Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1292368
100 in August that breweries could not serve drinks without food, Bushway wanted to make sure their outdoor beer garden was in full compliance. "We created a whole beer bites menu in about 24 hours" and 45 emails, the chef says with a laugh. Drawing on his experience at Coda, the Boston gastropub where he was executive chef until it closed this spring, he quickly whipped up a caramel sauce made with Great Marsh London Porter to complement house- made pretzel bites and a taco filled with IPA-braised pork belly, which sit alongside popular favorites like their fried clams. Michael Sherman at Elm Square Oyster Co. in Andover has also found himself exploring new frontiers these days. His menu has always leaned into what is fresh and local, with a mix of carefully plated and creatively flavored entrees—like spaghetti and clams finished with saffron and smoked butter—alongside great burgers and sandwiches. But the restaurant had never really offered take-out at all until this spring, causing them to experiment with some preparations—like the batter on their beloved crispy fish sandwich. "I would send a server home with a fish sandwich every night," Sherman says, explaining that the lucky tester would see how well the sandwich lasted over a Essex as executive chef. "Now it's completely transitioned to: I want everyone to come in, order something comfortably at a price that they're comfortable with, and be like, 'Damn, that was really good, it was a really good value, and it made me really happy.' " One challenge Bushway had to meet with lightning speed was crafting an appealing appetizer menu on the fly for the taproom. When Governor Charlie Baker announced 15-minute drive—something he'd literally never had to think about before. A change-up in packaging ( fries and sandwich each in their own container) and a tweak to the batter led to a sandwich that was just as delicious at home as in the restaurant. Takeout has always been part of the equation at Blue Ox in Lynn, so executive chef Guaracyara Pimenta didn't have to do a lot of tweaking for that. "I think any of our dishes would travel well," says the chef, who was at the Blue Ox for its launch in 2009, and then left for Boston's Les Zygomates (which closed for good earlier this summer), before returning to take the top job. "It's great to be back," he PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANTHONY TIEULI This page, clockwise from top left, Great Marsh Brewing Co. offers outdoor dining and a beer garden. pork belly tacos, and Stephen Bushway.