La Brasa

The girls and I have been on a roll these last few months with making reservations to visit the Somerville up-and-comers! First there was Sarma, followed by Bronwyn and now La Brasa! With excellent chefs at the helm offering unique dishes of varied cuisines, Boston's neighboring city is lucky to have them all. La Brasa itself draws on a wide influence - Mexican, Peruvian, Spanish, Chinese - a grand mixture of flavors from all over. 

{What we ate}

mexican fried rice with charred scallions, fava beans, radishes, cilantro

tacos de carnitas - slow roasted pork shoulder with salsa verde & chile de arbol

artisanal cheese with ginger-rhubarb chutney

a table-side cart delivers prime rib with cilantro chimichuri

smoked bone in pork milanese with mushy peas

swiss chard pie with colorado chile, coddled farm fresh egg, spanish ham & piperade

fried soft shell crab with arugula & cherries

that fried rice again. it was my favorite. tacos de carnitas were second.

la brasa fried chicken with escargot-brown butter viniagrette, parsley and fresh horseradish

butterscotch pudding with Rice Krispies

La Brasa

124 Broadway St

Somerville, MA 02145

Sweet Cheeks Q

Sweet Cheeks serves up Texas Style BBQ in a refined rustic setting with heavily distressed wooden tables and delicate strands of white lights. Located on Boylston Street in the Fenway neighborhood, the exteriors signage is loud with exposed bulbs, a giant glowing BBQ sign presides on the corner.

The Biscuits ($10) which come four to a tin bucket with creamy honey butter, are as good as every single person who has ever set foot in this establishment (and ordered them) says they are. Flaky yet sturdy on the outside, warm fluffy layers on the inside, heaven. Do not let the fact that you must order four at once deter you, portion sizes are huge, so leftovers in general are highly likely. (In other words, take those biscuits home with your meat!)

 

Served in mason jars, cocktails stick with the theme of being on the large side. The Federale with tequila, habanero simple syrup, agave, grapefruit and lime was super spicy, a great drink if you like a punch of heat. A Genesse Cream Ale also makes an appearance. 

A tray of Berkshire Pulled Pork ($18) comes with white bread, tangy mustard pickles + onions and two sides - I chose collard greens and the carrot salad. I had heard lots of praise for that salad specifically; I guess that's the plus side of visiting a regularly hyped restaurant opened by a Top Chef Alum over a year after its debut. (I already knew everything I should probably order.) I would concur with the beauty of that cold scoop, it was memorable with thin shards of crunchy carrots, golden raisins, toasted walnuts and blue cheese crumbles in a zesty dressing that nicely tied everything together. As far as the hot scoop, I thought the collard greens were pretty amazing, too.

 The pulled pork was juicy and tender, a Texas style dry rub renders it subtly smokey and three types of tableside BBQ sauce add another layer of flavor. (Depending on which you choose - standard flare, intense heat or a sweet North Carolina vinegar style.)

It is completely worth it to muster room for dessert, the unassuming little mason jar of Butterscotch Pudding ($6) is terrific, super rich and smooth in texture, equally as sweet, and then balanced out by a cap of sea salted caramel.  

So if you're craving some good BBQ in Boston, I'm pretty sure this is where you want to end up!

Sweet Cheeks Q

1381 Boylston Street

Boston, MA 02215

Barrio Pop Up

Barrio is the latest in a series of underground dinner parties hosted by chef Wheeler Del Torro. This pop up begs of diners to embrace mystery as you won't know where it is being held until the morning of and you likely won't be privy to the menu, even upon arrival. Every soiree is a little different than the last. It is a chance for Del Torro and his guest chef, Tim Maslow of Stip T's to collaborate, unleash their creativity, and cook for an entirely new crowd. 

Out host Rayna Verbek oversees the operation while cheerful waitresses deliver courses and refill our champagne often. Del Torro works his magic in the kitchen but is also chatting up guests who wander towards the back of the (secret) establishment. He's calm and charismatic and wants to get to know you. He is vegan himself and therefore particularly fond of catering to special menu and diet requests in advance. My dinner guest and friend DeMane (who is vegan and has been for quite sometime) at one point during the meal looked at me and said "you can't get a vegan dinner like this in Boston, I'd have to go to New York for a meal this good."  (All photos pictured are of my meal, which was not vegan.)

An elevated crostini and cheese course kicks things off. One bite consists of sharp blue cheese meets juicy cantaloupe meets a swipe of roasted red pepper hummus over a soft slice of bread. Another is a sautéed zucchini draped over a spoonful of quinoa and a hunk of blueberry goat cheese. There was an eggplant and onion relish topped with a slice of manchego. The pairings were unexpected and the results truly harmonious. Overflowing with crisp greens and homemade croutons dressed with restraint, a caesar salad is delivered for course number two. I wasn't tallying up major points for creativity but this was a solid, straightforward dish as we moved towards more complex flavors. 

A farm fresh coddled egg in a bowl of sweet peas studded with sesame seeds, fresh mint and bathing in cilantro oil, was sensational. 

The piece de resistance, a perfectly poached egg topped with sautéed green onions, drenched the plump and springy peas in its runny yolk. This course sparked lots of conversation and elicited a kind of euphoria among our table and the table next to us (and presumably everyone around us) as we diligently scraped our bowls clean. The entrée showcases a gorgeous and generous portion of marinated medium rare skirt steak accompanied by a fingerling potato here, a sunchoke there, flanked by a bed of braised escarole over a chimichurri sauce and deep fried maitake mushrooms. This plate was interesting and dynamic, I felt the chefs personal and unique interpretation of the ingredients really shined through. 

A chocolate pot de crème for dessert is another revelation where the rich yet fluffy custard is enhanced with lemon confit, a butterscotch topping, sourdough croutons and fresh thyme. The ingredients strike an enchanting balance of sweet, sour and savory. We've ending the meal on a high note.

Suspense, surprise, incredible food and a serious amount of champagne (it's Dom Perignon, by the way) are a glimpse of what you can expect when dining at Barrio. Enjoying the moments of intrigue leading up the reveal, from the location to the next course are all a part of the experience.  

I received complimentary tickets to this dinner, however, was not required to write a review. If you are interested in attending a Barrio Pop Up, go here or here for more information on how to obtain tickets. And for some additional perspectives on this dinner, read my lovely dining companions blog posts here and here.

Catalyst Restaurant

The former chef of 28 Degrees and Aujourd'hui is serving up locally sourced modern American cuisine inside a once vacant warehouse turned casually elegant dining space in Cambridge's Technology Square.William Kovel's Catalyst warmly welcomes guests with a two-sided fireplace, a salvaged steel herb garden wall, hand blown glass light fixtures and potted succulents. The shiny industrial meets rustic reclaimed wood space is immaculate, the 30 foot sweeping windows immense and the rest of the contemporary décor is charming.

Megan, Bridget, Elizabeth, Shannon, Emily, Bianca and I were welcomed by the chef; he treated us to a splendid tasting of the menu. Appetizers and entrees were shared family style and desserts were showcased by way of individual sample platters.

I started with a composed cocktail named Grey Dawn ($10) made with Greylock, Aperol, orange and Peychauds bitters. It wasn't particularly exciting in comparison to some of my past Aperol libations, but it still got the job done. (Read - nicely laced with gin.)As the dishes are prepared with food that celebrates the seasons, the current menu is focused on the summer to fall staples from local purveyors and farms. The Farmers Market Vegetable Salad ($9) was light, fresh and delicious with ever so slightly pickled carrots, onions and beets under peppercress and crispy onions. Crispy Quail ($15) was also excellent enhanced by a black mission fig gastrique, minuza greens and autumn berry jam. The small gamey bird benefited from a delicate preparation and sweet syrupy pairings. Don't underestimate the Grilled Scallions ($6) served in a deeply flavorful walnut pesto. I imagine this dish on the side menu gets overlooked (I would not have given it a second glance) but they ended up being a table favorite. Grilling the scallions really seemed to heighten their otherwise mild onion flavor, the rich nutty pesto and soft set walnuts making them all the more swoon worthy.The Chicken Liver Mousse ($10) spoke to me with balanced and unobtrusive flavors. Soft and spreadable with a vessel of grilled country bread, a grainy mustard counterpart, pickled onions and a tiny herb salad, this was a surprisingly likable starter.
A ray of sunshine among a table of leafy greens and earth toned appetizers, the juicy orange yuzus and accompanying syrup brightened up the ensemble in a dish of Seared Spice Crusted Hiromasa ($11). The thinly sliced sashimi grade yellowtail amberjack (but not Hamachi as is more common - Hiromasa is Great Amberjack) mingled nicely in a zesty cucumber radish salad. I was thrilled when the Jerusalem "Sunchoke" Artichoke Soup ($9) was sent out, since sharing family style doesn't always prompt the chef to go with soup. The Jerusalem artichoke has no relation to Jerusalem and it is not a type of artichoke, but the flowers edible tuber actually resembles the taste of one. This frothy soup with a drizzle of curry oil for contrast was buttery with touches of both sweet and bitterness at once. The homemade pasta courses at Catalyst are simply radiant, imparted with warm melted butter based sauces that give a luxurious edge to the fresh ingredients. A tubular pasta with wide corduroy ridges, Garganelli ($10) proves a fun shape to eat. Ultimate luxury comes in the form of an earthy black truffle butter sauce. Small bites of crispy bacon enhance with a touch of smokiness. Chicken oysters look the part and are just about the smoothest most tender bite of chicken you never knew existed. Braised escarole greens lend bitterness while roasted carrot pearls give an extra touch of sweetness to the Candy Roaster Georgia Squash Tortellini ($10/$18) swimming in a golden buttery sauce. Flat toothsome pasta is folded up like an envelope to create a rustic tortellini of sorts, finished off with shaved Parmesan cheese. For the hat trick, Mushroom Ravioli ($10/$18) with hen of the woods mushrooms is a double dose of these earthy fall delights, also known as "the king of fall mushrooms." Smooth juicy caps and thick firm stems bathing in a flavorful cream sauce were lovely paired with purses of soft mushroom filling. The balance of textures is what truly allows all that mushroom to harmonize in one dish. Pasta certainly had us filled to the brim. The interlude of a a delicate fish, perfectly prepared to boot, the Lemon Sole ($27) with roasted baby fennel, creamed leeks and lobster (yes there is lobster under that fish!) in a vermouth butter was a solid entrée. So was the dish up next featuring Chilled Pork, however, this entrée does not appear on the menu.
Encrusted in a flavorful spice rub, the pork was nicely roasted and serving it cold with accompanying shaved apple slices and puree, fresh cilantro and a tart balsamic sauce worked in its favor. An impressive tasting of each dessert in miniature form, the folks at Catalyst truly took a go big or go home approach to this dinner. I was ever so grateful for their generosity and this personalized touch. Normal size desserts are $9.My favorite by far and away was the Butterscotch and Passionfruit Pudding with a warm pound cake crouton. Ripe tropical passionfruit and the classic brown sugar and butter confection have come together to create a love child, it is this pudding. No matter how full you are after eating 3 courses of pasta, you must try this dessert. We also sampled the juicy Bosc Pear Tart over house made crème fraiche ice cream, a Housemade Cantaloupe Sorbet with hazelnut brittle, and a Coconut Cake with creamsicle ice cream and chocolate ganache. Proving you can fit right in by standing out, Catalyst is a fantastic addition to the Kendall Square / MIT neighborhood. If you live or work in the area, it is the neighbor you always wish you had. And if you don't, it is absolutely worth a trip!

Catalyst Restaurant

300 Technology Square

Cambridge, MA