This Is Framingham

Almost a year ago,  I posted about the Salvation Army placing potted trees outside it’s window base where people would sit.  It seemed like a great way to make the corner look nice and obviously Salvation Army wanted to discourage people from sitting there. ivermectin use in humans
Months later, I noticed people were sharing the pots with the trees and sitting in them.  Also, the condition of the trees was deteriorating.  Mid-summer, I noticed the trees were completely dead and anything that was green was a dry rusty orange. ivermectin pour on dog   Finally last week I noticed that they just got rid of the trees and people are sitting on the pots. ivermectin for scabies dosage So the progression was like this:
1.   :/
 
2.  🙂

3.  :/

4.  🙁

I hope the Salvation Army tries again to make it’s entrance look nice.  They chose to put those trees there in the first place so they must have wanted it to look nice.   I know someone will say I’m anti-helping people or something but I thought it looked nice with the trees there and think picture 2 looks better than picture 1 (or 3 or 4).  I’m not saying there shouldn’t be organizations that help people who need it, but I thought it was nice that such an organization was trying to improve it’s appearance in an area that could use a facelift.
 

We were driving down Rt 9 this weekend and noticed the signs at this year’s location for the Halloween outlet at the old Saab dealership.
From the east-bound side:

I thought it was slightly interesting that they chose another Tudor style building like they did 2 years ago at the old Border’s Books building. I think they skipped a Framingham location last year, maybe because we got Halloween Express (which was awesome) but glad to see they’re back and interested to see what they do with the space inside.

Last May I was all excited at Town Meeting that we approved funds for repairing the crumbling steps in front of Town Hall/Memorial Building.  As the months went by I figured there must be some plan in action but then a whole year went by and still here in August 08 nothing seems to have changed except the arrangements of the cones and the deteriation of the steps.
I’m sure other people have noticed too since it is such a visable structure representing the town and they have done such a nice job with the landscaping and brickwork in front of the building, it’s a shame the steps remain neglected.
I went to the Christmas tree lighting ceremony in December ’06 where everyone crowded around on the frontsteps and people had to watch where they were standing and make sure they weren’t on a piece of crumble.  I can’t imagine the challenge of what that was like last year or what it will be like this year if they are still not repaired.
I’m starting to investigate and will post any information about progress on this I can find out if anyone is interested.

We made it over to the newly opened, Old Station Steak House, which is, as I mentioned before, a Brazilian buffet, not a steak house really but we’ve been waiting to be able to go in this H.H. Richardson designed building which is on the National Register of Historic Places and Ethan has never been inside.  I haven’t been in here since it was Ebenezer’s.  When we first entered, the stairs leading up to what used to be the bar (where I celebrated my 21st birthday) are now blocked off and that area must be used as an office or storage.  It’s a shame because that was a fun bar.   I have to say though, they did a great job with the bar area downstairs and it looks really nice.

The dining room is spacious with it’s tall ceilings and roomy seating plan and unlike when I was 21, I can appreciate the history of the building through it’s architecture and features like the fireplace and window styles.

I took a bunch of pictures of the food on the buffet but lost them somehow, so I’ll just show you our plates with what we got:
My plate: Cauliflower, broccoli, beets, fried boneless chicken, fried banana, polenta, steak fries, collard greens, and one of 4 meats brought to the table, a chicken sausage.

Ethan’s plate: Fries, chicken, salad, rice and he got some meats that came to the table too.

 Here’s the chicken sausage as it was brought over:

This was the same way the brisket and short beef ribs were brought over too.

The staff was very nice and would come over asking us if we needed anything and the meal is a good deal price-wise too because it’s all you can eat and includes the meat carver coming to your table, all for $9.99 rather than how some buffets charge by the pound.

Although I do still wish this was more of an Ebenizer’s type place, I think this would still be a great place to meet someone after getting off the train for a drink in the bar.  The food was pretty good too, even Ethan who has a little higher standard for buffets than I do, thought it was good.  AND, it’s looks nice inside, they’ve done a good job keeping the character of the building, maybe because it’s on the National Register of Historic Places, but still, it’s one of Framingham’s more interesting buildings and a good place to dine at and take in some history.

Walking home tonight we passed by Sullivan Tire, who set up a cute display of tires in honor of the Olympics.

Tonight we went to check out the now open British Beer Company.  We went around 4:45pm and there was going to be about a 15 minute wait unless we sat in the bar area, which was fine, so we sat there.
It is pretty much what I expeted it to look like in there, kind of like the old Desmond O’Malley’s, with a lot of dark wood and dimly lit atmosphere.

The beer menu is extensive with a wide variety of British and non-British beers in bottles and on tap.  I asked the server about two particular beers and she said I could taste for myself and brought over two samples of the beer I was asking about.   That was great because one was much better than the other so I ordered a pint of the Hobgoblin Ale (in a Blackthorn glass), which I highly reccomend. 

Ethan just got a gin and tonic (not worth photographing) and we both got fish and chips so I just took a picture of mine:

The fish and chips comes with fries, 3 giant onion rings, coleslaw and a gravy boat full of tartar sauce.
Everything was really good although the fries tasted like common fries that are used in a few different restaurants but the onion rings seemed to be home made. ???? ??????   The coleslaw was a bit mayo-heavy but good and the fish was great.  It seemed to be fresh fish and was perfectly moist and flakey inside it’s crunchy beer-batter case. ????? ???????? ?? ?????? 2024   This grainy photo doesn’t do it justice but it was very good.

I probably won’t go back for a little bit just to let the crowds die down, the lobby was full of waiting people when we left around 6pm and as someone already said, ther bar was packed on a weeknight.  I hope it has at least one slow night that would be good to go enjoy a few beers with friends with out as much noise, but I may just be gun shy of crowded bars from my past life as a cocktail waitress.
I think the BBC is a great addition to Route 9 and I’m looking forward to going back and trying the Chicken and Leek Pie. ???? ???????

I spent the past few days in the lovely White Mountains in NH.  We also took a trip to Weirs Beach where they have a waterslide and I noticed an orange(ish) trailer in the parking lot.

Upon further inspection:

I don’t think they have a store up there but maybe just sell out of the trailer for bike week or something. Anyway, it was kind of funny to see something Framingham related up there and reminded me that eventually I want to go in the store and buy a big belt buckle.