Boscos

My cousin and her husband, Dina and Rob, treated me to an early graduation lunch yesterday at Boscos. Oh, for most of you who didn't know... I'll be graduating a week from today (Dec. 15)! Yup, still can't believe graduation bells are ringing already. 

Before I get sidetracked and start babbling about my mixed feelings toward graduation, let me tell you two things about Boscos: good service and even better food. I've only been there twice and I've always left the restaurant with a satisfied stomach. Even their water's good!

Boscos, which ranges from $4 to $20,  is located near the River Market area and serves mostly American food, including burgers, sandwiches, salads, soups, pasta and seafood. It's also well-known for fresh beer brewed in its mini brewery at the back of the restaurant.

The advertised beer on the wall was the Flaming Stone, so Rob gave that a try. 

He said it wasn't too bad. It wasn't his favorite beer, but it was decent enough. I took a sip of it. Above the typical beery bitterness was a tinge of sweetness, which made it unique.

Rob also ordered an oyster po'boy sandwich with a side of fries. You can substitute the fries for fresh fruit, or for an extra $1, have garlic parmesan or sweet potato fries.

Fried oysters dredged in seasoned flour and crisp lettuce with remoulade (similar to tartar sauce) were sandwiched between baguette slices.

The crispy oysters were pretty salty, but that wasn't a problem because the saltiness was easily overshadowed by the lettuce and the baguette. The fries tasted so fresh and enticing, an addiction formed right away.

I had the shrimp scampi, a generous serving of capellini pasta tossed in grated parmesan and juicy gulf shrimps sauteed with garlic butter, white wine and lemon parsley. The shrimps were cooked to perfection.

The menu didn't mention parmesan, so I was in for quite a surprise. I'm not a big parmesan fan, you see. But the strong taste of wine stole the parmesan's spotlight, so the noodles had a rather sour and unique taste to them. Definitely different.

Dina's grilled portabella club sandwich was so healthy, she made the rest of us look like gluttons. Her sandwich was served with fresh fruits on the side. The portabella mushrooms were deliciously marinated and char-grilled, and the provolone cheese, lettuce, roasted red peppers and basil mayo added to the delight.

I'm looking forward to my next Boscos visit. When I'm there again, I'd like to try one of their good-sounding pizzas. Glimpse their menus here.

Photographed and written by Carissa Gan.

Perfection in a Plate

Dish: Shrimp Scampi
Venue: Doc's Grill

I'm a pasta lover. There was a week when I ate nothing else but pasta for every meal, every single day. So it was no surprise when I went to restaurant I'd never been in before, which was famous for its steak, and ordered pasta.

The menu contained about 10 pasta selections, but my intolerance for parmesan narrowed my choice to the Shrimp Scampi. It was the safest thing on the menu that wasn't soaked in marinara sauce or served with parmesan shavings.

My meal arrived in a large white plate, ready to be devoured. The shrimps were tossed with sun-dried tomatoes in creamy white wine garlic butter sauce, served atop a bed of fettuccine and garnished with green onions and grated mozzarella. 

It was absolute perfection. The shrimps were juicy and succulent, the sun-dried tomatoes added a sweet tang to the meal and the cheese melted into the sauce, infusing the warm buttery liquid with cheesy delight. 

To clarify things here, I may be a pasta fan but I don't go around praising every pasta I feast on. This one was different because it was the best Shrimp Scampi I'd ever tasted. It overruled every other shrimp pasta I'd had. 

Until this day, whenever I think of Doc's Grill, I think of the Shrimp Scampi bathed in creamy white sauce, with flecks of green and red among the yellow noodles, and I know it's perfection in a plate.

Photographed and written by Carissa Gan.

Know of a good restaurant that serves the best pastas? Share your stories with us at tastytemptationz11@gmail.com! :)

Winter Warmer

Dish: Potato soup

Venue: Stoby's Restaurant

Price: $2.99 (cup) / $3.99 (bowl)

Walking into the tiny restaurant, Taylor and I weaved through the maze of pre-occupied wooden tables and chairs until we arrived at the only empty booth near the wall.

The restaurant was crowded during lunch time on a Monday. A pretty waitress approached the booth to hand us menus. 

I didn't have to browse the menu. I already knew what I wanted, and so did Taylor.

"I'd like the potato soup, please," I told the waitress, over the buzz of conversations circulating the shop.

"Sure," she wrote something down on her notepad. "Cup or bowl?"

I hadn't eaten anything that day and was starving. "Bowl," I said. The soup would come with a roll of cornbread, which I wasn't fond of. So I asked if she could change it to garlic bread instead, and she politely obliged.

Taylor ordered the same thing. Our soups arrived about 10 minutes later. 

"So, this is the soup you've been telling me about," I said, staring at the huge bowl of creamy substance before me. 

"It's awesome! Such a pity they only serve it during winter." Taylor was already digging in. 

The smell of potatoes greeted my nostrils. I picked up the spoon and stirred the soup, watching the bits of shredded cheddar, bacon and spring onion swirl enticingly, inviting me to indulge in the center of its creaminess. The bacon was minced into itty bitty chunks. The cheese was melting into the soup, adding a stringy texture to the dish. I lifted a spoonful to my mouth and allowed the warm, luscious taste to consume my thoughts. Yummmm. The sweet taste of potatoes, coupled with the chewiness of the bacon and mild sour tinge from the cheddar created an irresistible flavor, so new and yet so familiar.

Next, I sampled the garlic bread. 

The brown crust framed the buttery center. What surprised me wasn't the crispiness of the crust, but the chewiness of the bread. Every time I ordered garlic bread at restaurants, the garlic bread would be fully toasted, crumbling away into my mouth as I crunched on its brittle texture. However, this one was soft and slightly rubbery, but it was enjoyable. By the time I was done, I wiped the buttery grease from my fingers into the paper napkin and smiled. 

"Great garlic bread," I told Taylor. She agreed.

After our lunch, we walked out into the cold winter afternoon, stuffing our hands into the pockets of our coats as the wind exhaled its icy breath around our fingers. But our bellies were warm and contented. Even after we left Stoby's, the soup never left my mind. As always, a good taste never fails to leave a favorable impression.

Photographed and written by Carissa Gan.