Now that patio season is once again before us, I wanted to take a moment to honor the restaurants that provided me with some of my favorite takeout meals of the pandemic. Friday night dinner/movie night became the thing my roommate and I looked forward to after long weeks of Zoom class and work. Although I may order takeout still on occasion, I hope to take advantage of outdoor dining this summer.
Rhythm ‘n Wraps
1096 Commonwealth Ave
Boston, MA 02134
(617) 566-4144
Rhythm ‘n Wraps is a Black-owned vegan restaurant near Boston University’s campus. After riding by this place for over a year on my commute to school/work, I finally tried this place late last summer. I ordered the ‘pull up’ tacos, made with jackfruit. While I think this dish is meant to imitate bbq pulled pork, the jackfruit has more of a chicken feel to it. This was my first time trying jackfruit, and it really does serve as a convincing meat substitute. I have not tried anything else from the menu yet, but I hope to change that soon.
Bamboo Thai Restaurant
1616 Commonwealth Ave
Brighton, MA 02135
(617) 264-9999
Bamboo Thai is one of my go-to take out places given its convenient location to my apartment. Whenever I need to fulfill a Thai food craving, I am probably ordering from Bamboo. I have had red curry, pad thai, drunken noodles, duck noodle soup, and crispy chive dumplings, among other menu items. The chive dumplings were unique and satisfying, similar to a scallion pancake in cube form.
Stoked Pizza Company
1632 Beacon St.
Brookline, MA 02446
(617) 879-0707
My roommate and I ordered from Stoked one night when we were having a pizza craving. She chose the cheeseburger pizza, and I chose the buffalo Brussels sprouts. Both pizzas were a little unusual in the best way. Pepperoni pizza has its time and place, but it is a little boring when you are ordering from a specialty pizza shop. I personally love Brussels sprouts on pizza, and I love buffalo sauce, so I was pleased with my choice. I have no idea what was in the stoked sauce on the cheeseburger pizza, but it was addicting. I would definitely order that pizza again.
Lulu’s Allston
421 Cambridge St.
Allston, MA 02134
(617) 787-1117
I ordered from Lulu’s a few times throughout the pandemic. For one movie night, I ordered the meatloaf sandwich (pictured above). I also split an order of the hot honey Brussels sprouts with my roommate, which I highly recommend ordering. The meatloaf sandwich hit that comfort food spot, but I would recommend ordering the tots over fries with their sandwiches.
Vejigantes
57 W Dedham St
Boston, MD 02118
(617) 247-9249
All the other restaurants on this list are located in our neighborhood or bordering neighborhoods, meaning we were able to walk or take a short drive to pick up our order. One night we wanted Puerto Rican food so badly, I took a drive out to the South End just to pick up dinner. My roommate and I split the ceviche trio and the stuffed mofongo trio. I was pleased with our meal, although I did find the conch to be super tough. I understand that is an issue with conch meat though.
Gyro City
183 Chestnut Hill Ave
Brighton, MA 02135
(617) 903-4248
Although we had some issues placing our order, I found the food to be wonderful. I ordered the pork skewers with fries and a Greek salad. The star of the meal was the Trio of Dips with fresh pita bread. We chose Tyrokafteri (feta whipped with sweet and hot peppers), Melitzanosalata (smoky roasted eggplant spread with garlic and olive oil) and Tzatziki (Greek yogurt with cucumber and garlic). These dips were out of this world and kept us feed for days. I want to go back just for the dips.
Roxy’s Grilled Cheese
485 Cambridge St
Allston, MA 02134
(617) 202-5864
Roxy’s started as a food truck and now has two brick and mortar locations. My roommate and I each picked a grilled cheese sandwich and split them so we could both try each. We got the hot honey bacon, which has applewood smoked bacon and Mike’s hot honey. The other one we chose was the Allston, with herbed goat cheese, fig jam, caramelized onion, and arugula. We went for the combo with fries and a drink. The fries are crispy and salty, perfect for my taste. I was happy with both sandwiches, but I would be curious to also try their fried chicken sandwich.
*This post reflects my honest views. I did not receive any compensation or other incentives to post this review.
Catie Cooks 