Roche Bros. Tasting Counter

The opening of Roche Bros. over a year and a half ago was a game changer for those of us who work or live in Downtown Crossing. I have hugely appreciated having them close by my office for lunch + snack options during the day and for quality grocery shopping trips after work. Their selection of sushi and maki rolls, artisanal baguette sandwiches and fresh out the oven chocolate chip cookies have been my go-tos.

Now, even more of game changer is their recently unveiled renovation: an impeccable 10,000 square foot space extending into the base of the Millennium Tower. This includes a tremendous selection of beer, wine, sake, alcohol, AND, a sleek new tasting bar offering fantastic lunch options!! Their well appointed tasting counter serves seasonal dishes prepared with fresh, locally sourced products that are sold in store.

I was super impressed with everything from the Seasonal Handcrafted Soda expertly flavored with thirst quenching mango + passionfruit, to the exquisite, fine dining caliber Yellowtail Poke, to the incredibly comforting Harpoon IPA Fondue. From their dessert counter a few aisles over, mini sweet treats are also a win, and I loved the thoughtful touch of red and green holiday flare on the plate! 

Counter service here is personable, knowledgeable and efficient. Bonus points for for presentation and aesthetic: that fire engine red mini cast iron staub! Stainless steel drinking straws! Sturdy plates made of recycled materials. Mini forks for fondue. Chopsticks for the poke. Eating lunch here was fun and enjoyable - this grocery store tasting counter simply did not miss a beat. 

Prices and descriptions below:

Yellowtail Poke ($14) local radish, cucumber, enoki mushrooms, yuzu + sesame dressing

Charcuterie Board ($11) - prosciutto, speck, pickled vegetables: snap peas, carrots and hearts of palm

Local Cheese and Harpoon IPA Fondue ($10) artisianal baguette + charred broccoli

Crispy Flatbread ($11) onion + tomato confit, charred broccoli, crumbled local feta

Mini Dessert Trio ($8) key lime tart, hazelnut cake, chocolate ganache cake. 
We also enjoyed a Cappuccino ($3.50) with dessert.

Right now, the tasting counter feels like an insider secret - but you should not hesitate to make it a destination!

P.S. Merry Christmas! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!!!

Roche Bros. @ Millennium Tower
8 Summer Street
Boston, MA 02110

*this meal was complimentary, all opinions are my own*

The Progress | San Francisco

We are 20 days into 2016 and I've found my favorite meal of the year! An impromptu girls trip over MLK weekend brought me to California, and I'm so glad I decided to make the journey. When is girl time in SFO, Sausalito, and Sonoma ever a bad idea?!

The Progress located in the Western Addition neighborhood of San Francisco defines themselves as a vehicle for a completely local production. Innovative banquet-style meals served with memorable wines. The greatest dinner party ever.

 

Everything about The Progress feels fresh and inspired. No one is doing it quite like they are here. Take for instance their Manhattan ($12) made with a smooth and intense black butter bourbon - the butter is made in house before it is steeped it in the bourbon. We also drank some delicious and interesting wines including a Georges Descombes Gamay ($14) (Morgon, Beaujolais, France) and a Piquentum Refosk ($15) (Istra, Croatia).

Meals are shared family style for a fixed price of $58, starting with five rotating small plates - served in a portion size to compliment your party. Pictured up close and personal are the bahri dates with hazelnut crema and bite size roasted carrots with curried yogurt. Then, smoked trout + seven pepper cracker, fish fry with kimchi tartar sauce, and buttermilk biscuits with apple bourbon black butter. These small tastes were a welcome prelude and we had fun each ranking our favorites to least favorites. 

Then you choose four meals which are listed on the menu from lightest to heaviest, with a recommendation to order two from the lighter section and two from the heavier section. We ended up with one light and three heavy - and although it was a bit too much food to finish as our waiter warned it would be, we were happy that we chose what spoke to us! 

In order of appearance: 

Fried Rice | tea-smoked liberty farms duck, lap cheong (Chinese sausage), bok choy + maitakes 

Celery Root Ravioli | wilted escarole, apple paste, shavings of goat gouda 

Half Moon Bay Black Cod | pea greens, pomelo + aromatic vinegar 

Lamb Merguez, Octopus + Crispy Squid | Mediterranean stewed yellow-eye beans

The Progress

1525 Fillmore Street

San Francisco, CA 94115

Branch Line | Watertown

Everything at Branch Line is excellent.  A neighborhood rotisserie and wood fire grill recently opened by the Eastern Standard Family in the historic Watertown Arsenal is lights out the best thing to ever happen to this town.

Sipping on: unique draft beers like Revolution Coup d'etat ($7) a Belgian style saison and Nightshift Ever Weisse ($7) a kiwi strawberry + hibiscus sour. (Anyone else feel me on the sour beers? Ever since Portland, I am always on the lookout). Eating: Fried Cheese ($6), Grilled Oysters ($13) with bagna cauda butter and pickled relish, Green Circle Rotisserie Roast Chicken (half bird/$17), Roasted Carrots ($7) with yogurt and parsley, and a Slow Roasted Goat with couscous, feta and pomegranate. 

It is so nice that Branch Line is 5 minutes down the street from Bob and I. (We live in Newton Corner.) The space is gorgeous and everything was really, really good! 

Branch Line

321 Arsenal Street

Watertown, MA 02472

Lolita | Cleveland

At Chef Michael Symon's chic and cozy Mediterranean bistro Lolita, there's an understated brilliance working its way into his dishes. Take the exemplary House made Pork Rinds ($6) which achieve a light and airy crispness, benefiting from a simple chili and lime seasoning that ever so nicely cuts their natural saltiness. The Crispy Pig Tails & Ears ($10) are another outstanding demonstration of the chefs prodigious ways with pork. The textures are spot on where crispy yet tender forkfuls meet a fennel-onion agrodolce, pickled chilies and cilantro. The Carrot Agnolotti ($18) presents elegantly braised rabbit that has been shredded and is bathing in a gorgeous, bright heirloom carrot agrumato. Side dishes of Fried Brussels Sprouts ($6) laced with caper, anchovy and walnut and Broccolini ($6) seasoned in Calabrian chili, olive oil, garlic, lemon and breadcrumb prove themselves worthy to stand alongside all these tremendous meat dishes. 

Cocktails are inventive and inspired. The Port Authority ($11) made with Makers Mark bourbon, LBV port, balsamic reduction and basil offers unique and deep flavors. The wine list is thoughtful and widely sourced despite the one Rosé offering of Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare ($12). I am always going to be on the lookout for Rosé this time of year. 

The small space is relaxing and tasteful, where soft lighting and exposed brick meet elaborate pressed gold ceilings. Heavy framed slate windows gaze out over a quaint block in the neighborhood of Tremont. Lolita would be the perfect host for an intimate girls dinner or a date night. The Destination Cleveland crew as a whole was thoroughly impressed with our first dinner out in C-Land. 

Lolita

Tremont

900 Literary Road

Cleveland, Ohio 44113

Sunflowers and Stars | Farm to Table Dinner

Tigerlily Events together with No. 8 Kitchen & Spirits of Amesbury hosted a six course farm-to-table dinner among the sprawling sunflower fields and under the twinkling country night stars at Colby Farms in Newbury. The evening was lively and entertaining; the perfect setting to catch up with my Mom and celebrate her birthday! The festivities kicked off with a hay ride pulled by a John Deer tractor through the majestic sunflowers as the sun went down. The tractor left us at the tent where we were greeted with appetizers of locally made cheeses and fresh vegetables paired with a fall harvest sangria. 

After we took our seats at the rustic tables arranged with fruits and vegetables, gorgeous flowers, cloth napkins and candle sticks flickering from wine bottles, the courses began. We feasted first on a roasted beet and arugula salad with ricotta salata shavings, followed by corn on the cob loaded with house cured ham. The wine pairings this evening were also local from Flag Hill Winery and Zorvino Vineyards both of New Hampshire. 

Filling the tent with a delightful smokey aroma, the hay roasted carrots and broccoli were fantastic. The charred hay flavor was so unique and the vegetables were elevated by wisps of soft prosciutto and dots of pomegranate seeds. Mom and I concurred that the next time we roast vegetables we would have to remember this pairing. It would make an awesome Thanksgiving side dish, too. The pork was slow roasted for FIFTEEN HOURS, yielding incredibly juicy and tender bites from each perfectly carved piece. It was served with a squash puree and roasted Yukon gold potatoes. Lastly, we enjoyed an apple crumble with ice cream and whipped cream, paired with a Baldwin apple mead from Russel Orchards.

Many thanks and heartfelt gratitude to all who played a roll in this beautiful and memorable evening, especially Tara Nelson who runs Tigerlily Event planning and Chef Chris Jackson of No 8 Kitchen. Here's to many more successful, inspiring and locally sourced events in the future!!