This year I had 2 birthday dinners spanning 3 locations. The first dinner consisted of drinks and oysters at Ten Tables in Jamaica Plain, followed by dinner at Centre St Cafe with my family.
Ten Tables offers $1 oysters late Sunday afternoons into evenings, so we started there in their cozy bar space, watching the bartender create intricate cocktails and enjoying a few of our own.
We moved on to Centre Street Cafe - an outstanding stand-by in Jamaica Plain. We shared a bright, but notably small calamari appetizer. Each in our group of 5 was allotted a bite a piece - although it was a sign of quality that we were all a bit bummed when there was no more to enjoy. We shared a grilled asparagus salad with prosciutto, pistachios, and what was described as burrata on the menu, but ended up just being regular buffalo mozzarella. The salad was delightfully acidic and salty, but would've been amplified by the advertised burrata.
For the main event my father ordered the Fettuccine with Clams, and my mother and sister shared the Mafalde Cacio e Pepe-both comforting and scrumptious. I had the Bucatini Amatriciana - my favorite always. I chose to go here so I could order this and it did not disappoint. I am very sad that it is off the menu currently. I hope they bring it back.
They sweetly brought out a little Panna Cotta with a candle for my birthday. A delightful ending to a happy meal.
Bucatini Amatriciana
Fettuccine von le Vongole
Cute little bar at Ten Tables
Prettiest Panna Cotta
