The Brookline Farmers' Market is one of the best established and most popular markets in the Boston area. It's easy to reach by public transit or car and draws shoppers from a wide area. Check out these snapshots of sour cherries, goat cheese, fresh-baked loaves, and more from the market! More
You hear people say it all the time: I never knew I could love something as much as I love this. That's how I felt; it was love at first bite. Instead of adding heat to the dish by merely shaking hot red pepper flakes over the stir-fry like most places do, the folks at Dok Bua toss the fresh chow foon noodles with a chili paste that fuses roasted sweetness with heat that builds and burns steadily as you eat. More
As food aesthetics go, the murky, rust-brown, pebbly lalla musa dal at Tamarind Bay Coastal Kitchen can't compare to the restaurant's other specialties like the fennel cream-sauced cauliflower dumplings or the spiced lobster tail. But famed Indian chefs like Julie Sahni don't consider this dish "the most exquisite of all dal preparations" for nothing, and speaking in terms of decadence, it outclasses the rest by a long shot. More
Meet the Spuckie: fennel salami, hot capicola, mortadella, hand-pulled mozzarella, and olive-carrot salad on ciabatta. A Spuckie is "what some Bostonians still call a sub or hero." At Cutty's in Brookline Village, you have many Spuckie choices. Pressed or not; half or whole ($3.95 or $7.75, respectively). They even offer a vegetarian version with eggplant instead of meat. More
Growing up with a chronic sense of guilt in mind is just part of a Jewish kid's emotional framework, but my particular bout of self-reproach revolves around a bowl of soup—specifically, the Chicken Matzoh Ball Soup at New England Soup Factory. More
The problem with most Sichuan restaurants is that they don't use Sichuan Peppercorns. How important could a single spice be to a cuisine, you ask? Very. The Sichuan peppercorn is not hot at all in the conventional sense. Rather, it is extremely floral and aromatic with a unique tongue-numbing ability. Unfortunately, the list of restaurants that have already reincorporated Sichuan peppercorns on their menu don't necessarily line up with the list of restaurants serving the best Sichuan food. Case in point: Sichuan Garden in Brookline, Mass.. More
Note: Meet Your Farmers is a Monday morning series where we profile the farmers that mean so much to serious eaters everywhere. This week, Penny Cherubino of BostonZest introduces us to John Lee. [Penny Cherubino] Name: John Lee Farm: Allandale Farm, "Boston's last working farm" in Brookline, Massachusetts How many acres? 30 Your crew: I manage two crews, one for production and one for market. Both crews are local. However, my field crew (many of whom have worked for me for many years) are almost all of Latino descent and have done farm work most of their lives. It is what they love to do, and we try to make it as easy and as much fun as possible. Hours:... More
Note: Each week, one of our various Market Scene correspondents from around the country checks in with what's fresh at the farmstands in a particular region. Today, Penny Cherubino (Boston Zest) drops by from Boston. The Brookline Farmers Market has been a part of the Coolidge Corner shopping experience for thirty-one years. It's a place of full-flavor shopping with produce, cheese, eggs, ice cream, bakery, specialty foods, beef, turkey, pork, lamb, and fish vendors. It's a busy market, with long lines forming at favorite vendors like Clear Flour Bakery. This family-operated, artisan bakery specializes in creating the authentic breads of Italy, France and Germany. Clear Flour always appears in any list of the best bakeries in the Boston area.... More
