Now that the holidays are over, the inevitable ‘holiday hangover’ may have settled in and if you are like many others your wallet is only just now realizing the full impact of all those presents, holiday party gifts and impulse buys from last month.
However, that doesn’t mean you can’t go out tonight. The Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA Boston) is a fantastic local museum that is open to the public and free each Thursday evening from 5 – 9pm.
When I go out in Boston, I tend to skip over clubs and head to restaurant bars and lounges where it is easier to meet and chat with people.
Over time, I’ve developed friendly relationships with a number of Boston’s bartenders and from time to time I like to feature them. Today I wanted to introduce you to Chase Sutton who works at one of my favorite places in the South End, Boston Chops.
Chase is a 25 year old Phoenix-native who came to Boston via Austin, TX. He has worked at Boston Chops since it opened in March 2013, and he works Chops long bar like a pro, making delicious drinks and serving them with a friendly smile. If you are unsure what to order, Chase suggests trying their Manhattan ($14) made with their homemade 5 spice bitters or #Smashed ($11) made with muddled strawberries and basil, bourbon, maple and lemon. If spirits aren’t your thing, try the Domaine Wachau Gruner ($10) or Orin Swift Location-I ($14) an Italian red blend perfect with food or on its own.
You can find Chase behind the bar Wednesday – Saturday night and for brunch on Sunday. If you stop by tell him BosGuy says hello and slip him an extra few bucks when you tip out at the end of the night.
Boston Chops features a beautiful, long bar that comfortably seats 25.
This is one of those well intended P.S.A.’s that makes you wonder who proofed and approved it. Aside from the obvious, I’m also curious why there is a need to substitute the letter S with $.
I want these (but I’ll take him – headless and all).
January can be a brutal month, fortunately several local theater companies are introducing new shows that can help you forget about the winter and enjoy an evening out. Tickets to these shows are more affordable than you might imagine.
Support the local performing arts companies by attending a show this month.
SpeakEasy Stage opens the new year with a bold drama, The Color Purple, based on the Alice Walker novel. Buy Tickets Here.
The Lyric Stage Co. is performing the musical, Working, which is about the hopes, dreams, joys and worries of the average worker. Buy Tickets Here.
The NewRep Theatre presents Imagining Madoff. A play that imagines a jailtime conversation between Ponzi-schemer Bernie Madoff and a poet. Buy Tickets Here.
Support Boston’s local theater scene and reserve a couple of tickets to a show this month. I promise, you will enjoy yourself.
Much thanks to Brenton of Aussielicious for sharing this eerie rendition of Kylie Monogue’s Can’t Get You Out Of My Head by Lee Glasson on The Voice UK blind auditions. I thought he was amazing. What do you think?
Another red state has been told their marriage ban is unconstitutional. Yesterday, a federal judge said the ban is “an arbitrary, irrational exclusion of just one class of Oklahoma citizens from a governmental benefit.”
Judge Terence C. Kern of United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma said the state’s amendment, is based on “moral disapproval” and does not advance the state’s asserted interests in promoting heterosexual marriage or the welfare
of children.
First Utah, now Oklahoma? These are some of the most conservative states in the US. Those opposing marriage equality must be foaming at the mouth and I’m kind of loving it. You can read the NYT article here.
Here is a bonus Temptation post to help you get through your week.
The Australian Open started this week. This tennis event is one of the four majors in the sport and it will attract the world’s best players.
The ESPN network will broadcast live coverage of this event in the US. Check your local listings for exact times and channels. Here are some of the players who may catch your eye if you tune in.
If their athleticism won’t entice you, perhaps Richard Gasquet’s backside will.
My friend, Slobodan, shared this image he snapped of a Jimmy John’s sign. Too funny, but good to know since it is January and likely to be cold for quite a few more months.
In December I wrote a brief post about Instacart – a Northern Californian grocery delivery service – that recently expanded into Boston. At the time Instacart was only servicing orders from Shaws, but they have recently added Whole Foods to what appears to be a growing list of vendors they plan to support in the Boston market.
Get $10 off and no delivery fee when you use promo code: BOSGUY
Instacart was nice enough to offer a $35 trial coupon that waived my delivery fees (orders < $35 are subject to a $3.99 delivery fee) so I placed my first of what I think could be many future online orders. 
The user interface is similar to other services, allowing you to search for specific items, browse by popular items or aisles. Instacart also allows you to purchase alcohol if sold at a grocery store. Something else I really liked about Instacart’s service was the ability to choose replacements for out of stock items and how I could automatically add the tip for the personal shopper who brings me my groceries.
I’ve included a screenshot of my check out process that shows you the flexibility you have in determining delivery times. Unlike some other online gorcery services in this market, the delivery fee from Instacart is several dollars less and the one hour window is more accommodating.
My first experience with the delivery service proved to be as satisfying. I had selected a 3-4PM delivery window and received a couple of texts that kept me up to date on the progress of my order. A polite personal shopper arrived on time at 3:45PM. Although some of the substitutes weren’t what I had expected; overall I was happy with the choices. Following the delivery I was given the option to rate my shopper, adjust my tip and leave any comments.
While I do genuinely enjoy grocery shopping, there are many times when I don’t have the time or the weather makes me think twice about stepping foot outside. For those moments and more, I think I’ll probably lean heavily on this new grocery delivery service.
WHAT A BARGAIN: Instacart is offering a $10 off and free delivery through the end of January. Use the discount code: BOSGUY.
Note that Instacart has also recently expanded their service to include: 02135 – Brighton, 02130 – JP, 02125 – North Dorchester, 02120 – Mission Hill, 02119 – Roxbury, 02445 / 02446 – Brookline, 02163 – Soldier’s Field & Lower Allston, 02140/02144 – Davis Square.
Check their website if you are unsure if they service your area.
Anyone who has grown up in the area will be familiar with the rivalry that exists between two of the North End’s biggest Italian pastry shops.
Mike’s vs. The Modern
Earlier this month I hosted three taste testers to blindly sample a plain cannoli from Mike’s Pastry and The Modern Pastry Shop. The testers agreed the size of the pastry was relatively similar, but the appearance of The Modern’s cannoli was more appealing. When I asked what it was about The Modern’s cannoli one tester said “it looked more rustic and homemade.” You decide. Which looks more appealing to you?
Mike’s Pastry Cannoli $3.50
The Modern Pastry Shop Cannoli $2.50
While size and appearance matter when evaluating food, what really counts is what it tastes like and all three tasters agreed the cannoli from The Modern Pastry was superior. The pre-filled cannoli from Mike’s made the cannoli shell not as appealing and the ricotta filling from The Modern was sweeter and creamier. Have you been to these Italian pastry shops? What do you think? Conduct a side-by-side sampling like we did and share your findings with me.
Do you like this sort of thing? You may want to check out the results of a another blind tasting: The Best Chocolate Chip cookie in the South End.
Chalk this up as an educational post, because simply by making a call to my health insurer I saved more than $170.00.
Like most Americans, each year I am shouldering more of the cost of my healthcare and the lack of transparency for the cost of services can be frustrating.
This past summer during my annual physical my new primary care physician talked me into getting a test. Despite not knowing how much the test would cost, he successfully (albeit unintentionally) scared me into making an appointment to see a specialist. Fast forward 18 weeks later, and I received a bill for the visit totaling more than $475. I was bullshit so I called my physician’s billing office and while the person was very helpful they indicated this was my share of the cost and suggested I contact my health insurer if I had more questions.
In years past, I probably would’ve just paid the bill but the cost and timing – just weeks before Christmas – ticked me off enough to make me call my health insurer. You know what I learned? My physician’s office overcharged me by more than $150. Their response, “Oops!”… Curious that when I called my physician’s office I was treated very nicely but told “I’m sorry but this is the cost. Perhaps you can talk to your health insurer.” Yet when my health insurer called changes were made immediately.
Caveat Emptor
This isn’t meant to be a politically charged post nor is it meant to point fingers at any one group since I firmly believe our healthcare system is a mess from top to bottom. The reason I wrote this is because I wanted to suggest that before you pay any of your medical bills you make an effort to contact both your provider and insurer since neither seems to be particularly trustworthy or competent when it comes to billing.
BosGuy 