Phantom Gourmet: 8 Dishes To Try Before You Die
What you would choose for your last meal on Earth? Here are 8 dishes that Phantom says you need to try before you die.
Ballo
Mohegan Sun
Kicking off the Great 8 is Ballo at Mohegan Sun, undoubtedly one of the biggest and best Italian restaurants in all of New England. With so much great food on the menu, it certainly can be tough to decide what to order, but as it turns out, the most memorable dish is a gourmet mac and cheese that's not even listed on the menu.
"We actually wheel half of a wheel of Grana. We actually light it on fire with a secret ingredient, and the flames melt the inside of the cheese wheel, and it creates the basis for our cheese sauce for our gourmet or glorified version of macaroni and cheese."
"Then we put some fresh, homemade torrchio, and we grate some pecorino, on top of the Grana, and then finally we finish it with some shaved black truffle. Mix it up and serve it tableside. It's absolutely delicious."
Park
Cambridge
Park in Cambridge is a subterranean space set up like a labyrinth of different styles and textures. The menu is lined with comfort food like Patty Melts and a signature "Bar Steak" topped with a roasted shallot butter. But nothing is more satisfying then the Meat Pie of the Day. They only make a hand full each night, so get there early!
"Kind of the English traditional meat pie, we just make ours taste good. Almost a rectangular brick, but it's a nice flaky crust. We use a lot of extra virgin olive oil and butter in the crust. And then there's plenty of filling inside. Kind of a challenge to finish."
A Tavola
Winchester
A Tavola in Winchester combines a classic farmhouse atmosphere with cutting-edge techniques in the kitchen. The must-try meal here is the heavenly porchetta. In true Italian fashion, it starts with a whole roasted pig. And then, things start to get really interesting.
"We smoke it to order, and to do that, we have a dome and then inside the dome we inject smoke. Then at the table, we lift up the dome and the smoke comes out. When the smoke comes out, it really awakens your senses and it gives you this sense that there is a brick oven somewhere around here."
Waxy O'Connor's
Multiple Loations
Another great 8 winner is Waxy O'Connor's, a cozy upscale Irish pub with locations stretching from Keene, New Hampshire to Foxboro, Mass. The dish you need to try here is infamous PB&J Bomb for dessert. Taking a typical peanut butter and jelly sandwich to the next level, it's battered, deep fried and served with ice cream for a true explosion of flavor.
Watch: 8 Foods Before You Die, Part 2
350 Grill
Springfield
The 350 Grill in Springfield is a contemporary steakhouse that brings surf and turf to new heights! This towering dish is a head turner, stacking layer upon delicious layer of tastes and textures.
"It's on a polenta cake, and then it's an 8 ounce steak, cut in half. It's a four ounce filet grilled to perfection, with one scallop which is a nice sized scallop, topped with another four ounce filet. Then it's skewered with two big jumbo shrimp."
Posto
Somerville
Another Great 8 winner is Posto in Davis Square, Somerville, a true Neopolitan pizzeria boasting a special volcanic rock oven that heats up to well over 900 degrees. Their signature pizza is the simplest pizza: the Margherita topped with velvety slabs of housemade mozzarella.
"It's just a super, super fresh product. You don't find mozzarella cheese in pizzerias that's made fresh every day."
Nordic Lodge
Charleston, RI
The Nordic Lodge in Charleston, Rhode Island is a culinary destination every food lover must try at least once. From April through December, the hungriest humans from all over the Northeast make a pilgrimage to this remote restaurant to eat, and eat, and eat. Their ultra-luxurious, over 100 item Viking Buffet is highlighted by all-you-can-eat lobster and all-you-can-crack king crab, along with unlimited shrimp, prime rib, filet mignon, and Haagan-Daaz ice cream.
Sugar Magnolia's
Gloucester
Rounding out the Great 8 is an incredibly sweet breakfast from Sugar Magnolia's in Gloucester. Their gooey and indulgent Georgia's French Toast is a S'mores inspired creation combining melted chocolate, marshmallow Fluff, Portuguese sweet bread and crushed graham crackers.
"We coat it with crushed graham cracker. We grill that, and in between those two slices we put fluff, chocolate chips, put the other piece on top, cover it with more chocolate chips and powdered sugar. It's just like s'mores at the campfire."
Watch Phantom Gourmet on Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 and 11 a.m. on myTV38.
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