Latkes to go

[Blumie]

Ready-to-eat or ready-to-heat, doesn't matter. I'm in the financial district now. Cambridge, Belmont and Lexington also work well, although I can go further afield if need be. Does Whole Foods do latkes? Wilson Farms? The prepared food place in Lexington that everyone loves? Help!!

[lipoff]

I know that this is almost certainly too far afield, but Rein's Deli (in Springfield MA and in Vernon CT) makes excellent latkes that are in their freezer case.

[Blumie]

Actually, there's a chance I'll be driving from NYC to Boston on Saturday, so maybe I'll pick some up from Rein's to add to my taste test!

[opinionatedchef]

serious eats just did a feature on boston latkes but SE appears not to be worth taking seriously, as their recommended restaurant versions include pre-frozen ones (i.e. Deluxe Town Diner)with no mention of them being frozen. So I don't know if others that they rec are frozen as well....

[hungrybruno]

I thought of this thread yesterday when I stopped to grab a sandwich at Pemberton Farms in Cambridge - they had latkes in the prepared foods case. I didn't try one, but I wanted to add it to the list!

[Blumie]

Just want to report back that I picked up a couple at Neillio's, but I was concerned because they are pretty big and thick, like a hamburger patty, so I also stopped at Wilson Farms and grabbed some more traditional looking ones. And after all that, we didn't get to eat them last night, so I stuck them in the freezer and will do a comparison over the weekend!

[opinionatedchef]

look forw to your report!

[Fly]

Wilson Farm does, but I haven't tried them.

[Steve L]

Try Neillio's Gourmet Farms on Bedford St in Lexington. Haven't been in a while but they always had them in the case and make them on site.

[teezeetoo]

Butcherie in Brookline, Coolidge Corner. Probably Reuben's deli there as well though I haven't checked that one.

[Blumie]

Neillio's: that's the place I meant when I referred to "the prepared food place in Lexington that everyone loves." Thanks. I'll swing by there first, then head over to Wilson Farms if they don't have them. (Thanks for the Newton and Brookline recs, too. Just too inconvenient for me today.)

[Crazy Egg]

I do not know whether Russo's will have latkes left, but you can call find out if it heading to Russo's is convenient.

[tartandfit]

Inna's Kitchen in Newton has good latkes. Whole Foods latkes are just plain bad.

[opinionatedchef]

i agree completely about the WF latkes. what a disappointment.

[galleygirl]

WF does indeed do latkes; my mother also swears the frozen ones from Trader Joe's are good, but I'm thinking that's wishful thinking...

[Science Chick]

I've tried those TJs ones in the store (at the sample counter). They were pretty tasty, actually.

My Mom, for years now, makes all her latkes ahead of time for the family party and freezes them, then reheats in the oven. They come out great! As a comparison, I made fresh ones Sat. night for me, DH and DD, and then ate Mom's the following night. Really no noticeable difference. Her trick is letting them cool completely on paper towels, freezing on baking sheets and then storing in ziplocs. Then she goes from frozen directly into a very hot oven.

[enhF94]

Wow. I trust your reports and I am amazed than anything other than freshly-fried is worth eating. I'll have to try this. It would be so convenient.

[Science Chick]

Hope it works for you! When I make fresh ones for my family (only 3 of us) I hold them in the oven at ~185°F on brown paper bag-lined baking sheets while I'm frying them all up. This works well for a moderate-sized batch (3-4 potatoes), and lets me sit and eat with the family instead of being chained to the stove...... :)

[L2k]

Exactly the same as what we do, but we use saran wrap, instead of ziplocs. And we keep them on the cookie sheets for easier reheating.

Our cooling process is placing them on paper towels (2 layers) on top of grocery store paper bags (2 layers) on top of plastic trash bags (to protect the table). Takes some of the excess oil out and makes them a bit firmer.

[Science Chick]

I just resampled those TJs ones this morning and I am revising my opinion. Still not too bad, but WAY salty for my tastes!