Jen here!
I celebrated my birthday a couple weekends ago and it validated my appreciation for the most important things in life – family and friends! To me, there is nothing better than sitting around a table with your besties – eating, drinking and laughing. The week-long celebration was a true birthday success!
On Saturday May 14th – my actual birthday, take note! – we ventured up to Gloucester. Just like Gloucester residents don’t ever go over the bridge, rarely do we make it up to Gloucester. But there is so much more going on up there than meets the eye! So many great restaurants – both old and new.
Choo-Chew loves The Cape Ann Brewing Company for a casual beer or two, and the deck is now open! Duckworth’s Bistrot is a quaint restaurant, perfect for a special evening out. Lat 43 has great sushi and perfect summertime, alfresco dining. And we can’t forget to mention Captain Carlos – when you want to pretend you are back in college and home on break!
Choo-Chew started off with a few rounds at Alchemy with guest diners Rich and Sarah. Alchemy, part of the Serenitee Restaurant Group we know and love, has a small, but comfortable lounge area, where we were able to nab a few seats and have some drinks and open presents!
We then meandered down Main Street to meet up with our other guest diners Brett & Mike at The Franklin Café for more drinks and more presents! Beach, bring it on - I'm ready!
Choo-Chew has been frequenting The Franklin for over 10 years now, and we love to go there and hob-nob with the likes of Meryl Streep, et al. Reservations are now accepted for any number of party, any night of the week. A definite bonus as the intimate restaurant becomes very crowded on the weekends.
We scored a set of tables in the middle of the dining room. Although it was a bit snug, we settled right in and had an amazing meal!
Appetizers included Steamed Pork and Scallion Dumplings & Duck Quesadilla with a Tamarind-Chipotle Glaze. The salads were excellent as well - Baby Arugula Salad with Strawberries and Goat Cheese, Tomato and House-Made Mozzarella Salad & Grilled Asparagus Salad with Poached Leeks and the biggest piece of Pecorino ever! I was "green" with envy!
Franklin has some great vegetarian options! Entrees included English Spring Pea Soup with Crème Fraiche, a Tuna special with a to-die-for Beurre Blanc, Grilled Pork Loin with amazing Mac & Cheese and Grilled Filet Mignon.
Mike and I shared a delicious dessert with caramelized bananas and ice cream, yum!
Oh! And how could I forget?! The couple glasses (cough, cough) of Sangria were delish!
I love the idea behind this blog - Northshore Mall does not make for an evening out! Looks like such a fun night:)
ReplyDeleteThanks! In and Around Town was a huge inspriation - you got our creative juices flowing. We loved reading your blog and it got us thinking it would be fun to try our own!
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