First visit to Bianca (from the Cushmans of O Ya) for take out. Online ordering was straightforward, food ready on time when I arrived.
Hamachi crudo was a generous serving of gorgeous fish, edges seared with Japanese charcoal. Crispy nori tuna tacos every bit as addictive as the versions served at Go Go Ya in Time Out. Pleasantly surprised that the nori remained crispy after the 15 minute drive home.
A whole rotisserie chicken with brilliant green, fresh piquant chimichurri served three of us with two generous portions left over. Good value slightly less expensive than Branch Line whole chicken.
Truffle fries were tasty, though somewhat soggy by the time we reached home. They crisped up well in a toaster oven after draining a bit of excess oil onto paper towels.
Ginger lemonade was an indulgence at $6 but delightfully spicy. Benefitted from being shaken over ice.
All in all an excellent take out experience. Looking forward to trying the Roman style pizza.
The eclectic menu, seemingly crazy, sounds quite delightful to me. Chestnut Hill is usually a bit of a haul from Arlington but these days, that’s probably a much shorter trip.
We had the hamachi crudo (easily the best thing we tried), some Spicy tuna rolls (also good), Japanese fried chicken (terrible, really did not hold up on the drive from Bianca to Newton Centre (no more than 5-7 minutes), and a $5 slice of pepperoni pizza, which made my high school cafeteria’s pan pizza look like the finest pizza in the land. Seriously, I thought it was lousy. Cold, uninspired crust (which I base my opinion of all pizza on), with “special” pepperoni which was not any better than any other pepperoni I’ve ever eaten. A sad slice, not worth $1 never mind $5. Keep to the sushi, and rotisserie chicken, and you’ll be fine.
Wow, we lucked out with our choices on our initial visit. Thanks for the heads-up. It’s disappointing the Roman pizza is substandard - we’ve really enjoyed the Roman pizza alla pala from Eataly, pricey though it is. Last week Eataly had one with proscuito and burrata - each slice had an entire ball of burrata!
I would have to try the Eataly version to see if it’s similar, and it’s just not my style, but the slice was really just meh. Not what I want from a $5 slice!
I’ll be curious about your take on the Eataly version. Toothy yet light, thick crust, reminded me more of focaccia. We loved it…also the funghi and the shaved brussel sprout. They seem to have a rota of 6-8 varieties.
Going through a rough patch dealing with the parental units long distance, which is as fun as it sounds. So, after a call with parents’ PCP and clear-ish work schedules, B and I decided to take a drive out to Didriks Newton for their closing sale (Belmont will remain open) and then to the Container Store strictly for window shopping (man, that place is $$$…what am I saying?! Both shops are $$$ but Didriks is more fun for me). Showed remarkable restraint at Didriks but I may have to go back. Fun fiddly things, like a badly-needed new can opener, an offset spatula (I should’ve gotten a shorter one…guess I can use it for flapjacks), wool felt coasters, an Eva Solo “toolbox” (which I found on the clearance rack and the owner sold to me for $15; I’ll use it stove-side for cooking implements), Duralex Picardie tumblers (I have been wanting these forever but never got around to it), a small-ish wood cutting board.
Before the Container Store, we decided we need a late lunch/snack so we tried Bianca, which is right next door. I must say, I didn’t love the use of acid green throughout the place–I found it jarring. However, the bar was a welcoming spot and the service was friendly (it was pretty much empty at that odd hour). I didn’t read @MaxEntropy’s thread beforehand and I realized later that I somehow confused Bianca with Jinny’s Pizzeria. We shared and enjoyed the wood-grilled cauliflower with miso tahini/pistachios/pickled fresno peppers (though I found the sauce a tad salty). I was excited to try the Roman margherita pizza (again, confusion with Jinny’s) and I concur with @kimfair’s assessment (although I think I liked it slightly better than he). The crust was weirdly soul-less and cardboard-esque. Two slices to an order, I ate one and brought the other home. B took a bite and he thought it was fine…what does he know?! He definitely out-ordered me, with his mushroom dip sandwich. He gave me some of the mushrooms and they were awesomely umami-full. Good fries, too (plain, not the truffled version).
All-in-all, an afternoon of playing hooky was just what I needed.
He definitely out-ordered me, with his mushroom dip sandwich. He gave me some of the mushrooms and they were awesomely umami-full. Good fries, too (plain, not the truffled version).
