Yappy Hour - Halloween Style

This summer, Nick and I took Holly to Yappy Hour at The Liberty Hotel and had a fantastic time.  Basically, the Liberty Hotel sets up a bar tables, chairs and plastic couches out in the Yard, behind Scampo, and allows pets and their owners go crazy.  Most of the dogs are running around off-leash, just having a ton of fun while the owners are hanging out with the dogs enjoying a few drinks.  For me, it is really nice to be able to head out with Holly after being away from her all day.  Yappy Hour is done every Wednesday through the summer, up until (as it turns out) Halloween.

Enjoying a drink with Holly!

The Liberty Hotel's cap to the Yappy Hour season was the Halloween Party!  I had seen an ad through Four Preppy Paws' twitter account and thought it would a fun way to spend the evening.  Even better, we got to torture Holly by dressing her up in a costume.  We were a bit late to the shopping, but were able to find a great bee costume at Fish and Bone on Newbury Street.  The costume was a little snug, so we said she was the bumble bee girl on the cover of the Blind Melon album, but doggy glasses are a little hard to come by ;).

Heading to Yappy Hour

On our way down the street, Nick asked if I was sure it was truly the costume night because he did not want Holly to be the only pup dressed up.  He knew how uncomfortable he would have been to be the ONLY one dressed up.  Even though all the dogs were dressed up, at the entrance we saw a french bulldog dressed in the exact same costume!  Oh the horror!  Turns out bumble bees were big this year.

Look of panic

The first time we were at Yappy Hour, Holly was definitely the shy girl, and this night was no different.  We found ourselves a nice little couch area, and Holly made herself right at home looking down at the other dogs - from all angles.

Asking "what is going on?!"

There was a doggy costume contest going on throughout the night, so while there were repeats, there were some real original ones as well.

Great Dane as a horse - owner was a jockey

Hooters Girl

There was also a dog dressed Hugh Hefner, complete with a captain's hat, and the owner had a bunny costume on.  Meanwhile, Holly still was hanging out on the couch with the humans.

Eventually, she decided to seek refuge on Nick's lap.

A close up on her sitting position was needed because she was literally sitting like a person would on a bench.  But she was a happy camper.

The winner of the evening!  & Holly's twin...

 

Blackhawk - the lit couch was killing my photo!

Finally, when we were ready to leave and I got up to pay the tab, Holly jumped down from her perch and and ran around a bit.  While it was only to see other people - not dogs - I was proud nonetheless.  Next year maybe she will branch out more.

Yappy Hour is such a fun time and a great way to have some apres-work cocktails.  If you have a dog or just like dogs, I highly recommend heading over to the Yard on Wednesday evenings next summer.

Island Creek Oyster Bar and a Red Sox Game

During my brother's trip we managed to hit some good New England trademarks: lobsters, and Back Bay/Sonsie.  All we needed was a little baseball!  Due to a number of circumstances, my brother and BL ended up with tickets to the afternoon game of a double-header, but since it was a weekday, Nick and I really couldn't cut work and go.  Lucky for us, Nick was able to get four tickets to the evening game as well!  Good thing my brother happens to be the biggest Red Sox fan ever!

Wanting to grab some dinner before the evening game and also wanting a good place to meet, we decided to head to the Island Creek Oyster Bar.  I had been wanting to try this place out for awhile and this proved to be the perfect time!

When I walked in, I was greeted by a light cottage feel that had a modern flair, making me feel far away from downtown.  After checking out the raw bar...

Raw Bar

I settled on down at the bar (still not quite sure how I found a seat) and ordered a Narragansett, which I have been all about lately.  Big, cheap and delicious - how can you go wrong!

Beer!

Oyster Shell lined wall - pretty impressive

While I was able to grab a seat at the bar, the hostess had some trouble determining the wait for our table as her 25-35 minute estimate quickly turned into at least an hour.  When we finally were sat, we were ready for some good food!  To start, we had to indulge in some treats from the raw bar, so we picked some oysters: Island Creek Oysters, Pocky Nocks and Big Rocks.  All were fresh and delicious, but my favorite were the Pocky Nocks - they had the perfect combination of flavors. 

Oysters!

After seeing some of the massive shrimp served to some other tables, we couldn't resist!  The shrimp were great, but sometimes, when they are bigger they lose a bit of taste.  While not as succulent as some of their smaller counterparts, these had plenty of taste to go around!

Shrimp...

and plenty of condiments.

For main courses, I decided on the lobster roll.  While not hot and buttered like Neptune's Oyster, this was definitely tasty.  The mayo was pretty light, so it did not compromise the flavor of the lobster meat.  The roll was delicious - much more appetizing in my opinion than a split top roll (sorry Nick!)  Obviously, I was just enjoying loads of lobster meat that week.

Lobster Roll

Nick went with the Colorado Angus Burger with house-cured bacon and Grafton Cheddar, and decided to go for the full effect by adding the fried oysters and horseradish mayo as well.  The burger had a lot of good flavors from the addition of the oysters and mayo.  The burger was cooked perfectly, but for a similarly composed burger Neptune's really had a bit more to it. 

Island Creek Burger

My brother went with some fried claims for dinner.  It was a nice size portion and had a nice crispy breading to it.

Fried Claims

BL went with the classic fish and chips.  You really cannot go wrong with this order, and at Island Creek its no different - the fish was tender and crispy, just like it should be. 

Fish and Chips

Island Creek Oyster Bar is such a welcome addition to the Fenway area.  Really, Fenway had been lacking in some quality dining establishments, and this joins a bunch of other great new restaurants in filling that void - good food and drink, what more do you need?!

After our delicious meal - we took our fully bellies over to Fenway and walked up to the Bleacher seats.  Nick actually got these from a co-worker who lives in Fenway - turns out as a treat for those who put up with the craziness of the season you can enter a raffle for a chance at tickets for select games.

When you sit in the bleachers you never really know what you're going to get.  Lucky for us, these were pretty amazing bleacher seats!  We were able to see all aspects of the game.  Of course, I went to the bathroom during the triple play - but still there were a couple of other great plays and home runs to enjoy!

Evening at Fenway

I think we got plenty of Boston/New England jammed into one weekend for my brother and BL.  There was plenty good food, drink, duck tours, and baseball to go around!

3 Pound Lobster Dinner at home!

A little apology to my readers - I am sorry for disappearing for a number of days!  I was in Chicago this past weekend for a wedding and was scheduled to return on Sunday night, but thanks to Hurricane Irene, our flight was canceled.  So, we were "stuck" in Chicago for a couple of extra days.  Lucky for Nick and I, we were staying with friends and were able to enjoy the extra long weekend.  Lucky for you, I have a few more restaurants to review in case you visit Chicago anytime soon (but those start next week.)

A must-do when my brother comes to visit is a great New England lobster dinner.  Rather than heading out to do this, we bring the seafood yummyness to us (or, rather, my mom's house!)

Thats a BIG lobster

When you are dealing with cooking three pound lobsters for more than 1 or 2 people that requires a pretty big pot.  Instead, we leave the cooking to the Cherry St. Fish Market - it makes for a much easier dinner!  I mean, look at these guys - they were HUGE and cooked to perfection.

Hello Dinner

Of course, we couldn't JUST have lobsters, so we steamed a bunch of clams as well.

Their opening...

On the platter, ready to be popped open and soaked in butter.

Steamers...

In case all this food was not enough, and to complete the New England experience, my brother also bought some clam chowder.

Clam Chowder (and a little butter)

One of the reasons we keep on returning to the Cherry St. Fish Market is because not only do they make the feast easy, but it ALWAYS comes out delicious.  The lobster meat was perfectly cooked and tasted just as a lobster should.  I have never had lobster this good in a restaurant - maybe because its too difficult eat a full lobster and fully enjoy it while trying to avoid getting messy.  I figure you aren't enjoying your lobster fully until there is melted butter dripping down your chin.

Tail meat

Obviously my mom got into making the aspects of the dinner she could and made a peach and blueberry cobbler AND a delicious tiramisu.  Of course I couldn't leave without tasting both and neither was a let down.  My mom actually did not like the tiramisu, thinking it tasted too much like rum, but I thought it was perfect.  Each choice offered a great flavor combination and capped off a perfect meal.

Cobbler

This evening really just confirmed that sometimes there is nothing better than sitting around a table covered in newspaper and gorging yourself on lobster with your family!  Lobsters in the summer scream New England comfort food to me.

Whats your favorite at-home summer meal?

Darryl's Corner Bar and Kitchen and a walk through the Christian Science Center

A while ago (as in early spring) we bought a gift certificate for Darryl's Corner Bar and Kitchen, and like the Mumbai Chopstix coupon it seemed like we had forever before having to use it, but once again the expiration date was upon us and we had to get eating!  So, two weekends ago on Friday night we headed over for dinner at about 7:30 PM.  When we arrived, the bar was packed but there were a few available tables for those wanting to walk-in.  I am sure they have more than a few people dropping by because the live jazz music is really impressive and completely fills the restaurant for everyone's enjoyment.  One thing to note, though: if you get a table during peak time (Thursday through Saturday after 7:00pm) you automatically get charged $3 per person as a cover charge for the entertainment.  It's worth the extra cost, but be warned!    

We were seated straight away at a bit of an awkward table - we were sandwiched between two other two-tops and there was no way to get out on either side without disturbing separate parties to our left or right.  However, once we settled in, we ordered some drinks, sat back an enjoyed the live music.  While Nick had a beer, I was too tempted by the cocktail list and ordered the Roxbury Raz - Tito's Vodka, Raspberry liqueur, triple sec and fresh lime.  This was a great fruity drink that wasn't too sweet, with plenty of lime to cut the sugar. 

Roxbury Raz

When going into a restaurant, I try to decide ahead of time whether I am going to get an appetizer or a dessert, even though I am usually easily convinced to get both!  At Darryl's I had my eye on a chocolate cake on the dessert menu so I left the appetizers to Nick.  After a little decision making based on our dinner selection, we decided on the peach sweet chili chicken wings.  I normally am not a wing girl (I prefer tenders) but these were DELICIOUS!  The peach was not overpowering, and with the chili it added a great bold flavor.  The outsides were perfectly crispy and the inside was so tender.  We got a small order of eight wings, which was more than enough for us.

Peach Sweet Chili Chicken Wings

For the main course, I decided on the Jambalaya that came with sausage, chicken, shrimp, mussels and rice - basically, a whole bunch of goodness!  This dish is not for people who don't like spice because there is a lot of it going on in this bowl.  Lucky for me, I love a spicy dish.  Each bite was like a fun fishing expedition looking for all the good stuff in the dish.  I wish these was bit more sausage in the dish rather than chicken, but that is just me being picky. 

Jambalaya

Nick ordered the Roasted Atlantic Haddock, which came on a bed of corn chowder with a bit of chorizo and marinated tomato.  The fish was cooked perfectly and having it sit on the corn chowder gave it that southern flair that made it special.  The chorizo and corn chowder combination was a perfect pairing!

Haddock

While I had my eye on the mile high chocolate cake, I had to save it for another trip - I was just too full from all the great food!  I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the food at Darryl's Corner Bar.  It was such a different type of place from the more traditional restaurants in Boston with the live Jazz music and made for a great date night. 

Since it was a nice night, Nick and I decided to walk home and opted to walk by the Christian Science Center.  The water feature there is always so impressive.  The lights just seemed to be bouncing and glittering off the surface of the water, and even though it was later in the evening all sorts of people were still out enjoying the area. 

Christian Science Center

View of the Pru

Walking through the Christian Science Center and enjoying the views really topped off a great night and made us want to explore this area of the South End/Back Bay more often. 

Playing Tourist in Your Own City - Beacon Hill

One thing I have loved about this summer is actually being in Boston during the weekends.  Last year both Nick and I were off each weekend heading to weddings, showers and bachelor(ette) parties - all of which were so much fun but left us with little time to enjoy the city!  While we have done a lot of fun things - Chihuly, SOWA, 4th of July, and the North End, etc. - sometimes I forget that you don't really need to travel too far to see so much if you think to look around.

Lyme Street

On Saturday mornings when I am stumbling out a bit earlier than I would like to bring Holly to the park, I generally space out.  But I finally started to look around at all the window boxes not two feet from my apartment and couldn't stop staring at them.  After many times thinking I needed to remember my camera, I finally did!  So there I was one Saturday morning, out with all the tourists, marching up and down the streets of Beacon Hill taking pictures of the window boxes!

Door Box

These are just a few from my time playing tourist in not only my own city, but in my own neighborhood!

Its amazing how creative people get with these.  I would almost be afraid to be responsible for one because of the pressure to make them more beautiful than the next!

Whether they are filled with greenery or loads of brightly colored flowers, they are so artistic.

 

Almost every townhouse had an impressive show - and I didn't even have to go down Acorn Lane for any of these photos (there was actually an engagement photo shoot so I didn't want to interrupt!)

 

While not up now, I have seen one townhouse on Beacon Street actually use sneakers as planters around Marathon Monday to show support for the runners.  I guess there's really not much more you can do with old running sneakers!

With all the rain, most of the colors have gotten even more impressive.

75 Chestnut always has some amazing windows!

 

I guess the moral of this story (or blog post) is remember to look around because this city really has so much to offer beyond the bigger museums and shows.

The next time you head out and take the same walk you always do, be sure to open you eyes and see what you may have been missing!