Easter Weekend in Boston -- Trip Report
Apr 7th, 2015, 05:40 AM
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Easter Weekend in Boston -- Trip Report
Back a couple months ago, it seemed like Boston would be a great place to go for Easter -- should be lovely spring weather. Well . . . not so much. Incredible wind storms for two days, temps dropping to around freezing at night, highs just around 50 but mostly in the low to mid 40s, and lots of rain off and on all day Saturday and Friday evening. Oh well.
Peter took Friday afternoon off, so I picked him up at his office in Somerset, NJ at 11:30 for what should have been a 4 and a half hour drive to Boston. Ooops. Horrible traffic. We tried to follow directions of a couple Fodorites using the Saw MIll River Parkway and I-84 to I-90. The Saw Mill was mainly 40 miles an hour -- jammed with traffic heading north, and I-84 was at a standstill a number of times. We arrived Boston about 6, not 4:30 or 5 as expected, but surprisingly there was almost no traffic once we got to Boston (at least inbound).
Meanwhile we stopped for a sort of annual "fix" -- a Whopper at a service center on the Garden State Parkway. After standing in line we were told "It's Good Friday. We have no burgers today, just chicken". Was that a joke? What kind of sense does it make? Fish, maybe (but still a real stretch) but chicken only for Good Friday? Anyway, we had chili dogs from Nathan's instead -- thinking how much better the $1.50 foot longs are at Costco!
We checked into the Hyatt Regency -- theatre district, or more accurately what is now called Downtown Crossing). Nice hotel and we were double upgraded (we're both Hyatt Platinum) to a 19th floor corner room which had just been redone -- we were the first people in this room. Especially nice since we were using two nights as our free nights from our Hyatt credit cards (our free rooms would expire this month) and only paid for one night which had reduced twice after booking to only $162. Nice.
We had a 7:45 reservation at No. 9 Park. After a quick clean up at the hotel, we headed that way. We were actually quite hungry -- Nathan's hotdogs had worn off. We had read that the bar there is wonderful, so the plan was to arrive an hour early and have cocktails in the bar. But when we arrived, first we were surprised by the place a bit. We had read it is very dressy, even having a fairly strict dress code, although jackets and ties are not required. When we walked in were faced at the table almost blocking the door by two guys who looked like they just jogged in -- both is sweat pants, one in sweatshirt, the other in a wet T shirt, trainers, etc. OK. Just kind of a surprise. It was a very young, VERY LOUD crowd. We checked with the host, and said we were an hour early but we'd just have a drink in the bar. We received attitude, "We are very busy and you are far too early, you can't just walk in and expect to be seated". HUH? Did he really just say that? We repeated that we were just going to have a drink first in the bar -- maybe he missed that but we thought we were clear -- but then he pointed out the bar was full. It was, and it's a very tight place. Not a seat at the bar. There's a sort of curved bench in the front window which was sort of filled, but a couple moved over and we squeezed it to share a tiny table with them. After awhile the waitress came and we ordered our drinks. Not wanting to start drinking with nothing in our stomachs we asked if they had bar nuts or nibbles. She looked at us like we were from another planet and said "we don't do that here". Huh? The Ritz Carlton does, the Four Seasons does -- are you suggesting that's only a sports bar thing? But she handed us bar menus -- really pretty full menus, with the only "nibbles" sort of thing being a $9 bowl of olives. Peter doesn't even eat olives in his martinis, so we'd do without. But here we were faced with an hour wait drinking, and not even a peanut. So I walked over and checked with the host, asking if by any chance there might be an earlier table. He seemed shocked that I'd even ask, but then said "You can eat in the bar", and yes there were a couple of high top tables (you're not allowed to sit there UNLESS you're eating), actually fairly well spaced that were available, including one at the far end, which frankly looked like it offered a lot more space and privacy that the two tops in the dining room which are lined along the wall and pulled out for someone to sit in the banquette, then pushed back -- you know, like basically communal dining with 3 or 4 inches between the tables. This was NOT what we had expected in the dining room either. So we said "sure" and took the more spacious high top in the bar.
We asked about the menu "are these meant to be small shared plates, or more like individual entrees?" "They could be shared, but essentially they are the equivalent of a full entree". OK. Peter had already had his eye on the pork belly, which he loves. It's called "Crispy Pork Belly,apple jus, poached egg, kale" . I ordered "Marinated Lamb, gorgonzola fondue, brioche, mixed greens", which the waiter said is probably their top entree. (These were $21 and $24). There weren't any appetizers listed and we thought about splitting a third dish as one but nothing else was grabbing us, so we stuck with that. Finally the drinks we had ordered at the bench up front arrived (it had now been about 15 to 20 minutes since we had ordered them). Peter ordered a rye manhattan and I had ordered my usual Dewar's Dry Robroy straight up with a twist. She had returned to tell me they don't have Dewar's, would Famous Grouse be OK, and I said yes. But when the drinks came they looked alike, very dark -- way too dark for a dry robroy, and I mentioned that but she said "no this one is the dry robroy" -- seemed to have a lot of attitude again. Well, I don't know what the drink was -- some sort of concoction of vermouths and bitters, and maybe there was a splash of scotch in it. Peter, actually kind of liked his, but clearly it was not simply rye and sweet vermouth -- although she had asked if he wanted a cherry or a twist, he said a cherry, but he actually got a wedge of orange. Was this an old fashioned -- but served straight up perhaps? Who knows?
Then our food came. Our eyes opened. If we had ordered the tasting menu, these would be appropriate dishes for one of the many "tastes". Entrees? Seriously? Let me say, we do not normally like huge portions of food, in fact we complain way more about "too much food" not "too little". . .but. Mine? Picture a 3/4 inch thick piece of bread that is about 2 inches square, toasted, and cut tic-tac-toe fashion into 9 cubes or croutons. Atop each of those little cubes was a smaller cube of lamb, about 1/2 inch cube. So the 9 tiny pieces of lamb could not have been more that maybe 1 1/2 to 2 ounces total! There were also three (count 'em) bites of Boston lettuce lightly drizzled with oil and vinegar. But on the plate was an individual ceramic fondue pot with a candle burner. It had a layer of gorgonzola fondue in it -- which was amazing. But after I dipped the first piece of lamb into the pot, I realized "what's the point of the lamb as you can't taste it covered with gorgonzola?". The waiter meanwhile brought us bread and suggested it was for dipping up the fondue. The lamb was good, but very plain and of course, very tiny. The fondue was delicious and very rich. It was an odd combination I thought in retrospect. But then there was Peter's pork belly. The dish came in a small bowl with a big rim, sort of like a soup plate. There was maybe a large teaspoon of cooked greens in the bowl surrounded by four pieces of pork belly, I'd say 3/4 inch by 1 inch each. Total perhaps a little more than I got of lamb. But "crispy"? Not at all. Pork belly is of course, basically fat with a little streaky meat in it. Not crispy and it is like eating soggy fat. That's what this was. Not even a hint of crispy crust or even browning on the pork belly. So that was our experience. We didn't want dessert at this place. We paid our bill and left. HUGELY disappointed. We laughed about it for two days!
OK, we were tired, so early night.
Saturday was cold, but fairly sunny. We headed up the street to Boston Coffee company for Americanos and muffins (this is normally our preferred traveling breakfast). We then took the subway to Cambridge and did a lot of walking, poking in some stores (we >almost< bought hats at the wonderful hat shop, but backed out). We looked at the Harvard Museum and the Library. Just had a pleasant walk. I spotted a surprise. Wagamama -- one of my favorites from London has come to the US. There are now 4 of them in the Boston area (the only US ones so far) and there was one in Cambridge. We had lunch there -- fantastic huge bowls of ramen. Mine was with duck (some crispy, some shredded, but all delicious). And Peter's was -- you guessed it -- with Pork Belly. No.9 should go take lessons. Even though the pieces of pork belly (easily twice as much as the night before) were sitting in broth, they were still delightfully crispy and delicious! This was a wonderful lunch which couldn't have been better on a cold, blustery, drizzly day.
We took the subway to Park Street and did lots more walking, kind of following the freedom trail. Passing the Omni Parker House I mentioned it was the home of Parker House Rolls and Boston Cream Pie, both of which I had to explain to Peter who had never heard of either, except he did mention he thought Boston Creme Pie was a flavor of Dunkin Donuts! So what could we do? Into the bar and had coffee and split an order of Boston Cream Pie. Surprise -- not looking like what I know as Boston Cream Pie, but now rather individual pastries with a fancy white and dark chocolate "spider web" on top" and the sides covered with almonds. Hmmm. You invented Boston Cream Pie which became famous, but you felt the need to change it to something else? I fully expected a wedge like I've know Boston Cream Pie to be. Frankly, it was kind of stale and not fresh tasting, and the custard filling had absolutely NO flavor.
But on we went to Quincy Market, Fanneuil Hall, etc. then ended up walking back to our hotel about the time I thought my legs would fall off.
We had made a reservation for dinner at Ostra that night, but in the morning we had a discussion. With our horrible experience the night before we started expecting more of the same. I'm not sure why, just a thought about "hot, trendy restaurants". Do we want a "trendy" perhaps "pretentious with attitude" place again? Will the servings be more like tastings -- more about being "presentations"? We read some mixed reviews (mostly clearly written by true "foodies") which were hard to interpret. Meanwhile across the street from our hotel is a one year old Legal Crossing (LX) which is new "trendier" version of Legal Seafood. We read reviews which really seemed to be more basic raves than Ostra. >>>>Yes, we know they are two totally different things, but we decided let's just do LX.
Peter took Friday afternoon off, so I picked him up at his office in Somerset, NJ at 11:30 for what should have been a 4 and a half hour drive to Boston. Ooops. Horrible traffic. We tried to follow directions of a couple Fodorites using the Saw MIll River Parkway and I-84 to I-90. The Saw Mill was mainly 40 miles an hour -- jammed with traffic heading north, and I-84 was at a standstill a number of times. We arrived Boston about 6, not 4:30 or 5 as expected, but surprisingly there was almost no traffic once we got to Boston (at least inbound).
Meanwhile we stopped for a sort of annual "fix" -- a Whopper at a service center on the Garden State Parkway. After standing in line we were told "It's Good Friday. We have no burgers today, just chicken". Was that a joke? What kind of sense does it make? Fish, maybe (but still a real stretch) but chicken only for Good Friday? Anyway, we had chili dogs from Nathan's instead -- thinking how much better the $1.50 foot longs are at Costco!
We checked into the Hyatt Regency -- theatre district, or more accurately what is now called Downtown Crossing). Nice hotel and we were double upgraded (we're both Hyatt Platinum) to a 19th floor corner room which had just been redone -- we were the first people in this room. Especially nice since we were using two nights as our free nights from our Hyatt credit cards (our free rooms would expire this month) and only paid for one night which had reduced twice after booking to only $162. Nice.
We had a 7:45 reservation at No. 9 Park. After a quick clean up at the hotel, we headed that way. We were actually quite hungry -- Nathan's hotdogs had worn off. We had read that the bar there is wonderful, so the plan was to arrive an hour early and have cocktails in the bar. But when we arrived, first we were surprised by the place a bit. We had read it is very dressy, even having a fairly strict dress code, although jackets and ties are not required. When we walked in were faced at the table almost blocking the door by two guys who looked like they just jogged in -- both is sweat pants, one in sweatshirt, the other in a wet T shirt, trainers, etc. OK. Just kind of a surprise. It was a very young, VERY LOUD crowd. We checked with the host, and said we were an hour early but we'd just have a drink in the bar. We received attitude, "We are very busy and you are far too early, you can't just walk in and expect to be seated". HUH? Did he really just say that? We repeated that we were just going to have a drink first in the bar -- maybe he missed that but we thought we were clear -- but then he pointed out the bar was full. It was, and it's a very tight place. Not a seat at the bar. There's a sort of curved bench in the front window which was sort of filled, but a couple moved over and we squeezed it to share a tiny table with them. After awhile the waitress came and we ordered our drinks. Not wanting to start drinking with nothing in our stomachs we asked if they had bar nuts or nibbles. She looked at us like we were from another planet and said "we don't do that here". Huh? The Ritz Carlton does, the Four Seasons does -- are you suggesting that's only a sports bar thing? But she handed us bar menus -- really pretty full menus, with the only "nibbles" sort of thing being a $9 bowl of olives. Peter doesn't even eat olives in his martinis, so we'd do without. But here we were faced with an hour wait drinking, and not even a peanut. So I walked over and checked with the host, asking if by any chance there might be an earlier table. He seemed shocked that I'd even ask, but then said "You can eat in the bar", and yes there were a couple of high top tables (you're not allowed to sit there UNLESS you're eating), actually fairly well spaced that were available, including one at the far end, which frankly looked like it offered a lot more space and privacy that the two tops in the dining room which are lined along the wall and pulled out for someone to sit in the banquette, then pushed back -- you know, like basically communal dining with 3 or 4 inches between the tables. This was NOT what we had expected in the dining room either. So we said "sure" and took the more spacious high top in the bar.
We asked about the menu "are these meant to be small shared plates, or more like individual entrees?" "They could be shared, but essentially they are the equivalent of a full entree". OK. Peter had already had his eye on the pork belly, which he loves. It's called "Crispy Pork Belly,apple jus, poached egg, kale" . I ordered "Marinated Lamb, gorgonzola fondue, brioche, mixed greens", which the waiter said is probably their top entree. (These were $21 and $24). There weren't any appetizers listed and we thought about splitting a third dish as one but nothing else was grabbing us, so we stuck with that. Finally the drinks we had ordered at the bench up front arrived (it had now been about 15 to 20 minutes since we had ordered them). Peter ordered a rye manhattan and I had ordered my usual Dewar's Dry Robroy straight up with a twist. She had returned to tell me they don't have Dewar's, would Famous Grouse be OK, and I said yes. But when the drinks came they looked alike, very dark -- way too dark for a dry robroy, and I mentioned that but she said "no this one is the dry robroy" -- seemed to have a lot of attitude again. Well, I don't know what the drink was -- some sort of concoction of vermouths and bitters, and maybe there was a splash of scotch in it. Peter, actually kind of liked his, but clearly it was not simply rye and sweet vermouth -- although she had asked if he wanted a cherry or a twist, he said a cherry, but he actually got a wedge of orange. Was this an old fashioned -- but served straight up perhaps? Who knows?
Then our food came. Our eyes opened. If we had ordered the tasting menu, these would be appropriate dishes for one of the many "tastes". Entrees? Seriously? Let me say, we do not normally like huge portions of food, in fact we complain way more about "too much food" not "too little". . .but. Mine? Picture a 3/4 inch thick piece of bread that is about 2 inches square, toasted, and cut tic-tac-toe fashion into 9 cubes or croutons. Atop each of those little cubes was a smaller cube of lamb, about 1/2 inch cube. So the 9 tiny pieces of lamb could not have been more that maybe 1 1/2 to 2 ounces total! There were also three (count 'em) bites of Boston lettuce lightly drizzled with oil and vinegar. But on the plate was an individual ceramic fondue pot with a candle burner. It had a layer of gorgonzola fondue in it -- which was amazing. But after I dipped the first piece of lamb into the pot, I realized "what's the point of the lamb as you can't taste it covered with gorgonzola?". The waiter meanwhile brought us bread and suggested it was for dipping up the fondue. The lamb was good, but very plain and of course, very tiny. The fondue was delicious and very rich. It was an odd combination I thought in retrospect. But then there was Peter's pork belly. The dish came in a small bowl with a big rim, sort of like a soup plate. There was maybe a large teaspoon of cooked greens in the bowl surrounded by four pieces of pork belly, I'd say 3/4 inch by 1 inch each. Total perhaps a little more than I got of lamb. But "crispy"? Not at all. Pork belly is of course, basically fat with a little streaky meat in it. Not crispy and it is like eating soggy fat. That's what this was. Not even a hint of crispy crust or even browning on the pork belly. So that was our experience. We didn't want dessert at this place. We paid our bill and left. HUGELY disappointed. We laughed about it for two days!
OK, we were tired, so early night.
Saturday was cold, but fairly sunny. We headed up the street to Boston Coffee company for Americanos and muffins (this is normally our preferred traveling breakfast). We then took the subway to Cambridge and did a lot of walking, poking in some stores (we >almost< bought hats at the wonderful hat shop, but backed out). We looked at the Harvard Museum and the Library. Just had a pleasant walk. I spotted a surprise. Wagamama -- one of my favorites from London has come to the US. There are now 4 of them in the Boston area (the only US ones so far) and there was one in Cambridge. We had lunch there -- fantastic huge bowls of ramen. Mine was with duck (some crispy, some shredded, but all delicious). And Peter's was -- you guessed it -- with Pork Belly. No.9 should go take lessons. Even though the pieces of pork belly (easily twice as much as the night before) were sitting in broth, they were still delightfully crispy and delicious! This was a wonderful lunch which couldn't have been better on a cold, blustery, drizzly day.
We took the subway to Park Street and did lots more walking, kind of following the freedom trail. Passing the Omni Parker House I mentioned it was the home of Parker House Rolls and Boston Cream Pie, both of which I had to explain to Peter who had never heard of either, except he did mention he thought Boston Creme Pie was a flavor of Dunkin Donuts! So what could we do? Into the bar and had coffee and split an order of Boston Cream Pie. Surprise -- not looking like what I know as Boston Cream Pie, but now rather individual pastries with a fancy white and dark chocolate "spider web" on top" and the sides covered with almonds. Hmmm. You invented Boston Cream Pie which became famous, but you felt the need to change it to something else? I fully expected a wedge like I've know Boston Cream Pie to be. Frankly, it was kind of stale and not fresh tasting, and the custard filling had absolutely NO flavor.
But on we went to Quincy Market, Fanneuil Hall, etc. then ended up walking back to our hotel about the time I thought my legs would fall off.
We had made a reservation for dinner at Ostra that night, but in the morning we had a discussion. With our horrible experience the night before we started expecting more of the same. I'm not sure why, just a thought about "hot, trendy restaurants". Do we want a "trendy" perhaps "pretentious with attitude" place again? Will the servings be more like tastings -- more about being "presentations"? We read some mixed reviews (mostly clearly written by true "foodies") which were hard to interpret. Meanwhile across the street from our hotel is a one year old Legal Crossing (LX) which is new "trendier" version of Legal Seafood. We read reviews which really seemed to be more basic raves than Ostra. >>>>Yes, we know they are two totally different things, but we decided let's just do LX.
Apr 7th, 2015, 05:47 AM
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Oh, should I mention that when we arrived home in Lambertville NJ, yesterday afternoon it was a sunny and gorgeous 72 degrees? I liked at weather.com and found that it was currently 41 in Boston. That's huge difference for two places not really that far apart. You Bostonians have had a horrible winter. I hope you get some nice spring soon!
Apr 7th, 2015, 06:07 AM
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Thanks for the report Patrick. I'm sorry your experience at #9 Park was so bad. My recollection of the place was that the food didn't live up to the hype, but I really don't remember it being quite so precious. Then again, I think we did the tasting menu so probably expected tiny portions.
The problem of crowded bars, and no seats unless you are eating there seems to be a common one around Boston. Maybe its because these places are so small. And because people are eating meals at the bar, they don't offer any kind of nuts or anything. That does seem to be par for the course for restaurant bars here. Not hotel bars like the Ritz, but definitely true in restaurants here.
At least the rest of your dining went well. Sounds like a good weekend overall.
The problem of crowded bars, and no seats unless you are eating there seems to be a common one around Boston. Maybe its because these places are so small. And because people are eating meals at the bar, they don't offer any kind of nuts or anything. That does seem to be par for the course for restaurant bars here. Not hotel bars like the Ritz, but definitely true in restaurants here.
At least the rest of your dining went well. Sounds like a good weekend overall.
Apr 7th, 2015, 07:19 AM
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Thank you for posting such a detailed report. Thrilled that Mama Maria's was a good choice for you. And Legal worked out well for you. I was nervous about Ostra when my husband on Easter, mentioned eating with a couple at Mistral recently who are big fans of the restaurant group but unimpressed with Ostra.
I was trying to steer you clear of No9 but figured you had looked at the yelp pictures and knew the food could be precious. Clearly Ms Lynch as spread her empire a bit thin. I am shocked that the bar failed. They were one of the original strong cocktail programs many many years ago. I'm also surprised they didn't bring you a small plate of gougeres that they used to serve with cocktails.
I was trying to steer you clear of No9 but figured you had looked at the yelp pictures and knew the food could be precious. Clearly Ms Lynch as spread her empire a bit thin. I am shocked that the bar failed. They were one of the original strong cocktail programs many many years ago. I'm also surprised they didn't bring you a small plate of gougeres that they used to serve with cocktails.
Apr 7th, 2015, 07:28 AM
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I had looked at the Yelp pictures, but perhaps mistakenly thought some of those wonderful looking but tiny creations were part of a tasting menu. Some dishes looked far less "stingy".
Apr 7th, 2015, 07:30 AM
#7
I enjoyed reading this wonderfully detailed report, but I do have one real problem with it.
Shouldn't you have ordered a Big Mac to substitute for the Whopper denied? A Quarter Pounder would adequately approximate a Burger King Double Cheeseburger, but it seems to me that the trademark burgers stand apart from the rest of the menu. This of course ignores the eternal MacDonald's (fried) vs Burger King (broiled) debate -- but as the rest of your report so richly demonstrates, in travel one must sometimes settle for the less than perfect match to one's expectations.
Shouldn't you have ordered a Big Mac to substitute for the Whopper denied? A Quarter Pounder would adequately approximate a Burger King Double Cheeseburger, but it seems to me that the trademark burgers stand apart from the rest of the menu. This of course ignores the eternal MacDonald's (fried) vs Burger King (broiled) debate -- but as the rest of your report so richly demonstrates, in travel one must sometimes settle for the less than perfect match to one's expectations.
Apr 7th, 2015, 07:45 AM
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Hmmm. I'm no expert at either Burger King or MacDonald's. But I do know the Quarter Pounder is a quarter pound of meat as is the Whopper. And both are served on a single bun. But the Big Mac is only about 3.2 ounces of meat total and has an extra slice of bun in the middle. I must admit I prefer the single thicker 4 oz of meat in a quarter pounder than two thinner patties in either the Big Mac or the Whopper. And I really don't like that extra bread but less meat in the Big Mac.
Incidentally, we learned yesterday that all quarter pounders now come with cheese (unless you can special order one without). And surprisingly we noticed there is no longer a simple "hamburger" shown on the MacDonald's menu -- only variations of Quarter pounders or Big Macs.
Incidentally, we learned yesterday that all quarter pounders now come with cheese (unless you can special order one without). And surprisingly we noticed there is no longer a simple "hamburger" shown on the MacDonald's menu -- only variations of Quarter pounders or Big Macs.
Apr 7th, 2015, 09:32 AM
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Am Americano is a sort of coffee. But it is made with espresso, then hot water is added. The result is a richer flavored coffee than regular. For example, I'm not a fan of coffee at Starbucks but I love getting an Americano there. It's not unlike making a latte, except that milk is not added (although after the water is added to the espresso, a touch of half and half or cream can be added and I usually do.
Apr 7th, 2015, 09:56 AM
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Ouch! I'm sorry to hear your No 9 Park experience was so dreadful. Sheesh, they really let you down.
Our experience was very good, last May, although I did think my beef entree was a bit stingy in the serving size.
Otherwise, everyone in our party of 8 loved their starters and entrees. Service was polite and quick.
Sorry yours was the opposite!
Definitely tell them.
Our experience was very good, last May, although I did think my beef entree was a bit stingy in the serving size.
Otherwise, everyone in our party of 8 loved their starters and entrees. Service was polite and quick.
Sorry yours was the opposite!
Definitely tell them.
Apr 7th, 2015, 10:42 AM
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What a shame you didn't reveal your travel plans. I would have suggested stopping at BT's Smokehouse in Sturbridge rather then a truck stop that only sells chicken and pork products on Good Friday/Passover! Our door to door never includes that route.
http://btsmokehouse.com
http://btsmokehouse.com
Apr 7th, 2015, 11:49 AM
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Thanks for the reviews. I'm especially glad to read that you enjoyed Legal's at DX. When it first opened the reviews were mixed, so I'm happy to know they have gotten over those opening inconsistencies. And maybe they changed the menu a bit too.
The MFA is a great place to visit and without it being too busy, it is so much better.
We've had a few nice days, but the gloomy, wet, and somewhat cool weather has returned this week. But no SNOW!
After many experiments, we now always take the parkways to New York. I've been stuck near Waterbury even when there was no construction. Come back when the weather is better!
The MFA is a great place to visit and without it being too busy, it is so much better.
We've had a few nice days, but the gloomy, wet, and somewhat cool weather has returned this week. But no SNOW!
After many experiments, we now always take the parkways to New York. I've been stuck near Waterbury even when there was no construction. Come back when the weather is better!
Apr 7th, 2015, 01:26 PM
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inakauaidavidababy, we were looking for a 15 minute stop right on the highway for lunch on our way, anxious to get there, so doubt we'd have taken you up on BT's. But it's a nice thought.
Apr 7th, 2015, 05:17 PM
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Nice report but boy was it cold at the weekend; we stayed in by the fire!
Glad to hear that the first meal was the only downer of the trip and didn't spoil your stay.
I had lunch at the bar at LX for the first time last week. I was also staying at the Hyatt (DH was at a conference in town) and it was too cold to venture too far; it was the perfect place and the baked cod was my ideal comfort food.
It is dark in there! But I much preferred the decor to the old blue/teal/white combo of the other branch in town.
Yes, do come back when it's warmer... not yet lol
Glad to hear that the first meal was the only downer of the trip and didn't spoil your stay.
I had lunch at the bar at LX for the first time last week. I was also staying at the Hyatt (DH was at a conference in town) and it was too cold to venture too far; it was the perfect place and the baked cod was my ideal comfort food.
It is dark in there! But I much preferred the decor to the old blue/teal/white combo of the other branch in town.
Yes, do come back when it's warmer... not yet lol
Apr 8th, 2015, 03:24 AM
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An "Americano" is also a cocktail of Campari and sweet Vermouth in equal parts, like a Negroni without the gin.
Not so great for breakfast, unless you have a hangover ;-) but it did confuse a young waiter taking our drink orders in a restaurant once. He brought cocktails for everyone else and a cup of coffee for me. Since I don't go to Starbucks or other coffee bars except to stay awake on the Jersey Turnpike, I was somewhat non-plussed.
Not so great for breakfast, unless you have a hangover ;-) but it did confuse a young waiter taking our drink orders in a restaurant once. He brought cocktails for everyone else and a cup of coffee for me. Since I don't go to Starbucks or other coffee bars except to stay awake on the Jersey Turnpike, I was somewhat non-plussed.
