Restaurant & Bar Reviews

Woodward is a happening spot for tasty food with an old feel, it is named for a tavern once housed in the Ames family home, Woodward is a modern-day tavern that incorporates local fresh foods and a dynamic beverage selection.

“Located at 1 Court Street and Washington Mall in downtown Boston, the Ames Building was designed by the architectural firm of Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge in Richardsonian Romanesque and paid for by Frederick L. Ames. It is the second tallest masonry load bearing-wall structure in the world, exceeded only by the Monadnock Building in Chicago, completed that same year.” (Quoted from Wikipedia)

I started with the Steak Tartar (topped with an egg, not a usual choice for me but the dish was delicious none the less)

The Simple greens salad was topped with pumpkin seeds, cucumber, dill yogurt and a cider vinaigrette, fantastic!

Also at the table we tried the Steamed mussels, pork belly, fennel, garlic and Woodward Ale! Unforgettable!

This is a common stop for us when we have people in town and want to show them a comfortable setting with deluxe food and as dressy as you want to make it. I highly recommend stopping into Woodward at the Ames hotel if you are in Boston.

A fantastic find for the vegetarian organic food lover!!! The taste of freshness in this food will stay with you for at least a week after you’ve eaten here. I went on a late Sunday afternoon and the place was pack with a line nearly out the door! The vegetarian menu of deluxe organic options is also supported with a robust smoothie menu.

I started with ‘The Innocent’ a flaxy Nutri-Nama sauce seasoning sweet corn, shredded carrots, broccoli, kelpy yeast & tamari almonds over quinoa.

My friend also had the Flourish Alive smoothie, a blend of berry kombucha, blueberries, mango, lemon, avocado and maca, it was DELICIOUS!

While you can’t make a reservation as it’s similar to walking into a Starbuck’s, putting in your order and having it rrive at your table in 10 minutes, you can order takeout!!!

They have locations in Lowell, Salem and Cambridge MA, I’ve only been to the Cambridge location:

Life Alive – CAMBRIDGE, MA:
765 Mass Ave
617-354-5433

If you are looking for a lunch spot, in the sun, next to the bay, look no further than 100 Atlantic Avenue and Joe’s American Bar and Grill. They have a great family friendly menu that also caters to the Gluten intolerant. The wine selection is fantastic for the diverse crowd this restaurant services. They even have a few unexpected gems on the menu like the Asian Tuna Salad (barley seared with a wonderfully light sauce on the side) this is a must have when I stop in for a bite.

Towne is the latest addition to the Lyons group of restaurants in Boston . It is located in Back Bay in the Hynes Convention centre.

The restaurant has not one but 2 of Boston’s celeb chefs, Lydia Shire and Jasper White.

There are 3 bars located on 2 floors and a great outside dining area.

I had the salmon which was excellent.

Deffo worth a visit.
To make a reservation

Sonsie is a Boston institution. Located at the funky end of Newbury Street this hip watering hole was very much the epicenter of Supershag,s formative years.

This was deffo the place to be scene

The restaurant became the place for the beautiful people of Boston to hang out but it also had really good food.

As I had not been there for about 5 years I was very interested to see if anything had changed.

So the menu has changed a bit but the peppercorn steak is still there.this was their classic dish and is really good.

I had the tuna sashimi which really is tuna tartar. It was fantastic.

The chicken was also very good.
Sonsie has free Wi-fi and it is great fun to sit in the front of the reatauant and watch Newbury Street go about it’s business.
To make a reservation

This branch of the Oliver and Bonacini group is located in the financial district of Toronto. The restaurant consists of a bar, sidewalk cafe, restaurant and outside covered dining area.

Light fixtures in bar are really funky.

Outside was also very pleasant.

Tuna was very good.

So was the salmon .
I also had brunch here which was excellent.
Once again the staff at all the restaurants I visited in Toronto were really good and mostly very funny. The guys here were great.
I will definately go back if I find myself in Toronto again.
To make a reservation

Origin is located in the St Lawrence district of Toronto which is on the edge of the financial district. The location is quite cool as it is opposite St James
Cathedral .

Only ha brunch here on the patio but the interior of the restaurant looks very funky.

Especially like the Darth Vador mask.

The brunch was excellent. My hamburger was really good.The only downside was the cost 17 dollars.

Rancheros were good but different from what you might expect .

The bill was rather expensive maybe due to the fact that we ordered mimosas and there was no price on the menu.

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I really liked the food and the location and service was excellent but very pricey for a brunch.
To make a reservation

As in Buenos Aires ,Gusto , which opened in Feb 2012 is located in an old auto body repair shop.

The restaurant is located on 2 levels . Downstairs has an outside patio and indoor dining. Upstairs is totally open air.

The food while not gourmet was very good.

Octopus was very tasty .

Beef tartar was served with figs and was very different but very tasty.
The place is extremely hip and it seems that dress code is whatever you want.
I really enjoyed the place and re staff were excellent.
To make a reservation

The Wythe Hotel has been getting some rave reviews recently in magazines that matter. Located in Williamsburg it is a bit out of the way and not in the most desirable place .It is however well worth the trip for a couple of reasons .

The food is very good and very different.

Seafood salad was really good

Arctic Char was served sushi style with yoghurt giving it flavor . Sounded really awful to me but it actually really worked.

The lamb special once again had a lot of exotic combinations none of which I now remember but it was delicious.
The actual restaurant is very cool but unfortunately the acoustics are pretty awful.

The dress code is very casual. If however you did want to dress up you would not feel out of place.

While the wine list is good the beer list I pretty stellar.

If you are lucky enough to visit between Wednesday and Sunday you really do have to visit the roof-top bar.

The view of Manhattan is spectacular and the music is loud.
Definately check this place out if you are in Brooklyn.To make a reservation

Americano is located in the Hotel Americano which is a new boutique hotel in the west village .

Nothing very out of the ordinary in the layout of the place. Usual chrome ,glass minimalist look. It does however have a very pleasant small outside patio.

The food was excellent and well priced for new York.

Beef tartar was as good as I have tasted.

Chicken Paillard was interesting while the steak frites was good but nothing special.

The overall experience was very pleasant and the service was very good. Also it is located very close to the new York high line which is well worth having a walk along.
To make a reservation