Weekend stuff
Aug. 13th, 2007 08:56 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yendiMom was in town this weekend, which means that in return for all the stuff that drives me nuts, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
shadesong and I got spoiled rotten for three days.
Restaurants (Two out of Three Dinners Ain't Bad):
Friday night was Lumiere, supposedly one of the shining stars of the area. It was unbelievably disappointing. The food (which was off a limited menu thanks to Restaurant Week -- I'm used to Restaurant Week restaurants offering the price-fixed meal in addition to the regular menu, not instead of) was okay at best. The only items worth remembering were my gazpacho with crabmeat and the fries that were served with mom's taste-free steak.
But if the food was mediocre, the service was awful. Our waiter messed up orders, knew nothing about any items on the menu, failed to bring basic things like spoons for soup, and, when he made a price mistake on the check that nearly doubled the tab, never apologized. He did, however, giggle a lot. Sorry, but even if the food were actually superb, service that bad doesn't merit a second trip. If you find yourself in West Newton and wanting to drop a lot of money for dinner, choose to head to Watertown or Waltham, the latter of which is where we were on Saturday night.
Saturday night was Il Cappricio. It was, hands down, the best restaurant I've eaten at in the Boston area (and way better than any of the North End Italian places I've tried). The souffle di porcini, the signature dish (and only one that stays on the menu year-round, I believe) was to die for. Unbelievably rich and tasty. The foie gras was also tender and tasty (not that I've had bad foie gras very often). Entrees included an amazing veal marsala (with a yummy potato-leek tart), lobster risotto, and a perfect roast duckling with polenta. Desserts included a lovely hot chocolate cake with fresh mint ice cream and a baked Alaska.
The service was also perfect, with a waitress who had opinions and was willing to stand by certain dishes (the mark of an awful waitperson, btw, is one who won't recommend anything because, "they're all great"). She also, after discovering that neither wine we'd looked for was available, found one at the same price that she felt would be a viable alternative, and it turned out to be an amazing chianti (don't know the name off-hand, but we have the bottle at home). If you're a wine aficionado, btw, they have a superb cellar.
Sunday night, we hit Sabur, where we ate yummy Mediterranean food. We split two appetizers: the grilled Balkan sausages (yummy and filled with lamb) and the portabella and roasted vegetable polenta stack (tasty, but not as good). For entrees, mom and I both had the sea scallops and puff pasty with crimini, oyster mushrooms, and asparagus in a Sauternes butter sauce (to die for), and 'song had the vegetable tagine over cous cous with sultanas, almonds, cinnamon, and dates, which she devoured. Desserts included chocolate and hazelnut crepes, rice pudding with vanilla gelato and caramel, and a Macedonian wild fig sundae with gelato, almond frangipane, and caramel. It was all quite yummy, with good, personal service (early on a Sunday evening, it's what you'd expect).
Other food eaten this weekend included brunches at Zaftig's and Deluxe Town Diner (yummy as always) and ice cream at JP Licks. Yeah, not a weekend for the diet.
Non-food:
Saturday afternoon, we hit the MFA for the Hopper exhibit. Oh, holy shit. I'd long been a fan of Hopper's (thanks to the usual works like Nighthawks and Chop Suey), but a collection like this, with over 90 pieces, just blows you away. If you live in the Boston area and can make it here before it closes, do so. Wow.
On Sunday, mom, who evangelizes for Costco so strongly, you'd think she'd been born again, insisted on taking us there to get me a membership on her card, and to stock our larder. We now have a pack of Bounty paper towels the size of our couch, as well as tons of frozen chicken breasts and enough sandwich bags to last Elayna the entire school year. And yes, I like Costco, although hitting it on tax-free weekend is probably a little too much.
And now, 'song is at the airport (and likely on board her plane), and mom's heading to the airport in a few hours. The cats are going to be all over me this week, demanding more attention the always.
shadesong and I got spoiled rotten for three days.Restaurants (Two out of Three Dinners Ain't Bad):
Friday night was Lumiere, supposedly one of the shining stars of the area. It was unbelievably disappointing. The food (which was off a limited menu thanks to Restaurant Week -- I'm used to Restaurant Week restaurants offering the price-fixed meal in addition to the regular menu, not instead of) was okay at best. The only items worth remembering were my gazpacho with crabmeat and the fries that were served with mom's taste-free steak.
But if the food was mediocre, the service was awful. Our waiter messed up orders, knew nothing about any items on the menu, failed to bring basic things like spoons for soup, and, when he made a price mistake on the check that nearly doubled the tab, never apologized. He did, however, giggle a lot. Sorry, but even if the food were actually superb, service that bad doesn't merit a second trip. If you find yourself in West Newton and wanting to drop a lot of money for dinner, choose to head to Watertown or Waltham, the latter of which is where we were on Saturday night.
Saturday night was Il Cappricio. It was, hands down, the best restaurant I've eaten at in the Boston area (and way better than any of the North End Italian places I've tried). The souffle di porcini, the signature dish (and only one that stays on the menu year-round, I believe) was to die for. Unbelievably rich and tasty. The foie gras was also tender and tasty (not that I've had bad foie gras very often). Entrees included an amazing veal marsala (with a yummy potato-leek tart), lobster risotto, and a perfect roast duckling with polenta. Desserts included a lovely hot chocolate cake with fresh mint ice cream and a baked Alaska.
The service was also perfect, with a waitress who had opinions and was willing to stand by certain dishes (the mark of an awful waitperson, btw, is one who won't recommend anything because, "they're all great"). She also, after discovering that neither wine we'd looked for was available, found one at the same price that she felt would be a viable alternative, and it turned out to be an amazing chianti (don't know the name off-hand, but we have the bottle at home). If you're a wine aficionado, btw, they have a superb cellar.
Sunday night, we hit Sabur, where we ate yummy Mediterranean food. We split two appetizers: the grilled Balkan sausages (yummy and filled with lamb) and the portabella and roasted vegetable polenta stack (tasty, but not as good). For entrees, mom and I both had the sea scallops and puff pasty with crimini, oyster mushrooms, and asparagus in a Sauternes butter sauce (to die for), and 'song had the vegetable tagine over cous cous with sultanas, almonds, cinnamon, and dates, which she devoured. Desserts included chocolate and hazelnut crepes, rice pudding with vanilla gelato and caramel, and a Macedonian wild fig sundae with gelato, almond frangipane, and caramel. It was all quite yummy, with good, personal service (early on a Sunday evening, it's what you'd expect).
Other food eaten this weekend included brunches at Zaftig's and Deluxe Town Diner (yummy as always) and ice cream at JP Licks. Yeah, not a weekend for the diet.
Non-food:
Saturday afternoon, we hit the MFA for the Hopper exhibit. Oh, holy shit. I'd long been a fan of Hopper's (thanks to the usual works like Nighthawks and Chop Suey), but a collection like this, with over 90 pieces, just blows you away. If you live in the Boston area and can make it here before it closes, do so. Wow.
On Sunday, mom, who evangelizes for Costco so strongly, you'd think she'd been born again, insisted on taking us there to get me a membership on her card, and to stock our larder. We now have a pack of Bounty paper towels the size of our couch, as well as tons of frozen chicken breasts and enough sandwich bags to last Elayna the entire school year. And yes, I like Costco, although hitting it on tax-free weekend is probably a little too much.
And now, 'song is at the airport (and likely on board her plane), and mom's heading to the airport in a few hours. The cats are going to be all over me this week, demanding more attention the always.
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(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-13 01:55 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-13 04:56 pm (UTC)Yeah, that Stallone flick was awesome.
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Date: 2007-08-13 06:41 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-13 06:41 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-13 08:56 pm (UTC)my pal