True hidden gems amongst the city.
There are many hidden gems in New England. This one we’ll talk about is located in Lawrence, Massachusetts. This place is packed with delicious cocktails and Dominican sushi, among other delicious a la carte plates. Their Dominican sushi is cooked and is really flavorful. The place is colorful yet private and dark at the same time, it has colorful photos of the Dominican Republic and its people and also Japanese themed pictures. This place is a Latin fusion house. Their handcrafted cocktails are amazing and really strong. They are VAKA.
On our visit to this place, we started with some dim sum (I couldn’t take a picture! They were gone too fast) and a Don Julio 1942 margarita and a martini which were, by the way, amazing. We also ordered the spicy wings with a mango habanero sauce, and the ninja octopus salad (octopus over arugula salad with a miso passion fruit Japanese dressing). The dim sum was amazing as they were shrimp shumai served alongside a sweet sauce. The wings were really crispy and tasty. They were accompanied by a mango jalapeños sauce, which was fine, but my husband complained to me they weren’t as spicy as advertised (in fact, he didn’t feel the spicy kick to them at all).
For the entrees, I didn't have any, but Bradley had the rolls “La Para” and “No Bulto.” Something you guys should know is their Dominican sushi rolls’ names are not recognizable unless you’re from the Dominican Republic and/or you’ve got at least some background in their slang (LOL).
“La Para” roll was something quite unique, truly. It consisted of shrimp tempura, cream cheese, bacon, maduro, & avocado. It was mouth watering.
The “No Bulto” roll (his favourite) was extraordinary. It was without words, for sure. It had churrasco, grilled chicken, cream cheese, maduro, guacamole, and chimichurri sauce.
This visit was unique. Christian (our server, and no. 1 bartender, in my husband‘s opinion) and everyone else made this visit special. It was something I hadn’t experienced locally in so long. VAKA truly makes you feel welcomed, and makes you feel good. This experience was expected, because of the reviews, but, honestly, it was surpassed.
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