Balls and Walnuts
more than you ever wanted to know
CLAMS!
Dean is back from his brother’s funeral and all I can think about is New England fried clams. Which means, I suppose, that my sensitivity is in my stomach. Or something. But clams. Fried clams. New England Ispwich whole belly clams.
Used to be a place on the Ventura pier which flew in Ipswich clams. All manner of New England seafood, in fact — the lobster there was fine, not like that gamy crap you pay $40 for in a restaurant and then choke down. But then the pier washed out some time in the 90s, and our one west coast connection for fried clams closed for good. Sigh.
So, what’s so great about these clams? If all you’ve ever tasted are the frozen, store-bought clams that you toss in the oven, bake, then chew like bubble gum: you have no idea. The flavor of the real thing is intense. The big deal about “bellies” is, they’re soft and tasty, not chewy like the rest of the clam.
Over at Chowhound, someone asked if there was any place in LA where you could get Ipswich clams. I’m sure my sis would be up for a clam run, eh Sis? And yes, there’s a place called The Jar, which has Ipswich clams for $17. Hell of an appetizer.
But they’re not alone, and apparently not the best. Here is the Holy Grail Post for fried clam seekers in Southern California.
I am so there.
Except I’m not. I am so on call.
D.
Be sure to pick me up on your way over to get clams. When we were kids, we used to go to a place called 7E’s in MA. I can STILL taste those clams. As Homer Simpson might say….”aaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh, clams!”
I googled 7Es (before you mentioned it, actually) and couldn’t track ’em down. I wonder if they’re still there?
If we ever do make a pilgrimage, we’ll definitely pick you up.
You’re working up my appetite. We’re going to Boston next weekend.
Let me know how the clams are sliding, Lucie!
Now I’m having a seafood craving. Thanks, Doug. Thanks a lot. (You’re not supposed to do that to a knocked-up chick, yanno.)
I have never liked clams much. In fact, I’m not much of a fan of molluscs in general. Which is too bad, because fried clams SOUND like they should be good, and they LOOK like the should be good. But every time I’ve tried them, they haven’t been.
Lucie — Go to Alewife Station on the Red Line and check out the Summer Shack. They keep an actual full-scale, multi-tank lobster pound in the middle of the main floor. Purists may scoff, but the hell with ’em.
A bonus (for us, anyway) is that it’s in an old tiki bar that Doc & I went to back in college, the Aku-Aku.
I think 7E’s is gone. Too bad, but I have a friend who lives in Wareham, MA, and I know she knows where all the good seafood is.
Kris: I can’t do what to a knocked up chick? (Yeah, I know it’s not as much fun as you made it sound . . .)
Dean: real easy to never have good clams if you’ve spent most of your life on the west coast. Next time you’re out east, make Chris order a plate, and sample one of hers.
ps: where’s the best seafood in Seattle?
Sis: oh, I figured there were still lots of great places to get a clam fix in MA.
…well… it depends. There are lots of places that do seafood really well. Any of Tom Douglas’ places will have really good seafood. For unpretentious seafood, we like Chinook’s @ the Fisherman’s Terminal. We’ve consistently liked Flying Fish, though that is by no means a universally-held opinion. And we’re really looking forward to the new, locally-owned seafood restaurant that’s going to go where the Seattle branch of Oceanaire was…
And this is without even getting into the great restaurants that don’t feature seafood, but still do it really well. And it leaves out all the Asian places in town… We’ve been burned by some of the allegedly great places on the waterfront (which have ranged from bad to merely
competent) and apart from Chinook’s, we won’t go to any of the Anthony’s restaurants unless someone else suggests it – they’re way too inconsistent.
How about we take you guys out next time we’re up? Only, you have to choose the joint 🙂
We might be able to arrange that…