nlg's Profile
Asia Gourmet in Concord: Very Good Taiwanese
I have passed by here thousands of times while driving on route 2. I'm so happy to hear that the food is good - and even more happy to find out that the chef used to be at Jo Jo Taipei. Menu looks terrific. Will have to stop there sometime when I'm out that way.
Where to find/buy Crabapples?
The location may be too far for you, but I bought some at Brooksby Farm in Peabody about a week ago. They made a nice crabapple-rose hip jelly. I didn't have the time to scout out a tree in my neighborhood. The Brooksby Farm crabapples were small, but much bigger than the ornamental varieties, and were a beautiful red color.
Buying lobster at the dock
The last name of the guy selling lobsters is actually Rowell. Super nice guy. He's sold lobsters at the Salem Farmer's Market (Thursdays, Front Street in Salem) in the past. He's a lobsterman, so I'm assuming he sells the lobsters he catches.
Another option is Lynch Lobster Co. out of Beverly (38 Water St.).
Secrets of Salem??
I would also add Hobb's salt water taffy and popcorn bars to the list.
Southern Barbecue in Boston? Oxymoron?
My family and I recently went to Hampton, NH and happened upon Porkez BBQ Pig Pen and were pleased with the bbq there. There's a smoker right out front and the meat was delicious - obviously smoked and not just grilled. We had a combo platter with beef brisket, two kinds of pork ribs, a beef rib, pulled pork. The ribs had been finished off on the grill. We got the meat dry - and added extra sauce ourselves. Note: there was chicken breast included on the combo platter - which was grilled, not smoked. Sides were ok. I know it's a little ways from Boston, but it's really just over the border on route 1 and if you're up there to go to the beach, I think it's worth going to.
I would also agree with the post that stated bbq is different all over the south. I've had a variety of bbq - mostly in the midwest, Texas, and Kentucky, and each place had a different take on bbq - and the sauces were oh so different too.
http://porkezbbqpigpen.com/menu.html
Top Ten Italian Restaurants around the World - Antico???
I enjoy going to Antico Forno - decent place for us to go for lunch, reduced parking at garage #7. But, in a top ten listing of Italian restaurants in the *world*? Huh? I'm guessing these may be places the author and her friends have eaten at over the years.
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Antico Forno
93 Salem Street, Boston, MA 02113
Seriously, CHers... Antico Forno?
Too bad you had a bad experience...We love going here but, we always order pasta/pizza out of the wood oven, have two kids with us, and go for lunch/late lunch. Never a bad meal, but we look at it as a lunch place with the kids. I would probably not consider going there for a night-time date.
In addition, the parking is good. They will validate parking for Garage #7 (I think this is the name of it), which is pretty close by, and costs around $3 at the most for us with the validation.
Best Yogurt I've Ever Eaten - Sophia's Belmont
We were making an afternoon of going to some of our favorite spots - Arax, Sevan, and
Formaggio Kitchen. Based on this post, we swung over to Sophias, which we discovered is not far at all from Arax.
Even though she was actually closed, the owner (I'm guessing she was the owner) helped me get some yogurt, and taramasalada (even got some samples before I bought some - the taramasalada is delicious). So friendly and nice.
Anyway, the yogurt is unbelievable. The best yogurt ever. It is nothing I would eat a cup of alone (so rich!) - although I suspect my 11 yr old son would based upon his enthusiastic eating of it when we first came home. We ate it thickly smeared on the bread we bought at FK. holy smokes! sweet, tangy, rich, creamy. YUMMY! Thanks, StriperGuy!
Restaurants in Salem Ma
I know this is in reply to a rather old post, but wanted to add something about Green Land Cafe. My son and I went there a couple of weekends ago for lunch. Maybe dinner there is better...but, lunch was ordinary at best.
I started with the Smoked Pumpkin Bisque - which actually was fabulous. Smooth, smokey, sweet pumpkin flavor, topped by crunchy carmelized pumpkin seeds. For our meal, my son got the New England Turkey sandwich, I got the Chipotle Crab sandwich. My roll was toasted way too long - burned and black. I had to scrape it off (note: waitress offered to bring a new sandwich, but I declined - I hate to waste food; scraped, the sandwich was ok). His was in a similar burned state, but not quite as bad. His sandwich was also served on a brioche roll instead of a ciabatta roll, which even his child eyes noticed. The extreme dryness of his sandwich (dry deli turkey meat and dry toast-like roll) was calling out for mayo, which was not served with the sandwich and he had to ask for. The cranberry compote was from a jar, and the potato salad was ordinary and probably not house made. The crab cake on my sandwich was good - nice chunks of crabmeat, but it and the bisque were the only positives I can say about our meal. So, again, here's hoping that dinner is better, because I want them to do well. Salem is coming along with some nice new restaurants and I like the locally grown concept of this place.
Nantucket Scallops
Last Friday, Cherry Street Fish Market in Danvers had them for $24.00 a pound.
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Fish Market
170 Brighton Ave, Boston, MA 02134
North Shore rehersal dinner ideas?
A couple of places in Salem came to mind. Finz - they have an upstairs room for functions. The Hawthorne Hotel's Sophia Room can handle a crowd that large. Last, I would also recommend the Lyceum Restaurant - they have an upstairs room for functions. I've been at functions at both the Hawthorne and Lyceum and the food/setup were great at both.
A smaller venue would be Red Rock Bistro in Swampscott. Beautiful view and great food. But, I wonder if your guests would want to drive all the way from Topsfield to Swampscott then to Peabody at the end of the evening.
Regarding Capt's, I've been at functions there and they do a nice job of setup, but it was just appetizers (which were ok) - so I can't speak on how a good a full meal would be. Nice view though.
I can't think of anything closer to Topsfield for an event. Woodman's would certainly be a fun place to have a rehearsal dinner - and great for seafood lovers!
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Finz
910 Washington St., Dedham, MA 02026
Hawthorne Hotel
18 Washington Sq Ste 1, Salem, MA 01970
Red Rock Bistro and Bar
141 Humphrey St, Swampscott, MA 01907
What are your Market Basket surprises?
This week at the Danvers MB: end pieces from the deli - so inexpensive. cheese for making into quiche, some nice salami. Often, there are pieces of prosciutto and we've also bought that Spanish type of ham (can't remember the name...). Also, in the meal aisle - goat meat at around $3.00 a pound. Also, bought four pounds of ground lamb for less than a dollar. Must have been a pricing mistake, but the best by date was for the preceding day. Made a huge amount of lamb meatballs and shepherd's pie. I felt like I had won the lottery!
Garlic Free Dining in Cambridge- Need help with finding a restaurant
I dealt with my husband's garlic "intolerance" with chopping up the garlic in tiny little pieces.
In any case, so many great places to eat in that area - but I doubt if any will meet the garlic-free, ethnic, inexpensive criteria. I would go where most of the guests would like the food, and find out (ahead of time) which dishes have the least amount (or no) of garlic in them.
St. Louis Style Pizza
I was also going to chime in and recommend Sam and Joe's. I think Sam and Joe's crust is thinner than Calitri's. They also use a special sort of cheese on their pizza. But it's not Provel - which I had never heard of (had to google it). sounds quite interesting to use on a pizza.
ISO fresh halibut or striped bass
I had not heard of New Deal and am now eager to go! Here in the Salem/Beverly area, I have gone to Cherry Street Fish Market in Danvers for fish (busy place, good turnover, never have gotten anything bad) - I esp. like the chowder fish there. Inexpensive and fresh. Perfect little pieces for a casserole or chowder. Market Basket in Danvers is ok too - but I will *only* get fish that's priced well and that seems to be moving quickly. Otherwise the fish looks pretty sad. I've also gotten fish at H-Mart. The last time I went I got wild salmon tails for $1.99 lb. The turnover was spectacular that day (lots of people elbowing each other to get some salmon), and the fish super fresh. Some of H-Mart's fish, I would not buy (doesn't look good to me), but I tend to be a bit fussy when it comes to fish...And, my fishermen neighbors have given me some great fish too!
Fresh Feta?
French feta at Arax. So smooth, creamy...yum. It's all about personal preference. Try before you buy. The last time I went there I ended up with a pound of it - was worried it would take some time to get through it - but it did not. All eaten by my family!
And, I am very eager to go back to Watertown - a little feta, olives, some pastries, the diner, and the Turkish candies at Sevan. I'm still thinking of those!
New Jersey Cow Milk at Whole Foods
After reading this discussion, we finally bought some High Lawn milk at WF. Chocolate milk and low fat. The chocolate milk we began drinking right at the store. Indeed, it is crazy rich and chocolaty. Really, really good.
At home, I tortured my family with one of my taste tests - comparing the High Lawn low fat milk with what I had just bought at the Danvers McKinnon's, which was Richardson's Ice Cream's milk. Winner: the Richardson's milk. Of course my testers were only three people - but, Richardson's does compare quite favorably in flavor to High Lawn (which is quite good). See: http://www.richardsonsicecream.com/index.php
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Richardson's Ice Cream
156 S Main St, Middleton, MA 01949
6/9/10 "Sixty Two On Wharf," Salem: Wow!! Major Wonderful on the North Shore!!
Bought one! I am thrilled!! We are always on a budget and this coupon makes going to this restaurant within our reach. The menu is *fantastic* and we are local, so the Tues/Wed/Thurs prix fixe menus are possibilities...
Cheese
I'm partial to Formaggio... the variety of cheeses and helpfulness of the staff (as well as the ability to try anything) are outstanding. I don't usually buy a crazy, large amount. I tend to stick to around a 1/3 of a pound of each cheese, get three different cheeses and go home quite happy.
Re. TJ - I enjoy their feta, chevre, and goat milk gouda, but some of the cheese tastes a little plastic to me. Arax Market in Watertown has a *fabulous*, creamy, sheep milk, French feta.
Off the beaten path (and more for the northern New England Board I guess), is the Hanover/Lebanon NH Food Co-op, where they have a great selection of local (NH/VT) cheeses.
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Arax Market
585 Mount Auburn St, Watertown, MA 02472
Karl's Sausage Kitchen, Saugus
I think it's well worth the drive, and everything's delicious, but don't expect (for example) the non-German sausages to taste non-German! Also, I think Karl's smoked pork chops would be great on a grill too.
Lunch on the water in Boston?
I would second the suggestion to go to Joe's on the Waterfront. Great location and the food is ok. Getting one of the ferries to one of the harbor islands would be terrific with a yummy boxed lunch - but it extends into a bit more time than just lunch. Jasper White's Summer Shack has a snack bar on Spectacle Island (and maybe George's Island as well), and they offer grilled items (via a gas grill outside), chowder and drinks, so that is also an option.
When Pigs Fly & farmer's markets
Indeed, they are in Salem on Thursdays. I bought a loaf from them on a very rainy day. While I bought it (potato onion), I noticed they were *throwing out* a ton of bread because the bread got wet in the storm. After a bit of begging on my part, they gave me a baguette that was supposed to be thrown out. Well, it was barely damp and absolutely delicious.
Formaggio BBQ
somehow I think this is weekends only - maybe only Sat. they mention it on their website. we went to Formaggio for some cheese around 2pm or so and the grill was still on. They still had some grilled items - although it looked as if things were winding down.
Where to buy canning supplies, preferably on North Shore
holy smokes - that a lot of jars! you also might want to check out craigslist as maybe people who used to can - are trying to get rid of their supplies. I've bought (and found via trash diving) perfectly good jars at yard sales.
New, larger, Burlington Market Basket is coming
good to hear - because the one near H Mart is pretty dirty and sad looking.
Where to buy canning supplies, preferably on North Shore
Essex County Coop in Topsfield has a good supply usually. Also, Dawson's Hardware Store in North Beverly. I would call both of them first. The Stop and Shop on Elliot St. Beverly has pectin - powdered and jell - both by Ball - and jars as of a week ago. Market Basket in Danvers sells pectin - Sure Jell brand - near the oils, but as far as I could tell, no jars. The Market Basket in Salem, however, usually has nothing in the way of canning supplies. For pressure canner type equipment, you might have to order via the web unless you go up north.
Local Farm Eggs - North Shore
I think it was Cider Hill Farm that had those eggs at the Marblehead Farmer's Market. See: http://www.ciderhill.com/
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Cider Hill Farm
45 Fern Ave, Amesbury, MA
