I love me some fried chicken. With the pandemic, there’s no chance you’ll catch me at a restaurant….and you know how take out goes, by the time you get it home…it’s just sad. But not Nan’s fried chicken. Everyone I know loves it. Even my brother, who doesn’t like food like that, said he actually made a noise after he had his first bite. Not only is is flavorful but the skin is so.darn.crispy. The chicken comes in three flavors: Original, Nansville Hot and Kid Friendly. Here’s the deal – it’s only available 4-8pm and you have to order it TWO HOURS IN ADVANCE…so people….PLAN AHEAD! You won’t be sorry.

In addition, don’t even think about getting the fried chicken without the biscuits. These things are the REAL DEAL. I may have had two, don’t tell anyone….

Whatever you do, if you have to reheat them, DO NOT, I mean it, DO NOT put them in the microwave! Toaster all the way, low temp, slow to warm it up. Cover them in butter and maybe even drizzle some honey over those bad boys.

Not in the mood for the whole 5 piece fried chicken thing? I can’t imagine that ever happening, but they also offer a fried chicken sandwich at lunch time. Southern style with a farmhouse twist, crispy marinated all natural chicken breast on a soft roll with a smoky mayonnaise and a slaw of shaved cabbage, broccoli, kale and Brussels sprouts.

Want to make your lips tingle? Try Nan’s Garlic Beans: lightly seared green beans with fiery Calabrian chilies, garlic, cider vinegar, sea salt and olive oil.

Need a quick grab a go lunch? Try one of their grain bowls – you can completely customize it! This one is brown rice with all natural flank steak, sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts. You can even get double protein if that’s your thing.

I saved the best for last, and I almost don’t want to write about it for fear that there won’t be enough…but the chicken and dumpling soup is AMAZING. It’s a family recipe, the measurements are literally by “egg shell full”

Pick up a cup, or a pint, but me, I buy 2 quarts at a time….and all my friends want me to pick them up some as long as I’m going, so every time I walk into Nan’s they’re like, “Oh, so you’re the one who is buying 20 quarts of soup!”

While you’re there, they have a great grab a go case and you can even mix and match your own 4 pack of beer. Let me know what you think of the fried chicken!

Nan’s Rustic Kitchen and Market

27 Great Road, Stow, MA

https://www.nansmarket.com

Open Tuesday — Sunday 7 AM – 8PM

Breakfast until 11 AM (last online order 10:30 AM)

Lunch menu served 11 AM – 8PM

Dinner menu served 4 PM – 8 PM

Market Shopping 7 AM – 8 PM

The post Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner: Nan’s Market Fried Chicken appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

Located on Guest Street, Kōhi Coffee Co. seems so spacious due to the floor to ceiling windows and the high ceilings. It has a standing bar as well as a place to sit if you want to catch up on some emails. While it was quiet on a lazy Sunday afternoon, I can see it being packed on the week days. After all, it is close to the Bruins, the Celtics, WGBH and New Balance.

I’m not a big coffee drinker – so I don’t know about the subtle differences, but they offer batch brew and pour over coffee as well as Siphon, Chemex and Aeropress from their brew bar. I picked up a single origin cold brew and they also offer NOLA, which is brewed with chicory root.

Pair a cup of coffee wth a savory scone, house made granola, homemade biscuits with jam and butter, seasonal muffins or a chocolate chip cookie. They have a light breakfast and lunch menu featuring a vegan sandie, a morning salad, a season fruit bowl, toad in a hole and a breakfast sandwich, to name a few.

Kōhi Coffee Co.

130 Guest Street, Brighton, MA

http://www.kohicoffee.com/

Hours:
mon-fri: 7a – 7p
sat-sun: 8a – 5p

The post Kōhi Coffee Co. appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

Not all my meals as a blogger are glamorous – too be very honest, most days my kids want to eat at Panera. I swear if I have to look at another grilled cheese this week I may scream. So I try and find other places for them to try. We had a special mom and daughter day so I took her out to Smashburger – she loves burgers these days. Not bad for being a chain (and not an every week kind of thing) – the bacon and swiss burger was totally edible. Of course we added on fries and I was pleasantly surprised as how much I liked the shakes – they are made with Häagen-Dazs ice cream. Join their rewards program to get a point for every dollar spent and when you get 100 points you get a $10 reward. Get a free side or shake with any purchase on your birthday as well.

Lunch is always a hard meal for me – whether it is for school or out at a restaurant. We sometimes get in the chicken fingers, grilled cheese, hot dog, macaroni rut. With school it is even harder as we aren’t allowed to send kids with fruit or veggies cut at home (allergy reasons). What do you do for your kids for lunch? I’d love to have some other new ideas.

Smashburger

1298 Worcester Street, Natick, MA

www.smashburger.com

The post Smashburger appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

So my dad loves the Muffin House Cafe’s muffins. We used to have to drive out to Medway to get him some, but now we don’t have to anymore. They just opened up another location in Natick, right next to Dairy Queen. The shop is small, there is one little table, so plan on getting these to go or eating them at Dairy Queen’s picnic benches. The parking lot is also small, but the muffins are worth it. They are baked fresh daily and come in more flavors than you know what to do with. Muffin flavors include blueberry, corn, coffee cake, chocolate chip, banana nut, blueberry banana nut, double chocolate chip, pistachio, morning glory, white chocolate chip, cranberry orange, Pina colada and more. Muffins are $2.79 each, $6.74 for 6 and $30 for a dozen. They have Red Barn coffee available as well as some other baked goodies (cupcakes, danish etc.). Muffins are generous in size and super tasty – I happen to like the morning glory and the coffee cake ones the best

They are opening a fourth location soon in Hopkington at 43 Main Street.

Muffin House Cafe

325 North Main Street, Natick MA

www.muffinhousecafe.com

Monday – Saturday 5am – 6pm and Sunday 5am -2pm

The post Muffin House Cafe appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

I can’t remember when I first heard about Mom and Pops Burgers, but I knew I wanted to try them out. When we were down at the Cape we took a day trip down to Chatham and we stopped here for a bite to eat. The weather was iffy – so sitting on the patio was going to be a gamble with the kiddos, so we waited for a table inside (your order at the counter and they call your number – you bring it to your table). It was fairly crowded, but we lucked out. Let me tell you that the burgers were DELICIOUS! I had the cheeseburger with lettuce, onions, pickles and “pops sauce” (ketchup and mayo based sauce) – all the burgers are made to order and you can call in your order if you are in a rush for time. The kids had hot dogs and they were completely happy – and of course we had the fries and frappes.

What other kinds of burgers do they have on the menu?

CALIFORNIA BURGER
Pepper Jack Cheese, Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado, Mom’s Sauce

CHILI CHEESEBURGER
Chili, Cheese Sauce, Pickled Jalapeño Peppers, Onion, Mom’s Sauce

EL DYABLO BURGER (HOT!!)
Hot Habanero Cheddar Cheese, Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado, Shishito Peppers, Mom’s Sauce

NAUGHTY DYABLO BURGER (HOTTER!!!)
Ghost Pepper Cheddar Cheese, Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado, Pickled Jalapeño Peppers, Shishito Peppers, Mom’s Sauce

BACON AND BLUE CHEESEBURGER
Blue Cheese, Bacon, Lettuce, Mayo, Tomato

STEAMED CHEESEBURGER
Aged Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Lettuce, Onion, Pickles. Please allow 15 minutes of cooking time.

Next time we go we will have to bring my dad, I’m betting he would LOVE the steamed burger!!

What else do they have besides burgers and dogs?

BLT
Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, Mayo

CHILI
Chili, Cheese Sauce, Onion

FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH
Lettuce, Tomato, Chipotle Mayonnaise, Mom’s Sauce

FRIED CHICKEN TENDERS

GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH
American Cheese

MOM’S HOMEMADE LUMPIA
Hand-rolled Filipino Pork Eggrolls served with Sweet Chili Sauce

PLANTAIN + BLACK BEAN VEGETARIAN BURGER
Lettuce, Onion, Avocado, Sweet Chili Sauce – contains dairy

SALA
Avocado, Black Beans, Tomato, Monterey Jack Cheese, served with choice of Balsamic Vinaigrette, BBQ Sauce, Chipotle Mayo, Honey Mustard, Mom’s Sauce or Sweet Chili Sauce – For additional charge, add Beef, Chicken, or Veggie Patty

FILIPINO PORK BURGER
Adobo seasoned pork patty, house-made Papaya Slaw, Chili Garlic Mayo

Mom and Pops Burgers

1603 Main Street, Chatham, MA

http://www.momandpopschatham.com

Open 7 days a week 11:30am – 8pm

Parking located in front of the restaurant, along the right side and in the back – look for the marked spots.

The post Mom and Pops Burgers appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

I was excited to be introduced to Ellana’s Kitchen a little while ago. I can’t remember who picked it, but it is definitely a neighborhood gem. I met Leah, Kim and Nancy out with my kids, and late morning we basically had the whole place to ourselves. The restaurant has a handful of two tops and a larger table in the back – just perfect for us!

Located just around the corner from Centre Street, Ellana’s Kitchen offers Venezuelan and Mediterranean cuisine. Let me just say that everything on the menu looked delicious, and we tried to sample everything they had. Their most popular breakfast (breakfast is served all day!!) is the Perico breakfast ($8) that includes two eggs served perico style (sautéed onions and tomatoes), served with an arepa, quest blanco (Latin American mild tasting white cheese) and turkey bacon (bottom left). Eat in or grab it to go!

Other items on the menu include a variety of arepas. pastelito de queso (baked puff pastry with ricotta and queso blanco), tequenos, empanadas, and a falafel plate. There is something for everyone – my kids even found things they liked!

Service was excellent and friendly. Parking is located at meters out front or nearby.

Ellana’s Kitchen

19 Pelham Street, Newton, MA

www.elanaskitchen.com

Closed Mondays. Tues – Fri 8am – 4pm, Sat + Sun 9-3.

The post Ellana’s Kitchen appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

My cousin Molly came in to Boston a while back and we wanted to take her out to some cool new restaurants while she was here. I had been dying to try out El Basha in Sudbury, a new-ish Middle Eastern restaurant that has four other locations (Newton, Westborough and two in Worcester).

El Basha is the Lebanese word for seer or sage – they named the restaurant that to honor their mother’s name.

We picked out a bunch of hot and cold “mezzeh” to share that are priced between $6 and $12 each (we had the platter, which is 4 for $30). Homus was a must, marinated artichokes in a Mediterranean sauce, kibbee balls stuffed with ground meat and of course, falafel. The kibbee balls were interesting…not sure if they were meant to be cold inside, but everything else was delicious.

For entrees, the pumpkin kibbee was flavorful (bottom right) – made with spinach, onion, and chic peas. Love kabobs? They have your choice of chicken kabob, shish kabob, kafta kabob, lamb kabob, or the mixed grill which is a combination of the three (for those who can’t pick just one). The shrimp was perfectly cooked and came with a generous portion rice.

Don’t think your kids are adventurous eaters? Don’t worry, they have chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, steak tips and chicken tips for the little ones.

Service was good – our server was attentive. Decor was pleasantly modern with large televisions at the bar. Parking is good with a shared lot for the complex.

El Basha

423 Boston Post Road, Sudbury

www.elbasharestaurant.com

The post El Basha appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

After a morning filled with all things sweet and delicious, my body was craving something savory. Leah and I popped into the Prudential Mall (because it was the closest thing and it was freezing outside) and grabbed some food from Dig Inn. This fast casual restaurant serves up mostly vegetables that will satisfy even this meat eater.

Choose your protein base and add on your sides from there. Choose from herb roasted chicken, charred chicken, herb grilled steak, grilled tofu or Atlantic salmon. Pick sides like broccoli three ways with sesame crunch, autumn kale and beet salad, maple cauliflower with chickpea crumble, upstate mac and cheese, charred Brussels sprouts or roasted kale with acorn squash. Try a sauce with your dish, maybe the tarragon mustard, pesto, a rosemary vinaigrette or perhaps something as simple as a lemon wedge. In a rush? You can order online and pick up at the nearest location.

The portion was generous and I even had some left over for lunch the next day. Would definitely come back for another meal here. Seating is available just outside the restaurant near Pinkberry. Perhaps next time I’m there I will try their breakfast options.

Have you been to Dig Inn? What’s your favorite combination?

Dig Inn

800 Boylston Street, Boston, MA

www.diginn.com

The post Dig Inn appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

We stopped into Oath Craft Pizza one day to sample their new limited time flavor, “Mr. Crunch”. You’ve probably heard Bobby Flay talking about how he loves potato chips on sandwiches and burgers, but let’s be honest, what do potato chips taste bad on?

The Davis Square location appeared to do a lot of take out while we were there, but there are tables if you want to stay and eat. The kids loved watching the pizza being made, and I loved how the pizzas were ready in no time at all.

The Mr. Crunch pizza has creme fraiche/ricotta sauce, artisanal smoked ham, gruyere cheese, crushed Cape Cod potato chips and chives. And even better, 10% of the sales from this pizza help sponsor their Nantucket Project Scholar, Genevieve Liang, Executive Director of Cardborigami.

The pizza was all kinds of salty goodness, cheese, ham and chips? I was pleasantly surprised that the chips were still crunchy after being cooked in the oven. Stop in to one of their locations to try one for yourself (Nantucket, South Station, Chestnut Hill, Davis Square, Central Square, Coolidge Corner and they are coming soon to Fenway!)

Oath Craft Pizza

280 Elm Street, Somerville, MA

http://oathpizza.com

The post Oath Craft Pizza appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.

Last weekend, I headed out with some other bloggers for a Sunday supper at Capo in South Boston. The inside felt a lot like Lincoln Tavern, their sister restaurant down the street.

How adorable is the Capo gelato stand outside the restaurant? It launched this summer and has over a dozen different flavors of gelato and sorbets from locally owned and operated Giovanna Gelato. This is starting to feel a little more like Italy and a little less like South Boston.

Capo offers dinner 7 days a week, starting at 5pm and serves brunch on Saturday AND Sunday starting at 11am. Sunday’s they have live music from 5pm – 8pm. The front dining room is geared more towards the every day dining crowd, where as the back room is set up for larger parties and private events.

The bar sfizi and antipasti menu had us wanting one of everything. We went with the marinated olives, the aranicini (that had pulled short rib and fontina cheese!!), fried zucchini flowers, the salami and formaggio board, and of course the pork and beef meatballs. We also chose the white and red sangria to try out: the white is made with brandy, peach and pineapple, while the red is made with brandy, sour cherry and orange. You can order it for $13 a glass or $50 for a pitcher. Did I mention the house wine? Red, white or rose on on tap for $8 a glass, 2.5gl for $18, 5gl for $36 or A JUG for $48. Yup, jugs of wine and Sunday supper with my ladies could mean bad things….

The special peach salad was a refreshing way to start the meal. The candied pistachios stole the show for me in this dish.

The chicken parmigiana ($17) is definitely a fan favorite here. The sauce is what keeps people coming back for more.

The menu offers some great values, with small plates and half orders of pasta. I love to order two half orders of pasta, that way, I get to try a few different flavors. Of course I had to choose the bolognese – it was hearty and cooked al dente. Did I mention that they make all their pasta in house? I got to check out their amazing custom pasta machine in the kitchen. The sauce wasn’t too heavy or creamy. Half portion for $12, full for $21.

For a lighter option, I chose the tagliatelle, served with lobster, corn, baby zucchini and asparagus. $13 for a half portion and $25 for a full portion.

The scampi was light and summery, served with garlic butter and cherry tomatoes. $12 for a half portion and $23 for the full portion.

The corn and bacon pizza had just the right amount of smokiness to it, and came hopped with cherry tomatoes. For $12, it was a good deal.

I myself am not a beet kind of gal, but Leah ordered with beet ravioli and said it was tasty. It is served topped with pecorino, toasted pine nuts and arugula.

By the end of dinner I was STUFFED. But we had to see what the desserts tasted like – so we ordered an affogato, the non traditional tiramisu, and the creme brûlée. I’m not generally a fan of creme brûlée, but those cookies that they served on the side were AMAZING.

Now that we had supper, we went downstairs to check out the Supper Club. It’s a 4,000 square foot bar/performance stage. Reminiscent of your mom’s basement, this place would be awesome for a company party or just a  fun night out. They have a comedy show on Monday nights, live music, and even reggae night. If you reserve one of the couches, you have access to your own mini bar! The Supper Club has its own drink and food menu, and even a private entrance if you rent the whole space out for your next event.

I know what you’re thinking. This place sounds great, but if I’m meeting 5 friends, and we are all driving, parking is just not happening. Well, believe it or not, I got a space right out front. Sundays aren’t bad. Friday and Saturday prime time might be difficult, just leave yourself enough time to circle a few times. There’s a lot just across the street as well.

Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of Capo to sample their Sunday Supper menu. My meal and drinks were provided complimentary. All opinions are my own.

Capo

443 W Broadway, South Boston, MA

www.caposouthboston.com

The post Sunday Supper at Capo appeared first on A Little Bit About a Lot of Things.