The Hen House

This past weekend a group of us went to check out The Hen House a "wings'n waffles" house located on Mass Ave . I had never heard of this combination of food before (apparently, it's popular in parts of L.A., Harlem, and now Chicago) but I must admit, it sounded intriguing and delicious! The Hen House is not in the best location. It's on Mass Ave, right next to the UHaul place and on the way to South Bay Plaza. It's easiest to get to by car (or by bus). The establishment looks and is (I think) relatively new. Walking in we were pleasantly surprised to see a bright, cheery open space with good lighting, great smells, and very friendly staff. There are large tables set up that you can share with friends or strangers. It seems that most people order take-out from the restaurant..there was a steady stream of customers but few sat down. We settled into our table and took a look at the chalk board menu. There were a number of options to choose from including ribs, pulled pork sandwiches, and other southern dishes but let's be honest, we were all there for the chicken and waffles so that's what we stuck with. When you go up to order you have a few options (all for under 8 bucks):

Step 1: Choose your waffle: There's buttermilk, multi grain and cornbread
Step 2: Choose the butter: There's homemade whipped, 5 herb and Cajun
Step 3: Choose the syrup: There's straight maple, clove honey, or maple BBQ
Step 4: Choose the chicken: There's fresh tenders, wings, whole pieces (breast, thigh, drum)
Step 5: Choose the sauce: Everything from Buffalo to apricot chipotle to BBQ to General Tso

There are also many side dishes to choose from. We ordered the mac & cheese, sweet potato fries, collard greens and fried cabbage. We all ordered an assortment of different waffle types, syrups and chicken types. The best waffle (in my opinion) by far was the cornbread waffle. It didn't have the texture of cornbread but it still had the taste of it and just the right amount of sweetness. It was excellent. Whether you choose the tenders or whole pieces, I think the amount of meat is about the same but with the whole pieces it looks like you are getting more since there are bones. I must admit, the whole pieces looked better so I would go with them next time even though the tenders were good. As for the sauces, they all were good. They actually have them out in pump containers so you can try a bunch of different ones if you don't like the first. Overall, we were all extremely happy with the chicken and waffles. The sides however, were just okay. Nothing horrible (well, except maybe the fried cabbage....it had a spice in it no one liked) but nothing stood out and with the big waffle and chicken we really didn't need the extra food. The Hen House has beer on tap as well as specialty sodas which are a bit more than a regular coke but it was fun to try a new "craft" brand of pop. For some reason, the chef sent a complimentary plate of ribs over to us and even though we were stuffed, we managed to finish most of them off. They were quite delicious and had a lot of meat on each bone and were slathered with a delicious sauce. I think next time we go, we'll do waffles/chicken and a side of ribs. Overall, we really had a fun time at the Hen House. The staff were very friendly and even remembered some of our names! The atmosphere is clean and has a warmness to it and you can tell the management cares a good deal that this business succeeds.

How I Met Your Burger

Last night, we were watching How I Met Your Mother. They were in search for "The Best Burger in New York," which Marshall had apparently found when he moved to the City. Regis was looking for it too. Well, Bob, Peter, and I were sitting there watching them go up and down the City and got to craving a burger ourselves! Luckily, right around the corner from where we were sits South End Pizza and Grill. We often order food from here when we're over, since it's quick and close. Plus, they have this fun little online ordering site that allows us all to customize our order without having to go en masse down to the restaurant.

Peter and I don't really like their pizza as well as we do from other spots in the area, but the burgers aren't bad. The Onion Rings, however, are really good!

We each got a burger, which satiated our craving; but, it certainly wasn't the best burger in Boston. Perhaps, this can be the beginning of a new quest for us. We've gotta have something to keep us busy, right?! :-)

South End House of Pizza is located at 772 Tremont at Mass. Ave. They deliver and stay open quite late.

Moogy's Sandwich Shop

Unless you went to Boston College or have lived in Brighton, chances are you've never heard of Moogy's Breakfast and Sandwich shop. For those of you that have been to Moogy's, you know that it's home to some of the best breakfast and sandwiches in the Boston area.

Breakfast - Moogy's breakfast is served all day long, and no matter what you're in the mood for chances are they have it and do it well. The omelets are excellent - everything from a standard ham and cheese to the 'Watchamacalit', which has bananas in it. The breakfast sandwiches are all great, too - you can get eggs, cheese, and ham, bacon, or sausage on toast, an english muffin, a bagel or a croissant. All orders of eggs dont however you like come with home fries and toast and are probably the best value. If you want something on the sweet side, the pancakes and french toast are really tasty. For something inbetween, try one of the french toast sandwiches - the 'Love Child' has ham, turkey, and swiss sandwiched between delicious french toast!

In terms of hoagies, there tons of innovative options, from the standard steak and cheese, to my personal favorite, the 'dirty birdy', which has chicken steak (shaved chicken breast), broccoli, teriyaki, and mozzarella. You can get all of the sandwiches in Small (6 inches), Medium (9 inches), and Extra-Large (13 inches). Some of my other favorites include the 'pizza steak' (steak, pizza sauce, mozzarella, oregano) and the 'Allston' (pictured to the right, with salami, bologna, mortadella, ham, spiced ham, american cheese, and provolone cheese) If you think you can handle it you might even try the 'cow meets egg', which has steak, peppers, onions, scrambled eggs, and american cheese or the 'heart attack, which has burger meat, american cheese, bacon, and eggs. You can add a number of additional toppings, for instance fried peppers, onions, lettuce, and tomato at no additional charge.

Other sandwich options include your standard deli meat options, tuna and chicken salad, burgers of all sorts, and regular and turkey reubens, among other choices.

For side orders, the clear winner is the Chive Fries - french fries with chive seasoning and served with a side of ranch. I can easily devour a large order with gusto and still want more. Other fun fry options include the Crab fries (with old bay seasoning) and the cajun fries (seasoned curly fries with cajun seasoning). You can also opt for onion rings, mozzarella sticks, and jalapeño poppers, plus a bunch of other fry options.

Lucky for you Moogy's also has a liquor license and has Harpoon IPA, Bud Light, Stella Artois, Budweiser and Busch Light on draft. Busch drafts are only $1 all the time! There's also UFO, Corona, Bass, and a number of other beers available in bottles. If beer's not your thing, you also have a number of wine choices and Mimosas, too!

All in all, if you're looking for great comfort food and a fun, chill atmosphere, head to Moogy's! Peak times are Saturday and Sunday morning, when the place can have a line out the door thanks to (annoying) BC juniors looking for a cure to their hangovers. If you're not into the weekend crowd, try coming right at 10 when they open, or wait until later in the afternoon. Otherwise anytime during the week is good.

Situated on Chesnut Hill Ave., Moogy's is easily accessible by car (it has its own lot) or T (get off @ Chiswick, walk a block down Chiswick to your right, turn right on Chesnut Hill Ave. and it's right there). Visit moogy's.com for the full menu and more information.

Haymarket: Fresh Produce at Cheap Prices

For cheap produce any frugal gourmand should check out the Haymarket. Located right by Fanueil Hall (you can take the orange or green-line "Haymarket" stop) , Haymarket offers a wide variety of produce at discounted prices. There are no fancy stalls or set-ups and it's always busy and sometimes quite noisy. Our friend Bob likes to swing by after work during the summer to buy fresh strawberries for his home-made daiquiris and margaritas! Towards the day's end you'll see squashed veggies and fruit on the ground (the city has even installed bronze 3-D art on the streets and sidewalk to replicate this) and you can even haggle for prices right before close. If you're in the area, or need to feed a large party, this is definitely a good place to shop at.

Natalie's Pizza

This is just a quick note. I stopped by a friend's house tonight on my way back from BC, and needed a bite for supper. I popped in at Natalie's for a slice (or two), and I must say it was quite good. At time of publication, cheese slices are $2.25, and pepperoni slices are $2.50. It's not Upper Crust or anything, but the sauce was really nice, and the crust was as well. It's kind of that spongy crust you expect from the Greek-run pizza joints in Boston. It was good.

The place was clean, and they also have hot and cold sandwiches as well as burgers and pasta dishes.

If you need a quick, cheap bite in the Harvard Ave/Comm Ave area, check it out.

At the peak of good eats at Mt. Everest Kitchen!

After a great morning out on the Atlantic for a whale watch, Kasia, Ben, and I headed back to Allston for lunch at Mt. Everest Kitchen, our first experience with the cuisine of Nepal.

Situated near the intersection of Allston Street and Brighton Ave., the restaurant is rather simple both inside and out with perhaps a dozen tables and pictures of Mt. Everest and Nepal on the walls. Before our waitress could even come to the table, we were fortunate enough to be greeted by a rather large beetle climbing on the wall - nothing a quick swat couldn't fix. The front door was open to the outside, so we didn't think anything of it.

Kasia and Ben both opted for one of the 'set meals', consisting of a choice of one appetizer, rice, lentils, salad, and achar served with choice of lamb, goat, or chicken curry, plus coffee or tea. For the appetizer both chose the vegetable Mo-mo, typical Nepali vegetable dumplings with fresh coriander, ginger, and garlic.
They were very delicious and fresh-tasting, but I think my favorite part was the selection of three sauces with which they were served.
The first was 'mild' and seemed to consist primarily of diced coriander (cilantro) and fresh mint, providing a really interesting and refreshing combination of mint and spice. The 'medium' was orange in color and nice and tangy while the 'hot' (not very much at all, however) was more acidic and salty in flavor.

For my meal I chose the Khasiko masu, diced goat meat cooked in a traditional style, garnished with fresh coriander leaves. The goat had a nice flavor as did the mild-curry tasting sauce. Where Mt. Everest really shined, however, was in the set meals ordered by Kasia and Ben

The set meal can basically be likened to a Japanese Bento box - it is served on a single plate, but with each consituent neatly separated in its own compartment. The 'salad' seemed to be of the collard green family, steamed and served with a really great spice combination. The 'achar', which according to Wikipedia is "a variety of spicy pickled side dishes or condiments" was quite interesting. It was essentially an assortment of potatoes, peas, carrots in a really unique sauce. It almost had a mild pepper flavor, but at the same time cooled your mouth as if it were menthol. Kasia and Ben both agreed with this crazy description! The curry was sweet and savory - I could have just eaten the sauce as a soup. The basmati rice was pretty standard, and the taste of the lentils might be compared to the aroma of one of the Tibetan stores on Newbury Street.

Finally, our meal was accompanied with rooti, the Nepali version of naan bread - we had the lasun ko rooti, which was clay-oven baked with garlic and herbs. Delicious!

When the bill came, we had barely spent over $30 combined for a delicious meal and a great first experience with the food of Nepal!

Anchovies

Welcome to my review. Peter asked me to write my inaugural (and possibly only) blog about Anchovies, a cute SE bar/restaurant on Columbus Ave. Well, it’s not so much cute as it is dark, but that’s better anyway.

What I like most about Anchovies is the atmosphere. I really like little homey, neighborhoody places. They are often more relaxed, delightfully quirky, and far more interesting than most chains. They sort of give you a feel that you know something special about where you live that not every tourist or weekend trendster ever could. That’s pretty much Anchovies.

Tucked away next to the much larger and more open Giacomo’s restaurant, Anchovies is the closest thing to a dive bar you can find in the South End. It’s dark, often crowded with locals, and usually loud with conversation or commentary on whatever game is on the flat screen TV’s. But unlike a true dive, the people are friendly, it’s clean, and you don’t have to worry about getting shanked by a disgruntled customer.

Anchovies is perfect for a host of occasions. You can meet up with a friend for a drink at the bar, grab a quick bite on your way home after a long night of drinking (it’s been a lifesaver), and it also makes a nice casual place for a first date (seriously) or just a hot meal with friends. When I go, I usually go for the food and drink option because I like to sit and relax and chat. If you don’t order food though, you can’t sit at a table. If you are eating, you may have to wait to be seated as Anchovies is small and there are only a handful of booths and tables.

Anchovies has a pretty full Italian menu and nightly specials with three options: a pasta dish, usually a meat or fish dish, and the lasagna of the day. Now, living here in Boston and growing up on Italian food, I know how it can vary significantly from place to place, restaurant to restaurant. So let me say in advance, this is the hearty but greasy variety. It’s also what I would call more classic Italian: sauce, cheeses, pasta, meat, and chicken. No fancy sauces or creative takes on old favorites. If you want something more upscale, go next door to Giacomo’s. Personally, I like this better. It’s as close to home cooking as you can get.

My favorite is the lasagna. I almost always get it so I really can’t comment on much else. If I am feeling like I should be good and maybe have more protein than pasta, I will get the chicken parm. It’s good but nothing different from the norm, except that there is enough for two meals. They do not skimp on portions. Back to the lasagna. As I said before, it’s the lasagna of the day so it’s always new and usually a good combo (sausage and spinach comes to mind). And when it comes, as with the chicken, it’s huge. And covered with cheese. I mean like drowning covered. That would be my only complaint really. There is often so much cheese I end up feeling greasy and remorseful after, which is probably why I usually only finish about 2/3 of the slab I’m served. But the part I do it is amazing. Fresh from the oven, meaty, solid and not runny, and a perfect ratio of noodles, cheese (ricotta and parmesan), and meat. Filling and delicious. Oh, and you also get a salad with your dinner, but it’s pretty basic, nothing to write home about, and often has too much dressing. Tip of the day: get the dressing on the side.

So that’s it in a nutshell. A fun, friendly, neighborhood bar with good food, and reasonable prices. It may not be to everyone’s liking, but it’s certainly worth a trip to find out first hand. Enjoy!

Review by Mike

Anchovies
433 Columbus Ave
Boston, MA 02116

Open for lunch and dinner

(photos via flickr.com)

Bangkok Bistro: Thai Food at its Best

I am rather reluctant to write this food blog because I don’t want to reveal this hidden gem to the Boston Food World-at-Large.

Bangkok Bistro: Thai Cuisine. Do not be fooled by the restaurant’s décor. Outside the restaurant is pink. Inside, the walls are a turquoise green, there are fish tanks everywhere, pictures of Bangkok, etc. Endure this, and you will be rewarded with the best Thai food I have ever tasted. Seriously.

If you can make it to the restaurant for lunch (they are not open for lunch on Monday, but these specials apply for the weekend as well), then you should order off of their lunch specials menu. For $8.95 (the price has gone up recently) you get a bowl of Tom Yum Soup (the best version of the soup I’ve ever had), an entrée and a side appetizer. Even at $9 it is still worth it.

Even though I’ve had the Tom Yum Soup multiple times, every time I eat it I am still hit by the spices and immediately have a coughing attack that lasts for a minute exactly. But I can’t help myself…the soup is too good to let a little tickle in my throat stop me. The lunch version of the soup contains 2 pieces of chicken and 1 shrimp. If you order it separately you can specify chicken or shrimp and then you get more meat. They add mushrooms right before serving and, even though I’m not really a mushroom fan, I love them in this soup. A tip if you are ordering this soup to take-out is to ask them to include the mushrooms on the side and then they do not shrivel up in the hot broth! I know my stuff.

For the appetizer sides, I highly recommend three: the spring rolls, the golden triangles, and the chicken wings. The spring rolls are crunchy and delicious…but after one of them I am usually satisfied. So what I like to do is ask for 1 spring roll and 1 golden triangle: the best of both worlds! The golden triangle is also crunchy but contains a vegetable puree inside that nicely offsets the sweet dipping sauce it is served with. While the chicken wings look very similar to a chicken wing you would order at a Chinese restaurant, the spice rub they add gives them a unique taste—I would say a little curry and a little cumin might be used.

The entrée portion at lunch is nicely sized. I have 2 favorites—Pad Thai and Yellow Curry with either beef or chicken depending on my mood. The Pad Thai is slightly sweet and contains big pieces of chicken and small shrimps. They do not overload it with too many peanuts or bean sprouts—something I appreciate very much. The Yellow Curry is served with a generous portion of rice. The sauce contains potatoes and pineapple. Mostly I order the yellow curry because I like the pineapple and potatoes it comes with—there are many other curries (red, green, masaman, basil, “wild wild wild,” choo chee, mango, panang…) and they are served with other vegetables (eggplant, peppers, bamboo, onion, carrot, baby corns).

I love the people that run Bangkok Bistro. I frequent the restaurant so much that they have come to recognize me when I come in. Their customer service is wonderful, and on occasion, they have provided us with a sampling of some of their favorites dishes: their shumai (shrimp dumplings) are tender little bites of goodness, the satay (both chicken and beef) are well flavored and come with cucumber sauce and peanut sauce. Tip: If you order the Bistro Sampler you get the best of all of their appetizers. Finally, their Thai iced tea (although too sweet for me) is a favorite with many other visitors.

I have also been to the restaurant for dinner, and while you don’t get the same deal as the lunch special, the food is just as good at night! My advice for dining there at night is this: bring a friend or a date who will have a good sense of humor about the décor, order the Tom Yum Soup (if you cough like I do when you eat it, it will be a great ice breaker), order a sweet dish and a spicy dish (they can make their drunken noodle dish VERY spicy on request) and share a great evening of food and fun!

Bangkok Bistro gets an A.

Aneka Rasa - Delicious Malaysian at great prices

Anyone who has read my other blog knows that I very much enjoy whining about trying to pay for school, etc., so naturally when I heard about the $6.95 lunch special at Aneka Rasa on weekdays from 11:30-3:30, I immediately set a date to have lunch there.

To quote from their website, "Aneka Rasa’s food is inspired and prepared by Malaysian chefs to reflect authentic Malaysian Cuisine. Malaysia has long been the crossroads in Southeast Asia and the country’s foods reflect that. Malaysian cuisine blends Thai, Indian, Chinese and local Malay tastes to create original Malaysian cuisine. This includes the spiciness of Thai food, the exotic spices found in Indian food, the wok stir-fry style of Chinese food, and original Malaysian tastes."

Looking at the menu, this notion of "crossroads" was very apparent, as they had everything from Pad Thai and Seafood Fried Rice, to Indian Mee Goreng and Ginger Duck. Choosing an entree was easier said than done. The lunch special went as follows:

House Salad
Soup of the Day
Rice {White, Chicken Flavored, or Coconut}
Choice of Appetizer {Stay Beef (2 pcs.), Satay Chicken (2 pcs.), Crab Rangoon (2 pcs.), Vegetable Spring Roll (2 pcs.), Vegetable Samosa (2 pcs.)}
Entree {one of 20 choices}

There is also a Noodle Lunch Special running slightly cheaper at $5.50 but as far as I could tell, it did not include the appetizers, rice, etc.

The "soup of the day" was Tom Yum, a delicious sour and spicy lemongrass broth with cilantro, mushrooms, and perhaps a couple of other vegetables. I am a huge fan of Tom Yum, and despite its lack of any meat or seafood, it was a great start to the meal.

For my appetizer I chose the beef satay, which, along with the rice and salad, was served at the same time as the entree. It was doused in a delicious peanut sauce and was devoured rather quickly. My coconut rice was really interesting in that it had a great coconut taste but I couldn't tell how exactly it was done, since it seemed too light to have been cooked in coconut milk. The salad was a small assortment of julienned vegetables in a sweet, tangy dressing. For my entree I chose the Indian Mee Goreng, descibed as "Indian style stir-fried yellow noodle in an authentic tasty mild squid sauce with tofu, shrimp, egg, and bean sprouts." It had the taste of your typical, but very tasty, Thai noodle dish, but every once in a while I would get a bite of Tofu that had a great kick of Indian spices in it.

Christopher started with the Crab Rangoon, the wonton of which was a lot thinner than I'm used to, reducing the greasy heaviness of a lot of crab rangoon. He opted for the chicken rice, which as expected had hints of chicken to it. For the entree he chose the Spicy Salt and Pepper Crispy Pork. It was quite good in my opinion and nicely seasoned with the salt and pepper, though since it was all deep fried it got to be a bit much for him toward the end. I'm sure I would have finished it no problem.

For his main course, Bryan chose the Penang Pad Thai. "At first, I was going to get something else, since I thought I'd be more adventurous than Pad Thai, but then I noticed that this was not the normal stuff you get at your average Thai restaurant. The Penang Pad Thai had squid and shrimp, which were both cooked well and not rubbery. The flavor was very nice, and the amount of spice was as well. (I could have handled a little more spice, actually.) I loved the spicy and tangy Tom Yum soup, thought the coconut rice was very interesting and delicious; and, my chicken satay appetizer was juicy, tender and scrumptious! What I can't get over was the unbelievable value. Plus, I'm excited at the fact that this deal can be taken advantage of during a normal lunch hour! When are we going back?"

Starting at the top left and going clockwise we have the Indian Mee Goreng, Penang Pad Thai, Spicy Salt and Pepper Crispy Pork, and Tom Yum Soup, all with their respective rices and appetizers

Oven-toasted flatbread sandwiches at Dunkin Donuts? Oh my!

Being a foodie centers around one thing - food - so why let a fine establishment like Dunkin Donuts remain outside the foodie domain?

As I frequent Dunkin Donuts a few times a week for my morning or afternoon iced coffee fix, I've begun to accumulate coupons from their 'Bases Loaded' campaign that offers savings and game codes on a little sticky that you peel off of the cup. The first one I got entitled me to one free oven-toasted flatbread sandwich with no additional purchase necessary, and today was the day I put it into use.

My choices were between 4 sandwiches - ham & swiss; turkey, cheddar, and bacon; 3-cheese; or Southwest chicken. Since the southwest chicken was a new promotion and also the most expensive at $3.99, I figured I'd give that one a try and get the best deal.

About a minute after placing my order I had a grilled chicken "filet" topped with cheddar cheese, grilled peppers and onions and a maple-chipotle sauce sandwiched between two pieces of flatbread. It smelled very good from the start, and I was rather excited to take the first bite of my free lunch.

Looking inside of my flatbread the chicken patty/filet/whatever looked a bit unnatural, but I trusted Dunkin Donuts to make it taste good, and, indeed, it did. I very much enjoyed the maple-chipotle sauce, which added a nice sweet and tangy flavor to every bite. There weren't too many onoins and peppers, but I wouldn't say it was overly lacking. As to the flatbread, it wasn't overly delicious, but there was definitely nothing wrong with it. Perhaps had I not waited until getting home to eat it the flatbread would have been more crispy or something. Portion-wise I was pleasantly surprised, though that's not to say I couldn't have inhaled 4 of them.

Overally I was definitely pleased with my free lunch. Though tasty, I'm not sure if I would spend $3.99 to try it again. Good thing I have a $1 off coupon for my next one!

Exploring in Chinatown

I've been really into China lately. Because of the upcoming Olympics, I suppose, there have been a lot of great documentaries on TV about China, and I've tried to watch every one of them. The Chinese have a fascinating country, culture, language, economy...and of course, cuisine.

With this on the mind and a free evening's dinner to be planned, Jeffrey and I decided to go to Chinatown for a little culinary exploration. It's so close, and I've only eaten there once, so it was high time for a visit.

By the way, Chinatown in Boston doesn't only offer Chinese cuisine. We did an initial round through the neighborhood looking at all the different options, and somehow, our goal became bánh mì, a popular Vietnamese sandwich on a baguette with crudité, your choice of meat, and often fresh cilantro.

We came across Lu's Sandwich Shop and decided to try it out. We got bánh mì xíu mại and bánh mì bì. 

Bánh mì xíu mại is made with these yummy pork meatballs in a kind of sweet and sour sauce.

Our bánh mì bì had the traditional shredded pork skins as well as something called "sour sausage." This particular sandwich was heavy on the fish sauce (nước mắm), which, I'm sure is traditional; but, it took us by surprise (quite!) at the first bite. (Personally, I would have liked it much better with less fish sauce.)

I did prefer the pork meatball sandwich, which was--due to the cold cucumber and carrots and fresh cilantro--nicely refreshing on such a hot day.

The best part about these sandwiches: they're only $2.50 each!  Next time I'm in the area, I'll definitely go back to try some of the other varieties on the menu!


More on our Chinatown adventure later...

Bagel Rising - Allston

after alex and i dragged our behinds home from the south end, i decided that i needed a bagel slathered in cream cheese to help ease myself into the morning. i had picked up the latest Improper Bostonian, the "Boston's Best" issue, and as i paged through it i noticed that none other than Bagel Rising, the little establishment a mere block or two from my apartment, was listed as best bagel place. and so it was settled.

at just before 8 in the morning the place was already bustling, and one of the guys behind the counter warmly greeted me. i was a bit of a mess and had trouble forming sentences, but I managed to order an everything bagel with the lox cream cheese spread. i was quite excited seeing how plump and fresh all the bagels looked in the baskets behind the counter. it came to a little over $2 - perfect.

it was just my luck that they were out of the lox spread, so bageltran9000 offered me actual lox instead, free of charge. now normally the real lox knocks the price up to around $6 from what i recall, so i was quite excited to be the recipient of such a bargain.

the first bite was divine - the bagel was still warm, and the cream cheese was, well, creamy! the "everything" part was just as i liked it - nice chunks of onions both crunchy and caramelized, poppy seeds, sesame seeds, etc. i had just the right amount of lox so i could eat the bagel in 4 parts, yet still have enough lox for each piece. i must say i do not plan on getting a DD's bagel anytime soon in my neighborhood.

Morning at the mahket

I can think of few places better to spend one's post-Estate hangover than downtown at the fruit and vegetable market. Since moving into my apartment last May I have made an attempt to, each Friday morning, venture out into the city to Haymarket for an abundance of über cheap and fresh fruits and vegetables from presumably local growers. When it's cool enough there is also fresh fish - my favorite part.

today's venture cost me a mere $14, and this is what I got

1 carton strawberries
1 bunch bananas
1 lb seedless green grapes
6 Valencia oranges
4 plums
2 broccoli crowns
2 bunches of Romaine
1 lb snap peas
2 eggplants
1 lb tomatoes
1 lb red peppers
2 lb yellow squash