Restaurant roundup
A sampling of appetizing eateries around campus
Tara Lee–The Tech
Tara Lee–The Tech
Tara Lee–The Tech
Tara Lee–The Tech
Tara Lee–The Tech
Parts of this article were first published on the author’s blog, Spilling the Beans.
For the past three years, I’ve been reviewing Boston-area restaurants on my food blog, Spilling the Beans. I’ve put together a list of a few restaurants that I’d recommend in and around Cambridge and Boston, all of which are within walking distance or a reasonable Uber ride.
Good for: When you’re craving meat the KBBQ way
Koreana (Central Square)
Korean, $$
Mon - Thu: 11:30 am – 10:30 pm
Fri - Sat: 11:30 am – 12:00 am
Sun: 11:30 am – 10:30 pm
158 Prospect St
Cambridge, MA 02139
If you’re craving some Korean BBQ, where delicious cuts of meat are cooked in front of your eyes on a circular grill, take a stroll down to Koreana in Central Square. You’ll get a complete variety of appetizers to start, and for the BBQ part, I would recommend the Galbi, which is prime beef short ribs marinated in Korean soy sauce and sesame oil. The waitress grills the beef at the table, checking up on it every few minutes until it’s tenderly cooked. This was my favorite part of the meal — the beef was incredibly tender, and the marinade had a sweet and savory flavor.
Good for: Delicious ice cream when you get sick of Tosci’s
FoMu (Allston)
Ice Cream, $
Daily: 11:00 am - 11:00 pm
481 Cambridge St
Allston, MA 02134
Toscanini’s is delicious — don’t get me wrong — but sometimes, it’s time for a change. FoMu serves “alternative ice cream,” meaning that the ice cream is coconut-based, vegan, organic, dairy free, gluten free, and kosher. Everything is sweetened with unrefined organic cane sugar or agave. The ice cream isn’t bland by any means, and you can taste the coconut base in every flavor. My friend, Cathy, tried a scoop of PB Mudslide ice cream. “For being vegan, it was surprisingly creamy and similar to ‘real’ ice cream,” she explained. “The coconut flavor was relatively subtle, while the peanut butter flavor was very prominent.”
Good for: Really really good fries!
Saus (North End)
Belgian, $
Sun: 12:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Mon-Wed: 11:30 am –10:00 pm
Thu: 11:30 am – 12:00 am
Fri: 11:30 am – 2:00 am
Sat: 12:00 pm – 2:00 am
33 Union St
Boston, MA 02108
Tucked away by the North End, Saus is a Belgian food shop known for its fries and sauces (go figure). The atmosphere is casual — customers order food at the counter, and the food comes in trays, baskets, and to-go boxes. Indeed, the fries are delicious, and if you go, you need to try them with a bunch of different sauces. Crisp, well-seasoned, and not too oily, they were everything fries should be. When I went with some friends, we ordered the Truffle Ketchup (white truffle oil, housemade ketchup) and Vampire Slayer (roasted garlic, roasted garlic oil, housemade mayo) dipping sauces to go with our fries. While the Vampire Slayer was a bit too thick and garlic-y for my liking, the Truffle Ketchup sauce was divine. “If I ever go back, I’ll definitely just be getting fries and a ton of sauces.” A well said statement.
Good for: A delicious bagel breakfast sandwich!
Bagelsaurus (Porter Square)
Bagels, $
Sat-Sun: 8:00 am - 3:00 pm
Tue-Fri: 7:00 am - 3:00 pm
1796 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge, MA 02140
Craving a gooey egg sandwich? A crunchy bagel with gooey peanut butter and bananas inside? In that case, I’d take the T over to Porter Square and check out Bagelsaurus. They open until their bagels run out, and although you can stick with a classic bagel and cream cheese combination, they also have lots of different bagel sandwiches to choose from. When I went with my friend Elizabeth, she got the the T-Rex sandwich on a pretzel bagel, which came with banana, almond butter, honey, and bacon. I took a bite of hers, and it was amazing. “I really enjoyed my sandwich. Banana, nut butter, and bacon is an awesome combination of heartiness and saltiness,” she said.
Good for: A trendy, family-style dinner (with family?)
Tiger Mama (Fenway)
Asian Fusion, $$$
Sun-Thu: 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Fri-Sat: 5:00 pm - 11:00pm
1363 Boylston St
Boston, MA 02215
Dimly lit with neon light signs, wooden furniture, and loud music, Tiger Mama is a nice escape to the Fenway area to feel a little fancy, and splurge a bit on their small plates. It’s encouraged that the table shares family-style, and their dishes range from $8 to $18. My favorite of the night was the Short Rib Redang curry, which we were encouraged to order a side of coconut sticky rice to sop up the curry broth. The sweet, aromatic coconut rice paired amazingly with the short rib curry, resulting in the ultimate sweet and savory duo. The short ribs were beautifully tender, and the curry was bursting with flavor.