Dessert | sweet bites in Boston

During our brief getaway to Beantown, I made two intentional stops to sate my sweet tooth.

The first was to Emack & Bolio's on Newbury Street, whose tagline is "Ice Cream for the Connoisseur."

The enterprise actually began back in 1975 inside a basement located in the Coolidge Corner section of Brookline, Massachusetts as a place for musicians to hang out after their gigs and to enjoy some homemade ice cream. Started by a group of "hippie lawyers" who had been working pro bono for the homeless, for gay civil rights, for anti-war demonstrators, as well as representing all these famous rock 'n' rollers who were being signed by major record labels. Additionally, two homeless gentlemen that the lawyers did this pro bono work for asked that the shop be named after them, thus Emack & Bolio's was born. The psychedelic and cosmic theme running throughout is redolent of the time of the ice cream shop's founding.

The menu offers a wide array of ice creams, sorbets, yogurts, and soft serve ice creams/yogurts. Along with these items, Emack & Bolio's also claim fame to making the best smoothies.

As much as I wanted to get some ice cream (some of those flavors look so good), I decided to play it safe with passionfruit sorbet, as my tendency for being lactose intolerant keeps me away from those milky treats. I liked that it was a bit tart and that its texture wasn't too icy.

Marcus decided to try the the Citrus Cooler smoothie with orange juice, lemon sorbet, raspberries, and sparkling water. He enjoyed this quite a bit as the smoothie was well blended, as the combination of citrus and berry offered a refreshing respite. It was nice to see a smoothie made from fresh ingredients.

On the day of my departure, I sneaked in a trek to the North End of Boston for a visit to the touristy Italian pastry shop, Mike's Pastry.

Recommended to me by Christine, Mike's Pastry is filled with Italian confections and sweets.

Its most popular items are its wide varieties of gigantic cannolis.

Since Marcus had to get to his conference early, I had to conquer the cannolis at Mike's Pastry solo. After much contemplation, I chose the amaretto cannoli and pistachio cannoli. They were both really nutty in their own way filled to the shells' brim with classic mascarpone cream. The amaretto cannoli was a lot sweeter than the pistachio, probably because the mascarpone was infused with amaretto liquer and the pastry shell was drizzled with hardened dark chocolate. The pistachio cannoli, however, had the perfect balance of sweetness and nuttiness from the crushed pistachios. The mascarpone filling here, as with the amaretto cannoli, was infused with pistachios (most likely with an oil or paste). While I enjoyed both cannolis very much, I think I preferred the pistachio over the amaretto due to level of sweetness. Unfortunately, though, I was only able to eat half of each before I hit a sugar coma and a point where my stomach could no longer tolerate the large globs of mascarpone, no matter how delicious each bite was.

Findings: It was great to be able to try a couple "signature" Beantown dessert shops during my brief trip there. I wish I could have stayed longer to try a few others (Christina's Homemade Ice Cream among one of them), but there's always next time! Emack & Bolio's was fun, and I wish I could've tried more flavors. That's when going in a larger group comes in handy -- you can mooch off of each other's treats to get a fuller experience! Mike's Pastry was lovely as well -- I've never seen such huge cannolis in my life! I liked that the bakery had an astounding variety of cannolis (as well as other Italian pastries) with original flavors. Only thing is I wish they offered smaller ones (i.e., bite size) and just a regular plain, old cannoli because sometimes the cannoli fix I need is just a small bite of basic pastry and mascarpone and I'm good to go. Either way, these two spots are great dessert spots to hit up whenever you happen to be in the Beantown area.

Price point: $3.50-5.50 for each treat at Emack & Bolio's, $3.50 for each cannoli from Mike's Pastry.

--April 6, 2012

Emack & Bolio's

290 Newbury Street

Boston, MA 02115

http://www.emackandbolios.com

Mike's Pastry

300 Hanover Street

Boston, MA 02113

http://www.mikespastry.com

Dinner | Myers + Chang

Our mini-trip to Boston continued with dinner at Chef Joanne Chang's other restaurant, Myers + Chang.

The story behind Myers + Chang began with a little heartfelt meet-cute. Chef Joanne Chang met Christopher Myers while they were working togehter at Rialto over in Cambridge. He was the general manager and co-owner at the time, and Chef Chang was the pastry chef. "His sweet tooth led him to the pastry station several times a day and a fast friendship quickly developed." Their friendship continued to grow after he left Rialto to open Radius, Via Matta, Great Bay, and later to NYC to open Payard Patisserie with Chef Chang's help. After her stint at Payard, Chef Chang moved back to Boston to open Flour, and their "fun, light-hearted friendship gradually morphed into something a bit more until one day, Mr. Myers woke up and found that Joanne had moved in."

Chef Chang would make dinner every night, cooking what she grew up with, i.e., Taiwanese and Chinese classics that she learned over the years from her mom and aunt. As with most Chinese American families, it is perfectly normal to have "rice, stirfries, greens, and noodles" every night of the week. Mr. Myers, on the other hand, "kept waiting for a lasagna, a pot roast, or a leg of lamb to show up on the dinner table" -- only problem was that Chef Chang had "never roasted a chicken or braised a short rib in her life!" While Mr. Myers couldn't believe one could eat Chinese food every night, Chef Chang also couldn't believe that "the take-out Chinese that he was use to eating was considered Chinese food."

Then an inspired idea for a restaurant came into play -- with an uncharted niche in the Boston dining scene paired with Chef Chang's know-how behind Asian cuisine, Myers + Chang was born as a "funky indie diner with fresh Asian dishes (Chef Chang's contribution) along with genuine hospitality and stylish décor" (contribution from Mr. Myers and his reputation as a restaurateur).

As with most Asian restaurants, Myers + Chang had not just one, but three maneki neko (i.e., "beckoning cat" or "lucky cat") figurines displayed on the bar. The most common belief is that the left paw raised brings in customers, while a right paw brings good luck and wealth. These little trinkets also add to the kitschy décor throughout the restaurant's interior.

The lighting and choice of color add to the ambiance of Myers + Chang.

Funky straws!

Marcus and I arrived a bit early for our reservation, so we were invited to wait at the bar and order some drinks. I decided to go with the lychee vanilla soda while Marcus had the freshly squeezed limeade -- both housemade fountain drinks. I really enjoyed the lychee vanilla -- it had little bits of lychee fruit mixed in with the juice itself and some club soda. The hint of vanilla was what really made this drink very different than sodas that I've had before. It made the exotic nature of the drink a little more refined. As for the limeade, Marcus found it to be pretty good, but a little on the sour side.

Love the menu design here! Also, additional kitschy touches of Asian newspapers used as place mats . . .

. . . funky paper lanterns . . .

. . . plus, vintage Asian tins to hold chopsticks!

{1} For some of the menu items that are on the spicier side, there is a star system that indicates just how spicy they may be. The added humor is there are stars next to the chefs running the place! :P {2} Further proof that Chef Chang is one of my favorite chefs -- there is a disclaimer for those who "don't do" cilantro. WIN!

The cuisine at Myers + Chang is "all about fresh product, exotic herbs, and redolent spices" currently created by Chef Karen Akunowicz, the current executive chef.

View from our table of the counter seating available overlooking the open kitchen.

Upon our first perusal of the menu, we were quite overwhelmed with the wide possibility of choice it afforded us. Just like the dining experience we had at 508, Marcus again experienced what he likes to call "choice paralysis" whereby you are inundated with so many promising choices that you lose your ability to know what you would want to order, possibly resulting in the internet meme, "X all the Y" -- only in this situation, it would be "ORDER ALL THE THINGS." After pulling ourselves back together, Marcus and I picked a few items from the dim sum part of the menu (i.e., small plates and starters) to start.

Marcus chose Esti's hot and sour soup with fresh shiitakes, pork, and local tofu, which was quite spicy but very balanced in flavor overall. It had all the elements of a solid hot and sour soup (plus my favorite thing: mushrooms!), so no spoonful was left unfinished.

I chose the grilled razor clams with scallion-shrimp butter, watercress, and grapefruit. I'm a sucker for all things razor clammed, and these were no disappointment. Plump and juicy, these razor clams were delicious. The grapefruit added a little sweet and tart flavor, while the scallion-shrimp butter certainly gave it an Asian flair.

We also ordered the Tiger's Tears (aka bang bang and Olufsen beef) -- grilled steak with Thai basil, lime, and khao koor. What came as a total shock to us about this dish was that the "grilled steak" was served cold/chilled. It wasn't raw/rare enough to be a tartare, but it wasn't cooked enough where the flavor from the heat could be released. We weren't crazy about the Thai basil either, so overall, this dish was a miss for us.

One of the three main courses we ordered to share was the shrimp and calamari vermicelli stirfry with iceberg lettuce, crispy wontons, and sesame oil. This was another miss for us -- the vermicelli was really soggy which made it difficult to eat. The lettuce was pretty wilty, and the shrimp wasn't very good. The crispy wontons were the saving grace, but in all honesty, this dish was not a great hit. Loved the classic Chinese restaurant dishware used, though!

Next up was the chicken and rapini stirfry with toasted garlic and chili peppers. Marcus and I probably should have looked into what rapini was (I had no idea it was just another name for broccoli rabe) before we ordered it. Oops, guess we had to learn the hard way -- it is just too bitter for our palates. So for us, there was just way too much rapini and not enough chicken. Plus, the chicken was on the blander side, even with the toasted garlic (my favorite part) and the chili peppers.

Our last shared course was the genmai fried rice -- brown rice fried with toasted garlic, greens, beans, sesame, nori, and a farm egg. Give me fried rice topped with an egg any day, and I will be a happy camper. Any additional treats like the toasted garlic, sesame, and nori are just awesome surprises to something I already know I love! What made this stand out from most fried rice and egg dishes I've had is that genmai was used, which also had a slightly different texture from the typical brown rice. The grains appeared to have been toasted and pan-fried, giving it a lightly crisp bite throughout. The flavors from the toasted garlic, greens, beans, sesame, and nori were worked well into the rice, making it really tasty. The runniness from the egg's yolk and the broken up pieces of egg white added a moist overlaying texture, bringing together all of the ingredients. Overall, this rice was a big hit for me, considering that the other dishes weren't what we had initially hoped they would be.

Findings: Overall, Marcus and I had a mixed experience at Myers + Chang, but to be fair, I think the items we ordered were the problem in that they weren't very aligned with what our palates enjoy. With that being said, we probably should have consulted our waiter more about the menu's most popular dishes and to ask whether our choices would be good ones. I will have to say, though, that I think we may have had better luck ordering more items from the dim sum section of the menu. Our drinks were also unique, well-made, and delicious. So what did I take from our experience at Myers + Chang? I would definitely go back to give the menu another shot -- the initial choice paralysis seemed to give way for lots of potential menu items that would strike our palates some delectable interest. But for now, the ambiance is funky and welcoming, while the kitschy décor is spot-on with all of the intricate and meticulous forethought with all the little things, making it a great place for getting Asian-inspired cocktails and fountain concoctions whilst sharing a bunch of small plates with a group of friends. Plus,

Price point: $5-11 for each dim sum dish, $13-17 for each noodle/rice/stirfry dish.

--April 5, 2012

Myers + Chang

1145 Washington Street

Boston, MA 02118

http://www.myersandchang.com

Lunch | Flour Bakery & Café

I made a little 24-hour trip to Beantown at the end of last week. Marcus and I had been planning to make a trip up to Boston sometime this year, so when Marcus had a three-day conference to attend, it was the golden opportunity. Instead of making two separate trips (a four to five hour bus ride is a long way!), I thought it'd be easiest if we went up a day earlier together so we could have time to check the city and squeeze in some quality Boston eats while we were there. Our first stop upon arriving was to Flour Bakery & Café over in the South End.

After watching the episode of Throwdown! with Bobby Flay featuring the bakery's sticky buns together, Marcus and I both agreed that we needed to go there whenever we visit Boston. I had been to Flour three years ago (I had seen the episode before watching it again with Marcus), and I really enjoyed it, so I definitely wanted to go back. We also attended a book signing together last year where we got to meet Chef Chang and learn more about Flour and its recipe. Since then, we've really come to admire her personality as a celebrity chef as well as her mission at Flour.

We decided to go to Flour Bakery & Café over on the South End. I really love the bakery's logo -- it is so creative and fitting!

View of the counter at Flour from the seating area.

The menu wall over at Flour. The handwriting is so playful as are the illustrations.

Also love this little mantra set atop the entrance into the bakery's kitchen -- "Make life sweeter . . . eat dessert first!" Along with this, there is a daily weather report as well as a weekly quotation written regularly.

Offering of daily specials at Flour, including a daily tartine, soup, quiche, stuffed bread, and pizza!

Assortment of sweets and desserts on display at the counter.

And last, but not least, the (in)famous sticky-sticky buns that kicked Chef Bobby Flay's butt in the episode of Throwdown!

For lunch, I decided to have the grilled roast chicken sandwich with brie, arugula, roasted red peppers, and caramelized onions. I think what I liked most about this sandwich was the bread. With any grilled sandwich or panini, the bread that holds its contents all in place is very important. Without fresh bread and a nice toasted crunch, a sandwich is hardly a sandwich at all. At best, it is then just layers of meaningless meat, vegetables, and condiments. Now, the country bread used here at Flour was the perfect combination of toastedness and freshness. Each bite had a distinctly loose collapsing crunch while all of the sandwich's contents kept in place without the need of those cocktail toothpicks with the colored cellophane frills on the end. The roasted chicken was super moist, allowing for the creamy, melted brie to soak right in with the color medley of veggies.

Marcus had the egg sandwich served on foccacia roll with cheddar, tomato, arugula, dijonnaise, and choice of ham/bacon (Marcus chose the applewood bacon). What Marcus really liked about this egg sandwich was that it was more of a "sandwich" than the breakfast sandwiches he's had at various places (fast food joints, diners, etc.). What does this mean exactly? Well, Marcus found that the egg sandwich at Flour had the perfect balance of carbohydrates, egg, meat, cheese, and accoutrement, as each part did not steal the spotlight from another. These other sandwiches to which Marcus refers are typically egg-heavy, which overshadowed the flavors of other ingredients at hand with egg. With that being said, it was nice to finally see an egg sandwich done well. The artisan foccacia roll was a nice deviation from the usual biscuit, English muffin, and bagel.

For dessert, Marcus and I shared a sticky-sticky bun with dark, sticky caramel and toasted pecans. Essentially, this sticky-sticky bun is like a slice of pecan pie in pastry roll form. The topping was savory and sweet, and the pecans gave it a good nutty crunch. The roll part was also done really well -- soft and buttery. It definitely lived up to the hype and how I remembered it from my first visit. I would recommend sharing this with a few people so that you can get a taste without filling up on just this. That is, unless all you are eating is the sticky-sticky bun, then you're set! :P

Being the cookie fiend that he is, Marcus couldn't resist ordering two cookies, one traditional and one unique: a peanut butter cookie (creamy peanut butter and chopped nuts) and a cornmeal lime cookie. While it was a little too much for me, peanut butter fanatics (like Marcus) will love the peanut butter cookie as it is not only baked with peanut butter throughout, but also contains chopped peanuts! The cornmeal lime cookie was certainly different from any cookies I've had before. Sure I've had ones made from cornmeal, but never one that had fresh lime zest baked right in! To me, it tasted (in the best way possible) like Fruit Loops cereal -- similar to the taste sensation I had with the kaffir lime ice cream Marcus and I had at Kin Shop a couple years ago. The cookie itself was very fragile and crumbly, which is definitely attributable to the cornmeal, but the citrus glaze makes up for that. Apparently, the cornmeal lime cookie just made a recent reappearance at Flour, so we caught it just in time!

Findings: I think Flour Bakery & Café is great. I love everything about it -- from its interior (the chalkboard wall menu, the illustrations, the colors, etc.) to its assortment of café-style offerings (sandwiches, soups, salads, etc.) to its desserts that bring you back to the sweets that invaded your childhood tenfold. Everything we had was absolutely delicious and very well made/assembled/baked, so much so that I ate there again the next day for lunch before heading back to Manhattan. It is also awesome to know that Chef Chang began her career not in the culinary and pastry arts but in studying Mathematics and Economics at Harvard.

Our visit to Chef Joanne Chang's bakery was relaxing, comfortable, and just plain fun, which embodies everything the bakery's byline stands for: "Make life sweeter . . . eat dessert first!" Only difference was we saved dessert until the end. You know what they say -- always save the best for last! :P

Price point: $6.50-7.95 for each sandwich, $1.75-2.95 for each dessert.

--April 5, 2012

Flour Bakery & Café

1595 Washington Street

Boston, MA 02118

http://www.flourbakery.com