On Dec 25, 8:06*am, George Shirley > wrote:
> Gloria P wrote:
> > Dimitri's menu reminded me of the Christmas Eve open houses my parents
> > had in Massachusetts while they were still alive. *(They died in 1971
> > and '72.)
>
> > In their Portuguese tradition, Christmas Eve day was a day of abstinence
> > from meat, but big on hospitality and family.
>
> > After a full day of work, they would come home to cook octopus stew,
> > codfish cakes, and big loaves of bread with Portuguese chourico and ham
> > rolled into the dough (that was for "breakfast" after Midnight Mass.)
>
> > About 8PM the friends and relatives would begin to arrive. *The red wine
> > (homemade) began to flow, the dining room table would be set with a
> > buffet of breads, codfish, octopus, clams-and-rice, lots of cured
> > olives, a big salad, plus cookies, chocolates, aletria (vermicelli
> > custard pudding) and spice cake heavy with nuts.
>

>
> Are you, by chance, from Fall River, Massachusetts Gloria? I was
> stationed across the river from there in 1959-60 and enjoyed going to
> the Portuguese restaurants when I was on liberty from Newport, RI. I
> ended up well-fed after those trips.

Then you MUST have gone to Magoni's Ferry Landing!! It was still
there when I was in the area in 2006, but smelled of disinfectant when
I stuck head in the door for a nostalgic look-see. I used to visit
folks there in Somerset and ate there often.