Spa Day and Sunday Brunch at Met Back Bay

On Sunday, I had a really long overdue girls' day with one of my best friends.  Kim and I both received gift certificates to Bella Sante recently and we decided that it would be fun to go together. 

I started the morning off with a forty-five minute indoor bike ride while watching old-school 90210, took a quick shower and then hurried off to Bella Sante for my massage.  I have never been to Bella Sante before and it instantly felt really luxurious.  I loved their clean, sleek and modern locker rooms, the tea options and comfortable waiting room.  I was surprised at how many people were there for treatments at 9 AM on a Sunday since I thought Kim and I would be the only early birds.  But after my massage, I understood why so many people would want to start their Sunday off at Bella Sante because it instantly made me so much more relaxed.

My massage was exactly what I needed.  My friends Karyn and Karen purchased a 50 minute Bella Sante massage for me as a birthday gift, which was a traditional Swedish massage.  My therapist, Mary, was so wonderful and she gave me the firm but not deep massage that I was looking for.  Kim opted for the exfoliant treatment and she said that it felt great for her skin.

After we both felt so relaxed and rejuvenated from our spa treatments, we headed off to Met Back Bay for brunch.  I've never been to the Met Back Bay before and I adored what they did with the space.  I loved all of the red leather booths contrasting with the painted quotes on the wall.  It felt both cozy yet modern at the same time.

Kim graciously offered to treat me to brunch as a belated birthday gift and we had such a nice time.  We were seated in a nice booth window seat and spent the next two hours catching up.  It took us awhile to order while we gabbed away but our server was so great and she never felt us feel rushed or pressured. 

Kim and I both started out brunch with a cup of coffee and a Bloody Mary.  We both asked for our Bloody Mary to be super spicy and while it was delicious, it didn't really have the heat I was looking for.  I additionally forgot to take a picture of the cocktail but that's what happens when you're having fun.

We wanted to start with the oysters but the restaurant was sadly out of both the oysters and the calamari.  We were both seriously bummed because we had been talking about ordering oysters all week!  Luckily, our entrees didn't disappoint.  Kim ordered the Eggs Benedict, which came with the most adorable tower of homefries.  I ordered the pork stuffed hash brown which had a layer of wilted spinach, pulled pork, hash brown and two fried eggs with a jalapeno hollandaise sauce.  I asked for poached eggs instead (since I can't resist a good egg yolk) and this was definitely a good substitution.

The hollandaise sauce had a nice little kick to it and the egg yolk went well with the crispy potatoes.  I could have done with a little less hollandaise (or maybe on the side) but still, I finished this entire plate without a second thought.

Kim and I spent the rest of the morning running some errands on Newbury Street until we couldn't handle the cold and decided to head back to our respective homes.  It was great to have such a relaxing Sunday Funday and I realize I need more days like this.

Thanks Kim for such a great morning!  And thanks to Karen and Karyn for the fabulous gift certificate!



Bella Sante is located at 38 Newbury Street, Boston, MA.
The Met Back Bay is located at 279 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA.