marais's Profile
Durgin Park
I do remember that roast duck! It was a 1/2 whole flattened duck, simply roasted and delicious, but that was 25 years ago.
ICOB (Island Creek Oyster Bar), I know you've heard it all before
I'll put in a word for brunch today at ICOB too, and I was well pleased. My lobster omelet was very tasty today, preceded by totally pristine and awesome raw bar (Island Creeks, RI Blondies, meaty and sweet littlenecks). BTW if you want to go for Sunday brunch, pick a Sunday when the Sox are away and it's easy to snag a table or a place at the bar.
Old Monk Rum and Rittenhouse 100 Sitings And an unusual Indian Rum
Indeed, I had my first taste of Old Port today at Back Bay Social Club. Lighter in body than Old Monk, light & pleasing hogo and interesting spice on the swallow. Outstanding rum from Bangalore, worth looking for.
Business Dinner
Not sure that you had the best of Brasserie Jo at your group dinner. You will find much better from the regular menu, and I must say that the place has been a dependably delicious favorite of mine for years. Give it another shot on your own.
Lunch NOT Brunch on Sunday in Boston
I love La Voile for a weekend lunch, but the lunch menu there is limited (though well curated). I would recommend one of the Petit Robert Bistro locations, they serve from the full dinner menu all day and add a lunch menu for midday.
Which Restaurants do you consider your "Regulars"
I might as well go on record on this, with a laugh at those who wonder if there is a decent place to eat near Symphony Hall. I live near there, and I eat like this:
Symphony Sushi
Moby Dick
Pho & I
Thai Basil
Lucy Ethiopian Food
Bukowski Back Bay
Back Bay Social Club
La Voile
Brasserie Jo
Petit Robert Bistro (So End)
Sel de la Terre (Back Bay)
Russell House Tavern
Pierrot Bistrot
Marliave
Neptune Oyster
Island Creek Oyster Bar
Eastern Standard
Sweet Cheeks
The Citizen
That's it for now.
best bartenders for regulars?
Slim's advice is totally spot on. I would find it impossible to commend this bartender or that on a relationship basis because it is a deeply personal thing. Besides, I don't go to a bar for a relationship with a bartender (though manners and friendly respect help) but I go there for a well-made drink. Generally speaking, if you hear the drinks are really good at a particular bar, you should enjoy the ambiance as well.
Does anyone serve steamed cheeseburgers anymore?
Slim, really the only domain for steamed hamburgers that there ever was is in the Connecticut Valley, and Ted's in Meriden is a great example. White Castle sliders are not steamed burgers, but rather griddled and served on steamed buns, though never as successfully and as tastily as their more worthy relatives, originally from Chattanooga and now enjoyed throughout the American South, at Krystal. I have been known to have made plans to stop over at Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson for a sackful of Krystal cheese sliders, a sweet reminder of my Tennessee childhood.
4 days stuck in the Copley Mall ends with a sad, sad drink...
That's my preference also, but once the shaken manhattan at Brasserie Jo clears it's still good. NB: BBSC stirs its manhattans and uses Carpano Antica (along with your choice of bourbon or rye) on request.
4 days stuck in the Copley Mall ends with a sad, sad drink...
I feel so badly for you. If you could have exited the Pru from the Huntington Ave side, you could have crossed over to Brasserie Jo in the Colonnade and had a honkin' big, old school manhattan expertly made (and shaken not stirred...like I said, old school) by pros. Or you could have gone out the other side onto Boylston St and slipped into Back Bay Social Club for a very well made and very tasty manhattan indeed (I suggest made with Rittenhouse and best accompanied by their "meat candy").
Port in cocktails
I love the interplay between whiskey and port, it really pleases me. Try this one that I enjoy occasionally:
2oz bourbon (go for the good stuff, rye or non-JD TN whiskey works nicely too)
1oz ruby port
.5oz Cynar (an artichoke-based Italian amaro)
1ds Angostura bitters
Build in mixing glass over ice, stir for 30 secs or so, strain into coupe.
This has a name...if I told you I would have to drink it with you LOL!
Cointreau vs. Triple Sec... Margarita Debate
Since this thread has bubbled up, I can share that Citronge is good for a 'Rita but runs a bit hot. My North End packie hooked me up with some real curaçao (namely Curaçao of Curaçao) and I like it in my 'Rita a lot. The original Curaçao oranges, very orange-forward but in a pleasant balanced way.
Looking for Good Cocktail Bars in Boston
Really now, say it ain't so! I would be very sorry to see Todd leave Clio. I too wish that he stay local and continue being the bar genius he is.
Who makes the best french fries in Boston?
To be honest, I was amazed today by the perfect frites I had with my hangar steak for lunch today at Petit Robert Bistro on Columbus. They were the right combo of crispy surface and soft interior, and soaked up the jus of my steak very well while maintaining their integrity. Lightly and rightly seasoned too. Frites from the Robert team in SE are definitely all that.
George Howell Cafe (re-)opening in Newtonville
Better yet, great to see Boston's coffee heritage coming back. Howell's Coffee Connection chain was an educator for me as to what great coffee could be back in the day, and his roasts at retail still delight me.
Sit me down at the Coffee Connection off Harvard Square in the Garage back in the 80's with a French press of Sumatra, and let me relive my coffee epiphany.
Zo's original = best sandwich-ish offering downtown?
Yes. Sam Lagrassa's by all means, especially the succulent pastrami and the transcendent Italian sub. That said, I love Zo's gyro (and soups and salads and baklava and rice pudding) and Chacarero as well. And I'm a sucker for a burrito al pastor from Anna's on Cambridge St.
Xtabentún in Boston?
Actually I'd expect that in TN, since there is a sizeable Mexican community in most TN cities these days, with some of the most chowish eating places in those cities these days too. But I digress...back to Boston!
Check out Elite Liquors on Mass Ave between Berklee and Church Park (the old Choice Mart), xtabentún sighting there recently.
Xtabentún in Boston?
BTW I did find Xtabentún recently at the bar at Back Bay Social Club - it made a nice digestif, as it always has, with a double expresso after a weekend therapy brunch.
Spice Round a/k/a Rindbraten?
Just found your reply, and thank you. I'm sure the butcher is crazy busy right now, and I've already got my Christmas menu planned, but I'll sock this tip away for next year. Oh how I pine for proper spice round!
Cocktail: Tom and Jerry
Totally right about Todd. I have to confess I'm an eggnog virgin: my Southern family's tradition for the holidays was boiled custard with "flavoring", and I've stuck to that. If ever I give in and have my first eggnog at a bar, it will be from Todd at Bar at Clio.
Urgent: Inexpensive bar, with food, near Kenmore
Bukowski is okay for a burger, not a luxe burger like you can get elsewhere in Back Bay/Kenmore but perfectly acceptable, especially my fave the Reuburger. And the steak bomb topped with the White Trash Cheese Dip is pretty good with a beer. But no doubt about it, the beer trumps the food pints down.
I've not been after midnight, but at that time menu items go half price till close.
Pre Pops Dinner
You can't do better than Brasserie Jo at the Colonnade for a festive and not too expensive (at least not too expensive for Boston) dinner. Park there and then walk down Huntington Ave to Symphony Hall after dinner (allow 10-15 minutes for a leisurely walk) and enjoy the festive lighting on the trees near the Christian Science Center reflecting pool. Perhaps pricier than you might prefer, but since it's the Pops you're going to going there would be so worth it.
If you are looking for a cheaper, less fancy option, go ethnic: Symphony Sushi on Gainesborough St off Huntington for Japanese, Pho & I on Huntington or Pho Basil on Mass Ave for Thai/Vietnamese, Lucy's at Mass Ave and Huntington for Ethiopian, Moby Dick's on Huntington for Persian. These aren't occasion places per se but are solid choices for the pricepoint.
And wherever you choose, make reservations!
Rye vs Bourbon in a Manhattan
To me a rye manhattan and a bourbon manhattan are different drinks, with different characters. With the rye you will get a spicy sip which benefits from a bolder vermouth (like Punt e Mes) or a more sherry-like one (like the Spanish Vermut Lacuesta). For a bourbon manhattan with smoothness and wood, I go for sweet vermouths like Carpano Antica or Vya (when I have deep pockets) or good ole' Martini & Rossi (when my pockets are less deep). The subtle blend of the base liquors and different rossos are all kinds of fun to play with, and that's even before you get into what bitters to use.
Bogg's Cranberry Liquor?
This year I've enjoyed the Oregon cranberry liqueur from Clear Creek - picked it up at the Wine Emporium in Boston South End.
Another Birthday, More Restaurants, and a Scheduling Problem -- Saturday Brunch/Lunch?
Neptune Oyster doesn't open until 11:30 a.m., and if you get there beforehand (as eager I sometimes do) you'll stand in line. Always worth it though. Save me some cherrystones!
Calamansi Soda at Surepinoy Oriental Food Mart
Nice for the report on calamansi soda, thanks! I got hooked on calamansi in the Phils, where an old fashioned variant with Tanduay gold, calamansi, Ango bitters and simple syrup at the Pan Pacific in Manila was so so good.
Quick bite near Symphony Hall
Ditto on Pho & I, which does pleasant entrees along with very dependable pho dac biet. It's been a neighborhood fave for years. But please do make reservations if you go pre-Pops, as it fills quickly with concertgoers as well as with the musicians that will be playing for you.
Spice Round a/k/a Rindbraten?
I'm kicking this thread because I fear this Middle TN tradition has gone the way of all fleish. Since I'm stuck in Boston this year for the holidays, is there any hope of getting the real thing by mail order? Thanks for your indulgence.
CHERRYSTONES
I beg to differ: those big cherrystones at Neptune were anything but tough quahogs. They were plump, fresh, tender, juicy and flavorful. Having dealt with RI quahogs in my past, I know from quahogs and these were nothing like them.
To me Neptune is the best, most skillful raw bar in Boston. YMMV.
CHERRYSTONES
Sorry to see you are looking for Boston north: if you're willing to go into town to the North End, go to Neptune Oyster for the best cherrystones I've found anywhere. They are always juicy and toothsome. This summer I got some as big as my fist, lately not so much but still outstanding.
A plate of Neptune Oyster cherrystones with a glass of Muscadet: Nirvana.
