My first job out of college was in Boston, in the financial district downtown. My local friends did their best to initiate this wide-eyed Californian into New England traditions of every sort, especially food. We feasted on indian pudding at Durgin Park, as many menu items as we could afford at the Union Oyster House and the No Name Restaurant, and $5/lb lobsters I would buy from the Italian fish monger across the street from where I lived in the North End. One dish I could never get enough of was “chowdah”. Clam chowder, fish chowder, seafood chowder, whatever, I loved it. New England style chowder is white, with cream and potatoes. No tomatoes. It’s thick, rich, and creamy. You can bury it in little oyster crackers.

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