The House of Blues is returning to Boston!
The new House of Blues will open in February 2009 with a new larger location across from Fenway Park at 15 Lansdowne Street. The venue will feature a full service restaurant, 2400+ capacity concert hall, retail store and the exclusive VIP membership club, Foundation Room.
But they need people to work there, with over 200 jobs available. So the House of Blues will host a Job Fair on January 13-14, from 9am–7pm at the Absolut Clubhouse at Fenway Park, 72 Brookline Ave, in Boston. They are looking to fill a wide variety of positions, including ticket sellers, line and prep cooks, cocktail staff, restaurant hosts, servers, retail associates, bartenders, security staff, training coordinator, HR assistant, sous chef and dishwashers.
“We are seeking experienced individuals who are enthusiastic about the return of House of Blues to Boston and are ready to bring our signature hospitality back to the Boston market,” said Julie Jordan, general manager for House of Blues Boston. “We are looking forward to being fully-staffed and opening the doors in mid-February.”
I am glad the House of Blues is returning to Boston. I miss some of their food, especially items like their Catfish Nuggets and their incredible Skillet Baked Rosemary Cornbread with Maple Butter. Plus it is a great venue for live music. I look forward to its opening in February.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Cascina Roera Wine Tastings
Claudio Rosso and Piero Nebiolo of the Cascina Roera winery in Costigliole d'Asti, Italy will be in the Boston area later this month and you have a few different opportunities to meet them and taste their wines.
First, I previously told you about the special Wine Dinner on January 19 at the Il Capriccio restaurant in Waltham.
Second, you can also attend a Wine Tasting on January 20, from 7pm-8:30pm, at Gordon's Fine Wine & Liquors. You can check out their "flagship" Barberas including: Cardin Barbera d'Asti Superiore, Cardin Riserva Barbera d'Asti Superiore, La Roera Barbera d'Asti, and San Martino Barbera d'Asti Superiore. Jeannie Rogers, owner of Adonna Imports and co-owner of Il Capriccio, will be bringing some wonderful antipasti items to accompany these Piemontese wines. There is a $20 cost for this event.
Third, you can attend a Wine Tasting on January 21, from 6pm-8pm, at Salem Wine Imports. Organically farmed Barbera from two distinct vineyards, San Martino and Cardin plus an IGT Rosso will be available for your sampling pleasure. This event is free. I will likely be at this event so maybe I wil see you there.
First, I previously told you about the special Wine Dinner on January 19 at the Il Capriccio restaurant in Waltham.
Second, you can also attend a Wine Tasting on January 20, from 7pm-8:30pm, at Gordon's Fine Wine & Liquors. You can check out their "flagship" Barberas including: Cardin Barbera d'Asti Superiore, Cardin Riserva Barbera d'Asti Superiore, La Roera Barbera d'Asti, and San Martino Barbera d'Asti Superiore. Jeannie Rogers, owner of Adonna Imports and co-owner of Il Capriccio, will be bringing some wonderful antipasti items to accompany these Piemontese wines. There is a $20 cost for this event.
Third, you can attend a Wine Tasting on January 21, from 6pm-8pm, at Salem Wine Imports. Organically farmed Barbera from two distinct vineyards, San Martino and Cardin plus an IGT Rosso will be available for your sampling pleasure. This event is free. I will likely be at this event so maybe I wil see you there.
Imbibe: New Saké Article
The new issue of Imbibe Magazine (Jan/Feb 2009), has an article on Saké, "Zen and the Art of Saké" by Adem Tepedelen. The article provides an introduction to Saké as well as some description of Saké stores, bars and breweries in the U.S. Though the basic article can be found online, the magazine contains additional information not found online, including tasting notes for eight Sakés, a Saké cocktail recipe, food pairings, and storage and serving tips.
Though the article is generally very good and informative, I think it did miss out a bit by only mentioning True Saké in San Francisco and failing to also mention the other two U.S. Saké stores, Sakaya in New York City and Sake Nomi in Seattle.
Check out this article!
Though the article is generally very good and informative, I think it did miss out a bit by only mentioning True Saké in San Francisco and failing to also mention the other two U.S. Saké stores, Sakaya in New York City and Sake Nomi in Seattle.
Check out this article!
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Stoneham Sun: Finding Value Wines
The first new column of "A Passionate Foodie" for 2009 can be found in the January 7 issue of the Stoneham Sun newspaper. This is a weekly column that concentrates on reviews of local restaurants though also sometimes discusses wine, provides recipes or otherwise addresses food and wine topics.
The new column has been published today and will soon be available online as well. The new column, Finding Value Wines, gives ten recommendations of excellent value wines, each costing under $15 a bottle. I also provide two wine stores where you can always find a value, as well as some other advice on finding value wines.
If you have any questions or comments about my column, feel free to add them here.
Drink with passion
Cafe Jag's
There is a new breakfast option in Wakefield, next to the railroad tracks. Cafe Jag's has only been open for a short time but already seems quite popular based on the crowds I have seen on most of my visits. Though they started off just serving breakfast, they have begun serving dinner as well. I have not been there for dinner yet so this review will pertain only to their breakfast service.
The breakfast menu has all the standards, such as eggs, egg sandwiches, pancakes, French toast, waffles and omelettes. Prices are reasonable such as $5.50 for a cheese omelette with home fries and toast and $4.99 for a Belgium waffle. If you are really hungry, you can one of their specials such as The Logger ($9.99), which includes 2 eggs, 2 slices of French toast, 2 pancakes, 2 slices of bacon, 2 sausages, home fries, toast, juice and coffee.
The food is mostly very good. I really like the French toast and the omelettes are excellent. They serve chorizo and it is delicious, a bit spicy and with lots of flavor. You can order it as a side, or get it in an omelette. The English muffins surprised me, being thicker than the usual muffin and quite good. The only thing I disliked were the pancakes. Though they are huge, almost the size of the plate, I found them too heavy and cakey. I prefer a lighter and fluffier pancake.
Service has been up and down. The restaurant does not yet appear to handle crowds well, making service sometimes very slow. On one visit, despite plenty of customers, there only appeared to be one waitress on duty and she was clearly overwhelmed. On another visit, despite a couple servers, they still could not adequately handle the crowd. This is something that they hopefully will address in the near future. As they are still new, I grant them some leeway in this regard.
I am glad to see another breakfast place in the local area and hope they improve their service issues soon. I am curious as to their dinner menu so will check them out soon and report back.
Cafe Jag's
33 Tuttle Street
Wakefield, MA
Phone: 781-246-JAGS (5247)
The breakfast menu has all the standards, such as eggs, egg sandwiches, pancakes, French toast, waffles and omelettes. Prices are reasonable such as $5.50 for a cheese omelette with home fries and toast and $4.99 for a Belgium waffle. If you are really hungry, you can one of their specials such as The Logger ($9.99), which includes 2 eggs, 2 slices of French toast, 2 pancakes, 2 slices of bacon, 2 sausages, home fries, toast, juice and coffee.
The food is mostly very good. I really like the French toast and the omelettes are excellent. They serve chorizo and it is delicious, a bit spicy and with lots of flavor. You can order it as a side, or get it in an omelette. The English muffins surprised me, being thicker than the usual muffin and quite good. The only thing I disliked were the pancakes. Though they are huge, almost the size of the plate, I found them too heavy and cakey. I prefer a lighter and fluffier pancake.
Service has been up and down. The restaurant does not yet appear to handle crowds well, making service sometimes very slow. On one visit, despite plenty of customers, there only appeared to be one waitress on duty and she was clearly overwhelmed. On another visit, despite a couple servers, they still could not adequately handle the crowd. This is something that they hopefully will address in the near future. As they are still new, I grant them some leeway in this regard.
I am glad to see another breakfast place in the local area and hope they improve their service issues soon. I am curious as to their dinner menu so will check them out soon and report back.
Cafe Jag's
33 Tuttle Street
Wakefield, MA
Phone: 781-246-JAGS (5247)
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