Dishcrawl Comes to Boston….
I went to my first Dishcrawl recently, and it’s like a pubcrawl but with food. There were 27 of us who participated in this night of feasting which took place in the South End.
Our first stop was at Darryl’s Corner Bar and Kitchen, where they served a sampling of mini catfish strips (which were really tasty), baked haddock, and a mini hybrid sweet potato and pecan pie. After that, we were off and walking. It was on to stop two of the night, which by far was the best. It was Jae’s Café, and they got it right with healthy portions of a Fresh Spring Roll, Treasure Island Maki, Crab and Lobster Cake and one of their specialties Beef Bi Bim Bab, (a marinated thinly sliced beef with seasoned vegetables and steamed rice served with traditional spicy Korean sauce). It was fabulous. The presentation was divine and they suggested pairing dinner with either red or white wine, a Lychee-tini or Jae’s Red Sangria. At the end of stop two, we marched on to Addis Red Sea Ethiopian Restaurant for our third restaurant of the night.
If you’ve never eaten Ethiopian food, one of their customs is that you don’t use utensils, you eat with injera bread. It’s almost like a flat pancake but it’s a little spongier and it’s great in soaking up any spices. The first step is you’re given a warm towel to clean your hands and the food is then served on circle platters and everyone joins in and gets to know one another. Addis provided a vegetarian smorgasbord of food which included a chickpea paste blended with oil, lemon juice, green pepper and black pepper called Butecha. Also on the menu was Gomen Wot, which is chopped collard greens cooked in herbed oil with onions, green pepper and garlic; Yesmir Wot, lentils simmered in a spicy hot berbere sauce (which was really tasty), and my favorite of the night was a cabbage cooked with vegetable oil, garlic, ginger and green peppers called Tikle Gomen. All of the food was flavorful and very filling. Add this restaurant to your list!
Our final location of the evening was the Beehive, which served a dessert of mini pumpkin cheesecake, bread pudding and mini chocolate soufflés. Dishcrawl is a great concept. It’s a great way to explore new restaurants and neighborhoods with the added bonus of meeting new friends.
Promised Land…
The night before Thanksgiving, John Krasinski’s new movie, “Promised Land,” screened at the Revere Hotel. Krasinski (who plays Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom “The Office”), co-wrote the movie with Matt Damon and also produced it. “Promised Land” takes place in a small, rural town called McKinley that has been hit hard economically, with the townspeople split over the issue of fracking and drilling rights and what the potential benefits for them are individually and collectively. The film is about fracking, but it’s so much more than that. It’s about the emotional and physical well-being of this community and its people and the American Dream. “Promised Land” brings a very timely subject and its possible implication to light, is a good movie and worth seeing when it’s released on Dec. 21st.
Coming Up…
This Friday (Nov. 30), The Color of Film Collaborative, Inc. and Haley House Bakery Café present Byron Hurt’s documentary “Soul Food Junkies” at Dinner and A Movie beginning at 6 p.m. Tickets are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/29300.
A great family event is the 2012 Holiday Pops with their annual holiday sing-along on Wednesday, Dec. 5 at Symphony Hall with Keith Lockhart and The Boston Pops Orchestra. It runs through Dec. 24.
Beginning Wednesday, Dec. 5, “La Belle et la Bête” (Beauty and the Beast) takes place at the Paramount Center Mainstage in ArtsEmerson through Sunday, Dec. 9.
Also beginning Dec. 5th is the musical “Pippin” at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, running until Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013.
Anthony Williams’ “Urban Nutcracker” returns to the stage for its 12th season with a mix of diverse dance styles from classic ballet to hip hop beginning Saturday, Dec. 8 with performances through the weekend of Dec. 21 at the John Hancock Hall in Boston.
“Memphis,” the Winner of the 2010 Tony Award for Best Musical, comes to the Citi Emerson Colonial Theatre beginning Dec. 11 and running through Dec. 23.
Cedric The Entertainer makes his way back to The Wilbur on Sunday, Dec. 30 for two shows at 7pm and 9:45pm.
If you would like me to cover or write about your event, email me at inthemixwithcolette@gmail.com.
