bex77

 Neil and I drove up to Lake Winnipesaukee today!  

 We got on the road about 8:30 am.  It was a perfect weather-wise!  There was very little traffic on 93.  I ate red seedless grapes as we rolled along. 

Breakfast
We decided to take the scenic route along Rte 11 from Alton Bay, got a little lost making it there from 93.  We made it to Laconia in less than 2.5 hours and walked right in at Kitchen Cravings in Gilford at 11:30 am.  We had a 2-top in the middle of the dining room.  Neil had the beef burrito - huge!  I ordered The Trainer - 1 egg over easy, 1 slice of French toast, one slice of bacon and one sausage.  I had a side of kielbasa and I also shared a unicycle - the cinnamon bun flattened, dipped in french toast batter and fried.  Washed down with fresh OJ and a hot chocolate, it was divine!  If you're ever anywhere near Laconia, be sure to stop in - everything is amazingly delicious and inexpensive!  Take a jacket - this is the coldest spot around.  I don't usually notice a/c, but it was about 60 degrees in there! 

Weirs Beach
We rolled over the Weirs Beach Boardwalk.  I got my right hand henna'd.  A young black woman painstakingly drew a free-hand design of circles and vines and dots.  Neil got into the spirit and had the "Firefly" Serenity Chinese characters painted on his hand!  We checked out the "2 for $10" t-shirt shop but didn't find anything,

A Cruise 
We got on the 2-hour U.S. Mail boat Sophie C boat cruise.  It was a delightful guided tour of the lake with stops at several islands.  It was like visiting a bunch of little towns and having the locals come out to meet you - people gather at the dock to get their mail and buy ice cream off the boat!  We forgot to re-feed the meter before we got on the boat, but we didn't get a ticket!  

Kellerhaus
We drove to Kellerhaus, the amazing ice cream, candy and gifts shop.  We were very moderate, only buying a few chocolates and hard candy.  I resisted the display of Grumpy Cat paraphernalia at the front door.  

Early supper
We made our way to Meredith for an early supper at the Town Docks Restaurant.  We sat on their second floor deck in the shade near the door with an amazing view of Lake Winnipesaukee!   I ate some of Neil's lobster corn chowder.  I had clam chowder.  We shared the corn fritters with remoulade sauce.  He had the steak tips kebab.  He gave me half his corn on the cob and his watermelon slice.  I had the hot buttered lobster roll with onion rings.  I ate the sweet fresh lobster claw meat dipped in butter, but not the roll.  This was the first place there was wifi all day, so I checked in on Facebook and uploaded a bunch of photos.  You can see them on Facebook or Google+ if we're friended. 

Heading home
We set off for home down I-93 about 6 pm and made it in about 2.5 hrs, with a brief stop at the Hookset visitors center.  

So we're home safe and sound and amazingly refreshed after 12 hours away!  

For my records, this was our 4th trip to the lake.
1) 2010 Aug 6-7 at the condos in Gilford, cruise on the Doris E 
2) 2011 Aug 27-28 at the Fireside (left early due to Hurricane Irene), cruise on the Mt W
2012  skipped (I went to Brooklyn)
3) 2013 July 28-29 at the Margate. circumnavigation 
4) 2014 July 21 Day trip, cruise on the Sophie C 

http://www.belleisleseafood.com

What a wonderful meal by the water!  If you're looking for fresh seafood, in a casual setting, with great prices and a spectacular view  - get to Belle Isle Seafood in Winthrop.  It's felt like a mini-vacation.

How did I end up in Winthrop?
The amazing eclecticavatar talked about her dinner there in glowing terms, which sent me to their website, where upon I saw the magic words... LOBSTER PIE.

How to get there

By T - it's about 1/2 mile from the Orient Heights Blue Line stop - turn left out of the stop, half a block then left on Saratoga Street and it's on the right just over the bridge.

Driving
A. Above the airport - Pretend you're going to Logan, but keep going up Rte 1A N and make one right hand turn on 145 and go until you cross into Winthrop - the first thing on the right is it!  With a big parking lot.  Easy!

B. Below Revere Beach - Or pretend you're going to Revere Beach, turn right instead of left on Ocean Ave and wind your way along the water into Winthrop, take a right on Main Street and go until you see it on the left.  Easy!

(Take the airport route in and come back the other way to avoid the $3.50 tunnel toll, if you're into saving bucks.)

(I'd pick a non-rush hour time to avoid spending all your time sitting in the tunnel or along Rte. 1A.)

The deal
It's cash only.  There's an ATM in the entry with a $2 fee.
If you're plan to eat inside, order at the counter and they give you the cutest beeper you've ever seen - it's a lobster!  When it goes off, go back to the counter and get your food.  There are bar stools, booths, tables and picnic tables.
If you want to eat outside, see the hostess and a waitress will take care of you out there in sun.
The menu is only one page, but almost everything comes baked, broiled, stuffed, blackened, fried or teriyaki so there are dozens of options.  Depending on which cooking method you choose, the dinner side options are locked in.   Or you can order a la carte.

Note: This place is NOT vegetarian friendly unless you are fond of french fries, onion rings, cole slaw or dinner rolls.

What we ate
Clam chowder pint $6.25 (big enough for 2)
Stuffed clams 3 large shells $7.75  (shared)
Blackened swordfish with rice pilaf, roll, cole slaw, tartar sauce and lemon $13.99
Lobster Pie (1/2 lb of meat) with rice pilaf, cole slaw, tartar sauce and lemon $20.99
Large sodas with free refills (serve yourself)

Other pluses
THE VIEW!  Fabulous view of Boston across the harbor, jets taking off from Logan, and a pretty marina beside it.
The staff is very helpful, friendly and patient with people who didn't figure out it's cash only until they're ordering.
It's also a market, so you can take home fresh seafood and do your own cooking if you like.

 Enjoy!

This local bar has an incredible chef who chooses a theme for Wednesday nights for a month.  December is a celebration of BACON!  
Check out this menu: http://magounssaloon.com/?page_id=34

All the dishes sounded unique... made it very hard to choose!  N. and I had a grand time sharing four dishes tonight.  See my notes and photos under the cut 

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1) Bacon Satay -  four skewers of bacon with thai peanut sauce
        This dish didn't work for me.  The bacon was thick.. I liked it thin and crispy.  And the sauce didn't quite work with it. 

2) Shrimp wrapped in jalapeño bacon with sweet chili sauce
        This dish seemed the most "normal" with four perfectly cooked large shrimp wrapped in crisp bacon with a slight spice.  I squeezed a little lime over it and it was yummy. 

3) Bacon Poutine - waffle fries with bacon, cheese curds, bacon onion gravy and a fried egg on top
        This was a cross between nachos and an egg mcmuffin.  There were too many fries or not enough topping, and it was a little bland.  

4) Chicken fried bacon with bacon cheese grits and bacon cheese biscuit.  
        WOW!  This was more like canadian bacon, coated and fried, with a yummy bacon onion gravy.  The cheesy bacon grits were stellar.  The biscuits were tiny - just a little bite.  This is the dish that will send me back to order again!  









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I had another wonderful day!  I started with an elegant breakfast in the grand dining room of my Bed & Breakfast.  I chose the "egg bake" special which was two eggs with chives, romano cheese and parsley gently baked, two sausages, wheat toast and OJ.  Yum.  The chef chatted about his nine years in the army working at NATO headquarters for some general, and I chatted about theater with a nice couple from Staten Island and a mother/daughter from Paris!  

My pal drove us to Chadds Ford.  She had a hair appointment, so I hung out at Starbucks then strolled around the strip mall.  There was bad traffic so we detoured South into Delaware briefly to get back to I-95.  So that made my 6th state in two days!  

We had a lovely lunch at Tria Cafe, a wine bar near Rittenhouse Square.  I tried the butternut apple bisque and a panino with chicken,  Caciocavallo cheese, Piquillo Peppers and Balsamic Onion - a delicious combination of tastes.  

http://triacafe.com/cafe/food.php

We strolled over to the Rosenbach Museum and Library, where my pal is the curator.  What an amazing place!  I wish I had you with me there - they have an incredible eclectic collection of objects and books and manuscripts and furniture and art!  There were two brothers who collected whatever struck their fancy and ended up with over 30,000 books and 20,000 objects!  A small portion of that is displayed in two homes next to each other on Delancey Street.  The most interesting thing there right now is a mural painted by Maurice Sendak.  They pulled it out of an apartment in Brooklyn (all 1,400 pounds of wall) and reinstalled it at the museum!

http://www.rosenbach.org/learn/objects/chertoff-mural

I also got to see Bram Stoker's original notes for "Dracula," a lot of original drawings for the "Alice in Wonderland" book, the original manuscript for Joyce's "Ulysses," a Crown Prince of Austria's suicide notes, and both the Shakespeare second folio and a very rare third folio!   It is an incredible collection of history, literature and art.  

We went to Judy's house briefly.  It is down a historic alley, one room wide and three floors high.  She has lovingly restored it.  So wonderful to put my friend in context. 

We went over to the UPenn area in W. Philly.  We were early so we camped out at a Starbucks for a few minutes.  

We had supper at the very trendy "Pod" restaurant, one of celebrity restauranteur Stephen Starr's places.  It's a pan-Asian place attached to the Hilton Hotel, with very space age white plastic furniture and changing lights.  It's a loud space.  The menu was tough to figure out.  They called things odd names without explanation.  Do you know what robata is?  It was not my scene, and pricy, but the food was delicious.  I had the rock shrimp tempura with pineapple and candied walnuts, then the seafood fried rice with shrimp, scallops, lobster and egg.  Both were very light and yummy.  I got to meet the conservator of the Sendak mural, a very interesting artistic woman.  She was interested in my adventures with Theater@First.  

www.podrestaurant.com/

They were headed out to an Indian dance recital, which is not my thing, so I cabbed it back to the B&B for a quiet evening.  I did more walking today than usual and I am bushed, but so happy to have a friend involved with such an amazing place who could give me an insider tour, and to have adventures around Philly today.  

Another beautiful day that beckoned me to the beach!   I didn't want to drive very far, so I did some targeted research with Google maps, scouring the shore line for a restaurant and a beach-filled drive to get there.  

We took off about 3 pm and headed north to Revere.  The tide was out and you could see beach for miles!  I made a little detour over the causeway to Nahant Beach.  Lots of people there.  Then it was up Rte 1a through Lynn and Swampscott, and on into Marblehead to Devereaux Beach and a drive along Ocean Avenue to Chandler Hovey Park with its ancient lighthouse and rocky shore and panoramic view of the harbor and Salem Sound and the ocean.  It was so clear, I felt like I could see Portugal!  

We went into Marblehead - the colonial homes and shops are lovely.  No one was around.  It was as if they'd rolled up the sidewalk at 5 pm.  We ended up at The Landing Restaurant, right on the water.  It has a fun pub, an elegant dining room with windows on three sides, and a deck.  We sat in the dining room right next to the deck.  We had an incredible meal of very special clam/corn chowder, old-style onion soup, scallops wrapped in bacon with maple dipping sauce, peking ravioli with ginger slaw, a caesar salad, then free french bread.  N. had the Asian red snapper encrusted with sesame seeds on top of pad thai, and I tried the Baked Stuffed Shrimp Mediterranean with sweet potato gnocchi.  We shared a choco-tini: dark chocolate mousse and iced brownie slices.  

We made it home in less than an hour by 9 pm.  There was so little traffic I wondered if life had been called off and no one told us?  It is so odd to come down Rte 1 in Lynn and be the only car on either side of the road!  

Here are a few photos of our adventure.  
https://picasaweb.google.com/114850095146823474041/MarbleheadMonday?authkey=Gv1sRgCOSFlsT_3bu0SQ


It makes me so happy to see the ocean, eat a good meal and make the best use of a beautiful day!

 I found a wonderful restaurant!  If you're looking for delicious food at reasonable prices with great service, Swanton Street Diner is the place.  It's like a diner with folksy people and a simple setting, but the food includes diner staples and several much more upscale choices.  It is open 7 days a week for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  

How did I end up in Winchester?  
The Boston Hidden Restaurants guy frothed about this place.  I know it seems like a far and distant land for most of you, but it's not that far from Cambridge/Somerville/Arlington.  It only takes me 20 minutes from my house.  There's free parking on the street or in a lot behind it.  

Service
The waitresses will remember you.  They offer advice if you ask.  They keep the water glass filled.  They come back often to see how everything is.  This is real service.   If you get Maureen, tell her I sent you!  

Their menu is not online yet (I'm working on it!) so N. posted it on his web site.  Be amazed at the wide range of choices and the prices.    
http://tinyurl.com/SwantonStreetDiner-Menu

N. and I have tried the following dishes:

( Read more... )

So the next time you're looking for a good meal and a little drive, motor along the Mystic Valley Parkway, enjoy the view of the lakes and then continue into Winchester!  

Please join me for supper Tuesday night, Aug. 22 at Flatbread's in Davis Square
http://flatbreadcompany.com/2007Home.htm

See my new "salt & pepper" hair! Help raise money to fight cancer!

https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=212855268762848

This is a joint benefit for four people who rode in the Pan Mass Challenge. For the whole day, $1.75 from every small pizza and $3.50 from every large pizza will be donated to their rides. There will also be raffle items and a couple of bowling lanes that you can use for a donation. Come by during the day or after work. Dine in OR take out, it all benefits the PMC - supporting the Jimmy Fund and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. We hope you are able to make it!

To learn more, please see: http://www.pmc.org/

You can also donate at http://www.pmc.org/profile/WF0026

Please support Theatre@First denizen Wendy Fields, who rode in my honor!

We tried Ebi Sushi, the new Japanese restaurant in Union Square tonight.

http://ebisushi.com/

It took over the space where the Korean place, Wu Chon, was for years, next to the Dunkin Donuts. They've done a lovely job of remodeling. We were the only people in there the entire hour we were there from 5:30 pm. Hoping it's just that we were on the early side. We got street parking right in front.

The menu is well composed, with photos and explanations of the dishes. We tried

$4 Edamame

$18 Big Tempura Combo Set
with 2 shumai, crab avocado salad, shrimp & veggie tempura, miso soup, rice and beef yakiniku

$5 Unagi (eel) nigiri (2 pcs)

$5.50 Salmon skin maki (6 pcs)

and a sashimi sampler which N. said tasted delicious melted in his mouth like butter. The prices seemed very reasonable. The waitress was very attentive and pleasant. It is a great addition to the neighborhood!

I hope you had a grand weekend! I got to try four restaurants over the long weekend.

Friday I went to the Rainforest Cafe in the Burlington Mall with my sister and my niece. They make you walk through a gift store to get to the restaurant. Designed like a dark jungle with low-hanging flora and fauna, it's wicked noisy with animal calls, a huge fountain and a thunderstorm every 10 minutes that make conversation impossible. The food is bland and expensive. I had a seafood chowder and a burger. The service is slow, sales-pitch filled, and inscrutable. AVOID!

Saturday my mom and I headed to the fabulous Greek Corner in North Cambridge for lunch, but they were closed for vacation! So we walked up the block to Qing Dao Garden, the Chinese restaurant. The service was strange (bordering on rude) and slow. The menu has lunch specials but they say "not on weekends." It also has small and large sizes of entrees, but "small for take-out only" they say. Ugh. Put that in writing on the menu, please. Everything I ordered, the waiter acted like he'd never heard of it. The food was okay. I had hot & sour soup, chicken low mein and an egg roll. The portions are large. I'd recommend either Greek Corner or Hana sushi instead, and there are lots of Chinese places with a better combination of service and food. Can not figure out why this place has four stars on Yelp. I will AVOID.

Sunday we motored to the Jamaica Plain section of Boston to The Haven, a Scottish bar, for brunch.
http://thehavenjp.com/menu/brunch/

It is easy to find - on the street just beyond Angell Memorial and there was street parking out front. It's a cheery two room place, with lots of fun photos of Scottish stars like Craig Ferguson, Sean Connery and Billy Connolly. Even the bathroom curtains are plaid! I suffered from the "saw something I wanted on their web menu they don't have when you get there" syndrome but that is sadly normal these days. It was mostly empty when we arrived at 11:30 am. I got to taste

- Scotch Porridge $7
A huge bowl of steel cut oat porridge with strawberries, blueberries and maple cream. Like oatmeal but with more texture and taste.
This was so delicious! I've never had porridge before but I will again!

- Scotch Egg $7
Crispy Sausage-wrapped hard boiled egg, mustard, arugula salad
This was also delicious! The sausage was flavorful and the light vinaigrette on the salad a lovely counterpoint.

- The Full Scotch $15
Two fried eggs, house smoked bacon, house made sausage, black pudding, baked beans, tattie (potato) scones, and grilled pineapple
This was good, but even though my mother is a McKenzie, I prefer the Irish breakfast at the Olde Magoon Saloon in Somerville or the Thirsty Scholar in Cambridge, both of which are under $10 and better.

- Toffee French Toast $13
Fornax brioche french toast with toffee sauce, blueberries, and maple whipped cream. The toffee sauce is the stuff.

- Deep fried Mars Bar with maple whipped cream $5
Heaven on a plate. Surprising light and chocolatey!

My beer drinking friends were impressed. And I saw ice cream flavors like Coconut curry and drambuie sorbet that tempted them as well.

On the down side, it's on the expensive side for brunch. They don't serve Bloody Marys or Coke products and seemed smug about it. They do have Iron Brew. And the service was a little haphazard, though pleasant. It was a fun adventure, great to try the Scottish favorites and new treats, but it seems made for evenings with special beers, kilts and European sports. So I don't think I need to go back. But you should try it.

Finally, we motored up Route 1 north to Peabody to try out the Sonic Drive-In.
http://www.sonicdrivein.com/menu/sections.do
I'd never been to one. It is an amazing slice of Americana, with the big canopy to drive into, the car-side menu and waiters on skates! They have an incredible array of burgers, chicken, dogs, sides, drinks, shakes, malts, and desserts, many of which I've never seen before or eaten in other parts of the country (like a Chicago dog) that you can't get here. You can get healthy choices like apple slices and chicken wraps. They also serve breakfast. I got to try

- Footlong Coney hot dog with chili, cheese and onions
- NY style dogs with sauerkraut, grilled onions and mustard
- Chili cheese tater tots
- Cherry lime ricky
- Sonic snickers Blast (soft vanilla ice cream with Snickers bits smooshed in)
- Bacon cheeseburger
- Onion rings

I saw the banana split, root beer float, and oreo blast.

Portions are big. For cheap. And super-tasty. The service was wonderful in a cheery, earnest way.

If you don't want to eat in your car, they have picnic tables. They are open 24 hours, but there is no drive-in service after 9 pm, just the drive-thru.

I loved this place. I will dream about certain things I ate. And go back any time the traffic isn't too fierce. It was an easy drive on a Sunday evening of a long weekend, less than 20 minutes from Somerville, which likely is not true much of the time. They're building one in Wellington Circle. Heaven help us.

It's dreary in Cambridge. In typical New England weather fashion, it was bright and sunny when I got up, raining for a while, and now it's gray. Please let it go back to sunshine soon! It has been mostly cool 60's, which I appreciate and is good for not sweating in the theater.

My health

I felt great this week! My brain worked much better. As it improved, I realize how bad it's been and how clueless I was about it. Sorry if you've been affected by my lack of brain! I can see the edges now - they are getting closer to normal but not there yet. It's like pizza dough that shrinks in from the side of the pan. You have to push it back out to the edges, but not tear it. And then push some more.

I had several triumphs at work - I asked the right question in a meeting that got everyone talking and giving each other good ideas, found a creative way to track registrations for summer seminars to relieve the senior staff of that burden, and stepped in to help my boss finish two huge projects when a co-worker called in sick two days in a row. I even helped calm a senior staffer prepping for gall bladder surgery.

Next Monday I start daily radiation treatment. They'll zap me with lasers every weekday for six weeks to fry any stray cancer cells. I tried to balance figuring out the logistics with "not thinking about it - la la la." The radiation oncology staff range from not very helpful to aggravating, so that is freaking me out a bit. But I am trying to maintain my upbeat demeanor. Maybe I will glow! Or come out with a super power!

Theater

I spent five nights at the theater this week! I love the theater.

Four nights I was unexpectedly enthralled by "Equus." I sent a lot of theater emails - thanking or reminding house volunteers, and answering inquiries coming in from the web site such as how to get tickets, how long is the show, how can I get involved, or the more complicated "Can I bring my teenager to this show?"

I watched auditions for the next "Bare Bones" staged reading, "Two for The Seesaw." It was a privilege to see so many talented actors, each with a different take on the characters, any of whom could fill the roles.

The monthly steering committee meeting sailed along well, and I was elected President again.

Dining

The highlight of the week was discovering the yummy brunch at the Olde Magoun Saloon on Medford Street in Somerville.
http://www.magounssaloon.com/menu.aspx
They open at 10 am. The street parking is easy, or you can pop into the CVS lot. No line - it was empty! They make their own Bloody Mary Mix that is fiercely spicy and delicious. The bartender has a beautiful Irish accent and waits tables. The prices are low - everything under $10! I had the Irish breakfast. N. enjoyed a huge ham & cheese and egg sandwich - brought half of it home.

We picked up Lemon Thai to eat at the back of the theater on Sunday night. I adore their chicken coconut soup and satay!

On the flip side, I got to try Posto in Davis Square for the first time. They have done an amazing update of the space. But otherwise I was not impressed. We popped in at 5:15 pm for appetizers on Monday night. The service was haphazard, when it was empty. The food unspectacular. The prices are high. I will be glad to try again if others suggest it, but won't hurry back of my own volition.

We ate at home Tuesday night - another yummy chicken caesar salad.

Thursday I had lunch at Border Cafe in Harvard Square - free chips and salsa, a delicious cup of chicken and sausage gumbo followed by the crawfish etouffee appetizer. Yum. Cheap, fast and good.

Hope you have a fabulous weekend!