Bel Canto Restaurant Lexington (Boston, Cambridge: bankruptcy, school, camp)

[walthamjack]

Originally Posted by LongHair

I worked at Bel Canto in Lexigton near the same time. (on and off from about 1986 until 1992). I remember both Don and Karen, but not sure of their whereabouts. Also remember Bill Powell, Herb, Joey the dishwasher, Dot the waitress, Laura and Leann Eaton, Helen O'Malley, Aaron Tap, Mario, Beth Keagan (aka Curly), Paul, Mike Hurley, Kevin Flanagan, Matt Nicholson, Sebastian and lots of other folks.

i know don's last name was vondell but not sure of karen's last name i still see helen a lot.

[walthamjack]

Originally Posted by LongHair

I worked in the kitchen and the recipe was nothing out of the ordinary. Essentially a handful of each of the pizza (aka torta) vegis, chick peas and kidney beans, a few ladles of the pizza sauce, a cup of white wine lots of basil and some vegi bouillon and water of course.

What made it special was freshness of the ingredients and those awesome croutons and breadsticks, and of course the freshly grated cheese.

I actually still remember the essentials of most of the good stuff. I occasionally make calzones based on the Florentine and Mr Paul's on occasion for my family.

i also worked for bel canto there was no wine minastrone soup but there was wine in the mushroom soup i still make the trad calzone for my family
it was pepperoni mozzarella cheese ricctoa cheese peper and oregano. the 5'00 oclocks were the best. i worked at boston cambridge wellesly and lexington.

[goyguy]

Mmmmm yeah! I remember the "Martha's 5 o'clocks" calzones all right. But who was Martha? lol

[Raif]

Originally Posted by LongHair

I worked at Bel Canto in Lexigton near the same time. (on and off from about 1986 until 1992). I remember both Don and Karen, but not sure of their whereabouts. Also remember Bill Powell, Herb, Joey the dishwasher, Dot the waitress, Laura and Leann Eaton, Helen O'Malley, Aaron Tap, Mario, Beth Keagan (aka Curly), Paul, Mike Hurley, Kevin Flanagan, Matt Nicholson, Sebastian and lots of other folks.

Hi longHair
Yes I remeber most of these people you mentioned. May be I remember you too. I remeber Curly very well but I didn't know her real name.
Do you remeber Ahmed, John cook, Sid? what is your name ?

[HPatt]

Last I heard the unforgettable Don Vaundell was living large in SF, Michael Hurley too. Karen Logan and her husband Scott have a restaurant (Blue Mermaid) in Portsmouth NH. It would be fun to have a Bel Canto reunion, haven't done it in many years.

[Raif]

Thank you Hpatt. Dou remember me.
raif

[Raif]

Originally Posted by goyguy

Mmmmm yeah! I remember the "Martha's 5 o'clocks" calzones all right. But who was Martha? lol

Martha was the old lady always coming to Bel canto in the afternoon and sat in the corner near the sidelwalk.

[HPatt]

Originally Posted by Raif

Martha was the old lady always coming to Bel canto in the afternoon and sat in the corner near the sidelwalk.

True enough, however, the Martha of Martha's 5:00s was the Somerville calzone maker who developed the recipe. I've lost track of her, would love to be in touch with her. Raif, what has taken you to Abu Dhabi?

[Philistinetheartlover]

WOW! So finally I've found out what happened to Bel Canto. I went to Emerson College which was a few blocks from Charles St. and I never ate any pizza in Boston but Bel Canto's.
I'll never forget how when I ordered a pizza at the restaurant they'll be like "So what do you want on it?" And whatever ingredients I asked for they would scoop up a mountain of them in their hands and throw them in their pizzas. Nothing measured, it was all done with a good and generous passion.
I have never found any other pizzeria like it.
Pizzeria UNO is kind of close to it so you know what I mean.
I tell you, if Bel Canto was still around someone from the Food Channel of the Travel Channel would have come around to it and express their absolute admiration for such an honest and friendly enterprise.
Go to any other place and you can see the employees counting every piece of cheese and ingredient they use, sweating it all out afraid of being fired if they used one piece of black olive too many, the cheap bastards.
Bel Canto represented the kind of spirit and enthusiasm every restaurant in the US of A should have when serving their customers.
Thank goodness for the Food and Travel channels for reminding everyone of it.

[goyguy]

If you're still in Boston, ya gotta try Emma's! They've been around "forever," for the past ten years or so in a small restaurant on Broadway just west of Portland St near Kendall Square. Some of the people there were employees at the original location on Huron Ave - how many eating places can boast that? The atmo isn't "fake-trattoria-with-black-and-white-photos-of-Tuscany-and-tourist-landmarks" exactly, but it's a laid-back sort of environment as opposed to a sub shop (or Uno's.) No flat-screen TV's every ten feet, little if any music, and a no-cellphone rule: nice! And the 'za's are as close to Bel Canto's (maybe even...dare I say...surpassing?) as you'll ever find.
But I feel yer pain about the calzones, those will never be imitated let alone duplicated.