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Archive for June 17, 2008

NEW SECTION: THE PU PU CHATTER

June 17, 2008 by Chinatown Blogger.

Bao Bao Bakery

The Chinatown Blogger has been wrestling with this question for a while:

“Why no restaurant reviews on the site?”

Answer: “What if the food was bad? Does the Blogger slam someone’s business just cause their sushi wasn’t good…”

Then one reader said: “If you don’t have anything good to say, then don’t say it…”

So the Blogger diligently followed this advice. That is why the Blogger has never written a restaurant review, despite the fact that the Blogger eats at different restaurants and bakeries everyday. Then the Blogger thought, what if he just wrote about places and food that he thought was unique or good in Chinatown?

So now this site is starting a new section for readers: The Pu Pu Chatter — if the pu pu is good, then the pu pu deserves chatter. If readers think there is something worth mentioning here, send in your posts and pics if available.

The first one up is Bao Bao Bakery on 77 Harrison Avenue. Bao Bao has an assortment of fancy looking cakes and pastries, which is good to look at but not so much for eating. But the Blogger doesn’t go to Bao Bao for the pastries, his favorite is their hot ginger honey milk tea for $2.50. This is black tea mixed with milk, honey, sugar and real pieces of ginger. (The ginger is safe to eat). The Blogger has been drinking this as a substitute for Dunkin coffee.

Bao Bao Cakes
Cakes for eye candy, but would advise passing.

Bao Bao Pastries
These pastries are worth picking up.

The holy grail (hyperbole) — hot honey ginger milk tea.

Posted in The PU PU CHATTER | Print | 3 Comments »

Chinatown Bike-a-thon

June 17, 2008 by Chinatown Blogger.

Chinatown Bike-a-thon Sunday June 22, 2008
- 9:00am registration time
- 2:00pm picnic for riders & friends

A fun way to get to get some fresh air, exercise and support the Chinese Progressive Association’s youth leadership development program, Chinese Youth Initiative (CYI).

For over fourteen years, the Chinese Youth Initiative has brought together Asian American youth from all over the Boston area. The mission of CYI is to develop young leadership in the Chinese American community. A summer and year-round internship gives high school students the opportunity to get involved in the Chinatown community. This year, money raised will help us expand the program to include 6 full-year internships for high school students.

Route:
- Begin @ Herter Park (see map), 14 mile loop along the beautiful Charles River.

Please fill out registration form and send it back to us by June 15th. Sponsor sheets will be collected day of bike-a-thon. For more information visit http://www.cpaboston.org, email Pong Louie (pong@cpaboston.org) or call 617-357-4499.

Posted in CHINATOWN CALENDAR | Print | 2 Comments »

Boston Globe Editorial On Dewey Square

June 17, 2008 by Chinatown Blogger.

Sam Davol of littleimpact.org sent a note that the Boston Globe wrote an editorial on the missing Dewey Square farmer’s market.

—-
Reprinted from the Boston Globe

Lettuce for the Greenway
June 17, 2008

THERE IS an effort afoot to create a year-round indoor-outdoor public food market on a par with Seattle’s Pike Place, but Bostonians can’t eat ambitious plans. This summer and fall, the city needs a lively farmers’ market in the downtown area, preferably in Dewey Square across from heavily-traversed South Station.

For the past few years, the nonprofit Boston Public Market Association has been scouting locations for farmers’ markets in the hope of bringing fresh food and new energy to the city. Its farm stands on the Northern Avenue Bridge during the summers of 2005 and 2006 were a great complement to that section of the waterfront. But vendors complained that there was too little foot traffic to satisfy sales, according to Howard Leibowitz, the market association’s former director. A second location took root along the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway at Dewey Square starting in the spring of 2006. That market, which runs through the fall, has been deemed a success by both sellers and customers. That’s why news that the farm stands would not open this summer left a bad taste in so many mouths.

The farmers’ market at Dewey Square got derailed over a $19,000 bill for police details. This is not, however, a case of questionable police details that might be easily handled by a civilian flagger. The safe loading and unloading of produce trucks requires the temporary closing of a lane on Atlantic Avenue just north of Summer Street. That requires a police officer to control traffic. But the small market association could no longer absorb the cost. And efforts to find an alternate delivery route between Summer and Congress streets that would not require police details also failed.

If such a relatively small sum could upset plans for such an important public space along the Greenway, what hope is there for future programming along the swath of parkland that runs from Chinatown to the North End? The situation highlights the need to find a reliable way to manage land that is owned by the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, programmed by the nonprofit Greenway Conservancy, and affected so heavily by Boston traffic laws and labor union contracts.

The dilemma, says Leibowitz, is “like a pop-up falling between three infielders.”

Conservancy director Nancy Brennan says there could be a “new factor” in the coming days that will allow for the reopening of the Dewey Square market. That would be heartening. But the Conservancy is going to need a permanent fund for the small details that will invariably pop up along the Greenway.

Posted in WORD ON THE STREET | Print | No Comments »

Truck Accident Backs Up I-93

June 17, 2008 by Chinatown Blogger.

Did you get caught in the traffic on I-93 today leaving or going into Chinatown? A truck filled with gravel flipped over on I-93 South near Dorchester and spilled gravel all over the highway. State Police closed down the HOV lanes and diverted traffic going south onto exits. Those going north in the HOV lanes were trapped until a truck came to remove the HOV barriers and allowed the HOV cars to make a u-turn exit.

Drivers stood outside their vehicles in the HOV lane to make phone calls. Cars in the HOV lane could not move forward, backup or change lanes due to the HOV barriers.