Lord Hobo: Any changes since new chef?

[celeriac]

I read somewhere (I think in their ad in the Dig?) that Lord Hobo changed over to a new chef sometime this summer. Does anyone have any feedback to offer on recent visits? In the past I thought it was best treated as a beer bar with good fries, a passable burger and a whole lot of other mediocre options. Given the quality of their beer list, I'd be delighted if that were to change.

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Lord Hobo
92 Hampshire St, Cambridge, MA 02141

[enhF94]

Rumor says the new chef is leaving in slightly more than a month, and they're hiring now. Given this thread, wonder what's going on? Or maybe the insulting name got to him.

[maxinboston]

I've enjoyed various bar snacks there and have found the quality of the food increasing steadily in the last 6 months. That being said, I do find their offerings more appropriate for colder weather. The popular Polenta Fries are delicious and solve the fry problem people were citing a few months ago.

On Sunday they posted something on Facebook about a new menu, and there website is currenlty "under construction." Seems changes are afoot.

[viperlush]

I do need to get back over there (stuck in a CBC and Flat Top rut). Their beer selection is excellent, the cocktails that I've had were good, and their food is good even with my complaints about portion size (polenta fries sound good).

[mkfisher]

My wife had a wonderful pork schnitzel dish there a few weeks back for lunch. Came with a nice mustard sauce. I had a similar dish at Cambridge Brewing Company, and the Lord Hobo version was far superior.

[lipoff]

Fries were just terrific --- they came with an equally good shaved prime rib sandwich, with a rich onion jam, nicely pressed and toasted bread, and delicious creamed horseradish. Really hit the spot!

[EvergreenDan]

Cliff notes: Great cocktails, obviously strong beer program, food continues to be much improved and quite good.

Drinks and apps last night. Oysters for $1 (before a certain hour, I think). Very good. Also had a nice fish taco. Cocktails were very good and well made. Good ice, nice glassware, good rail bottles, accurate measurements, fresh citrus. Really enjoyed having John tend to us. We were there at the 4:30 opening and stayed for maybe 1.5-2 hours. Not crowded when we left, but enough folks to give it a good vibe. Really enjoyed the music, too.

Beer is obviously a priority, but the cocktail program is strong. I'm picky and I'd happily drink most of the cocktails on their menu. They aren't afraid to put amari (bitter Italian liqueurs) and scotch in their cocktails and yet they offer lots of accessible choices too.

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www.kindredcocktails.com | Craft + Collect + Concoct + Categorize + Community

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Lord Hobo
92 Hampshire St, Cambridge, MA 02141

[MC Slim JB]

Are they still getting lines out the door on weekend nights?

http://mcslimjb.blogspot.com/

[Trumpetguy]

I had a ceviche special that was not very good, though the $5 price was appreciated. Also shared the fried calamari, which was not very noteworthy.

[dulce de leche]

Fries no longer feature heavily on the menu--was there a couple of weeks ago and you can't order a side anymore.

I can't really remember what we had (not such a good sign) but I thought a couple of things had nice flavors, but there was cream in some strange places. Ok, looking at the menu: cream sauce under a watermelon-cucumber-pepita salad and in the "summer vegetable pasta zucchini pappardelle, english peas & ricotta". Neither mentioned the cream in the menu description, and it detracted from what were pretty nice, basic dishes.
It made me not trust the palate of the chef. Like if you see someone with a bangin' outfit and then a weird weird hat. You should have stopped before the cream, the hat!

I had a great cocktail, though. Old Cuban. Great service, also.

[viperlush]

<Fries no longer feature heavily on the menu--was there a couple of weeks ago and you can't order a side anymore.>

I hope they change that. They were the only thing on the menu that I truly enjoyed (other portion sizes too small for the price or too many unopenned mussels).

[celeriac]

Oof. Yeah, eliminating the fries-as-side option is a really annoying move. We get it. You don't make a lot of money when people just order fries. Still, you're a bar.

[viperlush]

Exactly. Stopping by for a drink after work we don't want meals, but it is nice having fries to nibble on. Their beer list enough to still get us to walk down, but not having fries is enough to get us from staying for multiple drinks. Not when CBC and Meadhall are around.

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Meadhall
4 Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA 02142

[LStaff]

Maybe it has something to do with the food/liquor ratio that the city of Cambridge has imposed on them to maintain a liquor license? They might be trying to get people to buy more expensive apps and meals to meet that requirement.

http://www.beerscribe.com/2009/04/10/...

[Kinopio]

I was bummed they eliminated the different dipping sauces for the fries. Now there is only regular ketchup and then I believe something with truffle oil in it whereas they used to have 5 or so sauce options.

The dollar oysters and $5 appetizers during happy hour is a good deal though. And their beer list is tough to beat.

[celeriac]

In the interest of accuracy, I was there tonight and while I didn't notice if it was on the menu, maybe people had ordered (and received) side orders of fries. So it seems that they are an option.