Pop + Dutch Earns a 'Best Bite' Award for Their Sensational Chef Salad Sandwich

TheYearRounder bestows a Best Bite award on the innovative
Chef Salad Sandwich, piled high at Pop + Dutch in PTown.

When I walked into Pop + Dutch (say Pop and Dutch) on a rare afternoon off a little while back, starving, I had no idea what I would order. Everything they offer in this eccentric little neighborhood market is top notch. with nearly everything made right there, fresh, from scratch.

They bake their own buttermilk biscuits, along with pies made from fresh, seasonal fruits, and whatever other pastry, goody or dessert that might strike them at any given moment. They roast their own veggies, turkey and beef, too, so all of this keeps the Pop + Dutch oven working at a pretty constant pace, cranking out something tasty all day long.

So they don’t bake all of their own bread, but they do make the focaccia for their Myrna Minkoff sandwich, named for an off-beat fictional character in John Kennedy Toole’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel A Confederacy of Dunces. The Agent Dale Cooper sandwich is 
house-made turkey breast, with cheddar, smashed avocado, mayo, pickled shallots, tomato and butter lettuce on 7-grain bread. It’s named after the quirky FBI agent who has a nefarious alter ego, and an inordinate fondness for cherry pie, in the outré 1989 TV series Twin Peaks. Beginning to see what I mean by “eccentric,” aren’t you? That's part of the fun of Pop + Dutch. A certain lightheartedness is likely to overtake you upon walking through the door.

Behold the radiant sandwich! (from Pop+Dutch Facebook page)

When I asked what I'd have for lunch that day, co-owner Rebecca first determined that there was, indeed, nothing I don't like. Vegan, vegetarian or whole hog, I'm in. After a moment's thought, she suggested I try the Chef Salad sandwich, and repaired to the kitchen to whip one up for me. Just like it sounds, it brings all of the elements of a chef's salad together in a sandwich.
Tender leaves of butter lettuce, slices of sweet, ripe tomato and hard-boiled egg are layered between Swiss cheese, cheddar, Black Forest ham, and turkey that tastes like Thanksgiving, because at Pop + Dutch, they roast it and carve it right in their own kitchen. Stack all of this on a big, fresh Iggy's brioche roll, add a little ranch mayo dressing, and you've got a dandy of a sandwich. A distinctive taste, along with the superb quality and the inventive use of the ingredients, earned this sandwich a Best Bite award from TheYearRounder, because it was easily the best thing I ate in PTown during that entire week.

Owners Sean and Rebecca refer lovingly to their little market as "a sandwich shop and pint-sized general store" in Provincetown's West End, at 147 Commercial Street, right at the foot of Conant Street. It's in the midst of a little cluster of charming galleries, gift shops and antiques.

As I mentioned, nearly everything in their deli section is made right in their own tiny kitchen, including an unusual, spicy pimento cheese, and jams made from whatever beautiful fresh fruits the seasons bring. Either one can go on a fresh biscuit, right out of the oven, for your breakfast. Get here early; the biscuits sell out.

Fresh produce, bread and dairy, coffee filters, specialty pastas,
olive oil, cookies, crackers, lube… All the basics are here for you.

They get beautiful produce from local farmers any time they can, and they use cage free eggs from farms where the hens are treated well. They treat their customers, and their employees, like treasured friends. In short, their ethics are intact. That's another reason why we love this little shop.
Besides their phenomenal sandwiches, salads, desserts, vegetarian and vegan choices, and gluten-free options, you'll also find basic groceries and a few sundries here as well. 
They stock a small but thoughtful assortment of fresh, seasonal fruits and veggies, treats from local farmers when available, and Iggy's Bread, in Cambridge, brings fresh breads, croissants and sticky buns daily. Milk, eggs and other staples are here, along with a few basic housewares, like retro style enamelware plates, cups and coffee pots, just in case you find your condo a little lacking. And don't forget the lube.
Whether it's a great cup of coffee and a breakfast sandwich you need, or just the coffee filters, you'll find them here. Pick up the Sunday paper and some fresh strawberries, or a can of fine Italian tomatoes and a good olive oil, or an award-winning sandwich to take with you to the beach.
If you've not yet discovered this little jewel of a shop, it's worth the stroll to the West End. You'll be happy you found Pop + Dutch.

It's Not Spring in PTown Until My First Visit to The Coffee Pot

Linda and Nelson have been welcoming folks to The Coffee Pot, and to
Provincetown, for more than 24 years. They're genuinely glad to see you!

For 24 years or so, Linda and Nelson have been opening the doors of The Coffee Pot at 5:00 in the morning (in the height of the season) and doing it with smiling faces. Every day of the season they get out of bed in the pre-dawn hours and make their way to the most popular coffee shop in the heart of Provincetown, at Lopes Square, by the giant anchor.
Within a few moments they're sliding  trays of bagels, muffins, croissants and cinnamon buns into the ovens, and putting on the coffee, and soon the aroma of fresh baked goods is wafting out the door as local fishermen, carpenters, cops, and anyone else who's up at that time of day stop in to get their morning started. Nothing beats a really good cup of coffee and fresh baked goods, right out of the oven.
My first order of the season was their giant breakfast sandwich called the Rescue Squad, which I had been jonesing for all winter. It's made with three eggs, three strips of bacon, two sausage patties and two slices of cheese on a freshly baked sub roll that's been split open and toasted on the grill. It's an entire meal that you can take with you.

The patio at The Coffee Pot is a great place for a little fresh air with
your meal, and a little people watching at the edge of Lopes Square.

If you want a sit-down breakfast in the dining room or out on their patio, The Coffee Pot can also accommodate you. Get a plate of eggs and toast for just $5.99, or  add bacon, sausage or linguica (say leen•gwee•suh,) the slightly spicy, extremely tasty Portuguese sausage. The also make omelets, brioche French toast and other great breakfast plates, and the menu for lunch and supper is sizable and tempting as well. For example, they make some of the best French fries in PTown, perfect with a burger, burrito, Gyro, panini or their huge lobster roll, served hot or cold. (Try the lobster omelet, too.)
If for some unknown reason you've never visited The Coffee Pot, it's time to give them a whirl. Generous portions and reasonable prices, and those smiling faces behind the counter, make this one of the town's favorite eateries.

Get it While You Can...

As the little casual dining spots in Provincetown get ready to shut down for the season, I'm making the rounds to enjoy some of the great food and bargain prices that we'll miss over the winter...

Mojo's grilled swordfish platter with mixed vegetables, salad and their signature round fries. Mojo's has a HUGE menu with some of the best prices in town.

The Red Shack lobster mac & cheese became a new favorite when I tasted it this summer. I'll miss their gyro, pastrami, sausage and peppers, and their giant breakfast wrap with a whole meal rolled inside.

Provincetown Portuguese Bakery has the best fried dough in town, hands down. Breakfast and lunch from their grill are bargains, as are dozens of sweet or savory pastries and traditional Portuguese treats.

John's Footlong fish sandwich is among the best in town, along with their fried clams, kale soup, scallop roll and oooohh, the lobster roll. And don't forget the footlong hot dog in a grilled bun.

Lewis Brothers Ice Cream is the last real, homemade American ice cream in Provincetown, despite the "homemade" signs you might see in other windows. It's not. The brothers make it right there in their shop, churning out several flavors every day. I love their small sundae. I'm not sure I could finish the big one.

Native Cape Cod Seafood is one of the spots I miss most over the winter. Everything they make is absolutely fresh, delicious and reasonably priced. You could throw a dart and be happy with anything on the menu. I order an ear of corn with my linguine and clams. And the lobster scampi rivals any in town, at a great price.

Blondie's portobello mushroom burger comes with caramelized onions, roasted red peppers and feta cheese, and it's one of my favorite vegetarian meals in Provincetown.

Uma Loucura brought Brazilian flavors to town this summer with daily specials like Bobo De Camarao, made with yucca, peppers, fresh tomato, coconut milk and a mountain of shrimp. Everything is made from scratch, and I loved everything I tasted there.

The Canteen brought great seafood, sandwiches, homemade linguica and a variety of ethnic flavors to Provincetown this summer. Their homemade sodas, and the return of Pucci Wings, were highlights of my summer. I'm jonesing for them already.

I Dream of Gelato makes more than 200 flavors of the best homemade gelato (the Italian version of ice cream) you're ever likely to taste, from simple fruit flavors to gourmet delights. My very favorites are the pineapple basil and the black sesame.

The Coffee Pot has a line of people every morning getting their coffee, fresh baked goods and an array of great breakfast sandwiches. When I'm really famished I'll order the Rescue Squad, with three eggs, three slices of bacon, two sausage patties and double cheese on a sub roll.

ScottCakes are the best cupcakes in the world, period. This fluffy vanilla cupcake topped with that distinctive swirl of pink buttercream frosting is one of the greatest sweet treats ever invented.

Get out and enjoy some of these great PTown eats before these little joints fold up for the season.

What's New? - All Kinds of Flavors at the Food Court in the Aquarium Marketplace

This spring there are so many new things to taste in Provincetown. You could spend an entire day trying new flavors in the Food Court at the Aquarium Marketplace, at 209 Commercial Street. In fact, you could easily spend your whole day at Uma Loucura, the new Brazilian restaurant there, tasting dishes and flavors you've never had before, but will be sure to go back for again. Let's start there...

Some of Brazil's favorite breakfast
and snack foods from Uma Loucura.

Uma Loucura offers a wonderful variety of meals, made from scratch from authentic Brazilian ingredients you have likely never tasted. They offer a great menu and daily specials, but for today, let's start with a few very popular Brazilian snack foods, clockwise from the bottom left corner:
Coxinha is the favorite of all snacks in Brazil, a sort of chicken croquette, if you will. This is a light teardrop shaped ball of soft dough stuffed with shredded chicken.
Esfirra is a tiny, triangular pastry stuffed with ground beef and Brazillian seasonings, heralding from the Middle East.

Pao De Queijo, a little ball of cheese bread made from cassava flour (from the ground roots of the manioc plant) will soon be offered in daily choices like jalapeño, bacon and other flavorss. This is a very popular snack and breakfast food in Brazil.
Empadinha, in the bottom right corner, is a mild, bite sized pie made with shredded chicken baked into a pastry crust, with a great texture and flavor.

Get a plate of any or all of these to carry out onto the Aquarium's waterfront deck to enjoy with a cocktail, a glass of wine or a cold beer at the Aqua Bar, along with that amazing view of Provincetown Harbor.

About 2 dozen great flavors at a time
are n the case at I Dream of Gelato.

It is impossible to walk into I Dream of Gelato and not find something new. Michelle simply can't help herself. She gets an idea for a new flavor and can't seem to rest until she has perfected it. It'll take you a couple of years to taste them all, with somewhere around 200 brilliant flavors of gelato and sorbetto rotating through the freezer case as they are made fresh daily. Yesterday I tasted the amazing banana fig, and the award-winning Holy Canolli. It was the caramel salt pretzel, though, that sent me off looking for Michelle to find out how in the world she comes up with these sublime combinations of flavors and then actually puts those flavors into these extraordinary confections. Short of grinding up actual pretzels into the mix, how does she achieve that flavor? Turns out she does use pretzels, but that still doesn't explain how she makes this perfectly smooth, and perfectly flavored, fine Italian ice cream. 

The famous Mississippi Mud Cake
from Connie's Bakery is legendary.

So much is new at Connie's Bakery this year that I'll have to write a whole page about it very soon. So let me just mention that Shane has taken over upon Connie's retirement, after her many years of turning out some of Provincetown's favorite baked goods. Don't worry, all your favorites are still here. The store has been carefully remodeled, making it much easier to shop for savory treats like their beautiful quiche, or sweets like the endless array of cookies, cakes, pies, muffins, and brownies that made Connie's famous.

Shane has some new things in store for us as well. Recently inspired by the birthday of a friend, Shane made a tiny tweak to a favorite recipe from Connie's vast collection, and made the Mississippi Mud Cake what many now claim to be the best chocolate cake ever created. I was certainly hooked upon tasting this rich, dense Bundt cake, a bit like a pudding cake but somehow lighter, with a bit of coffee to give it a little mocha flavor, and drizzled with a chocolate ganache. Stop in and give it a taste.

All these things and more are found in the Aquarium, with seven unique restaurants, and seating indoors or out, on the patio or the waterfront deck. Everything here is available for takeout, too. Next week we'll try more of the new dishes Provincetown has to offer this summer. They are found all along Commercial Street. Let me know if you find something I need to taste.

The New PTOWN Cafe is Now Open, Right Next to Town Hall

PTOWN Cafe offered tastes of their savory sandwiches, organic
coffee and sweet treats like Lisa's killer chocolate chip brownie.

Lisa Bergeron had managed and cooked in Boston restaurants for about 25 years before landing in Provincetown. This spring she's started her own restaurant at 258 Commercial Street, next to Town Hall. I stopped in for PTOWN Cafe's opening and knew I'd have to return when I tasted the herbed, roasted pork tenderloin served with a rosemary aioli. Lisa told me it was going to be featured in a new sandwich, and I was eager to try it once they got their full menu up and running. I had to stop in a couple of times to taste this sandwich. It was sold out each time I tried.
Opening night also brought us fresh mozzarella, basil and tomato on a crusty baguette, along with pastries, cookies and other sweet treats. I tried the red velvet cupcakes, and a woman standing next to me said she thought the fresh cannoli were the best she'd ever tasted. My favorite sweet was the absolutely perfect chocolate chip brownies. They went very well with the rich, full-flavored, organic coffee served by PTOWN Cafe. Their coffee goes a step farther than the Fair Trade companies (which give a group of small coffee farmers in developing countries a better price for their beans) by using the Direct Trade model, which cuts out brokers and middlemen altogether, putting more money directly into the hands of the farmers.

PTOWN Cafe's ham and cheese dresses up the traditional a bit.

For lunch the other day I got their ham and cheese sandwich, which was a nice variation from the old standard. This one was made with Black Forest Ham, asiago cheese, leafy green lettuce and a dijonaise dressing on an airy, freshly baked croissant. Very tasty and not too heavy. Just right.
During the hot weather we had a couple of days ago I tried their iced coffee, which is cold-brewed to eliminate any bitter flavor. You can taste the difference. I also sampled the coffee cake, fresh from the oven, not too sweet, and again, just right. Today I noticed the blackboard out front listed a breakfast panini sandwich, so now I know where I'll be headed for breakfast tomorrow morning.
Service is quick and friendly. You'll be on your way again in no time with food to go, or you can relax at a table indoors or out, or carry your order just a few steps to the benches in front of Town Hall for a little people watching. We wish Lisa good luck in the first season in her new restaurant, and many more seasons to come.

The Provincetown Portuguese Bakery Ushers in the Spring Season

Pasteis 'de 'nata, a small lemon custard tart,
is the most popular pastry in Portugal, and a PTown favorite.

Yippee! The world-famous Portuguese Bakery has just re-opened for the 2013 season, bringing back all the yummy treats they are so well known for, although not everything on their usual menu is available quite yet. But as we get a bit farther into the season we'll find close to a hundred different pastries, both sweet and savory, available at any given time.
The hazelnut torte, for example, won't be in the pastry case for a few more weeks, when we've got more visitors in town. But for now, lots of your favorites are back, and if you've never tried the Portuguese Bakery you'll have a hard time choosing a favorite treat.
The best-loved pastry of the native Portuguese people is a tiny lemon custard tart called pasteis 'de 'nata, which translates roughly into "pies from cream," made from a smooth custard baked into a small pastry shell. It sells for $2.39
Of course, no trip to Ptown is complete without sampling the malassadas, the Portuguese version of a light, tender dough that's deep fried until it's puffed and golden, then rolled in sugar and left to cool a bit on a rack seen through the front window of the shop. You can watch them being made, and ideally, you'll arrive just as they are being set out to cool, which is when they are at their most delicious.
The Provincetown Portuguese Bakery, at 299 Commercial Street, started baking bread for local restaurants well over 100 years ago, and in 1976 the front section of the building was opened to the public, selling their legendary breads, along with pastries and sweet treats. Nowadays you can also get a number of savories as well as sweets, like the linguica roll ( say leen•gwee•suh) which is made with a slightly spicy Portuguese sausage. You can also get breakfast or lunch from their grill. A bacon and egg  breakfast, for example, is an inexpensive way to start your day right in the center of town.This is a counter service restaurant, and you are asked to bus your own table, which helps to keep the prices low. Right now they're open daily from 8 AM till roughly 3 or 4 PM, depending on business. In the summertime their hours will be greatly extended.
Whether you need breakfast, lunch, a tasty treat or a full-blown wedding cake, check out the Portuguese Bakery.