We went to The Sinclair in Harvard Square last week. It’s a much needed live music venue with multi levels to view a show. Bruce in the USA was playing and if you’re a Springsteen fan and need a fix, find this guy. Three hours, yes three hours of Bruce. A look alike, with all the mannerisms, a great band and if you closed your eyes, you would think you were hearing the Boss himself Continue reading “There Goes My Cholesterol Level!!”
There’s a new restaurant in Harvard Square brought to us by the group that owns Beehive in the South End. It’s been on my radar and we finally made it there last Saturday.
I liked the feel of the restaurant. It’s very funky and eclectic, has some fun pscyhedelic style artwork, mismatched chandeliers and a good bar scene. The tables are set apart so that you’re not on top of the people next to you which is very important to me. Someone’s into music because the background music was excellent from my point of view. Why? Because anyone including Mink DeVille on a play list knows a little something!
Now for the food. There were some hits and some misses.
We started with smoky Chipolte BBQ spare ribs. They were a hit. Melt in your mouth kind of ribs. Pulled lamb nachos were cold and had to be returned. They came back to the table hot and were not reheated but a new order. I liked them but thought there was a little more cheese than pulled lamb.
Spaghetti with crispy artichoke, shrimp, pecorino and EVOO was delicious. It had a bite to it and was even better as a reheat the next day.
A burger with Gorgonzola was ordered rare but came to the table medium rare.
An organic chicken piccata with gnocchi was okay but nothing outstanding.
Wines can be ordered by the ounce or a carafe which is about 2 1/2 glasses. The selection is all American. They are choosing wines from sustainable vineyards and I like that concept but from my perspective, a Verdelho from the West Coast was not a match for one from Portugal. Just my opinion. Then, on a nod from the owner I tried an Albarino. Again, it didn’t quite equal a Spanish Albarino. I’m in no way a wine snob but I know what I like and these didn’t quite make it for me.
So would I go back? Yes, to listen to the live music and sit at the bar. As I said, I liked the vibe of the restaurant and I’d give it another chance.
See you at the bar…
Amour . A tough movie that tackles the subject of aging. It’s French. It’s about a loving elderly couple faced with what happens when one suffers a stroke and the downward decline that ensues. It’s as much about the person who’s failing as it is about the caretaker. After all, no one ever thinks about what the caretaker goes through. This movie handles it. It’s an intelligent, thoughtful, heartbreaking piece of work worthy of the awards it has already received. The leading actress, Emmanuelle Riva, nominated for an Oscar (and deserving of it), was in the famous movie Hiroshima, Mon Amour and the actor Jean-Louis Trintignant was in another famous French movie, A Man and a Woman. Isabelle Huppert plays their emotionally barely there and hardly interested daughter.
Why aren’t there any movies about the subject of aging? There are lots of us baby boomers out there dealing with our own mortality or dealing with aging parents. There are movies about being 40, action hero movies, lots of stupid movies for 13 year olds, but no intelligent movies that deal with the subject of aging and the end of life. Granted it’s not an easy subject and I suppose people don’t want to face it or be reminded that it will happen, especially when the reason they’re going to the movies is to be entertained.
Do yourself a favor, go see Amour before it leaves; and then, go see a stupid movie!
After the movie we needed wine and some good food. So with our friends G and B we headed over to Abigail’s. I’ve reviewed Abigail’s in the past. It’s on Third Street in Cambridge where there’s a lot going on. We immediately ordered wine, which we desperately needed and took a look at the menu. We had so much on the table we couldn’t fit anything else on it if we tried. As with our last visit, we loved the restaurant.
See you at the bar…..
Green Street Grille was once one of our go-to restaurants. Big portions of Caribbean inspired food by chef/owner John Levins, it was always an experience for the taste buds. But John Levins sold the restaurant and we never went back. Continue reading “An Old Friend Revisited”
A movie and dinner. A perfect way to spend Christmas Eve with L and M.
The movie – Rust and Bone. A Belgian-French film. It’s a complex love story, tough but riveting. It left us sitting in our seats for a few minutes because we had to digest what we’d just seen. It’s not a kid’s movie. Marion Cotillard plays a woman who trains killer whales and is involved in an accident at a marineland in Antibes, France in which she loses both legs. She has to learn how to deal with her new reality. Enter a man she has previously met in a bar who’s a kick-boxer and struggling to find work and support a son. Together they seem to find a common ground and without giving anything away, this is the basic story. It is directed by Jacques Audiard who also directed The Prophet, another complex movie that if you haven’t seen, you should. Continue reading “Christmas Eve 2012”
Before I get to the restaurant review, I’m going to give you a movie review. Go see Searching for Sugar Man. It’s a documentary about a musician from Detroit in the early ’70’s whose name is Rodriguez, poised to be the next big thing a la Bob Dylan, putting out beautiful music but he never did become the next big thing. Instead, he disappeared and became the biggest rock ‘n roll star in South Africa without his even knowing it. A lot of legend surrounded him and I won’t give anything away but can tell you, that you’ll be applauding at the end of the movie, I promise. Two thumbs up from 2 at the bar!
East by Northeast is a tiny storefront restaurant in the Inman Square neighborhood of Cambridge, MA. It’s got all the hype, it’s on everyone’s “Best Of” list and it was noted in the New York Times “36 hours in Cambridge” article. All for good reason. It’s putting out big flavors. It’s Chinese fusion; everything is locally sourced. And, there’s no white rice so don’t ask for it! It’s tapas-like, small plates meant to be shared. Everything is made from scratch and that includes the most delicious noodles. On our table were:
Does that sound good? It was! The food is delicious, the sauces are rich and it’s not terribly expensive. But be prepared, if the restaurant is crowded, it’s really, really loud. At the table with us our pals B and G and the four of us loved the restaurant (and the movie!)
We topped the evening off with a walk down the street for ice cream from Christina’s which has some of the best ice cream around and that’s saying a lot for a city that takes it’s ice cream seriously. We begged for them to please let us in because they were just closing up. Lucky us, they did open their doors and we finished off the evening in ice cream heaven!
Yesterday afternoon we saw Jiro Dreams of Sushi, a documentary about Jiro Ono the owner of Sukiyabashi a sushi only restaurant universally regarded as the best sushi restaurant in the world. The restaurant, inconspicuously located in a Tokyo subway station, has only 10 seats and a dinner there costs a minimum of $350 per person. People come from around the globe and call months in advance for reservations. Jiro who is 85 years old has no signs of slowing down. It was a fascinating movie and we will never look at sushi in the same way. Continue reading “A Movie and Abigail’s”
Saturday night in Chinatown. That sounded like a good idea; we haven’t had Chinese in a while. But by the time we got in the car and started driving we decided that Chinatown would be a hassle with the parking nonexistent on Saturday night so we went to Cambridge to a restaurant we’d been to once before and loved – Qingdao Garden. Continue reading “Qingdao Garden”
I want to give a quick thumbs up to Kika Tapas, on Third Street in Kendall Square, Cambridge. If you haven’t been to the area around Third Street, go! It’s the new restauarant row. We went to Kika Tapas after seeing A Separation which is a must see. Kika Tapas is brought to us by the same people who own Solea in Waltham and Tapeo in the Back Bay. This restaurant is eye-popping in design, has great artwork on the walls and makes the other two restaurants seem dull by comparison. It has a variety of seating areas from cozy banquettes to cafe tables or the bar of course!
