do - it's a pickpocket hangout. Going back you'd take the Green Line from Haymarket to Park St. - 2 stops - transfer to the Red Line and then it's about ten minutes to South Station.
Neptune is small and gets crowded fast so if you decide to go I'd recco getting there about 11:3 for lunch so you don't have a long wait.
South Station has a decent book stall and a lot of food stalls so you could hang out there if it's too hot to do anything else. If you have time tad the energy the North End is a very interesting neighborhood - lots of small food stores plus the Old North Church and Paul Revere's house.
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Neptune Oyster
63 Salem St Ste 1, Boston, MA 02113
Haymarket
Blackstone St, Boston, MA
Carded in our Mid 50s!
About 12 years ago I got carded at my neighborhood liquor store by a new employee. He saw my birth date - 1958 - and did a double take. One of the nicest compliments i ever had.
North End Food Crawl
If you have the means to get it home Monica's fresh tomato sauce is excellent also. Her kids make it at one of their restaurants - they roast the tomatoes.
Best gin for a non-gin drinker
I've never tried the Sapphire but was going to suggest regular Bombay - it's the only gin I really like.
North End Food Crawl
The Italian sub from Monica's Mercato gets frequent enthusiastic mentions on this board.
Recommendations for an Italian cook book?
Sorry - correction - the first book was "Sicilian Home Cooking" and it's available from Amazon UK although apparently out of print.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sicilian-Cooking-Tornabene-Wanda-Giova/dp/037540399X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1310952619&sr=8-2
Recommendations for an Italian cook book?
A few years ago my brother's family had a student from Rome living with them for her junior year in high school. I don't think she thought much of American food although my SiL is quite a good cook! VBG At Christmas she had her mother send over a cookbook for all the women in our family. It's called "The Delights of Good Italian Cooking" and has tons of beautiful color photos. No author given - edited by Paolo Piazzesi. The ingredients are all given for American and European and British cooks. i.e. a random recipe I opened to called for 6 ML/ 2 FL OZ/ 4 TBSP red wine. A lot of emphasis on very fresh meat and vegetables. Some for meats that aren't easy to find in the US like rabbit and pheasant.
I'm also very fond of the two cookbooks by Wanda and Giovanna Tornabene. Their focus is on Sicilian cooking and they have wonderful pictures and anecdotes throughout both books. Their restaurant is a former medieval abbey which had been the family home for generations. Quite isolated - and their food so good that Prince Charles was brought for a visit by friends when he was on a private vacation. The first book is "La Cucina Siciliana Di Gangivecchio." The editions I have were done for the American market but I'd be very surprised if they aren't out there with British/European measurements.
First REAL Food memory
Back in the early sixties my folks took me and my brothers on a car trip out west from Illinois. I was 4. Somewhere in Wyoming we stopped at a place that rented out cabins with wood-burning stoves. I'm pretty sure they weren't really open - it was September - but they took us in and one of the owner's boys went out and caught a bunch of rainbow trout for our supper. Right from the stream into the frying pan. Nothing had ever tasted so good!
North End Food Crawl
You might be interested in Michelle Topor's food tours: http://www.bostonfoodtours.com/
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 3rd quarter 2011 [Old]
Thanks for all the suggestions - these are all products I haven't bought and will look for. Me - I'm still missing the wonderful chicken vegetable soup they had stocked at my local TJs all winter. Perfect comfort food and I hope they bring it back when the weather turns cold again.
