Sunsets, birthdays, eggplant pizza and ice cream terrorists

Top three things I learned this weekend:

#1:
Marina Bay in Boston is a great place to take in a sunset...


...relax on or learn how to drive a boat...




...and celebrate a 21st birthday...Happy birthday Michelle!!





#2:
Tavolino's in Westborough, MA consistently serves spectacular pizza and has a very friendly, helpful and attentive waitstaff. One might think I am biased, (Matt's sister Ashley works at Tav) but in my honest opinion, I have never encountered an employee to be less than stellar. On Saturday, the gregarious bartender Paul concocted a decadent ruby slipper for moi (Absolut Ruby Red Vodka, Cranberry, Grapefruit Juice and a Splash of Grenadine; Served Over Ice) and one hell of a white russian for Matt. Thanks to Matt's love for the dude's beverage, I can say with confidence, I know my white russians and Paul's was GOOD. Our bellies also enjoyed the complimentary and slightly sweet fig bread with crushed red pepper dipping oil, fried calamari (abundant, crispy but delicate) and for the main course, we put our trust in the Melanzana pizza.

Melanzana tomato sauce, roasted garlic, spinach, feta, mozzarella, and fried eggplant

Other melanzana experiences have yielded smaller eggplant pieces than what is pictured above and more crumbled, less melted feta cheese. However, I am here to tell you that any way this pizza is served, it is served on a silver platter of sensationalism!

Literally translated, Tavolino is Italian for “little table” and this was the founding concept behind our vision. In a world of chain restaurants customers are often rushed or neglected, food quality is lacking, and emphasis on preparation is non-existent. From our attentive service to precise meal preparation we at Tavolino are here to ensure that your “little table” has the finest dining experience possible. source

and we did, thanks to this divine beauty!

#3:

Not all ice cream men are created nice.

My opinion of the friendly neighborhood ice cream man, that joyful individual that drives the truck around town, rings the bell, warmly greats children and locals alike and hands over the desired frozen treat with a smile, has forever been tarnished. Moe's Ice Cream (I also believe he has a hot dog truck stationed in Worcester, MA) cursed wickedly at us Sunday (Father's Day mind you) as we were outside playing yard games and he drove by the house. It started off very playful... you see Matt's brother Alex heard from Michelle (21st bday celebrator above) that when you yell a certain word at Moe has he drives by, he gives you FREE ice cream! So as we hear Moe's truck (happy tunes filling our ears) approaching, we become giddy little children and try to brainstorm the secret word that will enable Moe to hand over the free frozen goodies!

It must be something silly like Larry, Moe, Curly or Three Stooges. Right? Right. So we yell accordingly. What we heard in return is shocking and awful and thankfully there were no kids in sight, but it isn't like Moe surveyed the scene before yelling, "Shut the F*** UP!"

Did that just happen??

Definitely NOT the free ice cream we were hoping for.