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By J.Ho, July 20, 2010 1:07 pm

Sometimes something totally awesome runs you over like a freight train and you never saw it coming. That’s what happened to me at Trattoria Bella Mia in Beverly, MA.  I went there to wait for a friend, have a beer and some quiet time to go over some work … what I got was so much more.

I moved to the area about five years ago from California.  I lived for a few years in Hamilton and now I’m in Beverly Farms.  I’d say about 50% of my bar hopping and restaurant outings occur in Beverly. And even then, I frequent very few places.  I go to the places I like and know will serve me well.  I’ve probably driven past Bella Mia a few thousand times and never really thought to try it out.  A while ago someone kept telling me to give this place a try.  Well, this person is a maniac, so I never really paid the recommendation much mind.

So like a week or two ago I decide to walk in and see what this place is all about.  It was pretty much dead.  I slid up to the bar, ordered a beer and watched some sports for a while and then scrammed.  A couple days later I do the same thing.  While I was there a friend called and asked me where I was.  I say, “Bella Mia on Cabot!” … They had no idea where this place was even through they lived about 100 yards away.  So I go meet them at another place and I head back to Bella Mia a few days later.  Same thing, kind slow.  I drink a few beers, watch some sports and leave.

This was going to be my new hide out. It’s perfect. It’s right in the middle of everything in Beverly, but no one knows it’s there. I could go there, chill out in peace and be left alone. No one is going to find me!  Life is grand.

So I was invited by a new friend to a Pan-Massachusetts Challenge cancer fundraiser cocktail party last week at Bella Mia.  Since this is my new hide-out I figured I better get to know the locals there. They put out some fried chicken tenders, pizza, stuffed mushrooms and shrimp cocktail as appetizers. All of it awesome!  I knew no one at the cocktail party and wasn’t really in the mood to mingle, but I had some beers and chilled out in the peripheral.  The crowd seemed pretty cool and I knew I would get to know this place very well in the future.  What really struck me is that at the restaurant I briefly met what has to be one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen in my entire life.  Seriously. Not kidding.

Well, back to the lecture at hand. Last night I went back to my hide-out to sip some brews in peace.  I decided to take a look at the menu and order up something since I was wicked, wicked staaahvin.  I decided on the Veal Florentina.  I love my vitello.  Some people don’t eat veal cuz they hear of all the inhumane treatment a baby cow goes through before it becomes a grilled veal chop.  I love animals. Really.  However, baby cow is just soooooo good.

The food comes … tender veal sautéed in wine with mushrooms and spinach covered in perfectly melted fresh mozzarella cheese.  Wow.  Amazing!  Oh, lets not forget the side of fresh house-made fusilli pasta smothered in a very fresh tasting robust marinara sauce.  I was in heaven.  I mean HEAVEN.  The food tasted so fresh and delicious I just couldn’t get over it.

I believe the key to my enjoyment of this meal was it’s simplicity.  I could vividly taste every ingredient in the dish.  Simple satisfaction is always a worthy goal.  Simple, delicious and amazing meal.  The veal was tender, the wine sauce was savory, the mushrooms were cooked perfectly and the spinach was just divine!  It seemed as if every ingredient amplified the pure, natural, intense flavors of all the others.

I guess I’m giving up my new hiding place by telling everyone I know about it’s total awesomeness.  I cannot in good conscience keep my mouth shut about Bella Mia.  I also can’t imagine not eating here at least once a week for next ten years or more.  This is a charming neighborhood restaurant that should be a lot busier than it is.

Yankees suck!

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By J.Ho, March 23, 2010 1:02 pm

I haven’t posted in forever, but had to share this experience …

Emma’s Pizza – Kendall Square – Cambridge

Hell, I even Yelped it. Check out the mirror post HERE.

WOW. I’ve been all over the world and have never been treated this rudely by a restaurant staff. I checked out this place today on the recommendation of a friend. I was by myself and wanted a good thin crust pizza and a peaceful place to read my paper as I ate.

Good pizza, not outstanding, but simple thin crust pizza. Wonderful, right? Well, the place only had one other seated party other than myself. And maybe a couple at the counter getting slices. I get a call on my cel phone and talk for a couple minutes with a friend of mine. the music in the place was so freakin loud I could barely hear the caller.

What I did hear, because he practically screamed at me was some guy in a red shirt yelling … “TAKE THAT PHONE CALL OUTSIDE NOW!!! WE DON’T ALLOW CEL PHONE CALLS IN HERE. GO OUTSIDE!!!”

Not kidding. My waitress had walked by my table a few times while I was on the call and said nothing. Then all of a sudden I feel like I’m being oppressed by the Taliban. I simply hung up and finished the rest of my pizza. I wasn’t all that mad, I just thought the guy was a miserable clown. Gotta feel sorry for people like that. Then he kept giving me dirty looks over the next few moments. I was going to say something, but I wasn’t in the mood for an argument.

Then I thought of leaving a light tip. Then again, why should this clown make the waitress suffer. I asked for my check and the waitress said, “Yeah, sure!” in a totally snotty voice. That did it.

I have to say, today was the first time in my ENTIRE life I didn’t leave a tip for table service. First time EVER! Actually, I did leave behind a well worn copy of today’s herald if anyone wanted to read it.

As I left I looked for any sign or notice of any sort prohibiting cel phone calls in the restaurant. Nada. I guess they figure you must be a mind reader. I’m all about manners and such and I rarely use cel phones in restaurants. But this is not a restaurant. It’s a pizza shop. Nothing more. Just a pizza shop with a cute paint job. They have a walk up counter and they are acting like they are L’Espalier.

The pizza was pretty good, but an absolutely miserable staff. It was a simple phone call. No need to yell at me. All they had to was ask kindly. I guess they are above all that. Might be a good idea if they turned the music down a bit so people can hear themselves think.

I haven’t been on Yelp in a while, but a clown show like Emma’s is what it takes sometimes to get motivated. I’m working on a new project in the area and will be visiting many Kendall Square eateries for the foreseeable future. I’m making sure I tell everyone of my experience at Emma’s.

Peace out! Yankees suck!  Emma’s Pizza too.

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By J.Ho, November 10, 2009 4:51 pm

So I’ll be working as a professional chef for like the first time ever.  I’ll be assisting in the kitchen at the Goat Hill Grille helping prepare their Fall 2009 Wine Dinner sponsored by M.S. Walker Fine Wine & Spirits.  Check out the announcement HERE and the menu HERE.

Cheers!  Yankees suck!

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By Muffin, August 6, 2009 3:32 pm

The homepage almost makes the Starboard Galley look enticing…almost. Yes, they do have outdoor dining, which fortunately the hostess was kind enough to let us know that it was “buggy” outside. As a table of four relocated to inside due to the buggy-ness, that is when I saw that their outdoor dining doesn’t actually look out on the water, it looks out on a parking lot. Very romantic.

In a state of hunger that was so great (and a tight budget) we opted for the Starboard Galley. Having never been there before (nor will I ever return) we should have been tipped off by the fact that there were no cars parked out front and no diners waiting to be seated. When we sat at our table I mentioned to my date that the restaurant smelled funny…”yeah, it smells like urine”. That should have been our second clue, but we were ravenous.

We perused the menu and decided to try the steak tips…it’s virtually impossible to make bad steak tips…that’s what I thought anyway. Our waitress, who was actually very nice, brought us our water (which tasted like dirt, but the lemon slice garnish helped mask that) and bread and butter. Nothing fancy, but it was enough to tide us over until our meals arrived. The steak tips were little brown chunks of meat that in no way were cooked medium rare and tasted like they had been sitting on the grill for hours. The chicken wings weren’t any better unless you prefer chicken wings overcooked to the point that they shrivel and dry out. The baked potato wasn’t even hot enough to melt room temperature butter and the brown spot, that was just gross. The veggies (zucchini and summer squash) weren’t hot either and barely resembled anything edible.

Bottom line, if you’re thinking of going to the Starboard Galley just go to Crapplebee’s instead.

Thanks for reading,

Muffin

P.S – Yankees suck!

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By J.Ho, March 20, 2008 9:17 am

In December I wrote a rant on some of the worst appetizers in Beverly restaurants. Read it again here. Progress has been made, people. Two of the appetizers I mentioned have been stricken from their menus. And both are at SOMA.

Is it a coincidence these two appetizers disappeared after my posting? Probably. Maybe they were just removed during seasonal revamps of the menu. Maybe public outcry had a hand in it. Maybe they realized how much they sucked. Maybe it really was my literary influence. How cool would that be? One thing is for sure, according to my handy-dandy web stats log, that posting is one of the most viewed articles on this site.

I definitely know of one place where my opinion matters. The Ryal Side Café on Bridge Street in Beverly. I was having a cocktail a week or so ago with the owner of the café and I suggested she add kielbasa to their breakfast menu. I cruised by there for breakfast today and guess what was on the menu as a special … KIELBASA!! She said it was my influence which partially drove her to add it to the specials menu. I know, it’s really not a big deal to suggest a small restaurant offer grilled kielbasa, but I’m flattered anyway! To top it off she says it’s selling so well, they will make it permanent on the menu. Hot dog!

I haven’t written anything up on the Ryal Side Café, but I will soon. I love the Ryal Side Café and it’s very, very pretty owner.

Yankees suck!

Comments (1)

By J.Ho, January 22, 2008 2:29 pm

Reader Bob writes in seeking restaurant suggestions for fine wine, Chateaubriand and foie gras for a Valentine’s Day date. Thanks for reading and I’ll do anything to help.

Fine wine and great filet mignon shouldn’t be all that hard to find in Boston. Now getting reservations at a nice place on Valentine’s Day is going to be tough. Great place with even great foie gras? Even harder. I just started getting into the foie gras scene lately and I can’t believe I didn’t discover it sooner.

On Christmas Day I attended a large dinner party at my friend’s beach house in Beverly Farms. I helped prepare the food for the party and worked in the kitchen with alongside a world class chef. It seemed like one of the best Christmas presents of my life.

The chef made foie gras that was to die for. Home cooking is always the best, but food prepared by a classically trained chef AT HOME is even better.

As for grabbing good foie gras at a Boston restaurant, I say try Davio’s or Clio. Davio’s is an amazing Italian restaurant with incredible foie gras. Decent steak too, but it’s not what they are famous for. Clio has killer foie gras and an amazing rib eye steak. The Goat Hill Grille in Beverly would be a nice place too (and it’s one of my absolute favorites.) Oh, and Cafe Escadrille is legendary!

I’ve never been to Mistral or L’Espalier, but I’ve been told they have great foie gras. I’m reluctant to go to L’Espalier since I’m not the biggest fan of prix fixe menus. However, if you want to have an amazing filet, I’d go to Gavens in Middleton. No question about it.

Good luck on reservations on Valentine’s Day. I’d rather stay home and cook on Valentine’s Day, but that’s me. Have fun!

Yankees suck!

Comments (2)

By J.Ho, December 11, 2007 6:35 pm

I love dive bars. Especially cool ones. Not that the Lucky Dog is a dive bar. But it is. Kinda. It’s small and smells like popcorn and stale beer. They have darts, keno, free popcorn, a juke box and a large HD-TV. They only sell beer, booze, smokes, chips, lottery tickets and pizza. You’ll find the occasional biker and/or a guy who thinks his bright colored hot rod is the coolest thing on earth and you should worship him and it. The bartenders are awesome, the guys are chill and the girls are often pretty. Great place to watch a game.

My company hosted our holiday party at the Boston College Club in downtown Boston. Being the smart guy I am I decided to stay at the Langham Hotel so I could party all night and not worry about trying to make it back to the north shore. Before the party I met some friends at the hotel’s Julien Bar & Lounge. The Julien is seriously one of the nicest bar’s I’ve ever seen. I ordered a Ketel One & Cranberry. They gave me a very, very small Ketel One & Cranberry. They charged me $11 too. Not that I’m cheap or anything. I spend a lot of money at bars and restaurants cause I love it. I know what’s good in life. At least I now know what’s good for ME. It took me a while to figure that out. So at the Lucky Dog $10 gets me a pitcher of PBR and a large pizza instead of a tiny, weak cocktail. Yeah baby!

I really love the Lucky Dog. I try to cruise by there on Thursday nights for trivia with my friends. Usually we win. Last night I was coming home for a friend’s house and decided to cruise in there and grab a pizza since it was late and I didn’t have dinner yet. I saw a couple friends, bought them a pitcher of PBR and ordered myself a pepperoni pizza.

The pitcher was gone by the time the pizza arrived. When you order a pitcher for $6 the pizza is only a $4 bolt on. Great! It’s the best $4 pizza you’ll ever have. It’s greasy and cheesy. Just the way it’s supposed to be. I wrestled with the stringy cheese on my first slice for what seemed to be forever. By the time I was done the grease had dissolved through my paper plate. Awesome!

Almost every night there’s the one goon who walks in. You know the one. Most of the time it’s a different person. This one guy walks in with his collar popped up, wearing sunglasses at night. He also probably spent a half hour trying to make his hair stylishly messed up. You know the one. Anyway, he was yelling at his similarly dressed pals and saying he was gonna play the jukebox. But he was saying, “Kid, I’m gonna play the Yooooooooook-box .. Yooooooooook-box .. Yooooooooook-box!!!!” I’m all like CHRIST!!! Here we go again. I knew he was going to play it. I just knew it. I felt a disturbance in the force.

He walks away from the Yoooook-box and, yeah, you guessed it. He played the one song that every asshole plays while I’m there. He played the 18 minute version of Bruce Springsteen’s Kitty’s Back. This happens every freaking night! Some numb nut always plays it. I mean, hey, it’s their buck, play what they want. I can stomach a shit song for 3 minutes or so. Whatever. But to play a shit song that lasts 18 minutes and force the rest of the place to hold in their vomit is just friggin rude.

Seriously, I love the place anyway. Cruise down there. Peace out. Yankees suck!

Lucky Dog — 129 Cabot Street, Beverly, MA