Mini-post: The Eggroll Lady and Fish Shack, 608 W. Boylston St (March 21)

Overall impression:  Eggrolls + fried fish and seafood take-out from a teeny teeny tiny spot.  Very popular, run by a friendly family. Not for vegetarians, though.
 http://www.eggrolllady609.com/


Work has been busy, and my only day off this week we spent out of town (eating awesome Indian food in Arlington, in part). So I was feeling anxious about not having tried a new Worcester place since the 14th. This led to a spur of the moment decision to get take-out from a place down the hill in my neighborhood, the Egg Roll Lady and Fish shack.  I looked at the menu online and knew there wasn't actually going to be anything for me to eat, since I don't eat fish or seafood. But I had heard from knitting group friends that it is awesome, so I decided Eric could be my taste-tester.

This place is small (tiny, actually). A counter, a drinks cooler and a few tables. Open only a few days a week, too - Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Saturday at 5:30 it was filled with regular customers eating in and and picking up. The people that run it were very nice, and it was quick. The smell pleasantly reminded me of a state fair. I got eggrolls (pork, chicken, veggies) for Eric and kimchee for me.

Eric thought the eggrolls were quite good. Good enough that I'm sure he'd be happy to try their fish and seafood. The kimchee was much too sweet for me, though. But given the rave reviews from others, I say this is a perfect place for quick fried food if you are in the neighborhood.

The Breakfast Bar, 119 June St. (March 14)

Overall impression:  Neighborhood diner, more interesting-looking on the inside than a lot of your average diners. Food was good but nothing top-notch. An option if you live on the west side, but likely not worth the drive from other areas, unless you are meeting west-side-friends.
https://www.facebook.com/bbarbagels

The Breakfast Bar is not far from Worcester State, in a west side neighborhood. My friend Kelly describes it as a place with a lot of potential, but it maybe hasn't yet become all it could be. In my mind I had envisioned delicious food and slow service. It turned out that the food was good, coffee was adequate and service was fine. Not spectacular, not terrible.

We met our friend Melissa there. It seems like Melissa and I can be creatures of habit with our breakfast choices - eggs benedict for her and scrambled egss with toast and home fries for me. (I was going to try a croissant, but they were out. They were also out of the wheat English muffins). The report on the eggs benedict was that the Hollaindaise sauce was fairly fresh (didn't taste reconstituted) and the poached eggs could have been runnier. For my meal the potatoes were the best. Eric actually ordered an omelette, a rare occurrence. The dish was... fine.

It was busy, most of the tables were full (but no one sat at the actual breakfast bar). We saw groups of college students, families with small kids, people who were likely regulars. The decor was nice, if a bit dark, but we went on a gray and rainy Satuday morning. We especially liked the wall painting (see picture).

Worth a walk or bike ride if one is close by, but not necessarily worth a car trip. I should note that I severaly cut back on refined sugar a year ago - so I feel I may be doing a disservice to reviews in not having french toast or waffles. Perhaps I should designate a french-toast eating friend for guest reviews! My mom is coming to visit in a few weeks, I bet she's game.

Update on July 20:  I drove past, and the Breakfast Bar is closed. The space is being renovated, and a sign says that a Grill is coming soon. 

Joey's Bar and Grill 344 Chandler St (March 11)

Overall impression:  A slightly older crowd, good quality food, the service could have been faster. We probably won't put it on our list of regular places, but it may fit tastes different than mine.

http://www.joeysbarandgrill.com/


My friend Anna at work highly recommended this place, it was the first restaurant she said when I asked a group of colleagues where they go for special nights out. She described it as follows: "the food is the like you would make at home, but somehow just better". So, Joey's has been on my radar for a long time.

We went on a Wednesday night, following a post-work run. It was hopping at 7 pm. Another friend once went with her parents and told us that she was the youngest one there (at 40) . We definitely got that vibe - most patrons were 50+. But the kind of 50+ who enjoy life with good food and wine, not the early-bird-special sort. Anyway, the atmosphere was mostly good. I say *mostly* because we sat at a high top in the bar area, which had 3 tvs, and a main tv was tuned to Fox News. That is enough to keep me from going back (its the reason I don't go to Inhouse Coffee, even though I'd like to support it as an independent coffee shop in Worcester). If Fox News is the thing that floats your boat, then you are safe.

A plus is that they had a nicely displayed wine and mixed drinks list (the Compass tavern doesn't even have a mixed drinks list yet). A drawback was that there were no vegetarian entrees on the menu. There were two "lighter fare" options- bruschetta and grilled flatbread - plus salads. I got a field greens salad, but the maple vinagrette was far too sweet, like frosting almost. The grilled flatbread (bechemel sauce, asiago cheese, thinly sliced crispy potatoes + greens) was very flavorful, though. Eric got the chicken parm, a hit. He liked it better than that at Livia's Dish.

Besides the Fox News and not-much-for-vegetarian negatives, it was a nice place. I can see why some people love it, though I'm not likely to rave about it. I'm looking forward to the next new place.

Mare e Monti Trattoria, 19 Wall St (26 February 2015)

Overall impression:  A little gem of an Italian place. Great atmosphere, delicious food. Mid-range prices, generous portions.

http://mareemontitrattoria.com/

(We're cruising through new places this week. We'll be out of town for some of next week so I felt the need to get some reviews in before leaving).

          Mare e Monti trattoria is a wonderful small restaurant.  The food was great, the atmosphere was refined and relaxing. The music screamed "romantic date as envisioned by Hollywood" (Phantom of the Opera, Enya, Whitney Houston and some other ballads), but hey- nothing can be 100% perfect.

Still restaurant week, so Eric got the 3-course selection. Creamy tomato soup was the starter, and though he dislikes tomatoes (?!) he proclaimed it excellent. For the main course had steak as a main and I had Cannelloni Tatiana  - pasta stuffed with cheeses, artichoke hears and peppers. Very rich. While he ate cannoli for dessert I had some coffee - very tasty, strong and smooth. Actually the best cup of coffee I've had in a restaurant for a long time! The bread before the meal was only ok as far as bread goes, but I did love the perfectly roasted garlic in oil for dipping.

It wasn't busy when we arrived at ~6:15, just a couple of tables of older couples. Many groups came in over the hour we were there. Folks indeed on date night (whether they felt it was cinematic or not I can't say), male friends, female friends, a man with teenage daughters, a 20-something couple celebrating a birthday. No young families that we saw, but they did have a kids meal section. I'm not sure the candlelight really lends itself to coloring and such.

We'll definitely go again. Its right around the corner from Vincent's bar, the favorite neighborhood bar of a friend. When next we go to Vincent's for drinks we'll like scooch over to Mare e Monti for dinner afterwards. Hopefully some companions would like to join us!

The Urban, 225 Shrewsbury St (24 February, 2015)

Overall impression:  Sophisticated yet not pretentious. Excellent food, but pricey. Put it on the list for date night, a place to take guests and interview candidates, or to indulge.

https://www.theurbanworcester.com/

This new place (in the former Coral Seafood) is great for a special night out. The interior decor is very chic, and they play some awesome (in our book) music. Morrissey was on when we came in, which went well with the old black and white movie playing on a big screen over the bar. It wasn't very crowded, maybe because we were early. I really want more people to know about it and try it - Worcester doesn't have that many upscale-ish restaurants, and I felt this was as good as or better than some we've tried. There aren't many vegetarian options, it is fish and meat oriented, but the dish I had was great.

We happened to go on restaurant week (forgetting it was restaurant week). The big upside to this was a 3-course selection for $23.15.  Eric had clam chowder (with whole clams), chicken and dumplings, and a lovely chocolate creation. I had an arugula salad, pasta with cauliflower alfredo sauce, and carrot cake.  The waitress described the cauliflower alfredo as not being too heavy, which actually made Eric shy away, he loves super creamy alfredo. Ironically, his chicken dish was with a clear broth and the exact opposite of heavy, so he probably ordered the wrong thing. I shared mine, it got five stars from both of us.

The bread served before the meal was also delicious. The waitstaff were very attentive and good. The food was a bit slow to arrive, though. Which is ok, its good sometimes to linger and savor.

(No pictures, sorry! We forgot the photo implements in the car, and I didn't want to go back out to the cold cold cold parking lot. But - there is a parking lot! Ample parking!)

Livia's Dish, 1394 Main St. Worcester (February 22, 2015)

Overall impression:  Nice place for a lazy Sunday meal. Awesome breakfast panini, very reasonably priced.
http://www.liviasdish.com/

I'd been wanting to try Livia's dish for a while. Various friends have been and given it positive reviews. The only downside for Eric and I is that its a bit of a hike from where we live - on Main street as you are heading out of town towards Spencer. If you are in the southwest part of Worcester, though, its in a prime location.

        I had the breakfast panini with egg, farmer's cheese and mushrooms, plus home fries on the side. So good - a panini breakfast sandwich seemed so much better than one with English muffin. Melissa, who joined us for brunch, was very happy with her mango mimosa (and such a beautiful color, like drinking sunshine). She got eggs benedict and wanted me to report that the hollandaise was obviously very fresh, not from a bottle. My husband the not-into-breakfast guy had the chicken parm, which he was less excited about (the chicken was a bit overcooked). He may be the only person I know of that has gotten a non-brunchy item at Livia's. So: breakfast - rave reviews, lunch/other - we may be more neutral on. I need to get a sampling of the burgers.

        The atmosphere is homey, I liked it. Somehow having 1.5 levels made it feel very welcoming. Nice and shiny, a place I could see Clark students (with cars) going to on weekends.

Pho Sure, 84 Boston Turnpike in Shrewsbury (14 February, 2015)

Overall impression:  Hearty food, good service. Nice location for those on the east side or working at UMAss Med - just over lake Quinsigamond in Shrewsbury.   https://www.facebook.com/phosureshrewsbury


The night before Valentine's day had likely the biggest traffic jam Worcester has ever seen (due to emergency 190 closing). For the day after yet another blizzard was in the forecast. The day itself,  however, was clear and sunny (albeit cold) and a perfect afternoon for a last-minute lunch get-together with friends. We chose Pho Sure at White City Plaza in Shrewsbury for two reasons: 1) its brand new and 2) there is still some parking not buried in snow. We actually didn't know what it was called before we went, just that there was a new place at that mall complex. I guess the clever name could easily have been reason number 3 to go.

It was definitely a hot and hearty lunch day. Though one friend was tempted by the many different smoothies and juice teas (with lots of filler options), we ordered hot tea instead. We got spring rolls and veggie fresh rolls to start, as we were waiting for the last member of our party to arrive and wanted to munch. They had no veggie options for fried rolls, which is too bad, though the fresh rolls were tasty. I was impressed at the variety of offerings for the mains though- there were vegan soups and vegetarian options as well as meat-heavy dishes.

The food was good. Only Sarah got Pho, great for a winter day. Eric chose lemongrass chicken and Jennifer got vegetable noodles. I went with something I hadn't ever tried - crazy noodles. Crispy noodles with a kind of salty sauce, topped with vegetables (the blurry one in the pictures). I'm not a bok choy fan (too chewy), but otherwise it was great. The manager or owner gave me pointers on how to eat the noodles (let the sauce soak everything in), but there was no way I was going to make it through them all.

We were surprised at how chic the inside of the restaurant looked, given it is in a strip mall. It is a strip mall we happen to frequent quite often, though, with other good food options. It was busy for lunch. I think people were ecstatic to levave their houses - we are all getting cabin fever! A substantial portion of reasonably priced Vietnamese food made the trip out even better.

I really like Vietnamese food, but I'm no expert. I wouldn't say this was better tasting than the places on Park, though the ambience may be nicer. It is close to where my husband works and easier for us to get to, though, so I think its a place we'll frequent when the mood strikes. A lovely addition to our neighboring town.