Quiet Common

The Common by night.

Homes of New England

I love exploring the city via foot and bike. It's a perfect way to appreciate the unique architecture. 

People say that Boston is a London lookalike. Low, brown and brick, the streets twisting and turning, I can see why they say that. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I'm in US. Sounds silly, but the West is a total 180 from here. It's vast, gridded and weirdly, light. San Francisco has always amazed me  in how light it is. All the buildings are a mixture of white, lights pinks, yellows and light concrete. Breathtaking when viewed from the Bay...

But Boston is gorgeous, too. Very old world. Very fun to explore. Except more Homes of New England posts. They're too pretty not to showcase.

xo, 

eb

P.S. Also! I saw my first "hilly" street last night in Boston! It's so flat here - such an adjustment after climbing the hills of SF daily. It made me a little homesick - funny what a hilly street can make ya feel after living in the city by the Bay.

See that slight angle of the sidewalk - a hill!

My favorite alley in Boston thus far. 

Cobblestoned and quiet, complete with an American flag.

Union Park by night.

South End fleurs.

Boom! Sam's in Seaport

Last night a friend and I stopped by a great place in the Seaport called Sam's. Summer is officially on its way in New England, so I've been trying to figure out the best places to enjoy eats and drinks en plein air.

Sam's sits on the harbor in a fantastically designed space. It's small an compact, but very open and airy. If you found yourself here on a chilly day, eating inside would be just as enjoyable. The view of the harbor is wonderful. Outside, there's patio room to stand and have drinks or eat at one of the many tables.

My friend and I actually ended up eating at the bar. We opted to share the cheese plate, along with a couple of salads: a quinoa, arugula, grapefruit and feta salad and asparagus with tea egg and Serano ham. All washed down with some Rose. Yum.

Sam's sits next to the ICA, which hosts evening events. Last night's event went out with a bang with a surprise 10 minute long surprise firework show over the harbor. We had front row seats. So fun. The fireworks got me on the mood for the 4th. Can't wait to see what this historic city has in store.

I can't wait to go back on a sunny day for the views, atmosphere and eats.

xo,
eb

Sunny Friday

Pittsburg Ain't the Pitts One Bits

I took a quick trip down to Pittsburgh for a work trip last week. We just landed a new client who's headquartered there. I have to say that I wasn't expecting much - but was incredibly and pleasantly surprised at the city. 

It's a very salt of the earth type of town; it's history is obviously built on old school industry - in 1911 it was producing half the nation's steel. This makes for some pretty beautiful architecture and creates an overall feel of Americana. Lots of interesting bridges dot the city skyline, it almost feels a little like Portland.

I was surprised how hip it is. There is a HUGE bicycle subculture. We stumbled upon a rad little bar that could have been plucked from the Mission. OTB Bicycle Café offers regional brews and burgers with peanut butter. Yay, that's a big thing around here. PB & Burgers. I've decided I'm a fan. Bikes and their parts decorate the entire place. I can't wait to go back. 

We caught a game at PNC Park. What a great ballpark. It faces downtown, the city buildings basically feels like they're spilling into the park. It'd be a great place to catch the 4th of July fireworks. 

The economy took it's toll on Pittsburgh, but it's proved to be a pick yourself up by the bootstrings type of town. It's now peppered with start ups taking advantage of inexpensive rent and a change of scenery. There's even a strongly supported rumor that Pitt is next on the list to receive an Ace Hotel. If that doesn't say hip, I don't know what is. 

All in all, I am now officially a fan. 

xo, 

eb

Beer me.

Arrrrrrrgh Matey - Go Pirates.

Sunny Steel.

Boats over Bikes in Boston

I love my bike. 

In SF, I rode to work, so I got my fix of bike love daily. But here in Boston, if I hopped on my ride in the morning, I'd be hopping off a mere four minutes later when I arrived at my office. Boo. 

So now that biking is out for commuting (tear), I took to the city to find a good weekend ride. After some research, I decided on an 18 mile loop around the Charles River. 

One thing I learned: It's boats over bikes in Boston. 

The scenery was amazing - looping around all the sailboats out enjoying the sun and the historic boathouses was a great way to see the river. But as for the trail itself? Boo. And ouch. Bumpy and poorly maintained, riding this trail was painful. Tree roots caused cracks and uneven surfaces, narrow paths ensured a slow and at times, an almost stop and go ride. There were parts of the trail that had so much debris, rocks and dirt that my little single speed whip wished it was a mountain bike. 

Biking and maintaing bike paths seem to take a back seat to other outdoor activities here, mainly boating and sailing. I'm confused as how Boston was named the 4th Best Biking City in the US. Am I missing something? I have heard that the city is trying to improve city bike lanes, so I guess we're headed in a good direction. Time shall tell...

Anyways... after riding for a few miles bummed out, things took a dramatic and amazing turn. Come to find out, every Sunday, Memorial Drive (which boarders Harvard) shuts down to all car traffic. The Drive is sandwiched between gorgeous historical buildings and a great leafy park overlooking the Charles. There were families on bikes, kiddos skateboarding, picnicking persons and an overall sense of goodness.

I treated myself to a watermelon blueberry basil popsicle from Ocean Ave's Popsicle cruiser (think beach cruiser meets freezer). Nom. I want to head back this weekeend to try the taco and BBQ trucks.

All in all, it was a great way to spend a hot spring day in Boston. And yes, bike, I still love you.

xo, 

eb

Boston's Gate: Not as red as the Golden one, but still a sight.

Biking paradise every Sunday! Yay for Memorial Drive!!!

Sailing away.

Boats on the bike path. No biggie.

I deserved this.

Bad Blogger

Whoa.

I've been a bad blogger.

Apologies to all the tens of people reading about my Boston discovery.

I'm back on it. Yay, Boston, yay.

xo,
eb

Boston Common by Night

This old park is very pretty. Walked through here on a quiet spring evening.

xo,
eb

Brick by Brick

The longer I live here, the more I'm coming to love my neighborhood.

The faces are starting to get familiar, the spring showers are causing some awfully gorgeous blooms and the food is still the best in Boston.

Enjoy some South End snaps.

xo,
eb

Every 'hood needs a cathedral. 

Faces of the Vine.

Red and Blue.

My park.

The Green Monster's Home

Last week, I attended my first Red Sox game as a Boston resident.

I love baseball games. Nothing says All-American like a day at the ballpark.

There's so much history at Fenway; this year marks the park's centennial. Let's be clear about something: people in Boston love their team (especially when they're doing well).

The Sox were playing the Oakland A's, so secretly (until now), I was hoping for a West Coast win. Shh...

Can't wait to go to more games, especially as it continues to warm up. It was freezing the night we went,
I was bundled up in a hat, scarf and mittens. It felt just like being at home at AT&T park, cheering on the SF Giants. Yay, baseball, yay.

xo,
eb

Waking Up in the Rain

Last night I awoke to a the soft fall of rain in spring.

I'm so excited to be back in a place with four seasons. The Colorado born (and mostly bred) girl in me lives and dies by the changing of the seasons. My time in Oregon really screwed with my head - that nine months of almost straight drizzle can really bum a gal out. And San Francisco - that place is truly a bubble. I think mostly it's due to the fact that the weather exists in a constant warp, so months, seasons, years all start to blend together. Spring lasts about a day. Summer is that blessed three weeks in October. Fall and winter seems to blend together. And then the fifth season, fog, just shows up to blanket us whenever it feels like it.

So, anyways. Spring showers are here. Everything is blooming and green. It's a fresh start, a new beginning. Yay, Boston spring, yay...

xo,
eb

Union Park in green spring symmetry.

Ripple, ripple.

Friday Night Done Right

On Friday night, a friend and I decided we deserved a great meal and an even better cocktail. So we headed over to the Waterfront and hit up Barbara Lynch's Sprotello and Drink. 

The food is fantastic at Sportello. We carb loaded like nobody's business. They have roughly half a dozen mouth watering pasta dishes to choose from. And good for us, they offer half orders. So we tried four pastas off the menu. We sampled the pappardelle, potato gnocchi, bigoli carbonara and the classic tagliatelle with bolognese. The bolognese and the gnocchi were by far the standouts for me. Such comforting and full flavors. One thing I've learned about Boston - they do pasta right. 

We threw in some asparagus and grill octopus, washed it all down with a bottle of wine and called ourselves content. 

Directly below Sportello is Drink - a  hip and well designed place to get a damn good cocktail. They crowd control the bar, meaning there's never a person in the house without a place to sit (or stand at roomy hightops). Meaning there's always a line outside. But - here's the key - eat at Sportello before hand, let the host know when you arrive that you're headed downstairs after dinner. They'll roll out the service and walk you through their kitchen and down the stairs to your place at the bar. Magic. 

Drink certainly focuses on their drinks - and very successfully so. There's no real cocktails on the menu, just a list of booze. Tell them what you're feeling and they'll make you just that. Citrus? Whiskey? Classic? Tequila? Herbal? Whatever you want. 

It's a great place with a fun vibe. Definitely high on the list. 

xo, 

eb

Nommers...

Sportello has an interesting setup: the bar wraps around most of the restaurant 

and makes up most of the seating options- a very modern take on a classic diner feel.

There's also a little bakery section. I want to come back for these treats!

That's a kit kat cupcake!

I love innovation substitutions for buttering your bread. Lots of restaurants here in Boston 

seem to have fun with this pre-meal staple. Franklin Cafe serves homemade hummus, Island Creek Oyster Bar features honey cayenne butter. This here was a delicious light and fluffy ricotta cheese drizzled with olive oil and, I believe, figs. Delish.

Drink it up, y'all.

The guy next to us came in and set this book on a bar. We promptly called him out that 

bringing it to the bar (on a Friday night at 11pm) seemed a little... much. Oh, Boston.