Thursday, May 28, 2020

Burlington Jade Burlington

Burlington Jade in Burlington is a small takeout place that someone I know frequently gets takeout from. I have had their lunch #26 Salt and Pepper Pork Ribs (8.25) that wasn't very salty or peppery, and there were no ribs involved! However, they were excellent and very tasty, and I had it twice.



They are in a small plaza with limited parking. When I called they said 20 minutes, but my order was ready in 10.



Only one person at a time is allowed in. After I figured out that Wui Wor Yoke on the menu was twice-cooked pork, I got all excited, but it turns out that they are not using pork belly, so it was a pass.



Instead, I went with General Gau's Chicken (8.25) from the lunch menu. "Cubes of chicken coated with water chestnut flour and eggs. Deep fried until crispy and cooked with hot sweet and sour ginger sauce". I also added on the B Jade Fried Chicken (1.75) from the apps menu. The fried chicken was excellent, tender, crispy and juicy. They are lined up on the outside of the plate. I do believe it was a chicken thigh and it was a big one. I'll get this again in a heartbeat. The GG's chicken was all dark meat (as it should be) with a very thin batter. Next time I'll ask for extra sauce and extra spicy. Last time I had GG's chicken it was a minuscule nugget of chicken heavily coated in batter. Here they do it right. Oh, this is half of my order! The rice is leftover basmati rice. The chicken wings (2) on the appetizer lunch menu are two 2/3 pieces of a wing and they are really big and meaty. Both on the phone and picking up the people are very pleasant.

Address: 271 Cambridge St, Burlington, MA 01803 Phone: (781) 272-9913

Friday, May 22, 2020

Brothers Wakefield

Brothers Restaurant & Deli in Wakefield reopened this week with, naturally, takeout only. Phone ordering only, no walk-ins. No website, but a menu that seems to up to date can be found HERE. They are serving from the full menu.


Not really sure if I get the signage? "No entrance without facemask" but the entryway is blocked off. When you call you get a number, and you pick at the table. They said 10 minutes, I picked up after 5 minutes. Plenty of parking in the quiet downtown.


One of the Friday specials is the Roast Leg of Lamb ($13.95) with double roasted potatoes instead of veggies. Extra gravy on the side does not mean hold the gravy on the food 😄. The potatoes were cooked perfectly, and the gravy was really tasty. The lamb was tender. The pita bread could have been a lot fresher. Not sure how busy they are since they just opened. This is enough food for both lunch and dinner.

Address 404 Main St, Wakefield, MA 01880 Phone: (781) 245-5511

Thursday, May 14, 2020

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe Woburn

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe in Woburn (and Westford) is open again! Only phone orders or website ordering, no walk-in orders. They now take credit cards. New and much improved website. There is a surcharge for ordering via the web site. You can now order extra spicy, never occurred to me to do that before.


For my reopening dish, I picked the #2 Lamb Hand-pulled Noodle Soup ($11). "Freshly hand - pulled noodles in lamb broth with slow cooked lamb, dried lily flowers, and wood ear mushroom, add with chilly oil and cilantro". There were mushrooms in the soup, and the only one I recognized was the wood ear mushroom, but they all were tasty. The tender lamb actually tasted of lamb. The hand-pulled noodles are really Escherish since they have no beginning and no end, but they are really toothsome. The broth looked really weak but wasn't. Full of flavor with a hint of heat. Extra spicy added just a touch more heat. I managed to eat about half and will have the rest for dinner. The noodles were packed separately and that's good. Don't let them sit for any time since you will have a solid noodle lump. I took the opportunity to use scissors to cut them down to size. Much easier to eat.

Address: 466 Main St, Woburn, MA 01801 Phone: (781) 938-6888

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Pressed Cafe Burlington

Pressed Cafe in Burlington isn't exactly my cup of tea, but I decided to try their Mac & Cheese since it was recommended. I was very happy with their Shakshuka on my previous visit.


They are located in The District, so parking isn't an issue. Online ordering and curbside delivery.


Classic Mac N’ Cheese (8.5). "A Hearty Portion Of Our House Vermont Cheddar Mac N’ Cheese, Topped With Parmesan And Bread Crumbs". Some breadcrumbs and parmesan in the middle don't really qualify as topped with. The mac and cheese were also cold, and the pasta was overcooked. Probably better to order when you get there. It was cheesy and creamy. I added a half slice of porchetta from Pennypackers in Somerville. I usually buy a quarter porchetta, slice it up and freeze it so I can have it whenever I want. If it's reheated in the air fryer, the crackling is crunchy.

Address: 200 District Ave, Burlington, MA 01803 Phone: (781) 365-1412

Thursday, May 7, 2020

Lin Garden Wilmington

In my quest for a good Curry Chicken, I visited Lin Garden in Wilmington for my lunch today.


They are in the same plaza as As Good As it Gets (that is open).


They are literary barricaded. If you pay with a CC, you have to hold it against the window. I recommend that you call and order since they can not hear you through the barrier. I couldn't figure out how the "Pick up here" worked. Turns out it's a sliding box.


Here is the Large Curry Chicken ($10.95). Only the large comes with rice that was packed separately. Extra spicy didn't work. It was a very large portion and it easily serves two. Or me twice. Plenty of tender chicken. Apart from the common onions, it also had carrots, green beans, chestnuts, green peppers and celery. I wish there was more of the curry sauce, part of a good curry chicken, are to have enough sauce that it soaks into the rice. The best one so far is from Taipei Tokyo in Arlington. It's smaller and cheaper, and you also get an appetizer.

Address: 35 Lowell St, Wilmington, MA 01887 Phone: (978) 658-8880

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

The Wardhurst Peabody

The Wardhurst Restaurant & Bar in Peabody is open for takeout, delivery or pickup during lunch and dinner starting at noon. The daily menus are published on their FB page.


It might be spring, but a heatwave it isn't. Is it just me, or is the traffic getting heavier?


This is the Half Rack St Loius Style BBQ Ribs (16.99) served with two sides. I picked the mashed and a side Greek Salad (+1.99). I knew from a previous visit that the mashed are made from real potatoes. I also got a warm roll with butter. The dressing was good, but I expected a more Greekish dressing. The ribs were really tender, and it was a thick cut of ribs. Despite what people think, putting BBQ sauce on something doesn't make it BBQ. The BBQ sauce was very tasty. Was it Bull's-Eye? It seemed familiar.

Address: 31 Lynnfield St, Peabody, MA 01960 Phone: (978) 531-9730

Saturday, May 2, 2020

Dicor North Andover

There are some advantages with Social Media, apart from cat videos, how else would I know that Dicor Restaurant in North Andover has a special going on? The dishes are for two or four people and are very reasonably priced.


How hard can it be to find them on Osgood Street? Very hard, and I missed them, this being my first visit here. It's a small place, but they have outdoor seating.


Pork Chops, Vinegar Peppers and Potatoes (2 people $20). I had to call them and ask if the $20 was per person. No, $20 it is. The chops (on the bone, of course) was tender and juicy. The peppers were appropriately vinegary and the potatoes were cooked perfectly and were not mushy. More importantly, they were peeled as they should be in a civilized restaurant. They were also nicely browned. The sauce (gravy?) was excellent and well seasoned.


One portion, but I think this is less than half of the peppers and potatoes. Look at that delicious gravy! The peppers still had texture, and this was a very pleasant meal.


Here are the specials.

Address: 1060 Osgood St, North Andover, MA 01845 Phone: (978) 688-0099