NYC Hound's Boston/Salem Trip Report (LONG!)

[uwsister]

Hi, wanted to report back about all the wonderful meals we had on our last trip. My husband and I were in Boston for a week in October and went to Neptune Oyster Bar, Toro, Craigie On Main, Troquet, and No.9 Park. This time we were determined to return to the places we fell in love with (Neptune, Craigie, Toro) and cross off the rest of the list. I can honestly say we did not have a single bad meal on this trip, and we both came away very impressed with Boston's restaurant scene! We were especially impressed with how many restaurants had excellent sourcing of ingredients (local and/or organic) - it seemed like it was almost given that a high-end restaurant would do that, which is definitely not the case in NYC. Boston certainly seemed to be ahead of NYC in that aspect. Anyway, here we go!

Thursday:

We snagged a last-minute reservation at O Ya. I had almost given up on it since it was the graduation weekend, and almost every single hotel room in Boston had been booked (there was one $1200 suite at Four Seasons available - ha!) But there was a last-minute cancellation at the chef's counter, and I still count my blessings about that because it was one of the best meals I've ever had in my life. "Creative" sushi is usually not my favorite, but this absolutely blew me away. I would be surprised if O Ya was not the best of its kind in the States. We gave them a $100/person budget (for food only) and honestly I was surprised at the number of courses and how satiated I was at the end of the meal. Granted I was not stuffed, but we came out reasonably satiated at a little over $300 for two people, including a bottle of sake and an extra dish (foie gras gyoza - delicious!) Stand-outs for me were kumamoto oyster with watermelon pearls (knocked us out right off the bat,) mushroom "sashimi," and of course foie gras nigiri with balsamic chocolate kabayaki. Also their fried oyster is the only fried oyster I've ever liked in my life. The only dish I was not impressed with was their eel, but then again it's hard to compete with Yasuda-san's eel at Sushi Yasuda in NYC. Definitely the best meal of the trip, one of best meals in my life.

We went to Eastern Standard for desserts and had their butterscotch bread pudding afterward. It was huge and delicious, but O Ya left such an impression that I almost forgot about this place!

Friday:

We spent the day in Salem and had lunch at Lobster Shanty after consulting Chowhound. Love the sign (Warm Beer, Lousy Food, etc.) Chowder was decent, lobster roll was pretty good as was fried haddock with fries. Good food, good service, great location - perfect for the occasion.

Another fantastic dinner at Hungry Mother. My husband was wary at my description ("New-Southern") of Hungry Mother as he is usually not fond of Southern cuisine, but he loved it. Started off with cornbread, boudin noir, and scallop app (the latter two were specials, IIRC) and had steak and catfish meuniere for entree. I'm not a fan of scallop, but this was delicious. Steak was perfectly cooked, and the sauce was to-die-for. The stock they used to make the sauce had so much flavor and depth that my husband conceded it was better than his legendary venison stock (which he never does.) Catfish meuniere with pecans was one of best preparations of catfish I've ever had. We totally disagreed on the dessert though - I chose Savannah cream cake with tarragon ice cream. I liked it because I thought the flavor was interesting and complex, but my husband found it revolting.

Saturday:

Another day in Salem. We didn't sit down to eat until early dinner at the Old Spot. I had chowder to start and my husband tuna app that was a special (which was surprisingly good - nice flavors and perfectly cooked) then for mains, fried haddock sandwich for me and fish and chips for him (he loves good fish and chips - somewhat of a rarity in NYC.) Solid food at affordable price, great service, great location, again couldn't have asked for more. It's so easy to encounter bad food in a tourist-centric town, so we were happy to have had two solid, if not out-of-this-world meals in Salem.

Sunday:

Went back to Craigie On Main for brunch. I love everything about this place, even the fact that the chef hates bell pepper and does not stock it in his kitchen (my husband has a severe allergy to bell pepper - he often forgets to ask and has to re-order.) I started with their excellent housemade doughnut, decadently served with dulche de leche. I'm usually not a doughnut person, but I do like doughnuts that are freshly made, and this one did not disappoint. Next was beef tongue and cheek hash, which I thought was fantastic! I love hash, but I don't order it often since I am often disappointed. Craigie's didn't, of course. A bit of that hash with poached egg, a piece of fried onion ring, and some potato - a perfect bite, IMO. I remember my husband loved his pastrami sandwich too. This is definitely one of our go-to places in Boston.

Dinner was at Bondir. I loved their commitment to high-quality ingredients and the fact that you can order half-order of anything without charging almost a full price for half order (it was only a dollar or two more.) I wish every restaurant did that. Their bread selections were interesting - especially "The Sea," which contained nori and dehydrated shrimp. Interesting, but not terribly delicious. We ordered half-orders of burrata, prosciutto, risotto, tagliatelle, duck, and lamb. The portions were actually pretty big - I would say they were bigger than a normal appetizer size. So we were pretty full when the dinner ended. Of course it probably helped that I had a second serving of the risotto (the kitchen made a mistake and served us risotto and tagliatelle twice, my husband turned down the pasta but I was too enamored with risotto to turn it down.) In fact risotto was probably my favorite dish of the night - served with mussels, periwinkles, and pieces of lardon. I didn't care for their dessert choices, but my husband loved his raw goat's milk with marmalade and ooh-ed and aah-ed the whole time he was eating it.

I instead decided to walk over to Christina's for their burnt sugar ice cream even though the temperature was in the 50s.

Monday:

Lunch at Neptune Oyster Bar. This is probably our favorite restaurant in Boston by now. They truly have the best lobster roll I've ever had (and I have had them all over Maine) and their oysters are always fresh, well-shucked, and of many interesting varieties. We ordered two of each variety and thoroughly enjoyed trying and comparing all two dozen or so of oysters. We also ordered hamachi crudo and buttermilk Johnnycake. My husband is absolutely in love with this place, and I can't see us not making a stop whenever we are in/going through Boston.

Dinner at Oleana. It was very good, but this was one meal that I thought did not quite live up to the expectations, perhaps because I have read and heard so many good things about it that I did not expect anything short of amazing. Gotta remember to always keep my expectations in check. We decided to make a meal out of mezzes and ordered homemade cheeses with spiced figs, Sultan's Delight, spinach falafel, and chick pea & parsnip terrine. The last dish was actually not our choice - my husband initially picked squid with Greek-styled sausage. The waiter returned and said it contained bell pepper. So he picked barbecued octopus instead. Moments later, the waiter returned again and said it also contained bell pepper and suggested chickpea and parsnip terrine. It was probably my least favorite dish - calling it a terrine was definitely a misnomer. But other three dishes were very good, especially Sultan's Delight (rich!) and spinach falafel. However their piece de resistance was their desserts. We ordered Baked Alaska and passion fruit bisteeya. I thought they were a bit pricey but understood once they came out because both desserts were huge and are obviously meant to be shared. It didn't stop us from finishing both and scrapping the plate for every last spoonful. Their Baked Alaska in particular was spectacular. It's hard to find Baked Alaska (which I adore) on a menu these days period, and this version was unlike any I've ever had. Service was excellent - they actually comped our desserts (which is $27 combined, not a small amount) because of the confusion about bell pepper. They absolutely did not have to, but we appreciated the gesture and left them a big tip.

Tuesday:

It was the day of my surgery so I pretty much didn't eat anything all day. My husband chose to get a takeout from a place nearby called Pho Basil and said the food was pretty good.

Again thank you for all the recommendations - and if anyone read the whole thing, kudos to you! It's rare for me to write a trip report 'cause once I do, it's a novella like this one! My hope is other 'hound visitors (and locals) will find this post helpful in the future.

[teezeetoo]

i know we all appreciate your taking the time to give us feedback and are delighted you had a grand experience. Hope all went well with the surgery and you come back for another round of tasting.

[opinionatedchef]

Yay, uwsister!! a terrifically informative report and so helpful for linking to other future visitors!

Thanks so much for taking the time. I must confess, after reading your positive comments, coming from the NYC foodie that you are, I felt my 'Boston' feathers plump up a bit!

[kimfair1]

Thanks for the awesome trip report uwsister! Too often hounds do not report back, and it's always nice when someone does (no matter how long he report!). No worries about the legth (it was easily half as long as my New Orleans trip report from a few years back)! Glad you loved O Ya and Craigie, my two favorite places in town. That hash makes me drool just thinking about it. I, like you, are a huge hash fan, but also like you am often disappointed, especially when it is said to be "housemade" and is obviously canned. Glad you had a great trip, and hope you'll visit our fair city again soon.

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O Ya
9 East Street, Boston, MA 02111

[BostonZest]

Wonderful report and now I know who to read and rely on when I'm headed your way. You and I love the same things about the same restaurants.

That is another great thing about someone taking the time to do a trip report. You not only enjoy hearing a fresh perspective on the places in our area but you can look at that hound's postings with a more educated eye when you are researching their home turf.

Penny
http://www.bostonzest.com/

[gourmaniac]

I want to travel with you. Please adopt me! Excellent report and great chowing, I've only been to O Ya a couple of times but agree that it is experience dining and worth the price tag. $100 per person wasn't bad as I remember spending more than this without omakase band just picking from the menu. RE Neptune, please try Island Creek Oyster Bar for our best current seafood in a sleek, spacious and friendly environment. I think it's better than Pearl Oyster Bar (NYC). I agree on the Baked Alaska at Oleana. Its a treat and too large for one. The rest of the menu is good especially sides and mezze, but not sublime. Sortun is one of our celebrity chefs written up nationally, but unlike some (read Todd English) she still cooks and hasn't franchised herself to culinary death.

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O Ya
9 East Street, Boston, MA 02111

Oleana
134 Hampshire St., Cambridge, MA 02139

Island Creek Oyster Bar
500 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02215

[CocoDan]

Thanks for the great report. Will need your advice for my next trip to the center of the universe. Surprised at how well you did in Salem.
Enjoy,
CocoDan

[uwsister]

Wow, I'm so happy to read that my report was not only read in its entirety (ha) but was appreciated! Yes, I am looking forward to going back already and trying the ones I have missed this time around (Island Creek Oyster Bar, Journeymen, East Coast Grill, etc.) I do think Boston is a terrific food city, especially considering its size.

Perhaps next time when we visit, I can convince a couple of Boston hounds to "travel" with me as my husband and I were often bemoaning at the limited number of dishes we could try since there were only two of us ;)

And of course I would be happy to share my opinion about some of NYC's finest, as any NYC hounds would!

[yumyum]

I have a feeling if you request some company, your only problem will be deciding how to choose. So glad you had fun here, and in Salem.

[Boston_Otter]

I'm glad that you got to experience the "greatest hits" at O Ya. As far as I'm concerned, the foie gras nigiri is the single best bite of food in Boston.