Showing posts with label boston. Show all posts
Showing posts with label boston. Show all posts

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Boston: Harvard & Samuel Adams Brewery

For our last day in Boston, we decided to stop by the area around Harvard, do a little exploring, and check out some of the popular spots.  Afterwards, we headed towards south of Boston for the famous Samuel Adams Brewery.


Pinocchios Pizza & Subs
74 Winthrop St 
Harvard Square
Cambridge, MA 02138

pinocchio's pizza & subs
First stop, Pinocchios for some Sicilian style pizzas!

sicillian pizza
Spinach & Garlic (white) and the Tomato & Basil.

marguerita
Tomato & Basil, which is essentially a margherita.  Really nice crunchy thick crust.

spinach
The Spinach & Garlic was the favorite out of the two.  Very strong garlic flavor, which is what I like!







Since Jadson was already out and about visiting a few schools, we met up with him at the Train station and headed towards Mr. Bartley's for the real lunch.  I was pretty stuffed from the pizzas but gotta visit this landmark!


Mr. Bartley's Gourmet Burgers
1246 Massachusetts Ave
Harvard Square  
Cambridge, MA 02138 

mr. bartley's
Mr. Bartley's!

sign
Since 1960.

menu
Menu.  Lots of burger selections, many named after celebrities!

burger
I decided to go the safer route since I didn't really know what to expect and got the Joe Biden (just read a pretty cool article about our Vice President in GQ). Comes with bacon, american cheese, and BBQ sauce.

onion rings
Upgraded to their onion rings!  Very different from your typical onion rings.

cooked perfectly
The burger after a few bites.  Nothing that really stands out about the burger since the sauce is fairly standard BBQ sauce, but dayum, burger patty cooked perfectly!

P1020648
Diana got their sweet potato fries.

pineapple relish
They have this jalapeno pineapple relish on the side that's pretty interesting.






After our lunch, we took the train and went south until we got to Jamaica Plains for the Samuel Adams Brewery!  We got there just in time too because when we got there, the last tour of the day had already started.


Samuel Adams Brewery
30 Germania St
(Between Marmion St & Brookside Ave) 
Jamaica Plain
Boston, MA 02130

samuel adams brewery
The brewery.  Definitely can't compare to the Budweiser Brewery in STL haha.

"ticket"
The "ticket" for the tour.

tour
The tour.  Rather than bringing you around the brewery and showing you the different process of beer making, Samuel Adams is more about explaining about the process and a little hands on with some ingredients.

P1020657
Hops!  Smells just like beer.

P1020674
They have you take a handful and rub it between your palms to get the fragrance extracted.

malts
Variety of malts.

lightest
Lightly roasted.

P1020665
Medium roasted.

P1020663
Dark roasted for them heavier beers.

P1020673
A collection of the beer they brew.

P1020678
The most famous, the Boston Lager, with its awards.

awards
Banner for all the awards they've won!

tanks
Some of the tanks.  SO MUCH SMALLER than Budweiser's.  They were doing so renovating so not all of the brewery was operational and many beers are brewed elsewhere, but even as one of the biggest craft brewery, Sam Adams is still tiny compared to the giants.

aging room
Barrel Room, where they age some of the more unique microbrews.

tasting room
The tasting room!

what's on tap
On tap today, Boston Lager, Summer Ale, Citra Pale Ale, and "The Prohibition" Cream Ale.

free glasses!
Free glasses for going on the tour!

how to taste
Instructions on the glass on how to taste a Boston Lager.

boston lager
Of course, start out with the Boston Lager!  Really is better fresh.

citra pale ale
We got to try one of their newer creations, the Citra Pale Ale!  It's one they are just testing now and not on market yet.  Pretty cool!  Like its name implies, hint of citrus.


Gotta say, I was really surprised at how small Boston is, and even though people talked about how Boston is a clusterfck, we were able to get around the city without much trouble.  The North End was a little harder to navigate around but somehow we managed haha.  The "T" was a lot more convenient than I thought too.

Some LA & SF posts coming up!

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Boston: Wasting Time Until Giacomo's

:: Been a little busy lately but finishing up the last few posts for Boston! ::

Last full day in Boston, we were determined to check out one of the popular Italian restaurants.  A lot in North End do not take reservation so we decided to check out the Giacomo's in South End because they actually accept reservation!  The Giacomo's in North End is probably one of the best Italian restaurant in Boston, and from the reviews, it's South End brother is just as good.

We wanted to grab brunch, but since we woke up late, we didn't get to eat until around 1pm with the wait at the small North Street Grille.


North Street Grille
229 North St 
Between Langdon Pl & Sun Court St
North End
Boston, MA 02113

North Street Grille
One of the highest rated spot for brunch. Waiting outside for a table.  Place is really small.  

P1020494
We decided to get a pticher of mimosa.

lobster benedict
Jadosn and I both got the Lobster Benedict.  I usually don't go for benedict's, but I've yet to eat lobster in Boston so I went for it.

lobster benedict
Lobster Benedict with light hollandaise.

lobster
Lobster chunks and the poached egg.

egg
I wish I can poach eggs like this hahah.

pancake
I paid $3.00 for the pancakes add on.  Legit maple syrup.  Didn't care too much for the pancakes.

omelette
Diana's Lobster & Asparagus Omelette.

lobster omlette
Lobster chunks + asparagus + hollandaise.


It was good, but not sure if I'd wait an hour for it the next time.  Or maybe I'm just not a brunch person still.  




We really didn't have any plan for the rest of the day until Giacomo's, so we decided to check out the touristy Faneuil Hall Marketplace.  It's essentially a few historical buildings converted into a nice outdoor shopping mall.  It also serves as a visitor center for the popular Freedom Trail.


Faneuil Hall Marketplace
4 S Market Bldg 
Financial District
Boston, MA 02109 

quincy market
Quite a few buildings makes up Faneuil Hall Marketplace.  Quincy Market is the building that hosts all the food vendors though!

boston chowda co
Had to stop by Boston Chowda Co., another award winning clam chowder spot.  Better than Pike Place Chowder???

soup
"Soup & other Great Stuff"

chowda and lobsta bisque
Clam chowder was good, but I still think Pike Place Chowder has it beat.  Jadson got the lobster bisque, so I got to try a bit of it.  Very sweet.

boston chipyard
The Boston Chipyard.  They sell mini-sze cookies.  Couldn't resist... I have a weakness, especially with warm cookies.

cookies
Around $6-7 for a bag of cookies.  Pretty pricey for 12 small cookies, but at least I got to mix & match!  Pumpkin chocolate chip was the most interesting!


There were also a lot of souvenir shops, as well as some big name retail stores like Abercrombie.  People weren't lying when they said it is very touristy.  Seemed like almost everybody there were from out of town.  There's also some street performers.





Before we headed off to the South End, we decided to stop by Boston Commons, and wanted to make a stop and check out where the area of the recent bombings.  Once we got there, we saw plenty of people around the quick makeshift memorial area, and there was this silence around the area, whether people were paying their respect or just going through.  Plenty of TV station vans around as well.

iced latte
Stopped by Thinking Cup for iced latte before we headed towards the site.

P1020550
Area near the bombings.

P1020553
Pretty amazing I must say.  Lots of people leaving flowers, notes, and everything Boston related.

P1020552
Lots of marathon runners left their shoes here as well to show support.

P1020562
One of the bomb sites.

P1020560
You can see the damaged it caused to the building next to it with the boarded up windows.

P1020561
Boston Strong.

I must say, didn't really know what to expect before I got there, and once I did, really didn't know what to think.  I must've stood at one of the remembrance area for about 10 minutes just reading what people wrote.  It was also a bit surreal to see the boarded up windows, because it really is a reminder that it did happen and that I was no longer sitting behind a TV or a monitor looking at this from afar.





After the visit, we made our way towards Giacomo's, one of Boston's most popular Italian restaurant.  Good thing we made reservations too cause the place was packed on a Sunday.


Giacomo's 
431 Columbus Ave
Between Pembroke St & Holyoke St
Back Bay, South End
Boston, MA 02116

giacomo's
Outside of Giacomo's.

inside
Very small, and somewhat cluttered.

planeta la segreta 2010
One of the best thing about Giacomo's is that their bottles are extremely affordable.  I believe this was less than $40.

calamari
Had to start with some Fried Calamari. Love the fresh seafood Boston has to offer.

mozarella, tomato, basil
Caprese! Tomato, fresh mozzarella, and basil.

frutti di mare with fra diavolo sauceWe really wanted to get the Zuppa di Pesce, which was this huge pasta dish with clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops, calamari, and a WHOLE lobster over linguine, for $55.  BUT they ran out of lobster so it was a no go...  C'mon... how the hell did a restaurant in Boston run out of lobster??? :[  We were all very disappointed since we wanted that meal to be our lobster feasting meal.  In the end, we went for the Frutti di Mare with the Fra Diavolo sauce.  It had mussels, calamari, clams, scallops, and shrimp.

mussels, calamari, clams, shrimp
Ok, it was still tasty, but still, not lobster :[

P1020578
I wanted the Squid Ink Parpadelle Putanesca with swordfish and tuna since I love squid ink, and it definitely did not disappoint!

P1020579
Putanesca is a slightly tangy tomato sauce with capers and it goes really well with the parpadelle.  I love fresh parpadelle, especially when made with squid ink.

almond amaretto cake
"I'm okay with anything as long as it isn't an almond dessert."  Guess which dessert they chose?   Freaking Almond Amaretto.  It's good but I just don't like the taste of... almond dessert flavor, like almond tofu.  I like real almonds :P


Seriously so sad that we didn't get to eat lobster, especially we saved up the lobster feast for this dinner too.





A trip wouldn't be complete without visiting a high rise with a view, and for Boston, we decided to check out the Top of the Hub, located high up in the Prudential Tower.


Top of the Hub
800 Boylston St Ste 52
Between Fairfield St & Gloucester St
Back Bay
Boston, MA 02199 

top of the hub
If you've ever been to the Chicago's Skydeck, located at the top of the Willis/Sears Tower, then Top of the Hub will seem very similar.  Definitely not as crowded though!

cocktails
We wanted to sit in the lounge since they are lined along the glass windows with a great view.  $24 minimum, which was easily achieved wit two drinks.

view
View from our seat!

live band playing jazz
Also the front for the live jazz band!

black barrel cider
Black Barrel Cider.

boston's bully boy smash
Boston's Bully Boy Smash.  Bully Boy White Whiskey, lemon, mint, and cane sugar for the cocktail. Bully Boy Whiskey is actually a small distillery in Boston! Pretty cool.

strawberry basil lemonade
Diana's Strawberry Basil Lemonade.

chocolate molten cake
Valrhona Warm Chocolate Cake for dessert.  Since I didn't really get a proper dessert (Jadson & Diana did most of the damage of the almond dessert), I wanted something and went with the super rich molten chocolate cake with chocolate toffee crunch ice cream and cherry sauce.

chocolateeee
 The best part is probably opening up the chocolate cake and watching the chocolate lava slowly oozing out. Dayum it was chocolatey!


After that we went back to the hotels and prepped for our half day in Boston before my flight out and before Diana & Jadson continue their East Coast swing to NYC!