May's Cafe in Allston---a hidden Taiwanese gem

May's Cafe is a hidden Taiwanese restuarant near the Harvard Avenue "T" stop off the "B" line. (I had just typed a long entry to have it closed and not saved with pics too! UGGGH!) I got to go last Saturday.

I went this past Saturday with JH and Min Young (whom I met at the "Spoonful of Ginger" event earlier in the week). I almost missed the event after missing my flight due to my friend SKN getting lost. Thank goodness for my good friend LLD who housed us last minute in Burbank. You are a god and rock dear friend!

Anyways we found this place which I had not gone to in many hears. It is hidden away on Glendale and accepts credit cards, I was happy with this discovery. The menu front reads in Chinese--homecooking like your moms. The prices were a bit high (then again there was not much competition).

We got the house special fried rice $10.95, Ma Po Tofu plate $8.95, oyster pancake (loved it) $8.95 and ja jiang mein (spicy noodles in meat sauce) $8.95 (the Korean style with fatter noodles and no meat is not spicy at all). My fave was the oyster pancake, then the fried rice, noodles and last ma po tofu. Their oyster pancake trumps Taiwan Cafe's in my humble opinion!

Though the prices were a bit more than Taiwan Cafe (then again it is in Chinatown), the food was very homey, we all enjoyed it and the space was small and very no frills. They do serve Boba Drinks as well.

Sorelina---exciting new Back Bay Italian restaurant addition

Sorelina---exciting new Back Bay Italian restaurant addition

Recently I met up with two Smithie classmates whom I had not seen in a LONG LONG time. Both were roomies while we were at LAMONT HOUSE. It was a mini reunion and we celebrated (one is an ADA at Smith and the other a happily married wife in California. We headed out for an early dinner at the latest Italian restaurant in the BACK BAY to take the town by storm (after reading many positive reviews!).

Sorelina-one Huntington Avenue Boston MA 02116/ Phone (617) 412-460

Arancini --Crispy Jonah Crab riso ($15) This dish was great. The three lightly fried pieces were delectable on top of a tomato sauce. YUM! Plus the dish tasted surprisingly light and the service was attentive and wonderful. Our server was great and he gave wonderful advice. Verdure --green beans, sun choke, artichokes and black olive vinigrette ($13) My friend enjoyed this dish and it was very simple and refreshing. Insalata -market greens, bacon and creamy gargonzola ($12) the biggest starter of the three dishes and it was smothered in the smoky gargonzola dressing but still good with the crispy bacon giving the greens a nice kick of flavor.

Macheroncelli (half portion $14) two American Kobe beef meat balls, barolo sauce and percorino tuscano Both myself and Priya got this one. The portion was just right and the noodles were homemade and big, the sauce was wonderful (I used my bread to sop up the sauce). The two meatballs were delicious and decent sized. You could tell the meat had a nice flavor. Capellini (half portion $12) --baccala (salted cod fish), tomatoes, olive oil and sea salt This dish was surprising as there was a nice spicy kick to it. I thought it lovely.

Amarene Cherry -Chocolate Torta and Chocolate Marsala Zabaglione ($10) and Limincello-Citrus Tiramisu ($10) and Pineapple "today's special dessert" baked in a phyllo pastry $10
All the desserts were good. The Chocolate torte was not too dense or overly sweet. The pineapple dessert was a good balance of sweet and my dessert I would not call necessarily a tiramisu. I liked the flavors alot but sometimes after a few bites seemed a bit sweet though the lemony tartness saved it.

7 courses of fish at Anh Hong in Dorchester, MA

7 courses of fish

So I adore the Vietnamese style 7 courses of beef. Imagine my surprise to hear of the great 7 courses of fish. To some, it might sound great. But I did enjoy my recent outing (back in good ole Fields Corner--where the GOOD Vietnamese food is to be had) with my good friend Anne. We went to Anh Hong Restaurant (291 Adams Street, Dorchester -617-265-8889). We met up on a week day for lunch. (I figured it might be too much for dinner. The restaurant space has many tables and not overly decorative. The service wasn't overly attentive and they did come when needed (probably did not hurt we were after the usual lunch rush). The whole process of 7 courses of fish took an hour and half at least. (Not the type of meal to rush.). Plus Anh Hong is the only location in Dorchester that serves 7 courses of fish.

The first two courses are the fish (Red snapper) is cooked in 1) vinegar fondue like bath (first way) and 2) saute the fish pieces in butter (Second way). After the fish is done, you dip the rice paper into the hot water (quickly once is enough). Then you add on the vermicelli, the herbs (mint, cilantro etc), cucumber, green apple, bean sprouts etc). You are given a dipping sauce (consisting of fish sauce, pineapple bits, sugar). The third way is fish "cooked" in citrus juices ( a la ceviche style) over a bed of shredded daikon and carrots topped off by peanuts. The next few you can wrap up per cooking styles one and two (by this time my dining partner and I were getting stuffed we opted not to wrap anymore). We had fish meat wrapped in Hawaiian leaf (grilled) on a stick and another way is just grilled grilled ground fish meatballs. The final way is fish in a soupy congee (very nice light ending to a great OMEGA3 ridden meal). (I am missing one way, I am forgetting right now).

If you are adventurous and want to try, I think you should. Wrapping the food in the thin rice paper rolls takes practice. I notice you cannot be too greedy and put too much (just collapses on you). You have to put your items sparingly to have a decent rolled piece to consume. Practice makes perfect and what an enjoyable meal. At $29.95 it is a deal (must be for 2 people at that price) and for the amount of food you get---not bad.

Petit Robert Bistro

Hot French Bistro on the BLOCK

Last night, I met up with my friend JM ---first time in over a year and half since we last saw each other. We hit the new kid on the block and heavily reviewed (all over the Boston publications last month and this month) ---the ever hot----Petit Robert Bistro. We arrived before the dinner rush and on a Wednesday night, it was very busy and bustling by 7pm. Our water was attentive and host was funny. This space is cramped and tiny off of Kenmore "T" stop and near Commonwealth Hotel area. We started with Foie Gras (14.95) (yummy) a good piece with rhubarb seared to perfection and the trio of pate (7.95). All the pate were made in house served simply with mustard. Very pleasant, but my fave was the foie gras hands down.

Upon suggestion from our waiter, we got the LAMB and the DUCK CONFIT (made in house). Please remember the chef worked at Maison Robert (now shuttered). Both were splendid. I got a good piece of duck , crispy skin phenomenal sauce over a nice complementary cabbage arrangement. The lamb slices were over some veggies and mashed potatoes. The portions were huge but reasonable for the prices with main entrees not topping $20.

According to a recent review, the reasoning is a bistro shouldn't have overly expensive prices. It sure fits the bill. The going rate is for the desserts and they all were under $10. I sampled the LEMON SOUFFLE served with a blueberry sauce. It was perfection being light and airy--delectable. My friend got the warm apple tartin---which was lovely as well.

The company and the atmosphere topped with great food made for a wonderful experience! I would recommend this place!