Since our visit to La Mexicana Grocery, I'm convinced that the best eats come from the back of a grocery store. For the longest time we drove by Parivar Spices without a blink until Albany Jane's post inspired us to stop by for a snack, aka chaat as it's known in India. Our first go around was a bit intimidating between being greeted by quite an extensive menu and confusion navigating the counter service system. We came in expecting your standard Indian menu with your tikka masalas and tandooris but were surprised by the array of chaats, dosa crepes, and vegetarian only options.
Some items aren't as descriptive so you just have to dive in. The man behind the counter quickly sensed that this was our first time and happily explained that we order at the counter in exchange for a number and wait for our food; come back to the food counter after you're done eating, give back your ticket number, and take the receipt to the front cashier. He also happily talked us into a trio of samosas and pani puri was something I've been wanting to try for awhile after Sweet Sue's mentioned adding them as a brunch special.
Pani puri is like India's version of nachos. It took some time stalking my neighbors to learn
how to tackle this snack. This diy version comes with a handful of hollow, puffed crispy shells called puri that you crack the top off of and stuff with spoonfuls of a spiced chickpea and potato mixture, red onion, tomato chutney, and splash with chilled mint water and tamarind sauce. Stuff the whole thing in your mouth before it gets soggy and it's an explosion of flavors and textures all in one bite.
There are two kinds of samosas--a stuffed fried pastry version and the ones we got were wrapped in a thin, crispy wrapper, similar to my mom's homemade spring rolls. An order of five triangles come out piping hot and the shell shatters as you bite into one. It's stuffed with a deliciously spiced potato filling and a dip of tamarind sauce adds a sweet note while the cucumber yogurt raita cools it down. These were wonderful little bites too.
We're mostly carnivores and were impressed how filling and delicious vegetarian options could be. We came back for a dinner and were equally impressed. A full meal will get you two subzis aka your choice of veggie entrees, a lentil soup, rice, samosa, and paratha flat bread plus dessert. The dosa rice crepes is also an item you're going to want to savor. This giant crepe is crispy, light, and slightly sour and just as fun to eat as you rip and dip in a duo of spicy chili sauce and ginger coconut chutney. Wash it all down with a mango lassi drink or pista falooda (a pistachio flavored milk drink with nuts and sweet noodles) and you'll be happily stuffed to the gills til your next visit.
Do you know where Buckfield, Maine is? Middle of nowhere, as in the nearest grocery store is a 30 min hike. But because we love our family and little nieces, our Maine vacation also included some quality uncle/aunty time. Lucky for us, Buckfield is only 1hr away from Portland (which meant we could go back and try Duckfat) and near the metropolis of Lewiston which surprisingly, has a few great hidden gems, including a Chef's Tasting Menu called "Feed Me". How could we not try it?!
After a beer stop at Baxter Brewing Co., we put our faith in Yelp to help us find another hidden gem for lunch. It lead us to a quirky little lunch spot called She Doesn't Like Guthrie's. Long name, tasty place, and certified "Green Restaurant" by Maine! To give our cholesterol a break, we went a healthier route. J got a bbq chicken sandwich while I tried a combo of sweet potato quesadilla and grilled kale salad with avocado, beans, and brown rice and side of really delicious and bright cilantro lime dressing. Everything tasted fresh, clean, and was healthy (I think). It was probably one of the few places where we got a healthy serving of veggies in. Fried fiddleheads count as a healthy vegetable too, right?
We were obsessed with trying fiddleheads, a seasonal fern of sorts that we saw everywhere on the road stands. I've never seen these greens in New York and stopped by a quaint local stand to pick some up. The kind of stand that someone's neighbor set-up with a fisher price chalkboard; kind of sketchy but it's your local, friendly neighborhood supplier. J's bro is a great cook and prepared the fiddleheads two ways: tempura and sauteed in butter. Delicious! Funky looking but also tasted familiar, like a cross between a string bean and bok choy.
It must have been fate, because fiddleheads made another appearance the next night when we went out for dinner. J's bro and sister in law had been raving about a restaurant in nearby Lewiston that does a chef's tasting menu. Basically, every dish is up to the chef and is a surprise four-course meal. You just tell him your dislikes, and your meal is at the mercy of his knife. Our inner foodies couldn't resist and off to Fuel we went.
There's no holding back when it comes to the Feed Me Menu. We decided to be a bit more adventurous and the only exceptions we made were no eggplant for me and no mushrooms for J. It was only fitting that we were dining at the bar as Iron Chef America was playing on the flatscreen overlooking us.
