Friends Food Review

Happy New Year!

 

Happy New year to All! After celebrating our first year as bloggers we are re-organizing our blogs. Over the next year, we will be reviewing at least one restaurant per month as well as one new food or cooking product. You will also see a slight re-design to the site which will bring more consistency to the three blogs featured.

Thank you for your support of Friends Food Review in 2010. We look forward to sharing more of our stories with you in 2011. One great meal, product or service at a time!

boudro's - a texas bistro on the riverwalk

 

I have been in San Antonio for the past few days for the Annual America's Small Business Development Center (ASBDC) Conference. This is a yearly educational conference where my colleagues and I receive educational credits needed for our counseling positions. Our group, the MA Small Business Development Center Network (MSBDC), always enjoys an evening together as part of our trip. It was decided we would go to boudro's and what a great decision.

With 20 people in tow, we converged on the restaurant at 6:30 PM on Thursday night. A few of us decided to have the featured drink called a "Prickly Pear Margarita". The frozen drink arrived with a margarita base and a red cactus pear puree. The flavor was sweet and tangy and extremely pleasing. Next, we ordered boudro's "famous guacamole". The best part of ordering the guacamole was watching Kee (our waiter) make it in front of us. A squeeze of fresh lime and orange, an avocado, cilantro, red onion and a salsa of roasted roma tomatoes and Serrano peppers. A little sea salt and freshly ground pepper and we had an incredibly delicious guacamole. The tortilla chips were lightly salty which complemented the guacamole. The best was when people were finishing the guacamole with their spoons.

The dinners included everything from Big Tails, Little Tails, Wood Grilled Atlantic Salmon, House Smoked Shrimp and Gulf Crab Enchilads (which had an amazing brown mole), Texas Filet of Sirloin, and my meal, Costillas de Res, braised beef short ribs. Everyone enjoyed their meals. Mine was delicious, the meat to my short ribs fell off the bone just using my fork. I also got to taste the enchiladas with the brown mole...very good!

We moved into dessert and enjoyed the suggestions of Creme Brulee, Warm Fresh Fruit Cobbler (apple and raspberry), and the double chocolate brownie layered with azteca and toffee ice cream. I think the best compliment is an empty plate and we had plenty of those!

We truly enjoyed boudro's and our waiter Kee deserves two thumbs up. It's worth making reservations and enjoying a wonderful evening of delicious food while you are visiting San Antonio. Have a prickly pear margarita, enjoy their famous guacamole, order one of their seafood or steak entrees and finish with one of the scrumptous desserts and of course...ask for Kee!

Blue on Highland Restaurant - An unexpected pleasure!

 

Last week, as Jeff and I were heading home from Bedford, we decided to get off on the Highland Ave exit and head into Needham. (Massachusetts for all those following!) We were looking for this little Italian restaurant we had eaten at a few years ago. As we drove further along Highland Ave, we couldn't find the restaurant. As I looked to the left, we passed a place called blue on highland. I took a left at the lights and came around the back of the building and parked. As I always say to Jeff, "Sometimes the best places are those you fall upon." We walked in and the place was buzzing, the atmosphere was great. It was definitely a neighborhood hang-out.  

Our waitress was phenomenal and we enjoyed a drink before we ordered the crispy calamari, the arugula salad and the white clam pizza. The crispy calamari appetizer was delicious and the spicy marinara definitely had a kick...but nothing my sauvignon blanc couldn't cool.

The salad was light and refreshing. The vinaigrette dressing was a perfect blend with the parmesan cheese and the bitterness of the arugula. We finished with the white clam pizza which was a great ending to our meal. The flat crust was thin and delicate, allowing a wonderful balance of clams and pancetta. Not too heavy, even with the white sauce.

We sat back and enjoyed the moment, the place were perfect. We couldn't have asked for anything better from a restaurant that fell out of the blue!

Casa Oaxaca - Authentic Mexican Cuisine

 

We recently returned from a trip to Washington, DC to visit some colleges with my younger son, Brian, as well as enjoy some of the interesting sites. After a long day at the Smithsonian Institute, the Capital and Arlington Cemetery, we decided we were craving Mexican food for dinner. I was cruising around the Open Table site for the DC area and clicked on the Neighborhood Gem tab and Casa Oaxacawas listed. In Oaxaca, Mexico, one of the most represented dishes from the area is Mole (pronounced Mo-Lay).  At Casa Oaxaca, moles are their specialty and they have six types that you are able to taste with chicken, beef, seafood or tortillas. It sounded very interesting.

We grabbed a cab and 10 minutes later we were seated in the restaurant. It was really quaint with orange walls and mexican design. When you start at a Mexican restaurant and the margaritas are delicious, it can only get better...which it did! (Try the Blackberry Margarita!)

Jeff thoroughly enjoyed the Atún en Mole Negro - Seared Ahi Tuna with Black Mole, Brian devoured the Mole Verde con costillas de puerco - Baby Pork Ribs with Green Mole and I did not want to share my Arrachera Oaxaqueña - Grilled Beef Steak with Black Bean and Guacamole. We all agreed...BEST Mexican food we had ever had.

So where do I start...

1. The guacamole was incredible, fresh, chunks of avocado, nice onion flavor with a great cilantro taste. Jeff was a little bummed, he thought he made the best guacamole, he had to concede.

2. I never told them how I wanted my steak cooked, it came perfectly cooked...medium rare and it melted in my mouth. Add the black bean dip with guacamole, I enjoyed every bite.

3. Brian was nervous about trying the green mole, thinking it would be too hot. It had the right heat, the meat fell off the bone, the combination was delicious. Brian licked his fingers.

4. Jeff's tuna was perfectly seared. The black mole had a little bit of sweetness with some chili heat. It worked well with the dish as Jeff ran his tuna through the mole with every bite.

We finished with the Churros Con Cajeta - Churros with vanilla ice cream and Flan Tradicional - Vanilla Flan. The churros were warm and crunchy with soft middles, we dipped the sticks in the ice cream forgoing spoons and using our fingers. The vanilla flan was smooth and delicious.

Leaning back in our chairs, this was a meal to remember. If you are traveling in the DC area, check out Casa Oaxaca, it truly is a neighborhood gem.

A 50th Birthday Celebration at Tosca

Located on the outskirts of downtown Hingham Village, Tosca Restaurant, is located on North Street just before you merge with Route 3A. Known for it's regional Italian cuisine, we were invited to this wonderful restaurant to celebrate my girlfriend's 50th birthday. Kris and I have known each other for 30 years, first being introduced as roommates at Stonehill College. Through the years, we have always connected whether it be a wedding, children or just enjoying each other's company for lunch.

When we arrived the restaurant was buzzing and we worked our way to the private room in the back. It was warm with exposed red brick and wooden ceilings, the wine racks on the back wall gave you that wine cellar feel. It was the perfect place to reunited with family and friends, not having seen some people for 15+ years.

After enjoying some wine and a number of passed appetizers, we sat down for dinner. With each course the food got better and better. We started with a Caesar salad that was topped with a thin slice of pecorino cheese. The next (which was my favorite) was gnocchi plated in two sauces, alfredo and balsamic vinegar. The dish was light and the combination of sauces, as you mixed them together, created a slightly sweet flavor. I had Atlantic Salmon with scallions and herbs and Jeff enjoyed the Surf and Turf. Both dishes were cooked perfectly and very flavorful. The meal came to an end with a warmed chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream. It couldn't have been a better selection to top off a wonderful evening with friends.

Having enjoyed the food at Tosca, I'm looking forward to going back and trying the restaurant menu and more of their regional Italian cuisine.

Tosca Restaurant- Regional Italian Cuisine, 14 North Street, Hingham, MA 02043