It’s Not Chinese or Vietnamese

It’s Japanese, and it reaches fantastic new heights at Kayuga. The food was so impressive that I may officially name it Taste of Asia’s replacement. At last.

So, I’ve never been inside the restaurant, but my girlfriend has once, and since then I’ve had Kayuga takeout twice. I am posting a picture of Kayuga below for those curious what the place looks like.

Every time I taste their food I brand the experience a masterful and delectable journey for the taste buds. For starters, the restaurant closes at 2 a.m. everyday and takes the order for the last delivery at 1 a.m. For those Taste of Asia haters who claim a Chinese/Vietnamese/Japanese Restaurant needs to be open until at least 2:00 a.m., well, Kayuga is Taste of Asia with your kind of hours. Right there, that is the biggest plus in a city where restaurants despise night owls. The delivery charge is only $2-3 depending on distance, and the person who took our order was surprisingly extremely nice. She said that no one had ordered from Mission Hill before, but she talked to her driver and after a moments discussion, they had agreed to do it.

We ordered a hefty amount of food, $50 worth, but it was well worth it. The food arrived 45 minutes later, exactly on time. The cold items were still cold and the hot items were piping hot. After ordering our main entrees, I called back to request a surprise appetizer called Goma Ae. I didn’t really know what it was, but I knew it included spinach, and I love Spinach (it’s extremely healthy, and from the right place, delicious). Goma Ae is a cold appetizer that has great flavor and texture. It came in a small foam container, and the spinach was served in three fairly small squares and was drenched and surrounded by a peanut sauce. The contrast between the cold blocks of spinach and the unforgettable taste of the peanut sauce created a nice cool blend of one of the better apetiizers I’ve had recently.

I am not a huge sushi eater; I enjoy the food but feel it is not filling enough. With this in mind, I decided to try the Chicken Agemono. I requested for chicken, beef and shrimp to be combined in this dish, but unfortunately they refused (maybe one of the one strikes against this great eatery). Anyhow, the agemono is described as "Breaded deep fried seafood or meat served w/Japanese style sweet & sour sauce". This dish proved to be Chicken Katsu with a sauce that was sourer than tonkatsu sauce. Nonetheless, the dish proved delicious, the chicken moist and perfectly cooked, even if it wasn't too inventive or interesting. The breading was light and not oily at all. The sauce had spicy peanut paste on the side, and was incredibly hot (in terms of scoville units which are used to measure the spiciness of a pepper or food). There definately wasn't enough of the sweet and sour sauce to last the entire dish, but I think I'm over it.

I suggest everyone, especially students, check this place out (1030 Commonwealth Ave, 617-975-1668). It's open late, and based on my first experience, I think it is as good as Taste of Asia. In other words, I think Kayuga is authentic, fresh and significantly different and better than your run of the mill late night Chinese/Vietnamese/Etc. establishment.

Better Burgers

With the temperature up around 60 degrees in Boston today, I couldn't help but think of the coming summer and how I plan to grill, particularly burgers, on my roofdeck every day. I have tried out some new burger recipes a few times this winter on the stove top. It's not as good or as fun as on the grill, but cooking these burgers is quick and easy. And they are much better than your ordinary patty.

To make four servings, you need about a pound of ground beef, four teaspoons of hot pepper sauce, four teaspoons of salsa, four slices of Cheddar cheese and four slices of Monterey Jack cheese. Then all you do is form the beef into four burgers and begin cooking. When the burgers are almost done, just add a touch of the hot sauce, your desired amount of salsa and a slice of each type of cheese. Once the cheese is melted, you're all set.

Even better are burgers that you add spices and other items to before cooking. There are many different recipes for these types of burgers. For example, before forming the patties from the ground beef, you may want to put everything (maybe mayonnaise, jalapeno pepper, onion, garlic and various other ingredients) into a large bowl to mix it all. After mixed, it's just a matter of forming the number of patties, adding cheese if necessary after they are cooked. Burgers may seem boring and run of the mill, but by adding a little spice to different recipes can help turn an ordinary dinner into quite an adventure.

Still Without Asia, Nan Ling Got A Ring

I still have not figured out what happened to Taste of Asia, but in need of Chinese food last night, I decided to listen to a classmate and try Nan Ling (see comment on Taste of Asia post). The food was good and came in large proportions but lacked any individuality that I was seeking, which I believe separated Taste of Asia from the rest. I guess I did like Nan Ling more than most of its late night competition, but it did not replace Taste of Asia. It just wasn't as good and didn't seem as fresh. The search continues for another comparable Chinese dine-in/take out restaurant in Boston.

TAPEO

This dessert was sweet and seductive. The picture suggests nothing less.

A recent rise in the number of new Tapas restaurants has caught my attention. It started at 388 Moody Street in Waltham, Mass., where you can find Solea, an open-air restaurant with fantastic Tapas. Around the corner is the excellent Embassy Cinema, one of a few theaters to showcase primariliy independent films (the other one that comes to mind is Kendall Square Cinema in Cambridge, Mass.). Unfortunately, I will not be writing about Solea right now. It is time to look at TAPEO.

Located at 266 Newbury Street in Boston, this restaurant and Tapas bar is tucked underneath the sidewalk, but the walk in gives way to the smell of many wines at the bar in front and the overwhelming but welcoming scent of a long list of tapas (blurry list of the hot tapas menu below) "Best Spanish Restaurant" signs hung on the brick wall to the right of the front entrance. The room was dimly lit with flowers and brush dangling from above the bar. My girlfriend had called for priority seating (no reservations) at 8:00 p.m., and we were seated within 10 minutes. We were led up a staircase to the upper-level, which was slightly congested and much lighter but still homey and fabulous like below.

The tables were set with candles in the middle and thin slices of italian bread were served with, surprise, hummus within a few minutes. The small heap of hummus was even dotted with a single chickpea on top, which I was given permission to pop up in my mouth.

I was beginning to think to myself that the bread was going to fill me up and for good reason. The list of tapas, both hot and cold, was quite extensive. Luckily, for the sake of us eating before midnight, she had previously looked at the menu online and narrowed down the selection. We stayed away from the cold tapas and focused on the "Tapas Nuevas" (new tapas) and the hot tapas. From the hot tapas list, we chose the following: Gambas con Gabardina (Saffron-Batter Fried Shrimp w/Mojo Sauce - $8), Ravioles de Mariscos (Lobster/Crabmeat Ravioli w/Langostino Sauce - $8), Faisan a la Alcántara (Boneless Pheasant w/ Mushroom & Serrano Ham - $7.50), Conejo Escabechado (Braised Rabbit w/Red Wine, Juniper & Garlic - $7.50) and the Codorniz de Castilla (Broiled Herb and Garlic Quail stuffed with Bacon - $9.50). We also had an item off of the "Tapas Nuevas" list, but it is escaping my memory, and Tapeo's online menu is not updated yet with the new "Tapas Nuevas" list.

Luckily I was still starving after the abundance of bread to begin, but even if I had been full, I would have finished every last morsel of food on the table. I found myself repeating the same phrases over and over throughout the meal. "This is my new favorite," "actually this one," "I can't really decide anymore." As I tried each dish, I fell in love with them. First it was the rabbit. The tender meat fell off the bone (there were several bones, the one downside) and into the thick, sweet sauce of red wine, juniper and garlic.

.....I will finish this entry later. But I want to post for anyone that needs plans for the weekend...I will also sort the pictures out soon...

TAPEO continued...

After the rabbit came the lamb (see comments on this entry), then the shrimp, the lobster raviolis and the quail (right and below). While the shrimp (below center), which was fried just right and served atop a sea of mildly spicy green Mojo sauce, and the lobster ravioli in a creamy, yellow Langostino sauce were both great, they were overshadowed by the phenomenal quail.

When I am at a good restaurant, I will always try foods I have never had before if on the menu. At Tapeo, the quail was the new choice. I was not disapointed. After briefly speculating whether or not the little bird could fly when alive, I began tearing it apart. The meat was tender and tasted somewhat similar to chicken, but the spices created the reality, and maybe the illusion that pheasant tastes significantly better than chicken. One way or another, the quail was one of the best tapas, hands down.

Almost as good was the pheasant (right), which came wrapped in bacon and served over a sweet, dark sauce. Perhaps the best thing about the pheasant was that unlike the rabbit, you could chow down right on through the bacon and into the delicious meat without having to dig around a superfluous amount of little bones.

Last but certainly not least came desert, but it was much more than that. I think the picture at the top of this post does the dessert more than justice, but there is another picture, which is not quite so incredibly seductive, below. The dessert was the Filloa al Licor (Fruit-filled Dessert Crepe accented with Chocolate Sauce and Orange Liquor - $7.50). The fruit (blueberries, raspberries and blackberries) was very fresh and cool, the encasing crepe was soft, thin and warm, and the cool chocolate sauce with an orange hint. All together, the dessert created a hot and cold sensation that was a perfect ending to a vast array of different tapas dishes from various countries.

Under A Buck: Maria Cookies

There's nothing extraordinarily special about these cookies. They are simply round cookies that taste like something in between your traditional animal crackers and shortbread cookies. Of course, if you were one of those quiet kids at lunch during middle and high school who bought bags of animal crackers instead of chips and fruit roll-ups, then you might consider these to be another (like Teenies) childhood treasure. This Spanish treat is offered for only 69 cents a roll (about 10 cookies) at Store 24, located at 281 Hungtington Avenue in Boston. With a bottle of milk, this roll of cookies turns into a savory two dollar snack.

Pita and Hummus – The New Cheese and Crackers?

Does the suggestion that pita, or Syrian bread, and hummus are giving good ol’ cheese and crackers a run for its money seem outlandish? In my opinion and experience, not at all.

While attending a birthday party the first weekend of January, to my surprise, homemade hummus was served. For those of you who do not enjoy Arabic or Mediterranean food and have never heard of this amazing concoction, let’s dive into the world of hummus.

Lesson 1: Hummus does not mean dip.
The word hummus is Arabic for chickpea, the main ingredient in the dip. This delicious dip is made from chickpeas, lemon, tahini (sesame paste), olive oil and plenty of garlic. Variations can include versions with tomato and basil, roasted red pepper, roasted garlic or any flavor combination that seems like it would fit.

Hummus happens to be the Arabic word for chickpea, called garbanzo in Spanish, ceci in Italian, gram in India. The chickpea is a type of bean whose Latin name is Cicer arietinum.
Back to the hummus dip though.

Lesson 2: It’s all in the spices.
Hummus wouldn’t be hummus without the tahini paste (below). This paste is comparable to peanut butter but is not really meant to be eaten alone because of its consistency and floury taste. This sesame paste is used throughout Middle Eastern cooking and helps form the amazing texture of hummus drip.

The most “Arabic” of spices, cumin, called kamoon in Arabic, is essential in making hummus. Cumin is also used throughout Indian and Italian cooking. In hummus, it is used frugally in the actual blending of the ingredients (easily done in a blender) and is generally used in decorating the appetizer once it is served.

Paprika is used all over the world and is almost always used as a decoration tool for hummus in any Middle Eastern home or restaurant. Olive oil is drizzled over the dip and pieces of parsley, lemon, carrots or any other such food or spices can be used to dress up this simple, healthy and delicious dip.

Lesson 3: More than just Pita
Hummus can eaten with just about anything. From chicken to tomatoes, and from Italian bread to celery, this dip is compatible with all vegetables and breads. Even meats and fish taste delicious with hummus. You can dip cucumbers, mushrooms, different types of pita bread and Arabic flat bread (picture below_, crusty Italian bread, chicken kabob, onions, scallions, string beans, all types of fresh peppers (red, green, orange, yellow), just about anything goes great with hummus. Heck, hummus is just fine with that last slice of whole wheat bread that would otherwise be reserved for the trash.

Lesson 4: Cheese and Crackers are history
Cheese and crackers are boring, too simple and bland. Even if you spice them up with dips and different vegetables, the classic cheese and crackers hors devours will never compare to hummus and pita bread, even the simplest recipe. With the visibility of hummus in homes, at dinner parties and in restaurants, it is easy to see the increasing popularity of this delicious dip.

Plus, hummus is the best anytime snack. In between meals, while studying, as an appetizer at a Greek or Middle Eastern restaurant, hummus is simple, healthy and delicious. If you are a vegetarian or vegan, this dish will float your boat. In short, hummus is one of the best everyone snacks. And I haven’t met someone who said they didn’t like hummus.

My preferred store bought brand is Cedar, which is made right here in Massachusetts and is delicious and authentic. The texture is light and flavorful without being too Americanized.
But it must be said, nothing can beat homemade hummus, so find some Arabic or Greek friends and try making it together.

Health Benefits

(Health info on chickpeas)

Garbanzos (also called chickpeas) are a good source of cholesterol-lowering fiber, as are most other beans. In addition to lowering cholesterol, garbanzos' high fiber content prevents blood sugar levels from rising too rapidly after a meal, making these beans an especially good choice for individuals with diabetes, insulin resistance or hypoglycemia. When combined with whole grains such as rice, garbanzos provide virtually fat-free high quality protein. But this is far from all garbanzos have to offer.

Garbanzos are an excellent source of the trace mineral, molybdenum, an integral component of the enzyme sulfite oxidase, which is responsible for detoxifying sulfites. Sulfites are a type of preservative commonly added to prepared foods like delicatessen salads and salad bars. People who are sensitive to sulfites in these foods may experience rapid heartbeat, headache or disorientation if sulfites are unwittingly consumed. If you have ever reacted to sulfites, it may be because your molybdenum stores are insufficient to detoxify them.


Here is a recipe from a link with the Wikipedia definition of Hummus.

The All Important Cup of Coffee, "Teh"

This is obviously not a groundbreaking discovering. Along with diet food, coffee has become one of the most popular food-oriented subjects of our generation. I attended the Jerry Seinfeld standup comedy show at the Wang Center in Boston on March 3. He addressed society's obsession with coffee in his act.

I found this part of the show to be the highlight of the night. After doing one skit about how people make the "Teh" sound, which is made by placing your tongue on the lower surface of your mouth with the front of the tongue against the teeth and then sucking your tongue backwards, when they are mad instead of giving the finger or saying the F word, he integrated the "Teh" sound in his coffee skit.

Seinfeld pretended to be a working woman who had just purchased a "late mocha chocha deluxe" (or something ridiculous along those lines). The woman crosses the street in a busy city with her abnormally tall coffee raised high in her right hand, as if it were the million dollar lottery ticket. Then someone in their car waiting for a green light moves slightly forward, causing the lady to go "Teh" and storm off marching across the street with her coffee in the clouds. It was a great skit and a great show, and I suggest any fans of the show Seinfeld or Curb Your Enthusiasm to see a Jerry Seinfeld standup show sometime in your life.

Take It Easy Like It's Sunday Morning

This blog entry just got deleted, so I have to make it very brief now due to lack of time. Finally, I didn't have any pressure or obligations on me when I woke up this morning. Better yet, I didn't even have to make breakfast or lunch because I had my present from Saturday in the fridge. My present was some delicious Middle-Eastern food, Kibbeh and grape leaves.

From left to right: Inside Kibbeh, Kibbeh and grape leaves, close up of grape leaves.

For more information on Kibbeh.

Northeastern's First Annual Formal

The weekend got off to a very rough start, but things started to turn around as the first annual Northeastern formal grew near. We got dressed up and headed off to Copley Square Plaza, where the formal was to take place. Fast forwarding about an hour, we walked into the first room, which was lit by candles atop small round tables and dim lights. In the middle of the room was a small station with cheese and crackers. There were a few different kinds of cheese - but we didn't try any. We headed to the main room, where we chose our seats and waited for things to get started. After some rolls and more water, salads were served. The main course was a tender, medium-sized piece of chicken with aspragus/brocolli (this has another name) and rice. Dessert was small triangles of a very rich chocolate cake. It was delicious but I was feineding for a jug of milk after the first triangle. Although we headed out without dancing, I can say that it was a good time and the food met my expectations of the $25/person ticket.

Faneuil Hall Marketplace: Caught in Fisherman’s Net

The first day I said to myself, as I do every year, “Spring is coming but don’t get too excited yet,” was last Saturday, March 11, 2006. It was sunny, mildly warm, and there was a slight breeze around me. It was pretty much the perfect March day.

My sister was celebrating the tail end of her spring break at home with my family and her roommate from college and best friend from high school. They were all spending the day shopping in Boston with my mom.

I met up with them at Quincy Market, but not until after I had a snack first.
The two of us were hungry and had been running errands all day long. We had only an hour to meet with my family and were starving.

The Faneuil Hall Marketplace was the obvious choice but was incredibly crowded because of the great weather, which brought out Bostonians in droves. The sun shined and the air smelled of seawater and spring, with a hint of clams, crabs and shrimp.

I have a personal tradition that I follow religiously: every time I am in the Quincy market area I will get clam chowda (as my father, not I would say) in a bread bowl and a crab or lobster roll. But not just any crab roll will do. It has to be fresh crabmeat, none of that “Krab” with a K, which just plain scares me.

And that’s exactly what I got. I chose Fisherman’s Net because the line wasn’t as long as its adjacent seafood neighbor, but the food looked great, smelled amazing and wasn’t too expensive.

The crab salad roll was exactly what I had envisioned, tasty fresh crabmeat salad with the perfect amount of salt and pepper and a hint of mayonnaise (because too much mayo can make or break any salad). The bread was crusty and delicious.

As for the bread bowl of chowder.
I had a problem with the chowder. It wasn’t as good as I expected, especially after sampling the amazing crab roll (be sure to say crab salad roll because they got confused when I first ordered). The taste of clams seemed to be missing, the potatoes were not as cooked as I would’ve liked and the soup was a little watery. It still wasn’t bad, just not as good as my past experiences. Maybe it was just a bad batch.

The crab roll completely made up for the soup, but the bread surrounding the soup was fantastic. Soft on the inside and crusty on the outside, it was perfect for dipping.

Along with a bottle of water, the total came out to $14.70, and this light lunch for two was delicious, healthy and gave me the taste of summer I needed.

After getting our food we decided to skip the crowded “mess hall” style eatery with tables and chairs and sit in the middle of the colonnade along with other brilliant people. Huge round boulder-like structures made perfect chairs and tables, and sharing this lunch in the middle of the afternoon on a sunny day in March was a glimpse into food heaven.

Here is a chowder recipes including everything from Classic New England Clam Chowder to Corn Chowder to Manhattan Clam Chowder.

And by the way, MIT’s Laverde’s Market” has some incredible Corn Chowder on select days. See the M-I-T post for more information on Laverde’s.

Some Light Investigative Journalism of Asia

It has now been about two weeks and Taste of Asia, located at 267 Huntington Avenue (617-262-6088), has not answered any phone calls. This place has some of the best Chinese and Vietnamese food around and is fairly inexpensive. As far as Chinese delivery goes, Taste of Asia cannot be beat. All those late night (open until 2:00 p.m.) Chinese delivery restaurants are mediocre at best compared to TOA. It is also a great spot to dine in and is often quite crowded. I don't want to be without a reliable Chinese food delivery option. I will find out what the deal is with Taste of Asia in the upcoming week.

Hot in the HOPS

Boston House of Pizza. University House of Pizza. Those are the two "houses of pizza" I frequent the most in Boston. Both are on Huntington Avenue, and both are within a two or three minute walk from the Northeastern campus. There are another three of so in Westford, Mass., and a handful more in just about every other town. With so many pizza places around, including all the "HOPS," it is difficult to find great pizza. But what I have found is that most of these "HOPS," particularly the two on Huntington Ave., have equally mediocre subs and less mediocre pizza. Most of the subs and pizzas at "HOPS" even look and taste the same. That being said, I have probably had more meals from UHOP than any other eatery on campus combined.
There is one kind of pizza that I think has managed to distinguish itself from the average, bland HOP slice. That is the Sicilian slice. Not full after a sandwich (on whole wheat bread), I stopped in at BHOP today. Not an option at UHOP, the Sicilian slice is thick, hot and juicy, while the crust is warm and airy and the overall feeling at the end is a completeness you never find after a typical HOP pizza.

Now there is much better pizza in Boston, and I will write about those pies soon. But for the HOPS, the Sicilian slice is your best bet. And both Huntington HOPS take the Husky Card.

"Barrels"

It's almost as if it were yesterday. My best friends and I, without a care in the world, would come home from middle and high school and put on our rollerblades. It worked out well because of group of five or six friends (plus some recruits) grew up in the same neighborhood. Either on my driveway or along Wintergreen Lane, we would have intense, hilarious games of rollerhockey until we couldn't see the ball in the dark. And these games did get intense. How did we make it through them? Water? Sometimes. But primarily, we drank barrels.

I will continue this blog when I get back from an errand.

20 minutes later.

It was the same during whiffle ball. We drank barrels. I have vivid memories of actually making an afternoon out of drinking barrels. We would fill up a cooler with ice and barrels and just relax in the backyard. Now, for those wondering what a barrel is, think Teenie.

They are those small, barrel shaped beverages that are packaged 24 per box. The flavors are orange (better than orange Gatorade), blue (better than blue Gatorade), red (good, but resembles childhood red medicine) and purple (still good), in that order (orange is my preferred color for most candy and drink flavors). They are called Teenies, and I am sure most people have heard and tried them.

I hadn't had one in at least a few years. Occasionally when home from college, I would make a request when my mom asked me if I wanted anything from the food store. But every time, she struck out. She even told me she asked the manager once (I get special food treatment when I am home from college), and he said that Market Basket no longer carried Teenies. Life goes on, until this year.

After I stopped eating subs for every meal first semester, I began making trips to Stop and Shop down the street. Recently, when browsing through the drink isle (Aisle One), I caught sight of three boxes of teenies. I bought two. When I walked into my apartment, I was told by my roommates that Teenies were mere water mixed with sugar. I taste much more than that, although the sentimentality may have adjusted my taste buds.

I still have a few Teenies left in my fridge, but I wanted to get more because those same best friends are in town this weekend. Not more than 10 minutes ago, I walked down Aisle One, but this time under the "Teenies 24 Count" label, there was just an empty space. Someone else seems to have noticed the childhood treasure. The good thing is that the label is indeed still there, and there will be more "barrels" soon enough.

So for those craving a good drink and some childhood memories, Stop and Shop at 1620 Tremont Street has the goods in Aisle One. Just not today.

And for those still unaware of what these drinks are, I will upload a picture of one as soon as another shipment comes in. For now, another orange barrel.

Bhindi Bazaar Indian Café

My spring break plans to go visit a friend in Dublin and travel to Amsterdam and Prague fell apart so I remained in Boston for the first week of march. Because of this vacation blunder, I was around for my mothers birthday party held at Bhindi Bazaar on March 5. Conveniently enough for me, I was in Boston anyways and making the trip for a free dinner, a blog entry, and most importantly to celebrate my moms 51st birthday with my siblings, was a no brainer.

I was late. Mom, my sister and brother had been sitting for almost half an hour. Still, I was happy I made it there, and that 95 Massachusetts Ave wasn’t 97 Massachusetts Ave (Island Hopper Restaurant). That is not to say Island Hopper isn’t great because it is. But I had been there twice recently, and that is for a different blog entry. Anyways, the appetizers were served as I walked in at about 6:00 p.m. The place was fairly small, dimly lit and felt warm and more contemporary than a typical Indian restaurant. The walls were a rustic, orangy color, but more importantly, the appetizers.

My family had decided on the “Shrimp Balchow,” “Bhindi Bazaar Tiffin” and “Garlic Naan” for appetizers. All three orders were excellent. The Garlic Naan, which is a “popular bread baked on the walls of a clay oven and enriched with butter,” was delicious and served hot at $3.50. The naan was also available plain or onion. The picture of the Shrimp Balchow came out poorly, but the shrimp were rather spicy and very good at $7. Having not eaten all that much Indian food in my time, the Tiffin, a “combination plate of Samosa, pakora & batata wada,” provided me a chance to explore a few different items from the menu in one $8 order.

As good as the appetizers were, the meals were probably even better. We chose from the following categories: Soup & Salad, Appetizers, Southern Indian, Coastal, Tandoor, Northern India, Balti, Eastern & Central, Basmati Rice, Breads, Side Orders, Beverages and Sweets.

The category of choice proved to be Northern India, which primarily included foods from Punjab and Kashmir. We split the Chicken Korma ($11), the Rogan Josh ($13) and the Gobhi Char Chari ($11). The Chicken Korma, “a simple yogurt curry with ginger, garlic, onions, cumin, coriander and cashew nuts” was tender and accompanied by a thin yogurt sauce that complemented the chicken. The Rogan Josh, “a popular lamb curry with tomatoes and onions flavored with garlic, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and cumin,” was one of the better dishes we had all night.

For all those cauliflower haters out there, and there are more than plenty, the Gobhi Char Chari is a fine example of a dish with cauliflower that deserves a chance from everyone. Combined with potatoes, fennel and onion seed, this dish was a big step above the mom and pop attempt to add cheese to your overly dry broccoli and cauliflower.

As far as Indian Restaurants go, this place has to be one of the best in Boston. It is open every day from 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 11 p.m. Check out a Bhindi Bazaar website.

Adrenaline Rushhhh

". . .to make his opposition chest kick up and jump, when you lit up the gun to make your body get up and uhh, That's your adrenaline rushhhh."

This is a quote from the song "Adrenaline Rush" by Twista from the 1997 album, also titled "Adrenaline Rush." Anyways, this is a corny reference, but this song was the first thing that came to mind as I decided that I would write a short post on the energy drink, Sobe: Adrenaline Rush. The song is an adrenaline rush, but more importantly, so is Sobe's new drink, which kept me going throughout last night until I finished two projects.

I haven't tried very many energy drinks. Off the top of my head, I can actually only name three for sure: Red Bull, Rockstar and Sobe: Adrenaline Rush. While most of these drinks all seem to be the same color and serve the same purpose, they do not have the same taste.

Until this year, I hadn't ventured beyond Red Bull. From what I heard and saw around campus, it seemed to be at the top of the energy drink ladder. But earlier this week, with quite a few rough, long days ahead of me, I figured it to be a good time to explore.

The results were clear. The best was Sobe: Adrenaline Rush, with Red Bull not far behind and Rockstar the worst by a considerable margin. Why? I found the Sobe energy drink to be the closest resemblance to Mountain Dew, my favorite soda. I think all of the energy drinks taste somewhat like Mountain Dew, so it seems to be a good measuring stick. Sobe: Adrenaline Rush was both more sweet than it was sour, and it didn't leave a bad feeling in my mouth. I even managed, quite easily, to drink one this morning on thus bus on the way to my 8:00 a.m. class. Red Bull wasn't bad, but it was slightly too sour. Rockstar would barely go down with chicken fajita sub on the side. In terms of taste, it's Sobe or Red Bull. It's unlikely any of these drinks are all that healthy, but it is almost certain that an energy drink is a better choice than Aderol or other all-nighter drugs.

For what its worth, here I am holding on, still awake, partly thanks to Sobe: Adrenaline Rush, after four hours of sleep in the last two days.

Sobe's website isn't bad either. Visit, put the Twista song on, grab an Adrenaline Rush and start your homework.