Enough of this talk! Summer isn’t over until September 22 - I don’t care how autumn-esque the last few days have felt or whether the kids are back in school. We only get a few semi-nice months, so don’t call it quits just yet. Summer shall proceed until it’s actually over. No sweaters or pumpkin spice anything until September 23.
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Reminds me of Bluto’s speech in “Animal House” - It’s not over until we say it’s over! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?
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I love the Boston area months September through mid March…then the pollen starts. I’m serious! My favorite time of year, as long as I avoid anything pumpkin spice, except for the Melissa Clark pumpkin pie I make every Thanksgiving, because it’s his favorite.
But during that time evil snow shows up…
That’s really amusing to me. I know many people hate snow. There are some of us who love snow. And I am one of them. I’m sad that there’s been so little snow the last few years in Boston.
I am not deranged. I know others, not many, align with me.
Maybe it’s because I grew up in North Carolina. I loved the snow there as a child when we got it. Thrilled to come to college in Boston area and experience so much of it. i still love it.
Each to their own.
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i went to college for a year in south carolina. late one night people began coming in my room — “wake up! wake up! it’s snowing!”
i told them i grew up in new jersey, where we had plenty of snow, then rolled over and went back to sleep.
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I’m a snow lover, too. Love sledding or just watching the snow fall, or driving in the dark and see it sparkle like a thousand diamonds 
Much less snow around these parts in the last few years as well, sadly.
Well, whether summer lingers or not may be up for debate, but there’s no debating traffic has returned to “normal” - that is, heavy and congested. We parked at the Prudential underground garage, planning to take advantage of the reduced validated rate with a purchase at Eataly. Turned out to be a wise decision for another reason. Traffic was horrendous, the Prudential exit off I90 eastbound was so backed up we gave up and exited toward Copley and looped around. Huntington Ave was also backed up so we ducked in the garage entrance off Ring Road. As we exited the garage we discovered one of the reasons for the traffic was people headed to a Red Sox game.
When we arrived at Select were lead to a table in a nondescript back room - I hadn’t previously realized there was a back room. A row of windows faced a brick wall about 6 feet away, and attempts had been made to provide some interest (if not sunlight) by posting a few murals on the wall. The front room is more convivial, if you can get it.
Our nephew was waiting for us. We ordered the Gloucester plateau of 6 Island Creeks, 4 shrimp cocktail, salmon crudo, dressed lobster, and crab salad. We also ordered white anchovies on pan con tomate and scallop crudo with melon. These far outshined the plateau, which was fine but not particularly memorable. The lobster benefited from being dragged through the leftover marinade from the scallop crudo.
My spouse and I both had a brut rose from Roederer Estate, a lovely very pale pink, dry but a hint of fruit, and a very generous pour, right to the tippy top of the glass. Went well with everything.
Four mains our nephew had a crab pasta special, my spouse had the whole sea bream, and I had mussels in a tomato broth. The sea bream was lovely and large enough that I helped my spouse finish it. It can easily be shared, served with roasted potatoes and fennel. The mussels from Maine were also plentiful, and though listed as a starter made a generous main.
They don’t serve desert or coffee (which our nephew the Sloan student described as a dubious business decision); but since we planned a stop at Eataly for parking validation anyway we got desert there. They were having a special on affogato, yum.
As a bookend to this series that started with Neptune Oyster Bar, we much preferred the experience at Select. First, there was no waiting in line outside. The oysters were served first rather than last (!) and Select also won with the most memorable dish, the Spanish white anchovies on pan con tomate.
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Great series, great concept! Fun to read!
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Do you happen to recall if they were Bang’s Island mussels? Those are my favorite.
I have really enjoyed following your summer dining adventures!
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I don’t recall them saying, but if memory serves Bang’s Island mussels tend to be pretty large (last had them at Scales in Portland). These were on the smaller side.
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Fixed it for you 
Ha Ha. That works for you and a lot of people. Not for me!
Unexpected bonus update - we were invited to celebrate a 21st birthday at Bubble Bath atop the CitizenM hotel, on Mass Ave. As you enter the hotel you face two elevators that will take you to the reception on the second floor. But if you follow the sign to the left it leads you to an express elevator to the rooftop bar. The room has tall windows facing Cambridge. To the right is the exit to the terrace, which faces east, providing dramatic views of Back Bay, Beacon Hill, and downtown Boston. The terrace is large, with a mix of high-tops, cocktail seating, and dining-height tables. The east side of the terrace is lined with planters, with lovely purple flowers and a small armada of happy bumble bees who made the 14-story flight. Really I think the view is better than from the top of the Prudential - here you are close enough to see more detail. The terrace design is rather inspired - it’s not the very top of the hotel - it is shaded from the west by the top floor, ensuring it will be fully shaded in the late afternoon/evening. And by facing east it avoids offering a view of the Mass Pike.
The menu is heavy on sparklers, by the bottle and glass, and there is a list of inventive house cocktails. The birthday boy opted for a classic G & T. My spouse had a dirty martini - traditional presentation, poured table side from a small carafe, with the leftover (it was easily a double) nestled onto a bed of ice. I had an excellent Italian Pet Nat (someone had to have bubbles), and the rest of the party tried various house cocktails. Most a bit on the sweet side, but not overpoweringly so.
The food menu is exclusively snacks and light plates, and various levels of caviar indulgence. We had smoked salmon miniture sandwiches, with cucumber and cream cheese, sort of high-tea style, and little prosciutto and cheese sandwiches. A small portion of steak frites (excellent frites) was served with an herbed sauce that reminded me of the sauce at Relais de Venise in Paris. There was a mini lobster roll that looked very nice, though I didn’t try it. Overall the food was really quite good, and Bubble Bath will make a nice destination for a light meal, and a great place to take visitors to Boston. The view is so noteworthy I predict this will become a destination.
CitizenM doesn’t have parking, but it’s a short walk from the Green Line Hynes Convention Center stop. I recalled from experience that the eastbound stretch of Commonwealth Ave just before Mass Ave. (fronting the Harvard and Somerset clubs) often has street parking, and memory served. We parked near the Harvard Club and had a short walk around the corner to CitizenM.
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I also enjoyed a visit to Select last night and we wound up trying some of the same dishes, so I thought I’d add my own report here.
We sat in the front at the counter, which might be more convivial but is also a bit overcrowded. It was great to see a restaurant absolutely packed, but I feel they’ve jammed in one or two stools too many. That said, service was impeccable and made up for the crowded feeling: the people working behind the counter were friendly, attentive, and super knowledgeable about the food and drink options.
We started with a couple of the house cocktails. One in particular that stood out was a daiquiri featuring a spirit only recently made available here in Mass, Planetary’s (formerly Plantation) coconut rum – great stuff, nothing like the coconut rum you might remember from earlier misspent days. Combined with pineapple, lime, and a dash of salt, a really nice start to the meal.
With the cocktails we enjoyed the anchovies on pan con tomate and an order of the mussels, which are at this point being served with a creamy coconut curry. The anchovies were excellent; very fresh, well seasoned, and paired perfectly with the bread. My only complaint was that there was maybe a bit too much tomato, which made the whole thing feel slightly slippery. The mussels were also very tasty, but they were extremely small - the balls of meat were maybe around the size of a nickel. I much prefer whatever variety of mussels Whole Foods sells, although Select did a far better job with the sauce than I generally do.
To accompany our mains we switched to wine and opted for a couple of glasses of the Planeta “Sicilian Blend,” which has a fruity easy drinking quality with just a bit of tannic structure to make it feel somewhat sophisticated. Great with food and an excellent by the glass option.
For this course we tried the bouillabaisse and the halibut. Bouillabaisse: very well done, but kind of similar in a way to the sauce with the mussels, and not as good. Overall kind of forgettable. Halibut: Wow. All kinds of things going on in this dish, including shaved cabbage, some sort of pickled element, some raisins, a puree under the whole thing. The halibut had a crispy pan-seared exterior and was still quite moist within. Definitely recommended.
All in all a really nice meal. I was slightly annoyed to discover on getting the check that in addition to the very well advertised mandatory 20% “service fee” they also add a 3% “convenience fee.” I’m not anti-tipping in any way, but I do feel a bit over extended by service charges everywhere these days so this was a kind of negative end to the experience. (But certainly won’t keep me from returning.)
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Glad you had a good experience. We’d love to find a supplier of those white anchovies. When we see them they’re usually packed in vinegar.
I take the surcharges in stride, they usually save me $$ since my default is to tip 25% for decent service (I suppose from being waited on by so many PhD candidates over the years). If they insist on 20% I don’t argue.
