T.W. Food, Cambridge, MA

When Diego asked me where I wanted to have my birthday celebration this year, there was no doubt in my mind that T.W. Food was the place. We had been there once for one of their magnificent Improv. nights and I got totally hooked. In improv night, the chefs improvised five dishes per person using the day's ingredients (you could ask for the list in advance). The place was crowded the night we went (about ten two-people tables) and every single person got something different during the two hours we spent there.

They don't do these anymore, but the idea remains. Chef Wiechmann is not afraid of changing the menu on a daily basis in order to use the freshest and best ingredients. Last Sunday, the squash bisque was lobster's, the smoked pastrami hash was actually a Beef and tongue hash, the omelet was accompanied by kale instead of bok choi, and the salmon was beet-smoked instead of spice-smoked. And these were the changes we noticed; there may have been many more subtle differences in the menu that we may have overlooked.

Brunch comes as prix-fix (coffee or orange juice, one starter, one entree and one dessert or cocktail for $29) or a la carte from the prix-fix menu. For a succulent and rich meal, the prix fix is certainly a good deal. There is one item in the menu for every personality and every dish comes with a range of components; you don't feel like that money could buy much more (well, maybe if you are the type who goes to all-you-can-eat buffets to find out how much you can actually eat!) somewhere else. I guess my only complaint is that you have to choose between coffee and OJ, and the freshly squeezed OJ is actually quite expensive ($5). So, this is actually a $35 prix fix...

In any case, we splurged and went with two prix fix plus two OJs. Diego had the charcuterie duo: a chicken liver mousse and a pate with pistachio, raisins and foie grass. Both meats were delicious. The mousse was soft and delicate, almost like a cream of chicken liver, and the pate was superbly made. My simpler palate called for simpler food, so I ordered the bakery plate: a chocolate-almond muffin that I would be immensely happy to have in my daily breakfast (albeit slightly oily) and orange-cranberry scones with homemade blueberry marmalade that was to die for. I could have gone home more than happy if that was it.

But, then came the entrees, also great. Diego had the beef and tongue hash with poached eggs

and biscuit, which were slightly salty for my taste but perfect according to Diego. He also
saidsomething about the eggs being "strangely cooked", but he couldn't really pinpoint what was strange about them and was overall very happy with his plate. I had the beet-smoked salmon. Let me just say that, regardless of the taste, this is visually impressive. The salmon was batik-dyed in deep red and the originality of it is undeniable. It tasted like any normal smoked salmon, a flavor that was complimented by a salad of cattle beans, greens and pears.

By then we were certainly no longer hungry. Still, we delved into the desserts with all our strengths. Diego took a while to finish his dark chocolate budinno, but ended up scrapping the bottom of the cup, last pieces of rock salt and the last drops of olive oil included. I couldn't finish my grapefruit panna cota, wich looked like a latte but tasted like heaven. I don't really like cinnamon, but the cinnamon gélée was perfect; it added to the texture without overpowering the taste.

I don't think this was the perfect brunch. By now you should now that I like open spaces, preferably with sidewalk tables, and tiny T.W. Food is neither. In addition, brunch should give you energies to continue with your day, and this feast could only be followed by a nap. But, this is quite possibly my favorite restaurant in the world, and that means we will certainly be back.

S & S, Cambridge, MA

After a one month break we decided to go back to our die hard habits and take up brunching, once again. We decided to make a strong come back in one of our favorite places in Cambridge, S & S. Curiously, we hadn't written a post about this Inman Square institution up until now (we did write a post on its sister establishment Ryles some time back, though.).

S & S is one of the oldest delis in the Boston area with a rich history that goes back to 1919.   We were not around then, but I can safely assume the place was as consistently packed every weekend as it is these days. This establishment is a traditional NY style deli and I have to say it can successfully go toe to toe with many of the Manhattan powerhouses in the business. Their menu is long and varied but the actual stars are the smoked whitefish, lox, egg dishes and cold cuts (including a fabulous homemade corned beef). Their bagels are, predictably, also legendary. Finally, because of the amazing size of their dining room, even though the place is always crowded, it is unusual to wait in line for long.

Having gone through this chain of raving compliments, let us discuss our experience last weekend. We wanted to have a simple and to the point brunch experience, so we decided lox and bagel should fit the bill perfectly. Ana ordered exactly that while I ordered the lox platter which includes some extra ingredients (tomato and a hard boiled egg) and considerably more salmon than its smaller version. We waited for a long time for our dishes (which obviously needed no preparation). When our food arrived my platter contained maybe 25 % less salmon than Ana's bagel (when it's usually around 40% more!). When I brought this up with the waitress she said that was the way it was and that should be the end of it. Ridiculous. On a second iteration she decided it would be ok if I wanted to bring the issue up with the manager (gracious of her!). After 20 minutes we got our audience granted. When I explained the situation, the manager said that, although we were right in stating that the platter is a larger portion (which of course I knew, having had that dish maybe 10 times), she could not confirm the situation, as we were already midway through our brunch. She repeated this many times and said she had no way of knowing if we were telling the truth. I was speechless. I guess that triggered her reaction: she said that we could have one or two more slices of salmon on her. How absurd is that! I payed for my salmon!!!! In any case, I said she shouldn't do us any favors and that we just wanted to finish our meal.  She said nothing and disappeared, never to be seen again.

We finished our brunch and left, disappointed. Of course, the bagel and (little) lox I did get were superb as always.

I am really sorry it is this experience that gets posted on QPB, as we have visited S&S countless times with great success and joy. I guess, they are not perfect after all... The Quest continues..