I wanted to write up a little summary of my culinary adventures in Boston, because I did one for New York and it’s been a great resource to forward on if people ask me what I liked about The Big Apple.

I flew in to Boston on Thursday afternoon and dropped my stuff off at The John Jeffries House. When I checked in, they asked me if I was coming for medical reasons, which is when I learned it’s a bed and breakfast right next to the hospital that families usually stay at when they are visiting a loved one. The studio room I stayed in was small (for American standards) but  nicely furnished, with a twin bed, kitchenette, and fairly large bathroom. I had more than enough space for me and all of my camera equipment. It advertised a contintental breakfast, which was really just pastries and fruit, but it’s the location that’s the real selling point. You couldn’t possibly stay any closer to the subway stop than you are at this place.

I dropped off my stuff, packed up my camera body and lenses (I never leave that behind when I travel) and headed to Cafe Crema to meet up with two readers. I didn’t ask if it was alright to use their first names, so I’ll use an initial for one and an internet ‘nym for the other. That’s S on the left, and Gogo in the middle. The place we ate at were Gogo’s idea, as she is a bit of a foodie like me. S gets props for driving all the way from Rhode Island to meet us!


I liked Cafe Crema, and would definitely recommend it for the Sweet Potato Sandwich they offer, which was an excellent vegetarian option. I’m a bit bitter toward them though, because we left a receipt and two things of lipgloss on our table while we went to order and they threw it out. Grrrrr.

Next stop was Burdicks. Yes, we went for hot chocolate in the first week of August. My only regret? Having this hot chocolate has made me realize how sub-par pretty much every other cup of hot chocolate is. If you like your chocolate dark and rich, get the Grenadian.

After our hot chocolate Gogo took S and me on a tour of Harvard. I learned not to touch the lucky foot of the Harvard statue. Freshman guys pee on it for fun in the middle of the night. Sadly, S had to leave us and drive home at this point.

Gogo and I ended the night at Toscanini’s, where I indulged in a goat cheese brownie+peach combination. I can see why people go so crazy for the ice cream at this place, though I admit I think I like sour cherry gelato better (best I’ve had in the US of A comes from Bella Citta in Utah). Gogo and I talked about being foodies and natural birth (she wants to be a midwife) and kids (she’s a nanny) and all sorts of other fun things.

The next morning I got up and ran along the Charles, dragged all of my camera equipment to the rental car place and rented a car, picked up Jen Ing (my second shooter for the day), drove 2 hours, shot for 8 hours, drove 2 hours home, dropped off the rental car at 1 am, and somehow managed to find a taxi as the drunks stumbled out of the bars around me.

No pictures from the wedding yet, but I’ll have a teaser up on Jenna Cole soon. I’m really excited about them. :)

Saturday I wasn’t flying out until the evening, so I hopped back on the subway once again and headed over to have brunch at Mrs. Corn’s house with a few of the Boston Weddingbee writers. They forgave me for being an hour late to a brunch I initiated (I was seriously wiped out from the day before) and I had a great time with them (as I knew would be the case). From left to right you see Mrs. Hot Cocoa, Mrs. Toucan (and her little one!), Mrs. Margarita, Mrs. Corn, and me, Mrs. Avocado!

I asked Mr. Toucan to take the photo of us, and may have insulted him with my several clarifications of what “making sure to take a picture that includes our head and our feet” meant. I don’t know why, but this is something that a lot of people don’t do naturally. When you’re taking a group picture, do a quick scan of what you have on your screen. If it’s a full body shot like this, don’t cut off the feet, and don’t cut off the head. :)

Apparently Mr. Toucan loves to play photographer and taken many, many, photos in a row to get the group laughing. I finally had to stop him because I didn’t want to have too many photos to edit. He did an awesome job though and the pictures look beautiful. Thanks Mr. T!

After the bee brunch I wandered over to the North End to kill some time and get something to eat. Everyone said it was the place to go to get good food, but I admit I wasn’t impressed. I realize I didn’t eat at the nicest places, but all I wanted was a simple caprese salad for less than $15 and that was really tough to find. I ended up sitting down at La Famiglia Giorgio (even though it broke my personal rule regarding pictures on the menu) because I had a nasty headache that screamed GIVE ME FOOD RIGHT NOW and walking around looking on Yelp for a good place was no longer an option. My caprese salad was just okay, mealy conventional tomatoes (I’ve been spoiled by heirlooms and mediocre mozzarella). I did love the olive oil+parmesan+pepper flakes dipping sauce they had and plan to replicate it at home. I also waited in line for 20 minutes for a chocolate-dipped cannoli with ricotta filling from Modern Pastry and I just didn’t really love that either. I’m not sure if it’s that the cannoli wasn’t good, or that I just don’t really like cannolis. Guess I’ll have to taste a few in Italy to figure that out, right?

I did love Boston (probably because I went when the weather was amazing) and can see why so many people are willing to brave the winters in order to live there. Thanks to all those who chimed in with recommendations on this thread here.

 

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