Thursday, July 22, 2010

Day Five: Back to Boston and Home to DC

So where were we? Oh yes, the final days of vacation.


By day five, you should have seen my nose. That was Saturday, and today (Wednesday) people are still coming up to me and literally calling me Rudolph. Oh, how original. I put sunscreen on! I really did.


Meal upon meal of heavy food was really starting to get to me. Fruit and vegetables were absolutely on the bottom of the totem pole, and I'm not the type of person to be on vacation and order the healthy things on all the menu; that would be just a waste. So, Saturday night, Vanessa and I chose the lightest dinner fare we could think of-- sushi.


I could eat it everyday, and my mom says that's okay! Oh wait, that's goldfish. Well, you get the idea. Six bitesize cream cheese filled munchies. Okay, I know the Philly roll isn't the healthiest or exciting, but I knew I liked it and you don't want to dislike your sushi. That's a crime, my friends. I ordered a seaweed salad which I adored, and had a few nibbles of my sisters boiled tofu. Try that for a real treat. Sarcasm. It was good, but rather, what's the word? Bland. Let's put it this way, as my dad says, "I hope this is healthy."


Anyway, afterward we went to her friend's going away party. It was a barbecue-- a Korean barbecue. I've never had bulgogi before, so I had to try it. Slightly sweet and spicy. Awesome. I've got to try it. My friend Chris told me he'd show me some mighty fine Korean bbq, so I'm going to hold him to it. We headed home and I suffered from major cat allergies for one more night.


I ran out of eye drops on Saturday. Not one more little drip of liquid. I squeezed and squeezed but to no avail. I woke up the next morning and I looked like a drug addict who was coming down hard. My eyes were completely blod shot and puffy. It was bad. Stupid cat. He actually slept on my face. Cat on the face is not good for one allergic to cats. Remember that. Still slept well, minus one nightmare-ish like moment where Monty was giving me the stink eye at 3:00 in the morning.


Sunday morning rolled around and I was excited. Want to know why? It was crepe time. Vanessa and I were supposed to get crepes on Tuesday night from this adorable little place in Harvard Square. After having our minds set on it all day, we ventured over only to find it was closed early. Unbelieveable. Needless to say, the buildup and anticipation of Arrow Street Crepes was intense.
The place is a hole in the wall and as you walk in, you can see the two chefs whipping things up. There were a bunch of options, and though the Crepe Ridiculous was calling my name with it's layers of chocolate and fruit, I went with the California, because I cannot say no to avocado. It had avocado, mozzarella, basil walnut pesto, turkey bacon, tomatoes, greens and balasmic. I liked it. I didn't love it. I wish I got one with chicken, mozz and garlic butter, but next time I suppose. I think what got me was that the crepe was a little too sweet and the filling was a little too savory. I can only imagine the heavenly goodness of their sweet crepes. Oh my lanta. But, the place was charming; the options were plentiful. I was a happy camper.

Vanessa headed back to work and I had just one more afternoon to soak up the city I love so much. I drove around with my Dad and we reminisced about all the great things we saw, ate, and experienced. When can I move here, I thought.

Because it was our last night, this only meant one thing. We had one more meal to do it big. It was like our Last Supper. That important. And, if you've been keeping up with The Messie Kitchen, you saw how much I enjoyed Boston's North End, so this was the only logical choice.


We headed away from busy street entertainers by Quincy Market, and toward the small slice of Italy a few blocks away. It was early enough that we could sneak right into just about any restaurant.

My sister recommended Florentine Cafe, which was a classy looking restaurant with big windows overlooking the busy streets. I loved the setting. The food was a little pricey, but that's only because I'm a cheapo. And guess what? Daddy paid! Perks of living with your parents shining through! Unfortunately, I think what we ordered must not be regular menu items but I'll try to remember all the yummy ingredients. And I should warn you, my pictures do not do the food justice. It was delicious authentic Italian food and I loved every bite. 



Vanessa and I split a side salad with fresh mozzarella and cracked pepper. Fresh ingredients make an average salad great, in my opinion. That's it!
Oh please, you know we got more than that.

Dad ordered a Gnocci al Pomodoro. It was cute little potato dumplings with tomato basil sauce. I sopped up his last few bites with a piece of crusty bread. So good. 

Vanessa ordered a Pumpkin Ravioli in a Cream Sauce. Now, I associate pumpkin with fall, but it was paired with a sweeter filling which was tasty, especially with the sauce.
 
 It made me crave the cool breeze of autumn, and I hope I can make it back up to Boston that time of year-- it's my favorite.

I ordered something that I've never had before: Rigatoni D'Anatra, which translates to roasted duck. It was in a white wine sauce with cremini mushrooms and it was delectable. It was filling but not heavy, and I learned that I loved duck. It's like chicken but way more tender and flavorful, leading me to believe it's fattier. It was moist and went perfectly with the mushrooms. A definite "go" in my book. 

The combination of all three covered all my bases. It was a great dinner. Know what makes a great dinner better? Knowing that you're just a few steps away from some of the best bakeries around.

Now, Cooking with Coley has recommended Modern Pastry. Well Coley, I checked it out! And I am so glad I did. First of all, when you're in Mike's it is an all our elbow throwing battle to make your way to the counters. Modern... not so much. A nice line formed along the display cases filled with cheesecakes, cookies, canolis and cupcakes. 


It was tough to decide, but I used my eyes completelty. 

Vanessa choose a chocolate covered cheesecake and I went for  a chocolate mousse. 

Beautiful, no? If you taste with your eyes, these are for you. I must say I preferred the cheesecake, but I did love the creamy mousse filling of my sweet treat.

I do have a giant sweet tooth, but I could muster up only a few bites of each before I could have no more. It seems as if my hunger for New England cuisine and rich food has faded.


At this point, I could almost taste my high fiber maple and brown sugar oatmeal calling my name. And just when we were ready to head out... our flight got cancelled!


Another night in Boston! 


Well, not really. We managed to find another flight and it brought us home to good old Fairfax. Though it was nice to sleep in my bed and get back into my routine, I will miss the feeling of the streets in Boston, and the windy evenings of Maine.


One day, I will make it up there again. And this time, I will live there. I hope you enjoyed my trip up the east coast as much as I did.


Now, I'm laying down on my couch for the next week for so after my surgery. I cannot cook and I cannot bake. This means I need your posts! So keep them coming.


Ta-Ta!

7 comments:

The Cilantropist said...

WOW! so much food in one post! I think my fav though is the Korean bbq, I love love love Korean bbq. I wish I was still on vacation... *sigh* Looks like you had an amazing time (burned nose or not!). :)

Brittany @ A Healthy Slice of Life said...

Aw, I am allergic to cats too- I feel your pain... they make life miserably itchy!!

Love the little desserts- YUM! :)

Monet said...

So from the crepes to your "Last Supper" you had me drooling. Isn't Boston an amazing city? So many cool places to visit, so much good food! I am glad you are safely home, and I hope that your rest and recovery is rejuvenating. We will miss your recipes and eats though!

Autumn @Good Eats Girl said...

Wow, wow, wow. Everything looks amazing...and those desserts?! wow.

Unknown said...

looks AWESOME!

Did you gain a lot on this trip? I gained a total of 4lbs reading this one blog posting! :D

Jason Phelps said...

Here's to a quick recovery!

I have a post I am working on for cold summer soups. Heirloom Tomator Gazpacho and Avacado Tarragon Bisque. Both recipes were modeled after recipes posted by fellow Foodbuzzers. I made each, took pics and shared my experience.

Would you like to use it a guest post while you are rocking the couch?

Jason
jasonphelps@yahoo.com

Jason Phelps said...

Here's to a quick recovery!

I have a post I am working on for cold summer soups. Heirloom Tomator Gazpacho and Avacado Tarragon Bisque. Both recipes were modeled after recipes posted by fellow Foodbuzzers. I made each, took pics and shared my experience.

Would you like to use it a guest post while you are rocking the couch?

Jason
jasonphelps@yahoo.com