Icarus?

[MasalaWala]

I heard about a $28 prix fixe menu that they are doing durning the month of July. Has anyone been to it? Is it worth checking out? I have never been to Icarus and know it is not a board favorite but is it worth checking out for this price?

[MaggieMuffin]

I agree RW can be hit and miss, but when it is a hit, it is out of the park for the money.

I did the July PF at Icarus and enjoyed it tremendously. I have also eaten there on a regular night and RW in the spring, overall, I would consider this one of the must visit places in Boston, especially when there is a deal on.

[Wasgo001]

If Icarus planned to use Restaurant Week to entice us back in the future, they missed their mark. Perhaps our party of four should have been more adventurous when choosing dishes from the prix fixe menu, but we decided to play it safe with the Pork Roast, Bluefish and Flatiron Steak options thinking that if they got this right we would be back to splurge on their more exotic dishes.

After waiting far too long for average appetizers, we asked our waiter if the kitchen was backed-up. He apologized for the delay and offered to top-off our wines...never happened. This was hard to understand, as even though it was Saturday evening, there were an abundance of empty tables. When my steak arrived it was lukewarm and tasted like a typical London broil. My wife described the pork as bland and the Bluefish was described as nothing special.

The desserts were only fair, less than what we would expect from such a highly regarded restaurant. I chose the flourless chocolate cake and the rest of the party had the profiteroles.

Perhaps we should have considered it a privilege to dine at Icarus for these prices, but we did expect much more in terms of quality, presentation, and service. Our consensus was to give Icarus a thumbs-down when considering a future visit. On a positive note, Restaurant Week served its purpose by helping us sample fine restaurants for our A-list without breaking the bank.

[fullbelly]

I didn't attend during RW, but I did hit up Icarus during their anniversary month, and my experience couldn't have been more opposite. The meal was fabulous and inventive -- and even moreso when you consider the whole thing was only $28 bucks. Service was attentive. Atmosphere great as always, and while it wasn't jammed packed on a Thursday, it was bustling. I'm surprised really to hear that your meal was this dreadful... that stuff does happen, but I wouldn't take this place permanently off your list, IMHO.

[Blumie]

I get the sense the RW is just a disaster. Restaurants feel obligated to participate, and although I'm sure they want to show off their capabilities, they also must feel pressure to keep costs down and to try to design a menu that easily can be replicated for the masses that fill RW dining rooms. Many just can't pull it off, but I don't think they should be judged negatively for it: the ability to pull this kind of thing off is a different talent than being able to design and execute on a creative menu for which you can charge full freight.

[MC Slim JB]

I think the annual anniversary prix fixe is a fine tradition, a nice thank-you to the crowd of mostly locals who have been supporting the place for years, and a good value, worth doing. But it is not representative of the restaurant's usual fare. Keep that in mind and enjoy it for what it is. I expect I'll be going again this year.

[southender]

I went last year for the Restaurant Week dinner and it was pretty good!

[BobB]

Concur, I've never had a bad meal there and at that price will be heading back this month. Thanks for the tip!

[missykins]

I agree, I've had good experiences at Icarus - service was excellent and I loved the food, $28 is a steal.

[Blumie]

Icarus may not be a board favorite, but most agree that it's consistently good, even if not great. I think the $28 prix fixe definitely is worth checking out.