Aquitaine | Chestnut Hill

Camden's NanaK visited and we took her out to Aquitaine for Mother's Day! 

Perfectly cooked Seared Duck Breast ($36) with a crispy skin encasing tender meat parades around a luscious madeira jus with artichokes and fava beans. This was a memorable entrée.

Profiteroles ($14.50) are a revelation sandwiching a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, drizzled with Belgian chocolate and a topping of powdered sugar.

This little video is a boomerang look at the piping hot Escargot Bourguignon sizzling in butter, garlic, parsley and pernod. ($15.50). A must order appetizer!

A classic French bistro atmosphere and well executed cuisine to match, Aquitaine Chestnut Hill is one of our favorites!

Aquitaine

11 Boylston St

Chestnut Hill, MA 02467

Little Donkey

We kicked off a rare summer Friday in the city with a friends 30th birthday bar crawl at Charlie's Kitchen and bowed out after a few beers because - Little Donkey. Chefs Ken Oringer + Jamie Bissonete (Toro + Coppa) are my favorite! The fact that they are doing something entirely different here has been highly anticipated and so.much.fun. My only gripe was the uni; there was barely a bite each in that spiny black shell. I expected luscious, overflowing, bight orange sea urchin and was definitely disappointed. For me, it doesn't warrant spending $18. Everything else is fair game. The best dish that we ate was the Wok Fried Chow Fun. Runner up was the Monkfish Biryani. The Cucumber Feta Salad was a surprise from the kitchen - so nice of them to send that out!

Oysters ($3/each) Crowes Pasture (Dennis, MA) + Kusshi (British Columbia, CAN)

Live Santa Barbara Uni ($18) dashi, yuzu, chicharron

Black Pepper Popovers ($14) Wagyu Steak Tartare

Charred Avocado ($5) Pepitas, yogurt, pomegranate molasses

Cucumber Salad ($9) feta, buttermilk, spicy peppers

Wok Fried Chow Fun ($15) soft shell crab, rice noodles, mushrooms, escargot, 

Calabrian chili, black beans, green curry. 

Monkfish Biryani ($16) basmati rice, saffron cashews, cardamom

Octopus a la Plancha ($16) (unpictured) charred onion vinaigrette, potato tostones 

Matcha Pofiterols ($9) hot fudge, Pocky sticks

Little Donkey

505 Massachusetts Avenue

Cambridge, MA 02139 

TreMonté Restaurant & Bar

Chef/Owner Anthony Contarino opened TreMonté Restaurant & Bar in the bustling downtown area of Woburn Center back in 2003. As a boy growing up in Medford with not one, but two Italian Grandmothers, his curiosity in the kitchen stemmed from a young age. Sunday mornings rolling pasta dough with his grandmothers combined with formal training from Johnson and Whales, his food is a heartwarming exemplification of both passion and technique. I arrived at the complimentary blogger dinner to a table set for ten with bread baskets and accompanying red pepper and herb infused olive oil, uncorked bottles of wine ready to be consumed and a waitress eager to take our drink order should wine not suffice. I helped myself to the bread and started with the 2009 Colterenzio Pinot Bianco Weisshaus a light bodied combination of fresh fruit with a hint of minerals that paired nicely with the array of appetizers that shortly followed. Each antipasti presented was impeccably prepared with an unmistakable Italian authenticity. I would not hesitate to recommend every single one, the only deciding factor should come down to what you're in the mood for. The Arancini ($8.99) deserves my highest compliments. Living in Boston's Little Italy, I've tasted some of the best and this is right up there with it. Melted cheese encased by ground meat cascades out of crispy fried rice balls. Flavorful marinara, fresh grated Parmesan and a chiffonade of basil prove no detail was overlooked. In the Melazana ($8.99) breaded eggplant is layered with tomato basil sauce and mozzarella cheese, then baked and generously topped with a silky, creamy, basil pesto alfredo sauce. That sauce was something to appreciate! Often individual sauces are a pesto or an Alfredo, however, the combination of both, to me, felt adventurous! The egg battered Shrimp Grand Mariner ($11.99) offered something entirely different to the antipasto round up. Foregoing the typical savory sauce, the citrusy orange liqueur is reduced to a sweet glaze that complimented the well cooked, lightly battered shrimp. The next appetizer is simply labeled on the menu as Sausage ($9.99) which is a grilled garlic and cheese sausage over a bed of spinach and cannellini beans. That flavorful broth lent a comforting element to the dish, proving another worthy antipasti choice. Often the defining factor of an Italian chefs prowess, the Bolognese ($17.99) uses Chef Contarino's own special recipe combining beef, pork and veal in a white wine based sauce. When the hearty flavorful sauce meets with long flat strands of undeniably fresh homemade tagliatelle, this dish outshines even some of the most satisfactory Bolognese I've tasted in the North End. (I can't help but compare!) At this point I decided a glass of the red wine was in order. The 2006 Villa di Vetrice Chianti Rufina Riserva is a classic Italian dry red wine. It had rich red berry notes and a clean finish. For my entrée I chose the Veal Saltimbocca which was one of the evenings specials. Given a choice of homemade pasta, I chose the Fusilli at the strong urging of the waitress. Two generous slabs of breaded veal are pounded thin and topped with melted cheese and salty slices of prosciutto. Long thick grooved ribbons of al dente fusilli were tender while remaining firm, their freshness unparalleled. Bright, lemony flavors bring the dish together enhancing the veal and fusilli all the more. The entire table was equally as impressed with their entrees, many ordered the same thing as me, others the classic Chicken Parmigana and Grilled Swordfish. Preceding dessert we were offered coffee or espresso. I added a "tini" onto the latter and our waitress happily obliged. With a full bar and a lengthy martini menu to match, it only felt right to sample one at some point. The cold frothy Espresso Martini ($9) did not disappoint. Neither did dessert. Imported Italian sweets include Tiramisu ($6), Cannolis ($6) and Profiteroles ($6.50). The desserts remain traditional with exception of the profiteroles, which are filled with cappuccino gelato! (Usually its vanilla or pastry cream.) I loved this swap! Our waitresses genuine hospitality resonated throughout dinner; as well all our dishes were delivered timely and with precision. As for Chef Contarino, I could embark on a paragraph about the characteristics that make him who he is and as a result, this restaurant what it is. However, I'd simply like to let this snapshot speak for itself. If you find yourself seeking an alternative to all that city dining entails, look no further than Woburn's TreMonté Restaurant & Bar. I actually found it refreshing to experience Italian fine dining outside the confines of the North End. Serving up hearty portions of Italian cuisine from the classics to some new creations in an unpretentious space with reasonable prices to match, Tre Monté is deserving of all the praise I have to offer.

TreMonté Restaurant & Bar

397 Main Street

Woburn, MA 01801