Having been born in New Bedford, I've always loved scallops. Eating them now reminds me of home, and the fried seafood shacks me and my family used to visit so often. Unfortunately a lot of the scallops on menus these days are what are called "wet" scallops. These are scallops that have been allowed to sit in a solution of either salt water or sodium tripolyphosphate in order to increase their weight before they are either frozen or shipped in all that extra liquid. "Dry" scallops on the other hand have been shucked, cleaned, and shipped to us and other quality restaurants without any of the other unnecessary processing.
Next time you're ordering scallops ask your server if the scallops are wet or dry. If they don't have the answer have them check with the kitchen. If the kitchen doesn't know, you should probably be eating somewhere else.
Scallops should taste of the sea and have a sweet and buttery flavor, not be overly salty or rubbery and taste synthetic.
Our commitment here at Allora to use only dry sea scallops has made our Pan Seared Scallops with Fregola, Escarole, and Pesto one of the most popular dishes on our menu, and not compromising our other dishes with processed, frozen, and sub-par ingredients has been key to our continued success.
Thanks everyone for being so patient these last couple of days while we repainted and installed new carpeting throughout the restaurant! My iphone pics don't do it justice, so you'll have to come down and see for yourself.
With the onset of this beautiful spring weather, we've decided to open our patio early! Check out our Al Fresco Dining lakeside, our newest selection of craft beers, boutique wines, and our ever changing menu.
Joe, Laura, and I have been making some new and exciting changes to our menu due out this fall. We've switched up our menu seasonally since opening and our newest menu looks to be one of our best. Some of the additions we're working on are espresso panna cotta with hazelnut whipped cream and dark chocolate, warm pumpkin bread pudding with brandy apple sauce, spice rubbed tenderloin with balsamic butter and hand cut fries, butternut ravioli with marscapone sage sauce, toasted hazelnuts and leeks, and a lot more. We're shooting for October first for the menu to be out but for those of you who know how the restaurant business goes, it might be a little longer than that!
As microbrews continue to grow in popularity, we are moving some of our beers on tap to bottle and bringing in some new and tasty treats for metrowest beer lovers. Our two newest additions to our lines are Rapscallion and Stone Brewing Companys Smoked Porter. Rapscallion Premier is a deep golden Belgian-inspired ale. The flavor is a mixture of sweetness with some fruity undertones, spiciness and a light, underlying bitterness. At 4.5% alcohol by volume, Rapscallion Premier is a session beer which can be enjoyed any time of the year. The Stone Smoked Porter is "a rich, dark and delicious porter with chocolate and coffee overtones accented by a subtle smokiness from just the right amount of peat smoked malt. Unlike a rauchbier, the "smoke" in Stone Smoked Porter is an ELEMENT of the character rather than being THE character." Stop in for a taste and be sure to check the restaurants website for news of upcoming beer and wine dinners.
