Yesterday was the type of day that just makes me happy. I had taken the day off to celebrate the one year anniversary of my two-week vacation to Spain and I couldn't have asked for a better day, better company, better weather and better food! My celebrations started by meeting up with my friend/Spain travel companion and former college roommate, Andria. We had every intention of going to a Spanish restaurant for some mid-day tapas (like we had done every single day for two weeks) but then when it came down to it, we wanted to be in the North End, where our whole trip to Spain really began over a couple of drinks and the idea of taking a vacation, somewhere, anywhere!
Once we placed our orders, Andria and I immediately got to work, reminiscing about Spain. Stories of that two week were tossed back and forth over loud laughs, big smiles and chilled glasses of Pinot Grigio. And thats pretty much the way the next couple of hours went. Although we weren't at a Spanish restaurant, we wanted a tapas style meal and we dined on a trio of bruscetta, caprese salad and prosciutto wrapped melon. The bruscetta was garlicy, but good with a nice crunch. The tomatoes could have stood to be a little fresher, but it was still good. The caprese salad was good, with fresh mozzarella lounging on top of tomatoes (which were incidentally much fresher than than the diced ones in the bruchetta). My only gripe was that I would have liked a little more basil, but then again, I don't think you can ever have too much basil in anything! The prosciutto wrapped melon was my favorite. This is such a classically good combination, it's hard to go wrong. Each bite is soft, sweet and salty all at the same time with a balance of flavors is absolutely delicious. We ended our meal over a cup of espresso and the agreement that Spain Day continue to be an annual holiday.
After our marathon Spain Day lunch, I headed over to The Landing to meet up with Fiona from a Boston Food Diary, and her boyfriend John. We sat on the water, took in the salty ocean air and bright sunshine and laughed over a couple of frosty beers before heading over to the North End (twice in one day is not a bad thing!) and to the Waterfront Cafe for some pizza. (I was told their pizza was exceptionally good and when there's the rumor of a good pizza around, I've got to give it a try.)
I instantly fell in love with the Waterfront Cafe. It's a total North End townie bar that doesn't look like much from the front, but when you enter, you just know you'll be back. John, Fiona and I had a great time, quickly making friends with everyone there while watching the Sox pound the Jays. We ordered a simple pepperoni and roasted pepper pie and although it took a while to come out, it reached our table, ferociously hot, with melted cheese oozing everywhere. I really liked their pizza. The crust was fantastic and I kept trying to figure out how they got the bottom of the pizza to stay so crispy! Every last bit had a fantastic crunch to it. At one point in the evening, the North End Dodgers, a little league baseball team came in and were treated like hometown heroes. Claiming a win, they excitedly sat in the corner and were treated to celebratory pitchers of soda while they boisterously reviewed the details of their big game in thick Boston accents. What a fantastic day. July 9, 2011 is going to have to do a lot of work to top this year's Spain Day celebrations!
2 comments:
Haha July 9th= excellent day! Im so glad you liked Waterfront- John and I spend WAY too much time there- but it is awesome! I want that pizza again...
Sounds like an awesome day with lots of good company and great food!! Delicioso!!
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