How to Pick Restaurants and Influence People

Boston has kidnapped my sister. 

Let's take a step back. When I was 9 and my sister was 7, my mother decided that we should both learn how to play the piano, but I didn't want to learn how to play the piano. So, for Christmas my sister got a piano and I asked for a gameboy and I got a gameboy. My sister is now attending the Boston Conservatory of Music where she is receiving a Masters in Music. Where am I? I am  here: living with my parents, ill-tempered, and non-musical. Yes. I took the road less traveled and that has made all the difference. So, this summer I followed Hayley's path which is full of music notes and New England, but in my opinion doesn't have nearly enough gameboys.


Boston is a grand old town-easy to navigate and filled with clam chowder. When you visit Boston you must (absolutely must) visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Located near the Fenway, this stunning jewel box of a museum sits on the park and watches the world go by. You might never know from the its exterior that within this simple brownish-gray building is an Italian villa complete with hydrangeas, Boticellis, and tapestry upon tapestry. It's a dignified riot and who doesn't like one of those?

Basically, Isabella Stewart Gardner was a grand dame of Boston society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She collected art, but only art that she liked. Isabella liked art. She was a Red Sox fan. She loved to travel (on her desk, to this day, remains a jar of sand collected in Egypt). She was besties with John Singer Singer Sargent. Basically, anyone who was anyone who visited Boston was going to end up at Gardner's Backbay home/villa/Renaissance Palace. When she died, she willed her home as a museum with a big endowment, but the endowment will be withdrawn if anything in the collection is ever moved or changed. Yep, she was a bad-ass.


In fact, I will make this analogy:

Isabella Stewart Gardner is to Art as Chuck Norris is to Life 

hanging out with the stone lion museum guard

In 1990, the museum became even more well-known as the site of the largest unsolved art heist in U.S. history. You can read more about that debacle here.


Where was I? Food. Another wonderful thing about Boston is the food. Boston has great grub. The culinary highlight of the trip for me was definitely The Daily Catch in the North End. It's so tiny that it is more of "pin" hole in the wall. I had this killer fettucine alfredo with squid ink pasta. We also had the squid ink pasta with oil and chopped up calamari and heavenly butter. I died and went to heaven, but had to fly back down to tell you about this meal. 

going, going, gone

I have a very particular method for choosing restaurants when I travel. It might sound crazy, but food is a major part of the trip for me. Been on any main street in any major city lately? Notice how all the stores are the same (the Gap, the Gap, the Gap...baby Gap). Yes, there are lots of chain restaurants, but there will always been those one-of-a-kind-back-alley-paper-placemat-mom-and-pop-local-homegrown restaurants in any city you visit and they're where you eat your memories. 


Here is how I cross-reference and organize my food hunts:


1. Chowhound: This is a site for foodies, so it can be a little elitist. Perfect for finding hidden spots and "best of" lists.


2. TripAdvisor: Targeted towards tourists, but sometimes you just want to be a tourist. This site ranks restaurants based on popularity and classifies them according to "type" of diner.


3. Yelp: Everyone uses yelp. Everyone. But, that gives it a home court advantage. Locals write about their favorite haunts, but beware the overly used 3 star rating. This site also offers great help with hours, location and menus.


4. Individual restaurant sites: ALWAYS check out the menu. I repeat-ALWAYS check out the menu. Nothing is worse than finding out that a place is way out of your price range or worse still...is vegan (I kid, but only slightly).


5. Word of Mouth: Friends and families are great resources, but find your food "twins." These are people who like food that you like.


6. Follow your nose, follow the line: I was once on the tube in London and got off 5 stops early because I smelled something delicious wafting down the stairs. I discovered the world's best orange and chocolate cookie. The nose wins. Likewise, be an individualist, but when it comes to restaurants, follow the crowd (especially when it comes to street vendors).


Again, this method is not for everyone. It's time intensive and a little crazy, but also a little fun. Check one site, check two, ask friends, sniff frequently. Here are some of my favorite finds from my Boston eating-extravaganza.

Tasty Burger near the Fenway. Juicy burgers and neat atmosphere. 

Oatmeal "Hard" Yogurt from J.P. Licks. The best yogurt that I have ever had. It tastes just like a scoop of oatmeal cookie dough!

Clam chowder from Atlantic Fish Company on Boylston. It has the best bread. Fluffy. Gooey. Warm. Also, it just feels like Boston. The whole place is filled with dark wood and shiny surfaces, but it also won't break the bank (especially if you stick with the bread bowl).

I'm smiling because I am wearing my new blue dress I bought for the trip. This was also my last piece of clothing in my overpacked suitcase. Yep, I wore everything I brought...a first! Also, I'm smiling because I'm about to go to Legal Seafood. Legal is a chain, but it has award-winning chowder. Scrumptious!

We went to the Summer Shack (my best friend KD's suggestion) for the best crab cakes of my life!

What better way to close out our East Coast party than a trip to the grocery store for some midnight Boston Cream Pie and tabloid reading. Thank you Boston! Thank you KGB, Lo, Hayley, mom, and Susie. You were the best travel companions that a girl could ask for! 

Donuts and Do Nots

Did you know that there are over 2,000 Dunkin' Donuts in Boston? If you did, then you are a liar. Because, according to the interwebs, there are approximately 100 Dunkin' Donuts in the Boston area. Impressive. That's a whole lot of Dunkin' goin' on.

Had lots of fun shopping on Newbury Street and trying on these shorts that made my arse look like a fried egg and this hat that made me look like Dean Martin. 

I did not buy this dress because of a prior fashion trauma. You will note the keyhole under my chestal-region. Well, 6 years ago I was on deck a cruise ship deep in the Mediterranean (yes, a cruise ship!) I was wearing a beautiful white eyelet dress whilst shuffle-boarding. Under the hot gaze of an Italian sun, I was using the shuffleboard stick to push the disc into the scoring zone when I inadvertently hooked my finger into the eye of an eyelet. I swung my mighty shuffle boarding arm and ripped off half my dress and that is how I exposed myself to the coast of Croatia. I could barely show my face on the lido deck for the remainder of the trip. Oh, the shame.

Behold, my beautiful shopping companions: Lo, Hayley, and KGB. These ladies know how to work their bows, cowboy hats, and yellow.

 Lo is so chic. In this picture, she looks like a young Katherine Hepburn or a freakishly young Woody Allen cinematic love interest.

 KGB is lovely in everyway. Not only is she a beautiful genius, she is also wearing a canary sweater. Bonus points!

We walked along the "Emerald Necklace" (the collection of green grassy parks along the Charles River). If you go to Boston (which you should) and the weather is favorable please please take a jaunt along this path. It is a wonderful way to see the city. Then we got tired and ended up finding a dock to lounge and take a reading break on. So, do take a walk. Do not wear yellow pants. Do eat donuts. Do not expose yourself to Croatia. Pearls of wisdom I have gathered along my travels. Life is such a learning experience.

Beware the VELOCIRAPTOR!

After a delightful train trip, we made it to Boston. My sister Hayley lives there right now in the cutest little apartment. How little is it? Well, I'll put it this way: she can swiffer the entire place from her bed. But seriously, her room is art. Every piece of it. 

 Hayley painted both of these paintings and they are awesome. I think she should open an etsy store. Don't you agree? 

I love Hayley's bulletin board. It's such a glimpse into her mind and what a beautiful mind it is.

Now, when we all get together, we get a little punchy and we had a lot of fun taking pictures in Boston. These pics are from the front stoop of Hayley's building.

Some are lovely:

And some feature our new favorite pose, one that I have titled the "velociraptor." Now, I saw Jurassic Park when I was nine and seriously, not a day goes by that I don't think about, quote, or watch it. It's one of those movies for me. Here are the key lessons of Jurassic Park: nature will find a way, Jeff Goldblum is the man, velociraptors are the most brilliant and terrifying creatures the world has ever known. Velociraptors are the serial killers of the dinosaur world and they can open doors. They can come out of nowhere. They will find a way...to kill you. So, in closing, I give you our version of the "velociraptor."

 "Gee, I hope there are no velociraptors around."

 "I hate velociraptors."

 "Life you are too wonderful."

 "I'm complacent."

"VELOCIRAPTOR!!!!!!!"

 Take a look at this highly informative cartoon by XKCD of how to find out if your home is prepared for a velociraptor attack. This could save lives people!

A Blueberry Sky Saturday

Took these shots during my trip to Boston (the land of clam chowder). Here's hoping you're having a deliciously color-coordinated Saturday!