A U.S. Visit – New York, Boston, Boothbay

May 24, 2012

Earlier this month, I made another trip back to the U.S. What else are you going to do with two Tuesday holidays in a row?


Spring comes to Boothbay Harbor, Maine

Between weekends in New York and Boston, I spent five days in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. This small coastal town is where I have my vacation rental, but it is also a sort of second hometown for me and the destination of my very first vacation, at age three weeks.


Portland Head Light, Cape Elizabeth, Maine

In January, I posted a list of my restaurant picks for New York and Boston. Below are a few more discoveries to add to that list, along with some photos from my time in Maine.


Near Portland Head Light, Cape Elizabeth, Maine

New York

Bocca de Bacco, 828 9th Ave (between 54th & 55th), Tel. 212-265-8828. This Italian restaurant and wine bar has superb food at reasonable prices. The room is spacious but the nouveau-rustic decor makes it quite inviting. I had a special – linguine with tomato sauce and burrata on top. Why did I never think of that? It was out of this world. And the Nero d’Avola (Sicilian) wine was some of the best I’ve ever had. (I’m always a fan of the deep, round Nero d’Avolas.)

The Grey Dog, 242 West 16th St. (between 7th & 8th Ave), Tel. 212-229-2345 (and several other locations as well). A great coffee shop, as I mentioned back in January. But this time I tried the lunch food as well and it was even better than expected. I had the “#6 Grilled Chicken Press with Fresh Mozzarella, Pesto & Roasted Tomato” and I am sure I’ll get it again the next time too! They don’t take reservations and the line can be long, but they are amazingly organized about finding tables for everyone, so don’t despair. You won’t have to wait long.


Classic New England architecture in Boothbay Harbor, Maine

Boston

Sonsie, 327 Newbury Street, Boston 02115, Tel. 617-351-2500. Sonsie deems itself an “eclectic bistro”, but I would characterize it as primarily modern American cuisine, which was just fine by me, having flown in from Paris!  Their Boston clam chowder is excellent and the brick oven pizzas are made of the freshest ingredients. They also offer salads, sandwiches, pastas and an array of main courses at dinner time.

Bondir, 279A Broadway, Cambridge,  MA 02139, Tel. 617-661 0009. Bondir deems itself a “cozy, farm-house style restaurant” serving “sustainable modern American cuisine”. The ingredients are incredibly fresh and almost entirely locally-sourced. The servers are very knowledgeable about the menu, which changes daily, and seem to take much pride in the restaurant’s “fresh & local” mission. All dishes are available in small (appetizer) or large (main dish) size. I chose three small plates and a dessert and they were all sumptuous! A dinner at Bondir is a splurge (I would budget nearly $100 per person after tax and tip) but it’s well worth it for a special occasion.


World famous fudge! 

***

Do you have any New York or Boston favorites?


Our “pet” seagull 

Related Posts

Penultimate GR34 Update

Penultimate GR34 Update

Having finished all the mainland segments of Brittany's coastal trail (the GR34) and many of the islands, I'm now at 1,461 miles logged since November 2014. Here are all my GR34 photos to date. Bay of Quiberon I plan to finish the last few remaining pieces of this...

Semaine du Golfe

Semaine du Golfe

At the end of May, I was in Brittany for the biennial week-long festival, the Semaine du Golfe. This "Week of the Gulf" is a celebration of the boating history of the Gulf of Morbihan. There is no racing, but numerous other boat-related festivities, including a...

Scotland: The Full Itinerary

Scotland: The Full Itinerary

Old Man of Storr, Skye I have posted our full Highlands itinerary under Longer Trip Itineraries. Hiking near Glencoe I’m not sure there’s anything I would have done differently in terms of our itinerary except perhaps hoof it all the way to Tarbert on the first night...