Sean D.
Yelp
A True Story
I was feeling a bit melancholy and out of sorts when I agreed to explore our new stomping grounds in West Concord with my wife. We weren't welcome in our own home while it was being shown to possible buyers, thus a trip to see the area around our soon-to-be home was in order. It was a pointless venture in my eyes as we had everything we could want or need in our old neighborhood. So when my wife stopped by the tracks in West Concord, told me to stay in the car with the dog and called me Grumpy, I was content to do just that.
She had gone in the door to someplace called Saltbox Kitchen and upon her return to the car, she suggested I put the dog in back, because I wasn't going to want to share my breakfast with him. With that, my ears perked up... slightly. I took the bounty from my wife, so she could get back in the car. An iced coffee for me and a bag with two carefully wrapped objects. My wife says they're both the same and, with a noted bit of pride and certainty, claimed to know what I like. I grumbled a little in a protested retort.
Upon opening up the thick paper both retaining and protecting the booty enclosed, I got the first whiffs of the savory aromas intermingling under my nose. The smells were irresistible and I bit into my Farm Egg Sandwich.
As if some inaudible signal had passed between us, my wife and I exhaled a long combination of yummy sounds and chewing, as we both experienced our first bites simultaneously. Looking at each other, we giggled at the realization of unspoken agreement that this was a great find and it being only a quarter of a mile from our new home-to-be. The Farm Egg Sandwich is a combination of a frittata with greens, cheddar cheese, bacon, and a tomato jam all combined on a substantial English muffin. I'm not sure if it's the tang of the tomato jam, the savoriness of the frittata, the sweet, crunchy, satisfying goodness of the thick-cut bacon or the perfect combination of it all, but the morning haze began to burn off and blue skies and sun shone through.
As I reached for my iced coffee, my hand was rebuffed by my wife's as she bypassed the coffee she'd brought from home for the third time, took another long pull from the straw and exclaimed, "Mmm! This is really good coffee." To which, I replied, maybe predictably so, "I wouldn't know." In response, I got the look so many wives give their husbands complete with eye roll as she relinquished the coffee. I took a swig of the elixir and couldn't deny its delectability and unlike the coffee flavor at the chain shops.
To my disappointment, I came to the end of my sandwich, a bite that was as delicious as the first. In hopes of having missed a morsel, I checked the bag the sandwiches came in to no avail. My wife looked at me side-eyed, reached around to her side opposite from me and said, "Oh by the way, here's their menu." Looking it over, I saw a full day menu of items that all sounded delicious. They're a farm-to-table establishment with a farm in Concord, which sounds really ambitious.
As I perused the menu and mulled over its possibilities, my wife casually threw in, "Did I mention that they make their own beer?" Oh! Well played, Dear. Holding your cards close to your vest and playing them at the perfect moment. As I put my sunglasses on for the sudden brightness, I thought this could be the start of a beautiful day. "Onward towards more adventures in this new land," I exclaimed as the caffeine kicked in and had its desired effect on my disposition. My wife did the eye roll thingy again and drove on.
Saltbox Kitchen - we shall meet again!