Ms. Hen reviews Earl's Kitchen in Somerville and gives her tastebuds some variety

Earl’s Kitchen

698 Assembly Row #102

Somerville, MA

Ms. Hen had been eyeing Earl’s Kitchen for quite some time. Every time she goes to Assembly Row to see a movie or go to Paul, she looks in the window of Earl’s Kitchen and notices that it is a huge place and it is almost always empty during the week. The menu is enticing to her, but on the pricy side. One Saturday, she took a dining companion out to eat and they arrived at Earl’s.

Since it was Saturday, they had to wait about ten minutes to be seated. The hostess asked if they wanted to sit outside, but they said they preferred to sit inside. They ended up sitting next to a window, and even though the sun wasn’t shining, the light was in their eyes.

The place was huge and clean. The waitresses and hostesses were not dressed like they worked at a restaurant; they looked like they were all dressed up for a night on the town. All the waitresses looked like models, and it made Ms. Hen wonder if they would hire anyone fat and ugly. Ms. Hen thinks the restaurant might be prejudiced against ugly people.

But the food! Never mind the lack of unattractive waitresses. Ms. Hen got a chicken sandwich with Brie and fig spread with apples and spinach on a rustic ciabatta roll. There was a lot going on in this sandwich, but Ms. Hen thought it was delicious.

She likes to eat different things sometimes to stimulate her taste buds because she read that if you vary what you eat all the time, it make a hen or a person smarter. When Ms. Hen eats at a nice restaurant, she likes to eat chicken because she thinks it’s the best. The sandwich came with French fries, and they were good, but they weren’t outrageous.

Ms. Hen’s dining companion got the Sweet Virginia Bennie, an eggs Benedict dish, from the brunch menu, which is available on Saturdays and Sundays until 3. Ms. Hen’s companion said the eggs and the hollandaise sauce were tasty, but the potatoes got cold fast. The meal also came with toast and ham. She said that the hollandaise sauce seemed like it was very fresh, like it was made in the restaurant.

The menu at Earl’s Kitchen is varied. There are Asian dishes, a burger selection, a salad selection, steaks, some seafood, and enough vegetarian options to keep the Somerville hipsters happy. Most items are on the expensive side, but Ms. Hen and her companion ordered food that was on the lower price range of the menu, not because Ms. Hen was cheap, but because they didn’t want to eat a lot since it was lunch.

Ms. Hen and her companion enjoyed Earl’s. It’s a nice place to spend a Saturday afternoon, even though Assembly Row was crowded. Ms. Hen liked eating lunch and watching people. She gives Earl’s four feathers up, because she’s a hen with good taste. Earl’s wasn’t perfect, but the food was made with care and attention.