Crow’s Landing Restaurant in Hingham

Most of my life I’ve lived on the South Shore. It feels familiar. Like home.

Living in Quincy, I’m close to some great South Shore towns — like Hingham. Which is where a friend and I went for brunch a couple of weeks ago at a restaurant called Crow’s Landing.

I was invited to try a meal and was happy that I got to bring a friend. J and I grew up in the same town and our families have been friends forever. So it was nice to catch up over a meal and talk about things from back in the day and what we’re both up to now. She started out with a nice glass of wine.

It was a rainy cold day, but Crow’s Landing has a cozy welcoming atmosphere, so we were both glad that we had ventured out. The art on the walls is warm and colorful, adding to the comfortable feeling.

It was J’s first time trying the salmon burger and she said that it was a hit! I had the classic breakfast.

My thoughts always quickly turn to dessert, so I was very happy to try the vanilla bean crème brulee! Very hard sugar crust on top and such creamy goodness underneath.

J had the warm soft chocolate cake. She said that it was super chocolaty! I love the creativity of the plating. Like a work of art!

If you’re in the Hingham area and you’re looking for a new restaurant to try, head over to Crow’s Landing for a cozy local eatery.

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Disclosure: The two meals were complimentary. Thank you Crow’s Landing!

Birthday Dinner at Back Bay Social on Boylston Street

Birthday cake with a candle.

This post has been a long time coming. Especially since my birthday was in September. But I wanted to make sure that I blogged this dinner and restaurant.

Two friends and one of my cousins met me after work for dinner at Back Bay Social in Boston. We had a really nice time and loved the food. A million times I passed this place and assumed it was a private club, so I ignored it.

For some reason, in my head, I added the word “club” to the end of the name. Or maybe it was there before? I have no idea. I’ve spoken to others who thought the same though, so it’s not just me.

When I was planning our dinner and I looking for places near the Prudential Center, I started looking more closely. After researching, I found that Back Bay Social is a regular restaurant and not a club. Plus, they are famous for their chicken and waffles! Who knew?

In all my years on this earth, I had never had chicken and waffles and was starting to feel it was a deficit that needed to be remedied.

My birthday dinner of chicken and waffles.

Ta da! I tried it!

Chicken and waffles do go together. The first time I heard about it, decades ago, it seemed a bit odd, but I was intrigued. This combination has lasted and only seems to become more popular with time.

I was also treated to slice of birthday cake — their orange blossom cake. Yum!

The restaurant has outdoor seating during the warm weather months and we were seated outside. It was one of those warm end of the summer nights. Celebrating with some of my favorite people. It was a really good birthday.

Lunch at VERTS Mediterranean Grill in Copley Square

Lunch to go from VERTS Mediterranean Grill.

This was my lunch today! I had a chicken quinoa bowl from VERTS Mediterranean Grill. It was quite good and I have some leftovers for lunch tomorrow too.

I took my food to go and brought it back to my office, but took the picture while I was still in the restaurant. While I didn’t eat inside, the space is open and airy, plus there is outdoor seating as well.

VERTS is similar to other places like b.good, where you get a bowl and decide what you want in it. They have a menu that you can choose from or you can build your own bowl.

I love this concept, because it’s a really healthy way to eat. You get a lot of vegetables, protein and a healthy carb.

The only off thing was the utensils. They only have forks — no knives or spoons. A bit odd, but maybe it’s an oversight that they’re working on correcting.

Outdoor seating for lunch outside at VERTS.

VERTS has greatly expanded in Boston over the past year and they now have three locations — this one on Boylston Street, one on Summer Street and one on Washington Street too. If there is one close to you, definitely check them out!

As I wrote about VERTS before, they are based out of Texas, with several locations in Austin, Dallas and a Houston location as well.

With all the devastating news we’re hearing about Hurricane Harvey, my heart goes out to everyone impacted. The stories are unimaginable. I hope that everyone in all their Texas locations are safe and weathering the storm.

*Updated 7/30/2020* It appears that VERTS may have closed and is possibly under new management.

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Disclosure: Food was compliments of VERTS. Thank you!

Hey Boston! Free Food on November 4th at VERTS Mediterranean Grill!

verts

If you’re looking for some free food, then you may want to check out a restaurant that’s new to Boston.

VERTS Mediterranean Grill, which is based in Austin, Texas, is expanding north and opening a new location at 95 Summer Street this Friday, November 4th.

I learned about VERTS from reading two blog posts. Boston area food bloggers, Georgina of A Noted Life and Tina of Carrots ‘N’ Cake were both invited to Austin and wrote about their trip and the new Boston location.  The details of the free food are below.

After opening 34 restaurants in Texas, we’ve finally made it up north. And we can’t wait for you to try our fresh, customizable Mediterranean fare.

Our doors open at 95 Summer St. on November 4th and we’ll be giving away free entrées all day: pitas, salads, and bowls. All loaded up to your liking with your choice of protein (beef + lamb, chicken, pork, beef meatballs, falafel), toppings (sumac onions, pickled jalapeños, quinoa tabbouleh, grilled veggies, and feta, among others), and our delicious sauces. Try the tzatziki. Then try to spell it.

Our flavors will transport you to the Mediterranean. Until you look outside and see that it’s snowing. We hear it does that here.

The first 200 people in the door will leave with a bag of VERTS goodies: gift cards, recipes, and swag, so stop by early.

If I get a chance, I may make my way over there and try some food myself. I love Mediterranean food and can always use a free lunch!

*Updated 7/30/2020* It seems that VERTS has closed and may be under different ownership.

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Image: VERTS Mediterranean Grill Facebook Page

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Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Street Lawsuits

+ + Updated October 27, 2019 + +

Color photo of cover of Christopher Kimball's Milk Street Magazine.

If you’re into food and you live in the Boston area, you’re probably very familiar with Christopher Kimball from all his years at America’s Test Kitchen.

After parting ways with ATK, Kimball recently started his own food endeavor. It’s located on Milk Street in Boston’s Financial District and named Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street. The business includes a cooking school, a radio show and a print food magazine.

If you’re interested in getting a free copy of the charter issue of the magazine, you can still get one. My copy arrived a couple of weeks ago and I’m looking forward to reading it when I get a chance.

Then this morning, I was catching up on the news when I read in Boston Magazine that Kimball was sued by ATK! I haven’t read the Complaint, but according to the article, it appears that ATK is alleging that Kimball may have breached the terms of his employment contract by starting a competing business while he was still working for them.

Non-compete agreements are a big issue in Massachusetts and employers take them seriously. There was recent legislation which would have reformed the law, but it did not pass. Employees who sign contracts agreeing to the terms of a non-compete can be restricted for several years from forming a business of their own or joining a similar company that may compete with their former employer. Because of this legal restriction, many believe that businesses are going to places like California instead of Massachusetts.

If employees disregard the non-compete, they run a real risk of being sued by their former employer. Maybe this case will settle and we will never hear anything about it again. Who knows? But it’s a twist to this ongoing story of Kimball and ATK.

The Boston Magazine article also mentioned that this summer Kimball was sued by Milk Street Cafe for trademark infringement. This casual restaurant is also located on Milk Street in Boston, but it’s a restaurant, not a media company or cooking school. As far as I know, Kimball isn’t selling food.

Trademark law exists to prevent consumer confusion. Since the businesses are different types, it seems odd to me that anyone would confuse the two. Kimball uses his full name above the words Milk Street and a picture of his signature bow tie is part of his logo and below the words Milk Street.  They seem to be in two very different spaces to me.

It will be interesting to see how this all pans out. But Kimball seems pretty savvy to me and it looks like he has all his glazed ducks in a row.

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*Updated 1/24/2019*

As I had speculated above, according to a Boston Globe article, Kimball won his trademark case. His media company is now named “Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street” so there is even less chance of confusion with Milk Street Cafe.

[US District Court Judge Denise] Casper ruled Wednesday there was little risk of confusion, as the two parties’ goods and services, as well as their marketing approaches, are quite different.

Milk Street Cafe’s primary market is downtown Boston, she wrote, while most of CPK’s customers have probably never set foot on the actual Milk Street.

The only similarity, she wrote, is that the names of both ventures refer to the street where they are located.

Casper also ruled Milk Street Cafe had not proved it had been hurt by Kimball’s use of the name and said there was no evidence of intentional copying on his part.

The litigation with ATK is ongoing. According to Superior Court electronic records, the case [1684CV03325 Americas Test Kitchen Inc General Partner of Americas Test Kitchen Ltd Ptnr vs. Kimball, Christopher] is scheduled for a jury trial on October 1, 2019.

However most cases never make it to trial, so an earlier settlement is more likely. A final pre-trial conference is scheduled for February 12, 2019.

*Updated 2/12/2019*

From the Superior Court electronic records, it looks like the February 12th conference did not take place and the final trial conference is scheduled for 9/24/2019. I’ll keep checking to see if the case settles before then and will give an update.

* Updated 10/27/2019*

According to court records, the case settled and was dismissed in early September.

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