Everyone was pretty pumped when Oak Barrel Tavern first opened. We went at 5pm and the hostess asked us if we had a reservation…and when we said we didn’t, she proceeded to tell us it would be an hour wait!!! Yikes!

It has since died down a bit, and we have been there a few times. The food is middle of the road, prices are a lot better than the local and there is a little more variety. Personally I’d stick with the burgers, or something simple. The pretzels with beer mustard and and a beer cheese sauce were decent and my husband liked the fish tacos. The truffle mac and cheese tasted suspiciously similar to my son’s kid’s mac and cheese…

Service was so so. I think it’s hit or miss depending on how crowded it is. We sat outside and it took a lot longer than when we were inside and when we were a large party, they were basically clearing our plates before we even finished them. The bar is always hopping, as there are limited other choices in the area now.

Certainly kid friendly and there is plenty of parking in the attached lot.

Oak Barrel Tavern

528 A Boston Post Road, Sudbury, MA

http://www.oakbarreltavernworcester.com

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Growing up, I was pretty proud that I had never been to the town bar, the Dudley Chateau. Since moving back to the suburbs, I can’t even tell you the amount of times I’ve been there. And I brought kids. Townie bar with children. Yup, I’ve turned into that person. The bar is located on a pond, so people have a nice view when the weather is cooperating. The inside is exactly what you would imagine and there are definitely regulars there at the bar, but I guess you could argue that I’m almost a regular.

My mom loves the burgers, they’re not bad. You can get a regular or a mini. They offer your typical bar fare, chicken tenders, wings, nachos, and chili. They have a variety of wraps, wraps and burgers. The fries are good, but the onion rings are better. The mushroom burger is tasty, more so than the steak sandwich. Most entrees hover around $10. They have a kids menu, and for around $5 you can get 2 sliders and fries, a grilled hot dog with fries, mac and cheese bites with fries, or chicken tenders with fries. They all come with a Hoodsie cup, yay!

Service is good, attentive and pleasant. Parking is in a lot out front.

Dudley Chateau

20 Crest Road, Wayland, MA

http://thedudleychateau.com

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I know that it seems like spring will never get here, and summer seems even farther away. I thought I would post about the Cape to get us all in the spirit! I know I’m looking forward to warm days by the ocean and catching up on some serious vitamin D!

I know I have come full circle coming to the Parrot and bringing my kids. I used to come here in my early 20’s and probably had a little too much fun with my friends. I needed to change my son’s diaper and headed into the ladies room. A woman headed out says to me, “oh, there’s no changing table in there”. Yes honey, I know. I used to hold my friends hair back when they were puking in there (sorry mom!). Now I’m just changing diapers on the floor. Thanks.

I don’t think I ever ate here (just drank), nor did I even really take notice of the decor. The food was just meh. Nothing great and probably would taste better if I had a few beers in me. The wrap was probably the best out of the bunch and the onion rings weren’t bad. The pasta had way too much sauce on it and it was an odd consistency. On a better note, our waitress was friendly and helpful – but then again, it wasn’t very crowded at 5pm.

The verdict: some places are better in the dark and better to stay as old memories.

The Parrot

1356 MA-28A, Bourne, MA

Check out the Facebook page here.

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There are a lot of new restaurants moving into Fenway. If you’re looking for some place to go before the game that might ot as crowded as those right next to the park, try the newly opened Waxy’s in Brookline, right at St. Mary’s T stop. This modern Irish bar has a great outdoor patio, perfect for when the weather heats up!

What makes this bar different than others? The food. Waxy’s tries to use local ingredients and vendors as much as they can! Their craft cocktails change with the seasons, keeping in mind what is fresh.

They have tons of inside seating, complete with semi private rooms.

While we were served charcuterie at the opening party, they have plenty of other things on the menu: from drunken mussels to scotch eggs to pulled pork to flatbreads to fish and chips.

The wings were a big hit – house specialty wings tossed with a sea salt and caramel glaze. Personally, I am looking forward to going back an trying some of the flatbreads. The “avoca” with cremini, shitake, portabello and yellow oyster mushrooms, goat cheese, kale and honey drizzle sounds amazing as well as the “emyvale” which is pulled pork, fennel seeds, braised fennel and mascarpone cheese. At $9 a flatbread, these are a great deal!

We had a chance to hang out with Bar Director James O’Brien, who talked to us about the bar and the cocktail menu.

Did you know that Waxy’s is smartphone friendly, the bar is equipped with 18 electrical outlets and USB ports!

There were 3 signature cocktails for the evening, above is the “shake, rattle and rum” wich is Three Olives Elvis vodka, Real McCoy 5 year rum, pineapple, ginger and Angostura bitters.

The “note to self” is Hennessy Black, Carpano Antica, Pussers 15, Averna, and Peychaud’s bitters.

Looking for a more fruity cocktail, try the  fruitations cranberry, made with Absolut Elyx, fruitations pure cranberry, lime and organic soda. Not a cocktail kind of person, don’t worry, theyhave 40 beers on tap that will rotate throughout the year.

Disclaimer: I was invited to the opening party of Waxy’s. My food and beverages were provided complimentary. All opinions are my own.

Waxy’s Modern Irish Bar and Kitchen

1032 Beacon Street, Brookline, MA

www.waxys.com/locations/brookline/

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I have to admit, I haven’t been to the Kinsale since my college days. I was invited to check out their menu one afternoon for lunch. The restaurant is located in Government Center, steps from the T stop.

If you’re driving in, the Kinsale offers free validated parking after 5pm on weekdays and anytime on weekends at the Center Plaza Garage. They have a lot of great specials, like 25 cent wings on Mondays, stump trivia on Wednesdays and karaoke on Thursdays.  They also offer bar bites from 3pm – 7pm and 10pm – 12am on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturdays.

We start off with the reuben egg rolls ($9.50) at our server’s suggestion, he mentions it is one of the most popular items on the menu. They are filled with corned beef, cabbage, swiss cheese and served with a side of thousand island dressing. While certainly not the traditional Irish fare, we were pleased with the flavors of this dish.

For my entree I had the fried chicken sandwich, which I hope makes it to the regular menu. The chicken was lightly breaded and super crispy. It came topped with crispy onions, lettuce and tomato and was served with a side of fries. The sandwich size was generous, certainly enough left over for the next day’s lunch.

We also had the roast chicken club ($10.50) made with pulled roasted chicken, applewood bacon, lettuce, tomato and garlic aioli served on parmesan sage bread. Instead of fries we opted for the colcannon mashed potatoes (mashed potatoes and cabbage) which were super creamy and delicious. Looking for more traditional Irish food, they certainly have it here: shepherd’s pie, beef and Guinness stew, and beer battered fish and chips to name a few. Service was excellent, our waiter was attentive and knowledgeable.

Disclaimer: I was invited to have lunch at the Kinsale, my meal was provided complimentary. All opinions are my own.

The Kinsale

2 Center Plaza, Boston, MA

http://www.classicirish.com/kinsale-home.php

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I haven’t been to Lansdowne Street since my college years. I was excited to check out Loretta’s Last Call, a country bar, for their bluegrass brunch.

Every Sunday they have a bluegrass brunch from 11-4 with live music. They do other fun events like free line dancing lessons on Sundays and Tuesdays and Bourbon tastings (the next one is coming up on the 20th).

Check out Down in The Attic, who was playing that afternoon and you can check out the video I took on my Facebook page. They were awesome!

The walls are covered with photos of country legends and the beams are draped in colored Christmas lights.

First order of business…coffee!

The chef brings over some Jalapeno poppers with blue cheese, wrapped in bacon for us to try. They are not too spicy and the blue cheese didn’t overwhelm the popper – great way to start the meal.

The house smoked turkey and sweet potato hash ($12) is one of their most popular dishes. It comes topped with 2 fried eggs and a biscuit on the side. Not only is this great for hangovers, but it is some serious comfort food. The dish was flavorful and it had a little bit of everything on the plate, a little protein, some carbohydrates and oh boy do I love a good biscuit.

We also tried the hicken and waffles ($14) served with maple bbq such and whipped butter. The chicken outshines the waffle for me, it was sweet and crunchy and tender inside. I could eat this for days!

And just to throw something sweet into the mix, we hd the peanut butter and banana stuffed French toast ($10), smothered in syrup and topped with a healthy dose of bourbon whipped cream. Certainly satisfied our sweet tooth and who can resist the peanut butter and banana flavor combination? We sure can’t.

Peanut buter pie ($7) was first on our dessert list, it wasn’t too sweet which we really liked.

We also tried the fried biscuits ($6) which we wished were just a touch sweeter.

Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest to sample the brunch at Loretta’s. My meal was provided complimentary. All opinions are my own.

Loretta’s Last Call

1 Lansdowne Street, Boston, MA

http://www.lorettaslastcall.com

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If I were young(er) and single, I would be hanging out at the Abbey every night. This restaurant, located in Brookline’s Washington Square neighborhood, was packed with tons of good looking guys drinking beer and snacking on small bites at the bar. We had to wait for a table, as the restaurant is pretty small. We hovered awkwardly over people sitting at the bar and drank some beers while we waited. We sat at the counter in front of the kitchen, bonus for us because it was warmer and we got to see all of the delicious food coming out. I started off with the BBQ chicken fried dumplings which were delicious. I mean, like gobbled these down in two minutes delicious.

If you read this blog, you know I love me some bolognese, but I usually like a very traditional one. This dish, however, is the exception. The bison bolognese is served with fresh linguini, piled high and topped with a healthy serving of grated Romano cheese. This bison isn’t gamey at all and these is a nice little kick to the sauce. I could seriously eat this for days. I took some of it home and it was even better on the second day!

Note that they don’t serve dessert here, so head next door to Emack and Bolio’s if you’re craving an after dinner sweet.

The Abbey

1657 Beacon Street, Brookline, MA

http://abbeyrestaurant.com/brookline/

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I have mad respect for any place that puts a burger under “lighter fare”. We headed over to O’Grady’s up in Stowe on a Wednesday night – taking them up on those 1/2 priced burgers! O’Grady’s is a family run business located on the main road in Stowe with a casual, laid back atmosphere. When we walked in, there were locals at the bar and two other tables of tourists, that like us, stuck out like a sore thumb.

The bacon on the soup was a nice addition, but the soup came out at the same time as the burger, making it hard to enjoy both. Plus, the burger was more than enough food, I should have passed on the appetizer!

The burger, $13, is 8 oz of ground beef served with Vermont cheddar and topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles all on a homemade bun.

O’Grady’s Grill and Bar

504 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT

http://www.ogradysgrill.com

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The drinks are handcrafted, check out the strawberry basil margarita made with Don Julio Blanco Tequila, house-made sour mix, simple syrup, and muddled strawberries, and garnished with fresh basil leaves.

The specialty of underFiRE are the tacos: The Club (Peruvian style grilled chicken, braised pork belly and cheddar), Spicy Idaho (chorizo and diced potato) and Chimi-Rib (braised beef short rib and chimichurri). Other menu items will include chips and guacamole, a build-a-burger selection featuring beef, turkey and veggie burgers, buffalo calamari (where the buffalo sauce has been dehydrated and added to the batter), and quesadillas.

underFiRE

205 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA

Check out their Facebook page here.

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This cozy Irish bar is located right off of the lobby of the Lenox hotel. There are murals and celtic knots all around the bar, along with a Guinness poster or two. The space is warm and cozy, there’s a great fireplace to keep you warm. The bartenders are friendly and the beer is cold.

While they do have your typical fried bar food, other tasty choices include: Guinness onion soup, honey and whiskey glazed salmon, shepherd’s pie, a steak and potato flat bread and fried fish sandwiches.

What’s your favorite Irish Bar in Boston?

Solas

710 Boylston Street in the Lenox Hotel, Boston, MA

http://www.solasboston.com/

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