When I got this usual Monday morning question at work today I had to think for a second. What did I do this weekend? Oh yes, it came back quickly: I ate. A lot. If you know me this probably does not strike you as unusual (picture a girls college swim team raid an all-you-can-eat restaurant - yeah, I was part of that back in the days).
Dining out all weekend long and finding excellent food along the way on the other hand is not that common of an occurrence. The weekend started Friday night at Artu in the North End with lobster ravioli and other good Italian dishes (although no self-respecting upscale Italian restaurant should offer butter with bread instead of olive oil and the name always makes me think of my favorite Star Wars character). Despite mediocre service we enjoyed the meal and a good time was had by all. Saturday the seafood theme continued at Fugakyu in Brookline. Best Sushi I’ve had on this coast - the fish was so fresh and buttery it melted in my mouth. Eating at Fugakyu reminded me that raw fish is my favorite source of protein.
Sunday morning swim practice was followed by the usual visit to Sunny’s Diner. Sunny’s special is the best breakfast deal in town (Cambridge that is) and we loooove the folks behind the counter! Just a few hours later I had dinner at the Navy Yard Bistro, a hidden gem in Charlestown. The steamed mussels were to die for and how can one not be impressed with salmon prepared like this: Grilled Sake, Ginger & Soy Marinated Salmon Filet, Steamed Jasmine Rice, Seaweed & Cucumber Salad, Wasabi Crème Fraiche, Soy Syrup. The food was amazing, in presentation and taste, down to the almond creme brulee, and the service was excellent.
Of course, any culinary experience is enhanced by good company and I certainly wasn’t lacking in that department. Thank you all!
All that eating left little time for other activities, except for a yoga session, a couple of swim workouts to justify the food indulgence and for watching “The Taking of Pelham 123″ to satisfy my inner transit geek. It was a good weekend indeed!
You ate where? And how much? Reads like a feast fit for something out of Gargantua and Pantagruel! Not that I would hesitate a jot to join such festive affairs to fill this heart, er, stomach. Something Italienisch, and then off for a jaunt in Japanese sushi cuisine, and then something indelibly Americano, and to top it all off back to Japanese foodstuff. Well, I’m happy that I was able to partake in the teeniest, tiniest portion of your tour de Gourmand, and hopefully I provided suitable accompaniment.
For Pelham, try the original. I remember something foggy about it; it was years ago. But it had one of my favorite actors Robert Shaw (you know, the shark-hunter from Jaws “I’ll catch ‘em ‘n’ kill ‘im”), and Martin Balsam (the private detective that gets it in Psycho.)
Reminded me of that great parody by Alan Sherman: Hungarian Goulash No 5 (to the tune of Brahms’ Hungarian Dance No. 5)
“If you like Hungarian food,
They have a goulash which is very good.
Or if you wish a dish that’s Chinese,
Somewhere down in Column B there’s lobster Cantonese.”
See: http://lyrics.rare-lyrics.com/A/
Allan-Sherman/Hungarian-Goulash-No-5.html
Ciao, J