boston restaurants: h

For a combined celebration of Valentine's Day and the 1-year anniversary of the blog, T chose the highest rated "H" restaurant on Opentable: Hungry Mother. Hungry Mother was opened in 2008 in Cambridge serving Southern-inspired foods to the hungry crowd in Kendall. Chef Barry Maiden, originally from Virgina, has worked in many of the top restaurants in the area, including L'Espalier and Lumiere. To top it off, Barry is currently nominated for the James Beard best chef of the Northeast award!

We headed out on a miserably windy & rainy Wednesday evening  to our celebration. We were swept in with the wind and greeted with a cozy spot & a massive selection of drinks at the bar. Off we went to our seats in one of the 2 back dining rooms, snuggled into a corner for our private celebration.

 

As we scanned the menu, whittling down our choices one-by-one (which was difficult), we sipped water out of ball jars, which just happens to be one of my favorite things.
 

 

Soon my water was replaced with a Last Word, a combination of equal amounts of gin, green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, and freshly pressed lime juice. Tasty, but potent, I'm pretty sure I was well on my way to tipsy after 1/2 of the drink! T on the other hand went with one of my new favorite beers, a Kolsch. They have a huge list of drinks, especially of note was the lengthy whiskey list. You can find all of their drink options here.
 

For my first course, I started with the Berkshire pork belly "deviled eggs" with bread & butter pickles and pea shoots. I have to admit I was trick by the apostrophes in this dish. I love deviled eggs so I was dreaming of simple deviled eggs with bits of pork belly flecked in along with a handful of pea shoots to offset the denseness of the yolk mixture.  Unfortunately for me, but quite fortunate for lovers of pork belly, the dish was served with 2 large hunks of pork belly, topped with pretty swirls of deviled egg stuffing with chives and served with a side of pea shoots. I enjoyed the combination, but T liked it more.
 

On the other hand, I loved T's appetizer choice, the trout croquettes with spinach, preserved lemon, smoked almonds and a dijon crème fraîche. Perfectly prepared, moist and not dried or flaky, the kick of lemon and smoked almonds elevated this dish to a light and dainty appetizer which was the highlight of my whole night...if only I had ordered it!
 

For dinner I went with the wild Virginia catfish courtbouillon with chunks of Scituate lobster, gold rice, and scallion hushpuppies. You better believe I ordered this dish solely for the hushpuppies. Yaaaaa hushpuppies! The catfish was also perfectly prepared, not one bit of flakiness presented itself on this light white fish, coated in the lightly prepared sauce. The rice was there, nothing too special, but it was probably just overshadowed by my 3 balls of deep-fried love....hushpuppies. Obviously I was too full to finish, so T helped me out. He may have enjoyed my dish even more than his appetizer, and stated a combination of all of the components reminded him of a take on a jambalaya.
 

For his entree, T went with the ribeye, served with fingerlings, grilled escarole & onions, with a black walnut romesco. He was not asked how he would like it prepared, and it was delivered prepared medium-rare. I was able to snag a fingerling and could probably survive on those along, nicely crisped on the outside, soft on the inside, and topped with a nice combination of spices while not being overly salted...I was a fan. T spent almost the whole time eating trying to discern the flavors in the romesco (when he wasn't scarfing down the onions). He started out the dish debating if it was a liver-based sauce, and ended the dish being sufficiently confused. There were obviosly no complaints, as the whole dish was finished quickly.

We also had to split a small side of the skillet cornbread with sorghum butter. The "small" side dish could easily be split between 2 or 3, or one hungry cornbread-lover. Although not the best picture, this cornbread is my favorite that I've ever found. Deliciously moist, while remaining not too dense and heavy, I could have just ordered the cornbread as my appetizer and been a happy girl.

After our meals, we were too stuffed for dessert (even though the special olive oil cake was quietly calling my name) so we relaxed with some mint tea. Also of note, is the bathroom wallpaper. Yes, the wallpaper. The walls of the bathrooms are plastered with pages upon pages from the Virginia Housewife Cookbook, in order from left to right. While in the bathroom you may enjoy learning how to pickle, preserve, and prepare Southern food.

We headed back out into the terrible weather, happy as could be, full but not too weighed down. I'm so glad we were able to find this gem in Kendall, and I can already think of 10+ people I can recommend this spot to off the top of my head.  Thinking towards the future, the owners of the Hungry Mother are preparing to open their second venture this year: a Jewish deli located right across the street!

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catalyst

Catalyst opened in Kendall Square last year providing modern American cuisine to the tech-filled area. With a 26-seat fully-stocked bar, along with a two-way fireplace, and an outdoor patio for the warmer months, this seems like the perfect spot for an after-work drink, or a dinner out in a quiet area. T & I headed over after an engagement party this weekend, hoping for a tasty & quiet early-bird Sunday bite to eat, and that is exactly what we found!

 

 

 

 

We sat next to the floor-to-ceiling 30-foot windows, under the blown-glass light fixtures, and enjoyed a relaxed early dinner.

I started with the lobster-coconut bisque with thai chili and a cilantro lobster fritter. This bisque may actually be my favorite lobster bisque I have ever tasted. The flavor combination was light and fully balanced, not too salty, not too thick, not too thin, definitely the Goldilocks-porridge of lobster bisque. The lobster fritter did not add much to the bisque, and I only wish it had more lobster meat than breading, but at the same time it did not take away from the perfect bisque.
   

Since we weren't really very hungry after the engagement party snacks, I opted for an appetizer portion (which was obviously still a large portion) of the crispy pork ribs with a mustard-caramel glaze and vegetable slaw. They were crispy yet flavorful, and managed to fall off of the bone with even the slightest touch.

 

T went with the Catalyst burger with bacon, cheddar, caramelized onions, roasted tomato & pickles on a brioche bun with french fries with house made ketchup, mustard & aioli (which he reported was delicious as well). I can vouch for the petite & crispy french fries with the aioli.  
 

We were already too full to even look at the dessert menu, so we had some tea and strolled by the the green wall and the fire on our way out. I will definitely be back to try some of the house-made pastas, have a large bowl of the bisque, and enjoy a cocktail on the patio in the summer months!
 

 

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boston restaurants: c

I had been to Craigie on Main once before, a couple of years ago, when T & I were in the midst of becoming sick. Neither of us had happy memories of this dinner, as we were both in a sickness-induced fog of miserableness. I never had any interest in returning to this restaurant, but when I set out to visit each of the highest rated #-Z restaurants in Boston, I realized Craigie on Main would be mandated to be re-visited. We headed over with minimal expectations...and we were blown away by the experience.

Located between the Central and Kendall/MIT T stops, Craigie on Main is also car-friendly, with some street-parking as well as valet available. An interesting mix of local seasonal New England cuisine with French techniques, Craigie on Main has moved towards the top of my Boston-area favorites.

We arrived (a bit late) for our reservation, and were told that there was a recent cancellation for the chef's counter, and were asked if we would like to sneak on in. We snatched the opportunity to peek into the kitchen, and plopped ourselves front and center.

The whole restaurant is focused on the open kitchen, which is a nice change, but does create a bit of a bustle for those that don't have front-row seats like we did. Fortunately, there are many mirrors placed throughout the dining room so diners are able to see bits and pieces of the cooking.
 

Every night the menu may change, but there are always prix fix menus along with tasting menus of 6- or 8-courses available. T and I went with the prix fix as we had our eyes on certain items already. After ordering, we were surprised with one amuse bouche each, for T, a mussel, and for me, a beef heart pastrami with spicy mustard. 

 

As an appetizer, T went with the house-made farro flour spaccatelli with wild boar and forest mushroom ragoût. T reported this was very savory, and I stole a piece of the spaccatelli which I can report was very rich & tasty. I went with the grilled Spanish octopus with grilled cipollini onion, green olive & lemon salad, bulgur wheat, and chorizo purée. Soft, delicate, and delicious, this was the perfect light appetizer. We were also amazed by how large our appetizers were.

 

 For entrees, I chose the slow roasted chicken breast (since I love restaurant chicken so much) with chicken sausage, dried apricots, forest mushrooms, spring-dug carrots, and a scotch whisky jus. This is the dish that single-handedly blew me away. This chicken has undoubtedly moved to the top of my Boston-restaurant-chicken list...a hard list to even get near. Moist, tender, and flavorful, the combinations on the plate were unbelievable. 

Travis went with the Vermont pork three ways: suckling confit, spice crusted rib, smoked & grilled belly with russett apple purée, turnips, port-soaked pruned, and maitake mushrooms. The confit melted in his mouth while the rib was crispy and moist. The grilled belly reportedly paired well with the mushrooms. We also split a side of duck-fat roasted brussel sprouts, which were fresh, crispy & scrumptous.  

As T was stuffed and out of commission for dessert, I took control and ordered for us (....me, really). I have always loved anything malted, and the moment I read those four little letters on the menu (m-a-l-t) it was decided. We got the malted milk parfait, with honey roasted peanuts & a chocolate sorbet. I allowed T to have 2 bites, but then after tasting this dish, I hoarded it for myself. This dessert is easily in my top-2 desserts in Boston. Unbelievably tasty, the contrasting textures harmonized into an amazing flavorful bite. Bits of chocolate brownie, a small almost peanut-buttery-caramel textured bit, with crunchy pieces resembling cocoa crispies and the salty honey roasted peanuts...I was in food-heaven after bite one.

 

At this point, we were completely stuffed, we enjoyed the hazelnut-caramel macarons before heading home, passing the cute seasonal pumpkin-lanterns strewn about Central Square.
 

We will most definitely be back to Craigie on Main. I now have the Chef's Whim's tasting menu on my to-visit list. Every Sunday after 9pm, chef Tony Maws will cook up a discounted 4- or 6-course tasting menu on a whim. More information here.

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