Some years back, the site of this expansive picnic-table seafood eatery was occupied by a Polynesian restaurant.
Apart from a South Seas mural, the only trace of the previous establishment is a tiki pole, which has been re-carved with the countenance of a New England fisherman. He seems contented, as if he'd just polished off a plate of spicy, slightly greasy Rhode Island style calamari (below; $16), with fries and slaw.
I always look forward to Summer Shack visits — especially during the cooler months, when Indian pudding is in season — but a newer location, at the Mohegan Sun casino, turned up both winners and losers. Fried clam bellies (not shown; appetizer; $10.50) were very good, and the filling in my strawberry chiffon pie (not shown; $5.50) was wonderful, but at first I mistook the bottom crust for cardboard.
Also shown below: a sign at the nearby MBTA station, named for a species of herring. Some are fit for human consumption, but to the best of my knowledge they never find their way into Summer Shack; the variety I know best, called bunker on the Jersey shore, is used as baitfish.
Summer Shack
149 Alewife Brook Pkwy., Cambridge, Massachusetts
(one of several locations)
617-520-9500
www.SummerShackRestaurant.com
