chickendhansak's Profile
5/16/12 Chez Henri: A Talented Chef is Still Talented
Correct -- used Groupons more than once in the bar. Especially since drinks are excluded by MA, I don't think it's necessarily true that they would make more money on people in the dining room than the bar. It just depends what and how much people are drinking.
First Impressions: Lone Star Taco Bar
I went finally and enjoyed it. Dallas beef, barbacoa, veggie one with tofu. Decently thick single tortillas. Fish taco was OK though I have had better around town and SG above was right to say that the sauce is too sweet. I liked the poblano and sweet potato relish a lot. Green sauce not particularly tasty. Also tried their beef chili which I enjoyed though I expect wouldn't be winning any prizes with heads. As you say, a different entity to an ordinary taqueria but the world can accommodate both.
Best Indian Takeout or Delivery near Harvard / Porter
I normally go on weekdays, and only rarely at weekends, so: probably.
Best Indian Takeout or Delivery near Harvard / Porter
OTOH, I've had the chicken kofta many times in their lunch buffet and it has been completely fine.
Best Indian Takeout or Delivery near Harvard / Porter
I agree -- that they even serve that pizza is bonkers. It's just terrible. I think my favourite meal there was a saag aloo with a keema naan. Fresh and good value.
Best Indian Takeout or Delivery near Harvard / Porter
I more or less agree about Guru, but it is still one of the better places in the immedate area mentioned and can be a bit different in terms of what is served. It isn't much of an option for me in the evenings because I don't typically eat that early.
Best Indian Takeout or Delivery near Harvard / Porter
Note that Guru closes at 7:30 p.m. I don't think it delivers except in a catering context, though.
Best Indian Takeout or Delivery near Harvard / Porter
Masala in Teele Square and Kebab Factory (Kirkland St. / Washington St./Beacon) are both decent. Both are on Foodler if you use that.
Diva Indian Bistro
Takeout from there has been very good. I agree. Their menu has a bit of diversity too. I just picked them out from Foodler on the strength of the menu, only to notice later that they are right in Teele Square. Do you rate it above Guru, though? I haven't eaten at either place enough to form a strong opinion.
Speeds to become Super Dog
I'm sure you're right, though I hadn't noticed it. The enthusiasm for the hot dog seems high enough still, perhaps to drown it out a bit. I agree with you about the possibility of the restriction.
Speeds to become Super Dog
One reason to avoid a name change is to make it less easy for people to hang a quality judgement off it, e.g. "it was better when it was Speed's". I know that the guy running it now is not the original guy, but the fact that no-one seems to say it used to be better before may just be because the name didn't change.
Done with Chez Henri
Not to discount your experience, but I've been pleased to get the opposite response on the two occasions I've been there with a Groupon. They have been very pleasant about it. I have a tendency to be almost apologetic about wielding Groupons, and of all the places I've been to with one, Chez Henri has been one of the most relaxed about it.
I've only ever eaten in the bar, which may affect things; I don't know.
They must feel that the coupons are working for them because I see that today there is yet another Groupon for Chez Henri.
Pappy Van Winkles
Yeah, this was about 18 months ago. I looked again since this thread and didn't see any.
Potato Freak, Somerville?
They host kids' parties and the chocolate fountains must be partly explained by that.
Had a couple of their rostis and agree it is an enjoyable experience. The people there were very welcoming. Ultimately, though, it is a massive hash brown with meat, cheese, and limited vegetables so it's pretty rich though light on the grease for what it is.
Pret a Manger coming to Back Bay
I would agree that with the many high-quality sandwich options in Boston, Pret is going to be nothing remotely special. Buying pre-prepared sandwiches for lunch is very common in Britain and Pret have simply finessed the product -- and made it more expensive of course.
Ultimately the quality is still secondary to the main goal, to be able to pick up something pre-prepared and get away quickly. Hence these places are ideal in train stations, airports and around busy workplaces, but are not exactly exponents of the highest sandwich art.
Need a dive bar with really good food in Downtown Boston
I'm glad to have this explained and confirmed by a native, as I've never understood how bars which merely don't have a lot of windows or have some kind of history are "dives".
BUENO Y SANO IS ALMOST HERE!!
I tried for "normal" by ordering the burrito (which is $6 BEFORE you select the distinguishing filling at extra cost -- wow) with chicken. Not very much of it and it was tasteless and cold -- chopped up "grilled chicken" from a salad is what it reminded me of. The no-choice-but black beans were a bit too firm, and the rice yellowed and overpowered by spice mix. The "wicked hot" sauce barely spicy.
Overall it was pretty bland but then not totally bad. From memory a bit like eating at Boloco or Qdoba, but nowhere near the flavour of Anna's.
Conversely I paid my first visit to Taqueria el Amigo in Waltham this weekend and it was so packed I opted for a burrito to take out rather than the tacos I went there for. Chorizo and potato -- very tasty.
Ma Po Tofu (Dofu) adventures
Nice posting (here and on Tumblr) and your Hackintosh recipe looks good too!
At home we use Fuchsia Dunlop's recipe and also like the results. I haven't had anything tastier in a restaurant, though I haven't been to some of the places people talk about on this thread either.
Pappy Van Winkles
I've found the 10 year old 90 proof and the 12 year old special reserve in Colonial in Acton in the past.
Best lobster roll thats not 30 bucks
The Lobsta Love food truck is worth a mention as they have lots of "small bite" style options for sub-$10 lobster+bread combinations. For example I think they do a brioche bun with a dollop of their lobster mixture for around $5 that satisfies for a few bites.
Non-gourmet Food Trucks
I still see a Chinese truck on Oxford Street, and considered posting about it but wasn't sure if it was a food truck or just for catering. Sounds like we mean the same one.
First Impressions: Lone Star Taco Bar
Looks great and the price out of this world, especially when some places would slap on extra charges for the avocado.
What is the superlative taco and where to find it in the Boston area?
I do remember having pupusas there that I enjoyed. It's a few years ago now. But they were as good as my only other pupusa reference point, (the former) Tacos Lupita up the road.
What is the superlative taco and where to find it in the Boston area?
I once ordered the chicken tacos at El Potro and received fajita strips in a tortilla.
New South Indian in Union Sq: Dosa Temple
This place hasn't been mentioned much since it opened so I thought I'd give the thread a bump. I've eaten the buffet there about ten times now and it is both good and consistent, meaning that it is a serious competitor for my interest in Kebab Factory, though obviously the food is quite different in both places. It's not perfect, but good value, feels healthy and there's usually at least one dish that's addictive. I haven't been to any of the other all-vegetarian places in the suburbs so I can't say how it compares, but it's definitely something a bit different for the area.
March 2012 Openings and Closings
And I thought "Reek of Putrefaction" was a Carcass number ...
Ma Po Tofu (Dofu) adventures
My thoughts on this sub-thread:
1. There are things at Mary's that aren't standard Americanized Chinese food.
2. It is possible to think those things are good, without claiming they might be the best in Boston.
3. This view seems to be held by people who have eaten widely.
Mixtura
Yes. Had chorizo and eggs breakfast there -- seemed more like Spanish chorizo than I was expecting and it was OK, but really just some chopped chorizo and some scrambled eggs. Nothing added to the dish to give it a bit more flavour or character, say a drop of sauce of some kind? No.
It came with parboiled chunks of potato billed as home fries, that seemed to have been dotted with a bit of chili powder or paprika, but had no crispness or evidence of purposeful griddling. Some fresh avocado slices on the side. A bit disappointing.
My wife had an omelette with quinoa (there is quinoa all over the menu) that was more interesting. The quinoa was soft and prepared in a fairly wet form, which I think they probably sell as their quinoa stew elsewhere on the menu. This was better.
A beet-based extraction drink was very good.
Service was cheerful but not as exacting as in a typical brunch setting -- for example, the menu clearly states that you have a choice of white bread, brown bread or bagel with the omelette items but we weren't asked about this and were given brown toast. Equally, though the menu is set up to function as a breakfast/brunch menu in part, they didn't have any mention of side order options and sausage (seemingly a breakfast staple) was completely missing from the menu.
It still seems to want to be a breakfast place and I think it needs to be better in that respect. It doesn't seem (even though it is two incarnations removed now) much different, on the breakfast front, from Danny's Diner which was unremarkable at best. I think the menu is more promising as a whole than Great Taste seemed to be (I had the pork loin sandwich there and it was terrible) and I hope it proves to be so, but a first trip wasn't stellar.
Ma Po Tofu (Dofu) adventures
I tend to order from only a small range of things and still find a little inconsistency, I agree. It is my local, so it gets more trade than it might otherwise.
P.S. Are you possibly hypercorrecting? It really is "Zoe's" :)
Ma Po Tofu (Dofu) adventures
More than happy to hear of specific better examples. I'd like to try them.
