Category Archives: RC

Empanada menu, photo credit: Jerel Calzo

This month was an RC first…takeout! It was a very fun (and cheap!) first, and Jerel, Michael, Cora, and Jude were wonderful hosts. We are waiting for an invitation to the opening of the “Family Restaurant.”

Jerel’s pick was Pikalo Empanadas & Sandwich Bar, a place that recently opened on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain. An empanada is a stuffed bread or pastry that is baked or fried. 

There was such a large selection, it was hard to pick, but we managed to narrow it down to eight (yes eight) kinds to try:

• Shredded beef (Ropa Vieja)
• Codfish (Bacalao)
• Corn and cheese
• Conch (Lambi)
• Lobster (Langosta)
• Shrimp and cheese (Camarones and Queso)
• The Beatles (mushroom, spinach, cheese, onion)

The spread

• Crabmeat (Cangrejo) 

My favorites were the shredded beef, the corn and cheese, and the Beatles (mushroom, spinach, cheese, onion). Fried, stuffed doughy goodness. Yum. Since we cut each empanada in half or quarters (kitchen scissors were super handy for this!), the one “complaint” was that sometimes the filling was a little uneven (and sometimes we wished there was just more filling).

For dessert we had dulce de leche cookies (fro Pikalo’s) and cider donuts from the new Boston Public Market. And then I needed a nap. Great pick Jerel!

The damage
$16 per person (we are so frugal!)

The rundown
Pikalo Empanadas & Sandwich Bar (web site coming soon, so they say)
378 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain

Bazz hook-up board

On a rainy Monday evening, RC headed to Inman Square to check out Bergamot‘s new sibling, BISq, which highlights small plates, charcuterie, and wine. Funny enough, Bergamot was an RC pick back in 2010, and also one of Kim’s picks. On a side note, we loved the desserts at Bergamot so much that we ordered an entire second round of them…the first and only time that’s ever happened at RC!

Pork belly-honey butter

BISq (aka Bergamot – Inman Square) just opened at the end of May and is headed up by the Bergamot team, including Executive Chef Dan Bazzinotti, whom we had the pleasure to meet and even convinced him and our server Dan (Dan-squared!) to try some Norwegian treats and take photos with us. Super nice guy, and super attentive staff! 

N’awlins barbecue shrimp toast

All of the sausage is housemade, and was definitely a highlight of the meal. From the “Off the Block” section of the menu we ordered the morcilla and the Bazz hook-up board, which consists of four items from the “off the block” section of the menu and one off-menu item. The evening we went, the Bazz board had mazzafegati (pork liver sausage), sobresada, chicken rillettes, calf’s liver mousse, and lomo (cured pork loin). The faves were definitely the morcilla, as well as the sobresada, and calf’s liver mousse. The mazzafegati had a really delicious char on it. We also got the N’awlins barbecue shrimp toast with “sexy scallions,” the herb-marinated beets with raita and sunflower seed granola, and the pork belly butter. The pork belly-honey butter came with crackers, cracklins, and pickled mango and had all the good flavors…salty and sweet. Someone even called it “out of this world.” I also know there were some non-beet fans who liked the herb-marinated beets…and as a beet fan, I loved them too!

Choucroute garnie

Dessert charcuterie

From the “Farm and Field” section of the menu, we were initially going to try just four of the dishes, and ended up trying almost everything! The Peruvian grilled chicken livers were not my favorite, but I really enjoyed everything else, especially the san agustín sliders, the orecchiette, and the choucroute garnie. The choucroute garnie was a bowl of deliciously salty goodness, with sauerkraut, saucisson noisette, duck confit, bacon lardons, and yukon gold potatoes. We also got the hanger carpaccio (with queso verde, oyster mushrooms, peanuts, omelette), the cherry-glazed lamb ribs (with green garlic and chermoula), and the duchesse potatoes (red wine-poached bone marrow, pickled kumquats, fiddleheads, saba).

And finally, for dessert, we got both the liquid cheesecake trifle with fudge and whipped cream and the dessert charcuterie. The charcuterie board had chocolate salami, caramel Parmesan popcorn, stone fruit shortbread, and almond Bisq-otti dipped in white chocolate. In addition, we had some treats that Claire brought back from her recent trip to Norway, blue cheese chocolates (Blaskimmelost) and salted licorice (salt lakrids).

All in all, a delicious meal and another successful RC pick by Kim. BISq is a great addition to Inman Square and I can’t wait to go back!
 
The damage
$62 per person

The rundown
BISq
1071 Cambridge Street
@bisqcambridge

The bar

This month was my pick (such pressure!) and I decided to take the group to the recently opened Loyal Nine in Cambridge. Loyal Nine opened at the end of March and is headed up by Executive Chef Marc Sheehan. It has been dubbed “East Coast Revival” cuisine and it is both rustic and modern. 

Pork liver mousse

I will also admit that many of the dishes on the menu required some additional explanation from our server, who provided very thorough and detailed descriptions. Did you know that sallet = salad? But this sallet is wrapped up like a pretty little package. 

I loved the space, especially the little cafe outside, and we took advantage of a warm evening and sat outside. The outdoor space includes herb gardens and is right next to the train tracks (though we did not get to see any trains go by). It was the perfect spot and evening to really welcome spring here in Boston.

Ribs…my fave!

We started off with oysters, bluefish, housemade chips with smoked fish mousse, pork liver mousse, and the ribs. The ribs were my favorite dish of the evening; they are grilled and served with chestnut, molasses, and preserved peppers…so delicious. The bluefish was soused (aka pickled) and served with horseradish and brown bread. The pork liver mousse was served on sourdough bread with apple blossoms. The smoked fish mousse was a little strange…it kind of disappeared the first time someone dipped a chip into it.

Matelote

For our main entrees, we shared the Atlantic bream, Matelote, and the Pondemnast. The Matelote was Rhode Island squid braised in red wine with bone marrow dumplings and the Pondemnast was a savory porridge with mushrooms, turkey, egg yolk, and mustard green sauce. The Atlantic bream was a tartare with Maine yellow eye beans and piccalilli. I wished it had more seasoning (though apparently my palate might have been a little off because I was the only one who wanted more salt on everything).

Pondemnast

All of the food is very pretty and I was wow’d by the ribs and the homemade chips. I was underwhelmed by a lot of the rest of what we ordered, but I am hopeful for its potential and definitely plan on returning to spend time in the cafe and to try some of the other interesting and creative menu items. It was a much anticipated opening, and I hope that others give this restaurant a chance to shine. 

Instead of staying for dessert we decided to finish off the night with a trip to Christina’s for some delicious ice cream (half carrot cake, half malted vanilla)…yum.

The damage
$67 per person

The rundown
Loyal Nine
660 Cambridge Street, Cambridge
@theloyalnine

A little crazy is a good thing. This is the motto for this month’s first RC pick by one of our newest members. I figured our group would fit in well and so we took a little trip to Southie, to Loco Taqueria & Oyster Bar. Loco calls itself “a funky neighborhood joint…that specializes in tacos, raw bar, and tequila.” A true triple threat!

Duck taquitos

Carnitas dumplings

I am back after a little hiatus in January…I was so bummed to miss last month as we planned a “reunion” month in honor of RC’s tenth year. The votes came in and they went back to Oleana, which was our very first RC back in January 2006 (and my first pick)! I heard it was delicious.

This month we ventured (in the snow, per the yuge this month) to KOY Boston, a new Korean fusion restaurant near Faneuil Hall. I can recall the space being a Naked Fish restaurant, Red Sky (a restaurant/bar), and most recently (according to Google) a UBurger. Also a disclaimer, I did not get very good photos of all of our dishes.

Cheese steak dumplings

The restaurant was not very full when we arrived for our 7 PM reservation, perhaps because of the weather. We had a very nice (and large) table in the center of the dining room. The staff was friendly, though it was a little difficult getting our server’s attention long enough to place an initial drink order.

Octopus…the winner!

From the “Tastes” menu, we started with the carnitas dumplings, cheese steak dumplings, and chili shrimp. The carnitas dumplings were a bit underwhelming (pan-fried dumplings stuffed with braised pork shoulder carnitas, torn cilantro, and lightly dressed in black vinegar and queso fresco). I enjoyed both the chili shrimp and the cheese steak dumplings (fried dumplings stuffed with pastrami, Swiss cheese, house-made Kimchi, served with Korean pepper flake mayonnaise sauce and diced scallions). But the winner of the appetizer round was actually not an appetizer…we ordered the pepper octopus leg from the “Twist” menu for the table to share. The crispy braised octopus was perfectly cooked and accompanied by red pepper salad, Korean pepper powder, and chili mayonnaise. Actually, the octopus was declared the winning dish overall. It was even tasty the next day as leftovers. We also ordered the scallion pancakes but they never made it to the table (and we’re not actually sure if we paid for them or not). 

Korean hot pot

For my entree, I had to go with the hot stone bibimbap (seasonal vegetables, fried egg, chili paste, marinated beef bulgogi), and I ate the whole thing. I love when the rice starts to get crispy from the stone bowl. I also tasted the tofu stew (soondubu), the Korean hot pot, and the jjajangmyun. The jjajangmyun was an udon noodle dish that came with black bean sauce, roasted pork, diced vegetables, and fresh cucumber. It was difficult to find the pork, and the dish really wasn’t what Tracy expected so we encouraged her to send it back (which we rarely do). She ordered another round of octopus instead, which was just as yummy as the first order. The only other thing we tried from the “Twist” menu was the bulgogi sandwich, which was seared ribeye steak with torched mozzarella, Korean pear, green onion, and carrot on hot-buttered brioche.

Jjajangmyun

Perhaps the Korean fusion concept will work well in this Faneuil Hall spot that seems to have a difficult time keeping a long-term tenant. But next time I’m in the mood for Korean food, several people have told me I need to try Kaju Tofu House or Buk Kyung.

The damage
$46 per person

The rundown
KOY
16 North Street, Boston

Bacon cashew caramel corn

December 2014, the conclusion of another successful year of RC – nine years in the books. Wow! This was also Lorelei’s initiation, aka first pick. She chose Ward 8, which is the space where Nebo used to be (Nebo moved to Atlantic Ave). We had 90% attendance this month, and all the gays got the pink drinks!

In general, I am a “starter” person…I am often perfectly happy to have an appetizer (or a few) as my dinner, and I think this would definitely have worked for me at Ward 8. It also may be a function of having eyes too big for my stomach, or wanting to try everything, but I could have easily gone without ordering an entree.

Maple chili duck wings

Braised short ribs

So what were these appetizers that filled my belly? We started with bacon cashew caramel corn x 5 orders (they are small!), 5 layer dip with crisp tortillas, maple chili duck wings with celery chips and ranch, and the fried cheese steak dumplings with siracha aioli. I had never had duck wings before, which seemed to be the consensus around the table…and I was impressed; it was my favorite of the starters. The bacon cashew caramel corn was yummy, though I wanted more salt. Perhaps our dish didn’t have as much bacon. You’ll see later on that we found some other creative uses for the popcorn (aka with dessert). I do think it is something that could have been on the table when we sat down (like their version of bread), rather than a starter to order off the menu. The cheese steak dumplings sounded interesting and different, which is why I wanted to try them. And they were interesting and different, though possibly a little too “fried”-tasting. After all of those starters, I should have just skipped to dessert…but we didn’t.

Lobster “hole”

For my entree, I ordered the braised short ribs with cauliflower puree, green beans, and friend leeks (as did three other people at the table). The short ribs were cooked very nicely but were a bit under-seasoned. Without access to salt on the table, there wasn’t much we could do about that. Two people ordered the lobster “hole” (fresh shucked lobster, black truffle mayonnaise, griddled bread, sweet potato fries, and salad). Yes, the web site calls it a traditional lobster roll, but Jimmy found the “hole”. There were also orders for the grilled shrimp salad, the sole francaise, and the steak frites:

• Grilled shrimp salad with bibb lettuce, roasted fennel, carrots, onions, oranges, avocado, and cucumber yogurt dressing
• Sole francaise with Beluga lentils, broccolini, and lemon butter fried capers
• Steak frites with sauteed mushrooms and onions, seasoned fries, and blue cheese butter

There’s the hole!

Mac & cheese

The mac & cheese was my favorite of the entrees I tasted (disclaimer, I did not try the sole or the shrimp salad). In the chicken poutine dish, the chicken was a little dry but the polenta fries were yummy.

Dessert!

If I was full after the first course, I was super full after the entrees. But somehow I still managed to fit in some dessert. There’s a separate compartment in my stomach for dessert…well at least that’s what I like to tell myself. We ordered the valrhona chocolate cake and multiple orders of the vanilla soft serve with assorted toppings. The chocolate cake was flourless cake with coconut and cream cheese filling and cherry berry compote. There was some disagreement about the compote…some people loved it (this jam is #bae) and some people were unimpressed. Jerel and I shared a dish of the soft serve with bourbon-butterscotch and peanut butter cups. The yogurt was tasty but the bourbon-butterscotch was disappointing, mostly because we wanted MORE of it, and we wanted to taste more bourbon! A couple of smarties in the group requested a DIY order of the soft serve with the bacon cashew caramel corn on top…that was definitely a winning combination!

Great pick, Lorelei! We also learned a new hashtag, #bae, before anything else.

The damage
$75 per person (maximum of 5 credit cards per table)

The rundown
Ward 8
90 North Washington Street, Boston
@WARD8Bos

Plum tomato sauce, oh and meatballs too

Grilled flatbread

November RC was new member Tracy’s first pick. Initiation into RC can be tough…not everyone can handle the pressure of picking that first restaurant! She was between Bastille Kitchen and Carmen Trattoria. Bastille Kitchen, yet another newish restaurant near the waterfront, couldn’t handle our large party the evening that we wanted to go. Carmen is a sweet little spot in the North End that has been around for 14 years, and we had no problem getting a reservation that practically took over the space. Score one for Carmen! They were even super gracious when we had to decrease the party size at the last minute…instead of taking one of the tables away, they just let us spread out. Score two for Carmen!

This RC was also special because our newest alum, Kendrin, made a special guest appearance. She was in town for a conference and joined us for some drinks and apps before heading off to a fancy dinner at Oleana with some fancy people. 

Salty prosciutto skewers

We started off with several of the first course dishes and one of the small plates from the wine bar:

• spicy Sicilian pickled summer vegetables
• grilled flatbread with caramelized onions, gorgonzola cheese, grapes, candied walnuts, and aged balsamic
• homemade meatballs baked in a plum tomato sauce with fresh mozzarella
• skewered Valle d’Aosta Fontina and Prosciutto di Parma grilled and served with baby arugula
• fiori di zucchini fritti stuffed with herbed goat cheese and drizzled with aged balsamic

I loved the meatballs and the grilled flatbread, but my favorite was probably dipping bread into the plum tomato sauce that came with the meatballs. So simple and yummy. The prosciutto skewers were a bit too salty for me (though the baby arugula was delicious, again very simple with just olive oil and salt) and I also didn’t heart the zucchini flowers. Many people did not agree with me on the zucchini flowers, so perhaps I just got an especially fried piece without any of the stuffing. I am definitely willing to give zucchini flowers another try.

Sweet scallops

For my entree a few of us were torn between duck and the scallops and the scallops won out overall. The scallops were pan seared and served with butternut squash risotto, bacon, and finished with butternut puree. It was a sweet, but tasty dish. I think I also tried a bite of all of the other entrees that were ordered:

Orecchiette, and more tomato sauce!

• sauteed haddock francese in a lemon butter caper sauce with sauteed spinach and crab risotto cake
• fresh linguine and clams with roasted garlic, basil and fra diavolo sauce
• crespelle stuffed with porcini mushrooms and caramelized onions, with our famous Bolognese sauce
• orecchiette with sweet Italian sausage, broccoli rabe, tomatoes with Fontina cheese and herbed bread crumbs

I think my favorite (if I had to choose one) of all the entrees was the orecchiette with sweet Italian sausage, broccoli rabe, tomatoes with Pecorino cheese and herbed bread crumbs. I think I was just drawn to the tomato sauce again.

Carmen doesn’t serve dessert, but a few people took a detour to Mike’s Pastry for a Florentine cannoli!

All in all, a very successful RC. We even came up with a new hashtag! A hundred percent. 100P. #HundoP.

The damage
$74 per person

The rundown
Carmen Trattoria
33 North Square, Boston

Not-as-good-as-the-Haven Scotch egg

Roasted heirloom carrots and spicy whipped feta

Root vegetable pot pie

Well-fed chicken

We ordered a good range of entrées among the 5 of us: whole wheat pappardelle with wild boar ragù (a tasty choice by RC Newbie Gina Colombo – welcome!), root vegetable pot pie, bavette steak with hand-cut fries, and Moroccan-spiced green circle chicken.  I ordered poorly – my steak was my least fave of the night.  The chicken was a table favorite, and apparently the chickens eat better than we do! They are fed a diet of 100% vegetable scraps from some of the top restaurants in NYC. It’s possible their high roughage diet had some unintended side effects, since Kim thought the restaurant smelled like flatus after the chicken arrived.  The seasoning seemed off on some of the dishes. My guess is they are using large flake sea salt, and the result is some bites were almost inedibly salty, and some bites were underseasoned. Turns out, it’s not just Chinese delicacies that beg the question, “Was it salty???”  We also ordered a side of forest mushrooms and farro risotto to share for the table. I didn’t try the mushrooms but the farro was perfectly seasoned and a nice bonus to my sub-par steak.

PB&J beignets

For dessert we split an order of beignets with concord grape jelly and peanut butter caramel. Our waiter generously brought 2 replacements when Julie’s beignet was missing its jelly. Nobody wants a dry donut. We were seated by the glass windows that look into the kitchen so we were able to thank the chefs “in person” and they waved in return. Even the radicchio rabbit-ear lady!

All in all, a successful RC filled with good food, good company, good conversation, and lots of laughs. What could be better than that?

The damage
$80 per person

The rundown
sycamore.
755 Beacon Street, Newton
@Sycamore_Newton

Loretta’s

When Jerel picked this month’s RC, I had never heard of it! I knew it was near Fenway, but couldn’t place it…turns out it is where La Verdad used to be. And it looks totally different – bye bye awkwardly shaped tiki bar! 

Pimento and bacon grilled cheese

We had a couple of RC firsts this month…all of our appetizers were comp’d, and the chef gave us a free dessert (gluten-free chocolate cake). Also, we accidentally shorted the bill. We worked so hard to try to calculate the tip based on what the bill should have been that we forgot to cover Jimmy’s portion (he was on call and had to leave early). We realized what we did after we were all home, so we called the restaurant to apologize and explain and I dropped off the money we owed a couple of days later. We felt REALLY BAD.

As for those free appetizers, we ordered a bunch! The pimento and bacon grilled cheese bites were probably my favorite…described by someone at the table as “Oh shit. This is delicious.” I also loved the honey bourbon butter that came with the hush puppies, and the collards that came with the lobster grit cakes. We also tried the fried pickles and jalapenos and the Frito nachos….because if there are Frito nachos on the menu, you just have to try them.

Buttermilk fried chicken

Chicken and waffles

When you go, ask for Lauren – she was super awesome and spot-on with her recommendations. She described the differences between the different fried chickens on the menu. Loretta’s classic southern is standard fried chicken. Erica’s buttermilk is first marinated in buttermilk, then dipped in herbs before frying. The Hot chicken is first rubbed with cayenne pepper. Lauren’s personal favorite is the chicken and waffles (which is boneless chicken!). I got the buttermilk fried chicken and a side of loaded mash…fantastic. The loaded mash is “loaded in the right way”, with bacon, cheddar, scallions, and caramelized onions. Aka crack in a cup. Unfortunately I was already pretty full from all of the appetizers, but I don’t say no to leftovers (and everything reheated pretty well). 

Jerel was the winner winner chicken (waffle) dinner…I think the boneless fried chicken gave it the edge over the others. A couple of people managed to resist the lure of the fried chicken, and one tried the housemade andouille sausage and one tried the brisket plate. We also got some biscuits and gravy and collard greens for the table. I wish I could learn how to cook collards like that!

The damage
$40 each (but ALL of our appetizers were comp’d)

The rundown
Loretta’s Last Call
1 Lansdowne Street, Boston
@LorettasTweetin

Julie, Kendrin, and Kim Photo credit: Jerel Calzo

Claire, Tracy, and Jerel Photo credit: Jerel Calzo (?)

Classic lobster roll Photo credit: Jerel Calzo

Naked lobster roll Photo credit: Jerel Calzo

Scallop and shrimp kebab Photo credit: Jerel Calzo

The damage
$105 per person

The rundown
Barking Crab
88 Sleeper Street, Boston
@barkingcrab