Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•We're not entirely sure what a "disco brunch" is, but it sure sounds awesome. [Universal Hub]
•The tiramisu at Davis Square's La Spina is crazy. [Dishing]
•Congratulations to Sorellina, which Conde Nast Traveler just named as a "hot table." [Concierge]

[Photo: Flickr: growlandw]

When we were growing up in Roslindale, it wasn't much of a culinary destination. The area's dining options consisted one or two diners that seemed to cater exclusively to the area's more senior population, a truly sketchy Chinese restaurant, and a bakery. Now, a good decade and a half later, Rozzy Square (which we've never heard called "Roslindale Village" by anyone who grew up there) is becoming a destination for Boston's food lovers. Although we're tempted to let the Square's great restaurants stay a secret, we must admit that nothing makes us happier than introducing others to our beloved home neighborhood, so for your epicurian edification, a guide to the best Roslindale Square has to offer.

•Come to Nuvo Kitchen & Wine Bar for the wine and stay for the lobster ravioli at this wine bar/Irish-inspired bistro just outside the Square. Warning: you may well intend to stop in for just a glass of wine and a snack, but the odds are good that the friendly staff and pleasant atmosphere will inspire you to stay until you've consumed a large dinner and a bottle of vino.
•Step into Sophia's Grotto, a restaurant nestled into a courtyard off Birch Street and discover what Rozzy residents have known for two years: there's some damn fine food in this tiny trattoria. The well-cultivated menu takes its inspiration from Spain and Italy and the gnocchi bolognaise just might be the best in Boston.
•Village Sushi and Grill, Roslindale's only Asian restaurant of note serves up stellar sushi and pan-Asian dishes from udon noodles to bibimbop, all in an unusually relaxed and calm atmosphere. In warm weather, diners can sit in the courtyard, which is Roslindale's best spot for people-watching.
•From the outside, Romano's doesn't look like much more than a divey neighborhood pizza joint. Those brave enough to venture in, however, are rewarded by far-above-average pizza and, more surprisingly, superlative Mexican food, which has been praised by authorities like Burrito Blog and the usually-harsh patrons of Chowhound.
•Geoffrey's won many fans during its two previous incarnations in the South End and Back Bay. Now the restaurant has brought its signature comfort food (think steak tips and pork chops) to Roslindalians and early reports indicate that it's very good (and very reasonably priced) indeed.

Nuvo Kitchen & Wine Bar, 4174 Washington St, Roslindale, (617) 363-9225
Sophia's Grotto, 22 Birch St, Roslindale, (617) 323-4595
Village Sushi & Grill, 14 Corinth St, Roslindale, (617) 363-7864
Romano's Pizza, 4249 Washington St, Roslindale, (617) 325-2885
Geoffrey's, 4257 Washington St, Roslindale, (617) 325-1000

Diner's Agenda wants to go to all the events!

Monday, April 30
•Dinner tasting menus are all very well and good, but you know what's even better? Dessert tasting menus. See for yourself tonight at the Coolidge Corner Finale, where $42.95 gets you an assortment of Kracher dessert wines paired with after-dinner treats. The event starts at 6:30 and you can save a place by calling (617) 232-3233. [Boston Chefs: Kracher Dessert Wines Tasting]
•As regular readers of Diner's Agenda may have already gleaned, doing good while eating well happens to be one of our favorite things. What better way to satisfy your hunger for charity with your hunger for, well, food, than by eating at Tasca tonight, when 100% of food sales from reserved guests will be donated to People Making a Difference? If you want to get in on the tapas and the nachas, call (617) 543-3575 and mention "PMD" while making your reservation. [People Making a Difference]

Tuesday, May 1
•It's time for another Smuttynose Beer Tasting Dinner at Goody Glovers! You know the drill: 7:00, five courses (with beer pairings), $39 a head, (617) 367-6444 for reservations. [Goody Glovers]
•L'Espalier continues its thoroughly delightful Cheese Tuesday series with a look at new Vermont cheeses. As usual, there will be singing and eating and fun all around. Things get underway at 7:00 and tickets, which cost $60, may be reserved by calling (617) 262-3023. [L'Espalier: Events]

Wagamama has been open for a week now and it's already inspiring controversy among Boston foodies. While many are delighted that their favorite U.K. chain decided to open its first U.S. branch in the Hub, the consensus on Chowhound seems to be that service needs to work out some kinks and the food is not authentic. The pro-Wagamama camp contends that the service will get better and the food, while perhaps not incredibly authentic, is delicious. Although we haven't yet had the opportunity to check out the Faneuil Hall location, we must confess to falling squarely onto the pro-Wagamama side of things. Even we, however, will admit that the food at the 'Mams is not especially authentic. If you want true Japanese ramen (and not simply a well-priced meal and a slice of that wasabi white chocolate cake), the consensus seems to be that you should check out Ken's Noodle House in Allston, where a bowl of true ramen can be obtained for under $10. Wherever you decide to get your ramen, enjoy it...ideally, with a side order of dumplings.

Naughty & Nice [Boston.com]
Wagamama open today? [Chowhound]
Wagamama [Official Site]
Ken's Noodle House [Official Site]

A controversy has been brewing among America's chocolate lovers. At hand is a recent "citizen proposal" to the Food & Drug Administration that would allow products containing vegetable oil and hydrogenated oils to be called "chocolate." Currently, the only products that are allowed to call themselves chocolate are those which contain cocoa butter as their primary fat. Despite its name, the citizen's proposal was actually sponsored by a variety of trade organizations, including the Grocery Manufacturers Association and the Chocolate Manufacturers Association. The proposal has many foodies, who contend that the proposal will result in a veritable flood of waxy, greasy chocolate into the market, hopping mad.

There are two sides to this issue. On the one hand, even die-hard opponents of the proposal admit that this wouldn't affect the flavor of chocolate for those who care about it most. High-end chocolatiers will continue to make high-quality chocolate with cocoa butter and those who love chocolate will continue to buy it. Similarly, it's likely that those just seeking a quick junk food fix aren't differentiating between the "real" chocolate of a Hershey's Bar and the "mockolate" of a bar like Payday Chocolatey Avalanche. Both groups will probably continue to buy the same kind of chocolate (be it real or fake) they've always bought.

On the other hand, standards for food are vitally important. Plenty of countries have stringent rules about what can legally be designated as a particular food. France and Italy, for example, have plenty of rules about what can be called Champagne or prosciutto. The United States has not been nearly as proactive in establishing standards for food designation, which doesn't do much to validate the rich food heritage of our country and it's troubling to think that the government is willing to devalue the standards we do have. Furthermore, it's more than a little off-putting that this alleged "citizen's proposal" came from the corporate world. Finally, the proposal is being marketed as a way to provide consumers with "healthy chocolate" since the new chocolate would be lower-fat than traditional chocolate. Low-fat, however, is not necessarily synonymous with healthy. Hydrogenated oils are actually not that hot for you.

The FDA had planned to end the public comment period this past Wednesday, but they've extended it to June 25. Head over to Don't Mess With Our Chocolate to find out how you can send your comment. Go ahead. Stick it to Big Chocolate.

Don't Mess With Our Chocolate [Guittard Chocolate Company]
An Argument Against "Healthy" Chocolate [NPR]
Chocolate Purists Alarmed By Proposal To Fudge Standards [Washington Post]
Hands Off My Chocolate, FDA! [L.A. Times]
The Courage Of Their Confections [L.A. Times]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•Quick: make a guess about how many Dunkies are located within a five-mile radius of Downtown Crossing. Yeah. It's more than that. [Bostonist]
•Goodbye, Alison Arnett! [Dishing]
•So, is this blog being written by Marcel from "Top Chef" or what? [The Full Comp]

[Photo: Flickr: .heather.]

•MP: Chicago goes traveling, both mentally with a look at The New York Times food zeitgeist and physically with a trip to nearby Plano, Illinois.
•MP: Philadelphia considers the relationship between food and music with a rundown of indie rockers' favorite recipes and an iPod cake (an iCake?).
•MP: San Francisco is all about Iron Chef this week with a live-blog of Sunday's episode and the best Food Network clip ever.

Diner's Agenda wants a hot drink on this cold and rainy day.

Friday, April 27
•Tonight's Wine 101 event at the Back Bay Events Center feature seven top Napa Valley wine makers and "luscious" hors d'oeuvres, all to benefit women with breast cancer. So, let's check our list of what makes an event great: wine: check! Food: check! Charity: check! Yeah. You should probably check this out. The event starts at 6:00 and tickets, which cost $50, may be purchased by calling (978) 456-3532. [The Virginia Thurston Healing Garden: Events]

Saturday, April 28
•Make new beer buddies and sample the best of what Allston bars have to offer at the Boston BeerAdvocate Social which begins at 4:00 at Sunset Grill & Tap. At 7:00, participants will move to Deep Ellum, before ending the evening (or, at least, the pre-scheduled portion of the evening) at Common Ground at 9:00. No reservations are necessary. [Beer Advocate: Events]

Sunday, April 29
•We apologize deeply for the song we are about to get stuck in your head, but we would be remiss if we didn't mention the reception that Rialto will be holding at noon for the authors of On Top of Spaghetti. There will be demonstrations and there will be nibbles and the whole thing costs $35. Call (617) 661-5050 to save your place. [Rialto: News & Events]

Comfort fare at Pops
"Top notch" food, less great wine list.
Shaffer gives it "B".

Toro: worth the wait.
Small plates create bull market
and inspire drool.

Rodney Avila
started out washing dishes.
Now he creates them.

The entire idea of state symbols has always made us giggle a little bit. Why, exactly, do we need an Official State Polka Song ("Say Hello To Someone From Massachusetts" by Lenny Gomulka) again? While browsing the state symbols page on the Secretary of State's website, we were shocked to learn that Massachusetts has no less than nine state foods. Upon closer inspection, it became rapidly clear that not all state foods are created equal. We've created a little ranking...do you agree?

Massachusetts State Foods, In Ascending Order Of Greatness

9) Official State Muffin: Corn Muffin: Really? Really? Must our official muffin be the second-dullest muffin in existence (after bran, obviously)? We have never heard anyone cop to a corn muffin craving and we don't expect to anytime soon. It's also odd, given the dominance of cranberries on the rest of the list that they weren't included in the muffin category.
8) Official State Beverage: Cranberry Juice: A sensible choice, but still kind of a yucky one. An intriguing question: given the state beverage, would a Cape Codder or a Cosmopolitan be the more logical choice for Official State Cocktail?
7) Official State Berry: Cranberry: Did you know that Massachusetts ranks 17th in the nationwide production of berries? Did you know that we're not the number one producer of cranberries? Despite what Ocean Spray commercials would lead you to believe, it's actually Wisconsin.
6) Official State Fish: Cod: Pretty unsurprising choice from a state which actually hangs a sacred cod in the Legislature.
5) Official State Bean: Navy: A little dull, but we'll take it, especially since we do love Boston baked beans.
4) Official State Game Bird: Wild Turkey: Would that make bourbon the Official State Liquor? Sad fact: to the best of our knowledge, wild turkey is not available at any Boston-area restaurant.
3) Official State Dessert: Boston Cream Pie: World's tastiest misnomer (it's actually a cake).
2) Official State Donut: Boston Creme: Perhaps given the growing national concern about obesity it's a little peculiar that Massachusetts has an official donut, but we must say, the Boston Creme is really insanely rich and delightful.
1) Official State Cookie: Chocolate Chip: AW YEAH! In your face, other states! The chocolate chip cookie is truly the ruler of all cookies, accounting for a full 50% of cookies baked in American homes. Best of all, it was indeed invented in Massachusetts (in Whitman). We can't help but notice that Massachusetts doesn't have an Official State Food. Might we recommend this one?

Citizen Information Service: State Symbols [Mass.Gov]

Southie's favorite daughter Barbara Lynch is set to expand her vast food empire even further. For those of you not in the know, Lynch's No. 9 Group currently operates three restaurants (No. 9 Park, B&G Oysters and The Butcher Shop), a catering company (Niche Catour and a produce shop (the South End's Plum Produce). That seems like work enough, right? Wrong. As astute Chowhounders have noted, there's a post on Boston Chefs seeking a manager for STIR, Lynch's "newest venture," which will be a "demonstration kitchen and cookbook library." So. Assuming this comes to fruition, in the very near future, you will be able to have a meal at one of Lynch's restaurants or at a function catered by her company, get inspired, decide to try to replicate it at home, go to STIR to watch Lynch demonstrate the preparation, and buy the ingredients from The Butcher Shop and Plum Produce. It's the tastiest near-monopoly we can think of.

No. 9 Group [Official Site]
barbara lynch-STIR [Chowhound]
Stir 4/23/07 [Boston Chefs]

[Photo: No. 9 Park]

Piece of old North End
at this great Trattoria.
"The romance is back!"

Comfort food in Southie:
My Diner keeps 'em happy
with awesome omelets.

"The Departed" is a semi-regular feature in which we eulogize long-closed, yet still-missed restaurants of Boston.

Curious Liquids was, for us at least, the real Beacon Hill destination where everybody knows your name. At the cozy coffeehouse across the street from the State House, we'd run into people from the high school we started out at, the high school from which we graduated, our citywide theatre group and people we just knew "from around." We'd sit in the antique chairs in the alcove room that looked out onto Park Street, nurse mocha steamers and gossip. It wasn't just us either. Throughout the cafe, groups would cluster over books or the board games from the shelves. In one corner, Suffolk students held a study group. In another, State House types tried not to spill coffee on their suits. The tables were covered with Edward Gorey cartoons and the music was never obtrusive and, to our teenage mind at least, the absolute height of cool. The place was open until 2am, making it one of the only options for underage Bostonians after dinnertime. The staff was even friendly! They'd spot you a slice of the (really very good) cake when you were low on cash and, perhaps more impressively, they refrained from laughing at the myriad teenagers embarrassing themselves throughout the upper level. As a teenager, we'd fantasize about having study groups at Curious Liquids during our college years and bringing our kids there for hot cocoa someday, but sadly, that was not to be as the cafe was evicted in 2000.

These days, we go to the Otherside Cafe and yell over the music while we split a pitcher of beer with our friends. It's fun and all, but it really isn't the same. Curious Liquids sold their menu to the Bagel Plus Cafe, but the atmosphere didn't follow. Every so often, we walk by the intersection of Beacon and Park, hoping to spot a resurrection of Curious Liquids, but it's always still a Fox News station (the horror!). We'll just keep dreaming.

Want one of your old favorite haunts to get the Departed treatment? Let us know!

Curious Liquids Cafe [Jay's Home Page]
A Curious End [Boston Phoenix]
The Otherside Cafe [MenuPages]
Bagel Plus Cafe [MenuPages]

[Photo: Web Weekly (Harvard Medical School)]

Arnett's last review:
Rialto, reconsidered,
still superlative.

Moulton's in Medford:
Fresh fish, simple and quite cheap.
Luxury for less.

Yesss, Wagamama!
New location is a hit
with Bostonians.

What a tasty team!
Lidia meets Barbara
and great food ensues.

From the very fine folks at Serious Eats comes this important addendum to yesterday's post on octopi. It's a freshly killed octopus, served up to a lucky traveler in South Korea and will you be mad at us if we say we would maybe try it? Because we probably would. As soon as it stopped moving quite so vigorously.

Oh, but what's that you say? You say you want to see someone EAT the freshly killed octopus? Here you go!

Just one more? Okay, then.

It's official: we want to go on a food jaunt to South Korea.

Freshly Killed, Squirming Octopus Tentacles [Serious Eats]
Octopus Tentacles, Busan, South Korea [YouTube: cfarivar]
Live Octopus Tentacles! [Cyrus Farivar]
Octopus [YouTube: Adam3411]
Eating Live Octopus [YouTube: brucefulton]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•Prices rise at Boca Grande. In related news, life is just a little bit sadder. [Burrito Blog]
•On the plus side, one can buy a gyro pizza in Porter Square! [On The Other Hand]
•Clearly, the people who run this site are kindred spirits of ours, "Anne of Green Gables" style. [Dairy Lama]

[Photo: Flickr: .Heather.]

The Dig goes local.
Seasonal ingredients:
yummy and easy.

Beer Advocate tries
Cattail Ale. It's "blah beer."
Only one beer left.

Another food fight!
Beer-spraying at Middlesex.
No manners at all.

Relief for fishers
but none for farmers. What gives?
We need fish and cows.

Diner's Agenda's favorite assistant is Lloyd on Entourage.

Wednesday, April 23
•Happy Administrative Professionals Day! Depending on your position, treat yourself or your assistant to lunch at 75 Chestnut, which will be opening for a rare lunch today. There will be a raffle and specialty cocktails, because nothing says "thank you for answering my phones" better than a martini. Call (617) 227-2175 for reservations. [75 Chestnut: Special Events]
•Allston is rapidly rising as a culinary destination, so don't you think it's time that you learned what all the fuss is about? Head on down to the Double Tree Guest Suites on Soldier's Field Road for tonight's Taste of Allston Village to benefit Allston Village Main Streets. $30 gets you tastes from 21 participating restaurants including buzz-generators Deep Ellum and Punjab Palace. Things get underway at 6:00 and you can buy tickets at the door or by calling (617) 254-7564. [Allston Village Main Streets: Taste of Allston Village]

Thursday, April 24
•Alsatian food and drink is somehow simultaneously hearty and perfect for spring. Enjoy a six-course Alsatian dinner with wine pairings from the region at Sandrine's. The meal goes for $75 and reservations can be made by calling (617) 497-5300. [Sandrine's: Special Events]
•Let's face it: voting for Jordin Sparks during "Idol Gives Back" isn't really maxing out your charitable capacity. Why not pony up $100 for the Beyond Shelter event at 60 State Street to benefit Friends of Boston's Homeless. You'll be giving to a worthy cause while enjoying tastings from 25 of the Hub's greatest restaurants, including Eastern Standard and Icarus. The festivities start at 6:00 and tickets can be purchased by calling (617) 534-2526, extensions 385 or 383. [Friends of Boston's Homeless: Beyond Shelter]

Rocca, the long-awaited new Italian spot from not-so-evil geniuses Karen Haskell, Michela Larson, and Gary Sullivan opens tonight. Rocca (pronounced ROQUE-ah, which yes, makes our post title nonsensical, but really, just be glad we didn't go with our original instinct and call it Mo' Rocca) is the first major fine-dining restaurant to open on Harrison Ave, where it will soon be joined by Seth Harris and company's Gaslight Brasserie Du Coin. Rocca's appealingly-priced menu (entrees top out at $25 and most pastas go for $10-14) takes its inspiration from Italy's Liguria region. Liguria is nestled into the northwest corner of Italy, where it is surrounded by Tuscany, Piedmont, and the French Riviera. Like so much of the world's great food, Ligurian cuisine evolved from what was available in the region: stellar anchovies, great olives, and excellent basil (pesto is a Ligurian specialty). To that end, the menu at Rocca is filled with dishes such as a pizetta with San Remo tomatoes, olives, anchovies, capers and fresh herbs; pasta with green beans, potato and pesto; and marinated sardines with radish and mint. We're already salivating over the corzetti with braised rabbit in a red wine sauce. Run on down to Harrison Avenue tonight and toast the newest addition to the South End's dining scene.

Rocca [MenuPages]
Rocca [Official Site]
Rocca Your World [Daily Candy]

As a child, octopus was the first "weird food" we ate. It certainly didn't fit in with our ordinary diet of plain buttered noodles and chicken nuggets, but then as now, we loved the assertive flavor and distinct texture of octopuses. Octopi (both pluralizations are correct!) can inhabit many diverse regions of the ocean, so it's unsurprising that they are prepared in a variety of different ways. In fact, one could even go on an octopus tour of Boston. Hey, it beats the duck tours.

•Our octopus world tour starts in Europe with an Italian take on the cephalopod, which we'll find in the North End at La Brace. The grilled baby octopus appetizer comes with a parsnip puree, gooseberries and grilled artichokes. Enjoy it with a glass of white wine.
•From Italy, we head to Spain, where octopus is a popular tapa. At Tapeo, our multi-armed friend comes cold, dressed in a vinaigrette. Pair it with its close cousin, the squid, which comes stuffed in its own ink.
•We'll make two stops in Japan. The first is for octopus sashimi at Uni, which comes with hot oil in addition to soy and ginger.
•As great as the sashimi at Uni is (and it is great), our favorite Japanese octopus dish happens to be octopus pancakes. Get yours at Blue Fin where they're practically bite-sized and, just like live octopuses, kind of adorable, if a little bizarre.
•We end in Cuba at Miami Cafe. Order an octopus salad to start and follow it up with an octopus sub and rice with octopus. Hum "Octupus's Garden" to yourself. Feel very happy.

La Brace [Official Site]
Tapeo [Official Site]
Uni [MenuPages]
Blue Fin [MenuPages]
Miami Cafe [MenuPages]

Emerson's O'Toole
visits Kenmore Square Popeyes.
Verdict? "The shiznit."

Best place to study?
Many "Jumbos" say True Grounds,
reports Tufts paper.

B.C. goes Harvard
reviews Z Square, thinks it's great
but gives it B+.

Cappy's Pizza rocks
swears Northeastern student poll:
Better than BHOP.

Pizza in Waltham:
Not too much love for Cappy's
from Brandeis students.

"Help! I'm Trapped In..." is a semi-regular feature where we tell you how to make the most of being stuck in areas that are (fairly or not) regarded as culinary wastelands. You're welcome.

True story: one summer, we had a temp job at a Downtown Crossing company that shall remain nameless. All day, we opened envelopes, took the letters out of the envelopes, stapled the letters to the envelopes, and put the envelopes in boxes. As you might imagine, we had a lot of time to think. As you might further imagine, the absolute highlight of our day was when we got to leave the office for a blessed hour and get some lunch. Due to these conditions, we spent most of our mornings seriously pondering the question of where to get lunch and every morning, it was a little bit depressing because there is really not too much in the way of decent food in Downtown Crossing. Or is there? Once we did a little bit more research, we learned that Downtown Crossing has more to offer the epicure than that delicious, delicious tourist lemonade outside of the Park Street T station. Because we're all about the giving, here's a week's worth of lunchtime suggestions for all you Downtown Crossing office workers.

Monday: It's the beginning of the week and you could already use a little pick-me-up. Head over to Viga and check out the lunchtime crowds. Bypass the meh pizza and pastas and go for one of their sandwiches (we suggest the basilcata with prosciutto, tomato, mozzarella and pesto. Authentic? Eh, not really. Delicious? Oh, hell yes.). Seating is very limited, so take your sandwich to the Common and sun yourself a little.

Tuesday: Here's what few people realize about Downtown Crossing: it's actually right next to Chinatown. Indulge in a sit-down lunch (the service is super speedy) at Chau Chow City. We're creatures of routine, so we always go for peking ravioli followed by ginger and scallion lo mein, but seriously: everything here is good.

Wednesday: Suffering from the mid-week blues? Time to remind yourself that life isn't so awful. What better place to do so than at The Good Life? As long as you're discreet, it's likely that no one at the office will notice that you sneaked half a beer with your Sardinian tuna salad.

Thursday: People call Wednesday "hump day", but we've always found Thursdays to be much crueler. The weekend is so close you can taste it, but far enough that it seems like it may well never come. Thursdays require a hearty, soul-nourishing lunch, so go to The Ivy for a plate of sweet potato gnocchi in a parmesan cream sauce. Mmm.

Friday: You've been a good worker bee all week, so treat yourself to a luxe lunch at the Ritz-Carlton's Jer-Ne. It's certainly not cheap, but we promise you'll feel a lot better after consuming the "Taste of Jer-Ne": club sandwich, Caesar salad, clam chowder, mushroom salad, and a creme brulee. Welcome to the weekend.

Viga [Official Site]
Chau Chow City [MenuPages]
The Good Life [Official Site]
The Ivy [Official Site]
Jer-Ne [Official Site]

[Photo: Celebrate Boston]

Saturday's Globe reports that Patrick Lyons, owner of Avalon, Axis, and assorted other restaurant and nightlife properties throughout the city, has plans to tear down Avalon and Axis and build a larger club in their place. This club, tentatively called the Lansdowne Street Music Hall, will host performers (BTW: best/most depressing sentence of the article: "Artists including Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, and Carly Simon have played there, and more recently Taylor Hicks and Fall Out Boy.") and more intriguingly for our purposes, feature two restaurants, one fine dining and one with "popular prices". If Lyons' plan is approved, this would constitute a huge leap in the number of serious dining options on Lansdowne from one (the excellent new La Verdad) to three. The article got us thinking - who would be the right chefs for these (as yet) hypothetical restaurants?

The challenge for the Music Hall's restaurants would be to balance the wants and needs of Boston's serious foodies (particularly at the fine dining restaurant) with those of drunken clubbers and post-game Sox fans. While that's a heady challenge, it's not by any means impossible. Look at Las Vegas, which was a culinary no-mans-land a mere decade ago and now boasts many excellent restaurants that we could definitely not afford sitting right next to the all-you-can-eat shrimp buffets. We think that Frank McClelland would be a great choice for the fine dining spot. His food is elegant and endlessly interesting, but as the chef at L'Espalier and partner at Sel De La Terre, he's shown a consistent sense of humor and a distinct lack of stuffiness - ideal qualities for a restaurateur in the shadow of Fenway. As for the restaurant we'll actually be able to afford, we'd love to see something that's a slight cut above the current late night options (i.e. Little Stevie's), but still affordable. We can't help but think that this might be a better location for Todd English's forthcoming burger joint than Post Office Square.

What about you? What would you like to see on Lansdowne Street? Besides less fistfights. Leave a comment and let us know.

Club Owner Has New Vision For Lansdowne Street [Boston.com]
L'Espalier [Official Site]
Sel De La Terre [Official Site]
Little Stevie's House of Pizza [MenuPages]
Todd English To Add Burgers To His Empire? [MenuPages Boston Blog]

[Photo: Hostels.com]

Laurel from last week has another burning question...

Dear MenuPages,
I work in the Back Bay, near the Public Garden. I am a vegan. I am averse to spending more than, say, $8 on lunch. if you make a Venn diagram combining those three attributes, you will draw the logical conclusion that I must bring my own lunch to work nearly every single day, and once in a very rare while might go to Cafe Jaffa, Finagle A Bagel, or Finale (one of two sandwiches, hold the cheese.) Can you suggest any other options?
-Laurel, Cambridge

We're about as far from a vegan as you can imagine, but we do have sympathy for those of our friends who choose not to eat the meat or the dairy. Unfortunately, being vegan and on a budget does limit your options to (mostly) sandwiches to go, but, fear not, there are more choices than the three you mentioned!

•The Southwestern veggie burger at b.good comes topped with avocado, tomato, and chipotle salsa...not so bad for a mere $5.95.
•At Boloco, any of the six dollar burritos can be filled with tofu. The barbecue burger comes with barbecue sauce, roasted corn, caramelized onions and rice on a whole wheat tortilla and is really big enough for two meals.
•We're big Tealuxe fans, especially now that it's warm enough to resume our addiction to their iced tea. Pick up a cup of said tea and a bell pepper and hummus sandwich ($6.95) and enjoy it on a Newbury Street bench. People watching and fine food...what could be more perfectly summery?
•If you're in the mood for something a little more substantial, check out the panzanella at Caffe Bella Vita. It's a Tusan bread salad composed of tomato, cucumber, and lovely mushy bread, all dressed with a very nice olive oil and it's hearty without being heavy.

Have a question about Boston dining that's burning you up inside? Ask us!

b.good [Official Site]
Boloco [Official Site]
Tealuxe [Official Site]
Caffe Bella Vita [MenuPages]

Although nothing can truly beat the pleasure of sitting down to an expertly prepared meal, reading about such a meal can be a close second. Here at MenuPages Boston, we're very much into food writing. No, not food criticism and no, not cookbooks. We're talking about long-form magazine pieces and books about what we eat and why. A good piece of food writing, like any great book, can transport you to a place you've never been, teach you about a subject previously unknown, or inspire you to try something new. Although the general food writing section in your local bookstore (hint: it's probably next to the cookbooks) may not be as large as, say, the selection of books about music, it can still be a little bit intimidating for the newcomer. Because we are truly evangelical about great food writing, we're going to offer up a series of recommendations for great food books. Just as a tasting menu can be a great way to gauge which parts of the chef's repertoire you most enjoy, reading an anthology of food writing is a great way to identify the subsets of the genre that appeal to you, so in that spirit, we present the first installment of our book suggestions.

•Best Food Writing 2006: Part of the ubiquitous "Best __ of 200_" series, "Best Food Writing" is densely packed with brief(ish) essays and book excerpts covering everything from home cooking to the food business. Really, you could buy any year's edition (it's been coming out each December since 2000), but we're partial to 2006, both because we like to keep things current and because Anthony Bourdain's "New Year's Eve Meltdown" about the worst night of his culinary career is worth the $10.85 alone.
•American Food Writing: An Anthology with Classic Recipes: Molly O'Neill writes well enough that one can be eminently entertained by reading just her recipes. In this brand-new anthology, she collects recipes, reviews and essays from the past 250 years to assemble a cohesive and comprehensive portrait of food writing in the United States.
•Remembrance of Things Paris: Sixty Years of Writing from Gourmet: French food is undoubtedly the basis of modern Western cuisine. In this anthology of writings from Gourmet Magazine, the changes in the French food and restaurant scene are documented in fantastic detail. Curling up with the book and a cafe au lait is one of the best ways to feel like an expat from your own living room.

Best Food Writing 2006 [Amazon]
American Food Writing: An Anthology with Classic Recipes [Amazon]
Remembrance of Things Paris: Sixty Years of Writing for Gourmet [Amazon]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•Harvard Square loses one more piece of its old identity with the closing of The Greenhouse. We pray Bartley's isn't next. [Universal Hub]
•Rozzy Square's wine bar Salute is now under new management, called Geoffrey's, and cheaper. [Dispatches from Seth Gitell]
•The Ninety Nine in Arlington closes, blogger mourns. [Channel Zero: The Blog]

[Photo: Flickr: bringmespears]

Name: Laura Bridget Regan
Age: 24
Occupation: Musician (lead singer/pianist for Bridget and the Squares)/Nanny
Neighborhood: Medford

MenuPages: What's your current favorite restaurant?
Laura: East Coast Grill isn't exactly in Boston, but it's close enough and too good not to mention.

MP: What’s your favorite meal in Boston?
Laura: I actually have three. On the cheap side of things, the Buffalo Burrito from Boloco with tofu, buffalo sauce, rice, blue cheese and celery is perfect. If I have a little more money, I love the hanger steak at Atwood's Tavern in Cambridge. With mashed potatoes and a vegetable like brussel sprouts or broccoli... tastes like mom's home cooking but not really because my mom can't cook like that. If money is no object, I crave the seared tuna with roasted vegetables at East Coast Grill with a bonus side of mashed sweet potatoes with walnuts. Oh, goodness.

MP: So, where do you do your grocery shopping?
Laura: McKinnon Meat Market in Davis Square. The meat is cheap, but it's still good and they have great produce as well. I also do Whole Foods for special stuff like goat cheese and Annie's Mac'n'Cheese.

MP: Alright, Laura. You seem like you have the whole food thing under control, so tell us: what’s the best-kept dining secret in Boston?
Laura: There are a lot of great places just outside of downtown Boston like Soundbites in Ball Square, West on Centre in West Roxbury, and Kelly's Diner in Ball Square. Oh and Haveli in Inman Square has great Indian food.

MP: Where do you go for a drink after a long day of nannying?
Laura: The Druid, Atwood's Tavern, Charlie's Kitchen, Bukowski. I like to drink. The margaritas at Redbones in Davis Square are also delicious.

MP: Okay, one last question: new Kenmore Square or old Kenmore Square?
Laura: I didn't really experience the glory of the old Kenmore Square but the new one is way too ritzy and sterile so I would have to go with the one with more character. Old Kenmore all the way.

McKinnon Meat Market, 239 Elm St, Somerville, (617) 666-0888
Kelly's Diner, 674 Broadway, Somerville, (617) 623-8102

Want to be the subject of the next installment of "You Are What You Eat?" Drop us a line.

Diner's Agenda loves a bargain.

Monday, April 23
•Have you always dreamed of sampling Beard Award nominee chef Frank McClelland's cuisine at L'Espalier but been scared off by the near-astronomical prices? Today is your lucky day, friend, since L'Espalier is introducing their lunch menu. At $24 for three courses, it's posed to become the best bargain in Boston. [L'Espalier]
•Price of a ticket to Venice tonight: $599. Price of a ticket to the Venetian in Las Vegas tonight: $249. Price of tonight's Venetian wine dinner at Hingham's Tosca: $95. Dinner starts at 6:30. Call (781) 740-9800 to save your spot. [Tosca: Wine Dinners]

Tuesday, April 24
•If Monday's trip to Italy via Venetian wine made you curious about the rest of the Mediterranean, head over to Om to learn about the wines of Catalonia at 6:30. $68 gets you a four-course tasting menu with appropriate wine pairings. Reserve your spot by calling (617) 576-2800. [Om: Special Events]
•Is it just us or is the idea of eating a seafood dinner at the Aquarium a little...perverse? If you're not troubled by the fishies giving you the fish-eye as you chow down on their buddies, run along to the first installment of the New England Aquarium's Celebrate Seafood dinner series, which features sustainably-raised seafood. Dinner will run you $70 if you're an Aquarium member and $75 if you aren't. Call (617) 973-5206 for reservations. [New England Aquarium: Celebrate Seafood]

Since you're here reading this blog during your valuable free time (or your company's valuable work time), we're going to go ahead and assume that you care about food...which is awesome. Caring about food, however, means more than simply knowing where the best restaurants are and what to do with ramps. No, even for those of us who aren't necessarily ardent environmentalists, caring about having delicious and nutritious food means caring about where our food is coming from. That's why we're such huge fans of buying locally produced food whenever possible. Buying locally produced produce and meat not tastes better because it's fresher, but also helps the local economy and reduces pollution, since the products have to travel much shorter distances. Although making a commitment to purchasing local foods may seem to narrow your options (it's not like there are bananas and avocados growing around Boston, you know?), in fact, it can actually widen them by introducing you to new varieties of fruits and veggies (did you know that there are over 70 varieties of apples grown in Massachusetts?).

Although buying locally produced food can seem intimidatingly expensive and difficult, the folks over at Eat Local Challenge are taking this week to show that eating locally can be done without emptying your wallet. For the entire week, the site's authors will be eating locally within the confines of what an average American spends on food each week ($68 for one person). If you'd like to join them, head over to the site and sign up. Although none of the Boston-area farmer's markets (with the exception of the vaguely sketchy Haymarket) are open for at least another two weeks, if you're interested in eating locally, you can check out a list of grocery stores with ample selections of local foods and find a Community Supported Agriculture farm near you. The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources also has a wide array of resources to help with your epic quest, should you choose to undertake it.

Eat Local Challenge [Official Site]
Food Coops [Local Harvest]
Community Supported Agriculture [U.S. Department of Agriculture]
MassGrown [Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources]

We know that Parmigiano Reggiano is supposed to be the king of pasta cheese. It's rarified (true Parmigiano only uses milk produced between May 5 and November 11, from cows that eat only grass and hay), aged (it must age for a period of at least a year), and tasty. For our money, however, we prefer the slightly nuttier taste of Grana Padano or the salty bite of Pecorino Romano. Just because our true cheese passion lies elsewhere, however, doesn't mean that we're immune to a heartfelt tribute to Parmigiano Reggiano. Especially when it's delivered by dancing foodstuffs. Happy Monday, everyone.

Pubblicita Completa Parmigiano Reggiano [YouTube: Ciack]
Parmesan Cheese: The Real Cheese [ParmaItaly]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•The Milk Street Cafe should really probably just hire Jenn Martinelli. [Jen Martinelli Blogging in Boston]
•The fried chicken at the new Kenmore Square Popeyes is not so bad. [Minty Choco Chip]
•We like independent grocery stores as much (if not more) than the next girl, but as long time Rosindalians, we must say OH MY GOD, TRADER JOE'S IN ROZZY SQUARE!!!!!! Take that, disappointing Village Market! [Escar-go-go]

[Photo: Flickr: npilsner]

•MP: Chicago goes calf-crazy with a two-part investigation into which Chicago restaurants are using humanely-raised veal.
•MP: Philadelphia takes us on a world cuisine tour with a look at Indian and Trinidadian options in Philly.
•MP: San Francisco gets meta and makes us very jealous of San Franciscans' cioppino options.

Diner's Agenda likes to dress up.

Friday, April 20
•At tonight's Food, Fashion and Style event to benefit Mount Auburn Hospital, attendees can snack on delicious treats from restaurants like Oleana and dante before watching a fashion show for Italian designer Neno Lettieri. With tickets a mere $75, you'll have enough left over to run to H&M beforehand and find something fabulous to wear. The event starts at 6:00 at the Royal Sonesta. Call (617) 489-0122 for tickets. [Mount Auburn Hospital: Ways to Give]
•Shoe Club seems to us to be a strong contender for Best Extracurricular Activity Ever. The club was founded by Melissa O'Shea so that Boston women would always have a place to wear their most stunning of shoes. Join Melissa and other Imelda-Marcoses-in-the-making tonight (including Daily Candy: Boston editor Erin Byers Murray) at 28 Degrees tonight for dinner, drinking, and a shoe catwalk. Dinner (for which you should call Melissa at 781-632-2067 to save a place) is at 6:30 and the shoe catwalk will go down at 8:15 (no reservations necessary). [Shoe Club: Events]

Saturday, April 21
•In case you haven't gotten enough fashion with your food this weekend, 75 Chestnut will be hosting a Beading Day from 12pm-3pm. Enjoy their Saturday brunch while creating one-of-a-kind beaded jewelery. There is a $15 cost for materials in addition to your check and space (and beads) can be reserved by calling (617) 227-2175. [75 Chestnut]
•Did you hit up Tuesday's Smuttynose Beer Dinner at Goody Glovers? Did it leave you wanting more? If so, join the goodly Goody folks on their field trip to the Smuttynose Brewery in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The bus leaves Goody Glovers at 1:30 and returns at 7:00. $39 gets you brunch, beer, a tour of the brewery and a t-shirt...not such a bad deal! Call (617) 367-6444 to save your bus seat. [Goody Glovers]

Sunday, April 22
•Two great culinary traditions collide at Sel De La Terre's "France Meets Italy" dinner, which features an a la carte selection of dishes like tuna carpacicio with caper aioli, cornichons, and brioche in addition to the regular menu. Call (617) 720-1300 for reservations. [Sel De La Terre: Events]
•Rialto hosts Italy-based cooking instructor Guido Stucchi for a four course Tuscan dinner with wine pairings at 6:30. $85 includes dinner and presentations about Tuscan cuisine. Call (617) 661-5050 to reserve. [Rialto: Events]

La Spina: C+:
rustic Italian tastes great,
but service is not.

Good for pie-lovers:
Joyce's Pies in Lemonister
coming to Boston.

Sour glaze for 'cue
Courtesy of Ocean Spray.
Tequila and cran.

Robin King bio:
Stella (and stellar) chef,
big prosciutto fan.

In college, we, along with a friend, had the phenomenally brilliant (if not necessarily stone-cold sober) idea to open a bar called TGIF. No, it wouldn't be a knockoff T.G.I. Friday's. No, our TGIF would be a bar with a mission, a bar with a purpose, a bar with a theme. That theme, dear reader, would be the 1990s ABC Friday night programming block of the same name. Picture it. You mosey up to the bar and ask the bartender (who would be dressed as either DJ or Uncle Jesse from Full House, depending on their gender) for a Step By Step (a shot of whiskey and a bottle of Milwaukee's Best) and a Boy Meets World (a beverage that bears a striking resemblance to an "Irish car bomb") for your gentleman friend. It would be great.

Sadly, the TGIF planning process never really made it past the door of our dorm room, but in the spirit of Friday nights and themed cocktails, here's a roundup of some of Boston's most intriguing drink concepts.

•We're not really sure that the Pilgrims would have appreciated a cocktail named for the rock they made famous, but if you're into gin, you can shore yourself up with the Plymouth Rock at Croma. Plymouth gin, Cointreau, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and a lime sounds like a very grown up version of a bag of Sour Patch Kids.
•We're not 100% sure which spirit represents which archetype, but Eastern Standard combines vermouth and pastis to create the Half Sinner Half Saint. We're willing to bet that after you've had a few of them, you'll be well more than half of the former and very little of the latter.
•Pay a somewhat vague tribute to a classical Italian combination with the Prosciutto and Melon cocktail at 28 Degrees, which is made with melon vodka and garnished with melon. While that sounds tasty, we must wonder: where's the pork?

T.G.I. Friday [Official Site]
Croma [Official Site]
Eastern Standard [Official Site]
28 Degrees [Official Site]
TGIF (ABC) [Wikipedia]

Forbes Traveler just came out with a list of the ten best restaurant cities in the United States. Boston came in at number nine, which seems a little low, but hey, at least we're above Las Vegas! Author Donald Burnam mentions the usual suspects (the holy trinity of L'Espalier, No. 9 Park and The Federalist is, of course, invoked, as is tourist standby Durgin Park), but he gets major props for venturing over the river to also spotlight a few Cantabridgian destinations (namely Oleana and Om). Although we remain convinced that the Hub deserves a higher ranking (Really? We're below Houston? Really?), we're very proud and happy to see it crack the top ten.

10 Best Restaurant Cities [Forbes Traveler]
10 Best Restaurant Cities [MSNBC]

Oh, April in Massachusetts. Every year it's the same: doldrums, gloom, and plenty of rain until Spring bursts gloriously forth at the end of the month and it suddenly seems that there could be no greater joy than to live in such a wonderful place. Suddenly, you fall back in love with Boston so much that you want to make it a mix CD. (Sidebar: we actually made a Massachusetts-themed mix once. It was really pretty great.) This spring, Boston restaurateurs are upping the ante on your Bay State spring fever by opening some brand-new and very exciting spots. Because we care, here's what you have to look forward to in the next few months. Feel