Granary Tavern

Our friend from Portland was still in town when the weekend rolled around so I was more than happy to meet up with her, and some other friends, for one last dinner in the city before she headed home.  I met the group in the Seaport before we headed to Granary Tavern, near Faneuil Hall.  I have to say, this place is a hidden gem.  It's got the modern, rustic thing down solid, and the upstairs has a really nice open feel.  The best part of the restaurant, though, is the basement dining room that features exposed brick and stone and it's own bar.  Having never eaten here before I wasn't expecting much, after all, this place is located right outside Faneuil Hall.  I was pleasantly surprised with both the Greek Flatbread and the Cobb Salad.  Additionally, the beer prices were rather reasonable and the service was good.  It's a nice place to hang out, and they didn't seem to rush us at all.  They even have a patio that looks out towards the Greenway.

WuBurger

WuBurger recently opened up on the outskirts of Inman Square.  It features burgers and fries and boozy milkshakes.  The first time we went I got a really tasty roast beef sandwich with onion strings.  I really enjoyed it so when we headed over there before the dance party I knew that's what I was going to order.  To my dismay, they took it off the menu.  I'm not a huge burger person, and their burgers look awfully messy, so I went with the fried chicken sandwich.  The sandwich was great and the WuSauce is an excellent addition to any sandwich but I'm downright mad about the lack of the roast beef sandwich.   I also found the bartender (we sat at the bar because there weren't any available tables) to be a bit annoying.  He kept interjecting into our conversation, adding his opinions about bicycle safety and traffic in the square.  With so many great places to go in Inman, I'm not sure if WuBurger will find it's way into our restaurant rotation.

Cambridge Dance Party- It's Officially Summer

Cambridge is such a cool place to live!  Once a year, to kick off summer, the city shuts down a huge swath of Mass Ave., gets a DJ and professional lights, and throws a crazy dance party!  Each year the party gets bigger and better.  I look forward to this event every year, even if we got trapped in some kind of crazy dance that only the "youngins" knew about.  It involved a lot of happy moshlike movements and when we tried to get away we found ourselves trapped by a conga line :-)

Summer Afternoons in the City

When the weather is nice in the summer, I like to take advantage, and roam around Boston.  It's fun to walk around without any real destination or place to be.  I love to window shop on Newbury Street or play tourist at Faneuil Hall.

To celebrate the start of vacation I headed to Newbury Street, after a relaxing morning in Harvard Square.  I wanted to check out some stores for our summer road trip.  JO doesn't seem to understand why I need cute, summer hiking clothes, but I do :-)  After getting some ideas at The North Face, Patagonia, and Athleta, I was pretty hungry.  My original plan had been to head home for lunch but the patio at Piattini Wine Cafe was too nice to resist.  I can't say enough good things about Piattini- great, large patio on Newbury Street, yummy food, really reasonable prices, and I always seem to wind up with a patio table when I go.

It was a perfect way to start vacation!

Summer Mornings in Harvard Square

Summer mornings in Harvard Square are what I live for when I'm on vacation.  It's just such a great way to start the day.  This vacation started with five nice days in a row, which meant five straight mornings sipping coffee and reading a book in Harvard Yard.  We have a couple of trips planned for this summer, which will be super fun, but it means these summer mornings are limited, and extra precious this year.

School's Out for Summer!

I made it!   The bell rang on the 21st and I flew out of school to greet vacation!  Usually JO and I celebrate summer vacation by going out for dinner and drinks but since we hadn't been climbing in a while I decided to go climbing before dinner.  I love going climbing during the summer because I don't have to stress about getting home to go to bed.  I definitely climb better in the summer because I'm more in the moment and can really focus on just enjoying the climbs.

Our original plan was to hit up Aeronaut after climbing but it was packed, and super loud, so we went for plan B- patio dining in Union Square.  We ended up at Brass Union.  It was a perfect night to be on a patio.  I can't even explain the relief when the year ends.  Being a teacher is like running a marathon at a sprint speed and when it's over you're just absolutely spent!

Wentworth by the Sea

My in-laws are really rocking retirement.  For Father's Day they rented a suite at the Wentworth by the Sea and invited us over to enjoy the place.  The Wentworth is a lovely, grand historic hotel with lots of charm.  Their room was in the lower level hotel, by the water.  We spent the afternoon sitting by the pool, snacking and catching up.  We moved to an outdoor table at the restaurant for dinner before heading inside for dessert in the lounge.  I only had two days left of school and after a day by the water, it definitely seemed like summer was within reach.