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ifrullo Cafe has only been open
for about six months, but as the
Brookline spot hits its stride, owner
Colleen Marnell-Suhanosky is already
hoping for more cafes. She says shed like to fnd
a place in the South End to expand upon her phi-
losophy of the table bringing people together.
Setting up a second location is nothing new to
Marnell-Suhanosky, who opened Sfoglia restau-
rants in Nantucket and Manhattan with then-
husband Ron Suhanosky.
No stranger to the local scene, she worked
at two now-shuttered Boston restaurants (as a
cook at Biba and pastry chef at La Bettola) before
spending 15 years out of town. Back among famil-
iar faces and places, Marnell-Suhanosky tries
to make her customers feel right at home in the
Cypress Street cafe. There arent many tables in
the cozy, cheerful space, but the food that graces
them is big on favor and drawn from mostly
local purveyors, such as Evas Garden and Allan-
dale Farm. Chicken-quinoa chili, which Marnell-
Suhanosky calls a beautiful mistakethey
made quinoa-stufed peppers, and nobody
bought themis lighter than most chili, but
packs hearty, comforting favor. Its also gluten-
free, as are all of Rifrullos mufns and the
delicious-by-any-standard chocolate quinoa
cake. Rifrullo serves breakfast, lunch and din-
ner, in addition to providing take-out meals
and hosting community dinners about once a
month at a communal table. Sounds like itd be
right up the South Ends alley.
LOADED TO THE GRILLS
Spring is hereat least according to the
calendarso it will soon be time to uncover the
grill. Whether youre a novice or a self-appointed
grill-master, theres plenty of guidance in Grill
to Perfection, a new cookbook by locals Andy
Husbands, Chris Hart and Andrea Pyenson.
Theres no narrative; it breaks grilling down to
its basics, Pyenson says. Like a textbook, it pro-
vides instruction in hot-direct grilling (searing),
medium-direct grilling (roasting) and low-
direct grilling, which ensures a crispy exterior
and cooks the food all the way through. Whats
not so basic? Fun recipes like tofu tacos with
sriracha aioli, grilled spam loco moco with cur-
ried slaw, and Elvis grilled banana split.
Dish / Carolyn Faye Fox
RIFRULLO
REVS UP
A BROOKLINE NEWBIE HOPES TO SPREAD.
SWEET DREAMS: Decadent
options such as doughnuts with
crushed-petal icing are now a
delicious reality.
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SPRING CHICKEN: What Rifrullo
lacks in seating, it more than
makes up for in bold flavor.
The modern doughnut may date back to 1847,
when New Englander Elizabeth Gregory fried
up pastries for her ship captain sons voyages.
Her son, Hanson, took credit for poking a hole
through the dough. But neither thought to top
them with bacon bits or Heath Bar crumbles.
Doughnuts are rising as the new designer des-
sertwith former Top Chef contestant Steph-
anie Cmar leaving her No. 9 Park post to open
an artisanal doughnut pop-up shop, Somer-
villes Union Square Donuts attracting lines with
its gourmet menu and the Food Network creat-
ing a Cupcake Wars-style doughnut competi-
tion. Now, mom-and-pop shops and restaurants
are experimenting beyond Boston Cream, and
though these creative combinations may be dif-
cult to dip in cofee cups, theyre still a slam dunk.
Veteran shops are upping their classics with
smoky, sour and even foral favors. Kanes
Donuts, established in 1955 in Saugus, is famous
for its honey dip, which now shares the case with
favors like crme brulee, turtle and pink lem-
onade. Doughnuts are the new cupcake, says
Paul Delios, co-owner of Kanes, whos currently
Hole Lotta Love
developing rose petal and hibiscus dough-
nuts, topped with crushed-petal icing. Southies
Doughboy also sweetened up its selection with
strawberry-frosted Fruity Pebbles and maple
bacon doughnuts, thanks to some insight from
the owners daughter. The 37-year-old neigh-
borhood mainstay bakes most of its favors in
miniature sizes too.
Local chefs arent glazing over the trend
either. Island Creek Oyster Bars pastry chef,
Lauren Kroesser, added her brown butter bacon
doughnut with pecan tofee crumble, featur-
ing house-cured, thick-cut bacon, to menus
last month. Strip-Ts pastry chef Jake Novick-
Finder changes toppings seasonally, creating
favors that have included rhubarb and Szech-
uan pepper as well as corn, basil and cheddar.
Creamsicles inspired his new vanilla orange tar-
ragon doughnut, a sourdough brioche flled
with vanilla cream and topped with Cara Cara
orange glaze and tarragon chips. Its just fun
to heighten something that is so delicious on its
own, Novick-Finder says. A plain doughnut is
far from plain. / Hannah Sheinberg
Strip Ts Vanilla Orange
Tarragon Doughnut
Doughboys Fruity
Pebbles Doughnut
Island Creek Oyster Bars Bacon
Doughnut with Pecan Tofee Crumble
Kanes Hibiscus
Doughnut