Lookin' for a good turkey club?

Try Friendly's. The turkey club is fantastic. And right now, it's a special, so you get a free Happy Ending sundae with it. Yahoo!

Good Eats in Great Barrington

Barrington Brewery

I recently spent the afternoon in the lovely western Mass town of Great Barrington. This is a great little town, and it was my second visit there. The first time I went for lunch at Baba Louie, a for-real excellent pizza joint. That was before this blog, so there's no official review, but suffice it to say, the pizza with figs, mozzarella, and caramelized onions is to die for. And, they have Berkshire Brewing Co. beer on tap.

On my recent visit, four of us had lunch at the Barrington Brewery, which is on the same road as the Wonderful Things yarn shop, for you knitters out there. (We got there shortly after they closed, so didn't get to browse a giant yarn store, but there's always next time.)

The atmosphere at the Brewery is quite comfortable. High ceilings, lots of tables and booths, and large windows which let in a lot of natural light. Off the main restaurant room is a tavern, where they have tacked up hundreds of different beer coasters on the walls. It looks like a fun place to have a beer and an appetizer.

After rave reviews of the chili from one of my dining partners, 2 of us ordered the cup of chili and salad combo. This chili was delicious. Large pieces of ground beef, kidney beans, and smaller black beans. Great chili flavor, and none of the kickback I usually get from the chili at the work cafeteria. The salad was also delicious with romaine, mixed with some field greens, red onion, grape tomatoes, and scallion-herb creamy dressing. Since it was lunchtime, I decided against the beer, and instead had a pink lemonade. It hit the spot.

The rest of my party was similarly pleased with their meals: Vegetarian chili, Salad of the Day (toasted pecans, blue cheese, and grilled chicken on a green salad), and a half a corned beef sandwich.

We all shared a large order of hand-cut french fries. I'd come back just for the fries. And the chili.

So Co Creamery
5 Railroad Street


Ice cream at the So Co Creamery is pricey but delicious. I had the Take 5, which was chocolate ice cream, chocolate and peanut butter swirl, peanut butter cups, and pretzels. Though I didn't really notice the swirl, I did enjoy this flavor. Hugh chunks of the pb cups!

Others in the group had the mint chip and the snickerdoodle. Both received the thumbs up.

It's Good To Go

There's a new coffee shop in Holden, called Sweets and Java. I decided to go there yesterday after I read about it in the Telegram.

First, a tip on where it is. If you're coming from Worcester, and take Reservoir Road, or Salisbury Street, take a left on Main. It's past the center, and it's on the left. I drove by it because I was looking for it on the right. Why, you may ask? Because as I was driving up Main Street, I noticed that the street numbers on the right were even. Like, Al Fresco is #680 Main Street. Somehow, the normal odd/even numbering conventions flipped as they traveled up Main Street.

I was short on time, so I ordered my sweet and my java to go. For me, a decaf latte. For my friend, a regular americano (house blend). To share, a peanut butter mousse chocolate square. The latte was delicious. Very hot, but not scaldingly hot, smooth flavor, and not burnt tasting at all. I don't take sugar in my coffee, and this coffee stood very well on its own. My friend was pleased with her coffee as well. It's the kind of place where you put your own dairy and sugar in, and since I use skim, and don't take sugar, I didn't know what "extra cream, regular sugar" meant. I asked the folks at the counter. They left a reasonable amount of room for the cream, and told me I should go with 2, maybe 3 sugars. There was skim, whole, and half and half, but no cream. I just went with the half and half.

The peanut butter square was awesome, imported from Modern Pastry in the North End, Boston. Oreo cookie crust, super peanut buttery mousse, and thick chocolate frosting on top. It was so good I could have eaten the whole thing, but I knew that it would be so I bought it with the intent to share. It was pretty big and really, a whole one would have been just a little sugarly irresponsible.

I plan to go back soon to have my coffee there and read a book, when I have more time. There are several chairs and a small leather couch in the front, and the walls are a deep red color reminiscent of my own living room (so I'll feel right at home). When that happens, I'll let you know if it's a good place to read.

Campbell's Chunky Grilled Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

Best canned soup ever: Campbell's Chunky Grilled Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. It's spicy, full of flavor, and filling. Perfect for a cool night, where you want to warm up and you're moderately. Toast up some sourdough bread and butter it with real butter, for best results.