Updated: Boozy, Hip Hop Brunch at Trina's Starlite Lounge, Somerville, MA

Photo Credit: Facebook

Can you believe I have been in Boston for 5 years and never made my way to Trina's Starlite Lounge?  As much as I love Joshua Childs and his humble, generous spirit, I generally see him most downtown, at his other venture, Silvertone Bar & Grill or at events! 

 My Cambridge-dwelling friends tease me and even introduce me as the girl that requires a passport to cross "The River"....meaning in the past 4+ years, it has had to be a pretty special event for me to head to Cambridge and/or Somerville!

So I Uber to Trina's because, of course, I have no idea where the heck I am going and I avoid "The T" like the plague most days.  We arrive to the low-key spot at 3 Beacon Street.  Colorful people are hanging out front, pulling on cigarettes and socializing.  I am intrigued.  It's pretty quiet curbside, or maybe I am just a bit sedate and taking in my surroundings (yes, Somerville is just a couple of towns over...I didn't leave the country), but once I step through the door, I can't help but fight the urge to DROP IT LIKE IT'S HOT!  No, seriously,  I walk in to Snoop (Dogg/Lion or whatevs) bumping in my ears- ok, maybe I should Crip walk vs. dropping it - but at any rate, this is so REAL!  

The clientele is a cool mixture of "I am too cool to brush my hair" to "I am still wasted from the night before and keeping the party going" to "I came out to flirt" to "no boys please, it's a girls' brunch!" 

Trina's is one of the few places that I fell in love with at first sight...sound...vibe...taste!

My manicure matched the sunny side up eggs!  Good eye Nick!   Photo credit:  Nick Wilson of TreasureMA

Back to Snoop...Trina's serves Gin + Juice, but not with your run-of-the-mill OJ, NO!  Gin + Tang is more like it!  That rocks!  Who cares if you're a cocktail snob!   You can't deny its intrigue! There's also a Kool-Aid du jour!

Gin and Tang!

The food...

Chef Suzi Maitland runs a beautiful program!  I first met her on her birthday at Chefs in Shorts 2012 (click link to read) and really enjoyed her ginger pork with mango sauce dish!

Chicken and waffles MUST present something special to stand out.  Trina's hot chili pepper syrup was a stand out along with the crunchy, succulent fried chicken over a light, fluffy waffle.

Chicken & Waffles with hot chili pepper syrup.

Hot chili pepper syrup

I'd say this guy, our table neighbor, is really into syrup!

They were sweet enough to share a corn fritter with me and it was awesome!  Crisp spheres filled with sweet, creamy corn is not only perfect for the season but simply delicious.

Photo credit:  Nick Wilson of TreasureMA

Corn fritters

I was taken back to my college/vet med school days in Southeastern, AL with Trina's biscuits and breakfast gravy - a generous portion of flaky biscuits smothered in rich gravy with black pepper.

Another brilliant ode to southern USA was the creamy, stick-to-ya-ribs grits topped with spiced, plump shrimp and bright, fresh greens.
 

Shrimp & Grits

Nick orderer what I call "The Drinker's Drink" - a beer (in this case "The Champagne of Beers", Miller High Life with a shot of Fernet Branca).

 

The spherical hashbrowns were delicious!  Crisp and flaky on the outside, tender and moist inside.

Privateer Rum Daiquiris.  The ONLY way to have a daiquiri.

What a great day spending time and catching up with new and old friends!  Trina's in THE spot to head to for Brunch for sure. I can't wait to check out dinner!  Thanks to Joshua Childs, Emma Hollander and all of Trina's Starlite Lounge for the best hospitality that side of The River!

Dinner @The Painted Burro (Mexican Restaurant & Tequila Bar), 218 Elm Street, Somerville (Davis Square), MA

www.thepaintedburro.com

This place does not ooze cheesy Tex-Mex (Thank God!).  It also doesn't reflect authentic Mexican street food establishments, but the first sense stimulated upon entering is definitely a wonderfully enticing smell of great food!

The service provided by Kara and her colleagues was superb.  We received a very warm welcome and Kara, our server, was friendly and offered great recommendations.

Seasonal ingredients (corn, squash, zucchini, mushroom) make a major appearance on the menu.

We started with house made corn tortilla chips and the original guacamole.  We loved the creamy guacamole, but weren't fans of the salsa.  Though I can appreciate a hearty salsa-more than chunky-this salsa contained strips of stringy veggies that made it less than appealing.  The flavor was just ok and didn't quite make up for the off textures.

"The Painted Burro offers an incredible list of over 100 bottles of craft 100% agave tequilas, mezcals and aged rums from all over Latin America."

I enjoyed the Ilegal (pronounced "eeh-lay-gal") Mezcal flight 

Ilegal Mezcals are small artisanal batches produced from 100% espadin.

1. Ilegal Mezcal Joven: From Oaxaca, Mexico.  Each bottle is wax sealed and bears a hand-numbered parchment-style label.

2. Ilegal Mezcal Reposado: From Tlacolula, Oaxaca, Mexico.  The initial reposado batch (2010) was limited to 1836 bottles and rested for ~4 months in medium char American oak barrels.

3. Ilegal Mezcal Anejo

I have come to love Mezcals.  As a scotch drinker, and one who appreciates a peety scotch, I enjoy the smoky characteristic of Mezcals.  All three were lovely with the Reposado being my favorite.

To read more about different types of tequilas (blanco, reposado, anejo, etc.), click here.

The Mezcal Flight.  The reddish juice was the palate cleanser which was made up of several tropical fruits!

The margaritas were also pretty tasty.  The house made original was refreshing and I really loved the fresh, herbaceous cucumber+mint marg! 

We were all blown away by the pork belly, which my friend says will change your life!  

Succulent, melt-in-your-mouth pieces of pork belly in a sweet & tangy serrano chile & tamarind glaze over frisee and radish salad.  One of my friends saved the tasty glaze to dip other things into! That's how amazing it was!

Pork belly!

The "Cholo" corn cob coated in roasted garlic mayo, cojita cheese, and cayenne was a bit more garlicky than I anticipated with this classic Mexican dish, but good nonetheless.  The corn was super sweet and fresh which played well with the cheese and spicy mayo.

Traditional Mexican Grilled Corn w/ a Twist!

Local goat meat, tres quesos, poblano rajas,
roasted red pepper & tomato-chipotle salsa empanadas!

Chorizo de la Casa Taco!

Beautifully presented, the Chorizo del la casa taco topped with a farm egg “soleado”, papas, chipotle mayo was pretty tasty.  The egg added a nice mild balance to the spice of the mayo and chorizo.

I found the flavors of the Fish taco (Crispy Maine Redfish) with
an abundance of savoy cabbage & jalapeno slaw and baja mayo to be a bit one dimensional and flat, though the fish was very fresh and only lightly fried (the way I like).

The Short Rib Barbacoa taco was served with a decent amount of pulled short rib prepared in a red wine Mexican cola mole sauce, corn, serrano salsa, and sprinkled with cotija cheese! The meat was perfectly tender and savory.  I really loved the addition of the cotija cheese for a little extra sharp bite!

The side of  charro beans was perfect.  The beans were tender, but not mushy and had great flavor.

Redfish taco, Short rib taco, and side of Charro beans

The White Gulf Shrimp "Diablo" taco was amazing!  The smoky, char-grilled, spicy shrimp were served with guacamole and a habanero+mango salsa.  The shrimp were flavored nicely!  I found the Pork “Cochinita" taco with pineapple+serrano salsa and a spicy citrus achiote (which added notes of pepper) to be pretty good.  The meat was moist and seasoned well.

Pork taco, charro beans, and shrimp taco!

We were served the served the apple cobbler (a new seasonal dessert item) on the house!  The apples were sweetened to perfection and warm under a nice buttery, crumb crust!  It was topped with a lovely, savory salted caramel ice cream with was the perfect pairing of sweet, savory, and tart deliciousness!

Apple cobbler with salted caramel ice cream!

And finally, I had to try the corn popsicles I've heard about!  It was intriguing, but that's as far as it went!  I think maybe adding a bit more cream and sugar elements will really elevate this sweet treat. It did contain kernels so the texture was also interesting. I am glad that I gave it a try.  I'd like to try a few of the other interesting cold treats like the avocado ice cream!

Corn Popsicle

Overall, we really enjoyed The Painted Burro.  

Have you been? 

What's your favorite dish?

Disclosure:  I received the apple cobble dish gratis.