Boston’s seen a bit of bottled-water backlash lately. First, there was the TAP project, which charged diners $1 for a glass of water to help raise funds for UNICEF, and which won me over on two counts: providing clean water to developing countries, and sparing diners the embarrassment of declining the $6 Pellegrino in favor of tap. (What? I’m cheap, and it’s $1 at Costco.) Then, as the Globe’s Devra First points out, a growing number of restaurants are ditching the bottled stuff altogether, citing its wastefulness.

Hear, hear, I say. Given the city’s relatively high quality drinking water supply, bottled water just isn’t necessary in most cases. (Add that to your list of reasons to love Boston, eh?) In general, I’ve been feeling pretty good about sticking with tap. (more…)

When most people have to work weekends, it means coming into an empty office and putting in hours of drudgery for no additional pay. Not so for Chowder. (Well, not this week, anyway.)

Lucky enough to score tickets to last Saturday’s $150-a-pop Tour de Champagne (Boston magazine was a sponsor), I showed up at The Charles Hotel a fashionable hour late and surveyed the scene: A mixed bag of giddy French and Bostonian guests, 18 Champagne houses pouring generous (read: half-glass) samples of bubbly, and some of the city’s top restaurants serving hors d’oeuvres. Yes, indeed: Another hard day on the job.

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We here at Chowder are big fans of Eastern Standard. Back in December, Matthew Reed Baker and the Boston magazine fact checkers enjoyed a great meal at the Kenmore Square bistro. Last week, a friend took me to the bar to try her new favorite cocktail, the Metamorphosis.

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Dining out as often as we do, it goes without saying that we do the dew a little more often than we should. A dirty martini, a good glass of vino, a nip of limoncello to finish the meal… There’s little we Chowder bloggers won’t imbibe.

An offer of free cocktails, then, is like my own personal Bat Signal. But last night, I found myself opting out of the Beija rum launch at fact-checker favorite Eastern Standard. (more…)