The Pig

I dig The Pig. That's also what the t-shirt I wanted to buy said.

I just got back from having a nice meal at "The Pig" in Chapel Hill, NC. I had read about it in Southern Living, and when I happened to pick up a copy of Chapel Hill Magazine in my hotel room and saw the nice write-up in there of the place, I knew this was where's had to go for supper. 

The Pig takes pride in whole-hog cooking an in sourcing it's food from the area. In fact, they get their meat from happy, "antibiotic- and hormone-free, pasture-raised piggies" raised by the good folks from the NC Natural Hog Farmers Association coöp. I think that's great.

In the CHM article, we get some insight into some of the owner's background and philosophy that is evident in the restaurant's own philosophy. (He was born in Boston, by the way, and is a former vegetarian/vegan.) Quoting CHM quoting him, he says, "[Being vegan], you need to be more aware of what's in food...That food knowledge is still super-helpful." (pg. 58). I agree: that knowledge is super helpful--especially if you want to know what it is, exactly, that you happen to be eating. 

Anyway. While I was waiting on my food to arrive, I started out with that Southern elixir: Sweet Tea. I was truly in hog's heaven. I LOVE tea and miss it so much. (It was really good tea, too!!!)

My food came out quickly. I got a small BBQ plate, which came with the choice of two sides. Having read the article, I knew the whole former-vegetarian thing about the owner and the fried green tomatoes and "sprouts-n-shrooms" caught my eye. Honestly, these two sides were my favorite thing. The meat was good and flavorful, and they had a nice eastern-style vinegar sauce; but, for me, those sides were just so damn good I could have had a plate full of them and left a happy camper. The superlative green tomatoes were nice and crispy and had an almost citrusy hint to them (lemon thyme?). I'm a sucker for good breading; these were done with cornmeal. Fantastic. The [Brussels] sprouts-n-shrooms we're also great, sautéed with a whisper of cumin. (Do try this at home!)

Oh! And as I was finishing up, the owner came in and I overheard him telling a customer that he was just coming back from the farmers' market in Carrboro, NC, where he was selling their house-made hotdogs (from those same piggies). Cool.

If you are ever in Chapel Hill and are looking for some good, local (in both the locally sourced and regionally inspired senses) food, you must seek out The Pig.

http://thepigrestaurant.com/

References:

Smithson-Stanley, Lynsy. "The Whole Hog". Chapel Hill Magazine. September/October 2011, pp. 55, 58-59.

http://www.chapelhillmagazine.com 

http://www.southernliving.com

http://thepigrestaurant.com/

Tupelo

We're always on the hunt for some good Southern food. We love Blue Ribbon for its barbecue and really enjoy the more upscale Hungry Mother for it's French/Southern fusion but last week, we decided to try out Tupelo because it served more than just Southern barbecue and it seemed authentic; plus it got good reviews on by a few bloggers.

The atmosphere of Tupelo's is friendly. It has a bar up front as you walk in and then a dozen or so tables. We arrived pretty early (around 6pm) because they don't take reservations. Judging on the crowd I don't think you'd have a problem finding a seat before 7:00 on a Friday. Our waiter was very attentive and friendly and excited about the menu (which is always a good sign). We decided to start off with some pimento cheese and saltine crackers, a classic southern dish, which was good but I've had better.

For our entrees I had the daub of beef brisket ($19). The portion was decent and the beef came nice and tender with a very flavorful gravy and horseradish cream. I actually would have liked more sauce because after I gobbled up the gravy on the first half of the meat, the remaining beef could have used some more to dip in it to add that extra flavor and juiceness. My dish came with mashed potatoes; again, they were good although nothing much to write home about. At this point, I think it's probably best to disclose that I am married to a southerner, have had multiple southern meals, home cooked and out at restaurants down South so I may be more critical than a typical Northerner.

B had the fried chicken. He said it was very good and flavorful and that the breading was seasoned very well and the meat seemed that way too. The chicken came with mac and cheese spiced with jalapeño pepper. B liked it and enjoyed the extra kick that the pepper provided. The collards that the dish came with were cooked well but a bit too vinegary and seasoned a bit strangely to B (a Southerner himself), almost like there was Chinese five-spice in it. B is all for exciting but was in the mood for some traditional collards.

J got the North Carolina pulled pork plate. He writes: "Overall, I was not a huge fan of the North Caroline bbq plate. I was hoping for more of a sauce, regardless of whether it was more vinegar or ketchup-based, and I felt the meat's juiciness was more because it was fatty. The "grilled smoky sausage" on top was somewhat excessive and didn't really fit in my opinion. Meemaw's red beans were well...red beans and not much else. I'd honestly have to say my favorite part was the pickles, especially the pickled cauliflower. All the pickles were somewhat unique in the heavy use of ginger. Regardless, it's hard to turn down a big plate of meat, so I didn't have too much trouble polishing most of it off. I guess I was just hoping for more." J also mentioned that he was very pleased with the beer on tap. It was ale you normally don't see on tap at other places.


C got the pulled pork slider for an appetizer ($3). It was a nice size and tasted very good. For an entree C got the rib special which he felt was a bit too greasy. He wished he had gotten more sliders instead. He did really enjoy the pumpkin beer (Pumpking) saying it was the best one he's ever had.
For dessert we all shared the brown butter pecan pie. It was made by Petsi Pies just down the street. It was sweet and gooey and amazing. The crust was buttery and flaky and excellent. A fantastic way to finish off the meal.

Overall, I think we were all generally pleased with our meals at Tupelo but thought that for the price (most entrees were around $18) the food should have been more spectacular than it was. It's decent southern food though and if you haven't ever tried real southern cooking, Tupelo might be a good place to start.

Savin Bar & Kitchen

On a recommendation from a friend, we headed over to try out Savin Bar & Kitchen, conveniently located right across from the Savin Hill T-stop in Dorchester. SBK has a nice neighborhood feel to it. It's clean and airy (they had the long windows slid open for a bit) with a modern urban decor. You can sit at the bar to watch a game or head over to a high-top table or a regular table towards the back. We started our meal with some pumpkin beer from shipyard (16 oz for $5) and a Mayflower IPA. The menu is not huge but has a good selection of appetizers, sandwiches/burgers, and entrees. Most of the food is comfort food and sounds good. I decided on the smoked chicken pot pie (pulled smoked chicken breast, peas, carrots, celery, creamed chicken broth, potato pasta, flaky sweet potato crust) while B chose the mac & cheese with fried chicken (bacon, cavattapi, ritz cracker).

The pot pie had a thin but excellent dough crust made of sweet potato (it didn't taste like sweet potato though), it reminded me a bit of pizza crust. Inside there was a creamy very flavorful broth with bits of peas, chicken, and carrots. The potato pasta (gnocchi?) seemed more like mashed potatoes to me but maybe the pasta loses it's shape while it cooks? I didn't mind although I was curious to how gnocchi would taste in a pot pie (I assume delicious). It was a good pot pie, although I wish the inside was a bit chunkier or filled a bit more with items besides broth but I guess it was fine because it definitely filled me up. The best part was the crust on the rim of the bowl. It was salty and nice and crunchy.

B's mac & cheese was good as well. He was happy that the fried chicken tasted like actual fried chicken pieces and not just something out of a frozen food bag. He loved the addition of the huge chunks of bacon and enjoyed the Ritz crackers on top which gave everything a suprising salty crunchiness. Both of our entrees were a good size and left us feeling full with some left over on the mac & cheese dish to bring home.

For dessert, I had to try the ice cream sandwich on the menu. It's made across the street at Savin Scoop and it definitely was worth trying. I ordered a whole one for seven bucks. Comprised of a huge amount of ice cream wedged between two huge chocolate chip cookies, rimmed with sprinkles and sprayed with whipped cream, the sandwich was definitely delicious and definitely more than enough for two people. Next time, I'd order half and share it.

Overall, we enjoyed Savin Bar & Kitchen. It's a great neighborhood restaurant with enough interesting things on the menu to set it apart from a standard local pub. If you head there before 6pm they also have dollar oysters which is worth the trip itself.

Brunch at Bon Savor!

With a friend having newly relocated to Jamaica Plain, several of us made brunch plans in his new stomping grounds at Bon Savor. Advertising itself as a French and South American Bistro, the restaurant used to serve dinner as well but now is focusing on only brunch. It was certainly packed enough at 11am on a Sunday, so hopefully that works out for them!

The space is rather small, but very warm and homey feeling with several tables and a bar. We were seated in the corner by the window and, despite the many delicious options on the menu, we made up our minds pretty quickly.

One very fun thing about the coffee served is that you have the option of a personal French press. We went with two larger French presses for the table, and the coffee was delicious. In terms of food, you have traditional options like eggs benedict, but also French and South American staples like croque monsieur and bistec a caballo. Or, if you're indecisive like me, you can get the best of both worlds! My Bon Savor Benedict was essentially a ham and swiss crepe topped with a poached egg and hollandaise, served with home fries on the side. The eggs were perfectly poached, the crepe just right, and the hollandaise not too heavy. The home fries on the side were equally well executed.

My second choice would have been the pulled pork benedict, one of the day's specials, and luckily three of us ordered it! The English muffins were generously covered in the smokey, flavorful pork. Definitely on my radar for next time.

Matt went with the Croque Madame, the glassic grilled ham and Swiss cheese sandwich with a French mustard twist, topped with two poached eggs and Bearnaise sauce. The brioche it was served on was thick, golden and buttery. Parfait!

I'm not much of a sweet breakfast person, but I feel it's fairly impossible to not enjoy a banana and nutella crepe. Topped with a bit of whipped cream, it quickly disappeared into Chris's belly.

Last but not least was the French omelet, stuffed with fresh avocado, sautéed
asparagus, tomatoes, and melted Swiss cheese. In Peter's words, "I am not a huge omelet fan but the omelet was delicious and exceeded my expectations. The size and the taste definitely made me feel like I was getting my money's worth. I'd order it again."

I would definitely return to Bon Savor for another great brunch. There was not a bad plate at our table, and for the price, portion, and flavor I'd say we found ourselves a little JP gem!

Decorative Shortbread Cookies

Going through our DVR on Saturday, I came across a Barefoot Contessa episode in which Ina invites her friend over to show her how to make decorative shortbread cookies. Reminiscent of my mother's Halloween Cookies, I decided to give it a go. The cookies were a lot of work. Not because it took a long time to make the dough or icing (it was super fast) but because I made the whole recipe (I would suggest cutting the recipe in half unless you want 40 iced cookies hanging around). Decorating a few different types of cookies can be difficult with all the food color mixing and prep work that you have to do so I would suggest picking one shape and sticking to it, at least for your first time. Below is the recipe as I wrote it.

Decorative Shortbread Cookies:

For the Dough:

Mix together:
24 ounces all purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt

Then cream together:
3/4 lb butter
2 1/4c sugar
Add 3 large eggs
1tbs vanilla extract

Add in dry ingredients

Wrap in plastic and chill until firm
Roll to 1/8th of inch thick
Bake 350 degrees for 8-12 min

Makes 35-40 cookies

Icing for outlining (royal icing):
1 lb confectionary sugar
3 large egg whites
1/2 tsp lemon juice
Beat with paddle on medium speed until thick.

To make flood icing:
1/4 cup of royal icing
1tsp egg white
Consistency of maple syrup. Add more egg white if need be.

First outline the cookie using the royal icing in the same color that you will use for the whole body of the cookie. Then use a brush (#12 artist brush works best) to push the flood icing around on the cookie and cover up to the edges. Let dry (maybe overnight or a few hours) and then you can use more royal icing in different colors to make the details.

...in which we tried Kikoman Kara-Áge breading mix and ate it on the roof deck

photo source: http://www.foodbuzz.com/photos/4216151-kara-age

We received a free box of Kikoman's Kara-Áge breading mix through the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program. We were actually really excited about it because we'd been wanting to break out Jeff's deep fryer again, and this was the perfect opportunity. So I went to the store and got about 3 lbs of boneless chicken pieces.

All I did was cut up the chicken and follow the directions on the box. As a Southerner, who loves fried chicken and has tried many a time to make it well, I was so happy about how easy it was to coat the chicken thoroughly.

I fried them for about 6-7 minutes per batch, and they came out perfectly coated with a crunchy, flavorful crust. The flavors of soy sauce and ginger were good and not overpowering. I do wish we'd thought of a nice sauce to accompany the golden nuggets, but alas. Maybe next time... I would definitely buy this mix simply due to the fact that it was so easy to get that perfect crust. The nice flavor is just a plus! One thing I would do differently next time would be to use chicken breast meat instead of thigh meat. I think the others on the roof deck would agree.

Mile-high meringue

...at matthew's Diner in Waldwick, NJ.: best I ever had!

A quick stop for poutine at La Banquise!

Wanting to grab poutine before we left Montreal on our last visit, we managed to find the time to pop by La Banquise, the 24-hour joint known by many as the best place for poutine! At around 3 in the afternoon it was packed with the line going out the door - I can only imagine what it's like in the wee hours of the morning when all of the clubs close down! It was much quicker to grab some to go, so that's exactly what we did.

Fries, gravy, and cheese curds...how bad can that?! Our order of the standard poutine was delicious and consumed in approximately 40 seconds. The fries were freshly out of the frier, the gravy just the right amount of saltiness, and there was no skimping on the cheese curds. I often wonder how this dish didn't become a hit in the states!

While I'd have loved to stick around and sample La Banquise's whole slew of poutine variations, with everything from bacon to guacamole added in, I guess I'll have to wait until my next trip up north!

Boris Bistro - Montreal

Last weekend we decided to make a little getaway to Montreal to surprise my sister and her boyfriend who were in Boston for the week. After poking around the web for somewhere that looked good, but that wouldn't break the bank, I settled on Boris Bistro, located in the downtown area not far from Vieux Montreal.

Part of the reason I chose Boris bistro was the atmosphere - tucked away on Rue McGill behind an old stone wall is a wonderful tree-filled patio with umbrellas and tables. With all of the birds chirping, Chris compared said it reminded him of the Rainforest Cafe, but only in jest of course. A large awning extending from the indoor-portion of the restaurant, which is open to the patio with a large window, extends over a small portion of the patio. I would imagine that with the trees, umbrellas, and awning, it would be no problem at all to eat outside while it was raining.

To get things moving, we put in an order for drinks as well as two appetizers. Pommes frites in duck fat served with a house mayonnaise? YES PLEASE. We also had the trio of tapenades, which included a spiced olive, a citrus-y artichoke, and a Liptaeur cheese tapenade. All three were nice and very different from one another, and the baskets of bread provided (plus a few crostini) worked well for spreading. Both apps were reasonably priced as well.

For my main dish the steak tartare was a clear choice, and I went the healthier route with the salad instead of frites after our appetizer of them. The best part about this steak tartare was the plethora of caper and cornichon bits throughout, as you can see in the picture. The salad was sizable and tossed in a nice vinaigrette.

My sister went with the duck confit sandwich, which would have been my second choice. Served on super moist nut bread, it came with a choice of frites or salad as well. The duck was almost pulled and loosely chopped into thick chunks, and it had pieces of thinly sliced celery, ample sprouts, and a spread of sweet mustard. No problem inhaling that!

Chris went with the duo of fish tartare, salmon and tuna. He wasn't a huge fan of the salmon due to the presence of pickles, but I was kind of enough to finish it for him. The tuna, on the other hand, was to his liking and topped with diced onion and cucumber. To accompany was a small Asian-style slaw and a drizzling of wasabi aioli.


Lastly was Phil's duck risotto with oyster mushrooms, sage and orange cream sauce. What immediately came to mind to both me and my sister was my family's Polish mushroom soup with imported mushrooms at Christmas Eve dinner. I would have devoured this even without the bonus of chunks of duck and nicely-done risotto!

Overall we had a really excellent meal. The only complain I might have is that the glasses of wine, averaging at 11 Canadian each, are a bit on the pricey side, and bottles are the same, starting at around 50. Next time I'm in Montreal I'd certainly consider dining here again, especially with items on the menu like grilled bison, duck rillette, and local Quebec cheeses that I didn't have a chance to try!

Artu Beacon Hill

To celebrate a belated birthday, a few of us ventured over to the ever-cute Charles Street for a dinner at Artu Rosticceria & Trattoria the other night. Walking down the steps guarded by a lethargic little dog, I was surprised at how small and cavernous the space was. There were some 8 tables, and a large fireplace upon which all of the wines and liqueurs were kept, which I found rather fun.

Since Artu doesn't stock bottles of bubbly, we started with a round of individual bottles of Prosecco. Fun! I had never had Collabrigo Valdobbiadene Venet, but it was nice - not too sweet but very smooth. Along with our glasses of prosecco, we shared plate of the "Cozze e Calamari Fra Diavolo" which was mussels and calamari in spicy tomato sauce with strips of Italian bread for dipping. I'm a sucker for tentacles, and this dish had plenty! Sauce wasn't overly spicy, but great to mop up with the bread.

For my main dish I couldn't decide between the lobster ravioli special or the veal special, but luckily Chris agreed to split with me! The lobster ravioli was good, but I was somewhat underwhelmed - too much pasta, too little lobster/filling, but the sauce was nice and creamy and flavorful. The Veal Artu, as the special was called, was medallions of veal topped with smoked mozzarella, prosciutto, sun-dried tomatoes, mushroom, and something else that escapes me. Nothing to write home about (just to blog, apparently), but with that combination of things you really can't go wrong.

Bryan stuck with the traditional and chose the eggplant and chicken parmigiana, which was " exactly what (he) wanted in all its crunchy, cheesy, carb-ridden, comfort-y goodness. (He)'d get it again, but could do without the penne." Our 4th, per the waitress's recommendation, ordered the Pollo Arrabiata, which was chicken breast, mushrooms, anchovies, capers, in a hot spicy tomato sauce. He said it was delicious, with just the right amount of spice.

We washed down a meal with a really nice bottle of chianti (Rocca delle Macie Riserva 2006 Chianti Classico), and even ordered a second bottle in lieu of dessert. Everyone loved it! Lucky for us, our wonderful waitress, who had provided us with just the perfect amount of attention without being too much, brought us a round of little shortcakes topped with delicious cherries, blueberries, and whipped cream on the house!

While I wouldn't say our meals at Artu were out of this world, the food was solid and the atmosphere and service couldn't be beat! I think we'd all happily return to grab a bite to eat.

Lunch at Basho Japanese Brasserie!

Thanks to a Groupon, we mustered up the energy to venture over to Fenway and give Basho Japanese Brasserie a try! Walking in at 12:30 on a Saturday afternoon amid a torrential downpour, the place was pretty empty, and the sleek, dim interior with high ceilings somewhat added to the emptiness. The space didn't do much for me, but that was nothing a satisfying meal couldn't fix.

We were quickly seated and presented with the menus - quite extensive! There's basically about every type of Japanese you could want, not to mention daily specials, cocktails...To start we went with one of the appetizers on special, a refreshing ceviche with octopus, mango, and a number of other delicious things. We also threw in an order of edamame steamed in spicy garlic and ginger to munch on. How bad could that be?


For our actual meals we ended up with one of the types of lunch specials. I went with the Basho Lunch Set includes chef's choice of sashimi, sushi, yakimono, and agemono served with salad, rice, and fruit. Yakimono is a general category of grilled and pan-friend dishes, while agemono are deep-fried dishes.
I absolutely love the concept of bento, and this selection didn't disappoint! For my sushi I had a nigiri shrimp (kind of lame, but that's fine) and then red snapper - really fresh and delicious - and then two pieces of a roll with avocado, crab stick, some type of roe, and a fried mystery item! My sashimi was nice fat, pieces of salmon. Perfect! I honestly have no idea what my agemono was, but it was starchy and the consistency or sweet potato - perhaps some type of root, mixed with assorted bits of veggies. The yakemono was a nice skewer of grilled shrimp and veggies, and there were also a few pieces of chicken katsu. That, plus the salad, rice, and orange, is a pretty nice array of stuff!


The other lunch special, the selection bento, includes the choice of a sushi roll and main course, also served with salad, rice, and fruit. For the roll you can choose between Spicy Tuna, Alaskan, California, Sweet Potato, or Garden, and the main course is either chicken katso, salmon teriyaki, vegetable tempura, or a beef roll. Yum! Chris chose the spicy tuna roll - standard and well done, and the beef role, which is done as if it were maki in that the beef is pounded out and used to wrap, like nori. The beef was glazed with teriyaki and wrapped around asparagus.

All in all everything was really nicely put together. My only complaint is that I wish I had ordered more sushi and sashimi! I'll certainly be back for more of the sushi items, as well as more interesting dishes like smoked salmon fried rice and spicy lobster miso soup!

Restaurant Week Lunch 2011 at Top of the Hub

With a view like this, who can resist a meal at Top of the Hub, especially during Restaurant Week 2011! Having made our reservations a couple weeks in advance, we were seated immediately at a table in the lounge area with breathtaking views of the city.
For a mere $20, restaurant week partakers are able to experience 3 delicious courses for a fraction of the price!

For the first course we had the option of two cool, refreshing appetizers, either a
chilled potato leek soup with herb croutons or a chilled beet salad with
whipped goat cheese, pistachios, and a red wine, oregano vinaigrette. The beets were nicely done and the whipped goat cheese was very mild and light. Together with the crunch of the pistachios and acidity of the vinaigrette I thought everything came together nicely.
I had only had the Julia Child warm potato leek soup in the past (which is of course rich and delicious), but I very much enjoyed it's chilled cousin and could definitely see myself making this in lieu of a gazpacho.

For the main courses we had three choices - 1) calamarata pasta al la Bolognese with
pecorino cheese, tomato, and basil 2) A pan-seared pork sirloin with creamy masa, white corn pozole, and a chipotle ham hock broth, and 3)Panko-crusted scallops with English pea and roasted tomato risotto drizzled in a lemon chive sauce.
The scallops were an obvious choice to me and I did not regret it - they were smooth and buttery but not too heavy with the panko breacrumbs. The risotto was very well done and all of the flavors came together nicely.

I was not quite as big a fan of the pork and thought it could have been cooked a little less, but it's accompaniments made up for this. No one opted for the pasta, but you can't really go wrong with a spicy seafood sauce over pasta!


For dessert the options were a coconut panna cotta with a summer fruit salsa and fresh "Lilikoi" passion fruit or a chocolate pound cake with honey cream, macerated strawberries, and Thai basil. The panna cotta was nice and light, with the coconut flavor hitting you at the end of your bite. Together with the stronger flavors of the kiwi and passionfruit I thought it was great. The chocolate pound cake was a little dry for my taste, but the honey cream was excellent and made up for the dryness.

All-in-all I had a fabulous lunch and wish I could dine more regularly at Top of the Hub without breaking the bank! For now I'll just have to take advantage of restaurant week!

The

Kick*ss Cupcakes!

The other day we were walking to a friend's for dinner and couldn't think of anyplace down Columbus to pick up a little something for dessert. As luck would have it, right across from Mistral and ClubCafe was the Kick*ass Cupcake foodtruck!

Somehow we'd managed to never indulge in Boston's new obsession with foodtrucks, and it was right about time! There was a nice array to choose from, and everything was perfectly clear on the big menu on the side of truck. We decided on a "green monster", crème brûlée, cookie dough, and fluffernutter, with the "green monster" being a chocolate cupcake with a beer ganache center topped with Sam Adams Cream Stout frosting and cocoa nibs. How bad could that be?

A few hours later after finishing up dinner we were ready to dive in! Despite it being fairly late in the day, the cupcakes were still nice and fresh-tasting, not at all dry. The crème brûlée cupcake was a vanilla cupcake with a pastry cream center covered with caramelized raw sugar and a dollop of fresh whipped cream – really tasty and actually kind of light!

The cookie dough cupcake consisted of chocolate chip cookie dough in a vanilla cupcake and vanilla buttercream frosting with chocolate sauce. While good, I think it could have used a much bigger hunk of cookie dough, as I could hardly taste any. Nonetheless it was quickly devoured.

The green monster cupcake’s best part was the frosting – so rich and creamy and with just a hint of that Sam Adams cream stout taste! I’m not the biggest fan of chocolate cupcakes, but somehow with the rich beer ganache center I was able to choke it down :-)

Lastly, and actually everyone’s least favorite, was the fluffernutter, modeled after those horrifyingly unhealthy sandwiches of our youth. The chocolate cupcake with sweet peanut butter center and marshmallow frosting drizzled with Fluff could have used just a bit more of all of those things.


At $3 a cupcake, the tasty treats are a little pricey, but I'd certainly have another go and try some of their other fun concoctions like the Mojito, Cinnamon Chai Pecan Sticky, or the Ginger Peach Bellini cupcakes! There are certainly worse things than being able to pick up a delicious cupcake while simply strolling around the city :-) I’d be curious what their permanent spot on Davis Square is like!

In which we had to go all the way to Medford for pastries

The South End and Back Bay need more bakeries.

There, I said it.

We all love Flour and the Buttery, yes; but, where can you go for house-made, hot-out-of-the-oven bread around here? And the places you might think of that do sell good, fresh bread (usually baked elsewhere) seem to always run out of it by the time most people get out of work. It's a breadtastrophe. Sundays are a little better since the SoWa Market has brought in bakery carts from the metro region, but I say "give us, this day, our daily bread!"

We've seen the folks from The Danish Pastry House at the SoWa Market for the past few years and have very much enjoyed their croissants, pains au chocolat, and breads. Having had a hankering for a carb-ridden adventure the other day, we hopped into the car and drove the quarter hour over to Medford to visit the Danish Pastry House's bakery & café there on Boston Avenue. Forty-five minutes later, on a nice sugar high, we started bemoaning the fact that we can't easily get such goodies in our own neighborhood. If only we had the means to open a bakery ourselves! Oh well, ANYWAY...

We had some very delicious things at the Danish Pastry House and highly recommend a visit to anyone in the Tufts/Medford area.

The Almond Kringle (above) was AMAZING. Full of almond paste and buttery goodness.

Apparently, it's the house specialty. Makes sense to me!!

From left > right; top > bottom: we had a Floderbolle (described as "almond cookie base, Italian meringue filling, chocolate & coconut dipped); a Froggie 'KAJ' (we called these marzipan monsters amongst ourselves; they were very cute balls of flavored buttercream wrapped with marzipan, dipped in chocolate on the bottom); a raspberry frangipane tartelette (self-explanatory and my favorite); a chocolate bourbon pecan tartelette (this was apparently the girl behind the counter's favorite); and a slice of that delicious Kringle.

The Danish Pastry House's Bakery and Café is located at 330 Boston Ave, Medford. According to their website, they also have a retail bakery in Watertown.