Off Topic: Best Place for Fried Clams in New England

So I had a hankering for some fried clams today. I normally go to Woodman's when I'm looking for fried seafood. Today I decided to see if maybe I was missing out on something better. Yelp always has good restaurant suggestions. I also could have looked on Zagat's. Instead, I decided to "crowdsource" my fried clam choice by asking my friends on Twitter.

Interestingly enough, Woodman's came up several times as the fried clam joint of choice validating what I already assumed. However, I did got several other great recommendations, one of which I decided to try (Farnham's in Essex). It's hard to say whether or not it was better -- although my wife said that she still prefers Woodman's -- but the fried clams were definitely good. They were a little different in the sense that the batter was drier/more floury but crispy and accompanied by plenty of fries/onion rings. My one fear is that Farnham's would not be able to deal with tons of people in the thick of the summer like Woodman's can but maybe they change things up when they get busy.

Either way, I now have a bunch of seafood places I'm looking forward to trying. See below for some great recommendations (sourced from my friends on Twitter). I left in names so if you decide to try a place out and you like it/hate it, you know who to thank. If we missed any other "must try" seafood places, please leave 'em in the comments.

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  beaucolburn: @astrout if north of Boston counts, I'm a Woodman's guy. In town, Summer Shack in Back Bay is pretty good.
  2 minutes ago
  
  
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  susiea: @astrout TV 38...they rated Woodman's and Clam Shack and said Farnham's was "top of the food chain" sorry, i didn't direct my reply to u!

  4 minutes ago
  
  
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  dpitkin: @astrout my favorite fried clams Aunt Carries http://www.auntcarriesri.com/ & woodmans http://www.woodmans.com/
  25 minutes ago
  
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  beckiparkhurst: @astrout, Browns is the best. BEST. http://tinyurl.com/6mbfux (expand)
  36 minutes ago
  
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  susiea: @astrout are you watching phantom gourmet?? they're talking about the best fried clams!
  43 minutes ago
  
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  mnassal: @astrout Kelly's is always a good bet for whole belly clams, I personally like strip clams better ;-)
  about 1 hour ago
  
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  RobertCollins: @astrout Sounds good Aaron - Perhaps a Clambake for the next @mzinga BBQ-like gathering... Looking forward to post
  about 1 hour ago
  
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  susiea: @astrout Woodmans in Essex! but Farnham's in Essex is also good. As is Arnold's in Eastham! Now I'm craving :)
  about 1 hour ago
  
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  gradontripp: @astrout Most of the places I can think of closed now. I like the Barking Crab.
  about 1 hour ago
  
  
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  RobertCollins: @astrout Love to find the results of this one - I still hike up to Woodmans in Essex - http://www.woodmans.com or LobsterHut in Plymouth
  about 1 hour ago
  
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  LewisG: @astrout There are three great places--one on the road between Salisbury and Hampton beaches. The other two a left turn at the light same road
  about 1 hour ago
  
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  tamarwallace: @astrout Farnham's in Essex. They catered my rehearsal dinner! http://tinyurl.com/6z2g82
  
  
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  rob_react: @astrout Does woodman's count as "boston area?"
  about 2 hours ago

Last Night of the Patriots Dynasty?

I'm going to break ranks from the baseball talk for a second because I need help with some football questions. Namely, why is everybody bending over backwards to hail the Patriots for these free agent signings -- particularly the receivers? What in the name of Daniel Snyder is going on here?

Let's recap for a second WHY the Patriots needed to sign free agent wide receivers:

1) They've received little to no return on the first round draft pick they spent a year ago on Chad Jackson
2) The highly touted tight end position -- and the assumed ascension of Ben Watson -- hasn't really played out
3) Their best receiver is suiting up for the Seahawks, their most consistent playoff receiver is in Tennessee and the replacements for those two may have cost the team home field in the AFC title game last year

The bottom line is: the Patriots' mismanagement of the receiver position may have ultimately cost them the Super Bowl last year. In response, they've gone out and obtained Wes Welker, Donta Stallworth and Kelley Washington. While Welker has been productive, Stallworth is in the drug program and Washington hasn't even had 400 yards receiving in a season (shades of the David Terrell signing last year). Why do I get the feeling that these guys are on the Patriots roster because they were all that was out there on the market? It seems to me that the Patriots have been backed into a corner at this position to the point where they have had to scrap some of the criteria they use for evaluating players before signing them. This is a new direction for their front office -- and one that certainly hasn't worked well for others such as the Redskins.