Pizza Rumble Recap

It is almost too late to post this now that it is August, but hey, I make the rules so here you go! Ms. L and I went to a pizza rumble. SO good!

The rumble was a taste-off amongst 4 pizza places hosted by Parlor Sports. We paid for the tickets and then got to taste all 4 and vote for our favorite. There wasn’t any criteria but we heard from each pizza joint about what they were serving us.

Emma’s Pizza in Kendall Square gave us what the kitchen staff most often make when they themselves are hungry. It had a paper thin crust topped with, in their words, “crispy smoked bacon/scallions/gorgonzola/house roasted tomatoes/garlic olive oil/light mozzarella”. Wow, right? Well, I was underwhelmed. The toppings weren’t evenly distributed. I was thankful that the toppings were sparse given that gorgonzola isn’t my fav.
Emma's Pizza

Eat at Jumbo’s cracked me up. I lived across the street for years and don’t remember eating their pizza. Mr. J thinks we didn’t love the pizza…who knows. Their pizza seems MIA from the menu but from what I remember, it was Jamaican Jerk chicken, roma tomatoes, bacon?, and banana peppers. This one was really good. It had the right amount of cheese and was so flavorful.
Jumbo's Jerk Chicken

Easy Pie served us Mac Daddy pizza. I could have this one because there was beef on it, but what a great idea?! Everyone loved this one! It was ground beef, special sauce, onions, pickles, and shredded lettuce. Spoiler alert: I recreated this one at home. Quite Tasty!
Mac Daddy Pizza

We rounded out our sampling was All Star Pizza Bar. I was psyched to see them there since I hadn’t made it to the famous sandwich bar’s latest pizza shop. They gave us a dessert one which was welcomed after our savory pizzas. It had hazlenuts, banana puree, roasted plantains, chocolate covered bacon. I don’t know what happened after chocolate covered bacon. It was amazing. Ms. L and I both thought it was going to have too much banana but we loved it.
All Star Dessert Pizza

I asked if Parlor Sports knew what the next rumble would be. They’ve done nachos, hot dogs, and something else. I suggested wings, or bar food, or cookies. Pizza was a good one and now I have lots of pizza ideas to add to my collection…watch out!

Beantown’s Food Truck Fun

Way back when, I saw that Boston’s Rose Kennedy was having a food truck gathering. Unfortunately Occupy Boston meant that the food truck festival has to be postponed. Something like 150 protesters were camping out (I’d have a real stat if Occupy Boston’s own website actually worked).

My beef with this was that they were not only vague with their mission, but they destroyed the park, lived in unsanitary and unsafe conditions, spent taxpayer dollars on police details, and refuse to recognize altering views. I feared when I attempted to obtain a permit for the park at work (by following the regulation, paying the fee, and leaving the park in perfect condition) that Occupy Boston would have ruined it for everyone. Thankfully I got my permit.

Ok, I’m off my soap box. The food truck gathering was rescheduled and I just happened to be working in my office that Saturday. It was perfect timing and Ms. M met me for some lunch.
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It was better than other food truck festivals I’ve been to. It was great to see so many out I hadn’t had before AND there wasn’t an entrance fee. We scoped ‘em all out and then chose randomly.
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I saw Staff Meal and was psyched to try it. I was pretty drawn to the bacon jam and the truck made chorizo. These two items were dictating my choice. I couldn’t pass on the bacon jam.

I got the chicken paprikash taco with bacon jam and French’s onions. It was the most interesting taco I’ve ever had. I loved the tender chicken with the paprika. The salty bacon jam was to-die-for. It had a lime to squeeze on top for freshness and crunchy onions.
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Ms. M got the truck made chorizo taco with lime crema, radish, and lettuce. It looked really good too. I just didn’t want to spend $10 on just 2 tacos. They were pretty special and significant but still a touch pricey.
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Then we were onto the sides. I saw the menu at Mei Mei Street Kitchen. They had some fun looking items and I hadn’t heard of their truck before.
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I got the fiddleheads. They were really lightly battered and fried. I looooved that they weren’t greasy and the freshness really came through. I wasn’t into the wasabi mayo though.
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The Greenway is expanding their mobile eats in a big way…and I’ll be there!

Blogging Better

I recently attending a Boston blogger conference a few Saturdays ago at Google. It was so great to see some bloggers I don’t get to see all the time and to meet some new ones at Blog Better Boston.
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I have to admit, I didn’t loooove everything. I think the conference was really well organized and attendees were really well taken care of (aka, free breakfast & lunch, goody bags, give aways etc). I loved that there were so many talented people in the same room! I think I just wasn’t all the way into shamelessly promoting my blog or meeting hundreds of new bloggers…feels like the first day of college to approach groups of people already in conversation. I was also tired from a busy couple of days at work so maybe I just wasn’t in the mood/mindset. I loved seeing some Boston Brunchers!
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Twitter was trending all day but I would have loved more digital examples from the speakers or highlights etc. It would have been cool to see what super skilled bloggers like, or look for, or are inspired by, how far their blogs have come, etc. The food photo session had great examples of food photos with her own critique/notes. That was awesome coming from a professional.
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I can’t say every session was perfect for me. I think there were good ones to choose from and there was a variety. The speakers were great, but I think sometimes it was a bit too distant for  the diverse crowd of food, fashion, and mommy-bloggers to relate. I mean, everyone can use info on building traffic/community and everyone benefits from discussions on monetizing your blog, but since it had to apply to pretty different writers it sometimes missed the mark because of concrete details or examples missing. Working in events I truly believe you can’t please all people all the time though and I can be a tough critic.

I loved the session on traffic & community and liked the food photography session a lot too. Even the list of attendees and their blogs was helpful to be introduced to some new local ones.
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You could spot the fashion bloggers right off the bat but I was really interested to see how many there are since that whole topic is wayyy outside my realm of knowledge.

It was impressive that the space, breakfast and lunch were all donated…something I didn’t really need to know as a paying attendee, but the price wasn’t out of reach for most people. I also learned that it sold out.
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I think I got a lot of resources out of it and I know the work it takes to put on something like that. I know some new blogs to check out and have a short list of aps, books, websites, etc. I hope there are more in the future or even short programs that are more specific. I took an amazing class at BCAE before I started my blog and that 2 hour class was very targeted and honestly more helpful than this one was.

It makes me think about my blogging identity. I don’t know where I’d fit between blogging pros & new blogs. I track my traffic but don’t market the three bite rule to expand readership. Hmm. Lots to think about.

Multiple Birthdays

My birthdays are the best. I pluralize it since I usually try to ensure that it is several days/meals long.

I had to work on my birthday. I know, bummer. I knew it was coming so at least I could mentally prepare. To work’s defense, my birthday did fall on a Saturday this year. I’m just a baby and consider my birthday to be a national holiday. (It is a holiday in Japan! Doll Day!)
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I came home from work and Mr. J’s presents began! He designed my business cards! Woohoo! Wait till you see ‘em…they’re amazing. He also planned, shopped, and was ready to blog dinner. AND THEN he made dessert. All before we left on our date! He’s the best. For dinner we had pork with a balsamic strawberry topping over wilted spinach. Ohh so good. Then he made molten lava cakes! What a keeper. Stay tuned for his post.

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The next night I had my family birthday at my parents house with my parents, Sis, Gram, and Mr. J. Usually I request Coq au Vin, but since I got Mum’s recipe I have to make it myself.

We had pork stuffed with boursin and apricots. It was funny they each thought of pork for me. Love those pigs. Unfortunately the pictures are MIA 🙁

At work, Ms. K made me a pirate themed ice cream cake. Yay! I had a pirate hat and everyone else had eye patches. I’m pretty psycho at work right now so there wasn’t much time to celebrate but the cake was delicious. She remembered that a) I love pirates and b) that ice cream cake is my fav!

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In an effort to extend my birthday celebrations (and to be reasonable in not trying to host after working all day) I celebrated my birthday again the next weekend. If last year was any indication there are a lot of photos so hold tight. Just you wait for the theme.


Boston Brunchers Benedict

What seems like forever ago, I went to a brunch hosted by the Boston Brunchers at Landsdowne Pub. I left in a food coma so maybe that’s what’s taken me so long to post this! Hope this brunch is just in time for the weekend.
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I arrived and was warmly welcomed as other attendees showed up. We had already perused the menu but began by ordering drinks. I had a coffee and a liquid caramel coffee that was delectable.
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Their breakfast menu had a good assortment of traditional brunch items…many of which had an Irish twist. The buttermilk pancakes with strawberries and Bailey’s whipped cream caught my eye. I think it was the booze in the whipped cream that had me at hello.
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I went with the crabcake benedict. It was so good and I was really glad I got something I wouldn’t be making at home.
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The crabcake was flavorful with big crab chunks- not completely filler. I might have liked the hollandaise to be more lemony but it was good, and rich. The eggs were cooked perfectly!
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A few folks at the table got the Lansdowne Pie (Irish Ham, eggs, potatoes, spinach onions and cheddar served w/ home fries). It looked even better than it sounded. It was piled high and stayed together. Yum.
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One of the best moments for me, besides the fun conversations, was that when the food arrived everyone at the table started snapping photos. There were no “pardon-while-I-reach-over-your-food-to-take-a-picture” moments. Everyone snapped away. There were even iphones for additional light. It was ahhhhmazing.
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Our server was a gem. Serving a group is never easy, especially since we ordered drinks every time she came back to check on us. What a trooper.

There was live music and they were ready to serve the crowds. I wouldn’t think of Fenway as an area to head to for brunch, but if you’re in that ‘hood, you should!

Full 3 Bite Rule Disclosure: Brunch was completely complimentary but my thoughts, opinions, and words are entirely my own.