Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Empire Coffee & Tea

I walk by this place every morning on my way to the train and it looks so cute--the quintessential corner coffee shop.  I am annoyed by the gentrification of our local neighborhoods,  and the overwhelming presence of Starbucks.  I am even more annoyed by the fact that I give Starbucks business in light of my feelings.  So, I am always happy to support a local business, especially when it is as charming as this little shop.

It's still warm outside, so I try an iced version of their daily special--pumpkin spice coffee.  The people behind the counter are very friendly and blew me away when they added my milk and sweetener for me!  Such a little gesture, but as far as coffee service goes, its rather unusual.  I loved the pumpkin spice iced coffee, it tasted like a fall drink yet had an original flavor combination.  The shop has loads of different flavored beans, all of which are on display and easy for customers to smell and sample.  

In light of the new Starbucks that just opened on Washington (the third one to open within 1 mile?!), I say go out and support Empire Coffee.  Try some of their flavored coffees or teas outside on the patio, revel in their kind staff and service and start your day with a better caffeine kick.  

Saturday, September 20, 2008

The Brass Rail

Two of my sisters were recently in town visiting me, and I thought this would be an excellent time to try the American restaurant on Washington St. called The Brass Rail.  I had heard a lot of great things about their brunch, and after reading through their dinner menu, I thought it looked like the perfect place.  The menu features your key American dishes (ie steak, salmon, chicken, etc.), but left me wanting.  Chelsea joined me and my sisters, and so together the four of us embarked on a somewhat underwhelming and unmemorable dining experience.  Good thing I was there with my jokes and the wine flowed like water :P

We arrived and were seated promptly.  The weather was very nice so it would have been preferable to sit outside, but the tables were all taken, so we decided the upstairs dining room would be fine.  The wine selection was about average, with a few red and white offerings from the expected international growing regions.  When the waitress came to take our drink orders, my sister asked which region in France a specific red wine was grown.  The waitress responded, "umm...the wine is from...um...france."  Eek.  Maybe I'm a tough critic because I work in PR, but that was pretty bad.  She should be better briefed, or just stay in the kitchen.  

We all shared two starters--tuna tartar and corn chowder--and were provided with a sense of what was to come.  While both items were prepared according to their typical standard, there was nothing remarkable about these offerings.  I wish I could be more descriptive, but because of my lack of enthusiasm, the words escape me...

When our entrees arrived, we were all really hoping that something would knock our socks off...and low and behold...the most average item on the menu received our highest ranking-the  chicken!  Who would have thought?  Maybe I should preface this by saying that I order poultry next to never.  I think that ordering chicken in a nice restaurant is akin to visiting paris and choosing to sit indoors and watch movies all day.  It is boring and simply shouldn't be done. With that being said, my little sister's major faux pas actually worked out well.  The chicken was very tender, served on the bone with spring vegetables and mashed potatoes and prepared very simply, yet classically.  If I order chicken in a restaurant, this is how I want it to be done.  As for the other dishes, again there is nothing remarkable to say.  I had a strip steak that was bland and over cooked, Christie had the salmon which was prepared with couscous and vegetables, and Chelsea had some white fish (name escapes me now) that was on par with what I imagine my blessed-auntie Helen's cooking would probably taste like if she ever picked up a spatula. (sorry Auntie Helen, no offense intended)

We decided to cut our losses and skip dessert for fear we might be served something really tragic, like room temperature, botched up apple pie without any vanilla ice cream. (the horror!) So we left feeling a bit disappointed, but still had nice conversation and a "gala" time (according to Coleen, ha ha).  On our walk home, we passed this new little bakery called Sweet  and were happily surprised when the owner decided to allow us to come in despite having been closed for 30 minutes.  We sampled the mini cupcakes and I must say, the red velvet was heaven.  This was the best thing that I ate all night, and it was small enough, that I felt I had only minorly offended my "diet" (ha).  Sweet is really charming and the woman working there was a pleasure to talk with.  I would definitely recommend stopping by Sweet for some of their cupcakes.

So, in context of everything, I would say that The Brass Rail cooks and serves pretty mainstream, average food, and is generally skipable.  Granted my expectations were set pretty high, I still think that this place is way over-hyped.  I would not recommend having dinner here unless you want food that you are likely capable of cooking (and in many cases surpassing).  Sweet on the other hand is worth visiting.