Boston Highlights

Summers are lovely in Boston.  While I would never want to brave the city's winter cold, the warm and inviting summer days are perfect for strolling through the cobblestone streets or dining in the open air.  Although I spent my early childhood in the suburbs of Boston, I was too young to understand or appreciate this historic, yet ever-changing city.  Foodwise, I was craving stereotypical New England cuisine, as in hearty fried seafood, raw oysters, and of course lobster rolls, lots and lots of lobster rolls. With only two short days, it was impossible to get the full Boston culinary experience, but what we did get was good, very good.  Here are some of the trip's highlights:

The Daily Catch:
North End, the city's oldest residential community, holds Boston's Italian American population.  Coming from New York, I expected North End to be similar to Little Italy, a tourist trap with kitchy street lights but mediocre at best restaurants. What I didn't expect was great food. Although I would still classify many of the restaurants as more Italian-American than true Italian, the eateries at North End proved that the legacy of the old immigrants is more than water-downed, soggy pasta.

The only downside of eating at North End is that none of the restaurants take reservations, so if you want a table at one of the popular spots, you better be willing to wait two hours in line.  Since we couldn't afford to spend time waiting, I decided to make a reservation at The Daily's Catch's Seaport location.  The menus are the same and there's no wait, unlike the original North End location.

As its name suggests, The Daily Catch specializes in seafood.  Their squid ink pasta, Aglio Olio, is one of their most popular dishes, so we simply had to order it.  Al dente black linguine was mixed with a generous amount of olive oil, calamari, garlic, and anchovy. Served right from the pan, the black pasta had a great umami and was highly addictive.

Another crowd pleaser was Lobster Fra Diavolo, a one and a quarter pound lobster cooked with little neck clams, mussels, shrimp, and calamari, simmered in a spicy tomato sauce and served over linguine.  We were pleasantly taken aback by the spice level of the sauce, which proved to be excellent for bread-dipping as well.

Although not the most appealing in appearance, the Monkfish Marsala was sweet, tender, and surprisingly light despite the creaminess of the sauce.

Mike's Pastry:
I had read before that Mike's Pastry was famous for their cannoli, but never would I have imagined the extent of their popularity.  Practically every single person walking down Hanover Street was carrying a box of this sugary delight.  Although the shop was constantly cramped with crowds of eager customers, the store's multiple lines moved quickly and we soon came out with one ricotta and one pistachio cannoli.  Even though they're usually not my dessert of choice, I appreciated the butteriness of the filling and the crisp exterior.  However, the filling was extremely rich, making these large cannoli difficult to finish.

Flour Bakery and Cafe:

For breakfast we decided to hit up Flour Bakery and Cafe for the sticky buns that I've heard so much about.  Gooey, syrupy, and slightly crunchy from the caramelized pecans, the sticky buns lived up to the hype.  If I ever go back, I would definitely try some of their other pastries, all of which looked freshly baked and sinfully tempting. 

We also ordered their breakfast egg sandwich, which was filled with ham, cheddar, arugula, tomato, and dijonaise.  Simple yet perfectly composed, this little sandwich really hit the spot with its tender egg center.

The lamb sandwich had a great tomato chutney and goat cheese combination that gave the sandwich a nice sweet and tangy profile.  It would have been even better if the bread was heated a bit more and given a slight char.

Island Creek Oyster Bar:

As the name suggests, this place specializes in raw oysters.  Our server recommended the Island Creek oysters from Duxbury, MA, which were fresh, clean, and not briny at all. 

Moving from raw to fried, we decided to sample the Crispy Oyster Slider. These deep-fried oysters were sandwiched between mini brioche rolls slathered in lime chile aioli.  They were perfect for stimulating our appetites. 

Although I already had lobster rolls on this trip, I wanted to fully satisfy my lobster roll indulgence at my last meal in Boston.  Unlike the rolls I've tried at other restaurants, Island Creek's version had a kick and a crunch from the use of black pepper and chopped celery. The cold lobster filling paired well with the buttered and toasted rosemary roll. 

To continue this lobster theme, we shared a lobster, pecorino, and scallion omelet.  It was nothing too fancy, but the tenderness of the lobster meat and egg made the dish undeniably delicate.  

Even though I was only able to grasp a glimpse of Boston's culinary scene, I am extremely thankful to have gone on this trip.  I can't call Boston my city anymore, but I've always retained a deep pride for this place that raised and nurtured me.  I may have left early this time, but I will be back soon.