December 30th 2015: Lunch in Worcester and Paxton, Dinner in Shirley

We started out today with a snack from On the Rise Baking, a small bakery cafe in Worcester,

where we got a Purple Cow Latte (chocolate, white chocolate, raspberry)

and a Pear Almond Tart.

The coffee was too bitter for me, and the tart had too much of an almond taste for my liking.

We moved on to Paxton, checking out the only restaurant in town, Theo's Breakfast and Lunch, a breakfast place.

We got the Chicken Fingers

and the Zeus Burger (6 oz hand pressed patty, tzatziki (cucumber yogurt garlic spread), feta cheese, tomato)

Nothing special though.

Dinner was at the Phoenix Bar and Grill, a bar restaurant in Shirley,

 where we got the Clam Chowder (thick, creamy and loaded with clams),

the New Orleans Crab Cakes (two fresh homemade crab cakes served with a zesty red pepper sauce),

the Sailor's Plate (fresh shrimp and scallops are sauteed with zucchini, summer squash and roasted red peppers and tossed in a spicy alfredo sauce served over lobster ravioli with homemade garlic bread)

and the Oven Baked Salmon (8oz salmon fillet is baked to perfection and seasoned with Thai glaze, served with mash and butternut squash).

The soup was a little on the sour side, the clams were hard, not a very good experience. The crab cakes were more like crab paste, but not bad. The sauce for the salmon was pretty good, although the salmon itself was a little dry. The sauce for the pasta was pretty tasty, as was the garlic bread, but by then we were way too full to eat more. Overall, nothing that special about this place.

December 28th 2015: Lunch at Puffin's Restaurant, Millbury

I went to grab a quick lunch from Puffin's Restaurant, a small breakfast place in Millbury, getting the Latin Eggs Benedict (two eggs Poached with spicy ham on an English Muffin topped with hollandaise sauce and salsa, served with home fries).

I really liked the tanginess the salsa brought to the dish, and the crispiness of the home fries. Pretty well done.

December 27th 2015: Lunch at Tremezzo Ristorante, Wilmington

We decided to get lunch today at Tremezzo Ristorante, a somewhat upscale Italian bar restaurant in Wilmington.

We got the Scampi Grand Marnier (gulf shrimp, orange liqueurs, scallions),

the Figlia (mission hill figs, proscuitto, arugula, gorgonzola, mozzarella) pizza

and the Gnocchi di Mare (potato pasta pillows in a pink vodka sauce with shrimp, cod and calamari).

The shrimp was delicious with the sauce, which did taste a little like Orange Chicken from a typical Chinese restaurant, but less gooey. The pizza was good with the balsamic vinaigrette reduction, while the sauce for the pasta wasn't too sour. Pretty good meal here.

December 26th 2015: Venturing into Hull

We started out today with a meal at JP Greer's Pub, an Irish bar in Weymouth, getting the Seafood Stuffed Mushrooms

and the Fried Scallops Plate.

The mushrooms were pretty good, while the scallops were a little too oily for my liking, though they were crispy.

Next, it was on to visit a few places in Hingham,

Accord Pond

Cushing Pond, 68 Cushing Street

Fulling Mill Pond, 80 South Pleasant Street

North Fire Station, 230 North Street

Bouve Pond, 48 French Street

including the Glastonbury Abbey.

and Cohasset,

Nativity Assumption of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church

before heading into Hull. Gunrock Beach is a pretty nice beach with fine sand,

as compared to Crescent Beach, located at 98 Driftway Avenue, which was really inaccessible, and really rocky as well.

It was surprising to note that Hull had a huge pond, Straits Pond, even though it is pretty much an island.

While in the administrative area of town,

Town Hall, 253 Atlantic Avenue

Steeple Hill, 214 Atlantic Avenue

we stopped by the Marylou's Coffee here, which was all pink inside.

We got the Cinnamon Hazelnut Iced Coffee

which was not to my liking, and the Strawberry Frostylou,

which was pretty refreshing.

Next, we went to Nantasket Beach,

from which you could spot the Minot's Ledge Light

and the Boston Light in the distance.

Nearby is the historic Paragon Carousel,

and the Paragon Park Museum,

which unfortunately are closed this time of year.

After viewing the Steamboat Wharf Marina for a bit at the end of Wharf Avenue,

we lingered on in town for a bit

Memorial,
Nantasket Avenue and Samoset Avenue

Temple Israel of Nantasket

before finally calling a day and heading into the South End area of Boston, where we had a French dinner at Petit Robert Bistro, a somewhat upscale place, though a little small.

We got the Pates Maison (trio of house made pates: chicken liver, country and rillettes),

the Escargots (garlic and parsley butter)

and the Saume Fume (smoked salmon, frisee salad, capers and lemon) for appetizers.

The salmon was pretty good, as were the snails. Of the 3 pates, I liked the rillettes the best for their stringy texture, followed by the country pate with chunks of fatty meat,

For the main dish, we got the Coq Au Vin (chicken thighs stewed in red wine with buttered noodles),

Literally fall off the bone. Really good meal, and on the cheap with my deal.

For dessert, we got the Warm Apple Tarte Tatin.

It looked pretty ugly, but the crust was crispy, and the apples were just sweet enough.

With that, a day of venturing into Hull finally came to an end.