Here's the thing: I'm kind of a secret, Grade-A hermit. Not a hermit in a traditional sense of course, but more of a lounging afficianado. I do booze around and let my proverbial hair down way more than my paycheck allows, yes, but it's this thing where, if you were to hold up my favorite pair of sweats and a free press dinner side-by-side, for one embarassing and shameful minute I will actually consider the sweatpants.

We here at The Phoenix gave up trying to resist the mid-day food coma that comes in the form of chef Tiffani Faison's drool-worthy BBQ joint, Sweet Cheeks, months ago. That juicy, sizzling smoker scent that sneaks into our Fenway headquarters, mere feet away, has played a mighty large part in this, it's true.

Bissonnette and Oringer © Boston Herald

Hooo, boy. If you haven't heard already, The New York Times reported that the guys behind everyone's favorite tapas spot, Toro, are diving headfirst into the New York dining scene, with a spot in Chelsea opening this fall, after seven years on Washington St. What does that mean for us Boston food-hounds who finally have a few local gems we're loathe to share with big, bad, NYC?

Mmmm...bruuuuunch. And Easter. But mostly brunch. 

 Charlotte Silver looks exactly as I pictured she would, from her leopard print cat-eye glasses all the way to her mother's vintage leopard print pumps.

 
Come February 14th, you won't be able to throw a candy Sweetheart without hitting a prix-fixe menu that promises the most romantic of evenings for you and your [insert: snuggle-pie, honey-bear, lover, one-night stand that won't disappear, long-time boyfriend/girlfriend, first date (props to you!), or fellow singleton who lives above you and had nothing else to do].

 Well, that didn't last long.

It's supposed to be one hell of a nice weekend. Thanks be to the weather gods for granting us yet another two days of sunshine and warmth to offset the miserable June we endured. (We'll forgive them this morning's shower.) So what are you going to do with all that free time and sunshine? Drink, of course! And we've got a round-up of bars and restaurants with sweet patios for optimum al fresco boozing.

Holy crap. For foodies who read our pages, it must look like a streak of DiMaggio-like proportions.

First came Basho: a rare four-star review from ROBERT NADEAU, the Phoenix’s long-time restaurant critic, who is known to be frugal with his praise.

The next week, shockingly, he submitted another four-star review: for Stoddard's Fine Food and Ale