All grown up: Sophisticated takes on some college-food favorites
THERE ARE surely some things about college you miss: the random hook-ups, the endless parties, the complete lack of responsibility, and, of course, the excess drinking. But that dining hall serving half-congealed mystery meats and triple-fried everything? Not so much. Since your palates have surely grown up a little, here are some popular college dishes, updated for your newfound sophistication. (As for those packages of ramen noodles in your cupboard, we won’t tell a soul.)
It’s no Fenway Frank, that’s for sure: the “Haute” Dog ($13) at OM (92 Winthrop Street, Cambridge, 617.576.2800), served with a tower of tempura onion rings on the side, is made with all-natural ingredients and soaked in an apple-cider-and-brown-sugar solution prior to grilling. Better than the late-night dogs you used to make on your George Foreman, don’t you think?
Ramen has long been considered the quintessential college meal. (We even had a friend who snacked on the noodles raw.) Still a bargain but far more palatable than the cellophane-wrapped packages is the seafood ramen ($12.50) at Wagamama (Faneuil Hall, Boston, 617.742.9242; 57 JFK Street, Cambridge, 617.499.0930). While the restaurant’s menu features a number of ramen options, we particularly like this one, a dashi soup with ramen noodles, grilled black-tiger shrimp, salmon, barramundi, and marinated squid, all topped with wakame seaweed, pickled bamboo, greens, and sliced scallions.
Some things haven’t changed since freshman year: brunch is still our favorite meal for exchanging stories of the previous night’s exploits while soaking up the booze still sloshing around in our bellies. And we can’t think of a better setting than the Pajama Brunch at Tremont 647 (647 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.266.4600), where Joanne’s Pop Tarts ($5) are one of our favorite menu items. Made from a recipe lent by Flour Bakery’s Joanne Chang, the pastries are formed from fresh sugar dough, filled with a seasonal house-made jelly, and topped with fondant.
It never mattered what was on that 3 a.m. pizza — all it needed was bread, gooey cheese, and a sauce that ranked even slightly above ketchup. But our adult alternative is beyond decadent; it’s a crispy-crusted beef tenderloin, mashed potato, and white-truffle-oil pizza ($22), served fresh out of the oven at Mistral (223 Columbus Avenue, Boston, 617.867.9300).
Remember choking down those cardboard-tasting veggie burgers because they were the only meatless option in the dining hall? Well, the walnut-mushroom veggie burger ($14) at the Beehive (541 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.423.0069) is a whole different breed. The burger is formed from caramelized onions, mushrooms, walnuts, lentils, and grated cheese, and it’s served with Greek yogurt and a spicy hot-pepper sauce — far classier than the ketchup with which we used to drown those collegiate patties.
Macaroni and cheese has always been our ultimate comfort food, but it’s also the reason we packed on 18 pounds during freshman year. (Well, that and beer.) But the dish is worth a post-college diet splurge at the Bristol Lounge (Four Seasons Hotel, 200 Boylston Street, Boston, 617.351.2052), where the rock shrimp mac and cheese ($29) is made with chedder, American, and parmesan cheeses and Florida rock shrimp. Even better, it’s served with an arugula salad and teardrop tomatoes.
In college, our culinary abilities ranged from your basic sandwich to ... well, that was about it. Hence our love for this twist on an old favorite: the lobster PLT ($24) on the lunch menu at Dante (5 Cambridge Parkway, Cambridge, 617.497.4200). It’s made with fresh lobster meat, and the “P” stands for pancetta. The rest of the sandwich is stacked with arugula, tomato, and a house-made smoked-chili aioli.
When we were 20, red meat didn’t fit into our beer-and-pizza budget very often, but we managed to get our iron intake in the grossest possible way: the gooey, fatty cheesesteak. Much more refined are the trademarked Philly cheese steak spring rolls ($12) at Davio’s (75 Arlington Street, Boston, 617.357.4810). The chef at the restaurant’s Philadelphia location developed the rolls; according to our local source, they were “perfected” in Boston with shaved meat and a blend of Philly cream cheese, parmesan, sautéed onions, salt, and pepper. They’re served up in a spring-roll wrapper with spicy ketchup and mayonnaise. @
[Photos by Joel Veak]
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