delicious eats Archives

If you’re in Boston one food/place you absolutely must visit is Mike’s Pastry for a cannoli. Honestly before moving to Boston I don’t know if I had ever heard of a cannoli before and I had certainly never tried one, but whenever I asked anyone what I had to do in Boston the answer came back time and time again that I had to visit the North End to get a cannoli from Mike’s Pastries.

We went out on a Friday night in early fall and enjoyed a walk through the city before getting to Mike’s. There were so many people milling about on the street and stopping in intersections to check maps among other ridiculousness. I suspect it has lots to do with “the invasion” (what us Bostonians call all the student’s coming back after summer vacation). There are hundreds of thousands of these students filling the city, and for the first couple of days many of them have their proud parents helping them settle in and touring the area… so yeah, things get a little bit busy.

I think that was part of the madness at the North End. The line for Mike’s Pastries was out the door and around the side of the building, but the workers at that place have skills and move people through. We waited only a few minutes before being directed to one of 8 lines in the store and we were quickly helped and on our way with two delicious cannolies. I got the chocolate dipped (which was fantastic) and my husband got the moca, which was still good, but not as excellent as my chocolate one.

We ate in a little park with splashing fountains that kids were running through in the dark and since it was a nice night we decided to walk home. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Boston is a pretty fantastic city. I ♥ Boston.

Things to Note:

1) It’s Cash Only, Cannoli’s are between $3.50-$4/piece.
2) Parking is a mess, the closest “T” stop is “Haymarket” so you’ll have to do a little bit of walking.
3) If there is a long line, don’t fret. It moves really fast.
4) Know what you want before you get to the front of the line. This place moves “Soup Nazi” style.
5) Don’t plan on eating inside, there are only a handful of tables (maybe 8?) and on the weekend or during cold times they are going to be filled.
6) You can bring a stroller, but know things are tight and the shop is small.
7) There is a new Mike’s Pastries open in Harvard Square!

Summary and Rating ★★★★★

Five Stars. We have really enjoyed embracing the hype about Mike’s Pastries and whenever we’re in the North End visiting Mike’s is a must. It’s fun to be in the middle of something so fast paced and the cannoli’s are delicious. If you visit in the summer there are a bunch of park like green spaces near Mike’s that offer a great place to sit down and enjoy you food and if you have children with you they can splash in one of Boston’s many splash pads.

Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.

Mike’s Pastry (North End)
300 Hanover Street
Boston, MA 02113 USA

Harvard Square
11 Dunster Street,
Cambridge, MA 02138

Phone: 617.742.3050
Website: https://www.mikespastry.com

Hours: Sun-Thurs 8AM-10PM; Fri & Sat 8AM-11:30PM

If you’re looking for a good and unique food experience you should check out Union Square Donuts. It’s a small donut shop, but it’s been named Boston’s Best Donuts by Boston Magazine… so, I’m just saying… if you like donuts you really ought to try some of these.

These donuts are handmade, unique, and totally delicious. The shop for them is pretty small and they often sell out, so if you’ve got a favorite (like maybe the maple bacon donut) that you’re dying to try you had better get there at least by mid-morning.

Someone brought in a box of these donuts to my husbands lab and since that day he’s been super excited about going back with us so that we could enjoy some crazy donuts with him. We went and ended up bring home half dozen which included the following donuts: two Maple Bacon, a Birthday Cake, a Carrot Cake, a Chocolate Covered, and a Vanilla.

Maple Bacon was surprisingly not disgusting, it’s got the sweet salty thing going for it and is kind of like kettle corn, however the favorite by far was the Birthday Cake. … Ha, it was the one we got for our toddler to try since it was covered with sprinkles, but the Birthday Cake donut was still warm and super soft on the inside, but a little bit crisp on the outside and full of goodness. My husband spent the rest of the day marveling that he had fallen in love with a sprinkle donut that looked like it was made for a two year old. 🙂

Things to Note:

1. Price
These are fancy gourmet donuts, and you pay for it. They are about a million times better than Dunkin Donuts, but for us they are more of a special occasion food. They run between $3 – $3.50/donut

2. Location
You’ll probably want to drive here. I didn’t look up public transportation, and I’m sure at least a bus goes near it… but it seems like it could be a lot of effort to take a bus for a donut… on the other hand, these were amazing, so it might be worth it. They are also sold at a handful of farmers markets around the city.

3. Flavors
They have a whole bunch of flavors to choose from, most of them are pretty unique, and they change all the time. If you fall in love with a donut buy another asap because there is no guarantee that it will be there next time.

Summary and Rating: ★★★★☆

Four Stars. These donuts are amazing, mouthwatering works of art… but their brick and mortar store is pretty out of the way and the donuts are fairly pricey.

Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know what you think of their crazy flavors in the comments section below.

Union Square Donuts
20 Bow St
Somerville, MA 02143

Phone: 617.209.2257
Website: http://unionsquaredonuts.com/

Hours:
Tuesday-Friday 7AM – 1PM
Saturday-Sunday 7AM – 3PM