Looking for a few Boston spots to grab a quick single course at the bar, for an anniversary night out.

[aregularjoe]

I'll be taking my lovely wife out for our anniversary and thought that instead of a single restaurant, we would spend the evening getting small plates or single courses at a few different places.

I was thinking that the bar at No. 9 park is always great, and I like the bar at Pomodoro in Brookline village. But what else would you suggest?

Here is the deal:

We eat everything so anything goes cuisine wise.

Boston, Brookline, Cambridge Somerville are all fine.

It's a Tuesday night.

We really don't want to waste time waiting, so anything trendy and mobbed like Craigie On Main is out.

I know I mentioned some fancier/ more expensive places but anything goes!

Thanks for any input you can offer!

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Pomodoro
24 Harvard St, Brookline, MA 02445

[aregularjoe]

Thanks to all who replied. Some interesting suggestions!

[sflory]

We've done a few dinners like this, restaurant crawl style. The area in the south end home to Hammersley's, The Butcher Shop, B&G Oyster, Sibling Rivalry and 28 Degrees was perfect for it. Hammersley's bar is smallish - but turns over. Inman Square in Cambridge works nicely too, Ole, East Coast Grill and Christina's (more of a with-kids crawl)

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28 Degrees
1 Appleton St., Boston, MA 02116

Sibling Rivalry
525 Tremont St., Boston, MA 02116

East Coast Restaurant
1456 Dorchester Ave, Dorchester, MA 02122

[barleywino]

I would do the raviolini w/ short rib (on the bone) or beef carpaccio at the bar at Scampo, followed by their panna cotta w/ zabaglione and sour cherry compote

[opinionatedchef]

joe, have you gone yet? how was it?your report would be very helpful for future inquiries.

[aregularjoe]

Nope. Nov 15 is the evening in question. I'll report back on what I decide and how it works out...

[aregularjoe]

Here is what we did.

Started at Dante for the $1 oysters. I had recently eaten at Il Casale, its sister restaurant and had an excellent meal, and have recommended it folks. I cannot recommend Dante.

They advertise $1 oysters from 4-6. When we walked in at 4:30 the place was empty save for some of the staff sitting at the bar tasting cocktails that the bartender was experimenting with. That went on for about a half hour after we sat down at the bar. I was surprised that the manager would let that happen.

They oysters were good. The accompanying horseradish was served as paper thin strip that I thought would be too strong, but they were almost flavorless.

Arranchini were served burned. There was actually black on the outside of them. A person behind the bar (not the bartender, maybe a hostess?) ask how we liked them. I picked one up, tapped it against my plate (it was hard as a rock) and said they were overcooked. She offered to replace them, I declined.

Fegatini was also burned. Some of the bread charred black all the way through.

My wife ordered a prosecco. A bottle came out of the fridge with about 1 glass left in it. When he poured it I could see it was flat. So could he, because he opened a new bottle, filled the remaining 1/4 inch of the glass to the brim, and served it to us. I was shocked.

So he put it down in front of my wife, i tasted it, and told him it was flat. He agreed and poured us a new glass. And then he mad a big show of telling us that he had just opened the bottle that afternoon, and it must be that the stopper was defective. This was ridiculous as he clearly new it was flat and tried to save it by topping the pour off with good wine.

When I got the bill, the arranchini and the prosecco were not on it. Have to give them points for that, but I will not be returning. To many mistakes. Probably a weak manager.

Next stop was Sorellina. Again for apps at the bar. Just the opposite experience. I can't say enough good about it. Everything was fantastic! The room, the staff. Clearly a tight ship. The highlights of the food were the Kobe beef meatballs, the beef tartare and the mushroom soup. The mushroom soup, with a thin layer of parmesan cream on top is one of the most fantastic dishes I have ever had, and I would kill to see how they make it!

Sorellina is not cheap, but the quality of ingredients and preparation, the service, and the love of it is there. You get every pennies worth and more.

Sorellina's complimentary car service took us to our next stop, Mistral, where we finished with escargot and the fois gras/ duck confit dish. Both spectacular, rich and decadent. We shared a creme brule for desert, and they wrote "Happy Anniversary" on it for us, a great catch by our waiter who we had mentioned it to.

All in all we were pleased. Too bad about Dante. I would have liked to have added one more stop but it was just too much, and Sorellina was so good that we almost just stayed there.

Thanks for all the input.

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Sorellina
1 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02116

[opinionatedchef]

joe, what a great report; fun evening! fyi, we also had disappointments at dante and stopped going there a few yrs ago (they were good at the beginning though.) and we also like il casale. will have to go to sorellina; those dishes have my name all over them! glad the evening got better and special; good memories.

[opinionatedchef]

There have been two similar requests to yours in the last 6 months i think.if i find them, i'll post a link. i think you do want to think about transportation time and try to keep it to one area. in that case, i would keep to the south end. aquitaine, masa,metropolis, union bar and grill.....all rcve positive CH reviews. some also like the butcherie and b and d oysters(though opinions seem to vary more on this spot.)

i would also recommend that you decide where to start; call the GM and explain what you're doing, so maybe you can at least start off w/ an assured seating.

[Trumpetguy]

How 'bout a South End crawl? I'd start at B&G for oysters and Chablis or Champagne. Then? Maybe across the street to Butcher Shop for vino and something; then Coppa, a place made for small shared bites. Pizza+ Veggies/Crudo/or Meats could fill the cracks and more wine & drinks. Dessert could be found after--Picco for ice cream, for example :) Then go next door to The Beehive for a cocktail :) That sings of romance ;)

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Coppa
253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118

[Wannabfoode]

i like the bar at orinoco brookline village

[Boston_Otter]

I love Bergamot's bar menu, and their Quebecois cocktail is, for my money, one of the best drinks in the city.

[cpingenot]

My husband and I like to do this approach- My favorite times have been in Harvard sq, because then we can walk to all the locations. On our most recent, I believe we hit Casablanca, Henrietta's table and I forget the third...Other options include Harvest, Rialto, Russell House (for the fried poached egg), Cambridge 1 and further afield Tavern at the cellar.

I think you could do a really fun progressive down Main St in Cambridge these days- Starting at Rendezvous, hitting Cragie on Main if it's not too crowded, Salts (although I don't recall if they have a bar per se) Area 4 and Catalyst. We'll let you skip cuchi-cuchi, Bertucci's and Royal East!

[Northender]

In the North End, the bar at Prezza would be fun and probably not too crazy on a Tuesday night. Most of their menu items are perfect for sharing. The bar at Monica's Vinoteca is fun and their homemade pasta dishes ar very good.

Also, Carmen has a small bar and it is a smaller and more romantic location - not a full bar though, but plenty of wine selections.

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Prezza
24 Fleet St., Boston, MA 02113

[teezeetoo]

Rialto, Rendezvous and Gargoyle all have great bar choices.

[digga]

Remember, Gargoyles is closed..right? I haven't been keeping up. The bar at Rendezvous is great for eating - it's low, as if you were seated at a table and the service is attentive.

B and I just had some nice bites at the bar at Central Kitchen tonight - caprese salad that was definitely not boring, grilled haloumi with Korean-esque parsley salad, and grilled octopus. All were delicious. Guess we were in a Greek frame of mind this evening!

[Boston_Otter]

They're open again this weekend (Oct 14 / 15) for bar food and cocktails.

[phatchris]

+1 for the bar at Prezza, also Lucca has a great bar.

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Prezza
24 Fleet St., Boston, MA 02113

Lucca Restaurant
226 Hanover St., Boston, MA 02113

[dfan]

Coppa sounds perfect.

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Coppa
253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118

[Bellachefa]

course one Via Matta crunchy eggplant, some wine and the house bread and basil oil.

course two Scampo clams and pasta

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Via Matta
79 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116

[cambridgedoctpr]

i like Rialto; i think that Clio might be a possibility; what about Rendezvous? All with very good food.

i like Rod Dee though it is hardly romantic; Thailand Cafe has good food but is dreary.

[emannths]

Rod Dee would be fun--not romantic, but it's clean and colorful and the staff is super-nice. You could start at Posto, head to Rod Dee, then make your way down Beacon Street to Bergamot, Dali, and oysters at East Coast Grill. Not sure how crowded the bars are at these places on Tuesdays, but it could make for a fun evening of good food.

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East Coast Grill and Raw Bar
1271 Cambridge St, Cambridge, MA 02139

Dali
415 Washington St, Somerville, MA 02143

Bergamot
118 Beacon St, Somerville, MA 02143

Pizzeria Posto
187 Elm St, Somerville, MA 02144

RodDee
1906 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA

[cambridgedoctpr]

there are lots of places that have oysters for 1.00; you can look up the various threads if that seems interesting. i know that i like ot get a couple dozen and share them.