We are enjoying the Greenway but I think it could use a coffee shop, in addition to the Trillium beer garden.
@digga perhaps we should make some HO swag - hat, T-shirt, scarf, rhinestone studded glove…as a signifier?
Something subtle yet distinctive enough to be unmistakable? An HO hat pin?
Well, you are Max Headroom, so you would’ve been easy to spot.
I was thinking along the lines of the onion image as a lapel pin
This would be perfect.
This site also has several good designs. This one in particular caught my eye:
We wouldn’t just all greet each other by shouting “bloomin’ onion!!” in the most obnoxious faux-Aussie accent to identify us? That can be like our secret password.
@kobuta I fear that might result in some Onions trying to unobtrusively retreat
The mods were kind enough to send me a high-resolution version of the true HO logo.
Oh man, I love this one. Sadly, there’s only 1 left and the maker is in Rotterdam. I can just imagine it — $8 pin + $50 tariffs/customs!
The fact that you even have lapels to which to pin something already tells me you are fancier than I am. Just last week, when I wore a non band T-shirt (but a T-shirt nonetheless), Spring Onion said to me, “why are you so dressed up?”
Mine will go on a T-shirt or a hat
I’m in, but what are the rules? Do we shout it to each passerby hoping for a response (before someone calls an icy thug on us)? Or do we gauge onion potential before discretely whispering it (before someone calls an icy thug on us)?
[All roads lead to El Salvador.]
Mmh - pupusas
Next up is Vermillion Club. Not sure how this ended up on our radar, probably a post on Boston.com. The Dine Out Boston menu looked interesting, so we went with friends on a Thursday evening at 6:30pm. The size of our group turned out to be propitious.
First off, finding the place was a challenge because my navigation system took us to Devonshire Street, not Federal. There is an entrance (and small sign) on Devonshire, but the main entrance is from Federal. If you (correctly) approach from the Federal Street side, there is public parking in the adjacent building ($10 for the evening, very reasonable).
The room isn’t so much a room as a loft over the lobby connecting two buildings. It is dominated by a bar in the middle that has a large, dramatic Chihuly glass sculpture suspended overhead. It really is spectacular, and should be – our waiter said they spent $2.3 M on it. Seating is a mix of lounge-height tables, dining- height banquettes and 4-person booths. There is one large round (dining height) table adjacent to the front glass wall, overlooking the Bank Boston/Bank America building, I guess now known simply as 100 Federal. Some call it the “pregnant building”. I’ve always thought of it as the “phage building” but had never spent much time considering it carefully. After an evening spent viewing it, I have a new-found appreciation. With a party of six we were fortunate to be seated at this table, easily the best in the “house”.
Shortly after taking our cocktail order a waiter brought house rolls and butter, both excellent, the rolls a sort of elongated Parker House and fresh from the oven. Cocktails were enjoyable; my spouse and Spring Onion (now 21) both enjoyed their savory dirty martinis. I had a “Mexican Firing Squad”, which I was ready for after a rough week at work.
All of us had roughly the same idea off the Dine Out Boston menu - burrata with grilled peaches followed by prime rib. The burrata and peaches were simply dressed with just a bit of EVOO and balsamic, with a slight touch of heat (perhaps chili powder?). A very nice, creamy burrata. My spouse was the only outlier among the 6 of us, ordering the “chopped wedge” salad, which she enjoyed. Every one of us ordered the prime rib, and this was outstanding. Two large slabs of perfectly pink beef, served with sides of jus, horseradish cream, pureed potatoes, and a single roasted cherry tomato, large garlic clove, and small yellow pepper. The horseradish sauce was a marvelous accompaniment for the pureed potatoes as well as the beef. The portion was extremely generous, and two of our party departed with leftovers.
Deserts were similarly generous, a creamy, not overly dense New York cheesecake and a Sticky Toffee cake. An individual cake could have generously served two people. Both deserts were well received.
A couple of minor service issues. Water (we were a mix of flat and sparkling) was pushed a bit too assiduously, filling our glasses repeatedly and occasionally mixing up flat/still. I ordered a glass of Sancere with my first course and the glass arrived promptly, but the pour didn’t arrive until well after we finished our first course. I declined the Sancere, and the waiter did recognised his error and apologized, bringing me immediately a requested glass of cab blend (Paring), this time arriving before the main course.
The room, as I mentioned, is a bit odd, and up until about 7:30 when the after-work crowd (presumably McKinsey & Co consultants) thinned out, it was …energetic. Hands-down this was one of the very best Dine Out Boston meals we’ve had, and best value, so despite the room I’m inclined to return to give the regular menu a try. The Chihuly alone is worth a visit.
Sounds like an excellent meal! I am really enjoying this series!
It was! Forgot to mention additonal sides that we ordered: crispy artichokes (very good), creamed spinach, roasted squash (both unoffensive but not particularly memorable).
Also, see my update in the HO meetup thread re: “Hungry Onion” pins.
This made me laugh heartily! I guess I sorta kinda see a phage.
You’re eating much better than we are. Our meals have consisted of pylsur, frozen grocery store pizza, and more!
Do tell.
And I agree with your admiration for @MaxEntropy’s eating. One day I hope to have a life like his.
Gang, we don’t normally eat out at this clip. We typically take a two week break in August but for various reasons we can’t get away this year. So we decided if it was going to be a summer in the city without a break we would at least take advantage of the lighter traffic and competition for reservations. Probably only one or two more outings in this series.
Don’t apologize. Just live. And report here.
Just to make it clear I’ve no basis to quarrel with eating well, here’s the Eiffel Tower through a champagne glass at Jules Verne in March: