snifflyfro's Profile
Last minute guests forcing change to graduation dinner. HELP!
I know Capital Grill isn't an "amazing" steak house to many, but at least in Chestnut Hill the service is excellent, the food is very good, maybe not amazing, and they know how to handle graduations. Personally, I appreciate a high level of service and I believe Capital Grill delivers that, plus the other requests.
As I said, my suggestions are much more generic that yours which are much more unique and or niche restaurants.
Last minute guests forcing change to graduation dinner. HELP!
A classic graduation place is Capital Grill. There service is excellent and they have plenty of options for fish. I have to imagine there are vegetarian options so long as a steak house doesn't offend them. There is a location in the Back Bay and in Newton (right on rout 9 so easy access).
They're not cheap, but depending on what people order, the $50ish per person price limit is certainly doable. Accessibility is also extremely good.
The Fire Place in Brookline on Beacon Street is also an option. I'm not sure how popular of a place it is for graduations, but that might be a good thing. It's an American / New England menu, so again, fish for sure, and not sure about vegetarians.
Both of my suggestions are kind of "safe" places that are fairly large and aimed at pleasing a wide array of palates. I certainly can't say that either are "Best Of" types of places, but they're very good with excellent service.
Unshucked Oysters
Thanks for the tips! Going to bag the idea of getting a "gadget" and instead head over to China Fair.
One the side I may just go with beer...
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China Fair
2100 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA
Unshucked Oysters
So I'm ready to jump on the oyster bandwagon after having them several times at restaurants. I tried shucking once with a non oyster knife (and flat head screwdriver). Got them open, but as you can imagine, besides the effort involved there were shell chips all over.
So time for an oyster knife...
I know there is the classic, white handled knife seen throughout New England. As I a novice, I'm a bit concerned about cutting myself (I know I could do the special glove and/or towels) but am thinking about this from Sur La Table: http://www.surlatable.com/product/dubost+oyster+knife+set.do?keyword=oyster+knife&sortby=ourPicks
The price seems good but haven't been able to find any reviews except one very brief on Amazon.
The Sur La Table set seems very similar to this English product except the knife in the English product appears superior (and the price is obviously more): http://www.z-u.co.uk/oysterclamps.html
I know that if I get into shucking them on my own I'll end up going the glove and traditional knife method at some point or at the very least upgrade the knife if this one proofs insufficient.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Unshucked Oysters
Thanks. Called New Deal. He's got a couple of varieties, one from CT and the other from ME. About $1.20-$1.40 a piece depending on variety.
Legal's was a bit pricier at their market.
I'll hit up New Deal, but Whole Foods in Brighton has a couple of varieties, Wellfleet and Island Creek for .99 a piece.
Unshucked Oysters
I know there's been lots of talk about $1 oysters and other oyster deals in and around Boston. What about unshucked oysters? Where do people get theirs? (Anything in the Chestnut Hill area would be great).
Where to get Soft Shell Crabs
On May 5 I got an email alert from Mercato del Mare in the North End letting me know they have soft shell crabs.
New Cheap "deals" in Brighton, Newton, Allston?
Yea, but nice to get a good deal midweek or something.
Current I'm liking the following, both in Brookline:
Cash deals for Maki, Sala & Soup and Genki Ya
Taco Wed at Dorado (1.99 ensalada)
New Cheap "deals" in Brighton, Newton, Allston?
Does anybody have any thoughts on cheap eat "deals" in Brighton, Newton or Allston?
I was planning on heading out solo to Brighton Beer Garden to watch the start of the Celtics game and have a late dinner but saw that they increased the wing buffet from $3.99 to $5.99 (50% increase). It's not a budget buster, but they already began requiring the purchase of a drink a few months ago, so at this point not a great deal in my opinion.
Thanks.
Pickling salt
A lot of grocery stores have a jarring section. Sometimes it's near the baking products, sometimes other places. Typically it's hard to find, and low to the ground, but you'll find pickling salt there.
ChaNuKah Party - food ideas
Same here, apps are #1.
What we do homemade latkes. This year 10 lbs of potatoes.
What else on the menu....
Pizza Bagels
Pigs in the blanket (beef dogs)
Turkey salami cuts
NEW: Maybe some Mini Kinishes as per this discussion
Nobody kosher here. About 25-30 guests, of which 10% or less will be Jewish and even less kosher.
Where to eat on Thanks Giving?
Smith & Wollensky's has a nice Thanksgiving meal that my sister enjoyed 2 years ago.
I would venture to guess that most of the steakhouses in and around Boston have some sort of T-day meal (traditional T-Day fixed menu + regular menu). In addition, many clubs have T-day meals, although I'm not sure if you're a member or have reciprocity to any in Boston.
Birthday Dinner in the South End
We ended up going to Toro and it was excellent (this is the boyfriend). Exactly what we were looking for, casual and laid back, but great food. I couldn't believe how hopping it was for a Sunday night. We go there early, but later their seemed to be a wait (heard 45 minutes at one point, but not sure how big the party was).
We ate outside where there were about a dozen table on the sidewalk. The standouts were the "Maíz Asado con Alioli y Queso Cotija " which was two ears of corn, grilled to perfection with alioli, some chilis and cheese. Messy, but worth the mess, absolutely excellent. Also the citrus and soy tuna was great. Everything else was also terrific, but those were the standouts.
Service was superb. We're somewhat new to Tapas and our waitress was terrific, had some excellent recommendations and the restaurant served the dishes in a well thought out manner (it was the order of the menu, sometimes giving us a few dishes at once).
Thanks for the help guys, exactly what we were looking for on a Sunday night good but not too stuffy Birthday dinner. Lots of great flavors, nothing all that spicy either.
Birthday Dinner in the South End
Thanks for the reply! While although fun for another time, not the scene that we're looking for if that's still the Sunday scene at 28 degrees. I know Sundays can be "weird" at restaurants for lack of a better term so that's why I posted.
Certainly not too late at all, we're heading out Sunday night, Aug 30.
Birthday Dinner in the South End
I'm looking for somewhere nice to take my boyfriend for dinner in the South End on Sunday night.
Not looking for a steak place or anything too stuffy. I'm open to pretty much any genre but Asian or Indian. Price point wise I'm not looking for super expensive, but not a cheap place. He likes "interesting" and different foods and or presentations. If anywhere has specials (I checked out hubeats) we'd be up for that, but certainly not mandatory.
I quickly Googled an came across 28 degrees, seems interesting, but am totally open to anything.
Thanks!
Half-sour pickles
Go for ba tempte in the refrigerator section. Typically you can find them in the produce section, close to hummus.
Since we're outside of NYC, you need to make sure the pickles are very bright green. Often times at my Shaws I won't buy them because the pickles aren't bright enough. Another indicator that the pickles have fermented too much is that the brine is cloudy.
For great pickles at a restaurant, try Rubin's in Brookline.
Russo's pickles do look good, but when there I buy kirby cucumbers for pickling at home.
Esperia in Brighton?
I believe Esperia is owned by the same family who owned the pizzeria that was there beforehand. I was never at the pizzeria, and have never ordered pizza from Esperia, so I can't comment. For pizza in Brighton I go to Brighton House of Pizza which I think is the best non-gourmet NY style pizza in the area (and very close to my apt. helps).
Esperia is great. They're a family run home style Greek restaurant. The husband and wife are always working behind the counter and typically their son is working the cash register. My girlfriend grew up in Newton and we used to drive out to Farm Grill in Newton, and since Esperia opened we've been going to Esperia. We've stopped at Farm Grill a few times when we've been in Newton, and we both agree that Esperia is better.
The Greek dressing is terrific (it's heavy on the garlic). The Gyros and sides are also terrific. They serve beer and wine if you are eating at the restaurant. They must be doing well because they are now closed on Sundays (including Sunday nights for take-out).
The Negatives:
My only real gripe with Esperia is that it's a bit slow, especially if you're getting take-out. Make sure to call ahead, otherwise, if you show-up and order for take-out, expect to wait.
A slight negative is the parking. They share one of the smallest parking lots ever with Dunkin' Donuts, but I've always been able to find somewhere to stop.
Cold poached salmon
I've done poached salmon in an aluminum foil packed in the oven. I place the fish on top of a bed of lemon slices and dill in the center of a sheet of foil, then add white wine and whatever other flavors you'd like (there are lots of recipes online).
After cooking in the oven, I put the cooked fish in the refrigerator for several hours. I accompany cold poached salmon with cucumber yogurt (simply plain yogurt, de-seeded cucumber, chopped and some lemon juice).
Sweet Potato Oven Fries?
I find it's best to make them on a cooling rack placed on a jelly roll/half sheet pan, or to make them on a broiler pan. The one time I tried making them right on a sheet pan they were soggy.
I usually do about 425 in the oven.
Fresh Smoked Fish
It was good. A half pound was $8.99 I believe, although I'm not positive and I tossed out the contained. It was great on bagels and also quite good on its on. Often times I find that the grocery lox is a little "slimy," and this wasn't.
My hometown, and where my parent's still live (in NY), has a wholesale fish smoking house that also does retail, and I've got to say that this was pretty on par (although I'm not too picky). It was thin cut (sometimes the grocery store cuts are fairly thick), had good salt levels and tasted great. I also appreciated that the only ingredients were salmon, salt and sugar, I'm not sure what the other ingredients are on some brands, but I figure stick to just the normal stuff and not chemicals for such a simple item. Finally, you can't go wrong getting Lox from Queens.
Fresh Smoked Fish
We ended up going to Bazaa Market in Newton. We bought some cold smoked salmon from Jamaica, Queens. They also had some from somewhere in Brooklyn.
It looked to me like they do smoke fish on premises, but whole fish, not lox, but maybe I missed it.
Next time I think I'll check out the whole foods option.
Fresh Smoked Fish
Thanks. I looked in there when they first opened, and I think they might actually smoke in-house. I thought of Baza right after I posted.
Fresh Smoked Fish
Hi,
I live in the Newton/Brighton area and am wondering if there are any fish smokehouses in the area that sells smoked salmon. I know Spencer & Co. is located in Brockton, but unfortunately they don't have a retail store at their facility.
Thanks.
Beer Butt Cornish Game Hen in the Oven
Thanks for the quick replies. I picked up a couple of frozen hens. I figure I'll try one the first time in case it's a disaster of some sort (defrosting one in a cooler with ice water). Unfortunately I don't have brown sugar, and at this point doubt I'll pick some up, but am curious about what sorts of dried herbs you'd suggest.
I've got herbs de provence along with many dried herbs, seeds, etc., but am unsure what to use.
I'm planning on using an empty v-8 can (5.5 ounces) filled a little more than half with beer and some crushed garlic (we're big garlic and onion fans).
Beer Butt Cornish Game Hen in the Oven
Hi,
I'm planning on grabbing a Cornish game hen today and trying beer butt Cornish game hen in the oven. I found a recipe or two online, but not a whole lot. Does anybody have and suggestions, types or recipes? I've never made Cornish game hen, beer butt chicken or even a whole chicken, so it will be a bit of an adventure.
I'm planning on using a slim can, like a V-8 or Budweiser Select can. Also from what I've read, 400 degrees in the oven for about 45 minutes should be sufficient.
Would it be okay to brush the entire hen with some BBQ sauce before putting in the oven, or would it burn?
Additionally, will one hen be enough (with a side of pilaf) for two of us?
Thanks in advance!
Current consensus on best "everyday" sushi?
Maybe you went at an off time or something. We started going the first day it opened and have always been satisfied with both the sashimi and rolls. Not sure what you mean by presentation, I think for a take-out place, if you eat-in, the presentation is very nice.
Not sure what I was thinking with "Cleveland Square," I've lived a few blocks away for years.
Current consensus on best "everyday" sushi?
I'd suggest Fin's Sushi and Grill in Cleveland Square on Chestnut Hill Ave.
They have another location in Kenmore Square.
We like Fin's for both take-out and eat-in. Nice, decor and a couple of large flat screens.
Roadhouse BBQ Brookline
Where Vinny T's used to be on Beacon Street. Across from the Shaw's. The exact address is 1700 Beacon Street, Brookline.
Kirby Cucumbers & Pickling
Thanks for the suggestions. I went to Russo's (was in the area anyway). What a great place, I've never been there before but I'll certainly been back. They had a ton of good fresh ones.
I had to go to Stop&Shop for a couple of things and they had a few kirby cukes labeled "pickling cucumbers" but as Trufflehound mentioned, they didn't look all that fresh.
Kirby Cucumbers & Pickling
"Pickling Cucumbers" are in fact Kirbies. I've been to a number of stores and haven't seen them around. Do you have any specific stores where you've seen them?
I believe Kirby Cikes AKA pickling cukes are peaking soon, although in this day and age I assume that a well stocked grocer has most veggies year-round (I know, not great for the environment).
