Food - General, Places - Massachusetts

Review: Kane’s Donuts

Kane's Donuts exteriorsLiving in New England you become accustomed to seeing a Dunkin’ Donuts on every other corner (if not every corner). It almost feels like heresy when you step into another donut establishment. However, that isn’t the case when you walk into Kane’s Donuts in Saugus, Mass.

Located off the beaten path on Boston’s North Shore, Kane’s Donuts has been frying up doughy goodness since 1955. It’s even been recognized by Travel Channel as a “Donut Paradise.

“Bon Appetit” magazine has also recently named Kane’s Donuts one of the Top 10 Places in the U.S. for Donuts. So let’s take a look inside:

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Cuisine - Italian, Food - General, Foodie Firsts, Places - Massachusetts

Polcari’s Has An App For That

Brett and I went out for date night last night at Polcari’s/Pizzeria Regina on Route 1 in Saugus. At the end of our meal, our server Sheena came out with this little gadget:

iPhone at Polcari's Pizzeria Regina in SaugusAn iPhone (attached to a wooden board) with a preloaded program for guests to input their thoughts about the meal they just had. It’s a simple step-by-step process asking you about your meal, server, cleanliness and how likely you are to recommend the restaurant to friends. The program uses a slider scale from thumbs up to thumbs down for your rating.

It was very easy to understand and input my suggestions and comments. However, at the end when I wanted to submit my thoughts, there was a connection issue that couldn’t be resolved. (I had been checking into Foursquare and Facebook throughout the night in the restaurant so I know my iPhone was working properly.)

Overall, I think it’s a great idea for businesses to make that leap into the 21st Century, using technology to learn more about the people who are sitting at their tables and booths, and creating better experiences based on customer-provided information.

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Cuisine - Japanese, Places - Boston, Places - New England

Review: Sake

Tekka Don at SakeA few weeks ago we got part of the Emerson J-School Mafia back together for a little reunion. Enter: Me, Brett, our friends Jake and Stacey (see our review of The Barking Crab for our other outing with them), as well as Jamie and Jon (Jon’s the only non-Emersonian from the group.)

Stacey and Jamie were doing a little baking. (I hope Stacey will bring her baking expertise to the blog one day soon) So, after we indulged in some really great liquor-ladened sweets we were starting to get the munchies for some more substantial eats. We headed up Route 1 in Saugus, Mass., to a little sushi shack called Sake.

Now, I must apologize in advance that I don’t have more pictures of our dining experience. My camera takes really poor pictures in low lighting so it was acting a little wiggy on me this night. But, please take my word that the food was really good!

The ambience of the restaurant transports you to Japan. Think lots of wood, bamboo and the waitstaff wearing traditional kimonos. I felt like Mr. Miyagi was going to jump out from behind the sushi chefs. However, I felt it was kinda weird that they had a fish tank (full of live fish – not the kind you would eat – more goldfish and guppies) right next to the sushi chefs artistically hacking up their cousins.

While the restaurant had plenty of western-style tables (the standard height table and chairs), we opted to sit on the lower tables with no chairs and on pillows. For me, leaving our shoes and coats near the door was a bit strange. We all thought we had to sit with our legs crossed like pretzels but, surprisingly, there was room under the table where you could comfortably hang your legs down to sit normally. Still, it was hard to get up and down from the table in a graceful manner.

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Cuisine - American, Cuisine - Desserts, Cuisine - Italian, Cuisine - Pizza, Cuisine - Seafood, Places - Boston

Hello, Boston!

Well, I have safely made it to my new abode just outside Boston, Mass.

Hubby and I have settled in lovely Salem (yes, that witch trial place). From what I’ve heard, I just need to take Halloween off because hundreds of thousands of people flock to the city like crazies. Hmm, I’m getting flashbacks to some nights at Summerfest…

I know it has been much too long since my last post. Some unforeseen interweb connectivity issues have needed to be fixed. Still not 100% right, but hopefully we’ll be getting there soon.

Because of those issues, this post won’t have the usual photos and multimedia. (I hope I can add some at a later date…) But, I couldn’t wait to post and talk to you all so as promised, here I am with my Top 10 List of food-related things that I can’t wait for in Boston/New England:

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