Bon Me Lunch Truck: Govt Center

This is the year of the lunch trucks. I’ve eaten at a bunch of them along the Greenway and at South Station. Just this week, I tried Bon Me – a Vietnamese-themed truck that sells traditional Banh Mi sandwiches, noodle bowls, and rice bowls. Everything is $6 and you can choose noodle types (udon or rice), rice types (white or brown) and toppings (pork, chicken, or tofu&shitake mushroom). I was really impressed with quality of ingredients. Many things are organic or sourced from Massachusetts farms. I was also super impressed with the quality of my lunch! I opted for a brown rice bowl with tofu and mushrooms. It was incredibly flavorful, filling, and fresh. I’d go back in a heartbeat to try something else – probably the noodle bowl. Somehow, I can’t pay $6 for a sandwich that I get in Chinatown for $3. But that’s a small complaint! Check them out – it’s delicious. Bon Me sets up shop other places around the city, not just Government Center.

T Stop: Green Line/Blue Line, Government Center

New Saigon Sandwich: Chinatown

There are a bunch of Yelp reviews about the best banh mi sandwich in Boston. Saigon Sandwich is definitely at the top of the list for many reviewers. At least from the non-meat perspective, I think it’s the best. Their tofu and veggie beef sandwiches are both delicious. They season the tofu/soy product so that it has a lot of flavor and then put on plenty of asian veggies. The bread is yummy too – good and crusty.

Also, they score points for their veggie and shrimp spring rolls. They are great for smuggling into a movie at Boston Common because they are compact to carry and quiet to eat!  And at $3 it’s a million times better than any of the movie snacks.

T Stop:  Orange Line, Chinatown

 

PICCO: South End

anise hyssop from urbangardencasual.com

Last night, to cap off a great anniversary dinner with my husband (at Market in the W Hotel), we decided to get ice cream from PICCO in the South End.  PICCO ice cream can be intense.  The dark chocolate ice cream is dense and kind of bitter – in a good way.  Even the dark chocolate sorbet packs a punch.  That is usually my go to treat.  But, last night I took a left turn and went for Hyssop.  I knew it was some type of plant, but I had no idea about the flavor.  Apparently, it’s black licorice/anise.  I did a little wikipedia research and found out that “anise hyssop” is a wildflower in the mint family.

It was crazy good.  It was more herbal than I expected and was a lovely green color.  I ate up the whole serving and I’m still thinking about it today.  Take a chance on it.  If you like licorice, you’ll love it.

As an aside, PICCO’s pizza is also really good.  At least I can speak for the Alsatian pizza.  It’s the only one I get! It has sautéed onions, shallots, garlic, crème fraiche, bacon (!) and gruyere.

T Stop:  Orange Line, Back Bay

Mike & Patty’s: Bay Village

Mike & Patty’s is known for having the best breakfast in Boston. And it probably does, but I haven’t eaten it yet. What I have had is one of the best sandwiches ever. For some reason, food reviews don’t focus on their lunch options, so I thought I’d give you a highlight. The Fried Green Tomato sandwich is awesome. It’s something to write home about. It has a delicious slaw on it, melty cheese, and really good bread. I’ve had it with and without bacon. Both were great. For the real meat-eaters, my husband just had a Reuben Hot Dog (a special) and said it was really delicious too.

The other great thing about Mike & Patty’s is that it’s in Bay Village which is may be the cutest neighborhood in Boston.

T Stop: Orange Line, New England Medical Center

Modern Pastry: North End

photo: boston.com

I probably could write about a bunch of desserts made by Modern Pastry.  But, the one that always makes me double park on Hanover Street and risk tickets and towing is their homemade torrone.  Torrone is technically nougat with nuts in it.  I remember almost breaking my teeth on mass produced ones I would get from various Italian relatives as a kid.  Modern’s version comes in a bunch of flavors – my favorites are caramel (a gourmet Snickers), peanut butter (reminds me of a fluffinutter), and cappuccino (complete with coffee beans).  They sit in glass cake stands on top of the pastry counter enticing you to buy one of each. (That might cost a fortune – they can run $4 a bar). They are light and fluffy and most are covered in chocolate.   Now, for holidays I bring them home to those same Italian relatives that gave me the crappy ones and I’m a hero.

T Stop:  Orange Line: Haymarket

Modern Pastry also has a store on Salem St. in Medford.

KO Pies: Southie

photo: citypresent.com

KO Catering and Pies on A Street in Southie is run by a cool Australian guy. He makes awesome little Australian (obviously) savory pies. Don’t be fooled by the size. One is enough! Even for guys. All of my meat eating friends get the Irish Beef Stew pie. I love the Curried Vegetable pie. The potato wedges with sweet chili and sour cream are also amazing.

I have yet to try the Tim Tam ice cream made by the best ice cream place of all time – Christina’s in Inman Sq. But, it’s on my list.

T Stop: Broadway, Red Line

Ron’s Ice Cream and Bowling: Hyde Park

photo: cambridgeportpto.org

I love ice cream and I have a lot of favorite ice cream places scattered around the Greater Boston area.  Ron’s Ice Cream is definitely one of the best.  I can’t remember how I heard about this place, but I do know that it ranks #3 in the world in some National Geographic Ten Best list and it was featured on Good Morning America.  The other thing I know is that you can get amazing ice cream there and if you want (and I haven’t) you can play a string of candlepin bowling while you wait.  Personally, my favorite ice cream flavors are Coffee Madness (creamy coffee with chocolate chips, oreo and almonds), Peanut Butter Explosion (creamy peanut butter ice cream with reese’s peanut butter chunks) and Grape Nut (the BEST grape nut ice cream ever with crunchy grape nuts).

Also, hands down, Ron’s (actually his wife) makes the best ice cream cakes ever.  The small cakes are just ice cream, and the bigger ones are ice cream and cake. They are discussion worthy.  Order in advance, but they often will have some available in the case.

T Stop: 32 bus or Commuter Rail-Hyde Park Station

Tostado Sandwich Bar: JP

Tostado is as the name suggests – a little sandwich shop. The one I go to is in Jackson Sq. across from the Stop & Shop, but there is another outpost in Rosi on Washington Street not far from Forest Hills. The owner of Tostado has figured out how to take pretty authentic Dominican street food and make you feel that the concept is about to go national. The main items are all variations of pressed sandwiches with pork,ham or chicken for around $7.50. But, I think the special stuff is all the extras: tomato, ketchup, mayo, and onion. Crazy good.

Oh – and the smoothies are delicious too.

T Stop: Jackson Square, Orange Line

Spoons Up

I love eating out and I love exploring new places.  It just made sense to combine the two things and go on the hunt for the best places to eat in different Boston neighborhoods.  Full disclosure – I don’t eat meat (well, except bacon), but I can appreciate good food and I’ll let you know what my friends like.

The name, Spoons Up is a nod to a game invented by my friend Karen, in which several friends would cap off a dinner out by getting several gargantuan desserts.  Even though we were too full, Spoons Up would be declared and the desserts would rotate among us until we had eaten the last bite.  I suggest trying this game at the Sunset Grill in Allston with the Meltdown Mudslide Pie. (Allston:  66 Bus)