For date night we had tickets to the Boston Ballet's performance of The Nutcracker. Before the show we had dinner reservations for our 2nd visit to Pabu. I was happy that Greg and I were on the same wavelength and booked seats at the sushi counter. It's nice to interact with the sushi chefs, the staff, and have a more interesting view of what's happening in the restaurant.

Instead of cocktails we chose a carafe of Sake and thanks to our waiters recommendation we had a balanced drink to accompany our meal. For our meal we chose the Omakase option (surprise surprise).

Our meal started with spoons of oysters, uni, and tobiko, and a ponzu creme fraiche. The dish was bright and creamy. Our 2nd course was a poached egg atop crab and a dashi gelee. The beautiful dish was understated and delicious. The third course was a seared fish (I can't remember which) with daikon and gooseberries. The fish had a nice and crisp skin, and the sides were both tart and sweet. Our fourth dish was a tempura of shiso leaves stuffed with uni and I think shrimp along with an uni spuma. The dish was terrific in taste and texture!​

Next was our sushi course. The chef made us 6 nigiri, 1 1 maki, and 1 temaki. We enjoyed some favorites like spanish mackerel, uni, and tuna belly as well as some new pieces like icefish.

​We finished the sushi portion of our dinner with the traditional offering of tamago (egg omelette). 

A short 5 minute was from Pabu and we were at The Boston Opera House. We passed security quickly and entered into a sea of people. Before heading to our seats we purchased a couple of glasses of wine. I was glad that I opted for white wine as the staff fill your cups right to the top!

The Opera House itself is beautiful, classically decorated for the holidays, and their staff are very welcoming. 

The last time I saw The Nutcracker was when I was in high school so I was worried I wouldn't enjoy it as much as my memories. The Nutcracker was beautiful, touching, funny, and definitely is a must see! I can't recommend it enough. I can't wait to go to the upcoming Boston Ballet performances. 

This past weekend we finally got to try Saltie Girl in Boston. I have followed them on Instagram forever and was happy this weekend worked out. We went into the restaurant and unfortunately it was an hour and a half wait. We put in our name and phone number and continued on with shopping along Newbury Street. 

About an hour later, we got a call that our seats were ready. We headed back to the restaurant and found our 2 seats at the bar. We started with a cucumber cocktail and a Manhattan. Our first round of ordering was the Torched Salmon Belly, Sea Urchin, Warm Spicy King Crab Roll, and the Foie Gras Toast. All of the staff seemed friendly, offered suggestions, and timed our meal nicely.

The salmon belly was savory and velvety in texture, a perfect bite. The sea urchin was delicious especially with the addition of a squirt of lemon. Unfortunately, the seaweed sat too long and it became chewy. The king crab roll had a hint of heat and was tasty but the sesame seeds were everywhere. I had sesame seeds on my plate, my hands, and in my teeth lol! I did appreciate our server getting us fresh plates at this point.

Our next round of small plates weren't that small. We ordered the Shishito Peppers, The Steak Tartare, and another round of the Torched Salmon Belly.

The shishito peppers were perfectly cooked, had the right amount of salt, and came with a citrus aioli that was nice and bright. The steak tartare was outstanding! We received a large plate of steak tartare topped with toasted brioche, and a small mountain of reggiano cheese.  The Foie Gras was the sweet end to our meal. The foie gras was perfectly seared the combination of sweet and salty was delicious. 

We can't wait to return to Saltie Girl and highly recommend it to everyone!