triple creme's Profile
recs for solo dining, near Warwick Melrose Hotel?
Thanks. Pretty good walk is no problem. We are East coast no-car types, accustomed to walking.
Mixtura
I tried that marinaded chicken sandwich for lunch today. I found the chicken really quite flavorful and liked the bread too. Messy to eat, though. I thought the fries were fine. My DC, who is a mostly vegetarian pescatarian found his options limited. He ended up with a veggie burrito, which he said was about average.
recs for solo dining, near Warwick Melrose Hotel?
Yes, just to be clear here, spouse doesn't eat meat. He's looking for a place he can eat good pescatarian/veg food at a bar by himself. In my original post I mentioned the steakhouse concept only in the sense that he wouldn't rule it out, as steakhouses do often have a nice wine bar with solid seafood preparations.
But something outside that box would be welcome if available in walking distance to his hotel.
Thanks everyone!
recs for solo dining, near Warwick Melrose Hotel?
He'll be there in early April.
I really appreciate all the tips!
recs for solo dining, near Warwick Melrose Hotel?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
My husband will be on his own for dinner one night during a brief stay at the Warwick Melrose. Hoping to eat somewhere in walking distance, ideally sitting at a bar, somewhere with good veggie and seafood options. Nice wine list is a plus. (Steakhouses are OK as long as they offer good pescatarian fare and a good bar, as steakhouses often do.)
A brief browse of this board turned up some raves for Al Biernat's. Their website looks good but I'd also like to hear any other ideas people have to offer.
Thanks so much!
fried chicken???????????
I just had it tonight. They give you 4 pieces of nice, crispy chicken, with gravy mashed potatoes, a biscuit, and smoky collards. I ate the greens and one piece of white meat. My lunches are all set for the next couple of days, and the selection of music on the juke box cannot be beat.
Mondsee, Austria in June. Any dining recommendations?
We ate at Lackner Friday night and found the food mostly uninspired but competent, nothing outstanding. There were 7 of us, and we were all impressed by the gracious welcome by the chef, and the extraordinary view from the glassed-in terrace, and the service was very professional. We use a term in the US, "Zagat Zombies", to describe restaurants that are resting on their laurels and not too impressive anymore. I'm afraid Lackner is headed in that direction.
Iris-Porsche, on the other hand, is top-notch.
Mondsee, Austria in June. Any dining recommendations?
Sturmi, I am in Mondsee now, and found that the restaurant at the new-ish Iris-Porsche Hotel serves creative, beautifully composed modern fare. We've eaten there twice this week because it was so good.
Mondsee, Austria in June. Any dining recommendations?
Wow! Thank you for your honesty, Sturmi!
Mondsee, Austria in June. Any dining recommendations?
We will be spending a week in Mondsee. If anyone has been there and liked what they ate, please share!
We are interested in both upscale and casual places to eat and drink. Thanks!
Bergamot - Nice Place, But not quite up to the level of Ravings I've Read
(a) My DC has had the salmon pastrami appetizer twice and has not stopped raving about it.
(b) It's been packed or nearly so every time we've been there. Close to ten times now, as it's in my hood.
5 days in Aruba
Ah sorry phelana, Que Pasa seemed so fresh to me! Kudos to them for putting such an energetic face forward!
Do you live there or go there often?
5 days in Aruba
4 of us chowhounds just got back from 5 days in Aruba.
First night we had a superb dinner at a newish downtown restaurant called Que Pasa. I had 2 specials: For starters a salmon carpaccio that melted in my mouth before I could manage to dunk it into any of the lovely sauces dotted on the plate. For my main dish a "tofu lasagna" where the lasagna noodles were replaced by pressed, BBQ'd tofu. So unexpected and delicious. The staff were enthusiastic, bubbly young Dutch people who were eager to describe everything on the eclectic menu.
Next night, Yemanja, just down the block from Que Pasa. This is a more professionally run, popular (i.e., crowded) destination. The food was good but the service somewhat brusque. Very nice non-dairy tomato soup to start, and a splendid "grouper fillet" which turned out to be grouper flakes formed into 2 "pucks", with some boursin cheese melting in the center, and a sprinkling of parmesan on top, carmelized under the broiler. I'm still thinking about it.
Next up, Queen's Bar and Restaurant near the cruise ship dock. I'd read about it on tripadvisor.uk, where they sing its praises like it's the best genuine local place on the island. The food was just OK. Maybe it's gotten too big for its britches and its authenticity has faded. I had the signature chicken curry dish which I found a bit bland, and was surprised to bite into so many tiny bones, unavoidable in the dimly lit setting. We ordered a bottle of the Chilean cabernet, and when a different cab came out instead, the server (the owner I think?) belligerently insisted it was Chilean until we pointed to the words "California" and "USA" plainly printed on the label. He also persisted in berating the young woman who took our food orders; this was very unpleasant, as she was unfailingly gracious and he was just nasty.
I'm embarrassed to say we went to Blossom in the highrise district for our next dinner. It's a Benihana-like grill. The tableside display of knife action was very entertaining, but most of the food was way overcooked, with soy sauce as its only non-meat ingredient. We chatted with very amiable people sharing our grill-table (one group from Boston like us, another from Denmark) and really enjoyed ourselves. It was fun but certainly not a foodie destination.
For our last meal we headed back to the wonderfully inventive Que Pasa for its weekly "Asian night". This is a restaurant that bothers to get ambitious with recipes and we didn't want to leave the island without a return trip. The basket of warm rolls they bring out has a nice aioli and a luscious, non-salty olive tapenade. When we asked for a bottle of the special Shiraz, the server cautioned that it was their last bottle of it, keenly recognizing we'd need a second. Like everywhere in Aruba, the servings are too generous for my liking, but I guess that's a minority view. I just hate to leave so much good food behind on the plate.
Best lunch for me was the Dutch Pancake House adjacent to the Renaissance Beach Resort. Probably pretty average pannekocken if you're into that sort of thing.
Bottom line, if I had only one evening to spend in Aruba, Que Pasa is where I'd eat.
Rafiki Bistro?
Hate to say it, but most of the food I've tried there has been really, really bland. I had a good wild mushroom dish there for brunch, and a decent margherita pizza. Everything else I have tried there has tasted like a militant anti-hypertension regimen: no salt for you.
RW @ Russell House Tavern and Bergamot - batting 1.000 (Long)
Oops just to clarify I refer to Bergamot. Emphatically not about Russell House, which is just OK I guess.
RW @ Russell House Tavern and Bergamot - batting 1.000 (Long)
Great post, kobuta, on one of my favorite neighborhood restaurants. I'm embarrassed not to have exerted a similar effort to describe all the yummy stuff I've eaten there. Best recent dishes have been a "salmon pastrami" appetizer and a spicy tofu main course.
ARUBA- A Report
Thanks for the report, Delucacheesemonger. I'm headed there in about a week and will try to get a rez for Mme Jeanette right away.
"Fowl for stewing" at Foodmaster. Usable for chicken stock?
Great information, itaunas. Thanks much.
"Fowl for stewing" at Foodmaster. Usable for chicken stock?
Those were nearly my exact words to the butcher. "Is this just an old chicken? Can I use it to make stock?"
advice on Oleana vegetarian tasting vs. the new expanded mezze menu?
They did charge us $5 extra for the substitution. But we scarfed down every morsel of it; unlike our usual dessert behavior.
"Fowl for stewing" at Foodmaster. Usable for chicken stock?
I'm always trying to improve my chicken stock, which I make several times a week and which serves as the basis for virtually all of my recipes.
Johnnie's Foodmaster on Beacon Street Somerville usually has chicken feet for sale, and they contribute great depth, gelatin, and mouth-feel to my stocks.
The other day I noticed a super-low-priced "fowl for stewing" for sale there, and I asked the butcher if this would be a good thing to use in chicken broth. He replied, in an almost panicky tone, "That's not chicken, it's fowl". He practically said "Don't buy that!"
Does anyone know what it is and whether it would be appropriate for a slow-simmered stock? I tend to think of "fowl" as synonymous with "poultry", an over-arching category that includes chicken and turkey. Am I wrong?
I just simmer the bones for at least 4 hours, and discard the meat. Would stewing fowl suit that purpose (augmented with feet and maybe a turkey neck)?
advice on Oleana vegetarian tasting vs. the new expanded mezze menu?
This was great advice and I really appreciate it. We wanted something light yet still special for our new year's day dinner. One veggie tasting plus deviled eggs, and crudite with muhammara were just perfect for two people. Every dish was inventive, crunchy, and intensely flavored. We are not dessert people, so we asked to substitute a cheese plate. The 3 cheeses turned out to be a fascinating array of burrata, a string cheese, and a goat, all seemingly house-made
(although I did not ask).
That plus the wine totaled $108 pre-tip. I thought it was a great bargain for such a special meal.
Custard tart best in Boston to buy a whole one
Is it very rummy tasting or more generic custard?
chestnuts in vacuum jar
I find the glass jarred ones soggy and tasteless, and exorbitant to boot.-- $15 or so. The vacuum packed ones preserve at least some of the flavor -- enough for soup or stuffing if not munching out of the pouch. I can't vouch for what they're selling at TJ's though. Last year my local Shaw's stocked 14-ounce packs made by Gefen, $3 or so. But the manager told me this year there's not enough profit for the amount of space they take up. Will try TJ's asap.
edible egg?
Why didn't I think of Mayflower?!. I've been meaning to check them out for chicken feet to add to stock.
Thanks for all the good suggestions.
edible egg?
Ooh, I've had chip-ins at various restaurants (including the panko-crusted deep-fried poached version at Russell House Tavern). And I can walk to Formaggio. Thanks Jennie.
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Russell House Tavern
14 JFK Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
edible egg?
Thanks Eatin. I should have specified that my definition of "local" is very narrow. Cambridge, vehicle-free household. I will keep an eye out for Country Hen though -- you never know.
Looking for best pot roast: Cambridge/Boston
They used to serve a surprisingly good pot roast at this cheap, diner-like place in Somerville called City Slicker Cafe. But it was inexplicably removed from the menu a year or so ago. I begged them to restore it to no avail.
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City Slicker Cafe
588 Somerville Ave, Somerville, MA 02143
edible egg?
During farmer's market season I try to buy my eggs from Silverbrook Farm. This guy treats his hens way better than my boss treats me, and the reward is a round, robust, deeply orange yolk that stays intact unless you really stab at it. But recent salmonella scares have created more demand than he can accommodate.
This past week I arrived too late, so I had to try something ostensibly organic, veg-fed and cage-free from the supermarket. Wan, pale-yellow, flat yolks made for a tasteless Sunday breakfast. And as autumn wears on I can't depend on Mr. Silverbrook for much longer. Are there any flavorful eggs available in local markets?
