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Brookline

Matt Murphy’s Pub (Brookline Village)

Jul 9th, 2009
by dave.
1 comment

Double-thick Pork chop
Double thick Pork chop

There’s bar food and then there’s bar food. Matt Murphy’s really shouldn’t be referred to as a bar…sure, it’s got a bar to lean on and serves some great cocktails, but the food is stunning! This is a quiet, dark, little place down in Brookline Village served by some of the friendliest and helpful staff around.

The first time I was here was after a particularly harsh poker session for both myself and a buddy. We decided, heck, we need something good to eat, it’s late, and we’re both annoyed. So he suggested Matt Murphy’s and having not been there yet, I figured we’d give it a shot.

I’m somewhat into beer, I like it, but I’ve never been a huge fan of stouts. But I had O’hara’s Irish stout for the first time at the pub and was instantly a fan. And to go with it, let’s get into the food! After looking through the menus that were conveniently stored in the waiter’s back pocket, I was stumped. Lots of good looking dishes to choose from and being indecisive, I couldn’t pick. So I asked our Irish waiter and without hesitation he stated “The pork chop’s the best thing on the menu.” My buddy ended up ordering it so wanting to try something else, I asked about the 2nd best thing which turned out to be the beef stew (no pictures on the stew sadly, the pictures are from a later visit). After chow and a couple more beers, I was enamored with the place and have been back several times already!

Rabbit Pot Pie
Rabbit Pot Pie
O'hara's stout
O’Hara Irish Stout

P.S. Just got back from vacation, will have a ton more pictures and stuff to show soon!

Super Fusion Cuisine (Brookline, MA)

Apr 1st, 2009
by dave.
1 comment

super_fusion

Nestled about a 2-3 minute walk from Washington Square, Brookline is Super Fusion Cuisine, a small (very small!) sushi restaurant run by a former chef from Fugakyu, one of the more popular sushi restaurants in town. In the past year, there have been many, many sushi restaurant openings in the Coolidge Corner / Washington Square area and I was afraid it was starting to become oversaturated. But I sure hope Super Fusion sticks around!

There are 4-5 very small tables (2 person tables) snugly piled into one corner of the restaurant while the sushi bar could probably house another 3-4 people. The rest of the restaurant is occupied by the kitchen and sushi bar. The roommate and I ended up there about a month ago and ended up with the last table (3 more parties showed up in the next 5 minutes and had to wait in the cold!). Unfortunately, every time someone came in or left the restaurant, a swift frigid breeze swept through the restaurant, making it extremely uncomfortable. However, after a few cups of tea, the food arrived…and I was pleasantly surprised!

I applaud the chefs for not using a ton of rice on the maki, as sometimes I’ve seen more rice than fish. Also, the special rolls on the menu were very creative, combining many different tastes that I haven’t experienced together before. And the bill came out pretty reasonably too (for sushi anyway), which resulted in a pleasant dinner, despite the gusts of cold air. Super Fusion also delivers, which is a plus for this densely populated area.

Fresh Corned Beef in Brookline

Apr 6th, 2008
by dave.
No comments yet

Ever since I moved into the Coolidge Corner area, I kept getting recommendations to try Michael’s Deli on Harvard Street. Unfortunately, they are not open for dinner hours (10 – 5:30 on weekdays : 9 – 3pm on weekends) so I never really had much of a chance to go (not to mention I keep forgetting to on weekends too). But I finally ended up there a couple weekends ago and had to try their famous Corned Beef sandwich.

Michael’s is a very small place, more like a deli counter + a few tables for the occasional diner to quickly down a sandwich for lunch but not much more than that. I asked the sandwich guy what his recommendation was for a first-timer and without batting an eye he suggested the Corned Beef on toasted rye with a generous portion of mustard. About 5 minutes later there was a steaming toasted corned beef sandwich sitting before this foodaholic’s very eyes. And about 5 minutes after that, I was comfortably into the lean.

I have to say, I haven’t really had corned beef often enough to be able to discern between good and bad, but I thoroughly enjoyed this sandwich and well definitely be back soon.

This is the sandwich itself

Here’s Michael’s, right past Coolidge Corner on Harvard Street

Rod Dee and a little surprise :P

Mar 27th, 2008
by dave.
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Been meaning to get around to posting about one of my favorite restaurants in the area and now decided I can’t put it off any more. Rod Dee has two locations, one of which is very close in Coolidge Corner. It is generally a take-out/delivery place with a few tables for the occasional visitor to sit in.

That being said, I didn’t actually know about this place when I moved into the area. My buddy from Thailand, Dana, raved that this was his favorite Thai restaurant in the Boston area and that had me convinced. Now, I frequent the place at least once a week, craving their Tom Yum Noodle Soup every time!

For a sub $10 meal, you really can’t go wrong here…everything is fantastic and they have different specials every day. And as is with most Thai restaurants, just because it’s not on the menu doesn’t mean they won’t make it for you!

The pictures below are of the Tom Yum Noodle Soup. It’s my favorite dish there and I’ve never found anything like it at any other Thai restaurant. Other dishes I end up getting on a regular basis include the Indonesian Fried Rice, Boat Noodle Soup, Pad Kra Pao (Basil chicken over rice), and Kua Gai.

And one last note, I couldn’t ask for better friends! They surprised me yesterday with a nice ice cream cake sporting my (according to Jason) trademark phrase! Thanks everyone!