snow day x Deluxe Town Diner

Hello! It certainly has been a minute (a month and a half) but I know no one is counting. Wedding planning, guys! It's all about that. (And skiing, duh!)

I'm the bride who's wedding "dreams" originally involved an elopement - and now I have a collection of SIXTY EIGHT antique bottles (my own. my moms. plus a friends) to use as vases to decorate my 20 round tables. This has involved a lot of time, planning and inspiration: researching and choosing from the many varieties of flowers + their color combinations. Calculating the number of stems + bunches. Factoring in the the cost. Planning of the DIY project that is bottling your own arrangements of unprocessed bulk flowers. Antiquing and hunting for special bottles, plus flower arranging was actually a fun way to spend a Saturday with my Mom. She is an expert gardener and knows all things flowers. 

Bob and I also hired a band this past weekend! Choosing songs and picturing everyone on the dance floor is a real feel good part of planning. It makes me the most excited to celebrate with everyone.

Back to the food. When at Watertown's greasy spoon, Deluxe Town Diner one must always order 1 SWEET POTATO PANCAKE on the side, literally the best pancake you have ever tasted. We always do, except on this day we didn't. I had the Cherry Babka instead!

PS I fully realize the irony of posting this snowy day when it is 70* out in Boston. 

Lalo | Mexico City

Our in-the-know food guides at Club Tengo Hambre raved about Lalo's brunch; I am so grateful we took them up on this recommend! Situated on a lovely street in the boho chic neighborhood of Roma Norte, the charming, airy space with its colorful cartoon walls and sprawling communal butcher block table serves up tremendous food. We decided to stick with classic breakfast cocktails - mimosas and well made bloody marys all around.

We ordered four dishes to share, plus a basket of baked-in-house bread and pastries - the banana bread was out of this world good. Then, a simple but elegant plate of prosciutto y melon nicely punctuates the dishes to come. The Huevos con escamoles 🍳🐜 which are scrambled eggs with ant larve was a must order per Mariana and Jason at CTH. As they kept raving on about it, I'm thinking this dish has something of a cult following among DFs food community. Consumed since the age of the Aztecs, escamole (among other insects) are a staple in Mexican cuisine. The girls and I can vouch for their texture and taste, these are smooth, buttery, slightly nutty bites; and they are especially delicious when folded into soft scrambled eggs topped with heaps of avocado, red onion, cilantro and cheese! A fantastic chorizo + sweet potato frittata with a black bean sauce rounds out the shareable savory plates. Thick cut fluffy french toast topped with berry compote and a quinelle of whipped cream turns out to be another must order. 

Lalo is the perfect neighborhood spot for ladies who brunch! (Bob was sick and had to sit this one out).

Lalo!

Calle Zacatecas 173, 

Roma, Cuauhtémoc 

06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico

Newton, Lately

Blue Ribbon BBQ | West Newton

This plate was actually from the Lexington Battle Green BBQ Festival. We were biking along the Minuteman Trail and out of nowhere live music and smokin' ribs, pulled pork, beans, coleslaw, mac n cheese, cornbread, the works!! 

Max and Leo's | Newton Corner

At Max and Leo's tiny Newton Corner establishment the 900 degree coal fired oven turns out exquisite artisan pies. See also: a Definitive Guide to Boston Pizza in the Improper Bostonian and Boston's 12 Best Pizza Joints in the Boston Globe.

 

Truly their coal fired pizza and cozy Newton Corner digs are the BEST. Start with a nice glass of red wine and a Fire-Roasted Stuffed Red Pepper with rice, chicken, vegetables + drizzled with a balsamic glaze; then go half and half with their creative pies. For tomato sauce based, half Dante / meatballs, house-made mozzarella, roasted red pepper + basil with half Jero’s Pineapple / house-made mozzarella, bacon, pineapple, + jalapeño is a winning combo. And if you're in a white olive oil base kinda mood the L’Umina with sliced pears, caramelized onions, basil, ricotta cheese, fresh-sliced Prosciutto + drizzle of organic wildflower honey with half L’Oscar / Italian sausage, caramelized onions, wild mushrooms, mascarpone + mozzarella cheese will really do the trick. Also in the white pizza category I really like The Brooksy ($17.95) with grilled chicken, caramelized onions, wild mushroom, mascarpone and mozzarella cheese. The Marley ($16.75) is a classic red pizza finished with arugula, shaved parmesan and a balsamic drizzle. I guess I have basically had every pizza on the menu at this point so - trust!

Max & Leo's 

325 Washington St.
Newton, MA 02458 

Cook | Newtonville (update - they moved to Needham!)

Cook is a great restaurant to have in the neighborhood where a cheerful modern space serves creative American comforts. The Banana French Toast ($12) is made with Portuguese sweet bread. I paired a Bellini ($9) with the Smokey Pepper Grilled Cheese ($12) made with manchego, house boursin, crispy shallots and a smoky pepper jam with a side of leafy greens and sweet pickles. Yum!

Shake Shack | Chestnut Hill

Love indulging in a Shake Shack Burger and their golden crinkle cut fries. SO GOOD.  P.S. Their 100th Location just opened in the Seaport!!

Where have you been eating in your city or neighborhood lately?!

Menemsha | Martha's Vineyard

This was my first time up island!! Past visits to Martha's Vineyard always brought me to the down island hustle of Oak Bluffs and Edgartown. The remote towns of Chilmark and Aquinnah provide an entirely different Martha's Vineyard experience. They are quiet and calming with sprawling farmlands and headlands leading to some of the most gorgeous beaches I've ever encountered. Seriously!

Menemsha is a dreamy little fishing village in the town of Chilmark. No matter where the days adventures take you, everyone gathers at Menemsha Beach for the epic cotton candy sunsets with lobster dinners from the neighboring fish markets. People swear by the seafood at Larsen's, but we ended up at Menemsha Fish Market simply to avoid a long line. Their raw bar and all things lobster: bisque, whole steamed + the hot lobster roll were terrific. I wouldn't hesitate to head there if Larsen's has a crowd. Seafood doesn't get any fresher than a dockside fish market so as long as you hit one up you're doing Menemsha right!

We stayed at The Menemsha Inn. Based on the impeccable website and the hefty midweek price tag ($340/night and we picked the least expensive room at the Teahouse), we expected more. On the positive side, the inn itself is lovely with grounds and gardens that are peaceful and well maintained. It is conveniently walkable to the harbor beach via a winding path that slopes down the hill and opens up to a beautiful marsh. They serve lemonade and fresh baked cookies daily. Our plush king size bed was super comfy. On the contrary - the bathroom ceiling paint peeling off in large chunks and the cushions on our patio furniture steeped with mold felt like they overlooked some key details. Our room came with wine glasses but not a wine opener - I had to sign my life away at the front desk to borrow one (easy win for the inn: provide each room a wine key). Nowhere on the website did it mention bike rentals were extra ($10/day) but the bikes are old, rickety and rusty so they didn't charge us, which was fair. 

Essentially, if this were a $200/night hotel I might not blink at any of these annoyances (because we had such an amazing time) but this room was expensive; I felt it was only fair to note for those looking to plan a trip. Expectations can be everything.

The Menemsha Inn's sister property The Beach Plum Inn has a picturesque restaurant that serves breakfast from 7:30 - 10:30 am. Whether you are a guest a the property or not, I'd recommend stopping in for their breakfast with a view - my Portuguese Bread French Toast and Bob's Pastrami Eggs Benedict were really tasty.

Staying at The Menemsha Inn gives you access to Chilmark's renowned Lucy Vincent or Squibnocket beaches. A big deal was made to take the walk on pass though ("THIS IS A $100 PASS, DO NOT LOOSE IT." Okay, okay, I got it!) I quickly came to realize this pass is a big deal as you cannot walk onto the beach or park in their lot without one. LVB is also known for her nude sunbathing section. I've been to beaches all over and I'm telling you, Lucy Vincent is unparalleled. The shoreline is breathtaking with cliffs outstretched on one end, a classic dune-scape reaching towards the other and the water is pure comfort - warm yet refreshing and crystal clear with the perfect waves to drift around on or bodysurf.

If you do not bring a car on island the VTA Transit system has you covered. With 13 routes the buses are reliable even though the schedule can be tricky to navigate from one side of the island to the other. From Oak Bluffs to Menemsha for example it is three buses and will take you over an hour. (It is about 45 minutes with a car, I believe.) If you were up island for longer than two days you'd probably want to bring or rent a car. Also, many of the roads in Chilmark are NOT bike friendly. There are dangerous blind turns which we were warned when checking in that bikers have no business being on. I didn't expect this. So even though it's remote, there are just a few main roads that see plenty of car traffic.

And the final big tip if you are headed up Island: These are all dry towns so plan accordingly! (This means there are no liquor stores and the restaurants do not serve alcohol. Most are BYOB.) We packed our Yeti Hopper Cooler with cans of beer, two bottles of wine (1 Sancerre, 1 Rosé) and 2 flasks of gin, plus a tonic water. It basically went like this - a couple cans of beer on the beach each day, gin + tonics for happy hour at the inn or the harbor docks in town, and a bottle of wine with dinner each night! 

I have a lot more MV vacation fun and recommendations that I hope to get around to soon! I hope you all are having a wonderful summer and enjoying the heat wave!