FRIED CHICKEN AND CUPCAKES

I'm taking a break from my LA posts to write about my recent Bday celebration. As is pretty typical of me, I wrote this whole long posting about my Bday, part 1. And then closed the window before it had time to load. So here I am, trying to recreate a post that I wrote two days ago. At any rate, as many of you know, I celebrated my 27th Bday last Sunday (Ha, and I'm still younger that most of you.) I wanted to celebrate in a low key fashion. No big dinners, reservations, rsvp's involved. So I simplified by having everyone over for KFC and cupcakes. But more on that later.

We started off the day at Simon's Coffeeshop. I'd heard a lot about this place, but I had never made it over there, though I'd driven by it hundreds of times. I always new it was on Mass Ave. between Harvard and Porter, but it turns out I was looking on the wrong side of the street. It's on the west side of Mass and I was looking for it on the east side. But it is easy to miss. It's a very narrow store, so not many windows, and it is stuck right next to Hollywood Video and Brook's Pharmacy, so you don't expect it to be there. At any rate, Simon's is well known for making a great cappuccino (the right way, with the right foam) and the use George Howell's coffee, and you all know what a big fan I am of George.

When we finally found parking and walked in, the place was full, and not one table was available. (It's a narrow, long space) It's true that they didn't start off with that many tables anyway, but you could tell that they were filled with locals who were spending a relaxing Sunday morning over a cup of coffee. But Tom and I ordered anyway and figured we'd wait until someone got up. Pretty soon after we placed our orders, a table did open up. Another customer had spotted it first, but he was nice enough to let us sit there cause we'd gotten to the shop first. (Tom later returned the favor when he was the table next to us opening up).

So here's a pic of my cappuccino. As you can see, the foam is made perfectly (actually, Simon made it) and it has a leaf design. I thought the foam was great, but the espresso was only Ok. I still prefer illy espresso, which is a little more flavorful and robust. And here's my almond croissant. They get all their pastries from Carberry's. It was a sizable pastry, but not all that tasty. (I wasn't too suprised about that). But I was here more for the coffee, anyway. After we'd settled in for a bit, Jayna joined us and we ended up spending close to two hours at the shop. I did like it quite a lot. But I was surprised that they charged for Wifi and was a little put off by that Almost every place offers free wifi now, and it's not that expensive to maintain, so I felt charging was a bit silly. (Tom paid for it anyway, so he could read the NYTimes). My only other complaint is the lack of parking in the area (though that's a complaint for Cambridge). If you're not a resident of Cambridge, you can only park at the meters on Mass Ave, otherwise, my other tip is to visit on Sunday when anyone can park in the resident spots.

After Simon's, we headed over to the new ICA. I'll mention their cafe here. It is very pretty in design and is a Wolfgang Puck Cafe, which is probably why they feel it's ok to charge $10 for a freaking sandwich. Tom and I were a little snackish after exploring the exhibits, but we weren't paying that much for food. (Admission to the museum already cost $22 and that was including my student admission) The other problem is that there aren't many casual dining options in that area, so if you're heading over to the ICA, my tip is to eat first. Or pack up a nice picnic and sit outside on the deck area that has a great view of the harbor.

That evening, we had the aforementioned casual get together at my house. Tom and I headed out to the KFC in Allston to pick up 2 buckets of chicken and we actually finished most of it off. Oh, I was also happy that I'd thought to print out some KFC coupons off their website beforehand. I figured we'd save $5, but we ended up saving closer to $10, so that was cool. Here's my plate of chicken. Greasy and perfect. And I love the biscuits. Will they taste different sans trans fats?And of course, here are my cupcakes. Ok, I didn't make these from scratch. It was a boxed mix with canned frosting. (Hey, it was my bday) But I did decorate them all by myself! And I think they still tasted yummy. To top it all off, I got some great food related bday presents. Tom got me a 7cup Cuisinart and Leah got me a matching mini 3cup one. They're so cute together. My little sister got me the covered wok I had been asking for and my older sister got me the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook that I wanted (still waiting for it to arrive). Lastly, Suemin got me a giftcard to TJ's. So basically, this means that I'll be doing a ton of baking this winter and sharing all my treats with you! (Tom and I are supposed to be eating healthier, but I still love to bake). Thanks everyone for making my 27th Bday so much fun!