Ryan's Birthday Weekend

Last weekend, Ryan and I celebrated his birthday by going out to a nice dinner in Cambridge and then going to Cape Cod until Sunday evening. We had so much fun, and it was so nice to get away from everything for an entire weekend. We discovered that we need to spend more quality time together like that.

Friday night, Ryan and I went to a restaurant called Craigie on Main in downtown Cambridge. The food there was unlike anything I've ever tasted before! It was a little on the expensive side, but we were celebrating, and Ryan has wanted to go there for a very long time since it had perfect reviews. I seriously HAVE to share what we ate... it was all amazing and so unique!

My amuse bouche was pickled cucumbers on a radish puree. My first course was grilled octopus... which was by the way the best thing I've ever eaten in my life, hands down. I even let Ryan have more than I usually would share since it was his birthday! My second course was sea bass that came with a few mussels and clams... oh my gosh SO amazing. I also ordered grilled wild mushrooms that were hand picked in New Hampshire by the restaurant's foragers. For dessert, I had sorbet... 3 scoops (cherry, strawberry and mango) of sorbet that they make right there from fresh in-season fruit. Yummy!

Ryan's amuse bouche was duck.. even though it was small, he said it was the best thing he's eaten! His first course was blood sausage and pasta. I was really grossed out to hear they made sausage made of blood, but eh, he said it tasted really good. Ryan's second course was grilled swordfish wrapped in pork, with a side of... wait for it... bone marrow. The waitress said it was unique and something he had to try, and so he did. Since she said it was brought out with toast to spread it on, we thought it'd be presented in a dish or something. But nope... they brought out the whole bone, the size of my forearm, sliced in half with the bone marrow seasoned. It wasn't cooked, just warmed and sprinkled with herbs. Ryan said it tasted like beef flavored butter, and he was glad he got it, but wouldn't get it again. I was thoroughly grossed out.

His dessert was some kind of frozen pie thing. All I remember is that there was bacon in the crust so I couldn't get it. He said it was the single best dessert he has ever had. And this guy has had his share of desserts! For anyone in the area, we would HIGHLY recommend Craigie on Main!

Saturday morning, we headed off to Cape Cod. We went to West Dennis Beach, which was absolutely beautiful and quiet (compared to the Rhode Island beaches we are used to going to). After the day at the beach, we checked into our hotel, showered and got ready, and then went to dinner. We went to a little place on Main Street in Hyannis. It's your typical Cape Cod shopping street... little seashell themed shops, ice cream parlors, salt water taffy stores, and cigar shops. Oh, and before this weekend, Ryan thought Cape Cod was an actual town. Kind of like how he thought Disney World was one park. It's really cute how he thinks :)

Saturday night, we went up the Cape to Rock Harbor in Orleans, MA. It's right above where the Cape bends upwards, and is one of the few places on the East Coast that you can see the sunset over the ocean (since the sun sets in the West... Rob and Jen in L.A. must see the sun set a lot!). This was rated one of the top sunset locations in New England, so we HAD to check it out! It was beautiful... we took so many pictures, and the pictures can't even capture the beautiful colors of the sky. It's right on the Harbor, so boats were coming in while the sun was setting. In the pictures you can kinda see some of the trees in the water that were planted as guides for the boats to come into the harbor.

Sunday was a beach day too, but it was so hot that we decided to leave early. Okay, this is how hot it was. Ryan had burnt one of his shoulders on Saturday, so he wore his shirt for a little while before we left on Sunday. The tag on his shirt he was wearing was the kind that was printed on the fabric. The tag from his shirt MELTED onto his skin!

It was such a great weekend! We live SO close to the Cape that we plan to go a lot from now on. In the fall, the rates go down a ton, so we want to go a lot then. The Cape is beautiful when the leaves are changing colors and the weather isn't really hot... I love where I live :)