A Biannual Trip to Zaftig's in Brookline

My husband and I go to Zaftig's Delicatessen in Brookline, MA twice a year. It's a biannual ritual which coincides with our dental cleaning appointments every 6 months. Our dentist happens to be just down the road in Brookline and knowing that a delicious meal at Zaftig's is on the horizon makes our dental appointments something to look forward to. Zaftig's also has a Natick, MA location. When I was planning my wedding, I made a habit of visiting that location after my bridal gown fittings at David's Bridal next door.

Zaftig's is a Jewish Delicatessen with an impressively large and varied menu. They serve breakfast all day and offer unique items including Cheese Blintzes, Challah French toast, grilled Banana Nut Bread with Date Butter, enormous Omelets, Salami or Pastrami with Scrambled Eggs, Lox and Matzo Brei. They have traditional Jewish dishes and sides including Kugel, Knished, Latkes, Gefilte Fish, Kasha Varnishka and more. Zaftig's also has specialty sandwiches (I recommend The Lupo which is brisket in between two potato pancakes!), burgers, wraps, salads, fish plates and grill & fry plates.

When I visit Zaftig's, I like to get the Create Your Own Omelet for the basic price of $7.95 plus $0.95 for each meat, vegetable or cheese filling that is added on. My perfect Omelet is Mushrooms, Tomatoes, Chives (or Green Onions) and Muenster Cheese. I ordered this and it was perfection! It came with a side of whole wheat toast, potatoes and fresh fruit. Divine!

Carlos got The Lincoln Wrap which had falafel, cucumber-yogurt sauce, radicchio, lettuce, tomatoes and red onion. He chose their homemade potato salad as his side and got some extra of their special pickles to go with it too.

Zaftig's only has a beer and wine license and Carlos really wanted a Bloody Mary to go with his meal. Luckily they had an option! They make Bloody Mary's with Saki Wine instead of Vodka. Carlos was pleasantly surprised and pleased with his drink. I got plain iced tea and the waitress was very generous with refills. We were too stuffed by our meal to contemplate dessert but we were seriously tempted by their Challah Bread Pudding. They also have New York style cheesecake, rice pudding, grape nut custard and lots more.

Zaftig's is consistently amazing and I love going there. The service is excellent, the place is always buzzing with regulars and the food never disappoints.

If you are in the area and want to work off your Zaftig's meal, make sure you walk around Coolidge Corner. You'll find the historic Art Deco Coolidge Corner Theatre, the famous Brookline Booksmith store is on the same block and just down the road you'll find the John F. Kennedy Birthplace Historic Site & Museum.

Last Meal at Beacon Grille

Beacon Grille in Woburn, MA closed at the end of June this year. I was so sad that my favorite restaurant was to be no more. It's now re-opened as a Strega's and I don't have a favorite haunt anymore. I'm mad. I really am. Anytime I find something that is truly special and that works beautifully, it always seems to be taken away from me.

Here are some photos from my last meal at Beacon Grille back in June.

Dining in Newport, Rhode Island

On Tuesday, Carlos and I headed to Newport, Rhode Island on a day trip. We have both been to Newport before but it had been a while and we had never gone together. It was a fun trip filled with food, drives, walks, mansions and beautiful sights.

We had lunch at The Red Parrot on Thames Street. I had been to this restaurant before. It's in a great location and gets a lot of business because of it. They were packed and we got some pretty crappy service. I was incredibly hungry by the time we got there so I was very impatient. It took forever for us to get service and to get our food. It felt like we were there for 2 hours!

We ordered a half dozen local oysters as a starter.

I'm so happy Carlos has developed a taste for Oysters. He dislikes most seafood but gave raw oysters a try and discovered that he likes them. These were pretty decent.

Carlos got a Greek Salad.

I really wanted lobster so I ordered a Lobster BLT with sweet potato fries. The basil focaccia was supposed to be either toasted or grilled but was neither. It was cold and not very tasty. The insides were delicious though. There were lots of large chunks of lobster, strips of crispy bacon and slices of tomato along with field greens. On the side there was a dipping sauce for the fries and mayo for the sandwich. I skipped the mayo. I'm not a big fan of sweet potatoes but these sweet potato fries were the most delicious ones I have EVER HAD! Perfectly fried, sweet, crispy on the outside, soft in the middle and overall heavenly! If you ever go, you must have these as a side. Even Carlos, who also isn't a fan of sweet potatoes, enjoyed them.

For dessert, we split a slice of coconut cake. It came with fresh pineapple, mandarin oranges and mango puree. The cake was a bit stale and dry but overall it was tasty.

We did a lot of walking an exploring along the wharves, up and down the different streets in the touristy part of town and down some side streets.

Later on, we went down Ocean Drive to see all the glorious sights and headed to the famous Bellevue Avenue. We went to two mansions: Marble House and Breakers (above). I had only ever seen the mansions from the outside and had never been inside so this was a treat.

We went back to the wharves and had dinner at The Wharf Pub & Restaurant.

We had a long journey back home so we ordered iced tea and had plenty of refills.

For an appetizer, we got the house tater tots. This restaurant had different tater tots with all sorts of toppings and sauces. We went with the plain ones which were only $5. It came with rosemary ketchup and whole grain mustard. I can't stand rosemary so I mostly had the mustard. These tater tots were hot, crispy and mighty tasty.

Carlos ordered a Greek Style Turkey Burger. The toppings included tzatziki sauce, tomatoes, Kalamata olives, cucumbers and parsley. It came with a side of potato wedges. Carlos devoured this plate of food!

I had the Beet & Green Salad with Blackened Local Cod. The fish was an extra add on for about $5. The salad had mixed greens, local ricotta, red onion, toasted pine nuts, pickled beets and croutons. Everything was tasty but the croutons were a bit burnt and they could have been more generous with the beets. I only say this because this was advertised as a beet & green salad. 

Now let's talk about that cod. Oh my heavens. That was one of the best pieces of cod I have ever eaten. It was well-seasoned, perfectly (and I mean perfectly) cooked. The cod held together really well and it was blackened just right. I would go back just for that cod. I told the waiter how good I thought it was and I hope he passed that compliment on to the chef.

After, we got some cookies from the Cookie Jar which is right across from The Wharf Pub & Restaurant. No pictures though! For $5, we got an oatmeal raisin cookie, snicker doodle cookie and a peanut cookie. The snicker doodle cookie was the best of the three!

We had fun in Newport, RI and will definitely be going back.

Tew-Mac Tavern at the Tewskbury Country Club

Photo source

My father-in-law took my husband and I out for a Christmas Eve dinner to the Tew-Mac Tavern at the Tewksbury Country Club in Tewksbury, MA. The country club sits on what used to be a privately owned airport. The great thing about this country club is that it's open to the public and you don't need to be a member to eat at their tavern or play on their golf course. The Tew-Mac Tavern had a small menu but boy was I impressed with what we ordered!

Inside the Tavern is a gorgeous dining area complete with fireplace and grand piano! It was Christmas time so there was also a beautifully decorated tree. I loved the open design and the lodge-type feel.

Tew-Mac Tavern has an absolutely fantastic cocktail menu and had a special holiday one too. I opted for an Old-Fashioned because I have never had one. Also, in the show Mad Men, Don Draper makes Old-Fashioneds for himself and for Conrad Hilton at a Country Club. I love that show, I was at a country club, so it was absolutely necessary to order an Old-Fashioned.

I think this is my new favorite cocktail!

The nice waiter brought us two types of bread, olive oil with herbs and a whole head of slow roasted garlic. OH MY GOD was that garlic so delicious. It's a little tricky to fish out but oh so worth it. I had so much garlic I had to tell Carlos to take the head of garlic away otherwise I would go through a similar situation like the Honeymoon Garlic Overdose of 2012!

I have never been to a restaurant that serves a whole head of slow roasted garlic with bread. I think this is amazing and definitely a reason to visit the restaurant!

For an appetizer we got their Sicilian Calamari which was tossed in Garlic Butter and had some sliced cherry peppers. I'm glad they didn't fry the peppers and the butter wasn't overwhelming. We didn't even need a dip!

I ordered their Seared Scallops dinner and substituted their sauteed spinach with the house vegetables. These scallops were so delicious and perfectly and expertly seared. They came with 2 three-cheese potato croquettes which were so heavenly. The croquettes were nice and hot and crispy on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside. Yum!

This was the best choice for dinner and when I go back I'll definitely order this again.

Carlos had the New York Strip Steak and my father-in-law had the New England Haddock plate. They both liked their meals too!

We didn't have any room in our bellies for dessert which was a shame. I'd love to see if their desserts were as good as the other plates. Instead of dessert, we sat down by the fireplace and chatted for a bit. Tew-Mac Tavern has these big comfy chairs and a couch in front of the fireplace so it's a great spot to sit and talk for a bit after your meal.

If you are ever in the Tewksbury, MA area, you must eat at Tew-Mac Tavern. This restaurant is a new favorite of mine and I can't wait to go back.

New Year's at the Rialto

We rang in the New Year last night at the Rialto, part of the Charles Hotel in Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA. And boy what a night it was! We had an absolute blast and the Rialto treated us so well that we can't imagine going anywhere else for New Year's next year!

The Rialto was decorated in silver and white balloons. We got these great silver and white New Year's props: a hat, a tiara and noisemakers. Last year we went to the Noir Bar at the Charles Hotel for New Year's and we had a lot of fun. But every time I would go upstairs to use the bathroom, I'd pass by the Rialto and take a peek inside. The people at the Rialto looked like they were having more fun. Also they had live music! I was hoping to see live music at the Rialto this year but there wasn't any. We still had a fabulous time.

 We started our evening with two cocktails. On the left is a Tangerine Tango served in a chilled martini glass. This was a really good cocktail! It had Bourbon, Aperol, Blood Orange, Lemon, Honey and a Blood Orange Rind Twist! Carlos had a Whiskey Sour which was pretty good too. Our reservation was delayed and the general manager offered to give us these drinks on the house! He took care of us the entire evening and made us feel really special.

Our table wasn't ready quite yet, so we moved from the bar to the bar lounge. 

Downton Abbey reference FTW!

At the lounge, we sat in a little nook and ordered two more drinks. I had an Old-Fashioned and Carlos had another Whiskey Sour. Rialto's cocktails are well-made with quality liquors and ingredients. Carlos and I have been there before for drinks and dessert but not for food so we were excited to try some of the restaurant's savory delights.

From the Bar menu, we ordered the Stuffed Dates from the Antipasti selection. All the Antipastis are $5 each or $14 if you buy three. They are great way to start off your meal if you don't want a full appetizer. These date were stuffed with gorgonzola cheese, wrapped in pancetta and topped with toasted chopped almonds. They were a taste and texture explosion in your mouth! Salty, sweet, smoky, peppery, crunchy, smooth. They were nice and hot too which made them all that more enjoyable.

Our table was ready, later than expected but the general manager thanked us for our patience and rewarded us with a gift certificate. We thought that was very generous of him so we decided to buy a couple expensive plates to use the card and to also kick back something to the restaurant for treating us so well!

In the dining room, we were seated at a nicely decorated table. There was a vase with a White Gerber Daisy, a white candle and magenta star confetti and crinkled paper. I thought this was very classy! The waitress brought us over an Amuse Bouche also on the house. It was Prosecco with candied orange, peppercorn and the rim had bay sugar. This was so good! I wish I had set it aside to toast with because by countdown time I had no drink left. The cocktails were too good.

Sorry for the dark pictures but flash made these look terrible. Carlos got the Spiced Chicken Under a Brick which came with one big gnocchi, pumpkin, gorgonzola and truffles. I had a bite of the chicken and it was amazing!

I had the Cacciucco (which I still don't know how to pronounce), a seafood soup. It had cod, shrimp, mussels, clams, lobster and calamari. It was topped with a parsley crouton. I love seafood soup and this one was quite tasty but just a bit too salty.

I had some fun with the confetti at the table!

For dessert, we had the Walnut-Apple Bread Pudding with vanilla ice cream, poached crab apple and compote. It also came with a nice caramel candy on top. Carlos loved this dessert but I thought it was so-so. I had my heart set on something chocolatey but we both agreed to get this one instead. I wish the pudding was warm but it was cold. Because the bread pudding was cold, I didn't see how the ice cream was even necessary. Next time I'll get the Chestnut-Chocolate Cream Puff which sounds divine.

You can't really see in the picture but a lady sang Auld Lang Syne to us. Then we all used our noisemakers to ring in the New Year. I wish there was a countdown but oh well. Perhaps there was one at the bar. We can't complain because our New Year's was a great time. A couple of friends were supposed to join us, but one of them was feeling really ill. In fact, today I'm supposed to be at my parents home cooking my dad a birthday lunch but they are both sick too! So I guess Carlos and I were lucky to be able to ring in the new year with health.

I hope all of you had a wonderful New Years and here is to a great 2013!