Big Boy Bezek Blog!

Boston: Part 3

Part 3: Sunday June 14th

The weather was pretty crummy on Sunday, so we took our time leaving the room in the morning.  As we planned to have a big lunch, and we were still recovering from our blowout the night before, we opted to grab breakfast at Dunkin Donuts before hopping on the subway to grab a movie.

We got a little bit lost, but thanks to Google Maps on my phone, we finally found the theater, and saw  'Up."  It was just as good the 2nd time, and luckily all the blabbing I had provided Dan with the week prior didn't spoil it for him.

 

After the movie, we found our way to Neptune's Oyster, the restaurant recommended to us by Nancy, one of O Ya's owners.  Dan ordered the veal and tuna tartare sandwich, which he proudly displayed.

 

I got the Neptune Burger, which was a cheesburger with fried oysters on top.  It was the best burger I can remember ever having in my life.  Not pictured are the oysters we ordered, as well as some fish tacos.  We shared with the tables around us, which included a couple from Greece, and another from Brooklyn.

 

After more walking around, we found ourselves getting out of the cold and watching tv in our hotel room.  We had a ton of shows to catch up on, and after a couple of hours, Dan wanted a snack.  Seeing as our hotel had no vending machine, and he was craving chocolate, he called room service, and the following tray arrived 20 minutes later.

 

While I had a bite of each, he was able to take down both desserts.  And the hotel's coffee was to tie for!

Our dinner reservations were at 9:30pm at D&G Oysters.  We had some oysters to start, and split a Lobster BLT as an entree.  At this point, I think we were so over-fooded and over-seafood-ed, that it was a struggle to finish everything.

 

The next morning we left at 10am, and got home to see our little munchkin by mid afternoon.  The next time we go to Boston, he's coming with us! :)

Boston: Part 2

Part 2: The evening of June 13th

I had read about O Ya back in February, and it was honestly one of the main reasons I picked to visit Boston.  Read the NYTimes review here: http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/north-america/united-states/massachusetts/boston/67064/o-ya/restaurant-detail.html

We had made our reservations back in April, and were going to sit at the sushi bar, and experience the tasting menu.  It's all decided by the chef, and it varies daily.

Our first course was a Kumamoto oyster with watermelon pearls and cucumber mignonette.  We didn't get a picture before we scarfed them down.  I was sad.

 

Our waiter was very helpful in giving me a copy of the menu so I could keep track of everything we ate.

Course 2: Kamachi w/spicy banana pepper mousse

Course 3: Salmon tataki w/torched tomato, smoked salt, and onion aioli- One of my favorites!

Course 4: Homemade la ratte potato chip and perigord black truffle

 

Course 5: Warm eel w/thai basil, kabayaki, fresh Kyoto sansho

Course 6: Wild Santa Barbara spot prawn with garlic butter, white soy, preserved yuzu

 

Course 7: The Kumamotos return! Fried Kumamoto oyster with yuzu kosho aioli and squid ink bubbles

 

Course 8: Wild bluefin maguro tuna, soy braised garlic, micro greens

Course 9: Shima Aji and Santa Barbara sea urchin w/ ceviche vinaigrette and cilantro

Course 10: Kyoto style enoki mushrooms w/garlic and soy

Course 11: Scottish salmon with spicy sesame ponzu, yuzu kosho, scallion oil

Course 12: Hamachi w/viet mignonette, thai basil, shallot

Course 13: Wild bluefin tuna tataki with smoky pickled onion and truffle oil

Course 14: Chilled Maine Lobster Salad w/avacado, creamy yuzu dressing, peppercress, and cucumber gelee

 

Course 15: Grilled sashimi of chanterell and shitake mushrooms, rosemary garlic oil, sesame froth, homemade soy

Course 16: Seared petit strip loin with tiny smoke potato, grilled onion, and fresh wasabi

Course 17: Foie gras with balsamic chocola kabayaki, raisin cocoa pulp, sip of aged sake

 

Yes there were 17 courses, but really each was only a bite.

Throughout the meal, we chatted with the couple to our left, who were also there celebrating a birthday.  Hi John and Belinda!  They introduced us to one of O Ya's owners, Nancy, who recommended we go to Neptune's Oyster for a certain sandwich on Sunday.  (more on that tomorrow).

John and Belinda recommended we go to a restaurant called Finale for dessert, and were kind enough to give us a ride over.

At Finale, Dan had a port tasting, and I had a dessert tasting.  He shared the desserts...I didn't have any port :)

 

On the platter were: whoopie pies, key lime pie parfait, chocolate something or other, a s'more, panna cotta, strawberry shortcake, creme brulee, a crustless cheesecake, and some sort of fruity custard.  All were bite sized, and while some were more to my liking than others, I had no complaints.

 

See you for Part 3 tomorrow!

Boston: Part 1

Okay, disclaimer.  This was a short trip, and while I took a lot of pictures, I didn't take a ton.  Note that I've linked to a couple of things/places that I don't have photos of.

Also, I've got a bunch to catch up on, so I'm going to split the trip up into three posts.  I know, lazy me, but that's the deal. :)

Part 1- Friday June 12th

I don't think I've ever been so unprepared for a vacation before.  Sure, I had the majority of Dex's stuff packed the night before, but my suitcase?  Hadn't crossed my mind!  Though we did test it out and Dex is a little too big to fit. :)

So Friday night I got home from work, and Dan had loaded up the Jeep with everything, and it was up to me to get myself changed and packed.  I zoomed around the house throwing things into my suitcase, and did one last check to make sure the cats weren't in any rooms they shouldn't be.  Score 1 point for me; I found Blinky under our bed.  He wouldn't have liked being there all weekend!

We dropped Dex off at Grandma Linda's and Grandpa Matt's, and then were on the road at 6pm.  Lots of iTunes playlists and 1 movie later (turns out listening to Mean Girls is almost as fun as watching it)we got to Boston and our hotel around midnight.  We stayed at The Back Bay Hotel (called Jury's until 2 weeks ago), and it was terrific; esp considering we got it for a steal on TravelZoo. 

Being that it was now Saturday and Dan's bday, we decided to head down to the hotel bar, which seemed to be quite the hot spot.  It was at this time that I discovered I had neglected to pack any pants, meaning the only thing I had was the powder blue windpant capris I was currently wearing.  Ugh.

Soooo I changed into the one dress I had brought, and off we went. Quite a change from the usual Friday night!

We had breakfast Saturday am at the hotel restaurant.  I had a lobster fritatta w/goat cheese, and Dan had duck hash with poached eggs and a mess of hollendaise sauce in a skillet. 

 

Next stop was touring the Sam Adams Brewery.  We stopped inside to ask the concierge for directions, and she not only was helpful with that, but gave us two coupons for free 'perfect pint' glasses.

The brewery is tucked into a small residential neighborhood, and they only charge a $2 donation, that goes back to local charities.  We got on the 10:30am tour, and Dan was 1 of 2 birthday boys on it.  Upon finding that out, our guide had everyone sing happy birthday to them, and made sure they got a special souvenir.

We got to try 3 different beers, including one called Brick Red that's only sold on draft in Boston.

 

After the tasting, we headed back to the hotel to drop off our goodies and to think about where we wanted to go for lunch.  We noticed a ton of people gathering outside our hotel, and it wasn't long before we figured out that a parade was going on.  But not just any parade; it was the end of Boston Pride, and we could watch the entire parade from our room.   This was my favorite float.  :)

After that colorful break, we went to Quincy Market downtown in search of food.  We circled the entire place a bunch of times, and we settled on Wagamama.  I got a chili chicken dish, Dan got a chicken curry dish, and we split some duck dumplings and beer.  Only on Dan's bday can he have duck 2 meals in a row! :)

 

Wagamama's thing is that they make the food the second you order it, by zapping your order to the kitchen on handheld scanners.  Every item has a number, which they mark on your table in chalk.  When all your numbers are crossed off, you're done!

We had a great view of an impromptu acrobat show in the plaza, but it wasn't long before we were ready to get on the move again.

Did you know Boston's waterfront has bathrooms that cost a quarter?  Of course, they all seem to be out of order. So what do you do when you can't find a bathroom?  Distract yourself by getting ice cream of course!  Emack & Bolio's was pretty cool; I had 'Purple Cow' in a sprinkle cone.

Let's not forget that I was still bopping around town in my goofy pants.  After ice cream, we found a Marshall's and I picked up some jeans.

After aaaall of that, we were ready for a nap, and headed back to the hotel.  We had dinner at O Ya at 7pm, so that left us a couple of hours to relax while we enjoyed the free HBO.

Stay tuned for Part 2: posted Tuesday night!