A trip to the Fenway neighborhood to do some errands was the perfect excuse to have lunch at Tiger Mama. We've been neglecting our list of new restaurants to try, and this one was high on that roster.
Lunch for two gave us the opportunity to try the Crispy Braised Pork & Pate Banh Mi that Penny had spotted on the online lunch menu. The description reads, "Garlicky pork spread, banh mi veggies, scallion vinaigrette."
We say, "Yes but you should have mentioned the roll that was a perfect match for this traditional Vietnamese offering." Often Banh Mi sandwiches are made with bread that is too substantial to allow the flavors of the fillings to shine.
We added the Chilled Salmon Chopped Salad. The menu describes it as, "Ginger garlic poached and chilled salmon, spicy greens, avocado, little potatoes, spicy peanut ginger dressing."
The lunch portions are large, as the excellent bartender warned another set of diners at the bar. They had ordered a lot of food to try. We heard and, even with two dishes, took some of the salad home for later snacking.
In this photo from the Tiger Mama website, you see the tables for six with a Lazy Susan to facilitate sharing. We can't wait to come back with four friends to fill that turntable with shareable items from the dinner menu.
Like Sweet Cheeks Q, another favorite of ours from the same team, this place is full of interesting details from a wall of greens …
To a fabulous piece of word art that contains proverbs in three languages. (Ask your server for a translation.)
Tin ceiling panels and wire lamps just seem right in this setting.
We follow the lead of our favorite food scout, MC Slim JB, so Tiger Mama went on our list as soon as this review appeared. Our first visit took far too long but our next one will be soon.
Time to make reservations, if you plan to treat Dad to a meal out on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16, 2013. Unlike many special occasion days, more restaurants are featuring their regular menus for Dad with a few specials added in some places.
Our picks: We looked at our selections from last year and think they all still stand.
On chowhound, one contributor said that, “Island Creek is the one to beat these days…” We agree. In our opinion, Island Creek Oyster Bar sets the standard for relaxed, comfortable dining with outstanding food and great cocktail and wine programs. We haven’t given them nearly as much coverage as we should, considering how much we like the place. Here’s a post from their early days, and they continue to set the bar high. So, if you want a table there, call right now.
Sweet Cheeks Q in the Fenway may seem to be just for the meat lovers in the clan, but they put out some great veggies and a tray of hot and cold scoops (as they call them) with a remarkable farm salad that will put a smile on any one with a preference for vegetarian fare. And, remember to order the crazy-good biscuits. (You may want to treat Dad to a doggie bag of them for the rest of the week!)
And, if you’re going to Dad’s house, consider ordering take out from Sweet Cheeks. We had our first take out from there recently and were very pleased. Ask Dad to turn on his oven for a quick reheat the right way and arrive with great food in hand.
Another great spot to share a meal, any day of the week, is Coppa in the South End. You can even top off your meal with a quick shopping trip to South End Formaggio across the street. We always do! And, that will let you create a super take-home gift that Dad can help select. Need more convincing? Take a look at:
And, for the best gift, let Dad choose something from his Wish List. Get an Amazon Gift Card! You can send it by email or print it out to tuck into a greeting card. And, if he doesn’t shop online, offer to sit with your Dad and take him on an Amazon Shopping Trip.
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.
Time to make reservations, if you plan to treat Dad to a meal out on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16, 2013. Unlike many special occasion days, more restaurants are featuring their regular menus for Dad with a few specials added in some places.
Our picks: We looked at our selections from last year and think they all still stand.
On chowhound, one contributor said that, “Island Creek is the one to beat these days…” We agree. In our opinion, Island Creek Oyster Bar sets the standard for relaxed, comfortable dining with outstanding food and great cocktail and wine programs. We haven’t given them nearly as much coverage as we should, considering how much we like the place. Here’s a post from their early days, and they continue to set the bar high. So, if you want a table there, call right now.
Sweet Cheeks Q in the Fenway may seem to be just for the meat lovers in the clan, but they put out some great veggies and a tray of hot and cold scoops (as they call them) with a remarkable farm salad that will put a smile on any one with a preference for vegetarian fare. And, remember to order the crazy-good biscuits. (You may want to treat Dad to a doggie bag of them for the rest of the week!)
And, if you’re going to Dad’s house, consider ordering take out from Sweet Cheeks. We had our first take out from there recently and were very pleased. Ask Dad to turn on his oven for a quick reheat the right way and arrive with great food in hand.
Another great spot to share a meal, any day of the week, is Coppa in the South End. You can even top off your meal with a quick shopping trip to South End Formaggio across the street. We always do! And, that will let you create a super take-home gift that Dad can help select. Need more convincing? Take a look at:
And, for the best gift, let Dad choose something from his Wish List. Get an Amazon Gift Card! You can send it by email or print it out to tuck into a greeting card. And, if he doesn’t shop online, offer to sit with your Dad and take him on an Amazon Shopping Trip.
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.
Time to make reservations, if you plan to treat Dad to a meal out on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16, 2013. Unlike many special occasion days, more restaurants are featuring their regular menus for Dad with a few specials added in some places.
Our picks: We looked at our selections from last year and think they all still stand.
On chowhound, one contributor said that, “Island Creek is the one to beat these days…” We agree. In our opinion, Island Creek Oyster Bar sets the standard for relaxed, comfortable dining with outstanding food and great cocktail and wine programs. We haven’t given them nearly as much coverage as we should, considering how much we like the place. Here’s a post from their early days, and they continue to set the bar high. So, if you want a table there, call right now.
Sweet Cheeks Q in the Fenway may seem to be just for the meat lovers in the clan, but they put out some great veggies and a tray of hot and cold scoops (as they call them) with a remarkable farm salad that will put a smile on any one with a preference for vegetarian fare. And, remember to order the crazy-good biscuits. (You may want to treat Dad to a doggie bag of them for the rest of the week!)
And, if you’re going to Dad’s house, consider ordering take out from Sweet Cheeks. We had our first take out from there recently and were very pleased. Ask Dad to turn on his oven for a quick reheat the right way and arrive with great food in hand.
Another great spot to share a meal, any day of the week, is Coppa in the South End. You can even top off your meal with a quick shopping trip to South End Formaggio across the street. We always do! And, that will let you create a super take-home gift that Dad can help select. Need more convincing? Take a look at:
And, for the best gift, let Dad choose something from his Wish List. Get an Amazon Gift Card! You can send it by email or print it out to tuck into a greeting card. And, if he doesn’t shop online, offer to sit with your Dad and take him on an Amazon Shopping Trip.
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.
Would your Dad love to get his hands into some great BBQ at Sweet Cheeks Q?
For Father's Day dining ideas, here are two excellent lists of restaurant suggestions.
Open Table always does a great job guiding you to the right reservation. What's more, you can just click through and reserve from this list.
Boston Chef's has a special list from their members. Updated info: June 10th!
Our picks:
On chowhound recently, one contributor said that, "Island Creek is the one to beat these days…" We agree. In our opinion, Island Creek Oyster Bar sets the standard for relaxed, comfortable dining with outstanding food and great cocktail and wine programs. We haven't given them nearly as much coverage as we should, considering how much we like the place. Here's a post from their early days, and they continue to set the bar high. So, if you want a table there, call right now.
Sweet Cheeks Q in the Fenway may seem to be just for the meat lovers in the clan, but they put out some great veggies and a tray of hot and cold scoops (as they call them) with a remarkable farm salad that will put a smile on any one with a preference for vegetarian fare. And, remember to order the crazy-good biscuits. (You may want to treat Dad to a doggie bag of them for the rest of the week!) Check out our Sweet Cheeks posts:
Another great spot to share a meal, any day of the week, is Coppa in the South End. You can even top off your meal with a quick shopping trip to South End Formaggio across the street. We always do! And, that will let you create a super take-home gift that Dad can help select. Need more convincing? Take a look at:
And, for the best gift, let Dad choose something from his wish list. Get an Amazon gift card! You can send it by email or print it out to tuck into a greeting card. And, if he doesn't shop online, offer to sit with your Dad and take him on an Amazon shopping trip.
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers’ comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.
We're enjoying slipping into Sweet Cheeks Q for lunch. If you're one of the fortunate few who has today as a holiday, add to the fun with lunch at this new spot in the Fenway. It could make your day.
Our latest shared tray was Great Northern Brisket with a cold scoop of potato salad and a hot scoop of broccoli cheese casserole. The usual pile of onions, pickles, and white bread rounded out the meal.
We admit that we are not experts in BBQ. We're New Englanders through-and-through and haven't experienced the many styles of smoked, slow-cooked meat that the experts love to discuss. We do, however, love great food and this tray falls squarely within our guidelines for delicious.
But, if you just want to try some good food and prefer carefully-sourced high-quality, full-flavored BBQ meat, you can head to Boyston Street and enjoy this brisket.
Here are a few more of our visits to Sweet Cheeks Q:
Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those comments add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.
! You can send it by email or print it out to tuck into a greeting card. And, if he doesn’t shop online, offer to sit with your Dad and take him on an Amazon Shopping Trip.