Eggcellent Easter

We'd booked brunch at Beef and Lobster but got into town early so we started off at Piglet Wine Bar on Cows Lane in Temple Bar.

We grabbed a table outside and ordered wine.

I chose Sangiovese rose which was really nice.

Want to return for food for sure!! 

Then we made our way in the sunshine to Beef & Lobster for food. 


The Beef & Lobster brunch menu:

I ordered the beef burger and lobster roll mash up with sweet potato fries. Absolutely huge but I scoffed it all!!!

Sean had the black pudding benedict.

For dessert I chose the profiteroles.

Sean had the apple tarte tatin.

We both had bottomless mimosas.

The food at brunch was excellent BUT I have to be honest.
The first time I ate here I left underwhelmed and didn't bother blogging about it cos while I enjoyed the Beef Wellington and the slaw the service let it down. Its professional but lacks warmth. In comparison I adore Cleaver East, the staff there are so much warmer and more attentive.. My bottomless mimosa seemed less bottomless at Beef & Lobster than at Cleaver East. I noticed that they do a deal for bottomless cocktails and two courses from the light and big brunch options for €35. That doesn't extend to dessert. Maybe it should? Last time i was at Cleaver East they applied the offer. Maybe they weren't supposed to? One more thing... Sweet potato fries are €1 more as a side but €2 when you substitute them?!

I've been twice now. I don't think I'll be back :(

After here we went to Against the Grain as it was a while since we'd been here. I chose to try their 
Prosecco on tap. It was v nice. 

Last stop of the day was Alfie Byrnes. I chose to have a white wine (New Zealand Sauvignon) rather than mix grain and grape. Really decent size glass! 

All told it really was an eggcellent Easter :) 

Boston tourist

Up early on day two of a really quick trip across the pond to Boston! First stop was Flat Black Coffee company. Fab Americano coffee and a chocolate chip scone to kick off the day.

Then we did a trolley tour. We chose Cityview Trolley Tours because our tickets came with a free harbour cruise! We used a Groupon which got us almost 50% off and included a 45 minute harbour cruise with beautiful views of the city. It was fab being out on the water on a glorious sunny (but windy!) day. 

Some of the photos from the trolley tour:

After here we got back on the trolley tour to finish the loop. We got on at aquarium which is their first stop. We stayed on until stop 8 as wanted to go to the Cheers bar. If you stay on the round trip should last approximately an hour. All in all I thought that was pretty awesome.

As I said we got off at the Massachusetts State House stop. We had a wander through there (you enter via General Hooker entrance!) 

Then we walked up the street to Cheers! We got a seat in the set bar.

Of course we went to the gift shop!! Got a couple of souvenirs including a cheers baseball type top and an old fashioned badge. 

We walked back through Boston Common - squirrel!

When we finished off the tour we went to Faneuil Hall to get lunch. We went to the Boston Chowda Co. Of course I got a lobster (lobstah!) roll. I went for the vot buttered roll option. OMG amazing!!! 

I then had a chocolate chip cannoli for dessert. I think it was from Carol Ann's Bakery. 

We then went on the harbour cruise which I thought was such a lovely way to wile away the hour. Spotted this duck house on the way - how cute is this?? 

Went to Macy's for a little retail therapy. I picked up a fab new Patriots top (be rude not to!)

After a shower and change we headed out for dinner. We walked around the city and came across a memorial for the Irish Famine - a nod to the strong presence here if there could ever be one! This depicts the same family before and after the famine...

Now what I love about being a grown up is that if you want to you can eat dessert before dinner and that's exactly what we did. We went to Omni Parker House which is where Boston Cream Pie was created. We had  a piece of pie each with prosecco! Why not?? 

After there we walked to 21st Amendment which is a bar by Massachusetts State House. The size of their glassss of wine!! Definitely get money's worth :)

For dinner we went to Bostonia Public House. We got there around 9pm on a Friday evening and even though it was jammed we managed to get a table for two.

Here's the menu:

We shared the lump crab dip with homemade potato chips (crisps back home) they were delicious.

I had a blueberry cocktail with the starter which I can't recall the name of but it was v good.

I ordered the lobster mac n cheese. The server wasn't wrong when she told me that it was a bit plate! Delicious, creamy, well cooked pasta absolutely jammed with lobster. I couldn't finish it though which was a shame. 

I then had a (large) glass of American Riesling which went pretty well with my main. 

Last stop of the evening was Warehouse Bar and Grille... Clearly staying classy! 

Get your legs to Klaw

If you like seafood you will love this new place on Crown Alley!! 

Klaw is teeny little shack type place with a beachy vibe serving up fresh fish dishes packed with flavour. 

We managed to get a table just inside the door. You can hear the musicians playing live music outside which is pretty nice. 

We ordered a bottle of white wine. I ordered the half pint of prawns and the lobster roll. They were €14 each. 

The prawns are served in a Guinness half pint glass with some fried bread and brandy spiked Marie Rose sauce. 

The lobster roll was absolutely amazing. I liked the bread which I think was sort of fried. The sauce they put on the lobster is really tasty :-)

Sean ordered the torched oysters. It's a very nice touch that they blowtorch the oysters table side and the smell is incredible when they're cooking.

The staff are lovely and very attentive. My only issue is that the prawns are peel and eat but that's only me not enjoying having to "work" for my dinner.

You could very easily walk by it but you definitely need to visit - amazing!