Asmara - Cambridge, MA

Stop #3 on our tour of Massachusetts is Asmara, an Eritrean & Ethiopian restaurant in Cambridge.  Prior to this past Saturday, I had never tried Ethiopian but my boyfriend and his mother both like this restaurant (in fact, he had been describing menu items to me for days before.) 

On this, his mother's and my first meeting, I can't think of a better meal we could've shared.  A large round platter is delivered to the table covered with thin, moist - almost crepe-y- bread and your entrees are small mounds scattered on top.  Each person rips off bits of bread and sort of pinches pieces of meat or salad with it to eat.  A wonderful communal meal!

Our entrees were lamb in a red pepper sauce, a spicy cooked spinach dish, and the piece de resistance: kitfo - chopped tenderloin of beef (raw) with clarified butter and spices.  Now, when I was told we were going to eat RAW BEEF and furthermore, that I was going to LOVE IT, I'll admit I was skeptical.  But I was wrong to doubt because it was absolutely one of the tastiest things I have ever eaten.  In the middle of the entrees was a bit of their house salad, which is mainly tomatoes, their housemade cheese, and lettuce which served as a welcome palate cleanser when the spicy spinach got to be too much for me.

With the meal, I also had a banana juice.  Never have I seen that on a menu before.  Raw meat?  Well, I've seen steak tartare on a menu  so banana juice is still the rarer.  It was delicious & the very thoughtful waitress did warn me that it would be filling and to take it slow or I'd never be able to eat.

I'm so glad this was our Cambridge stop.  It would be so easy to end up having 351 burgers and I don't have a lot of ethnic food in my repertoire.  Thankfully I've got a guy who knows where the good food is.

Asmara 

Taking Massachusetts

Good evening, 

It has been quite a while since I have added anything to this blog, but I'm back and I have news.  After many a conversation with my boyfriend regarding restaurants in and around the state that he or I "just HAVE to try" (whether on our own culinary bucket lists or at the insistence of the other) we have come up with an ambitious edible endeavor: eat in every city and town in Massachusetts.

We each bring to the table a couple dozen gems - he has a place for dinner in Hyannis, I have a place for breakfast in Brewster, we might get Kane's Donuts in Saugus & Dairy Joy in Weston - not every stop will necessarily be a full meal and some we may just happen upon.

While we will be scrapbooking and tucking away souvenirs and photos at each place, this seemed like a worthwhile reason to return to blogging.  351 towns and cities in MA should keep us busy for a while & we've already crossed two off.

1. Greenfield (B) Our first outing was my choice and since we were having a nice, leisurely day, I opted for a scenic drive down Route 2 to The People's Pint which I have previously blogged about.
    We ordered quite a bit of food - the Special Ploughman, sausage plate, I had a pulled pork sandwich with maple butter yams (never going to skip the yams) and Taylor assembled a custom mac & cheese with mushrooms and garlic and feta.
    I made the mistake of trying a bite of his meal & consequently had a bit of food envy.  I generally order the same thing every time I go to The People's Pint but this time I left the comfort of my usual order and I won't say I regret it because the pulled pork was still moist & flavorful, but there was a quality to the barbecue sauce I didn't love.  Cloves, perhaps? 
   The People's Pint remains in the repertoire & as the weather (hopefully) improves and we find ourselves doing some exploring out West, I'm sure we'll return.

2. Amesbury  (T) This was an opportunistic stop on our way to Portsmouth, NH.  We were running ahead of schedule & thought we would stop for something light.  We were disappointed to find our original Amesbury destination had gone out of business, but the square was adorable and we quickly found Market Square Bakehouse.  
    Taylor got an espresso & a ham and cheese croissant and I had a huge cup of coffee and a little pastry that I can't name but was light and buttery and just barely sweet.  If the weather had been better, that cute little town certainly deserves a closer look.

Market Square Bakehouse 

 

The Linden Store - Wellesley, MA

A Wellesley staple since 1933, if you haven't had a sandwich from The Linden Store, where have you been?  Living under a rock?  

At the office I used to work in, everyone was in on ordering lunch when it was from The Linden - and they don't deliver, but it was worth the trip.

Now, let's break it down.  You can't go wrong with a Linden Special - similar to an Italian but with marinated sweet peppers and fewer meats - and of course their Italian is fabulous.  When you go in for a sandwich, you can see them slicing your meats for your made-to-order sandwich.  It is always bustling and there are several folks behind all the counters and usually a line.  At lunch time, be prepared to wait.

I usually prefer dark meat in my chicken salad, but theirs is all white meat and it's so good.  I like to order a chicken salad sandwich on a wheat wrap with tomatoes and banana peppers, myself.

They have a daily sub special that used to include a Meatball with Provolone alternative on two or three days but it is so popular that it is now an alternative special every day of the week.

They recently renovated their building as well as revamped their breakfast menu, which is so exciting.  I am not a morning person, but if Linden breakfast is a motivator, I will get up.  They have delicious breakfast sandwiches and smoothies and now omelettes and pancakes!  Unfortunately, I only have a photo of breakfast but that is probably because I was waiting for it to cool. 

The Linden Store 

 

The Hangover Pub - Worcester, MA

Do you love bacon?  Personally, I could take it or leave it, but at The Hangover Pub, it is their passion.  There is bacon in just about everything, even the salad and the drinks!

Now if you, like me, are a person who researches a restaurant's menu before visiting, let me give you this disclaimer - a friend and I decided to visit The Hangover Pub after watching a segment recorded by a popular restaurant critic which showcased Pork Belly & Goat Cheese Rangoon, a Fried Chicken Po' Boy, a Double Bacon Burger made with Wagyu beef and a huge slab of local bleu cheese as well as a handful of other delicious dishes.  So you can understand our frustration when none of those three items were on the menu.  (This is actually not the only time this has happened to us, so now I am more diligent about checking seasonal menus.)

Although I had my heart set on the above mentioned burger, I ended up ordering their Brisket Burger (which as of this post still appears on their menu.)  It was very flavorful and nicely cooked.

We started off with a couple of appetizers - "Mancandy" and House-Made Parmesan & Bacon Potato Chips. 

"Mancandy" is 4 strips of house-made slab bacon candied and blow-torched, served in a glass with maple syrup for dipping.  For someone who doesn't love bacon, it was surprisingly good.  A nice balance of salty and sweet.  

As for the potato chips, I have to say we were once again disappointed by the expectation the video gave us and what we really received.  In the video there is diced bacon all over the top of the chips; we had a few pieces lingering at the bottom.  Of course, things are staged to make them look more appealing on camera but I would think you'd at least try to serve the same quality when it counts.

The Hangover Pub

The People's Pint - Greenfield, MA

The People's Pint is always a special treat for me.  Greenfield is a bit of a hike, so I don't get there as often as I'd like to.  Of course, the food at a restaurant is what keeps you coming back, but here, it is about so much more than the food.

The People's Pint is big into the environment as well as the local community.   They source their ingredients from local farms and purveyors, and because they are committed to creating as little waste as possible, their brewery grains and go back to local farms as feed.  They recycle and compost everything they possibly can. They have a long-running bicycle commuting program which offers discounts to diners who keep track of the miles they've biked instead of driven.  They even participate in a local currency.

As far as their beer is concerned - I have tried the Natural Blonde and Hope Street Amber from a friend's flight - but I am not a beer drinker.  Everyone I have ever brought there who was a beer drinker, though, has been very impressed by the range of beers that they brew and has enjoyed heartily.

I was once waited on by a young woman I would still like to thank - there were meads on the board and I was intrigued though I had never had mead before.  She advised me to try a sample instead of ordering it outright and I am so glad because it was not for me.  They do generally have ciders (once a Golden Delicious Cider that should be the gold standard for cider if I do say so myself) as well as hard ginger ale and house-made root beer and ginger ale which are non-alcoholic AND delicious.

My favorite entree is The Squealer, which is a burger made of beef with TPP's house-made bacon ground into it.  It is served with a chipotle mayonnaise and last time I got a side of maple-butter yams which were just sweet and buttery and delicious.

The only small gripe I have is this:  TPP used to have my favorite dessert.  I would talk about it far more often than I ever got to eat it.  Tried to recreate it and failed.  And it has since been re-imagined and no longer exists in the form I onced loved.  What is now listed on the menu as Chocolate Chip Cookie Sundae with Caramelized Bacon used to be Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies with vanilla ice cream.  Therefore, the bacon used to be in the cookies, giving them a salty something extra and they were served warm so the ice cream would just melt and it was perfect.  Now the bacon is more of a garnish on the sundae.  I'm sure it is still good but nothing will ever be AS good.

If Greenfield is a bit far for you too, make a day out of it.  Visit Shelburne Falls and check out the Bridge of Flowers.  Go to Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory in Greenfield or dip your own candles at the Yankee Candle flagship store.  Franklin County is beautiful, go explore!  

The People's Pint

 

The Quahog Republic - Onset, MA

I've noticed a theme in my posts that I frequently say 'I don't usually like such and such BUT' and maybe that is the point.  Maybe the fact that some folks can turn ingredients into a masterful dish and make me enjoy something I never have before is exactly what I should highlight.

A Cuban sandwich is by definition "a variation of a ham and cheese sandwich...made with ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard..."

In other words, a Cuban sandwich is full of things I don't like.  I have never liked ham.  At Easter, my mom made a turkey.  And Swiss cheese?  To me, it has always tasted like rubber.

So, I'm not sure what made me order a Cuban sandwich at The Quahog Republic, but it was the start of a love affair.  Once again, unbeknownst to me, The QR has a few locations.  The one I have visited, is their "waterfront" location on Onset Avenue, technically just across the street from the beach.

On a nice beach day, you can leave your chair in the sand and take the short walk across the street for a margarita or a cold beer.  With Quahog in the name, you know there are plenty of seafood offerings - a lobster roll, fish & chips, the obvious stuffed quahog - but that Cuban sandwich.  You've gotta have that Cuban sandwich.

The Quahog Republic 

 

The Oregon Club - Ashland, MA

I recently celebrated my best friend's son's college graduation (way to go, Ben!) at The Oregon Club.  He chose it because of its cool history as a speakeasy back in the 20's and probably also because it was a special occasion meal and therefore a justified splurge.

There is patio seating but it was a cool night so we ate inside.  When you enter, it is as if you're stepping through someone's parlor.  There are small rooms with a few tables and still the old bar with only 3 or 4 stools.

We started with the Gorgonzola Meatballs and I swear they melt in your mouth.  They are served with brown gravy and Romano cheese is sprinkled over the top.  Some people say the right time to stop is when you still want more, and maybe they're right, but when I tasted those meatballs a part of me wished I had ordered them as my entree.  (An order is 3 meatballs, so you almost certainly will be wanting more.)

The menu is not large but I'm convinced that you probably can't go wrong.  I had browsed the menu before our visit and already decided before we were sat but then upon looking at the menu a second time realized what I had decided on was an appetizer.  Our waitress was very accommodating and let me make it a meal - crispy duck confit, mashed potatoes, and green beans.  Everything was delicious.  The duck leg fell right off the bone, the green beans were garlicky and crisp.

I also, of course, sampled most everyone else's meal because that's what you do.  There were specials that night that included surf & turf - a filet and garlic shrimp - as well as a half rack of barbecue ribs with cornbread and some other accompaniments.  I tried the ribs which were rubbed and a bite of my best friend's sirloin strip - only after it was declared that they couldn't eat another bite.  Her steak was cooked perfectly medium rare and was packed with flavor.  The ribs were nice and meaty but I'm a sauce girl, myself.

And even though no one thought they could eat another bite, we couldn't leave without a peek at the dessert menu.  Of course, there was no dessert menu, but our waitress expertly rattled off a number of dishes.  We settled on cheesecake with caramel sauce and a cup of dark chocolate mousse.  Let me tell you, that was the richest cheesecake I have ever had and I have both made and eaten a lot of cheesecake in my life.

I was treated to this meal, but I am not ignorant as to what a generous treat it was.  I would classify The Oregon Club as a restaurant reserved for celebrating big achievements or milestones in life; not just for an ordinary evening.

The Oregon Club