The Grill At The Blue Room

If I must go to work (and believe me, my bank account tells me I must), I figure I need to have some things to look forward to, like lunch. While Kendall Square has been steadily filling up with more and more restaurants, one of my favorite lunch spots has always been the grill at The Blue Room. The grill is only open during the spring and summer, so once the weather gets nice, I constantly check The Blue Room's website for those magic words: "The grill is open!"

This year the grill opened at the beginning of May, and I convinced my coworkers (who am I kidding, I merely asked and they eagerly agreed) to come to lunch with me that very first week. I shouldn't give away all the tricks, but it's best to get there early to get a table and avoid the line, so we trekked over at 10 of 12.

I was thrilled to see the chalkboard out front listing the day's options (even though I had already checked them out on Twitter). It's there every day the grill is open, and the offerings range from salmon to chicken to pork to steak to something vegetarian. Each dish is usually $7 to $9 and includes two sides of your choice. An extra dollar gets you iced tea or lemonade (or if you mix them, an Arnold Palmer).

While I always enjoy any of the main offerings, one of my favorite things about going to The Blue Room at lunch is the sides. There's always rice, pasta salad, green beans, salad, black beans, and tomatoes and cucumbers to choose from.

Besides the food and the low price tag, the ambience also brings me to The Blue Room. I like sitting at the outdoor tables and soaking up as much sun as possible before heading back to the sealed window, over-air-conditioned office. For that brief hour, I am completely happy, filled with good food, good conversation with friends and coworkers, and plenty of vitamin D. It's sort of my little oasis.

Do you have a favorite summer lunch spot?