Boston Bites

I left my hometown of Boston six years ago for sunny California, but during my recent trip to the east coast, I was taken aback by my nostalgia for good old Beantown.  I felt a deep sense of rootedness walking down the cobblestone streets of the South End, admiring the old beautiful brownstone buildings that I am starved for in bright and new San Francisco.  It was so fun to rediscover this city that I never really knew as an adult.  My sister took me to all the hip and fancy restaurants, like The Gallows- a disturbing name for a fabulous place.  They are known for their poutine (french fries covered in gravy and cheese curd), but I shared a few dishes with my gluten free mother.  We ate a beautiful beet salad, followed by their board special served with quinoa, curried peaches, eggplant, and some cremont cheese that my mother ate (with the gluten free crackers they gave us,) and finally their big bowl of seafood filled with seared tuna, shrimp, scallops, avocados and plaintains.  It was a heavenly meal.  

I also dined at a bunch of gluten free restaurants in the Boston area including Naked Pizza, a healthy pizza place that has gluten free crusts.  And also my mother's favorite gluten free restauarant in Brookline, The Fireplace.  This New England grill restaurant has a seperate gluten-free menu, and they serve gluten free bread on the table per your request.  I ordered the burger on a gluten free bun!  I was so surprised that stuffy old Boston- not a place known for crunchy granola/super healthy/alternative living like San Francisco is- has so many gluten free options.  The biggest surprise was going to Woodman's seafood restaurant in the little beach town of Essex that not only has fresh lobster, but also gluten-free batter for any fried fish dish you want!  Check out my ode to Woodman's if you haven't already! 

But I must say, that as delicious as all of these dinners were, I think my favorite meals were eaten on my sister's deck in Allston.  The night I arrived in Boston, she and her husband grilled salmon and corn on the cob for me.  When my sister suggested we eat dinner on the deck, my first thought was, "I'm going to be too cold"- because San Francisco summer is so freezing (60 degrees and foggy everyday!), that I forgot what summer nights in Boston were like!  But it was so warm and pleasant to sit on her deck that night, looking out to the city skyline, the John Hancock and the Pru.  Another night they grilled burgers and bought me gluten free hamburger buns by Udi's.  She also made me arepas (Venezuelan cornmeal pockets) by hand that were amazing!  And my last day in Boston, we sat on my sister's sunny deck, feasting on a Brazillian churrasco that her Brazillian husband made of barbequed steak, chicken hearts, yucca rolls, beans and rice.  Sitting in the sun, grilling, and relaxing with family and friends brought me back to the true meaning of summer- as I knew it growing up in Boston.   

 

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