Aimee and I decided to try a new spot in Inman Square this evening that had some really high praise associated with it from the Boston Globe – including comparisons to the heralded Momofuku in Manhattan.  The place had a rather interesting name “East by Northeast” (EXNE…just like the annual South by Southwest conference in Austin!), but the menu on the website looked really interesting and delicious – a sort of China meets France feel.  It definitely didn’t disappoint.

East by Northeast is only 8 weeks old, but the chef has already established some really excellent dishes as well as specials that we found amazing at their best and pretty good at their worst.  This place is really almost like a Chinese Tapas sort of menu, with small plates being the theme – each around $10 or less for the most part.  The chef recommends around 3 dishes I’ll review all of the dishes we tried here, in the order of our favorites to our least favorites:

1. Home made Thick Cut Noodles with Pork Ragout and Chili Vinegar (topped with a poached egg) – This was our consensus best dish of the evening.  The noodles were divine, thick cut and really good all around, and the ragout was seasoned really well and perfectly cooked.  One of the great things about ExNE’s (as they call themselves) noodle dishes is that you can add a delicious poached egg to any of these dishes.  I highly recommend doing this, especially on this dish.  The side of this dish was a small amount of chili vinegar that we (on our server’s recommendation) poured on top of the dish.  The vinegar mixed with the egg yolk and created a pretty amazing taste and texture throughout the dish.

2. Crispy Pork Belly, Mantou Bread, Daikon and Sweet Bean Paste (with Pickled Onion) – This was likely my favorite of the night…ok, ok, I admit – I’m a sucker for pork belly (who isn’t).  This version of the meat was braised first, then sliced thinly and cooked until crispy.  Served on some house made Mantou bread (which is a sort of Chinese dumpling-like roll) and topped with some pickled onion and some sweet bean paste.  This was really, really tasty – like a little slider.  The pork was moist and insanely delicious.  I’d come back and order 2-3 of these for myself anytime.

3. Mapo Tofu, Spicy Veal Sauce and Smoked Silken Tofu – As you can see from the picture, the presentation of this dish was a little bit surprising to me, almost like a sort of tofu steak, topped with the veal sauce that was actually really spicy (not too spicy though).  But from what the presentation lacked, the dish made up for in flavor, which it was big on.  There was also some delicious dabs of sauce on the plate that seemed like it was made out of parsley or spinach – it was very green.  The combination of the spicy veal and smooth tofu with a little of that smoky flavor is what made this dish for me.

4. Pork Dumplings with Butternut Squash, Five Spice-Pork Jus – Though I am partial to Mary Chung‘s amazing house made pot stickers, these dumplings were a welcome start to our meal for sure.  Reading the menu, I was mostly expecting to see the butternut squash incorporated inside of the dumplings, but it was actually more of a puree that was served underneath the dumplings, along with the jus.  The mixture of these two garnishes was excellent, and overshadowed the dumplings themselves, which I’d have to call rather average.  Delicious and innovative nonetheless.
5. Salad of Napa Cabbage, Honey, Rice Vinegar and Grapefruit – This salad was fresh an really delicious.  I was a little skeptical of the raw cabbage at first, but I’m glad we ordered it in the end.  The combination of the bitter grapefruit, tart but smooth vinegar and the tender cabbage was divine.  Balanced with the honey, this dish was a winner for sure, something I’d be happy to order again.  We shared this, but I also could have eaten one of these small salads on my own.
6. Crispy Bun Duo – Pulled Pork and Smoked Pork Confit – A rather interesting presentation, this small dish was one part mini-slider that included the smoked pork confit, and another part pulled pork, encapsulated in a delicious dough and cooked until the sides were rather crisp.  This was a really nice pair, but the flavors weren’t as memorable as some of the other dishes we tasted.
7. House Made Lamb Sausage, Short Rice Noodles, Carrots, Parsnips – This was our least favorite of all the dishes we tasted at ExNE.  I think part of the reason was the noodles themselves – rather short and shaped like small, thick cylinders.  I found them to be rather gummy in the middle, and not particularly enjoyable to eat.  The sauce in the dish seemed to be seasoned with curry powder and cumin and was good, not great.  The lamb sausage was delicious, but in the whole dish we only found 3 pieces of sausage.  Probably wouldn’t order this one again, but it was interesting to try in any case.

Overall, our experience at East by Northeast was an enjoyable one.  We sat at the bar, and the servers were great at explaining and recommending.  We even got a view of the kitchen as the chefs were preparing everyone’s food.  Cool spot, I see good things ahead for these guys, and wish them the best of luck -

Service: 9/10

Food: 8.5/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Value: 7/10

Overall: 8.5/10 – great spot!

This past Wednesday evening our restaurant club paid a visit to a restaurant that many of us had been wanting to try for some time now, based on some of the excellent reviews of the place in the local press.  The spot is (awesomely) called ‘Hungry Mother‘ and it’s located near the MIT campus in Kendall Square Cambridge, just across the river from Boston’s elegant Beacon Hill.  The restaurant is named after Hungry Mother State Park, located in southern Virginia, near Chef Barry Maiden’s hometown.

Culinary training took Chef Maiden to the New England Culinary Institute in Montpelier, VT where he learned the fine art of French cooking that he would later combine with the southern food from Appalachia that he grew up loving.  Chef Maiden made stops at venerable Boston haunts Sel de la Terre and L’Espelier before opening his own spot in Cambridge that’s giving him a chance to share his unique southern influenced French menu with us Bostonians.

Our night started at Hungry Mother with a drink and some tasty snacks.  I opted for the ‘No. 2′ – a mixture of Maker’s Mark bourbon, sorghum syrup, and amaretto.  It was served in a martini glass with a Southern boiled peanut and let me tell you, it was awesome.  A great cocktail that was a bit sweet and really unique.  Another drink that looked awesome was the ‘No 49′ which was a mixture of Rain vodka, grenadine and rosemary water.  I tried a sip of our friend Mayas and it was also really tasty (see pic).

Our amuse bouche featured more Boiled Virginia Peanuts, salted on the outside of their shells but rather mild on the inside.  They reminded me of being back on the roadside outside of Charleston, South Carolina – but I do remember them being a bit saltier down south.  We also sampled some Spicy Pimento Cheese with (white bread) toast points.  The cheese dip was spicy and really awesome – a sort of junk food in a fine restaurant – but since it was homemade, it felt ok to devour and we did just that.

Onto the appetizers and I think everyone really liked the look of the Black Eyed Pea Fritters with buttermilk ranch dressing, so we got 2 orders of them to share between the table.  The were delicious, but not totally unique in terms of their flavor – perhaps even a little over cooked for my taste.

The next appetizer was the Deviled Maine Crab (I’m a huge fan of crab in general), served in a small cast iron saute pan and topped with some bread crumbs.  This was comforting and totally delicious, full of lemon and some over the top flavor.  Perhaps my favorite bite of the evening.

The last app we sampled was a soup, aptly named Potlikker Soup.  This soup was broth based and included local turnips, braised collard greens (or chard, it was hard to tell which) and some pork which seemed like braised ham hock.  The pork was falling apart and added some excellent flavor to the soup.  If you’re looking for a hot, comforting soup on a cold day this winter, stop in to Hungry Mother and try to Potlikker – it won’t disappoint.

With our palates successfully tempered, we were ready for the entrees.  When it came my turn to order my entree, I opted for an old rule and decided to order the pork, more specifically the Berkshire Pork Loin which was served with creamed cabbage, small heirloom potatoes and some delicious apple cider based pan sauce.  The pork was cooked so well that I actually asked our server if the chef had used a sous-vide machine to cook the meat.  It was tender and absolutely delicious.  The best part of the plate though?  The BBQ rib that accompanied the cut loin pieces.  It was so good in fact, that I just went over to my freezer and took out a small rack of ribs to cook tonight.

Another winning entree on the menu was the French Gnocchi which was served with delicata squash, chanterelle mushrooms and a mushroom sherry broth.  Sounds pretty rich, but was actually deliciously lite yet fulfilling (according to Taylor and Lisa my mom, who ordered it).  The other entree that was ordered and enjoyed was the North Atlantic Pan Roast which was a combination of scallops, squid and oysters with hominy and a small dollop of old bay aioli.  I enjoyed tasting this dish, but found the hominy to be a little too tough and rather hard to mouth.  I know whole hominy can be rather tough unless you cook it for a long, long time.  The texture of it in this dish was interesting, but I just thought it could have beexn a little better executed.

Dessert was a little tough for us to order, as we all felt a little like loosening our belts, but we persevered and ordered 2 to share between the 8 of us dining.  The Apple Bread Pudding was stellar – served with caramel, walnuts and some Chantilly cream.  Awesome dessert and an excellent end to the meal.  We also sampled the Cranberry Upside Down Cake – tart and really interesting.  Served with Grand Marnier Chantilly cream and candied orange zest.  This dessert was truly unique and delicious.  I would love to try to re-create this at some point.  Excellent way to get things finished off on an excellent evening.

Overall, I came away really impressed with The Hungry Mother, especially since I had sky high expectations going in.  One aspect of The Hungry Mother that I’m sure everyone will enjoy is the very reasonable prices.  Check out the menu and I think you’ll agree.  One thing’s for sure, I’ll certainly be back to this place and I look forward to trying new dishes that chef Maiden creates.  Also, I’m sort of kicking myself that I didn’t try the Smoked Beef Tongue Canape, as I’m now hearing that it is the MUST order dish on the menu.  Oh well, good thing they’re right down the street.