Favorite Finds of 2011

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

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Hey, better late than never, right? It took awhile for me to go through all the new places we visited in 2011. Some I remembered fondly. Some, not so much. So I present you with a list of our favorites and the links to our complete reviews. We hope they give you some ideas for places to visit and enjoy.

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EVER SO HUMBLE PIE COMPANY

Delicious homemade pies in a lovely out-of-the-way location. Worth the drive to have the "hands down" best crust I've ever tasted. They're supposed to be opening a cafe on site. I'll be there.

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CONTINENT BAKERY

A gem of a bakery right in my own back yard. Besides having wonderful pastries, Continent also makes tasty sandwiches and Portuguese specialties.

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COZY KETTLE

Bigger than it looks, this place has your every breakfast desire. You name it - from omelets to huge baked pancakes and everything in between. They also serve lunch and on some days dinner.

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CAPE COD CAFE

This is my favorite find this year, maybe any year. Hands down the best pizza I have ever tasted. You wait awhile for them to be made fresh but ahhhhh ... it's so worth it.

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BLEU SQUID

Bleu Squid is actually a 2010 best food find for their pastries, amazing cupcakes and cookies. This year we just had to choose them for their terrific grilled cheese sandwiches. Fresh baked breads and gourmet cheeses make an ooey, gooey, melty taste sensation.

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MATTAPOISETT CHOWDER HOUSE & TAVERN

All your clam shack favorites in an upscale restaurant. Lots of indoor seating in a beautiful nautical setting, this place has the best seafood around. It also has a fresh seafood market complete with lobster tank. Best thing ... it's on the way to the Cape.

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CASERTA PIZZERIA

Another favorite pizza find.  This pizza couldn't be anymore different than Cape Cod Cafe's thin bar pizza, but it's delicious in it's own right. Old school, thicker crust, basic toppings and impossibly delicious. That it's on Federal Hill in Providence only adds to the flavor.

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PASTICHE FINE DESSERTS AND CAFE

The name of this place says it all. How can such a teeny, tiny cafe have such a selection of out of this world pastries? Fruit tarts, Italian specialties, cakes and more. Pastries that are works of art for the eyes and palate.

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COASTAL ROASTERS

Overlooking the water, outdoor seating, great coffees and pastries ... what a way to start your day. This tiny shop roasts its own beans all day long and the smell is intoxicating. Grab a goody and a coffee and go watch the seagulls.

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GREEN EGGS

Great breakfast spot with the usual and "not so usual" morning fare. Specialty pancakes, eggs and things, light-style choices and upscale ingredients make for a very diverse and delicious menu. Come on, bacon, tomato and avocado omelet with a melon slice?  Pleeeeze.

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REDLEFSEN'S ROTISSERIE & GRILL

Great upscale setting with a fantastic, different menu. German sausages and mustards, seafoods, beef and poultry dishes are all lovingly prepared and served. Great food.

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THE SYMPOSIUM

A small diner-like restaurant with a huge, interesting menu. Comfort foods, mainstream dishes and Greek specialities are all freshly prepared and attractively presented. Good food, good prices in a cute setting. No wonder that they're always busy.

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NO PROBLEMO TAQUERIA

Now this is a busy place and good luck getting a parking spot on the street. However, it's worth the bother. All your Mexican favorites await you. The tacos, burritos, quesadillas, etc., are all freshly made with incredible ingredients. Portions are large and beer and wine are available. Cash only.

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DICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT

Pulled pork, brisket, ribs, slaw - it's all here in a little storefront restaurant. It's a cafeteria style set-up but you won't mind getting your own food when it tastes this good. Don't forget the sweet tea.

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DIPARMA'S ITALIAN TABLE

Housemade pastas, fresh ingredients, great sauces and tasty pizzas - what more could you want from a fine Italian restaurant? Throw in great service and an attractive setting and you've got a great night out.

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That's it for our favorite finds of 2011. We look forward to sharing with you our new 2012 adventures in food. Even though it's three weeks into the new year, I still want to wish you all good health, some wealth, and much happiness. Remember, keep eating!

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Don't forget our friends at MenuJoy.com for area restaurant menus.

Ten Clams

27 Coogan Blvd. #20

Olde Mistick Village

Mystic, CT  06155

(860) 536-1019

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December 3, 2011

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Hi everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. I certainly did! The food was great, Santa was good to me, the food was great, the festivities were fun, the food was great ... lol.  I guess you get the picture. But take a minute and look how beautiful my tree was:

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 Now I know Laura told you we'd be doing things a little different here starting in 2012, but I think some of you misunderstood. We're not shutting down the site, we just want to do less frequent reviews of the same old places. So instead of telling you for the umpteenth time how much we liked the pizza at so-and-so's, or how good the wings were at blah-blah's, we'll wait until we visit somewhere new or great to post a review. Hopefully, this will provide a better read for our fans (and less work for us).

I wanted the year to go out with a BANG, but instead, I'm afraid, it went out with a wimper.

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Laura and I went (on a very cold Saturday afternoon) to Mystic, CT, to catch a movie at their darling theater. It's right in Mistick Village which is a great shopping spot, especially around Christmas. We needed to grab a bite to eat before the show and decided on Ten Clams, which is close to the theater and full of seafood. We couldn't wait!

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We went inside at 2:10 p.m. and were thrilled to get out of the cold. The place was neat, cutely decorated, and larger than it appears from outside. There were only a few tables taken at this time, so we scored a nice spot near the window.

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Now this place is called Ten Clams because nothing here costs more than ten dollars (ten clams) - get it? We were only seated a few minutes when our waitress approached. She gave us menus and we ordered two Diet Cokes. The menu was a nice mix of seafood, sandwiches, burgers, salads, and some meat and poultry dishes. They have a kids' menu, some desserts, and an on-site ice cream shop. At this point I would normally give you their website so you could check out the menu for yourselves, but they don't have one. Sigh.

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We wanted to try a bit of everything so we started with an order of clam fritters. Now in Massachusetts we call them clam cakes but Connecticut is high-class, lol!  Unfortunately these fritters weren't "high-class." They were so dry and doughy and the few clams to be found inside were terribly chewy. These were probably the worse clam fritters I've ever had. Very disappointing.

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Laura, however, loved her New England style clam chowder. It was thick, white, creamy, and tasty enough to cover the - again - chewy clams.  Our little order of biscuits was warm and tasty but nothing out of the ordinary. We still enjoyed them though.

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For her lunch, Laura ordered a clam strip roll which came with chips and a pickle. It had the same problem of slightly chewy clams but otherwise was a good sandwich.

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My order of fish and chips was fine. It was slightly greasy but I've had worse from more upscale restaurants. I really enjoyed both the taste and the portion. It was accompanied by tartar sauce and cole slaw.
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In all, would I seek out Ten Clams if there were other options? Probably not. Would I go again if we were in the area and someone else wanted to try it? Sure. It wasn't that bad. It wasn't that good, but on a different day with a different seafood cook, I bet it could be much better.

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This was our tally for today:

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Chowder - $3.95

Clam fritters - 5.95

Fish and chips - 9.95

Biscuits - 1.25

Clam roll - 6.95

2 Diet Cokes - 5

Subtotal - $33.05

Tax - 2.10

TOTAL = $35.15

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With a 20 percent tip, we left $42.

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Ten Clams is open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.

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Don't forget to check out our friends at MenuJoy.com for great area restaurant menus.