Good Eats: Red Robin... YUM!

So apparently Red Robin is known for a few things other than “…YUM!” For some reason, I had thought they were like Johnny Rockets and a throwback to a bygone age. Not. Even. Close.

Red Robin is a burger house that’s setup like a TGI Friday’s/Applebee’s/Chili’s with a big ol’ bar and plenty of TVs. They offer bottomless fries which means “all you can eat” and not “tops only”. They have a wide variety of burgers and there are plenty of options. I got a BBQ/onion ring deal and Brig got hers with a fried egg.

Other than that I didn’t think it was anything special. Much like those 3 national chains, Red Robin has no atmosphere. The food and service was fine but this isn’t a place you’d feel the need to go more than a couple times a year. Regardless of the actual restaurant, it’s safe to admit that at least their marketing department is onto something. …YUM!

Good Eats: Speed Round

Today I felt like doing one big recap of a few new places I’ve tried recently. I’m thinking bulletpoint style because there’s really no good way to connect all of them. Let’s just go with the flow…

The Jerry Remy’s near Fenway has a fantastic roof deck. You can see the ballpark right across the street and feel the action (no view of the field though). There is plenty of cover for shade and oscillating fans with mist to keep you cool even during the dog days of summer. And if you want to know about the beer selection up there and how it compares to downstairs in the main restaurant, well, don’t take my word for it.

Sticking in the neighborhood, I had my first bite of a Tasty Burger last weekend. It was delicious. What I remember most was the speed in which it was ready, the “special” sauce they used and the mess that it made (always a sign of a good burger). I would probably rate it 2^nd or 3^rd on my list of casual burger places after Five Guys, right there with Fuddrucker’s, ahead of UBurger and lightyears better than B.Good.

To the North End we head and an overachieving hole in the wall known as Ernesto’s. Apparently, North Enders know this spot but we were clueless. The slices are HUGE. If you want 2 normal slices, order 1 Ernesto’s slice. We made the mistake of ordering 2 slices for each of us so we had a full 8 slice pizza on our hands. And boy is it a hidden gem. It’s hard to find the entrance because it barely exists. Studio apartments are bigger than this place. There were 4 tables crammed inside so come prepared to eat your food on the way out the door. As you may have figured, none of this would be worth it if the pizza wasn’t top notch and you certainly won’t be disappointed. They have a wide variety of selections so you can try something new or enjoy an old favorite.

If you head down Atlantic Ave a couple blocks you will run into Littlest Bar. I have passed this bar numerous times on my way to The Times right next door but this week I decided to take my first foray. As the name suggests, it is in a small space. It shares the first floor of the building with The Times and receives maybe 20% of the space. They legitimately had a door behind their bar that opened up into their neighbor’s back room, which is bigger than their entirety. But what was really great was their outdoor patio which was quite spacious and caught me by surprise. We happened to be the only ones out there (rain was in the forecast and it started sprinkling just as we asked for the check) but it seemed like it could be a really happening spot.

Last but not least, let’s cross the bridge to Charlestown and visit Tavern on the Water. I had a vague familiarity with this place (in name only) and did not know what to expect from our venture. It ended up blowing us away. Whether you get a table upstairs or snare a stool on the outer edge of the main floor the views are amazing. We also got fooled into checking out the bar downstairs which had fake sand and was cash only (don’t waste your time with this nonsense). And they may not have nachos but try the chips & guac.

Quack, Quack

On Saturday we had plans to go on a duck tour with our friend Becky (who we hadn’t seen since her wedding). Before we left the house I checked again to see if there were still tickets available. NOPE! We had gone to bed the night before and there were plenty left throughout the afternoon. Now, they had nothing until 5:30. We called Becky and told her not to leave yet and see if she had other ideas of what we could do. We considered going to a zoo and maybe a couple other things before I decided to check the other duck tour that exists in Boston. That one happened to have numerous tickets left so I made the online purchase and we were back on for 2:00.

The Super Duck Tours birth at the Charlestown Navy Yard near the USS Constitution. We told Becky to meet us at the Aquarium because they have a free shuttle that takes you out to the duck boats 30 minutes before your tour. Brig & I got there a little after 1:00 and talked to an employee at the kiosk to make sure we were in the right place. The shuttles were running a few minutes late but there was no fear it wouldn’t get you to the duck boat in time. This happened to me highly beneficial as Becky is always late and we legit thought we were going to have to leave without her. Luckily, our shuttle was even later than the previous one and Becky sprinted from South Station to make it to us just as we started boarding.

We made it to Charlestown and into our duck boat. The tour stayed right around the Financial District, part of the Seaport District and the Leather District. It was about 45 minutes on land and the guide was quite insightful. Once we made it back to Charlestown our vehicle morphed into a boat and dove into the water. We saw the apartment Osama bin Laden rented for his niece and nephews and other odds and ends. The tour guides switched when we moved from land to water and the second wasn’t as entertaining. We did see a wedding taking place on a pier and caught our eyes on Tavern on the Water which we decided was our next stop. On the way off the boat the guide was passing out duck call toys to everyone. I got a wonderful serenade from Brig & Becky on the way to the tavern.

It was a beautiful day and we got a table upstairs on the deck and overlooking the harbor. It was fantastic. We spent the whole afternoon there talking and catching up. After a few drinks we headed back into the city and said goodbye to Becky. On her recommendation, Brig and I checked out Ernesto’s Pizza in the North End to grab a couple slices.

Sunday my dad came down from NH for our annual Sox game for my birthday. We’ve been doing this for at least 12 years now (I don’t remember exactly when we started). We started off with a quick bite at Tasty Burger which I had only heard good things about and absolutely met my expectations. The game, sadly, did not. Jon Lester gave up a home run on the very first pitch of the game and it was all downhill from there. The game ended with a score of 15-7 Toronto. There were only 2 interesting things that happened. One was the random new mascot they had along with Wally. His name was Gary and he had a passing resemblance to Johnny Pesky. What he was doing there was never explained. The other thing took place during the half inning when they have kids do the player introductions. The third kid’s turn came up and we all saw the big Sox catcher walking to the plate. You could feel the crowd’s reaction when they realized the name the kid was going to have to say: Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Everyone braced themselves as the kid started off “Salta-“ and then took a long pause to gather himself before knocking out “la- macchia” and sending the crowd into a huge ovation. It was pretty epic.

We also started watching Game of Thrones finally. It is really awesome although so far it’s been hard to keep track of everyone’s names. We started using terms like “the Twins” and “Blondie” but we just end up confusing ourselves most of the time. We are halfway through Season 1 so no spoilers please!

Awards Season

Brig nominated me for the Sunshine Blog Award. If you don’t know what that is read her post about it here.

Technically, I’m supposed to answer some questions and then nominate other bloggers but eff that. No one follows me so I’m not sharing the love. But I’ll answer these questions for my your entertainment.


1. What would you most like to change about yourself?
My anxiety to try new things.

2. What is your theme song?
Radiohead “Creep”

3. One part of your life, a memory, action, etc. that you wish you could surgically remove from your brain?
I lost in the second round of the 6^th grade spelling bee after taking 3^rd place in 5^th grade.

4. What generation do you wish you had been a part of?

Definitely the '60s. The Beatles; the Stones; Zeppelin; the Doors; Hendrix; Joplin. The list goes on and on.

5. What was your favorite childhood toy?
His name was Blue Puppy. He was a white stuffed dog with blue ears, nose and tail.

6. What is your favorite housecleaning chore?
I would probably lean towards vacuuming.

7. Do you Twitter?
Every freakin’ day. @yeewuz

8. Any goals?
I would like to live comfortably. Just enough money so I can have nice things and not have to worry about it.

9. Do you really drink margaritas all the time?
No, I just GO to Margarita’s a lot.

10. What is the ugliest car you've ever driven/were embarrassed to be seen in?
The only time I’ve been embarrassed to be seen in a car was really due to a perfect storm my junior year in high school. That was the year I put on a lot of my height and the last year my mom drove a minivan. I just thought it looked ridiculous seeing a 6-foot kid get out of the cramped backseat of a minivan.

Book Review: Timekeepers: A Revolutionary Tale

This book was written by Brig’s aunt but you wouldn’t know it because she uses the pen name J.Y. Harris (Mark Twain she’s not). It’s a story about a high school-aged brother and sister who go back in time to 1777 and have to help deliver an urgent message to General George Washington.

It’s a light read and is written for 12-15 year olds but it’s actually really entertaining. Anyone who has a sibling close to their age and knows how annoying that can be – especially in high school – will get into this.  What made it enlightening was how Harris based the story in the middle of actual historical events (although minutely fictionalized for the book). She used it as a way to teach the two kids (and the reader) a lesson about how even the smallest town has a “history” and that people should take pride in it.

Also, she focused on a smaller battle – a local event – to again push their relationship with the town but also to acknowledge that even the lesser-known skirmishes and ordinary townspeople can change the face of a war.

Towards the end the two kids were trying to return to their normal time when one of them started questioning how likely that would be. They were randomly transported to 1777 but who’s to say they’ll be sent back to their day instead of some other year in history? It made me think how I would love to follow them on another adventure in another time period. As luck would have it, Harris wrote in the Author’s Note that we can expect another trip back in history. Awesome! Now I have to see if I can get Brig to weasel me an advance copy.

The hosts with the most

Saturday was my sister’s birthday. Since we had friends staying with us over the weekend we weren’t able to go to her party but we did take her out to dinner Friday night. We went to Margarita’s which was funny for a couple reasons. First, my old apartment was near a Margarita’s and Brig & I went a few times, including one memorable Cinco de Mayo. Second, when we were younger and still living in NH my siblings and I would get birthday coupons from Margarita’s so we would inevitably go a couple times a year. This Margarita’s we hadn’t been to yet so it seemed like the obvious choice. It was much bigger than we expected and the food came through as always.

After dinner, Brig’s friends Michele & Tony arrived from NYC. We talked into the night and made plans to do the Sam Adams Brewery tour on Saturday. Well, Saturday happened and the 4 of us were on the subway to the brewery when Tony looked at me and said, “Hey, are you hungry?” I said yes, of course, because it was almost Noon and we had put off breakfast. “Are there any good spots near the brewery?” I was pretty sure our chances were bleak so I mentioned a place Brig & I had been to before that was coming up at the next stop. So I ever so sweetly asked the girls if they would mind pacifying us with some brunch before beer and they acquiesced.

We went to Joe’s American Bar & Grill right on the waterfront. Their brunch deal is great because it comes with a free adult drink (bloody mary, screwdriver, mimosa, etc.) I tried eggs benedict for the first time in my life and they were delicious. Brig got a fancy omelette that looked great too.

After brunch we were heading back to the subway to continue our trip to the brewery but I was concerned we wouldn’t make it. The brewery stops doing tours at 3:00 and it was already closing in on 1:00. They usually have long waits and don’t take reservations so we were really taking a chance at that hour. We instead decided to head over to Fenway to show our guests "America's Most Beloved Ballpark".

We got off at Kenmore and were walking towards the field when we saw a bunch of people in blue shirts with viking hats. Apparently, they were doing a beer marathon and most of the bars were in this general area. FML. We went to Bleacher Bar so Michele & Tony could look into centerfield but the place quickly got crowded and annoying. We decided to leave after one round to try and find somewhere without these vikings. We ended up at Jerry Remy’s because Brig has been dying to check out their roof deck. As luck would have it, no vikings! We spent the whole afternoon there and tried out some new beers: Brooklyn Summer, Green Monsta IPA and Hell or High Watermelon.

Sunday, we went out to Saus (as you know) and then said our goodbyes. On the way back, Brig bought a pair of Sperry’s and I bought a new pair of Toms. I had some new Old Navy shorts that I wanted to wear but realized I didn’t have any shoes I liked them with. So, the situation had to be rectified. Now I’m straight stylin’.