RE: [CH] Boston
Garry Howard (garry@netrelief.com)
Tue, 12 May 1998 19:30:26 -0400
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-chile-heads@globalgarden.com
>
> don't even try for Mexican unless I'm in Mexico or the Southwest. Will,
> have you (or anyone else in this discussion) ever had Mexican-style food
> closer to the border? How does it compare? I have no benchmark to compare
> this against and I'm curious.
>
No, it doesn't compare. I've been living in Boston for 7 years now. I have
tried pretty much every Mexican place I can find and they have all been a
disappointment, including Mexican Cuisine. Every time I read about a new
place opening up that gets pretty good reviews I get my hopes up only to
have them dashed. I grew up in South Texas and also lived in San Antonio for
awhile. You just can't get Mexican food like that in this part of the
country. I lived in Colorado for ten years before moving here and made a lot
of trips down to New Mexico. I grew quite fond of NM food. Around here,
though, when I get a craving for Mexican food I cook it myself.
> BTW, I just came back from a trip to Boston about a month ago. My personal
> recommendation: head to the North End (the Italian district) and order
> lobster fra diavolo, extra spicy. It won't do much more than tingle, but
> ohh is it good. And as long as you're there, have a pignoli macaroon and a
> macchiato at Mike's Pastry.
>
That's a good recommendation. In Boston stick to the cuisines that have a
high ethnic concentration in the area. The Italian restaurants, and the
atmosphere, in the North End is something you won't find in the Southwest.
Cambridge also has some excellent Indian restaurants. There is a very small
Mexican population in Boston. Most of the Hispanic population is from Puerto
Rico. While this helps make ingredients available in Hispanic markets, the
food is much different.
Garry Howard - Cambridge, MA
garry@netrelief.com
Garry's Home Cooking
http://cooking.netrelief.com