Munch Madness

Every year it seems like radio stations and other media outlets try to capitalize on the NCAA's March Madness fever by hosting their own "tournaments." This year, Boston.com is hosting their very first "Munch Madness," where they pit 64 of Boston's most popular restaurants against one another in an epic four-bracket food fight. The voting has come down to the Final Four restaurants, which are Toro, East Coast Grill, Orinoco, and Hungry Mother. Despite my own negative opinion of them, Toro has to be considered the favorite going into this round, as they are the only #1 seed left in the competition. Voting for the Final Four is open through April 1st, so head on over there and cast your vote. Mine's going to the ECG.

Edit - Looks like the East Coast Grill is your 2010 Munch Madness Champion, destroying Hungry Mother in the final round.

Happy Birthday, Dale

Just wanted to send a little happy birthday note to my friend Dale.

I don't know Dale very well. In fact, we just met tonight.

She was an older woman, somewhere in her sixties. They were a party of three, though one of them was late.

Can I bring you some water while you wait for your other friend?
We have someone meeting us.

A lovely woman, that Dale. Did I mention that it was her birthday?

She dined with two of her (old-)lady friends. They got sassy, opting for Pear Sidecars instead of Cosmos. Despite their seemingly impenetrable personalities, I wanted to like them just on account of their creative drink order.

Dinner went off without a hitch. They didn't require much attention. I knew that they weren't into having any sort of close contact with their lowly server, so I held back and attended to them silently, only when needed.

Knowing that it was Dale's birthday, I brought dessert menus over to them after their entrees were cleared. They didn't seem like the types of ladies who would order dessert but birthdays were special, so who knows.

I brought you some dessert menus.
What?
Huh?
I brought you some dessert menus...
I thought you said ONIONS.

Onions? What?

Seeing their dessert menus stacked up in a neat little pile off to the side of the table, I thought that I was in the clear. A quick dismissal of the menus usually results in a rejection of dessert, a prompt drop of the check, and an insincere thanks-so-much.

So, did you see anything you'd like to try for dessert?
No dessert but a whole bunch of decaf.
No onions?

They liked that one. They laughed.

Make sure mine's decaf.
No way, I'm giving you regular!
Well, you know, some restaurants give you regular when they run out of decaf.
Oh, I would never do that to you!

I tried to win them over with whatever charm I could muster up which wasn't really very much. I had to rely more on cheap parlor tricks, like melting a wax candle to birthday Dale's coffee cup, since she didn't order any dessert. As a server I feel it's my responsibility to make sure you get to blow out a candle on your birthday, but your lack of a dessert order makes it tricky sometimes.

They thought that it was a cute gag and I kinda thought I had them.

After they paid, they sat for two hours before finally getting up. I was surprised to see Dale approach one of the waitresses, angry.

I listened as Dale launched into a tirade about how she was so upset that the restaurant didn't send her a complimentary birthday dessert. I folded napkins and listened to this, laughing to myself. She argued that it was bad business for a restaurant to refrain from practices like giving away free product.

As she repeated the story to my general manager, I lit the candle on a complimentary cookie plate for table 33. Dale eyed the cookies and even mentioned them as I walked away, smiling. It was literally the first time I had given away a dessert at this particular restaurant and the timing couldn't have been any better. Seriously, lady in your sixties, you're mad because you didn't get a free scoop of vanilla ice cream on your birthday? I would argue that she was mad that her two friends split the bill three ways with her. If I were her I'd be a lot more upset about the Scallops and Sidecar than the scoop of vanilla.

So, wherever you are, happy birthday, Dale! Thanks for the laughs and good times, hopefully we can do it again sometime.

Boston Beer & Bacon Festival

Mark your calendars because Boston is ready to celebrate two of your favorite things: bacon and beer. On Saturday, April 24th @eatBoston and SoWa Sundays will be hosting the first-of-its-kind Boston Beer & Bacon Festival at the Power Station in the South End. Restaurants from all over the city (including Trina's Starlite Lounge and Myers & Chang) will be sharing their best bacon-themed dishes, while local breweries will offer up some of their sudsy creations to go along with them. Tickets start at $25, with all proceeds going to charities such as the Juniper Fund, Share Our Strength, Community Servings, and South End Youth Baseball, so you won't have to feel too guilty about partaking in the indulgence of it all. Tickets can be purchased in advance on their website and you must be 21 to attend.

Why Not Inman Square?

The next time you’re planning a pub or app crawl, you might want to check out the sometimes-overlooked neighborhood of Inman Square. Nestled between its more popular cousin squares of Harvard and Central, Inman is a favorite among hipsters, college kids, and folks in the restaurant industry. With the addition of Trina’s Starlite Lounge this past September, Inman has solidified its status as one of Boston’s best neighborhoods for great food and cheap beer.

Trina’s takes over the old Abbey Lounge spot on the Somerville side of Beacon Street, on the very outskirts of Inman Square. Located under an old-school Miller High Life sign, in a plain and unassuming brick building, it might be easy to mistake it for the type of dimly lit joint where old men hide from the sunlight, swapping stories over Wild Turkey while they inhale the dust from piles of losing scratch tickets. On the contrary, when you enter Trina’s, you are welcomed into a 1950’s throwback lounge that keeps things classy and restrained despite the invitation for kitsch. Local artist, and part-time bartender, Thomas Tietjien provides much of the cozy space’s retro-inspired artwork.

Trina’s is the brainchild of Trina and Beau Strum, who spent years behind various Boston bars before tackling their own enterprise. Josh Childs, co-owner of the legendary downtown Silvertone Bar and Grill, is a partner in the business, as is general manager, Jay Bellao. Given the ownership’s deep connections in the city, Trina’s was a highly anticipated project that proved to be an instant success upon opening. Fueled by one of Boston’s most creative cocktail lists and a whimsical menu of delicious comfort food, word of mouth quickly spread.

Perhaps their most popular menu item, Trina’s Dog of the Day has reached a cult status through daily Facebook status updates sent to their 1,500 friends. Every day, Trina’s chefs use their wit and creativity to come up with a new way to cook a hot dog, with consistently delicious results. Recent dogs have included the Tostada Dog, the Fish and Chip Dog, and the Farmer’s Market Dog, which is made from all local ingredients, wrapped in smoked bacon and topped with brocolli and Brussels sprouts hash, laced with a mustard maple sauce. Trina’s also features the best Chicken and Waffles available in the city. The chicken is moist and juicy, fried picture-perfect and crispy on the outside, and served over homemade buttermilk waffles. All of that is topped with a hot pepper syrup that contributes to the dish’s spot-on contrast of sweet and savory. There is a superb veggie burger also available to those so inclined.

The cocktail list features the freshest seasonal juices, fruits, herbs, and spices. As they say, “if we can make it ourselves, we do.” Many of the liquors that they use are obscure, which can make for a fun learning experience. Try their Samata, made from Bison Grass vodka, ginger syrup, lemon juice, green tea, and mint if you want something refreshingly different. On a cold winter day, try the Adirondack, made with butter-infused bourbon and real maple syrup. If you’re not really into the fancy cocktails, then check out their beer list, which appeals to the hipster looking for an ironic can of Schlitz for $3 or the beer snob, who might appreciate the Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA on draft. My favorite happens to be the bucket of Miller High Life ponies for $11.

Because the owners have all spent years working in restaurants, they have recently started hosting industry brunches on Mondays, though everyone is more than welcome. Complete with classic sugary cereals, Saturday morning cartoons, and their signature “Velvet Elvis” French Toast, stuffed with peanut butter, bananas, and chocolate-covered bacon, Trina’s has applied the same ideas that have made them such a successful nighttime establishment to the day shift. There might be no better way to start the week than a plate of Huevos Rancheros and a Hair of the Dog, a dangerously easy to drink combination of vodka, Licor 43, orange juice, and orange soda.

Trina’s joins Bukowski’s Tavern and Chef Chris Schlesinger’s seminal East Coast Grill in Inman Square, as exciting options for great food that maintains a sense of fun and won’t break the budget. Bukowski’s, which also has a more popular sister location on Dalton St. in the Back Bay, is born from the same love of nostalgia that Trina’s is and boasts one of the city’s most impressive beer lists. If you’re overwhelmed by the selection, leave it to the fates and give their Beer Wheel a spin. Right next door to Bukowski’s is the East Coast Grill, which has been serving up delicious food for over twenty-five years now. With its focus on bright flavors, fresh seafood, live fire and barbeque, its popularity is at an all-time high, thanks to a featured segment on the Travel Channel’s Man vs. Food. Similar to Trina’s, they draw industry people into their dining room on Mondays by holding special events like Hell Night, Bob Marley Night, Pig Around the World Night, and Put a Little South in Your Mouth Night. These events sell out almost as quickly as they are announced.

There are a lot of good things going on in this often forgotten-about neighborhood quietly tucked away in the middle of everything. If you can’t drive, then hop on an MBTA bus (lines 69, 83, or 91) and get yourself a Nacho Dog at Trina’s or a Hobo Special at Bukowski’s or a bowl of Ghost Chili Pasta at the East Coast Grill (though, you might want to bring a pen, as you’ll need to sign a waiver).

(Trina’s Starlite Lounge is open 7 nights a week from 5 pm – 1 am, serving dinner until midnight. Brunch is available Mondays from 12 pm – 4 pm. Trina’s is located at 3 Beacon Street, Somerville, MA 02143.)

Here Comes Restaurant Week(s)

Happy March, ladies and gentlemen! We’ve made it through the worst of the winter and spring is just around the corner. In Fort Myers, the Red Sox have started playing games and, here in Boston, we are getting ready for Restaurant Week once again.


This year marks the 5th anniversary of Boston Restaurant Week (which actually runs for two weeks), when the best spots in the city offer three-course prix fixe menus at the low cost of $33.10 for dinner and $20.10 for lunch (the price increases one cent annually, echoing the current year). Co-sponsored by the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau and American Express, the twice-a-year event (there’s also one in August) is designed to drum up a little business during an otherwise slow time of year for restaurants. In theory, it’s a great opportunity to go out and try new places whose normal prices may cause you a bit of hesitation.

In reality, Boston Restaurant Week is a complete zoo, with most restaurants offering food of a substantially lower quality than they regularly do, thereby maximizing their profits. The whole thing is really one big smoke and mirrors trick that the industry plays upon the public. Aside from the steak houses and some of the elite “special occasion” restaurants like L’Espalier, Mistral, and No. 9 Park, you can go into just about any participating restaurant on a normal day and have a higher quality dinner at a comparable price. During Restaurant Week, many of the better restaurants cut back on the creativity of their menus, in an effort to please the fairweather foodies who only come out this time of year, while also using inferior (cheaper) ingredients and slashing portions. Nonetheless, the four weeks of the year that make up Boston Restaurant Week are always among the busiest.



In addition to being short-changed on the meal, another aspect of your Restaurant Week experience that is likely to suffer is your service. Restaurants employ a turn-and-burn attitude, trying to cram as many of you into their dining room as possible. For servers, this is a horrible time of year and I always make it a point to plan my vacations accordingly. You would think that it might be a lucrative deal for us, as more business should theoretically equal more money in our pockets, but that’s simply not the case. Not only are the typical Restaurant Week diners, on average, “more frugal” than our normal cliente, thereby leading to lower check averages and worse tips, but the restaurants also stack the schedule, adding as much help as they can. This often results in more trouble and less money for us.



If, after all of that, you still feel like braving Restaurant Week, there are a couple of restaurants who actually do an outstanding job with it:

First, Gargoyle’s on the Square (Davis Sq., Somerville) offers many of Chef Jason Santos’ delicious signature dishes, such as Hawaiian-Style Tuna Poke and Hoisin and Honey Glazed Duck Confit. I always make it a point to get to Gargoyle’s for Restaurant Week because it’s the only time of the year that they’re open on Mondays, which is my night off. They have an innovative cocktail list and a cozy dining room, making this one of my favorite restaurants in the city.

Pigalle (located adjacent to the Stuart Street Theater in the Theatre District) was a treat last year and, by the looks of their menu, is ready to knock it out of the park once again. Instead of the typical three or four options, they offer eight appetizers to choose from (including Bacon-Wrapped Wellfleet Oysters and Duck Liver Terrine) and nine entrees (Slow Cooked Pork Belly and Steak Frites with Creamed Spinach are calling me).


Restaurant Week runs from March 14-28, but participation on Fridays and Saturdays varies from restaurant to restaurant, so you might want to check on that. Reservations can be made through OpenTable or through the Boston Restaurant Week website, where you can also peruse a list of participating locations.