Marcel L. wrote: > > Amy L. wrote: > > >My favorite restaurant in Boston is Anthony's Pier 4. It's incredible > >seafood in a wonderful atmosphere. The food was incredible -- a real > > This is the first positive comment I have heard about the _food_ > (as opposed to the view or the wine list) at Anthony's Pier Four in > at least 8 years (and probably longer). Are they improving things > in the kitchen? Hell, no! I ate there for the first time in years a few weeks ago as the guest of an out-of-town friend who had just come into some money. She'd heard about the "great" food at Anthony's and insisted on taking a group of us out to eat there. I'll grant you the view is very nice, but the food was ATROCIOUS! I thought it was illegal to serve such bad seafood on the Boston waterfront. I have had (and I am NOT exaggerating) considerably better fish at any number of oceanside take-out fish-and-chips joints. And this wasn't just me - there were about twelve of us there, and everything I could see was poorly prepared and seriously overpriced. On top of this, the service was poor (inattentive and uninformed), and on top of THAT, there was the matter of the wine. They have an impressive wine list (mind you I said LIST, not cellar), and I do appreciate a good bottle. Given carte blanche by my hostess, I decided a good Puligny-Montrachet would be hard to beat. There were three on the list, in the $45 - $60 per bottle range, and I asked the "wine steward" for advice on choosing one, specifically mentioning that I was looking for the most full-flavored. He unhesitatingly picked the most expensive of the three. I noticed that it was also the oldest of the three and questioned whether it might not be past its peak, but he assured me it was excellent. It was not. It was thin and almost tasteless, and if I had been on my own (and paying for it myself) I would have sent it back, something I've only done once in decades of dining out. As it was, I didn't want to create a scene when my friend was trying to provide what she thought was a special dining experience, so I left bad enough alone. All in all, my advice is to stay as far away as you possibly can from this rip-off emporium. ******************* Bob Band "Quando dubitatis, ludite auris"
Boston, MA