Succulent Sundays: A Weekly Collection of My Favorite Personal Food Photography

Mazeman-style ramen with watermelon radish - The Beehive Boston

Avocado topped burger-Audubon Boston

Salted caramel and Georgia Pecan gelato - Dolcezza Washington D.C.

Eggs Benedict with Jamon - Boqueria D.C.

Pho Bo Kho - Pho Linh Quincy, MA

Bunz Burger, Ipswich, MA

Upon my second visit to Privateer Rum Distillery to interview my friend and Head Distiller, Maggie Campbell, she treated me to lunch at a small spot just up the road called Bunz Burger.  They are serving up seriously juicy burger patties with a number of topping options, great condiments (like chipotle mayo or sriracha ketchup), and buttered, grilled buns in this off-the-beaten-path joint in small town New England.

The space boasts about 5 hightops and an open kitchen where you can watch the magic on the grill created by pops and daughter.

Maggie ordered a cheese burger with grilled onion, pickles and crisp bacon:

I went for the Breakfast "Monster" Burger because I think breakfast burgers are EVERYTHING!  

I recently had a flashback on when I first enjoyed a burger with a beautiful fried egg and realized that it, too, was in Boston about 8 years ago (somewhere near or in Brighton).

Bunz Burger elevated my ideal breakfast burger (e.g. the one at Grass Fed JP) with their addition of a hashbrown patty and of course the sriracha ketchup!

Egg, American cheese, grilled onion, hashbrown patty, bacon, and sriracha ketchup

Next time you are in Ipswich, MA...

Bunz Burger is must do!

Brunch @ Centre Street Sanctuary, Jamaica Plain, MA

I must preface this review with the fact that I LOVE CENTRE STREET SANCTUARY!  

It is my favorite night cap spot and one of my favorite dinner places in the neighborhood!  

I, of course, adore Jill, Christina, and Justin behind the stick.  I can't ever get enough of Jimmy on the floor.  And Owner Adam is kind, thoughtful, and an overall sweet gentleman while Abbey, the pastry chef, will rock your sweet tooth!

In saying all of this, I was sorely disappointed last weekend with my brunch experience.  As you all know, I check in here for bites and sips often.  My dinner review some months ago was a good one.  Check it out, here.  

I simply feel the ball was dropped over and over again on brunch...at least on the Sunday I attended with three other girlfriends.

I was anticipating brunch since they were to begin serving it back in  July. 

Jimmy's artistry according to Sanctuary's FB page.  Awesome!

I arrived early and sat at the bar to chat up Jill and sample a couple of brunch cocktails.  Since the bar always features fresh ingredients, I ordered a classic Bellini - fresh peach puree, Peach Schnapps, and champagne.

Classic Bellini

  Once the girls arrived, we ordered our respective meals.  I started with the classic French sandwich (which I love) - The Croque Madame - a grilled ham sandwich where the bread is coated in egg and topped with cheese.  I have enjoyed the Croque Madame at numerous places, including The Wine Cellar in Back Bay and dBar in Dorchester amongst other restaurants.  I was thoroughly disappointed with both its presentation and taste at Sanctuary.

The sandwich was cool and soggy with very little flavor to boot.  One of my girlfriends who also enjoys Croque Madames was disappointed as well.  Overall, it just fell flat.  I chocked this up to chance but made my opinion known as I could not possibly leave the establishment that I adore and not share my thoughts about a not so well executed dish.  Also, to my great dismay, and I am sure to the dismay of other customers, my sandwich used the last of the brioche (at about 11:45 a.m.).  That meant, no french toast or other dishes boasting the sought after bread. 

Next, I ordered the "Chicharons" - fried pork belly with rice and beans served with a sunny side up egg and toast.  

The dish was beautiful in presentation, but a severe letdown in execution.  The pork belly was well overcooked and tough, so much so that I requested a steak knife as the butter knife simply would not get the job done.  The rice was so undercooked that it crunched between my teeth.  The beans not too far away from the realm of undercooked.  The most perfect item on the dish was my egg, which would have been brilliantly slathered on and mixed with the rice, beans, and pork belly had they been remotely edible.

"Chicharons" with rice + beans, sunny side up egg, toast

Before giving up on ordering another entree (3 are not unusual in the least bit for me when I want to write about a particular menu), I ordered the sliders, which I never do at an early brunch, but I was desperate to sample something amazing.

Sliders with cheese, house bacon, Maine Family Farms beef, tomato confit, and  lemon-dressed greens with housemade pickles

The sliders were cooked as ordered (medium), but just didn't hit the mark with me, so to lift my spirits, I ordered another brunch cocktail from Jill - a Bellini Sunrise - made with Agavero tequila liqueur, hibiscus syrup, pomegranate liqueur, peach puree, and Prosecco Asti. 

Bellini Sunrise

We also sampled the "I Can See The Light" inspired champagne cocktail of the day, which is created weekly.  

Sunday's was based on my friend and my affinity for bourbon:  champagne, cherry bourbon, maraschino cherry juice.

Two of my other girlfriends ordered omelets.  One ordered an egg white omelet that was so overloaded with grease, she would have been better off ordering a whole egg omelet.  Same for the second veggie omelet.  

The homefries were perfect!

 The simple two eggs with veggies and homefries was the best dish on the table.  The veggie sausage was depleted from the kitchen early, but my friend did enjoy the dish and I think it was the envy of us all. 

To perk up, we ordered a coffee with Rum Chata!  That was enough to please my palate at the end of the day.

With a heavy heart, I can't recommend brunch at Sanctuary at this time, but I certainly do recommend paying a visit for dinner, dessert, and drinks!  

I've sampled some pretty good stuff on their latest dinner menu.  Review coming soon!

The Haven, 2 Perkins St Jamaica Plain, MA

Forgive my images for this post. On the first visit, I did not have my pro camera with me! 

Truly a haven, nestled in the side street which was as far as my tired feet and overheated body would take me before totally giving up, The Haven and Andy charmed us the way only the Scottish are capable.   We sat and I realized shortly that The Haven bears a cordials license only which usually means creative beverages and plenty of infused experiments, oh and beer of course.

With its woodsy, earthly ambiance, we cozied up to the bar, ordered a beauty of a scotch egg and large, hand cut chips.  Topped with a lovely, mild, house made ketchup, the chips were perfectly hearty with tender centers and crisp retained skins.  The scotch egg was paired smartly with fresh, peppery arugula tossed lightly with a simple vinaigrette and a generous dollop of whole seed, meaux-style spicy mustard in which not one bit of horseradish was spared.

The delicious duck confit salad is served with warm frisee, sweet, roasted parsnips, warm golden raisins, and golden raisin vinaigrette.

I wished for an appetite as I eyed the severely succulent hamburger our bar stool neighbor enjoyed. The bun was a mere disintegrating sponge provided to sop up active juices flowing from ground morsels of meat.  I finally enjoyed my first one on my second visit and it did not disappoint!  The 8 oz. Haven burger comes with Huntsman cheese, Haven bacon-onion marmalade, fresh, bright tomato, and arugula with a side of steak cut chips.  Add the housemade ketchup and it's perfect.

Thick cut house bacon, described as perfectly smoky and salted, was featured on The Haven's BLT.  We enjoyed the classic oat cakes served with a smooth, flavorful churned butter that nearly outshines its accompaniment.

Oat cakes

Crabbie's adult alcoholic ginger beer helped to wash down our tasty bits along with The Braveheart (a cocktail featuring honey bourbon, barrel bitters, and fresh lemon juice) and a classic Dark and Stormy (made with the same ginger beer, spiced rum, and lime).

I also enjoyed a lovely, bitter-sweet Fernet Bru made with one of my favorite digestifs, Fernet Branca and Irn-Bru, a soda described as "Scotland's other national drink" (after scotch whisky, of course)....quite a refreshing concoction.

Fernet Bru

And if I wasn't yet satisfied, Andy was sure to bring me a battered, deep fried, gooey Mars bar with a side of clotted cream. Yum! 

Last, but not least, their chandeliers ROCK!  Antlers!

Beefeater Gin Presented: A Very UK April Fools, An Urban Legend Event at Abby Lane (Theatre District), 255 Tremont Street, Boston, MA

 

This event, featured Hell's Kitchen's Chef Gordon Ramsay and his progeny and Chef/Owner of Blue, Inc. and latest venture Abby Lane, Chef Jason (Jay) Santos.
 
The place was absolutely packed - so much so that, just as at the last Blu, Inc event we attended, getting access to the limited hors d'oeuvres was impossible - so we enjoyed the cocktails, company, and "Mr. T", then ordered food later on in the evening.

The Cocktails:

All cocktails were made with Beefeater Gin.  Not being a huge London dry gin fan by any means, I still decided to try the cocktails that were offered.  I would say that my favorite out of the two that were available once I arrived would be the English Sparkle.

English Fizz
Beafeater
Rosemary
Honey

Abby Lane Crumble
Beefeater
Ginger
Carrot
Walnut Crumble

English Sparkle
Beafeater
Lemon Sugar
Elderflower
Champagne




The Abby Crumble was heavily sugared and mostly undrinkable.  This was a disappointment because I am always drawn to drinks with ginger.  The English Fizz was discontinued by the time I ordered on, so I ordered a classic French 75, then tried the English Sparkle with was just ok, but way better than the Abby Crumble, mostly because I enjoy St. Germain (elderflower liqueur) and bubbles.


Our photo shoot with "Mr. T":

"Mr. T" and Me

Jacquinn and "Mr. T"

Danette and "Mr. T"

Danette knocks "Mr. T" OUT!

A Few Late Night Snacks:

I ordered some a few oysters and a couple of sliders, which were delicious - tender, juicy kobe beef slathered in smoked onion aioli and topped with pepper jack cheese and lettuce on a soft bun.
My friend had one of the full-sized burger, which he seemed to enjoy and another was disappointed by the grilled shrimp tacos.  I found the slaw to be pretty basic.  One other friend enjoyed the tuna tartare with wonton chips, red ginger, and sesame dressing.

 

I'll definitely head back to Abby Lane for a proper full dinner service.

THE Soul Food Burger...Need I say more??? @ JM Curley, Boston, MA

One fateful evening on Twitter I came upon a mouthwatering twit pic of Chef Sam Monsour's interesting creation: "The Soul Food Burger"!  I immediately tweeted my commitment to check it out.

I love when I find inspiration for writing about a food experience in the most random of situations.  I was packing for Barbados' Food+Wine+Rum Festival, when I came across a maxi dress and a vintage dress, both of which triggered by memory of the Soul Food Burger.

   Here's are a few pics of the dresses:

The two on the right are from Derby Day during the Mint Julep Crawl I hosted May 2012

This was my first visit to JM Curley and certainly will not be my last.  I've read much about the burgers, but I was also impressed with the mac & cheese, partly because mac & cheese is one of those hit or miss dishes on restaurant menus.

Upon arrival, we had the pleasure of being seated by the iconic Patrick Maguire, author of the blog "Server Not Servant".  It's always fun to meet bloggers/industry folks who's work you admire.

We had several servers working in sync taking good care of the section.  The atmosphere was dim and mellow with quiet chatter from surrounding tables and the bar area.  The menu design was simple and its contents laced with comfort food and entertaining quirky/snarky rules on proper behavior within the establishment with which I absolutely agree!  I was just glad to see that the phrase "No Food Photography" did not make the list.

Seated next to us was a group of people whom Chef Monsour apparently knew.  He came out to speak to the group, but didn't fail to acknowledge and greet us and others in the dining area...a real class act.

The bar offered two of my favorite cocktail classics of which I had a couple:  The Manhattan and a Classic Champagne Cocktail (Called "Mister Bubbles" @JM Curley).

So, this Soul Food Burger was EVERYTHING!  I've never been one to order burgers at a full service restaurant, but with this one, I very much identified with Richard Chudy (of Boston Burger Blog) and his perpetual search for the perfect burger.  

The Soul Food Burger was well-seasoned and juicy, served on a buttery, toasted sesame seed bun and layered with  tender collard greens, pimento cheese sauce, and candied yam crema! It was spicy... it was savory... it was simply wonderful...

...and what a beauty:

Sorry KFC, THIS is finger-lickin' good!

The Soul Food Burger!

The presentation of the squash hush puppies was Thanksgiving dinner on a bread and butter plate!  The hush puppies were served with turkey neck gravy, cranberry cinnamon butter,  and pop’s stuffing spice.  They were moist on the inside and crisp on the outside.  Though I am a fan of marrying sweet and savory, I enjoyed the cranberry-cinnamon butter best.

Squash hush puppies

We really enjoyed the cast iron mac & cheese made with Cottrell Old Yankee ale and Grafton maple smoked cheddar.  The consistency was perfect, not watery, not dry- which is important to me.  Remarkable flavors came through over tender pasta.

The smoked trout rillettes potato skins were topped with charred leeks, sour cream, parsley, smoked trout and bacon.

Smoked Trout Rillettes Potato Skin

Neither my friend nor I were moved by the Beer and Cheese soup (made with Ellie's brown ale, Vermont cheddar, and Texas Pete hot sauce), but perhaps Tabasco sauce (which my friend didn't request) or more Texas Pete could have been helpful.  I'll try again.

The braised beef cheek gorditas were apparently so great the kitchen ran out by the time of my visit.  I'll be back for those amongst other eye-catching items on the menu.

JM Curley:  Consider me a new fan!

Burger Bash 2012 @ The Fireplace Restaurant, 1634 Beacon Street, Brookline, MA

 



Chef/Owner Jim Solomon's Burger Bash 2012 event was a fantastic, family-friendly, outdoor event for all to enjoy!  Beautiful live music was provided by Banda Samba No Pe  AND a the only clown on the planet (I am convinced) that I was not afraid of...The Marvelous Davey the Clown (Unicyclist, Juggler, Balloonist)!

 


One bite into his award winning "Fireplace Burger" and you realize why Chef Jim made the cut!  We enjoyed two juicy handmade grass-fed Vermont burger patties topped withVermont (or 'Great Hill Blue' Cheese) and apple-wood smoked, thick cut bacon, served on housemade English muffins!  

The crisp of the English muffins was a pleasant surprise!  The burgers were cooked pefectly: tender and slightly pink on the inside with a firm but moist consistency.  I really loved the house-made pickles and the lettuce and tomato were uber fresh!

We washed these delights down with cups of tasty, tart Raspberry Lime Ricki!

Sangria!

Jim describing to my grandmother, how he created the burger!  Grandmother looks on in amazement! LOL

Cheer Chef Solomon on at the August 7th at Boston Magazine's Battle of the Burger where he competes against other finalists for the title!  Purchase tickets here or at the door (few are available)