Friday, July 12, 2013

Common Ground Fish and Chips

The menu claims "Beer Battered
Chatham Cod, Hand Cut Fries, House Made Cole Slaw, and Tartar Sauce."
The cod was indeed fresh and flaky. The batter was British style, I.e. puffy batter, rather than the more encrusted New England style that I love. British style puff tends to create pockets that trap grease. Besides, this is Boston, can we get New England style please?
The ' Hand Cut Fries' were fresh hand cut potato...shoestrings. This created a disappointing grease to potato ratio.
The coleslaw had a slight skunky undertone proving that the slaw was made from fresh cabbage. It was lacking a horseradish bite that would have cut the grease.
Interestingly, the only part of the dish lacking descriptive adjectives was the best. The tartar sauce was creamy and tangy.
The presentation was, in a word, baffling. Fish was served atop fries, piled in a lettuce-lined wire frites cone basket. I think I would rather have it served on cliched faux newspaper.
Bottom line: I've definitely had worse bar fish and chips. The kitchen obviously cares enough to use fresh ingredients, however; a lack of attention to flavor and detail make this a dish I wouldn't order again.

  Common Ground on Urbanspoon

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Athan's Home Fries


I would consider these home fries to be serviceable.  They are large cuts, more then one bite per and served piping hot. Nicely browned and crisp on the outside, but a bit too firm on the inside. No seasoning on these, just straight up potato!

Athan's, 407 Washington St., Brighton, MA

What's it about?

I love french fries. I know, everyone likes fries, but I love fries. French fries, pomme frites, home fries, waffle fries, latkes, hash browns, steak fries, shoestrings, potato pancakes...

But my love is not indiscriminate. I have very strong standards when it comes to fries.

Oh, and I also believe that food is just a delivery system for ketchup.