Bagel World

Sometimes there is a restaurant close to you but you never seem to go there. You really know little about it. Then one day you decide to try it and find a real gem. So, what other hidden gems may be hiding in plain sight?

10am on a weekday, seeking some type of breakfast food. I decided to stop at Bagel World in Reading. I had never been there before and really knew nothing about it. It advertised a wide range of bagels plus sandwiches.

I found that there was a line waiting to get bagels. And in fact, there would still be a line at 10:30am when I left the store. This was certainly a popular place. And some subsequent searches online found that Bagel World had many fans.

The menu is fairly simple. Bagels and more bagels. And sandwiches on bagels. They do have a diverse selection of bagels, in flavors sure to please all. I ordered an egg and cheese sandwich on an egg bagel. They actually use two eggs for their sandwiches rather than the usual one. And I believe it still cost under $2. I also ordered a French Toast bagel with butter. To drink, I got some fresh brewed iced tea.

The bagels were excellent. Just the right type of chewiness. They were not caky or dry. The egg sandwich was very good too. Now I understood why there were still lines at this hour. They made a fine bagel and at good prices.

There are actually 3 Bagel Worlds in the area, the others being in Salem and Peabody. They have a website but it has little information currently. It states to check back soon for more info. They do open at 5am so they can really catch the early birds.

I do know that there had been a Finagle the Bagel near Bagel World in Reading but the Finagle closed. Maybe it could not compete. So check out Bagel World.

Bagel World
323 Main St.
Reading, MA
Phone: (781) 942-2442

Wine Store Websites

Most wine stores have their own websites but the biggest problem I have found with those sites is that many are not kept current. They can fail to list upcoming events, their new wines or special sales. So, how do you find out about these matters? How can learn what is coming up at your favorite wine store?

The best way I have found is to get on the wine stores' email lists. Most wine stores send out periodic emails that are far more current than their websites. Some send emails weekly while others are more monthly. And at least one sends emails every couple of days. These emails notify people of special tastings, sales, new wines, and much more. For some wines, of limited production, these email lists may be your best way to obtain a few of those wines before they sell out. With your advance notice, you can buy them quickly or get the store to hold some for you.

All you have to do to get on an email list is to send the wine store your email address. Their websites often have a place to sign up for their emails.

Here are a few wine stores and what you can expect from their emails.

The Beverly Wine & Beer Company sends out a very nice weekly email. It lists the wines that will be at their weekly tasting, the names of new wines they have just received, any upcoming special events, and usually even has a recipe.

Marty's actually has several different email lists, many geared to specific wine types or regions. Their emails are frequent, often every couple days or so. They commonly list new and special wines, as well as upcoming tastings and events. I very much enjoy their emails.

Lower Falls Wine Company is a very good wine store, but with a poor website. Their emails are sporadic but notify you of special wine tastings they have. And some of these tastings are very special events that are well worth attending. And you will never know of them just by reading their website.

So, sign up for the email lists of any local wine store you frequent. You will appreciate being kept up to date on what is going on.

It Rains Sushi!

Mystery solved!

Ok, nothing earth shattering. But I did resolve the issue of the price of sushi at It Rains Fishes. In my prior review of this restaurant, I questioned what seemed to be discrepancies in the price of their sushi. Well it seems I just misread the price of the sashimi for the sushi. Sashimi is usually more expensive than sushi. The actual sushi prices are actually average, such as maguro for $4.95 and tamago for $3.50.

I ventured back to It Rains Fishes for lunch. They have a special lunch menu with thirteen different choices. Most of the dishes cost $8.95 but a few are $11.95. There are combos, which are essentially bento boxes, and there are sushi lunches too. You can also order off their regular menu.

I ordered some sushi, including maguro (tuna), unagi (eel), tamago (omelet) and ebi (shrimp) tempura maki. The sushi came out on a long, oval plate with the sushi artfully presented. I was very pleased with the large size of the toppings. The tuna was bright red and obviously fresh. It tasted very good and was tender and smooth. The BBQ eel was also very good. Each of the tamagos was a large rectangle of sweet omelet. And the tempura maki were also quite delicious, with a nice crunch of them. I would have to say that this was some of the better sushi I have had in the area. The pieces were larger than many other local restaurants. If you want some good sushi, definitely check it out!

For lunch entrees, I ordered the Bull Go Gee Combo and my mother ordered the Salmon Teriyaki Combo. Each combo box included miso soup, white rice, salad, shrimp shumai, California maki and the entree. The miso soup was very good. The rest of the food was fresh and tasty. My entree was broiled tenderloin with a Korean marinade, onions and mushrooms. The tenderloin was very tender and the sauce was flavorful. My mother's salmon was also very tender and flavorful. For the price, you get a good serving of food so this is definitely a value lunch.

Once again, I recommend this restaurant and even more so after resolving the actual price of the sushi and trying their excellent sushi.

I still wish though they had a better selection of chilled sake.

Wine/Food Auction

So, what did I watch on TV last evening? A few hours of the WGBH auction. You may then ask, why did you do that?

Last evening was the Wine and Dining section of the auction. They offfered numerous lots of wine plus restaurant gift certificates and dining opportunities. One of the lots was a 1979 Opus One, the first vintage of that famed wine. It was valued at $750 and sold for $650. I bid on a few lots of wine, including some Williams Selyem Pinot Noir and a collection of six Fairview wines from South Africa. But, I did not win any of them. I was seeking bargains, hoping to get a good price on the wine, so I did not bid too high. A couple of lots actually did not garner any bids. There were some interesting dining opportunities as well, for restaurants such as Eclano and Tasca.

The auction continues through Friday on TV. Thursday night, from 7-11pm, will have more wines and dining opportunities up for auction. You might want to check it out.

You can also bid online for a number of items as well. There is no wine in their online auction but there are some unique dining opportunities, such as a special Chef's Table dinner at the Capital Grille for 8 people. The online bidding ends on Sunday.

2005 Descendientes De J. Palacios Petalos

As part of the Catavino virtual wine tasting, I had a bottle this evening of the 2005 Descendientes De J. Palacios Petalos ($25). This wine is from the D.O. Bierzo of Spain. Alvaro Palacios is a top wine maker in Spain, the maker of the famed L'Ermita wine. Alvaro wanted to make wines in Bierzo from the Mencia grape. One of the wines he created was the Descendientes De J. Palacios Petalos.

On the aroma, you can detect dark fruits and a bit of spice. It is also a dark wine in color. On the front palate, you get a lot of fruit, dark berries. But it then transforms more into vanilla and spice, with even a bit of clove and licorice. It is a full bodied and smooth drinking wine. It has some tannins on the finish which are easily mellowed with some food. There are also some additional flavors that I could not fully identify but which tasted great and worked well together. It is an intriguing wine, that shows much complexity for its price. This may be one of the most complex wines I have had from the Bierzo region.

I actually had this wine with some bacon cheeseburgers and it went quite well with them. So, you probably could pair this wine with BBQ very easily. A definite Drink and Buy.