Posts Tagged Boston MA
Boston’s Beer Culture
Posted by Justin Thorp in Beers, Travel on February 5th, 2010
When I was in Boston a couple of weeks ago, I definitely stopped by my share of neighborhood pubs, bars, and restaurants. It seemed like each one had a pretty decent baseline choice of beer on tap or in bottles.
At the very least, every bar has Sam Adams or Harpoon (the locals) on tap.
When I talked to Boston folks, I was really impressed with the level that beer is a part of the culinary culture of Boston. It’s just everywhere.
It’s very different than DC. You could go into DC bars that just have Coors Light and only in bottle. It was funny telling this to Bostonians. They responded like I was coming from a third world country.
So… yeah. Boston is great for beer.
(Photo by xJasonRogersx)
Boston’s Pizzeria Regina Is So Good I Dream About It
Posted by Justin Thorp in Restaurants, Travel on February 2nd, 2010
Not this weekend but last weekend, I was in Boston for work. The conference was on Saturday so I had some time on Sunday to explore and have fun before I came back to Washington, DC.
I decided to walk through Boston’s North End or what looked like ”Little Italy.” It was a lot of narrow and bumpy brick paved streets. Every corner had some type of shop, cafe or restaurant on it, most of which had some type of amazing smell emanating from it.
Now, I remember 2-3 years ago I was in Boston for a different conference and going to this pizzeria up on the North End but I didn’t remember what its name or where it was exactly. I just remembered that it was good, that it was in kind of back alley and that it was on the North End of the city.
And, like wise men getting guided to the stable by the star, I was led just out of muscle memory back to Pizzeria Regina. It’s at an intersection where three or 4 streets come together. None of them are particularly busy streets. You kind of felt like you were wondering through a series of back allies but you knew what was in there was going to be amazing because it was 11am on a Sunday and people were already lining up for it outside.
I decided that I’d come back a little bit later, get a spot at the bar, and enjoy some pizza for lunch. When I came back, it was just like I remembered it. The staff was doing everything that they could to stuff as many patrons into the restaurant as possible. They patrons knew what they were about get was going to be worth it. It was a delicious brick-oven pizza.
I ordered the white pizza. (I have an obsession with white pizza. I’m not sure why.) I got the small, which was PLENTY of food for one person. The mix of all the cheeses together with the very good crust in your mouth is just a magical combination. Really, how can you go wrong with anything with goat cheese on it? Hah!
All in all it was like $9 and another $4 for a beer. It was the perfect way to end a great trip.
The next time you’re in Boston, you need to seek out Pizzeria Regina. You won’t regret it.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/pizzeria-regina-boston-4
Navigating A New City’s Food Scene With Yelp Mobile
Posted by Justin Thorp in New Things, Online Resources, Restaurants on January 31st, 2010
Lately, when I travel, one of the things I try really hard to do is avoid the restaurants that just appeal to the tourists and really go to the places where the locals go. I want to eat what’s going to give me a flavor of that local culture.
Now, I have had some success with doing this by just wandering. I remember when I was in NYC, I was looking for a cool indie non-Starbucks coffee shop. I happened to find my way to Think Coffee in Greenwich Village. I was very happy about this but it’s not easy to replicate.
Last weekend, I was in Boston, wasn’t meeting with friends that I could ask for recommendations for a few hours, so I decided to use Yelp on my iPhone as a way to guide my noise. I was looking for a good latte and a sandwich.
I found my way over to Cafe L’Aroma in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood. I was thrilled with the results. Not only was I able to get a really quality latte, I was able to get a great sandwich. It was a turkey sandwich with this cranberry bread. Mmmmm… It was about $12 all together, which isn’t bad considering.
I was impressed with how Yelp was able to steer me in the right direction.
Have you used it before to find new places? How has it worked for you?
Backlogged…
Posted by Justin Thorp in Travel on January 31st, 2010
Per an earlier blog post, I’ve done a lot of traveling over the last week. I was both in Boston and San Francisco.
While traveling, I definitely went out of my way to make sure that I tried new things and take notes of trends that I saw. Over the next week, I’ll do my best to go through my notes, clear my backlog, and tell you about my various adventures.
Let me tell you. There’s something about traveling which gets me especially excited about food & drink. Every area really has their own culinary language. You learn so much about the attitude of an area by what kind of food they eat.
So I hope you enjoy my regaling you with my stories.
In Boston This Weekend. Where Should I Go?
Posted by Justin Thorp in Coffee, Restaurants on January 21st, 2010
I’m in Boston, this weekend, for work. Where are all the cool food places that I should go?
I’ve been to Bull & Finch Pub before. Might stop by just to update my memory. I’ve been to Helmand the Afghan restaurant in Cambridge. It was amazing.
Where’s the cool street food, the cool beer places, or the cool indie coffee shops? Is there something like Blue Bottle Coffee or Peregrine Espresso in Boston?
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