Wicked Fun

Happy Valentines Day my loves! Today has been so much fun–me and my dad are having a great time and we travelled all around Boston today doing some touristy things. It was a little cold, but great! I don’t want him to leave!

Breakfast

I definitely get my ‘morning person-ness” from my dad! I was up at 7 and he was already awake and doing work when I got up. We headed down to the free hotel breakfast and I made myself a little parfait with strawberry yogurt, cheerios, and fruit salad. And of course some coffee to fuel us through our day.

Drinking before noon!?!

Yes, that’s right–we definitely know how to party. Haha. I’m not a big beer drinker at all, I just much prefer wine or martinis, but my dad loves beer and is always trying to get me to appreciate it more. Well, today I decided to be the son he never had and planned a little trip to the Sam Adams Brewery. It was actually really fun! We had a great tour guide and I actually learned a lot about beer! 

After a tour of the factory we were led into the tasting room and got to sample 3 different beers, and we even got to keep the glasses as a souvenir!

First, we learned the 5 step process:

1. Visual

2. Aroma

3. Taste

4. Mouth Feel–the flavor should linger on the tongue for about 10 seconds.

5. Overall appraisal–basically, do you want another sip?

The first beer we tried was the original Samuel Adams Boston Lager. I wasn’t a huge fan of this beer—it was bitter and tasted like the traditional beers that I just don’t like that much.

The second tasting was my favorite. This was the Seasonal White Ale. It has 10 different spices in it and was a lot sweeter than the first. It also had a better ‘mouth feel’ in my opinion–it seemed like it was more carbonated like I was drinking pop.

The third was a specialty Belgian Pale Ale which isn’t even on the market! This was alright—it wasn’t really anything special.

I’m really glad that we did this, our tour guide was great and we had a really fun time. I definitely do have more of an appreciation for beer but I’m not a convert—I’ll stick to my wine, thanks!

Lunch

I was tipsy after this and it was definitely lunch-time. We made our way over to Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market where we wandered around for a little bit and then headed to Durgin Park to eat. This is a famous Boston landmark and has been around for 135 years! It’s served tons of celebrities and politicians throughout the years, and with good reason–the traditional Boston cuisine is outstanding! 

We were greeted with a delicious warm cornbread. Neither my dad nor I are big cornbread fans usually but this was really good! It was perfectly sweet and the crust was delicious. 

For my dad’s meal he chose one of the specials: Hand-carved Irish Corned Beef sandwich which was good, but my meal was definitely better!

I had a cup of the famous Clam Chowder and a side of Boston Baked Beans. Oh my gosh. This was one of the most comforting meals I’ve ever had! The soup was so rich and creamy and the beans were unbelievable! They were smokey and sweet and savory and basically every good flavor combined into one. Now I know why this restaurant has been so successful for so many years!

My dad has only been out and about in Boston once, 20 years ago, and described to me the most unbelievable dessert he had there and vividly described the taste and texture  but couldn’t remember the name. After some internet investigation we deduced that it was Indian Pudding. Now, if after 20 years and hundreds of desserts, he still remembers how good this was, obviously we had to get some! Let me just say: This. Is. Heaven. 

I don’t even know how to describe it. It’s made with cornmeal, milk, brown sugar and molasses but sort of has the taste and consistency of pumpkin. It was served warm with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream which melted delectably into the pudding. I’m sort of drooling right now just thinking about how good this was!

After we finished licking the plate clean we did some more wandering and perused the North End (Italian section of Boston) where we picked up supplies for our dinner and obviously more dessert (yes, multiple desserts–and drinks! in one day–don’t judge!) 

Now we’re going to relax for a bit and watch a movie because the hotel has a huge, amazing flat screen tv and big comfy couch. Don’t worry though, I’ll be back later with mouthwatering pictures of tonight’s eats!

I hope you’re all having a great Valentines Day and weekend!

xoxo