Parker House rolls are soft, buttery yeast rolls folded into a half-moon shape and baked golden. Invented at the Parker House Hotel on School Street in Boston in the 1870s; a staple of New England Thanksgiving tables.
Where to eat it: 3 restaurants across 1 city.
The Parker House Roll was invented at Boston's Parker House Hotel in the 1870s, traditionally attributed to a German baker who folded discs of enriched dough into the now-canonical shape after a chef-staff dispute. The hotel, opened by Harvey Parker in 1855, also gave the world the Boston cream pie and the chocolate Boston cream donut. The Omni Parker House continues to serve the rolls in its Parker's Restaurant dining room daily. Joanne Chang's Flour Bakery sells a sourdough-inflected version year-round; many Boston-area Thanksgiving tables centre on a basket of buttered Parker House rolls and gravy.
Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy, Eggs
Tip from the editors. Eat warm from the oven, no later than 30 minutes after baking. They lose the soft pull on the first cool.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Joanne Chang opened Flour on Washington Street in Boston's South End in 2000; the city's pastry empire grew to 10 locations across Boston and Cambridge. Sticky buns the headline bake.
Tip: Sticky buns sell out by 14:00 weekends. Order ahead online; the South End original is the calmest of the 10 locations on weekdays.
Worth the queue: Sticky bun with pecans and caramel
Modern Pastry on Hanover Street has filled cannoli to order in Boston's North End since 1930. Chocolate-dipped shells, lighter ricotta cream, the local pick over Mike's.
Tip: Locals line up at Modern; tourists at Mike's. The chocolate-dipped shell is the headline item; Italian rum cake is the under-ordered cake.
Worth the queue: Chocolate-dipped cannoli with sweet cream
Union Oyster House on Union Street has shucked oysters in Boston since 1826, the oldest continuously operating restaurant in the United States. Daniel Webster's seat is still at the bar.
Signature: Oysters on the half shell, Clam chowder
Order: A dozen Wellfleets at the U-shaped bar and a cup of clam chowder.
Tip: Skip the dining-room tables and sit at the historic raw bar. The bar is the original 1826 plank.
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