sycamore.
| Cuisine | American (New) |
|---|---|
| Price | $$$ (31-50) |
| Rating | 7/10 |
| Last Visit | May 25, 2019 |
| Location | Boston: West |
General Notes
Another incredible restaurant, this time situated in Newton Center. I've been wanting to come to this restaurant for quite a while but I've been deterred by the distance from campus. This time, I had a car rented for the day and jumped on the opportunity to visit. It did not disappoint. The food was precise and incredibly delicious. We ordered the Atlantic Fish Board for two, and each individual component was excellent. The interior was nice and intimate. Certainly one of my best restaurant experiences - I would love to come back and try this again, and I would highly recommend giving this place a try!
Positives
> As I've mentioned, their food is incredible. They exercise great attention to detail; there are very few even minor flaws that I can find in any of their dishes.
> The menu is seasonal and frequently changes. The food itself is also very diverse. I would characterize the food as a combination of Mediterranean, Italian, and French cuisine influences.
> What I love is that their dishes are not necessarily what you think is expensive, but rather they take relatively common ingredients and transform them into something incredible.
> I like how you have the opportunity to sample a lot of small dishes. I ordered the Atlantic Fish Board, which consisted of four different components: roasted flounder, grilled rhode island squid, razor clams casino, and grilled chicken skewers. Each one of the individual preparations is very different and provides variety/contrast. This isn't on the online menu, but when I visited they also had a $57 chef's choice sampler option. The snacks are also nice additions.
> The waiters were very friendly. One thing I found rather amusing is that they were quite aggressive at filling our water cups.
Negatives
> Really, the only thing that I can come up with is that I would have liked their bread to be warmer. It didn't have that same comforting feeling to it when it was cold.
Dishes Tasted
- ★★★☆ Grilled Rhode Island Squid -- Squid is cooked beautifully. It's served over beans of some form (don't remember the details super well). I love the flavor - lightly smoky and with a Mediterranean spice palette.
- ★☆☆☆ Roasted Flounder -- Roasted whole. It was incredibly tender, but personally I prefer my fish not quite so tender. Seasoning was slightly off, since it felt like the seasoning didn't penetrate too far into the skin/exterior.
- ★★★☆ Tuscan Chicken Liver Pate -- Well-toasted bread, and the pop of acidity from the raisins (or similar) added a nice contrasting flavor note.
- ★★★☆ Grilled Shrimp Skewers -- I'm usually not the biggest fan of shrimp skewers, but these were seasoned well and cooked to perfection. Just a minor detail, I would have liked a bit more of the shell at the end near the tail to be taken off because it was a slightly annoying to eat the tail.
- ★★★★ Razor Clams Casino -- My first time having razor clams! The texture is incredible, and the flavor profile is on point.
- ★★★★ Chorizo Croquettas -- Everything about this dish is incredible. There are no actual discernible chunks of chorizo in the croquette, but the chorizo flavor shines through (perhaps it was pulsed?). I loved the contrast in textures for this dish. It was served with a romesco sauce, which was coarse and grainy. The croquette was incredibly soft and smooth with a crispy exterior. Definitely give this a try!
Atlantic Fish Board
