Tag Archives: Outdoor seating

My Other Kitchen – Belmont, MA

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My Other Kitchen – does not appear to have a website so the link goes to Yelp

 

This is the second place I drive past every day on my way to work, but it was small enough and busy enough I’ve again managed to never stop by.  Come the weekend I packed Talls into the car and drove like a bat out of hell to try and get one of the few tables – which are all outdoors, by the way.  The tables were already all taken because the weather was fucking gorgeous.  Fall mornings in New England are the best.  We went in and ordered anyway, as there is an inside bar as a last resort.  Talls waited for the food while I stalked diners outside, and my creepieness paid off!  We ended up with a table in the shade near an adorable English ex-pat family and fucking delicious food.

The special was caramelized pear french toast. Guess who ate this?

The special was caramelized pear french toast. Guess who ate this?

The coffee was delightful and unending, while the orange juice was delicious and doled out in small, expensive amounts.  I’m honestly surprised this isn’t the case more often with fresh squeezed, but there you are.  The french toast was just as rediculously fucking tasty as it looks in that picture.

Talls had a cast iron breakfast, complete with actual cast iron pan.

Talls had a cast iron breakfast, complete with actual cast iron pan.

There was chorizo, scrambled eggs, hash browns, cheddar cheese, and one home made cornbread muffin in this pile of noms.  I think the white stuff is yogurt, but I’m entirely sure.  Regardless, all of this was consumed and I was able to steal very little for myself.

This is a tiny place that has little indoor seating, so lines happen here with ease.  As long as the weather holds it’ll be a bitching place to eat, and when that falls apart it will become an amazing place to eat out from.  The only thing it’s missing is an indoor dining area, but with the winters Massachusetts gets that’s a pretty big thing.

 

Sunset Cantina – Allston, MA

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Sunset Cantina

 

We mistakenly had brunch here one Saturday, expecting to eat lunch but finding there was still and hour before their brunch ended.  Judging from the menus alone it looks like their Sunday brunch is more of a thing (I mean, they don’t even have a Saturday brunch menu on the menu linked above), so perhaps I will cover that some time as well.

As I was expecting lunch I went with a savory meal of thick Texas toast smothered in egg, bacon, and cheese.  Talls had a breakfast burrito.

 

So big I only ate half.

So big I only ate half.

He, of course, finished his.

He, of course, finished his.

 

It was good… but.   This is the feeling I am always left with after eating at Sunset.  It’s not bad, but it’s not fabulous.  They have a great beer selection and actually a decent range of ciders, and I feel like they slack a little on their food because most people eating there have had a pint or two and can’t fully taste anything.

Anyway, not a place I’d rave about, but it’s decent and will fill you up.  I will have to go back for the Sunday Brunch to see if it’s more awesome.

The Madrona Tree – Arlington, MA

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The Madrona Tree

I’d already been here for sandwiches and their great, made-on-the-spot sodas, but this fall they started including a breakfast/brunch menu and so I had to return.  Seriously, this is the list of their standard sodas: blue-raspberry, raspberry-lime, lemon-lime, strawberry, strawberry-basil, and blackberry-mint.  When I went for brunch, their seasonal option was maple.  They had already earned a gold star with their drinks.

Red Sox French Toast

Red Sox French Toast

They have a good range of sweet and savory, and some very tasty twists on brunchy standards.  They’re all Boston or Arlington themed as is so common here, but regardless they are good.  The above contains apple, berry, cream cheese, and crumb topping.  Also, all french toast comes with real syrup, and both the toasts and the pancakes can be made gluten free.

A scramble, a.k.a. egg-containing pile of food

A scramble, a.k.a. egg-containing pile of food

Many of their dishes have a slight Mediterranean take on things due to the origins of the family who owns the place.  I think they do a good job of making this work.

This lured me away from french toast. So worth it.

This lured me away from french toast. So worth it.

At other times they just go crazy with their variations on breakfast themes (this is an eggs Benedict variant) and those are super tasty as well.  Those who prefer old standards will not be as happy here as those who want to branch out, but there are still options for the classic brunchers here and there.

It’s a little small so it fills up fast, but they do have a clip board so you can get in line on there instead of in person.  During the summer they double their seating with some lovely tables outside that also get service.