The Butcher Shop-South End Boston

Butcher Shop - http://www.butchershopboston.com/

552 Tremont St, Boston (SOUTH END)- (617) 423-4800

Watermelon Gazpacho-honeydew, Prosecco, mint

Hanger Steak-Great Hill Blue, radish

Chocolate Almond Cake-peaches

I went to Butcher Shop in the South End part of the Chef Barbara Lynch empire (No. 9 Park is still a destination I would love to check out sometime in the future). This place has a great neighborhood vibe and sells cured meats, cheeses and wines. Also it is another locale I hit for Boston's Summer Restaurant week 2007! I met up with good pal and food buddy from one of my other lives DW.

It was a muggy night and when I arrived it took awhile for me to cool down. I got a great Kriek (love that stuff from Belgium). Enjoyed the watermelon gazpacho with the avocado garnish (did not really go there for me) but the watermelon juice was refreshing but not what I call much of a gazpacho (just because it is a cold soup) but did not have the usual olive oil, sometimes bread but mainly tomatoes.

For the entree we had the steak (medium rare) cooked to perfection and properly seasoned simply with salt and pepper sliced thin with great simple grean salad with radish and I believe some onions. The bread was fantastic served with creamiest, sweetest butter with great sea salt that had me grabbing for many slices of bread.

The meal peaked with the chocolate almond cake which was similar to a small cake dipped in chocolate but the flavors were dense and dark with the hint of almond, peach and freshly whipped cream balanced out the chocolate's richness.

I give it an 8 forks out of 10 forks.

Icarus-29 years Anniversary Menu

http://www.icarusrestaurant.com/

Icarus Restaurant-3 Appleton StBoston, MA 02116(617) 426-1790

Stephen's Summer Sangria Red or White $8 a glass

$29.99 three course pre-fixe menu

Polenta, Braised Azuluna Veal Breast, Black Truffles, Parmesan

Marinated Wellfleet Littlenecks & Casco Bay Mussels, Panzanella Salad & Saffron

Pan-Fried Sunburst Trout, Pecan Brown Butter, Bright Lights Chard , Santa Barbara,

Grilled Leg of Lamb, Socca Pancakes Stuffed with Peppery Greens, Lemon Caper Vinaigrette

Dessert: Gateau Chocolat and Lemon Buttermilk Panna Cotta

First off, I met up with Sue L. for dinner and I had to push back our reservations a little (due to my coming from out of town). We got settled pretty quickly into a small table for two. We opted to try the sangrias. Sue has been to Spain and is particular about proclaiming a sangria good or bad. (Similar to my tastes in Cantonese cooking, dimsum and gelato as I am a bit more selective). I got the white one---it was too syrupy sweet and I did not taste the wine. Sue opted for the red and it tasted more wine with no fruit taste or sweetness.

Our server was apologetic and offered to change our drinks, but we figured it would be hard as they are premixed and done already. Our water glasses were filled without our needing to ask, silverware was changed for every course and we did not have to wait too long in between courses.

For our first course we got the polenta and the mussels. Both were amazingly good! I loved the slight cheesiness in the polenta from the parmesan and the veal breast was nicely flavorful accent on the side. The marinated Wellfleet littlenecks and Casco bay mussels were great with the salad with enough creaminess from the dressing for the salad. The littlenecks and mussels were very fresh and delicious.

For our second course, we got the trout and the grilled leg of lamb. The grilled leg of lamb (we were forewarned is served medium rare) that was not the issue but it was the cut of the meat. It was bit chewy (I guess it should be as it is the leg) but was more blah for me. Nothing special in terms of taste but it was not gamey at least. Peppery greens commented Sue were akin to Chinese stir fried veggies (I tended to agree) but the Socca Pancakes had no place on the plate. They were a bit soggy/crispy and to us served not real taste purpose and were a bit boring. The trout on the other hand was delightful! It was not overly cooked or sauced, the pecan brown butter and the crispiness of the fish was divine. The slight crunchiness of the skin and the soft flaky trout meat were excellent. (I so dislike over cooked fish).

The desserts were lovely. The gateau chocolate as expected was rich and chocolatey but with dark chocolate flavors. I always like the fresh whipped cream served with it. The lime panna cotta was served with a crunchy butter cookie and a fresh blueberry sauce. I was in heaven with this dessert. With the blueberries in season they were juicy and delicious and a lovely accent to the sublime lime panna cotta.

Best ---Trout and panna cotta

Worst ---white sangria and the grilled leg of lamb

I give Icarus an 8 forks out of 9 forks.

BeeHive --latest hotspot in South End

The Beehive, 541 Tremont St., South End, 617-423-0069

This past Saturday night, my friend AHP went to BeeHive. The newest addition to the South End scene but with nightly live music! We just went for dinner time (early) before the night time crush and live music. I head heard it is a achingly hip place with cool drinks (did not try any) and the newest place to be seen in Boston!

The decor is very cool! Very spacious and when you walk downstairs you see some cool art hung on the walls and atmosphere is great. We were quickly seated (dining room had no tables yet but some people at the bar). Since we were not famished, we had the Bohemian Platter $21 Chef's selection of tasty bites and salad and the fried oysters and calamari with spicy avocado $12 and I got the gazpacho $8.

The service was good and attentive. Our server always made sure our water was filled. The food was hit and miss. The gazpacho was nice with a dallop crème fraîche that was unexpected. It was refreshing. The oysters and calamari were overly greasy. My friend commented there was too much greens (I believe watercress?) that distracted from the taste for her. For a few seconds I thought there were no oysters, but after really squinting my eyes, I found a few of them. The Bohemian Platter had some great stuff and some not so great stuff. The olives and roasted eggplant, mushrooms and carrots were a hit for both of us. The stringy mozzerella was cool. The sausage and ham were nice. The couscous stuffed tomatoes were not bad. The red bean salad was a bit too much or crunchy (per my friend) to eat more of it.

The owner did come by to ask if everything was ok. Later on after we left, too full to have dessert and currently only had two choices baklava and a blueberry cake. We did bump into some friends who informed us that the drinks are nice but a bit overpriced and the acoustics are not great.

I give this place a 7 forks out of 10 forks.

POPS in the South End

Sunday night, I had an early dinner with MPK. We caught up on life and work. Since we both were both at the the restaurant at 5:30pm, we were not overly hungry. So we opted to break bread sharing some appetizers and dessert. It turned out to be the perfect amount of food---not too much and not too little.

We hit POPS (560 Tremont Street, Boston MA ) a relatively new restaurant in the South End and we were seated in the rear overlooking a garden like area. It was cozy. I loved the decor of black and white and my friend felt under dressed! Our waitress Kelda was great! She had the right mix of friendliness and gave opinions when you asked.

We did get the requisite basic dinner rolls. We got the softshell crab special $11.50 which was a fried softshell crab over a black eyed pea salad. I thought it was alright. Nothing that bowled me over to be honest. We did get the lobster cod croquettes, maybe because there might have been more cod than lobster (understandable) but it was basic. Not too oily/greasy and the sauce dalloped on the croquettes were a nice touch. We got the wings which were delicious! They were served with a cucumber sauce and the 6 pieces were wrapped in a banana leaf. They were scrumptious deep fried in batter with a sweet slightly spicy sauce which I enjoyed alot. Last but not least, we got the stuffed quahogs with Portugese sausage and it was delicious!

For dessert, my friend got the key lime brulee served with a side of berries and I opted for the white chocolate bread pudding. The brulee was delicious and I loved the graham cracker crust at the bottom. Very tasty! The fresh berries was a lovely accent and the fresh whipped cream was heavenly too! As for my bread pudding, it was pretty but it was boring in comparison.

Overall the meal was great! The food prices were reasonable and not overly expensive even though I had no entrees, the prices for an entree did not exceed $20! Our water was attentively refilled even though we were seated in the rear at the restaurant. The food veered from great to ok. But I would definitely want to go back to POPS again. I heard that the chef is Filipino and was cooking in NYC before coming to Boston.

The restaurant is gorgeous, service great and food affordable and overall good. A must visit!