The fact that Boston has a lot of restaurant options makes the nightly Where should we go to dinner? decision that much harder. This restaurant dilemma is what drove one Boston young professional, Derek McLeod, to launch the restaurant discovery platform, InquisEATive.
The organization, which McLeod launched this summer, is aiming to partner with local eateries to give foodies a taste of Boston’s best restaurants. InquisEATive held their first sold-out tasting event in July at Blue Inc., offering up some of Chef Jason Santos’s best dishes.
Here, the Boston University grad and InquisEATive founder tells BostInno how he spends his days eating and biking his way through Boston.
How do you spend most mornings?
I get up pretty early, but I leave myself more time than I need. My favorite mornings are when my girlfriend gets home from her nightshift at the hospital. I’ll pour myself a cup of coffee and we’ll just chat for a while before I have to head out for the day and she heads to bed.
What are the top priorities on your to-do list right now?
Reaching out and introducing myself to new restaurants and advertising partners. I have a couple of really cool events in mind for August and September, so I’m trying to nail down the logistics on those. I spend a lot of time on the phone and visiting restaurants around the city.
What is the best part and the worst part about your day?
Best part of the day is enjoying my coffee in the morning. I hold that time to be sacred because it’s a relaxing start to my day. The worst part of my day is the commute on my bike. It is ruthless out there.
Why did you decide to launch inquisEATive?
It was a Friday night and my girlfriend and I were deciding where to go to dinner. We looked at menus online, read reviews, and debated whether or not to spend money trying something new. We ended up going to a restaurant that we’d been to a hundred times. That annoyed me because we live in such a big city with so many amazing restaurants. By working with restaurants to create tasting menus, not only would I be able to try a lot of new places, but I’d be able to try several of their best dishes as well.
What dish in Boston are you really loving right now?
Our first event at Blue Inc. totally sold out, so I’m pretty happy that we’re going back there again on August 13. I’m a huge fan of their mussels. Pro tip: Save the bread for last, the leftover sauce at the bottom of the bowl is amazing. I’m also a huge fan of Ernesto’s Pizza. Honestly the best pizza in the city. Regina and Santarpio’s fans get on me for saying that, but I’m sticking to my guns.
If you could impart one piece of advice to our readers, what would it be?
How about two. First, go explore your city. Get off at a random T stop you’ve never gotten off at before and just wander around that neighborhood, learn what makes that area unique and what distinguishes it from the rest of Boston. Second, if you’re paying cash on the Green Line, for the love of God, be the last in line.
What would you do if you were suddenly granted a day off from work tomorrow?
I would want to go for a stroll around the city. I’d walk the Harbor Walk and end up at Carson Beach. I’d also bike the Emerald Necklace. I think that’s such a unique thing for a city to have and there are no cars for 99 percent of it, so that’s cool.
If you weren’t answering my questions, what would you be doing instead?
I would be researching. Finding out what new places are available in the city and might be interested in working with inquisEATive. There’s certainly a huge horizon and I’ve barely seen it.
