Sometimes as I sail through that long stretch of Massachusetts Avenue between Harvard and Central squares, I get a bit of a no-go vibe, but when I step back and take stock of the culinary destinations there, it easily – in terms of variety, ambiance and price point – qualifies as one of the more diverse enclaves of eateries in Camberville. In the past we’ve highlighted the area’s fine dining (Pammy’s and Waypoint) as well as Indian (Tanjore) and Asian fare (Sakana and Dumpling House), and then there’s the long-ensconced Irish gastropub the Plough & Stars, which has a killer blackened catfish sando. Nestled along that stretch too is the Mass Ave Diner, which delivers on the “diner” tag but is so much more.
The sandwich slate packs pleasant surprises, and many of the spin on eggs comes with a definitive Mexican accent. Your basic French toast comes in challah and brioche renditions (do the brioche!) and if you want to go down the super sweet – and super filling – highway there’s lemon ricotta pancakes, corn cakes slathered with strawberry sauce and cannoli-stuffed pancakes. Delicious decadence indeed.
For eggs you can make your own combo plate (style, meat, sides, etc.), but the eggy highlights are the Gallo Pinto (scrambled eggs and rice and beans to fill your breakfast tortillas with) and classic huevos rancheros (as a breakfast wrap) along with a French toast breakfast sandwich (a plumper Monte Cristo). Moving over to the omelets, as with the egg plates you can make your own in addition to ordering the classics (Greek, Western and Denver). But if you like veggies (and I do), the Mexican comes with generous helpings of mushrooms, onions, peppers and tomatoes, all folded meticulously and griddled golden with cheddar cheese. It’s a hearty, “less guilty” feast that comes with a fairly spicy salsa packed inside. Though that salsa is the dish’s signature, I prefer getting it on the side and meting the spice factor by the bite. The veggies are sliced big and done al dente, so you get a nice bit of fresh crunch – something that might not for all, but that I value. The home fries are pretty respectable too, skin off, fluffy on the inside and griddle-browned with spice on the outside. You can get sides such as rice and beans, grapefruit and so on.
Other fun fare on the breakfast menu are the Ranchero Bowl (scrambles eggs, avocado, beans and rice and salsa, which is also pretty much the vegetarian breakfast bowl, swapping out the eggs for sautéed veggies) and fried chicken with corn cakes. On the lunch plate menu, the Chicken Jack sandwich is a standout, simple and elegant, flavorful and rich, yet not filling. You can get it grilled or fried, but I find the grilled version more satiating. The sandwich comes on toasted sourdough with bacon, Jack cheese (thus the name), crisp lettuce and tomato and an aioli that all meld seamlessly. On the plates menu, there’s standard fare – BLT, turkey club and a burger – as well as a steak frites, and you can get steak, sausage, bacon or turkey sausage added to nearly anything.
The Mass Ave Diner serves beer and wine and boasts a homey yet festive interior where classic art and diner symbols get fun plays on the wall, such as Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” holding a bottle of ketchup.
Mass Ave Diner, 906 Massachusetts Ave., Riverside, Cambridge
Side dish
Down the way at old friend Pagu, the Spanish-Asian eatery hosts a tuna fest 1 to 3 p.m. Nov. 3 with a tasting menu of maki, ceviche and anything and everything albacore and more.
Tom Meek is a writer living in Cambridge. His reviews, essays, short stories and articles have appeared in the WBUR ARTery, The Boston Phoenix, The Boston Globe, The Rumpus, The Charleston City Paper and SLAB literary journal. Tom is also a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics and rides his bike everywhere.
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I appreciate the distinction of this location being “between Harvard and central sq” on a strip identifying with neither. It is its own ecosystem in a “hallway” if not a “corridor”. You can’t even see Central Sq from this location!
lately, City Council has been trying to extend the boundaries of Central Sq to this section of Mass Ave blocks away from Central for the express purpose of including it in Central Square’s upzoning which would allow 18 stories in this section. If left to the original AHO 2.0, height in this section would be only 12 stories. This is rewriting any semblance of neighborhood to fit the Council’s and CDD’s agenda finding opportunity where it can without considering local residents who don’t see themselves as part of Central. This feels like a slight of hand in a case which finds itself heavy-handed when imposing an agenda.