Day 38 Lunch at The Palm in Boston , in International Place

 The lunch menu at The Palm

 bread basket

 Red snapper with pumpkin risotto and roasted butternut squash

 cheese burger with bbq sauce, gouda and fried shoestring onions

 hand cut seasoned fries

Well my vacation streak of fabulous lunches has continued with an amazing meal at The Palm in Boston's financial district in International Place. This is easily 1 of the most elegant but fun restaurants i have been too in a long time. The staff is efficient and eloquently dressed, very courteous and attentive. The ambiance of the restaurant is fun with the caricatures on the wall but don't let that lead you to believe this is anything but a 5 star establishment.

The beer, wine and cocktail selection is extensive. I had a Palm ale on tap, very tasty and a great companion to my meal. My dining companion had a SoCo manhattan and said it was perfectly made. The bread basket is a generous mixture of plain bread, a lovely raisin bread and bread sticks.

I had the steak burger with bbq  sauce, fried onions and gouda. Cooked perfectly, juicy and extremely flavor able. I would definitely order this again. It comes with a pickle, onion and tomato but you can get a generous basket of hand cut fries for just $1.95. I couldn't finish them there were so many and they were very nicely seasoned but not salty. 

My dining companion ordered the daily special , the red snapper with pumpkin risotto, pumpkin seeds and roasted squash. I did not sample the meal but she highly enjoyed the meal. The fish was fresh and perfectly cooked, the risotto was plentiful but flavorable and went nicely with the fish.  My feelings towards squash are well publicized but she said it was cooked perfectly and enjoyed it immensely. 

I thoroughly enjoyed this meal and look forward to going back to The Palm. 

I hope you have a great night and a great meal.

Kevin B,

xoxo

http://www.thepalm.com/Our-Menu/Lunch

Day 37, lunch at Abby Lane in Boston

 Cajun Oyster Po'Boy with potato salad $13

 New England Clam Chowder with bacon and buttered croutons

 another angle of the oyster po'boy (the sequel)

 Creamy Smoked Grits $5 

So a week ago i never heard of Abby Lane, and then my aunt mentioned it to me. I said i would have to look it up on line and check it out, but today as i had left an appointment on Tremont st. I look across the street and low and behold what do i see...Abby Lane. So i said Mary (thats my mom...i call her Mary) gurlfriend lets head over there for lunch.  It took very little persuasion to get Mary to agree, so across the street we went.  The ambiance inside is classic and very welcoming, the staff greeted us at the door and led us to a beautiful seat by the window. Our waiter  was very attentive, polite and he did  the 1 thing i just love a server to do...without me having to ask or look for someone, he brought me a new diet pepsi with a lime every single time he saw me get 3/4 of the way down. 

Mary had a bowl of chowdah ( i'm from Boston , thats how we say it) and she thought it was scrumptious. Creamy, loaded with clams, smoked bacon and nice cubed potatoes. It was just the perfect temperature and saltiness.  I had to sample some (for the blog's integrity ...wink wink).

I had the cajun oyster po'boy,  simply Cray-mazing. Huge oysters, a delicious buttery roll, just the right amount of crisp lettuce and a remoulade that was a great accompaniment to the oysters.  The side dish was a great red potato salad (with the skins left on , which i love), this was not overly mayo'd and nicely seasoned.  We split a side dish of creamy grits, and i have to say the grits are just fantastic.  Its a very generous portion ( we couldn't finish it, so i took it home for supper)  and it had a great seasoned flavor, i believe it had some rosemary mixed in. 

I can't wait to go back to Abby Lane, and i would highly recommend it to anyone who finds themselves near the Boston Theatre district. 

thats all for now folks, have a great night and a great meal.

Xoxo 

Kevin B.

http://www.abbylaneboston.com/menus/Abby_Main_Menu.pdf