Boston Trip - Day One

We had so much fun traveling in the month of June that I'm still trying to catch up on uploading pics and details! The beginning of the month started out on the Cape for only the most gorgeous New England wedding ever (see the full recap here) where we also squeezed in some time for visits, sightseeing, eating and shopping in Boston for a few days too.

I feel like we had the "in" because we stayed with my friend Sam, a born-and-raised Bostonian, who gave us a true taste of the city. This was our second time visiting, so I was excited to cross a few more things off our Boston bucket list. Oh but never fear, we sure did do a lot! Translation - grab a glass of your fav vino, cuz this post is loooonnnggg y'all!

We left work on Thursday and headed straight to the airport. After arriving, we hit the town for a drink at Lincoln Tavern in Southie before settling in to get an early start on a Duck Tour! I could have munched and sipped all night though, the atmosphere was fun and the food and drink were as yummy as the bar was lively.

We ordered two appetizers along with our cocktails. First up was the specialty wood-fired pizza that night and then the Kobe Sliders with bacon aioli, muenster cheese and a sunny-side up quail egg. 

We were early risers the next day so we could take advantage of the Early Duck Discount on the Boston Duck Tours! It may sound like such a quack (ha, get it), but y'all the tour was such a BLAST! It was an awesome way to see the city in and from the Charles River. I would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Boston. Here were some of our favorite views:

Into the water we went!

Ryan was chosen to drive the boat first of all the other passengers, not realizing that the rest would all pretty much be under the age of 7 :).

Our famous conDUCKtor stole the camera for a selfie. 

We then decided to do a little sightseeing on foot along Boylston Street. This is where the finish line for the Boston Marathon is and I had to take a second to hug on my brave, strong and of course, favorite, Boston Marathoner in this spot. 

All that sightseeing made us hungry and we headed over to an amazing lunch spot on Newbury Street, Cafeteria.

The weather was pristine and the view out onto one of my favorite streets in Boston was perfection. It was almost even too warm for my light pineapple button down and white skinnies (currently on sale!). 

We ordered the Blood Orange Fizz Carafe to start our order and it did not disappoint! It was made of blood orange liqueur with muddled lime, mint and oranges and topped with Prosecco.

For lunch, Sam ordered the best sandwich in my opinion, it was the BLT Club! I got the Greek Salad with Shrimp, which was also quite delicious.

I finished off my meal with a local brew, the Wachusett Blueberry Ale. 

Then it was time for a little shopping along this street filled with well known favorites like Kate Spade, Lilly Pulitzer, Hermes and fun, unique boutiques too!

Oh and we also stopped by Zara for muh boo and I'm not lying when I say that Sam and I were rolling on the floor laughing at some of the tight, euro clothes that were so not his style. We did manage to find some great items to update his closet though, here's one shot that he might not be that embarrassed if I share (can you tell I quickly snapped it when I thought he wasn't looking)!

On another note, he also got fitted at an actual Bonobos Guideshop and we can't wait to order items from the mostly online store focused on a superior and steady fit. And their store was to DIE for too, I'm totally stealing the framed TV integrated gallery wall idea!

We even popped a cold one while he got fitted and informed by his very on "Ninja".

I'm also excited to try their women's line Ayr which recently launched when the Bonobos bros brought over head talent from JCrew and Madewell.

Before we headed back to get ready for dinner, we walked through the Boston Public Gardens to see the swan boats, gorgeous flowers and Make Way For Ducklings statue. 

 (what, a Louis filled with a day's worth of a gal's sightseeing tools sometimes gets heavy...)

We also ran by Quincy Market for a snack of mini cookies at The Boston Chipyard! The fudge cookie was our favorite, make sure to grab one if you're ever there!

After freshining up and enjoying a drink at the apartment, we headed out to dinner for a friend's birthday at Tico. Since we were with a big group we went with a "Can't Decide" option for ease and to get the best all-around experience. It was delicious, I would highly recommend this place if you're with a lot of people or want a carefree meal.

This was the Roasted Cauliflower with chipotle, crunchy favas and cojita cheese. 

The Crispy Calamari came with ancho-lime aioli!

I can't remember what this yummy goodness was, but it was excellent!

The tacos were gorgeous and delicious with homemade tortillas and fresh shrimp!

The Chorizo Risotto was probably one of my favorites.

A few people were squirmish about the Blood Sausage, but I dove right in knowing from a previous experience that it's too good to pass up!

This my friends, is what a Caramelized Banana Split looks like! It came with chocolate gelato and peanut butter mousse.

Oh and don't even get me started on the Tres Leches Cake with candied almonds, pineapple caramel and pink peppercorn... (still couldn't beat the Tres Leches from Kuba Kuba here in Richmond though!)

The birthday girl herself even got a special dessert of the Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with vanilla bean ice cream! Yay!!

After that, it was more celebratory drinks to round out a perfect first day in Boston!

Up next in our June travel recap is a trip to our Boston "home" (aka really Sam's family's gorgeous home) in Hingham and the perfect evening along the Haaaaabahhh (too much? I was trying to say Harbor just FYI ha) and dinner in Boston's North End which felt like its very own little Italy.

Cheers!

Erin 

PS: The aforementioned Part 2 of our Boston trip may not be the only exciting post coming your way next - I foresee a new blog look and name COMING SOON!!!!!!! Eek!!!