Dallas

I recently had a week in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and got to re-discover a lot of my old haunts. I used to go to Dallas all the time, but haven’t really spent a lot of time there over the last couple of years. I was staying near the airport, so I was relatively central to the area. Although I’ve never in all my years been to downtown Dallas, I did make it into downtown Fort Worth this trip (although very briefly).

When you have a week in Dallas, you have four dinners that you need to cover off. In my mind, four dinners in Dallas means the following (in no particular order): Texas barbecue, steak, Mexican, and Brazilian churrasco at Fogo de Chao. In keeping with tradition that’s exactly what I did. However, I wasn’t leaving Dallas until the Saturday morning, so I got a bonus dinner this trip. Sweet!

Esparza’s - 124 E Worth St., Grapevine, TX

For years, my business partner and I had been hearing rumours about a great Mexican place near the airport. Since we had never really been staying in that area, we didn’t look into it. After asking around, the general consensus was that Esparza’s is probably the place they meant. Esparza’s is a small Mexican restaurant in a little house in Grapevine, just kind of north and west of the airport. The margarita was great, but I’ve got to say that I wasn’t blown away by my dinner. I kind of “went outside the box” on this one and ordered seafood enchiladas (which is not what I would usually get at a Mexican joint). Maybe I should have stuck with one of the old standbys like pork with salsa verde, or carne asada. Don’t get me wrong; it was pretty good, but my expectations were pretty high. I’ll have to give them another chance next time I’m back in DFW.

Angelo’s Barbecue - 2533 White Settlement Rd., Fort Worth, TX

Until I came to Angelo’s, I had never had beef that was so tender I could cut it with a plastic fork. Unbelievable. I’m going to go out on a limb here, and say that Angelo’s has displaced my old favourite barbecue place – Rudy’s in San Antonio. Although I still prefer the sauce at Rudy’s, the meats at Angelo’s are so tender, juicy and smoky, that the sauce barely comes into play anyhow. I still love Rudy’s, but I now dream of Angelo’s. Unfortunately, I am probably ruined for all other barbecue for the rest of my life. Oh ya – the beer comes in big frosty glasses, too. Chalk up one more point for Angelo’s.

The building looks exactly like a good barbecue place should; barn board and pickup trucks with a big stack of wood out back to keep the smokers going. The smell of the smoke hits you as soon as you get near the entrance.

The ambiance is pretty plain, and the décor includes melamine tables and dead animals on the walls (including alligators, turkeys, fish, boar, moose, various antelope-thingy’s, and deer). Probably not a good date spot, unless your date is into melamine, dead animals, or really great barbecue.

As a side note, I came within an inch of losing my wedding ring down the sink. Thanks goodness for all those years I spent training to be a ninja!

The Silver Fox - 1235 William D. Tate Ave., Grapevine, TX

The Silver Fox, also located in Grapevine, is a sister restaurant to Three Forks. The menu is the same, the locale is different. The food and service were all fantastic, but a little on the pricy side. That being said, I also didn’t cut any corners; cocktail, appetizer (the Three Forks Salad has apples and pecans and totally rocks), steak with Oscar sauce, glass of wine, and dessert brought me up to nearly 100 dollars with tip. Still, I’d go back in a second.

Fogo de Chao - 4300 Beltline Rd, Addison, TX

I love Fogo. If you haven’t had Brazilian churrasco before, you really should try it. The idea is this: You have a little card with red on one side and green on the other. If you turn the green side up, flocks of waiters (often wearing traditional Brazilian clothing) with large skewers of different meats flock to your table and offer you different cuts of beef, lamb, pork, sausage, chicken, and sundry other animals. When you turn the card over they leave you alone. On top of this, there’s usually a trip to a salad/vegetable bar and side dishes such as fried polenta and bananas, bread puff things and so on.

I would hazard to say that Fogo’s salad bar alone is worth the visit. It includes things like marinated vegetables, roasted peppers, prosciutto and salamis, and cheeses, as well as just regular old salad. If I ever turned vegetarian, I would go there just for the salad bar.

The big danger with Fogo is that it’s difficult to stop. Unlike a buffet where you have to make an effort to go and get one last plate, there are always skewers of meat wafting past, so it’s too easy to try just one more little bit. Know your limits or you’ll regret it (trust me on this).

Fogo is a little on the expensive side (one person can usually get out for around $70 with a glass of wine), but it’s something you should try at least once: especially if your dinner is being heavily subsidised with a meal limit.

Blue Goose Cantina - 14920 Midway Rd., Addison, TX

Ahhh… The Goose. Since I got a bonus meal this week, I decided to go back to the good old Blue Goose in Addison (right around the block from Fogo). I hadn’t been there in years and wondered how the food would compare to my memory of it. I’ve had a lot of good Mexican food over the years, and hadn’t really been back to The Goose since my early days of travelling. I was happy to see that it stacked up to everything I feel Tex-Mex food should be. The top-shelf margarita was the money and the tacos al carbon totally kicked it (they’re big enough that you definitely don’t need an appetizer with them).

The Blue Goose has made it back in as a permanent part of my four-day Dallas rotation.

Pittsburgh

I'm in Pittsburgh this week, staying at the Westin on Penn Ave in the cultural district. If you've never been to the 'burgh before, your first visit will likely surprise you. First of all, Pittsburgh is no longer the dirty, gungy, industrial place you are probably expecting. It's got a lot of greenery and a dearth of good restaurants and things to do.

I'm under a mile from the client site, so it's definitely walkable. The stretch along Penn Ave is filled with theatres and restaurants. Here's some of the places I've eaten while here. I'll add some pictures before the week's out.

Primanti Brothers - 2 South Market Places and numerous other locations
A Pittsburgh institution. If yinz guys hadden't had a sandwich with fries and coleslaw n'at on it, yinz haven't experienced Pittsburgh (no, these aren't typos). Big, fat sandwiches on Italian bread with the fries and salad right on the sandwich. Good for lunch when you need to spend the afternoon in a food coma. Also good after a night out at the bars when you need something in your stomach more substantial than Rolling Rock (trust me on the last one).


The Fish Market - 1000 Penn Ave. in the lobby of the Westin hotel.
I ate here with Matt H. and Joe on a business trip here about six years and remember being blown away by the sushi. This place does seafood both cooked and uncooked. Although the rainbow roll didn't have roe eyes and bean sprout antennae like it did the first time I came, it did have sea bass and four other kinds of fish to make up for it. The rare, sushi-grade ahi tuna I had as my main was crispy on the outside for about 2 millimetres, and rare-as-rare-can-be on the inside. It was served with a fragrant rice patty and lightly sauteed onions and red peppers. Good stuff!

Nakama Japanese Steakhouse – 1611 East Carson St.
This trendy bar and restaurant in South Side has excellent sushi and great atmosphere. As the name would imply, it also has teppenyaki, but I didn’t try it. Matt H and I split a maki platter and a sashimi platter between us. The sushi chef came over to us and told us that he was going to do something special for the sashimi platter. When it came, it had thinly-sliced firm snapper, tuna in a light tempura that was so red it could have been carpaccio, and melt-in-your-mouth salmon. The maki were also excellent. Although Fatheads is just down the street, you may not want to leave here.

Fat Heads – 1805 East Carson St.
I don’t know about the food here, but there are 38 beers on tap. I had a Victory Storm Stout which wasn’t bad (a little sweet), but the real memorable one was the Dogfish Head 120 IPA. This is not the kind of IPA you are thinking of. First of all it’s really sweet. Secondly, it has 21% alcohol. They will only serve it as an eight ounce pour, and will only serve one to a customer. You probably wouldn’t be able to drink more them because it’s just so sweet. Each sip was like drinking maple syrup and malt, and then getting kicked in the nuts.

Rolands Seafood Grill – 1904 Penn Ave. (In the Strip District)
Once again didn’t try the food, but the bar has a great selection of taps and a good bartender. I tried the Chocolate Stout – very yummy. Supposedly the food is good here as well. The original Primanti Brothers is just down the street to satisfy those late-night post-bar cravings.

Sonoma Grille - 947 Penn Ave.
This fine establishment is almost right across the street from the Westin. The food is California cuisine which means fresh ingredients with flavours from pretty much everywhere you can imagine. If you like surprises, you can order a four course meal where the chef chooses each dish. There's also a mixed grill where you can choose one, two, or three items such as seared ahi tuna, grilled salmon, pork tenderloin, and so on, each with a dipping sauce and veggies a la carte. The waitress may warn you that the portions are "small". Don't let this put you off as they are "normal-sized" for most humans and not served on serving platter-sized dishes. The wine list is varied and contains about 65 wines by the glass (excellent for the lonely business traveller). I will definitely go back.

Boston and Cambridge

I actually posted this a couple of days ago in my main blog. I'm just reorganizing this type of post into a different blog with travelog-style information.

Over the last couple of months, I've spent a few weeks in the Boston area and spent a lot of time going out in Cambridge. Here's some places to go and travel tips if you find yourself in the area.

I spent a week in Westford, MA and a week in Sudbury, MA. Both of these are to the northwest of the Boston and Cambridge area.

Westford, MA: The best thing to do while in Westford is to go to Cambridge or Boston. You can also go to Burlington Mall (see below for details and directions).

Sudbury, MA: The best thing to do while in Sudbury is to go to Cambridge or Boston. Even Westford is a better place to go. Just get out! Actually, I didn't really give Sudbury much of a chance other than lunch spots.

Burlington Mall: This large shopping center is located at highway 3 and I-95. It has all the things you'd expect from a large mall. I think that it's also the only place in the area that has a Legal Seafood. In the area, there is also a large Barnes and Noble, and a Circuit City. It's tough to get there off of I-95. You may need to do like I did - get off on highway 3, realise you screwed up, turn around and take another run at it. The exit off of hwy 3 is the Middlesex turnpike.

Cambridge
I don't think that it would be possible to include everything that there is to know about Cambridge in one blog entry. Here's some of the details.
Cambridge has a lot of "Square" neighbourhoods. The squares all have a large number of bars, coffee shops, restaurants, bookstores and so on. I love that the squares provide a focal point for the different communities where people to go to eat, drink, and just hang out.

Davis Square
This is a lively square near Tufts University. I'm not sure how to get here other than walking the bike path from Mass Ave (around Cameron Ave. It's visible from the Satellite view in Google Maps). It's about a 10 minute walk. I think that Davis Sq is technically in Somerville, MA (not sure if this will affect GoogleMapping).

Johnny D's - 17 Holland St.
Bar and grill with live music every night. There's no cover if you're not sticking around for the show. Good food and friendly staff.

The Burren - 247 Elm St.
Irish bar. Good music and atmosphere and a younger crowd.

The Joshua Tree - 256 Elm St.
Quite a mixed crowd here - everything from business types to college students. Supposedly, it's a bit of a pick-up joint, but we didn't really see much of that. Trivia nights on Tuesdays.

Central Square
There are many good spots here, although there's a bit of a seedy element here.

Rangzen Tibetan Restaurant - 24 Pearl St.
Nice little spot on Pearl St. just off of Mass Ave. Light curries and simple food. Good stuff if you don't feel like something really heavy (I've only had vegetarian dishes here - maybe the meatful dishes are heavier).

Wish and Tavern - 730 Mass Ave.
I'm not sure what the name of this place is supposed to be (I think Wish is the restaurant side). Watch for the sign which says "Tavern in the Square". The pub's cozy and slightly upscale. Supposedly, the food's good at the Wish, but I haven't eaten there. The front windows open to the street when the weather's good.

Harvard Sq
If you're looking to see Harvard university, this is it. Lots of students and Harvard business types hanging around here.

Grendel's Den - 89 Winthrop St.
Well-known Harvard Sq hangout. Great atmosphere and a super place to relax over a drink or five. The food is cheap and good with lots of Mediterranean-style options. Portions are not huge, so if you're really hungry you should order an appetizer. At these prices you can afford it anyway. There's a one-dollar menu on Sunday nights. Give yourself time to hang around and enjoy a couple of drinks.

Boston
Like Cambridge, there is so much to do here that you couldn't possibly do it all in a short trip. There are tons of "Freedom" things if you're into American Revolutionary history. There are tons of great bars and restaurants if you're not.

MJ O'Connor's - 27 Columbus Ave. at Arlington St.
Great Irish pub, with a warm, comfortable atmosphere, and great food, although a little thin on the vegetarian and non-fried stuff options. They have good bartenders that know how to do things right - for example, the hot toddies have a slice of lemon with cloves floating on top just like they should. The bar is in the front, but there's a whole restaurant area in the back. Also in the area: Boston Park Plaza hotel, Legal Seafood, Maggiano's, and McCormick and Schmick's (seafood a la Legal). To get here on the T, take the red line to Lake St, transfer to the green line, and get off at Arlington. Walk a block South (away from the park) and make a left onto Providence St.

From O'Connor's, you can walk a block to Boylston where you got off the T (don't be afraid to ask your server which way that is), make a left and keep going. There are numerous bars along the way.

Getting Around
I'm not going to lie to you. Driving in the Boston area is absolute hell. From a seasoned professional who is used to getting dumped in cities where he's never been, Boston is hands-down the worst city in the US for driving. After years of going there, I finally made my first trip last week where I didn't get lost. Get a good map and make sure you have good directions before you set out. Do not try to improvise your route - you will get lost. Trust me on this.

Parking is hard to come by as well. Expect to pay at least $20 if you're parking just for dinner. Don't even try to find something on the street. Side streets are permit-only, and anything that's not permit-only will be taken. Bite the bullet and park in the first garage you see.

Better yet, don't drive. Boston has a great subway system. In Cambridge, the red line stops at the major squares - Davis, Porter, Harvard, Central, Kendall, ... It then goes into downtown Boston where you can change lines in a number of places. The red line continues as far south as Quincy and Braintree.

Directions

Into Cambridge from the airport:
From the airport, follow the signs for the Sumner tunnel. Do not take any tunnel other than the Sumner tunnel. Note that all tunnels leading from Boston have a $3 toll (exact change is not necessary). From there, follow the signs to Storrow Drive (this is not as easy as it sounds). Storrow Dr. is a nice road that runs along the Charles River. Follow it past the Copley Sq exit to the Mass Ave. exit on the left side. Watch carefully for this! It's a ramp on the left that goes upwards and is quite easy to miss. At the top of the ramp make a right and cross the river into Cambridge. You are now on Mass Ave. (aka Highway 2A) in Cambridge in the middle of the MIT campus. Pat yourself on the back if you made it here without getting lost.

Into Cambridge from the I-95.
Take highway 2 (not 2A - 2!) East into Cambridge. Follow it to the end of the highway and you have three options: Exit to the right to Alewife station. This is the last stop on the red line. There is a large parking lot where you can park all day for $5 (you will never see a deal like this anywhere else in the area). From here, take the T inbound to any square in Cambridge or downtown Boston and beyond. The second option is to take Highway 16 East. To do this, make a left at the lights and follow the narrow lanes. The first set of lights is Mass Ave. Make a right and you're heading in towards Porter Sq (where the road forks) and beyond into Cambridge and Boston. The third option is Highway 16 west. I've never taken that. Follow it and you're on your own.

Keywords: Boston, Cambridge, Sudbury, Burlington Mall, Westford, Massachusets, Harvard, Central Square, Davis Square