The Beantown Bloggery

I think this promotion went on last year as well, I remember downloading the pass. I think I used to once or twice, but the list this year looks a lot more extensive - which is nice. For those of you that are looking to save some money over the next few weeks the Mayor has a special savings pass for all of us

As the City of Boston’s one-stop holiday planning website, the 6th Annual Mayor's Holiday Special serves up an invitation to a festive day and holiday-season dining at an affordable price. Download your free voucher from the site, and enjoy!

In fact, you can plan your entire holiday experience here: buy 1/2-price seats to all the big holiday shows like Holiday Pops, Boston Ballet's "The Nutcracker" and many more...check the guide to Boston's free and low-cost festivities...and get hundreds of special offers for eating, shopping, staying overnight and even parking for less. MayorsHolidaySpecial.com is free and open now through January 18, 2010.

Nearly four dozen restaurants -- mostly in Boston and Cambridge -- are offering Mayor's Holiday Special discounts that include free appetizers, free desserts, 20% off each entrée, and a variety of other delicious deals.

20% off at the Cactus Club? That should save me a decent amount of money. I used to eat their Sedona Chicken sandwich religiously for lunch but started making food to save money.

Click (here) to get your savings pass.

I have a lot of friends that are crazy about Girl Scout cookies. Usually I hear the most about the thin mints and the samoas, but my friends buy them religiously and then stock boxes and boxes so that they'll last a while. Coming up next month is a fun sounding event, that I'm sure will yield some tasty new desserts.

Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts is excited to announce that the yummiest event of the season – Cookie Creations – is back times two! The annual Girl Scout Cookie Creations fundraiser invites the area’s top chefs to use our famous Girl Scout cookies and whip-up a tasty dessert!

Eastern Massachusetts’ top chefs including Aquitaine’s Matthew Gaudet, Aura’s Rachel Klein, Au Bon Pain’s Jens Retlev, Cakes for Occasions’ Kelly Delaney, Hawthorne Hotel’s Steve Nelson , Kick*ss Cupcakes’ Somerville Sara Ross, Locke-Ober’s Lydia Shire, Old Town Bread Company’s Doug Morris, Tremont 647’s Kat Craddock and many more will design mouth-watering desserts for their respective event.

Event attendees will have the opportunity to taste the delicious treats, mingle with local celebrities, network, participate in a fabulous raffle and help pick the crowd favorite!

Thursday, January 21st from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Hawthorne Hotel, 18 Washington Square, Salem, MA 01970

Thursday, January 28th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
The Fairmont Copley Plaza, 138 St. James Avenue, Boston, MA 02116

Click (here) to get tickets.

Coming in January is the return of Free Film Fridays at the Museum of Science. Best of all, they're IMAX movies. It's been a while since I've seen an IMAX movie, I'm looking forward to seeing some of these next month.

This January, The MathWorks and the Museum of Science invite visitors to experience the magic of New England’s only IMAX® dome theater—for free! Free Film Fridaysare back, and thanks to The MathWorks, museumgoers will enjoy complimentary shows all day January 8, 15, 22, and 29.

The Museum will show Antarctica, Adrenaline Rush, Coral Reef Adventure, Dinosaurs Alive!,and The Greatest Places during Free Film Fridays. Visitors can pick up free tickets at the Museum box office on the day of the show only, first come, first served. Limit two shows per guest.

I saw Avatar on Christmas, but didn't realize that there was an option to see it on IMAX. It was a pretty good movie though, so I'm considering seeing it again in IMAX. But I'm also leaning towards seeing Sherlock Holmes first. We'll see.

Click (here) for more info.

Knight and Day sure is getting a lot of coverage lately. They did a quick run down of the movie on one of those entertainment news tv shows (i forget which one) and I saw the trailer in the theaters this past week. Seeing a movie on Christmas Day is pretty much a yearly tradition for us. I'm looking forward to seeing it when it comes out.



I'm expecting lots of great Boston scenery in this movie. Kind of amazing that they just recently finished filming this movie a few months ago and the trailer is already out (here). They must be trying to hype it up quite a bit.

What do you think?

There wasn't much press (that I could find) back in August about the movie the Brendan Fraser was in town shooting: Furry Vengeance (here). I'm pretty amazed that the trailer is already out, it's only been a few months.



They did most of the filming in Topsfield, so I didn't really recognize anything in the trailer. Can you?

Click (here) if you can't see the embedded video.

Were any of you fortunate enough to score free tickets to the Fenway skating event later in January (here)? Because if you weren't, chances are you're not going to be able to afford them on the resale market. It's kind of disappointing.

Tickets for the extraordinary skating opportunity at Fenway, handed out to city families as part of Boston’s New Year’s celebrations, were going for as much as $1,800 for four on websites such as Craigslist and eBay, outraging city officials and event organizers who want to know the identities of the people conniving against others for a buck.


The pic above from the Globe is about as close as I'm going to get to the rink this year.

Click (here) to read the rest of the article.

Ok, my bad on this one. I was sent the email on this contest two weeks ago, but it totally got lost in my inbox. The good news is, you still have a couple of days if you'd like to enter and right now your odds are pretty good in winning (there's only 4 entries so far). The deadline is 12/24 so get cracking.

I wanted to let you (and your readers) know that we're having a holiday recessionista challenge with polyvore. After the outfit is submitted the SB family will vote on a winner who'll receive a signed copy of Debbie Weisberg's book, A Fashion Lover's Guide to Incredible Bargains, as well as a spot on the fashion segment of our show with a local noted stylist.

Using Polyvore, create your perfect recession-friendly look for the holidays and link to the set in the comments of this post. Be creative boys and girls, the entries will be judged by the styleboston family.

Just to clarify in case of confusion, don't leave the comment here, leave the comment on the StyleBoston blog site.

Click (here) for more info on how to enter.

Remember when Ben Affleck was in town earlier this summer to film The Company Men (here)? Well, the WORLD PREMIERE is going to be in Boston at the Coolidge Corner Theatre which is kind of amazing. Does that mean we're going to have red carpet event in town? I sure hope so.

Sundance Film Festival USA has chosen the Coolidge Corner Theatre to present the world premiere of THE COMPANY MEN on Thursday, January 28 at 7 pm. Director and screenwriter John Wells will screen his drama -- filmed on location in Boston -- about three company men attempting to survive a round of corporate downsizing while trying to fend off its effects on their families and their identities.

The stellar cast includes homeboy Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Harvard grad Tommy Lee Jones, Massachusetts resident Chris Cooper, and Rosemarie DeWitt. Tickets will be available online at www.coolidge.org and at the Coolidge box office, located at 290 Harvard Street in Brookline, beginning January 4 for Coolidge members and January 6 for the general public.

I'm going to be out of town at CES on 1/6, but you can bet your bottom dollar that I'm going to get online and try to score some tickets. Anyone know any Coolidge members?

Click (here) for more info.

I've been getting lots of New Years Eve celebration emails. Last year I went to Jillians/Tequila Rain with a bunch of friends. This year, I'm considering laying low instead, but then I got an email about First Night Boston which may be worth checking out.

First Night Boston is the country’s oldest and largest New Year’s arts celebration. On Dec. 31, 2009 from 1 p.m. to midnight, First Night presents a day-long festival of art, music, dance, ice sculpture, fireworks and more. First Night is an alcohol-free event that welcomes revelers of all ages to celebrate community and unity through the arts. First Night 2010 will feature over 1000 artists in 200 exhibitions and performances in over 35 locations in Boston.

First Night is proud to present an amazing group of performers and visual artists who truly represent the richness of Boston’s cultural landscape. Our celebration features longtime audience favorites like the interactive FedEx Family Festival, colossal ice sculptures, the Mardi Gras style Metro Grand Procession, the Boston 4 Productions Family Fireworks and the Frank Ward and Cape Dairy Midnight Fireworks, along with new and exciting performances and exhibitions. To enjoy the festivities you just need to purchase a button which are $18.

Fireworks, a procession, live music, ice sculptures, and a whole lot more. The only part that scares me a little is that it's looking like it's mostly going to take place outside. And me and the cold don't get a long very well.

Click (here) for more info.

I very rarely eat in Harvard Square anymore, I did more often when I was in Central Square, but not it's just a little too far away. That being said, I never did eat at Bombay Club even then. Every time I was in that building, we ate at Penang. According to a few different articles I've seen around, the Bombay Club is moving to the South End.

The Bombay Club, Harvard Square's favorite institution of Indian food, is boldly making the transition from Cambridge to the South End.

Setting up in the former Pho Republique spot, think of the new BC as a more svelte version of the old restaurant. The menu has been streamlined from nine pages to two (less is more), and it'll feature the best dishes from the previous place, plus a biweekly Club Special highlighting a specialty from one of India's many regions. (Think pan-fried potato patties with lentils, yogurt and chutney, and chicken wings cooked in scallions and red chile sauce.)

Well, what a coincidence, I never ate at Pho Republique either. I typically got my pho fix in Chinatown and typically don't eat much Indian food at all. But I do like to hang out in the South End, so perhaps I'll finally make my way over to the new Bombay Club after it opens on 12/23.

Click (here) for the article.

This seems rather unprecedented to me, but it could also be that I never paid attention. I honestly have never heard of ice skating at Fenway. Have you? Well it was announced this week that Fenway is hosting a free skating event on 1/3 and 1/10, but you have to get tickets. 3000 tickets are going to be distributed on Saturday 12/19 from 9am to 11am.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino, in partnership with Sun Life Financial, the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Boston Bruins, announced today that thousands of children and families in the City of Boston will have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to skate on the ice at Fenway Park. The announcement was made by Bruins legend Ray Bourque on behalf of Mayor Menino, who was unable to attend this afternoon’s press conference. City of Boston residents will be able to skate for free at Fenway on Sunday, January 3 and Sunday, January 10 as part of the City’s Inaugural celebrations. In collaboration with Sun Life Financial, the City of Boston will give away over 3,000 tickets to the free skate days at various locations throughout the City on Saturday, December 19, from 9-11 a.m.

It's been many years since I've strapped on a pair of ice skates. Looks like there's 16 locations to pick up tickets, scattered throughout the city. Now I just need to decide if I'm willing to brave the cold.

Click (here) to see the 16 locations and get more info.

I was in NYC a couple of weekends ago, and pretty much every time I go there one of the meals my friends and I go out for is soup dumplings in Chinatown followed by ice cream at the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory (I think that's what it's called). They always have new and interesting flavors there, which is why this recent news from Da Vinci caught my eye. I have never had champagne gelato ... I think I'd like to try some.

Da Vinci Ristorante’s Chef Peppino is embracing the crisp and celebratory holiday months with a festive treat: Champagne Gelato. Available by special request only during the months of December and January, Chef Peppino has combined two of everybody’s favorite ingredients—bubbly and ice cream—to bring us a perfectly refreshing sweet… With a twist.

Available by special request during restaurant hours for the month of December and January: Monday through Wednesday from 5:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m., and Thursday through Saturday 5:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m.

Speaking of champagne. What are you folks drinking these days? My go to used to be Cliquot, but the price has gone steadily upwards over the last couple of years. I've switched to something from Domaine Carneros (owned by Taittinger) now that's pretty good and less expensive.

Click (here) for the Da Vinci website (warning: there's music)

Well, as I'm currently out of stuff to give away at the moment (those last two back to back giveaways pretty much wiped me out), I figured I'd direct you guys over to the folks over at Hollywood East Connection who are currently giving away two tickets to see Rob Schneider on 1/9.

In this season of giving thanks, Hollywood East Connection would like to show our appreciation to you, our faithful readers, with an all-new contest giveaway. For one lucky subscriber, we’re giving away 2 tickets to see actor/comedian Rob Schneider perform at the Wilbur theater in Boston on Jan 9th. If you’re not already a subscriber, make sure you sign up by Dec 20th for your chance to win. To subscribe, enter your email address in the field that says ‘Enter email address…’ on the right side of this page and click Subscribe.

YOU CAN DO ITTTTTT!




Click (here) for details on HEC's contest.

Those of you that have been reading for a while now remember when Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson were in town filming Bride Wars (here) and also when Bruce Willis was in town filming The Surrogates (here). Well, I finally watched them both and was curious to know what those of you who saw them also thought.

I'm not much of a chick flick guy (like any other guy right?) but I found Bride Wars really painful to sit through. I watched it in it's entirety because I wanted to see just how many Boston scenes I could identify and honestly, there weren't very many. Anne Hathaway is cute though, that was a plus.

The Surrogates on the other hand had TONS of Boston scenes. Lots of South Boston, Seaport District, and Financial District scenes. The movie itself was just so so (in my opinion) but it made it a lot more fun to watch since the movie was set in Boston. Bruce Willis is not cute, though, so that was a minus ... just kidding.



Now, I'm just awaiting Scorsese's Shutter Island which I heard is going to be released in February and then the new Grown Ups movie starring Adam Sandler and a whole mess of other awesome comedians.

There's lots of things that I love about the Parish Cafe. One they have a pretty good beer selection. Two, I'm a big fan of their steak and blue sandwich. My only wish is that they served french fries with their sandwiches instead of the various salads that they usually have on the side. Like I learned from the Simpsons, "You don't win friends with salad."

But, that doesn't stop me from being rather excited that a second location is coming to the South End. According to Urban Daddy, it should already be open as of yesterday.

If you're a fan of the original, then you'll be excited to hear that all your Back Bay favorites are now available in the South End. That means the finest sandwiches from chefs around the city, from Lydia Shire's (Locke-Ober) The Steak and Blue, packed with rare tenderloin on blue cheese bread, to the Pallotta sisters' famed Nebo, with heaps of Italian tuna, olive tapenade and Mediterranean aioli on a crispy baguette. Just don't overlook made-in-house gems like the Baked Mac and Cheese: piping hot romano, cheddar and Gruyère under a Ritz-crusted crown.

Parish Cafe
493 Mass Ave
(at Tremont)
Boston, MA 02118
617-391-0501

Click (here) for a link to the Urbandaddy article.

I hate cold weather. I hate cold weather so much, that last week, there were two instances were I was so desperate to avoid the cold that I ate instant noodles at home rather than go outside to grab a sandwich. That's why I'm AMAZED at those of you that went out to run the Santa Speedo Run this past weekend. I couldn't even bring myself to come outside to watch, whilst fully clothed.

Here are a few pics that the Globe snapped since I was too much of a coward to come out.


They've got an extensive gallery of more pics if you're interested. 45 of them to be exact.

Click (here) to see more pics.

I love cooking, therefore I think this casting call is awesome. I particularly like that this show is for amateur chefs, not professionals. I'm blogging with plenty of notice because you'll need to bring a prepared dish with you, so start practicing!

GORDON 
RAMSAY 
AND 
THE 
PRODUCERS 
OF 
THE 
BIGGEST 
LOSER 
ARE 
NOW 
CASTING 
AMATEUR 
CHEFS 
FOR
 A NEW 
INSPIRATIONAL 
COOKING 
SHOW! 


Can
 you 
cook 
well 
despite 
never 
having 
been 
formally 
trained? 
We 
are 
currently 
searching 
for
 budding
 chefs
 from
 all
 walks
 of
 life
 ‐
 amateur
 chefs,
 passionate
 foodies,
 the
 ultimate
 dinner
 party
host/hostesses…


MasterChef
 is
 a
 show
 that
 celebrates
 great
 people
 who
 make
 great
 food.
 The
 show
 will
 give
 contestants
 the
 opportunity
 to
 develop
 their
 cooking
 skills
 while
 being 
encouraged,
 mentored
 and
 celebrated
 by
 the
 industry’s
 best 
and
 evaluated
 by
 world‐renowned
 judges!


All 
casting 
call 
applicants 
MUST 
bring
 one
 prepared
 dish
 to
 be
 served
 at 
room
 temperature.

 You
 will 
be 
able 
to 
plate 
your 
dish 
at 
the 
given casting 
location. 

You
 will 
be 
responsible 
to 
bring 
any 
utensils 
or 
other
 materials 
you
 may 
need.


Boston

Create 
A
 Cook

53
 Winchester 
St.

Newton 
Highlands,
 MA
 02461

1
pm
to
5
pm

Contact:
MasterChefCastingBoston@yahoo.com


What's a good dish that can be served at room temperature? A dessert maybe? Hmmm.

Click (here) for more info.

You guys all know I love Barbara Lynch's restaurants. B&G has been my favorite restaurant for the last several years. Altho, I have found that Neptune Oysters in the North End has some pretty spectacular oysters as well (in addition to bay scallops sometimes).

Back in October we referred to Barbara Lynch's "as-yet-unnamed" upcoming fine-dining project. Well that description no longer holds as the No. 9 Park maven has finally given it a name. It's called Menton, but as Dishing points out, you don't pronounce it like the city in New Jersey, you say it all French-like: "Mehn-TOHN," after the city on the French Riviera. Due in February, the place will share a location with Drink, but will have its own bar.

I'm a little confused from the description above. Isn't Sportello located above Drink? The last time I was at Drink, I didn't really see room in the basement level for a restaurant. Anyway, I guess we'll find out in February.

Click (here) to read the article.

You know what's interesting. All things being equal, when I'm giving stuff away, it's always the sweet stuff that attracts the most contest entrants. Previously, it was for the tickets to the Dessert Expo, and then this time around $50 work of gourmet chocolate.

Thanks to all of you who entered the latest drawing for the $50 Hotel Chocolat Shopping Bag (here). Unfortunately, only one person could win and that person happens to be:

Daniel W.

Congrats to the lucky winner! My bet is that your wife/girlfriend ends up eating more of the chocolate than you do. Or if you're single, maybe you can cross one present off your shopping list.

Click (here) to visit the Hotel Chocolat site.

My mom likes to watch Dancing With the Stars. I've never actually seen it, but I've heard it's pretty entertaining. Dance pros Edyta Sliwinska and Alec Mazo from the show are going to be in town tonight to give a performance and a 45 minute dance workshop

“Dance for the Cure of Prostate Cancer” features Dancing with the Stars Top Performers Presented by the AdMeTech Foundation in partnership with Arthur Murray Dance Studios at The Boston Park Plaza Hotel

Friday, December 11, 2009
9:30pm-11:30pm

The Boston Park Plaza Hotel & Towers
50 Park Plaza at Arlington St
Boston, MA

The “Dance for the Cure of Prostate Cancer” campaign was created by the AdMeTech Foundation, a non-profit foundation committed to raising awareness of prostate cancer as a patient care and socio-economic problem. The foundation is supporting ground-breaking programs in research and education to develop accurate and affordable diagnostic tools for early detection and treatment of prostate cancer.

Click (here) for more info.

This is a little sad. I wasn't the target demographic for Dailycandy's newsletters, but I still got some pretty useful information out of them now and again. Looks like they're shutting down due to financial reasons. Here's what Universal Hub had to say:

Valleywag reports the daily shopping e-mail newsletter for women is shutting its Boston edition now that Comcast, which paid $125 million for the operation a year or so ago, realizes there's no way it can recoup its investment fully staffing the provincial towns outside New York and a few other large cities. Boston subscribers will instead get an "everywhere" edition with a couple of Boston tidbits thrown in now and again.

No way to recoup its investment? Tell me about it. I think I make about a dollar a day nowadays via this blog (apparently people have gotten too smart to click on ads). Good thing I'm doing it for fun and not for the money.

Click (here) for a link to UH.

I've been waiting for this movie to come out for quite some time. They started filming around the March time frame this year (here) and were in town for quite some time. I heard they were here for longer than they wanted due to all the rain we got this past summer. It caused problems for filming.



Adam Sandler, Kevin James, David Spade, Rob Schneider, Chris Rock, Salma Hayek, and MORE. It's going to be nuts!

Click (here) for the youtube trailer.

You guys already know about Lisa's Hands of Time, the first concierge service in Boston that I was introduced to. But apparently, we Bostonians just don't have enough time ... which I agree with. There are never enough hours in the day to get everything done that I'd like to. Well, I was just introduced to another local concierge service called Fini Concierge.

Fini Concierge provides comprehensive personal assistance and concierge services to busy executives, families and individuals in Greater Boston, Cape Cod and the Islands that have limited time.

For the holiday season FINI offers a personal Doorman service that allows for your holiday gift shipments to be received, signed for and brought directly to you by a member of the FINI staff--- preventing doorstep package theft common in the city where some building don't have an on-site doorman. Most packages are stolen from doorsteps for the billing and account information inside which allows thieves to access your identity. FINI will also handle gift returns, making sure that all returned packages are brought directly to the deliver company handling the return shipment.

Sadly, I'm not high enough up on the payscale to outsource my errands just yet. That's what my boss uses me for.

Click (here) for more info on Fini Concierge.

I just received some bad news, looks like the opening of Stoddard's Fine Food & Ale has been pushed back again. This time it's been pushed to January 6.

I just wanted to let you know the opening has been pushed to Wednesday, January 6th. They are still awaiting their Del Monte bar to arrive from the UK and they just got word it won’t be here until the 26th of December. With the holidays, we thought it wisest to push it back a couple of more weeks.

I'm not sure what a Del Monte bar is, but it sure sounds swanky and apparently, British. The last time me and my friends bought a bar, we got it from Chinatown in NYC. As they like to say, good things are worth waiting for. I'm eagerly awaiting another bar to hang out at in the Downtown Crossing area. I can't be at Silvertone all the time .... or can I?

I just got word that Ginger Park, the replacement for Banq, is now open in the old Penny Savings Bank (here). I haven't had a chance to check it out, but here's what the press release had to say.

The launch of the new venture in the form of a bold, accessible, and affordable updated Asian eatery: Ginger Park. Ginger Park includes a warm welcome to internationally acclaimed chef, Patricia Yeo, who has joined the restaurant and has put her own creative signature on the menu. Fixtures on the Boston restaurant scene, Hemant Chowdry and Mark Raab, announced the eatery located on the corner of Washington Street and Union Park.

Ginger Park blends the cutting-edge Asian cuisine with an unpretentious bar and lounge offering a distinctly modern flair that caters to the neighborhood in the South End. Whether looking for brunch, a dining destination, group event, or simply a spot for after-hours cocktails, Ginger Park has the formula perfected.

Looks like their website isn't up yet, but the old Banq site has the Ginger Park menu up on it. Looks interesting - very asian fusiony.

Click (here) for their under construction site.

It's been a while since I've posted any casting calls. I typically only post the interesting ones for big picture movies that are filming in the area. If you're interested in hearing about all of them, i recommend you sign up for the emails from Boston Casting and CP Casting. This one looks interesting though.

Families, this is your chance to have America's top health and wellness expert,
Jillian Michaels move in, kick butt and change you and your loved ones' lives!

She is ready to teach your family how to exercise, eat right and be healthy in every facet of your life.
· Have you or members of your family packed on the pounds?
· Have you let yourself go?
· Do you have terrible eating habits and a destructive lifestyle?

If you feel helpless, frustrated, powerless or disappointed, it's time to step up and take your life back!

Tell us why you and your family are ready to start losing it with Jillian!

To be considered, e-mail a photo of your family, bio and phone number to Ashley@bostoncasting.com ASAP!

We tried to swing by KO Prime for their happy hour last night and apparently they're not open on Mondays. Or at least the front door wasn't open when we tried to go in. So we headed over to check out the W Hotel instead and grabbed a table at Market by Jean Georges.

I had the pizza and my friend had the cheeseburger. For the same $14, the cheeseburger is in my opinion a much better deal. The pizza didn't tasty truffley enough for my taste.

Did you guys pick up copies of the new BSO album releases when I first told you about them at the start of the year (here)? If you didn't yet, you're going to want to now, because one of those recordings just earned the BSO three Grammy nominations.

James Levine and the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s recording of Ravel’s complete Daphnis and Chloé, featuring the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, John Oliver, conductor, has been nominated for Grammy Awards in the categories of Best Classical Album, Best Orchestral Performance, and Best Engineered Album, classical, for the 52nd annual Grammy Awards, scheduled to take place on January 31, 2010. These are the first nominations for the orchestra on its label BSO Classics.

Also nominated in three categories is Chris Botti’s CD/DVD, In Boston, recorded with Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops at Symphony Hall on September 18 and 19, 2008. Chris Botti’s In Boston has been nominated for Best Pop Instrumental Album, Best Instrumental Arrangement, and Best Long Form Music Video.

I'm going to have to dig up my copy and give it a listen. I listened to all four of them when I first got them, but subsequently put them away. Time to give it another whirl.

Click (here) to pick up your own copy.

It seems just like yesterday (here) that the first Hotel Chocolat opened up on Newbury Street. I got several emails and comments that the place is quite nice. And they must be doing pretty well because they're opening up another location at the Chestnut Hill Mall. And to celebrate, they're going to send one of my lucky readers a $50 'shopping bag' of Hotel Chocolat products.

On the heels of its wildly successful American debut, Hotel Chocolat, the cocoa grower and British luxury chocolatier, has quickly announced its second US location in Boston’s metro area at The Mall at Chestnut Hill, opening in late November.

“Hotel Chocolat is a welcome addition to our retail mix at the Mall at Chestnut Hill,” said Debora Konig, Director of Marketing at Mall at Chestnut Hill. “We look forward to bringing this unique new brand to our customers just in time for holiday shopping.” Hotel Chocolat’s Chestnut Hill retail boutique was designed by world-renown commercial designer, Terry Moore.

Here are the rules, this time you'll have to answer a trivia question. Send me an email with "Hotel Chocolat" in the subject heading. And then in the body of the email I will need your name and address (so Hotel Chocolat can send you your prize) and then the answer to the following question.

Where is Hotel Chocolat's plantation located?

The contest will run for from now until Friday 12/11 at 10pm EST. After that, I will do a drawing of names of all the folks with the correct answer to the trivia question.

Click (here) to search for the answer to my question.

Thanks to all the folks that entered my latest contest for two free hours of concierge service courtesy of Lisa's Hands of Time (here). It's definitely the time of the year that something like this would come in handy, especially if it means it's two hours that I don't have to be outside freezing my butt off.

Congratulations to Bloggery Reader...

Kate Z.

..... for winning the drawing for the latest contest! For those of you that didn't win, don't sweat it, I'm about to post another contest for another giveaway right about now.

Click (here) to get more info on Lisa's Hands of Time.

I know nothing about sports and even less about Soccer. But my friend Shane is pretty big into soccer and the world cup so I told him about this event this afternoon at Game On! and figured some of you may want to know as well.

World Cup Boston 2010 and Univision will bring the excitement of the 2010 FIFA World Cup “Sorteo” in Cape Town, South Africa to Boston with a viewing party at Game On! Fenway. Soccer fans in attendance will witness history in the making as the world turns its attention to The Mother City when the groups and match orders for the 2010 FIFA World Cup are revealed and the fates of the world's top 32 teams are sketched.

WHEN:
Friday, December 4, 2009
2 p.m. – 4 p.m.

WHERE:
Game On! Fenway
82 Brookline Ave.
Boston, MA

I know what you're thinking, 2pm-4pm is going to be tough to swing considering it's a work day. But for those of you that can make it - take a long lunch - or maybe skip class? You can start the weekend early at Game On.

If you were hesitant at first about going to see the new "Death By Chocolate" show (here), let me get rid of it for you. Media rep Dwillens headed over to see the show this past weekend and had nothing but good things to say about it along with the words 'you should check it out sometime.' Which is advice I plan on taking at some point and think you should too. Here's what he had to say:

In "Death By Chocolate," Mike Dorval takes the audience along on an odyssey through his struggles with his weight, from his first Weight Watchers meeting at 7 years old, to his peak weight at 338 lbs., and back to normalcy (where he now resides).

As soon as you sit in the theater and hear "Lady Marmalade" juxtaposed with "Fat Bottom Girls" in the pre-show soundtrack, you know you're in for a rollicking good time. Indeed, Mr. Dorval, a stand-up comic as well as a stage actor, manages to marry the two styles in a production that is witty and engaging, and yet honest and intensely personal.

During the show, he involves the audience as you would expect in a stand-up performance, using a conversational style and responding to comments from the gallery. On the other hand, he certainly has a story to tell, and the monologue follows a plot based on his life that is usually hilarious and sometimes touching.

This show is definitely worth checking out for anyone who has ever struggled with food or weight issues (by which I mean everyone).

Click (here) to get tickets.

So unfortunately, I didn't an invite to the opening of the Ames Hotel, but I did swing by there last night to grab a drink and check the place out. You all know of my love for hotel bars, so clearly I had to check this one out.

Ames, located in the beautiful and historic Ames building, inspires both modern style and old world sophistication. An experience rich with elegant interpretations, complemented by innovative new design by Rockwell Group and the Morgans’ in house design team, Ames brings Boston and its visitors the dynamic experience for which Morgans is known.

This is my second experience with a Morgan's Hotel. I had drinks at the Delano a few years ago whilst partying in South Beach.

The bar was pretty empty, but then again it was a Wednesday night. Sadly, the upstairs "lounge' area was closed, so I didn't get a chance to see it (but that just means I'll have to go back again, right?). But I will say, there was a bartender there, Chyna, that was awesome and made a mean old fashioned.

Click (here) for a link to the hotel site.

PS. I didn't have a large number of drinks. But I had enough to lose motivation to blog any more tonight. I'll catch you guys tomorrow.

That'd be nice ... if I still lived there. Just kidding, I'm a huge fan of Trader Joes, so the more the better in my opinion. An article a couple of weeks ago said that they've been looking into bringing a TJ's to Harrison Street in the "SoWa" district.

GTI Properties is working on bringing a Trader Joe’s to the South End’s “SoWa” district. The Boston company presented plans to the Old Dover Neighborhood Association to locate one of the specialty grocery stores in the former power station/trolley barn at 540A Harrison Ave.

There's a couple of things I really love about TJ's. First and foremost is their Banana Nut Crunch cereal. I could eat that stuff all day long. Then secondly, is the orange juice. A few years ago I searched high and low for the best oj and I found it at TJ's. Natalie's Orchid Island. Delicious.

Click (here) for the original article.

Looking for another blog to read other than mine? I'm not an outdoorsy guy by any stretch of the imagination, so it's best you get your news from someone else. And who better than the Massachusetts government itself?

This blog is dedicated to Massachusetts wildlife, parks, and agriculture, and outdoor activities and events held across the Commonwealth. Posts will range from tips about the greatest state park hikes and how to help wildlife biologists spot bald eagles to recipes for preparing seasonal, locally grown produce and photographs of native fish species. Our bloggers are employees of EEA agencies who are experts in wildlife biology, wetlands protection, farmer’s markets, and outdoor recreation.

I read through a handful of the posts, and there was one pretty cool one about how they've actually stocked some of the lakes/ponds across the state with salmon. Time to go fishing!

Click (here) to visit their blog.

..... forces him to wear a New York Knicks jersey.

Thank goodness it's just for a movie, because he should really only be wearing Boston jerseys.
Here's what the Herald had to say:

Mark Wahlberg and funnyman Will Ferrell cheering on the New York Knicks during a game against the Boston Celtics while filming a scene for their new flick “The Other Guys” at Madison Square Garden

Click (here) for the original blurb.

You would have thought that if it involved the word 'food' that I would be all over it, but this is actually the first time I've heard of the term 'slow food' but it sounds very interesting and quite delicious. Slow Food Boston is hosting a Brazilian Cocktail Party this week on 12/3 and you're not going to want to miss it.

We hope you'll come by on December 3rd for a frosty caipirinha, piping hot cheese rolls and 7 other delicious appetizers prepared by the Brazilian staff of the Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers (MAPS), our host and partner for the event. Proceeds will be donated to their AIDS/HIV Prevention & Education Program.

As a non-profit all-volunteer organization, SFB carries out the Slow Food mission on a local level. We advocate sustainability and bio-diversity through educational events, and promote the consumption of seasonal and local foods and the support of those who produce them. We also just like to eat wonderful food

I love caipirinhas. And brazilian food in general. But especially those cheese rolls that were mentioned in the description. Those things are amazing.

Click (here) to reserve your spot!

Anyone reading swing by the Rosencrantz and Guildenstern show this past summer (here)? Well, the folks at Bad Habit Productions have a new show and it starts this upcoming Thursday 12/3. This time it's an Oscar Wilde play: The Ideal Husband.

Bad Habit Productions Artistic Director Daniel Morris puts a unique spin on this arch comedy of manners. Four actors play all the parts, mixing quick wit with quick changes in a story about what people do to make it to the top.

Being the uncultured heathen that I am, I've never read The Ideal Husband, so I turned to my good friend wikipedia and looked it up.

An Ideal Husband is an 1895 comedic stage play by Oscar Wilde which revolves around blackmail and political corruption, and touches on the themes of public and private honour. The action is set in London, in "the present", and takes place over the course of twenty four hours. "Sooner or later," Wilde notes, "we shall all have to pay for what we do." But he adds that, "No one should be entirely judged by their past."

Wikipedia also has a plot synopsis if you're curious. The show only runs from 12/3 to 12/13 so hop to it!

Click (here) to get tickets.