Dining

Stephen goes to the one on Milk Street only to discover he dislikes it as much as the one on Federal Street:

... The whole experience of eating at Cosí (which, by the way, they've not consistently branded: sometimes it was "Così," sometimes "Cosí") is unpleasant, even when the food is fairly decent. If Boston had a good lunchtime scene in the downtown (as opposed to just outside downtown, in Chinatown), I'd never eat there. ...

Katie recommends the Brookline Diner for Sunday brunch - basically, good food cheap. Note: It's actually in Cambridge.

Michael gives a thumb's down to Daisy Buchanan's on Newbury Street:

... The amateur waitresses, who wear as little as they can, are slow and inattentive. On a weekend night, Daisy's is staffed by no fewer than 4 bouncers, 2 bartenders, and 4 waitresses, none of which care enough to restock the bathroom’s toilet paper supply. Daisy's is cash only, and won't let you have a tab, very frustrating. ...

At the Maugus Restaurant in Wellesley Hills, you can order a tonic - and you'll like it (also note the distinction between frappes and milk shakes).

Marc notes that Top Speed Pizzeria in Somerville has changed its motto from

"The Best Pizzas, Pastas and Subs Around."

to

"Pies with bling"

So tonight my friend and I were at Big City in Allston. We were seated at one of the bar-like fixtures away from the actual bar. I was about to go up to the bar and grab a menu, when I noticed that the bartender was talking to a sort of riled-up group of guys, giving them the "You best be running along now" friendly warning to take it somewhere else before they were asked to leave. I noticed that there was another guy, alone, seated at the bar near them, who presumably they'd offended, because as they walked out past him they were apologetically giving him a an apologetic "buddy, enjoy the rest of the night, OK?"

Whenever Joyce ambles by the Sound Bites cafe in Somerville's Ball Square on a Sunday, he sees a long line outside. And fails to get it:

... However, one must wonder how fantastic and delicious any menu can be to warrant standing outside, in the cold of a New England winter, for what is surely at least a half-hour. What are in those omelettes that makes people wait outside, freezing in the wind, sipping quickly-cooling coffee? Especially when there is a diner up the block and another cafe across the street? ...

Marilora ponders a case in East Boston involving a Domino's delivery guy getting a counterfeit $20 bill as payment for a pizza. Her first thought: What in the world is somebody in Eastie doing ordering a pizza from Domino's?

This in itself could be considered a crime. ...

Sure, you can get a "slice" of pizza in Boston, but true Bostonians know it also comes by the "piece" (sometimes at places that also sell spuckies). Piece of Pizza recently opened on Hyde Park Avenue in Cleary Square; I've yet to try it because our pizza hearts belong to DeNo's, which, yes, sells pizza by the "slice." Note the ironic "free" delivery. Still, give him credit - he opened it a few doors down from a Papa Gino's and across the street from a Subway.

Hi! I know this type of thing is better suited to the boston-online forums, but since they are suspended I thought I'd give it a shot here. Sorry if this is inappropriate for Universal Hub.

So I need to get my hands on some calf thymus, otherwise known as beef sweetbreads. I'm not going to cook it, although I found lots of recipes online. I need it for immunological research. [The thymus is one of the most important organs in the immune system.] Since I need to purify proteins from this stuff, it needs to be really FRESH. Definitely NOT frozen. Best case scenario: straight from the slaughterhouse.

Does anyone know of any websites where people post comments/questions relating to boston entertainment. I'm a party planner interested in starting a website/forum where people can go, who are looking to host private parties at Boston area locations/venues. Something besides craigslist.

If you have a Yahoo account, you can go to their main page and download a coupon for a free ice cream, today, March 2, only. It's to celebrate their 10th birthday.

What I learned by doing this, is that there's a Dunkin Donuts-Baskin Robbins combo shop in Harvard off the 111 exit, something I didn't know. Mostly because I stopped going that way when we moved from Boxborough to Leominster 11 or so years ago.

Woo hoo! Free snacks!

(And I was going to pick Religion for an appropriate topic group because we buy stuff at DD religiously...)

Apollonia is, I'm delighted to say, right round the corner from us in Roslindale. We were there for lunch today. We had souvlaki sandwiches, our usual lunchtime pick, which make a generous lunch at a great price, and chicken-lemon soup, which we all, including our one-year-old daughter, really enjoyed.

The people there are very friendly. It's well worth a visit for lunch or dinner. They are open every day except Tuesday. You can see the dinner and lunch menus, and other information, at the web site:
http://www.cafeapollonia.com/

Andrew

Fontaine's, a West Roxbury and Rte. 1 landmark for more than 50 years, closed last year. The new owners promptly tore the place down so they could put up some sort of yuppie joint. But even with the frame of the new place nearing completion, they haven't taken down the waving chicken, although it no longer waves at night (relive the chicken's glory days).

Somebody might use a photograph to express their displeasure.

Jo, in training at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts, has an assignment from her food management class:

We must decide upon 5 apps, 5 entrees and 3 desserts to use for our establishment and our project shall be to create these recipes, cost the ingredients, comparison shop at other establishments to find out what the market can bear, etc. I have the concept already. It shall be a gourmet style take out / pre-prepared food establishment. We will sell things fully prepared and ready to go as well as salad components you can assemble at home and pre-marinated meats and fish for you to just follow the heating/cooking instuctions, etc.

She's seeking suggestions on what folks would want to see in such an establishment after a LONG day at work.

Rogue Slayer Law Student works a few blocks from Lilly's, a Watertown bakery that burned to the ground last night:

I often met a friend from school there for breakfast of croissants and Earl Grey, and loved their sandwiches at lunchtime. Even when I was avoiding treats, I could just walk by at lunchtime and inhale the wondrous aromas wafting through the doors and windows, and feel treated nonetheless. ... Always lively, full of old and new friends, and that delicious combination of chocolate, fruits, breads, cakes and conversation. Here's hoping the Sidiropoulos family is able to rebuild or relocate. We'll all follow.

Fire details from Channel 5

The Deluxe Town Diner in Watertown (627 Mt. Auburn St.) claims to have "the BEST BURGER EVER" - made, as it is, from an American version of Kobe beef. Matt puts the $11 burger to the test and reports that while the first bite is mouth nirvana, he finds the ultimate experience wanting:

... I must say, the beef doesn't have much trouble eliciting a first-bite reaction of "HOLY FUCKING SHIT, THIS IS THE BEST BURGER EVER". Unlike most diner hamburgers, the grind is rich and tender, and has a subtle and distinctive flavor all its own.

But then he makes the mistake of taking more bites (and don't even get him started on the cole slaw).

Via Lisa, who knows a thing or two about Watertown eateries.

Eric and family try Cafe Apollonia, the Boston area's only Albanian restaurant (146 Belgrade Ave., in Roslindale). He recommends it:

... Our best expectations were confirmed, and we are delighted to say that the Hysi family operates a wonderful little place. Francesco, they have byrek! The menu looks traditional, but chef Marlon Hysi makes them with the innovation you might expect of a Cordon Bleu graduate, which he is. Ivana's Trofte Tave was baked in wine and tomatoes over carmelised onions, Azra's Qebaptore were excellent čevapi, but served over a bed of seared eggplant and peppers, with a thick yoghurt sauce and rosemary mixed in with the meat. ...

On Sunday, the Carol and Steve show paid a visit to the Boston Wine Expo, in a video that will leave your head spinning (but maybe that was just the camera angles at the end).

Bill reviews several Cambridge food places, including Tamarind Bay in Harvard Square and Christina's in Inman Square.

I took some more snow pictures, but really, how many more of those can you bear? So instead, the above is what you see when you sit in the window seat at Golden House, a Chinese take-out place on Washington Street in Roslindale.