Winter Restaurant Week 2012

I tried three new-to-me eateries this Restaurant Week!

Katie and I kicked off the festivities by going to Tremont 647. I try to get to a different South End venue each time, and one look at the menu - the restaurant's full menu, in fact, made available as a RW deal - made the decision to come here easy. Once we arrived, we were instantly comfortable - the restaurant's windows were thrown open to let in the unexpectedly warm Boston spring air, and we got seated at a plush, high booth with diners on one side, and regulars of the bustling South End bar scene on the other. The food added to the cozy, funky vibe.

This was the most indulgent comfort-food meal I have ever had. I started off with their famous lobster mac, receiving an entree-sized portion of my life's latest contender for best man 'n' cheese. The pasta was soft and chewy, with plenty of large, tender lobster chunks mixed in. The cheddar mornay sauce coating it all was heavenly - it had a consistently creamy, cheesy texture and sharp taste, but enough extra cheese was present so that each bite was positively dripping in the gooey stuff, with strands linking it back to the main dish. That entire dish was then covered in crumbled Ritz crackers! The look was unusual, but it worked quite well - buttery, salty crackers go well with cream and cheese. I then had a grass-fed beef burger for my entree, though I was so nearly full thanks to that cheesy appetizer that most of the burger came home. It was a pleasant hunk of beef, topped with cheddar cheese and bacon and served on a chewy brioche bun. I spread house-made ketchup and spicy "secret sauce" all over it, leaving only a little of each condiment left for the fries. I ate very few fries to save room for what was coming. I needed all the room I could get for Tremont 647's epically large and delicious dessert, a brownie sundae made of a chocolate cherry brownie, popcorn ice cream, candied peanuts, and plenty of chocolate and caramel sauce. Wow! The chocolate brownie was very dense and fudgy, and had large, fresh cherry pieces baked throughout. (No Maraschinos here, phew!) The ice cream tasted like Cracker Jacks, and that peanuts-and-caramel theme was reinforced by the toppings. There was plenty of sauce to swirl and coat each delicious brownie/ice-cream bite, so I really got to enjoy each aspect of this dessert over and over again. I like how a common dessert was taken up a notch with unique interpretations of traditional components - after all, have you ever seen cherries in a brownie as opposed to topping the sundae, or ice cream flavored like a snack whose texture and use case is so opposite from ice cream's? I hadn't. Tremont 647 gets a full endorsement for creativity...and, of course, taste.

BONUS ROUND: We went to 28 Degrees after, where we got to sample the bar's vodka offerings in...several ways. Katie has an amusing summary of that outing available for your reading pleasure! Let's just say that we "enjoyed" multiple free drinks, this delicious bread pudding, and forthcoming dry-cleaning reimbursements.

Erbaluce is the very definition of a hidden gem. Tucked away in the Bay Village neighborhood, with an unassuming exterior, and surrounded by bigger and bolder offerings, it would be easy to pass by this little restaurant. I don't recommend doing that, though. Erbaluce has the freshest, most creative Italian food I've had in Boston, and a charming interior and friendly waitstaff to boot! The space is warm and snug, with a small terra cotta bar, minimally elegant but comfortable furnishings, and soft lighting augmented with plenty of candles. The feel is homey and intimate. The staff speak in gentle tones and serve with a smile. And oh, the food! Erbaluce prides itself on sourcing only local, organic ingredients for its dishes, and the fresh, pure taste of such ingredients really comes through in the cooking. They also abstain from butter and cream, letting oil and herbs bring out their ingredients' popping natural flavors. I loved everything about being there. So, what did Greg and I eat?

The bread course - a large, dense hunk of focaccia with oil and herbed bean paste for dipping - was sizable enough to be an appetizer. My "second" appetizer was three wild boar and veal meatballs in a tomato parmesan sauce. Wild boar is such a flavorful meat, and I love the tender mouthfeel of veal, so I thoroughly enjoyed these little nuggets. I'm pretty sure some oregano and other herbs were mixed in the meatballs, too, adding even more flavor depth. The tomato parmesan sauce was light and tangy, and plentiful enough to coat each bite of meat! Homemade herbed fusilli pasta - did I mention that Erbaluce makes all their pastas?! - tossed in oil with butternut squash, tomato, basil, and parmesan made for a stunning main course. The long, tightly twirled pasta was thick and chewy. Its herbed, doughy flavor was subtle, but still more noticeable than any other pasta flavor I've had. The vegetable accompaniments were cut small and served soft, and the whole dish was topped with a flurry of parmesan gratings, shavings, and flakes. Overall, the dish was hearty but not heavy, fresh, and tasty. I would use similar words to characterize my dessert, a chocolate tortella in a phyllo dough shell topped with sour cherries and creme fraiche. The phyllo dough was forgettable, with its dry flaky pieces confusing the dessert's otherwise smooth and pleasing texture. The tortella itself, though, was really interesting. Imagine a creamy, tangy, bittersweet chocolate mousse, that managed to be more fluid than a typical mousse but somehow denser as well. The creme fraiche dollop was cool, sweet by comparison, and refreshing, and provided a good canvas for the assertive sour fruit dropped on top. Those tart cherries were chewy and bursting with juice. Lastly, the whole thing was drizzled in a sour cherry sauce and potent wildflower honey. The honey reminded me of the most unusual and delicious honey I've ever tasted, from raspberry flowers in Napa Valley - though this must have been a locally-sourced equivalent.

I look forward to revisiting Erbaluce and sampling something off their regular menu...and maybe even stomaching my own mushroom honey flip as opposed to stealing sips of Greg's!

BONUS ROUND: We grabbed a drink at Sunset after, and while I enjoyed my Boulevard Tank 7 farmhouse ale, I was more excited to see White Birch beers on tap! I'll get some next time I'm there. Support New Hampshire microbrewing, friends, and order a pint of White Birch today!

Chris and I decided late in the game to fit in a Restaurant Week dinner, at which point preexisting reservations prevented our first choices - so we settled on Brasserie Jo, a French monstrosity in the Colonnade Hotel. I'm always eager to try French restaurants, because I hope I'll find one, someday, that helps me comprehend the world's obsession with French food. Jo, alas, was not that restaurant. The brasserie vibe that I usually love was attempted to tacky excess here, with tiled floors, harsh fluorescent lighting, and ten times as many clattering dishes/utensils to serve/eat any given course than you actually need. At least the courses weren't tacky or excessive, just average.

My appetizer was gnocchi with beef cheek, Brussels sprouts, and mandarin oranges. The gnocchi was stiff on the outside, but soft and gooey on the inside, almost like mashed potatoes. I loved the texture and taste of the gnocchi itself, but so much tarragon was used to season it that I was somewhat put off. The beef cheek was dry and tough, but the sprouts and orange slices tasted as expected. I had coq au vin for dinner, which was better and worse than past versions of this dish sampled elsewhere. The noodles were a definite improvement over the usual egg noodles one gets, reminding me of oh-so-tasty German spaetzle. The chicken, though, was dark and stringy, and the Burgundy sauce that I dolloped over it all was thick and gelatinous. So, not a winner - but less frustrating than the other options (lamb steak or barley risotto) would have been. Then, I ate the molten chocolate cake with raspberry chocolate ice cream for dessert. I know, I know, someone with dessert "cred" shouldn't be ordering that ubiquitous cake - but if you understood how non-Julie the alternatives were (banana crumble or cappuccino pot de creme), you would forgive me. I actually liked this dessert a lot! The molten item itself was like the best possible ice-cream-topping fudge encased in a thin layer of devil's-food cake. It was big, too, which this chocoholic appreciated. The ice cream was subtly berry-flavored, with a creamy milk chocolate base and semisweet chocolate chips taking center stage. A squirt of whipped cream topped it all off, and the sum total of these parts was rather suggestive of a brownie sundae. (Hmm, do I detect a theme in this RW's dessert orders?) This pleasant surprise was the best part of this final RW meal.

BONUS ROUND: We had drinks at Back Bay Social Club before, and I was so impressed with my libation that it, not any of the food, was "the find" of the night! The mix of vodka, ginger liqueur, honey, lemon, and champagne float was called the Winter Social, but its taste and refreshing quality screamed of summer. Here's hoping BBSC keeps it on the menu in the warm months, though it would have to be under a different name.

Wow, that was a lot of food...and drink! Here's to smaller, but no less delicious, meals as I readjust to normal eating. The desserts can stay huge, though. :-)