Finding the Beach Getaway

Last month, in an effort to escape the winter, my boyfriend and I set out to find the perfect beach getaway. We knew that sandwiched between work travel was the only way to do it. In addition to having an idea of the week we could go, we knew we wanted this to be a relaxing, beach front vacation with nonstop airfare. And, I have champagne taste with slightly more than a beer budget. In this post, I'm going to share some of what I learned while booking our beach getaway and how we saved over $1000. In a follow on post, I'll share some experiences we had on our trip.

For a week, any minute that we weren't working, we were working on planning our trip. We were checking different week period's in March or April in either Mexico or Puerto Rico. We knew we could get non-stop airfare and would get to use some Spanish. If we were going to stay in the Cancun/Playa del Carmen area, we'd need to choose an all inclusive resort, and those were outside of our budget. Puerto Rico only has one all inclusive option, so we opted to look at different hotel and flight configurations versus focusing on booking all in one place. Finally, we decided on Puerto Rico in March.

My route to booking travel is usually to go through a credit card to see what deals are available. At this time of year American Express and other credit cards have great deals to save with nights free and resort credit. I also consulted with a travel agent from Liberty Travel and AAA's booking site. My boyfriend prefers to research it himself on TripAdvisor and find the best deal on a booking site. Needless to say, we had a lot of searches going on.

We had finally narrowed our search to either El Conquistador, about an hour from the airport for 6 nights, or the Condado Marriott for the same amount of time. We loved the idea of being remote at El Conquistador and having a private island, but we were concerned about the drive to and from the airport given that we didn't have a full week to be away. The Marriott seemed fun and came highly recommended and was close to the airport. While we tested different options, advertisements for the "number 1 hotel in Puerto Rico" kept coming up. I had eliminated the Condado Vanderbilt because of cost. It looked nice, luxurious, relaxing, beachfront, central, historic, but it was more expensive than the others. We realized the only airfare we would book from Boston was through JetBlue, so for fun, we searched their getaway deals.

At JetBlue Getaways we played with the flight time, and the dates and which hotel we wanted. As we continued testing different options, we found out that the Condado Vanderbilt for 5 nights, all fees included, was less expensive than a six night stay at the Marriott or El Conquistador, where the fees were variable. I had the same set of hotels open on the Amex site and he had the hotels up on Expedia and we were each toggling back to JetBlue. Condado Vanderbilt became a great option for us. We looked to arrive Sunday evening and leave Friday evening. The JetBlue getaway deal was over $1000 less than if we had booked flight and hotel separately. It seemed too good to be true. We called the hotel and then we called JetBlue. They confirmed that we indeed found the deal of a lifetime.

Finally after a week of hunting, we booked our JetBlue Getaway to San Juan, Puerto Rico for nonstop airfare, 5 nights in a 5 star hotel, taxes and fees, and a checked bag a piece included for under $2,500 total. Once we finally booked it, we felt elated and proud. We had figured out how to create a great vacation, on a budget where we could celebrate warmth, a beach and relaxation. The research was worth it and I would highly recommend doing all of the research and prioritizing needs and booking it. Stay tuned for more about our fun in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Moody's: Much More Than a Delicious Deli

Moody's Delicatessen and Provisions with the Back Room is the best thing to happen to Waltham since I graduated college. Over the summer, I sat in the Back Room and this time, on a Tuesday night in February, the Back Room was so full that we sat in the window of the front of the deli. They must have added these seats because business was so successful.

The front room had deli cases and refrigerators full of house cured charcuterie. Along the walls were some wooden tables and benches. Chef Joshua Smith runs New England Charcuterie and Moody's. All of the charcuterie is made in house-- rumor is there is a downstairs where sausage, salami and other charcuterie is made. The back room has a different, slightly more formal look and feel.

Upon sitting down, I was greeted by a plate of complementary charcuterie. I was so hungry, there's no picture of it. But, it whet my appetite for the carnivorous feast yet to come. The first thing we ordered were the meatballs. There were four perfectly seasoned waygu meatballs perfectly seasoned with pepper, cheese and spices smothered in tomato sauce with ricotta and Parmesan cheese. 

We let the waiter surprise us with a four part cheese/charcuterie plate. The cheese was an aged gouda and the other cheese was soft and creamy. The charcuterie was coppa and salami. The salami was soaked in Bourbon and the coppa was fresh, thinly sliced and perfect with the cornichons, jam, hot peppers and crostini. There was a year where my new years resolution was to eat more charcuterie and so it has a special place in my heart. Everything about the cheese and charcuterie plate was perfect and my only wish was that we'd ordered the plate with six choices instead of four. 

The brussel sprouts, roasted with meat and orange were perfectly cooked and very flavorful. I liked that the citrus was fresh and balanced out the smoky meaty flavor. The brussel sprouts were soft and flavorful.

While everything was fun and tasty, we were still hungry so we splurged for one more dish, the pastrami flat bread. This was essentially an open faced Reuben with homemade sauerkraut and mustard instead of Russian dressing. The pastrami was tasty and while sparse on the pizza, the flavor was that of a large sandwich. 

Usually, I save room for dessert, but at Moody's, I decided on a flat bread instead of dessert and I couldn't have been happier. The flat bread crust was flaky, and tasty. While the dessert menu looked excellent, I will just have to go back for more local salty goodness and maybe, just maybe, I'll save room for a sweet dessert. Though, I wouldn't count on it. That savory food is worth all the hype it gets.

Breakfast and Pastry at Tatte

Ever have a moment where you bite into a dish and you need to close your eyes to have a quiet moment just savoring the beauty and the bite? This happens for me frequently at Tatte. It's the home to the best breakfast, pastry, coffee drinks and warm vibe in the Boston area. I've been going to the Tatte by the St. Mary T stop for a few years now. Recently, I learned that they are doing an 8 week renovation starting January 1, 2016. This means that once we get through winter, we'll be greeted with double sized Tatte!

Once I learned that my favorite local bakery and quick breakfast spot would be closing and renovating, I decided the best thing to do was to eat there as much as humanly possible for its last week. The good news was, I had the week off so it was an achievable goal. 

Avocado Tartine

The first day I stopped by of my Tatte week, I made it up to the counter at 11:27. Thankfully there was still time for me to order breakfast. I was intrigued by the avocado tartine. I learned that this dish is homemade bread with avocado, a fried egg, arugula, dill, tomato and radish. It's a great dish to share with a friend because you get two of these hearty toasts. I think theoretically the open faced sandwich is supposed to be picked up and eaten, but I chose to use a fork and knife and to break the yolk. The combination of the fresh flavors of the veggies, with the avocado, egg and homemade bread made me take a deep breath and smile. 

Pain au Chocolat

I only got through one avocado tartine because it was so filling. I also got a pain au chocolat. These pastries are flaky with semisweet chocolate and they're made with real butter. There is a huge difference to me between a pastry from Tatte that's made fresh daily and a pastry from a grocery store or national chain. I highly recommend any of their homemade pastries! A trick I learned is that they go on sale late in the day, they're less fresh and less money. I think it's worth the whole price to get one early in the day.

Shakshuka

The next day after my avocado tartine and pan au chocolat, I went back to Tatte and it was snowy and rainy and crowded, as it does get. I lucked out though, I won the sat battle and got a seat. I ordered shakshuka which is a very tasty, fresh, hearty and warm breakfast. At Tatte they make theirs with tomatoes, peppers, poached eggs and feta. It's served with Challah toast and is again big enough to share. Since I was by myself and I know how much I like it, I opted to order it without the lamb meatball add-ons but next time I go I may try them.

This dish is also excellent and hearty. The homemade bread complementing the skillet of warm food is a perfect way to start a damp day. But let's be honest, it's also a great way to start a sunny day in the summer outside.

Where to go while you wait for the renovation

The good news is that Tatte has a few locations around the Boston area that we can go to while they renovate and expand their Brookline spot. I have visited one in Kendall Square and it's big, bright and airy with even more food than the Brookline spot. Only a few more weeks...

I recommend that if you enjoy good, fresh food, that you make your way to one of the Tatte locations get yourself a dish or pastry and a latte and close your eyes for a few seconds and enjoy the perfection.

New Year's Resolutions

I am constantly examining how food and technology impact communities. I do aspects of each in my personal and professional life. I think that food brings people together and can create and build community. I initially started this blog to have an outlet to discuss food, friends and fun and I am committed to these discussions happening more frequently in 2016 in a potentially different way.

As we're all talking about resolutions at the beginning of the year, I resolve to write more. Eating and sharing experiences brings me joy as I hope it does for you reading it. This year, I'll be sharing information on restaurants, recipes and great events. I initially started the blog thinking that I'd only write about a restaurant once, but I am going to open myself up to write more if it's a new visit after a while. 

When I initially started this blog, I was in grad school which meant that I had a lot more time. I needed something to divert me from the hundreds of pages of reading a week and as a writing warm up. Now, I'm in a full time demanding job and food is still a huge part of my life as are friends and fun. Again, I need a creative outlet-- a way to share my passion with who wants to read about it. I started this blog completely as a passion project to share my love of food and what I learn about community events with whoever wants to read. I also was curious how different channels brought traffic to the site. Back to technology and its impact on community. Since graduating a lot more of my food life has been happening offline, but not to worry, it's still happening!

Some new year's thoughts

During 2016, I want to think about how to have more fun with the blog and share more. I initially started writing this blog as "Fun Foodie," but I am thinking about sharing more about who I am. Part of why I use the anonymity is for anyone who is reading. I want to share the experience of another diner without any perks that come with being known as a diner to watch who may get different service. However, this means that my personal Instagram posts (which are predominantly food related) are not linked to the blog or when I connect with someone in the food scene, I don't write about it because I'm afraid I'll be identified. This seems counter intuitive as I reflect because there are some great stories about people I've met in the industry who are interesting, kind and who I've built a rapport with. As I continue to evaluate the direction of the blog, please feel free to share what you think. My feeling is it's fun to hear good stories and learn about great places to go and if I can continue to provide that more frequently, that is beneficial to all.

Another reason, I'm thinking about writing more without anonymity is I really love sharing and meeting new people and making recommendations. I often diagnose my friends' and family with the right restaurant for an occasion and price point or organize group dinners. I would love to connect more with people through food and volunteering this year and I think that this can happen more. 

One idea for connection comes from a trip my boyfriend and I took to Canada at the beginning of the summer. We went on two food tours. We had the best time and enjoyed meeting the people. I have been thinking about how these food tours could work in the Boston area.

What about eating in?

Most posts for this blog are focused on food or community events that have food. That is only half of the fun we can have together! I've been cooking and baking a bit and think that some of these recipes and discoveries are worth discussing. Expect more posts about cooking as well as eating out.

And the fun?!

As I discover new opportunities for fun, that will be shared too. This could be a trip to a new market, yoga studio or a vacation.

Expectations for 2016

This year, 2016, is already off to a great start and I think that the new year is a great time to reflect and think about how to be better and how to have more joy and more fun in life! You can expect somewhat of an evolution to FoodFriendsNFun and more-- more posts, more joy, more food and more fun. I want to figure out a way to have more community, so that will happen too. The best way to get up to date information about this evolution is on the blog and on twitter.

Happy New Year to you and I look forward to eating my way through the year with you and having fun while we do!

Why I eat out

Consistency is an interesting word and I used it deliberately. I love going to the places that know me and offer the best homey service accompanying great, creative food. It feels comforting to build relationships with people at restaurants and to be a regular. It adds a level of consistency to a fast paced world and life. Not to worry, I still love trying new places but below is a recap of some of my favorite consistent spots around Boston highlighting some excellent dishes and service. 

During the month of March, once it stopped snowing, I ate at Strip T's at least once a week (maybe more if you ask my boyfriend) and had a bowl of their smoked miso ramen and a small Caesar salad each time. There was something comforting about both of those things and the perfect service. I even have a spot at the bar that I usually sit. They know my voice when I call. That miso ramen is one of the best dishes I have had and coupled with the perfectly cooked noodles it was a nice hearty, flavorful warm dish to get out of the snow zone. The Caesar salad is truly one of a kind. After I eat it, I sweat garlic for 24 hours but it's worth it. Consistently perfection. Also in the month of March and related to Strip T's, I went to the BTG Boston's first series of events where I got to enjoy Tim Maslow's fine Ribelle food paired with some of the best of Boston's sommeliers' wine choices. I loved that it felt like one big giant family style meal-- put together by two of my favorites, Theresa Paopao and Tom Schlesinger-Guidelli.

Smoked Miso Ramen at Strip T's

Over the winter, I went to Lineage for burgers at the bar about once a week. It was nice to go out, get a great glass of wine, a phenomenal burger and speak with Brad, Amy, Matt or even Jeremy, at the bar. Anything Jeremy Sewall does is perfection and I think Lineage is one of his less written about "famous" restaurants, but it is the original and that burger is my "best of Boston." I'm not a big fan of fries generally, so I usually sub out fries for a side salad when I have a burger. When I go to Lineage, I eat the hand cut fries. If I really feel like splurging, I go for dessert with a tea pairing. My favorite of the winter was a brulee'd banana split. What can I say, I'm a sucker for red meat and any dessert that has bananas. I am also a huge fan of Island Creek, Eastern Standard and Row34, but those were a bit more of a trek this winter.

Bruleed Banana Split and Tea at Lineage

Another spot or series of spots I think of when discussing good service is anything Barbara Lynch. I love all of her spots that I've tried. I still have to try B&G, but if I want excellent food with perfect service, I go to any of her spots. My favorite for special occasions is Menton because I feel like I'm at dinner and a show. It's perfect food with the right choreography. I haven't been in a while but after I went to a few Full Plate lunches, I felt that the staff at the whole restaurant group got to know me. As I mentioned in previous posts anything at Drink is a good time-- they take the decision making out of the equation for you and the cocktails are perfect. I feel like my soul is being fed at Sportello-- through tagliatelle and coconut cake and at The Butcher Shop with the charcuterie platter and wine. The service is friendly and consistent at each place. I love the ability to go from formal at Menton to more casual at the other spots in terms of look and feel but to have the same great quality of food and service.

Charcuterie and wine at Butcher Shop

Service and consistency matters as does creativity. Sometimes in a super fast paced world, knowing what you're going to get from a service and food quality is all you need for a slice or a plate of happiness.

Dazzled by Deep Ellum

Clearly a fantastic brunch as a start to Super Bowl Sunday was the right move! It's been a while since I've posted, but I'm thrilled to be back in action and look forward to sharing more eating adventures with you!

Today, my boyfriend and I woke up hungry after a night of dancing. We have been cooking brunch more than we've been eating it out, but today was special since we knew we'd be making food for the Super Bowl. We trudged through the Allston/Brighton slushy streets to Deep Ellum and it was worth the walk. It was obvious from the crowd that Deep Ellum is the spot to be for brunch if you're in that neighborhood. When you walk in the spot is abuzz with good music and happy people eating delicious, creative food and drinks. We were too hungry to wait for a table and lucked out with two seats at the bar.

The bartender was really nice and knowledgeable. When I go out anywhere, I like to ask the server for their advice. I'm a sucker for breakfast food, but was enticed by their lunch menu. I'll have to come back for a recommended rueben. In the end, my New York roots had me go for house cured salmon. My boyfriend got their homemade egg and chorizo sandwich.

While we were waiting for the food to arrive, which was not very long, we enjoyed listening to David Bowie and watching the bar tender mix uniquely delicious looking drinks. I was surprised that they had about 22 beers on tap, but they chose to serve soda out of the bottle. They are serious about their beer! I asked if I could try their Bloody Mary mix because I wasn't ready for a drink but I'd seen the bar tender mix a few. I appreciated that they were willing to pour me a shot. That mix was perfectly spicy and pungent. Next time I go, I'll have a bloody!

The food arrived and it looked bright and as perfect as it tasted. I was excited to see my salmon thickly sliced with fresh tomatoes and arugala. The color and freshness is usually saved for summer tomato season. The nova was served on a bagel with caper cream cheese closed faced. I was excited to see that there was enough nova to turn this bagel sandwich into two open faced bagel sandwiches. I love nova open faced because I get to spread out the experience of eating one of my favorite comfort foods. The cream cheese was a perfect addition to the fresh nova, bagel and tomato. I liked that the capers were mixed in so that they didn't have the chance of rolling off the top of the sandwich. When I finished the sandwich, I was sad because it was so tasty. While the bagel did not taste like it was from New York (a little too soft), the toppings were so good, that it could have been on a saltine and I would have wanted more. I appreciated the flexibility to give me a side salad instead of potatoes. The salad was fresh and excellent: cukes, tomatoes and arugula with some lemon and salt.

I was lucky enough to also get to try my dining partner's chorizo sandwich. The egg was perfectly fried and had quite a bit of pepper on it. It was served on a homemade English muffin and the house chorizo was sliced and crisped perfectly. I was not expecting the homemade English muffin but it made the sandwich that much better. The crunch of the chorizo paired with the homemade English muffin and perfectly cooked egg made my bite absolute perfection.

Not only was the food outstanding, but it was reasonably priced ($25 including tax and tip) and the atmosphere was relaxed and friendly. I will go back to Deep Ellum in a heart beat. Looking forward to having lunch, dinner and drinks! When I do go back for brunch, it will be hard to decide if I will try something new or have that nova that tugs on my nostalgic New York heartstrings.

No 9 Park Night Out

I decided that for Dine Out Boston (what was formally known as Boston Restaurant Week), I'd eat (and Drink) at as many of Barbara Lynch's restaurants as possible via their "unofficial restaurant week". The only two I'm missing over the special two week period will be Sportello and B&G (which I have yet to try). I started my journey at No 9 Park. I'd heard from a friend that it is better than Menton, and I wanted to check it out for myself. It was a total splurge meal, even with the unofficial restaurant menu deal, but I thought it was a great experience. The ambiance was bright and cheery, and the vibe was modern and clean. I went with one of my friends and we decided to do it right and try the five course tasting menu with wine pairings and have a cheese course. The service was excellent as was the food. My only wish was that the pours for the wine pairings were a little larger because those were so tasty.

We were seated at a two top and each got to sit on the booth-cushion on a corner of the table. This small detail made it easier to share food and conversation. The meal started with two pieces of homemade bread. The roll was soft with a perfect sweetness and the slice of Italian bread was a balance of doughy and crusty. Both went nicely with the butter and salt we were given. I resisted the urge to get more bread because I wanted to save room for my dinner.

The first course to arrive was a (crab and) mackerel salad with parsnips tarragon and walnuts. I have a shellfish allergy, so the restaurant was accommodating and gave me mine without the crab and my friend had hers as was. It tasted like a higher end version of white fish salad but without mayo and went nicely on the homemade crackers that came on the plate. The roasted walnuts added a perfect crunch to the dish and the parsnips were roasted and sweet.

The next course was salmon with chicory and lentils. The salmon was moist and flavorful, served with the skin still on and the lentils made me feel like I was eating very healthfully and made the dish more hearty. 

Course three was prune stuffed gnocchi with foie gras and almonds. It was excellent even though I am not a huge foie gras fan (hard to believe, I know). We were told by the waitress that this is Barbara Lynch's signature dish and I'm not surprised. The gnocchi was the consistency of wheat pasta with a sweet and umami flavor. It came with two pieces of sweet, cooked foie gras and more foie gras in the sauce.

By the time the fourth course came, I expected to be full, but I was ready to keep going. This speaks to the excellent job the restaurant did with portions. The fourth course was a hanger steak with artichokes, bone marrow, a layered potato side and green garlic. The plate had my favorite things on it. I love nothing more than a good steak and artichokes-- this exceeded my expectations. The meat was cooked on the rare side and had excellent flavor that did not drown out the sides.

Before the final course we experienced the cheese course. We had a specific person who knew a lot about the cheese walk us through our ten options. It was fun to learn about the cheeses and that about half of the board was from the US. I thought that most high end cheese came from outside the US, so I was happily surprised. They were accommodating of us wanted to save our appetite for dessert so we got two full slices and about three half slices of cheese. We had goat, cow and sheep's milk cheese and the cart was arranged in that order as well. The cheese was accompanied by homemade toasts, honey, walnuts and some fruit. I enjoyed trying all of the parts together. My dining partner was more focused on just the cheese and she and I both enjoyed. We also learned that Formaggio supplies the cheese to No. 9 Park. Can't wait to take a trip to their store out in Cambridge to buy some of what we tried!

Dessert came after the cheese and it was plated beautifully. Of the six courses, I was surprised that dessert was not my favorite. It was a rich dark chocolate rectangular cake with mint ice cream and lemon bourbon mint sauce and compote and a homemade "Oreo" cookie-like cookie on top. I loved the flavor of the chocolate cake and mint chip ice cream with a cookie on top, however I found the lemon and mint compote to be a distraction from the outstanding chocolate cake, ice cream and cookie. 

Overall, the experience was excellent! I would happily go back to No. 9 Park and recommend you save up and try it. The next time I pay them a visit, I'll probably try the bar as I have heard it's a different menu and there are outstanding cocktails. If you are comparing Barbara Lynch restaurants, it's a slightly more casual atmosphere and experience than Menton with the Italian flair of Sportello.