Choosing what you eat...

This is the tale of two meals.

Both of the meals were comfort foods and both places were new to me.

The first was dinner at Hose Company No. 6 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island and the second was breakfast at the South Street Diner in Boston, MA.

HJ77 and I were looking for something yummy and close by the other night, so I used Urban Spoon in order to determine what the best rated place was near us. After going back and forth, trying to figure out something that sounded good to both of us, we decided on trying HC No.6, which HJ77 had never been to, despite proximity. Now, I am game for anything (most of the time) but HJ77 was not feeling well (allergies) and she had to be convinced to go out. Neither of us felt like cooking.

I like places that are functional and do some things really well while everything else is at least good. If more restaurants were like that, it would be a much better world. With hopes of this, HJ77 and I ordered. I knew what I wanted when I walked in: the lobster roll special. (Yes, lecture me about specials all you want, but I wanted a lobster roll and I started salivating as soon as I saw it on the board.) But first, a starter...Calamari Ala Mama.

Calamari, "hot pepper rings", olives, roasted red pepper, tossed with lemon juice and olive oil and dusted with grated Romano. It would have been perfect if it came out to us while it was still warm, and we would have waited for it. Even though it was room temperature, I still enjoyed it.

For out entrees, HJ77 order the Chicken Parm and I ordered the Lobster Sandwich but with Cole Slaw instead of fries, and I asked the waitress about the slaw.



Look at that! The was a great (albeit small) lobster roll, but...what is that next to it? Yes, folks, that is jarred slaw. How they could make such a perfect lobster roll (and it is in my top three of all time) and then serve it with jarred slaw? (Think of the slaw that the Arquette brother consumed in Never Been Kissed...) So, I asked out waitress, who was very good, for fries, and without prompting, she delivered them without charge (Yes, I did tip her well.) but they were over done. Not wanting to complain, I ignored that.

HJ77's Chicken Parm was great is huge. I could have used the take away box as a work out implement. When I put it in the refrigerator, there was a dramatic settling of the floor. Yes, it was that big.

Yes, I am willing to go back there, but...I am going to stick to bar food and such...oh, and we have a new place to watch football...and she can watch whatever the Pats fans call it...

Now on to breakfast...

I had about ninety minutes to kill this morning, and I was hungry, so not being willing to trust the wisdom of the crowds again, I walked up to one of the security guards and asked him where he would have breakfast around there and he pointed me in the direction of the South Street Diner.

As everyone who has read this more than once knows that I am both a sucker for diner food and remarkably consistent as to what I order.

Coffee
Two Poached Eggs
Home Fries
Rye Toast

(NB: on occasion, there will be an order of bacon, corned beef hash, or I will change it up entirely and get a sandwich, or a breakfast taco)

This being someplace new to me, I was not going to venture all that far afield of my usual order.

The coffee was hot, black and had a spoon in it. (How many of you get that reference?)

It was diner coffee but it was good.

While sipping on my coffee, and waiting for the poached eggs and egg eating infrastructure to arrive, the waitress (who was outstanding) brought over a plate of warm banana bread that was great. I am not a huge fan of banana bread, and I think a lot of people who make it fail to make it properly (hence, why I am not a fan) making it too light. It should be dense, with the consistency of a proper pudding. This was great!

It made me regret not going with something else, I will admit.

Then the main event came along...

In this case, the eggs and the toast took a backseat to the home fries which, while not being like the home fries I am used to, were amazing. Seasoned with a dusting of cayenne, they were an excellent compliment to the well prepared eggs.

Oh and checking in at the Diner earned me a new badge on Foursquare!

The Foodie Badge! Awesome! I am a living breathing cliche now.

So, Security Guard at South Station, thank you.

And now I get to the point of this...

Over the course of a couple of days, I was looking for food and I did not know where to go. I suppose I could have gone to someplace like TGIMcOliveLobster (TM Pending) but what is the point in that? What, apart from sustenance, would I have received from the experience of eating the same generic things that people in Syracuse, Erie, Cleveland, Chicago, Madison, and Missoula were able to get? I am not saying that I do not love my comfort food and my staples (see above, I order the same breakfast everywhere...though I do want to find a place in the 518 that does the Full English and does it well...ideas/suggestions please) but I want a unique spin on it. Specifically, the unique spin of that individual cook/chef who is deciding what to do with what is fresh and local.

For one situation, I used the crowd to offer suggestions, and while I had a superlative lobster roll, I was ultimately disappointed. For the other, I just asked someone, face to face, and was sent to a place that I would happily go back to, especially since it is so close to South Station and for some reason, I always end up having to kill time there.

I am all in favor of social media being used for the greater good, i.e. finding me fun things to eat and enjoy by myself or with friends and loved ones, but...some times it is easier to just ask someone.

I am glad that I did.