Homemade Pasta in Boston!

I lived in New York for 4 years and during that time I became a bonafide New York food snob. While I might not have written it explicitly, when I moved to Boston there was part of me thinking, “Oh my god, I am never again going to be able to eat in a decent restaurant or have fresh foods again!” You would have thought I was moving to a remote village in South America! Instead, I am happy to report that Boston has stood up again it’s big sister to the south west remarkably well.

While we do eat at home more here in Boston, it’s not for lack of great restaurants. I have been blown away by some such as O Ya and L’Espalier (a dinner I sadly regret never having written about). More recently I fell in love with Drink, down by the water front, for their amazing service and even more amazing cocktails. With that said, when leaving each of these places, in the back of my mind I thought, “In Boston, really? Who knew!”

What has really been amazing to learn is that I can get out of this world ingredients here in Boston that the New York food snob in me would have assumed were only in New York. In fact there are things I couldn’t get easily in New York which haven’t been a problem here at all. For example, sulfite free wine (the only kind I can drink) was impossible to find in New York and seems to be everywhere here in Boston!

The most recent amazement from this great city has been Dave’s Fresh Pasta. It’s a small specialty grocery on my walk from the T to our new home with some of the most amazing foods. Honestly, it blows Whole Foods out of the water with its cheeses, pastas, sandwiches and sauces, and while I am sure similar stores can be found in New York, I never lived next to one!


Some days I stop on the way home to pick up a pound of fresh rosemary pasta and have them cut it to linguine or angle hair depending on my mood. (Yes, they keep it in sheets and cut it to a size of your choosing while you watch!) Other nights, I’ll just grab a stinky blue cheese or a loaf of fresh foccacia. Yesterday, I picked up their Sun-dried tomato pesto, turkey, arugula and caramelized onion sandwich for dinner and a bottle of wine. It was amazing!

Every time I stop in I find something new and amazing. When I was talking to the sandwich man yesterday he told me they are expanding and taking over the two stores next door. Instead of adding seating, they are going to add more amazing groceries and foods (possibly even fresh fish!) I couldn’t be more excited and I didn't have anything close to Dave's in New York.