Worden Hall

           I recently tried one of Southie's newest restaurants - the latest concept from the owners of Five Horses Tavern in Somerville and the South End. Worden Hall is a modern American restaurant known for its craft beers, extensive whiskey list and Chicago style deep dish pizza. Knowing this, I tried a few things I wouldn't normally order to get the full experience and I had a great meal!

          I started with the blood and sand cocktail made with scotch, cherry, and orange juice. It was so good that I ended up drinking these throughout my meal instead of switching to wine like I would typically do.

          The fiance and I shared a couple of appetizers including the fluke crudo with candied fennel, radish, and meyer lemon emulsion. This was delicious; I loved the candied fennel paired with the fluke - it was a perfect complement to the lemon and neither overpowered the fish.

           We also had to try the housemade coconut crusted chicken nuggets with spicy banana ketchup, and these were executed perfectly. The chicken was incredibly tender, almost like a confit, and the coconut crust gave it just the right amount of crispiness.

           The deep dish margarita pizza with rustico tomato sauce, fresh picked basil, and Maplebrook Farms handmade mozzarella was definitely enough to share, but the fiance wanted to try one of the sandwiches and so we each took half of our meal to go. I ended up getting two more meals out of mine, and they tasted almost as good reheated. This is definitely the best deep dish pizza I've had in New England.

          The fiance enjoyed his house smoked ham and brie panini with arugula and peach butter on Iggy's ciabatta served with salad and curly fries (and I enjoyed his curly fries).

          Part of our motivation for taking our meals to go was so we could try dessert, and we opted for the double chocolate stout cake with single malt ganache, Irish butter cream, toffee, and walnut praline. It was amazing; gooey inside almost like a molten chocolate cake and it came with some delicious caramel whiskey sauce which I tried to make sure I included in every bite.

 

          Worden Hall is a great addition to the Southie dining scene, and with its location so close to the red line I could definitely see it as a destination spot for whiskey and craft beer lovers, or anyone craving deep dish pizza!

A Beer Dinner with Miller Coors and Ribelle

           I recently had an opportunity to attend a dinner at Ribelle, hosted by Miller Coors. It was a great evening, with tons of delicious food and drink. Prior to this dinner, I hadn't realized that Miller Coors owns Blue Moon and that in addition to the classic Belgian White ale they have some really cool and interesting brews. Here is what we tried:

Pairing #1

fluke, tomatillo, chili, herbs

Blue Moon Belgium White
Photo by Evan Bradford

Pairing #2

heirloom tomato, fresh cheese, horseradish

Blue Moon White IPA
Photo by Evan Bradford

Pairing #3

Dry aged beef broth, pine mushroom, daikon

Leinenkugel’s Oktoberfest

Pairing #4

sesame rigatoni, woodbury clam, parsnip

Leinenkugel’s Grapefruit Summer Shandy 
Photo by Evan Bradford

Pairing #5

pork belly, peach, beach rose

Pilsner Urquell

Pairing #6

onigiri, melon, almond

Blue Moon Cinnamon Horchata
Photo by Evan Bradford

            All of the food was so creative, and the beer pairings were perfect. I especially loved Leinenkugel’s Grapefruit Summer Shandy paired with the squid ink rigatoni and fresh clams and the Blue Moon Cinnamon Horchata with the seared rice onigiri.

           In addition to the great food and drink, we also learned a lot about pairing food and beer from our hosts. It was a lot of fun, and I definitely hope to check out Ribelle and some of the special Miller Coors brews again soon.  

Giveaway: Somerville's East Broadway Foodie Crawl

UPDATE: The winner is Erica!! Congrats! Please be in touch to claim your tickets!      

          It's almost time for the East Broadway Foodie Crawl - an amazing event in Somerville and the best part is I'm giving away two free tickets!

To enter, comment on this post and  “Join” the event on Facebook 

(your comment on this blog is your entry, winner will be announced 9/28)

About the East Broadway Foodie Crawl 

Taste Your Way Through Somerville’s “Other” Culinary Destination

          SOMERVILLE –With several years of revitalization under its belt, Somerville’s East Broadway neighborhood is presenting the vibrant flavors of more than a dozen restaurants at the East Broadway Foodie Crawl on Tuesday, September 29^th from 6 pm to 8:30 pm. From family-run restaurants will well-kept secrets to some of the city’s newest and hottest eateries, East Somerville’s restaurant corridor features some of the area’s most authentic flavors and hidden gems. A ticket to this tasting tour gives its holder access to more than a dozen restaurants representing five continents and provides food samples and a glimpse of the experience at each.

          The Foodie Crawl invites participants directly inside each participating restaurant for a walking and tasting neighborhood tour that sets it apart from other food events and festivals. The experience includes the sights and smells of Ethiopia, the tastes of El Salvador and the colors of Haiti, among many others! East Somerville’s beautiful streetscape provides outdoor seating and music and entertainment for more than 1,000 people enjoying the crawl.

          This year’s event promises to be particularly exciting as it comes in the midst of the “This Is East” project that has rejuvenated the neighborhood, inviting residents to participate in the creation of artwork, video installations and other cultural projects that reflect the rich cultural fabric of the neighborhood.

           All proceeds from the Foodie Crawl benefit East Somerville Main Streets, which is committed to building a safe, sustainable and prosperous multicultural community by developing a vibrant businesses district at the neighborhood’s heart.

Turner's

           Last weekend I headed up to Salem, MA to try Turner's Seafood, a family owned restaurant that's been around for generations. The original Turner's is in Melrose, and the newest location in Salem opened up about two years ago. The beautiful Lyceum Hall location in a town rich in history and culture is a perfect fit for the restaurant, which serves authentic New England style cuisine.

          We started in the bar with a Pamplemousse, a delicious cocktail made with vodka, St. Germain, grapefruit and lemon. It was light and refreshing, and the citrus was perfect with the seafood.

          Next we headed over to the oyster bar where we enjoyed the day's offerings and got to hear from Owner Jim Turner, Chef Yale Woodson, Ryan Kribb the winner of the Boston Seafood Festival’s Oyster Shucking contest in both 2014 and 2015. Turner's typically offers three types of oysters at a time, so they can feature those that are the freshest. We came in during their Oyster Festival and were able to try some Kumamotos, Pemaquids, and Wellfleets, which were all excellent.

          Next were several apps including some more Pemaquids, this time broiled with fennel butter. I can't say I liked on preparation better than the other, but I enjoyed the contrasting styles and being able to try them two ways. Not pictured were some GIANT Mexican brown shrimp served cocktail style. Check them out on Debbie's blog.

          The crab cakes were served Maryland style but made with Jonah crab to give them more of a New England feel. These definitely met my criteria for a great crab cake - tons of crab, with just a little bit of breading.



          I loved the creative Monkfish preparation, served over creamy polenta and topped with a puttanesca sauce. This was rich and hearty, and I could easily have eaten this as an entrée.

          The buffalo scallops were a surprise hit, fried and served buffalo style with a side of blue cheese.

          These special tuna sashimi buns were one of my favorite, and made deciding on a my entrée a tiny bit easier because I had been considering the tuna sashimi.

          However a couple bloggers did end up going with this dish, and it looked amazing - tuna sashimi with sesame seed crust, soy sauce, wasabi, pickled ginger, cold Asian noodle salad and
peanuts.

          One of Chef's recommendations was the Newfoundland Finnan Haddie - house smoked North Atlantic haddock baked in pearl onion au gratin sauce. I'd never had smoked haddock before, so I had to try a bite of Fiona's.



          I ordered the lobster pie as my entrée, which met the same criteria as the crab cakes - tons of meat with just a little breading / filler. I love eating lobster this way because you don't have to deal with the mess of cracking it yourself, but get to enjoy delicious, warm, buttery lobster.



          We also had the opportunity to try dessert, and I went with the Indian Pudding which is a traditional New England dish very similar to bread pudding. This was topped with vanilla ice cream and caramel, both perfect pairings.



          Others in our group enjoyed the strawberry shortcake and apple crisp.

          We also got to check out the private event space upstairs, which was absolutely beautiful - I could even imagine hosting a small wedding here!

Ames Street Deli

           Study and Journeyman are two of my favorite restaurants in Boston (Cambridge / Somerville), so their more casual restaurant Ames Street Deli has been on my list to try for a long time. I went in recently with some friends, and it was just as good as I'd expected! You order at a counter, and can get food to go or sit at one of the tables or counter tops (all first come first serve). The menu changes regularly, and features sandwiches made with delicious and creative ingredients.

           Both my friend and I had trouble deciding between the rock shrimp and rabbit sandwich so we decided to share them. They were both so good, and so different I don't know if I could choose a favorite!

Rock Shrimp sandwich with asparagus, spicy peppers, lettuce, and aioli

Rabbit sausage w/peach, espelette mayo, and butter lettuce

          My other friend loved her carrot sandwich.

Carrot sandwich with monterey jack cheese, apple, and cilantro on pepper-jack bread

          I was tempted by all of the desserts, which looked amazing but ended up being way too full!

          I've heard that Ames Street Deli's breakfast and dinner menu are just as good as their lunch, and I definitely plan to try them both out soon!

Darwin's

          Darwin's is a sandwich shop with three locations in Cambridge. I recently tried the Harvard Square location for lunch, and was impressed by both the food and atmosphere.

          The space includes a coffee shop and bakery counter with tables, a deli, and a small grocery section with fresh produce.

           For lunch, I tried The Quincy - a sandwich with ham with sliced apple, aged cheddar, dijon mustard, lettuce, and tomato. It was delicious and definitely big enough for two meals!


          I hope to visit Darwin's again soon and check out some of the additional offerings - especially the coffee and breakfast menu!

 

Matlaw's Stuffed Clams - If Your Grill Could Talk, It Would Say “Not Another Burger!"

          I've written before about how much I love Matlaw's stuffed clams, and with Labor Day coming up here's a perfect new way to try them! In addition to being super easy to cook in the oven, they can also be done on the grill for a cookout! Instead of turning on the oven and heating up the kitchen, simply wrap them in a foil "boat" and place right on the grill on medium heat for 25 minutes.

          I recently tried out a new variety - clams stuffed with bacon and cheese, and they were delicious! Here is how they came out:

           Matlaw's is a local company based on of Gloucester, MA and are committed to sourcing their seafood responsibly and sustainably. Their products are available in local Market Baskets.