October 31st 2017: Five Guys Burgers in Shrewsbury

We haven't had burgers from Five Guys for a while now, so we decided to get some today from the Shrewsbury location, getting the Small Hamburger,

the Veggie Sandwich (Freshly grilled onions, mushrooms, and green peppers, layered with lettuce and tomatoes, on a soft toasted bun),

and the Cajun Fries.

The veggie burger did not even have a patty, yet somehow tasted much better than the hamburger, even though it had onions. Pretty good meal as always though, with free peanuts all around.

October 29th 2017: Lunch at Sichuan's Garden, Waltham

While on the way home today, we were hungry, so we decided to stop by Sichuan's Garden, a Chinese restaurant in Waltham.

We got the Shredded Beef in Sichuan's Style, which came with Fried Rice,

an Egg Drop Soup

and Egg Roll.

The beef itself was not bad, although the accompaniments were just average, if not less. Not coming back again.

October 28th 2017: Lunch at Tavern in the Square, Shrewsbury

We went to check out the new restaurant in Shrewsbury, Tavern in the Square, which has locations all over Massachusetts, including one in the Allston area of Boston which I visited once before.

We got the Lamb Meatball Banh Mi  (Vietnamese pickles, cilantro, sriracha, kewpie lime aioli),

the Sweet Sticky Spicy Korean Pork Ribs (tamari, sesame, ginger)

and the Brûléed Pound Cake (Seasonal fruit, whipped cream) for dessert.

I have to say that the Asian dishes were much better and more flavorful than most Asian places I have been to, while the pound cake was like strawberry shortcake, just much better, especially with the smoky caramelization of the sugar they sprinkled onto the cake.

Excellent meal to say the least.

Recommended Places to Visit: Erving

Recreation

Hiking

Recommended:
Briggs Brook Falls
Cross Street and Briggs Road

Erving State Forest
Laurel Lake Road and Dusty Road

Farley Ledges
83 Mohawk Trail

Architecture

Monuments

Memorials
12 East Main Street

Water Tower
Arch Street and Crescent Street

Places of Worship

Erving Evangelical Congregational Church
4 East Main Street

Bridges

French King Bridge
129 French King Highway

Town Facilities
Town Hall
12 East Main Street

Fire Department
10 East Main Street

Fire Station #2
18 Moore Street

Public Library
17 Moore Street

Restaurants

Tried:
Western

French King Restaurant and Motel

129 French King Highway

Recommended Dishes:

Strawberry Shortcake

Colossal Shrimp Cocktail

Seafood Chowder

Beef Stroganoff

October 25th 2017: Hiking in Erving

I passed through Hubbardston today,

Moosehorn Pond

on the way to the Erving State Forest. I have been here once before, but the last time I was here, a hiker I happened to bump into mentioned that there was the remains of a fire tower on the Bear Loop, so I had to go check it out for myself, and today was my chance. The path I took here is shown in pink.

There wasn't anything much to see though, although the brooks were somewhat overflowing from the rain.

From here, I went to looking for the Briggs Brook Falls, which is on the Metacomet Monadnock Trail, the trailhead being at the junction of Briggs Road and Cross Street (upper half of map below).

A short walk from here to a bridge, and there the falls were, behind some huge rocks,

and I could get closer due to a small path nearby.

From here, I headed nearby to the Farley Ledges, where the path I took is shown in the lower half of the map above. The ledges themselves were pretty impressive,

but the hiking was pretty treacherous. Thankfully, I was rewarded in the end at the top of the ledges with this awesome view.

After finally making my way back to the car, I checked out a few more places in town,

Erving Fire Station #2, 18 Moore Street

Erving Public Library

even venturing into the town of Montague for the first time,

Covenant Church

before finally calling it a day and heading home. A pretty fruitful day for hiking.

October 24th 2017: Gourmet Pizza from Dacosta's Pizza Bakery, Worcester

I was to buy dinner home tonight, so I decided to get it from Dacosta's Pizza Bakery, a gourmet pizza place in Worcester,

getting the 2 for $25 deal, consisting of an Original Ray's Pizza (hand-crushed tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, shredded cheese, oregano, evoo),

the House Salad (romaine, red peppers, tomatoes, cukes, onion, parm, croutons, red wine vinaigrette),

the Wood Fired Italian Wings (fresh never frozen wings marinated for 24 hours in lemon, olive oil, garlic + rosemary. wood-fired at 800 degrees, tender on the inside and crispy on the outside)

and the Zeppole (made to order italian donuts, powdered sugar, nutella , mascarpone).

The pizza was a little on the soggy side, while the wings were a little burnt and bland. The salad was not bad, though, as were the donuts.

Overall though, not a place I would go to for pizza in future. There's better around

October 23rd 2017: Second Time at My Sister's Crawfish II, Worcester

Our second time at My Sister's Crawfish II in Worcester today consisted of getting the Hu Tieu Nam Vang (seafood and pork rice noodle)

and the Banh Xeo (Vietnamese crepe with shrimp, pork and bean sprouts).

The noodles were very flavorful, while the crepe was crispy as well. Definitely better than Pho Dakao.

October 22nd 2017: Checking Out the Bancroft School, Worcester

The Bancroft School in Worcester was holding an open house today, so we decided to go check it out.

Nothing much by way of architecture, but pretty good school program overall. Way too expensive though.

For dinner, we headed to Meze Greek Tapas and Grill in Worcester, which I have been to twice in the past.

We got the Moussaka (layered potatoes, eggplant, and spiced meat, topped off with a layer of creamy bechamel sauce and baked),

the Paidakia (Grilled Lamb Chops with a side of house dip)

and finally the Galaktoboureko (a creamy custard baked between flaky sheets of filo dough and soaked in a simple syrup) for dessert.

The moussaka was not bad, although I have had better, while the dessert was a little soggy. The lamb chops were excellent though with the yogurt dip.

Overall, another hit and miss at this Greek restaurant.