As part of a celebration last week, a group of four of us descended upon L'Espalier (Gloucester Street, between Commonwealth and Newbury) for dinner. Quick summary: the food was very good, though at these prices (a bit more below), it should be. The pricing structure is something like this (I might be off a bit on the exact prices): There is a three-course prix fixe, for sixty-five dollars. There is a vegetarian three-course prix fixe, for a bit less (perhaps fifty-nine dollars?). There is a tasting menu, for which one must ask (the waiter explained that it isn't routinely mentioned, because only a very limited number of patrons each night can order it--also, it must be selected by the entire table), which I think consisted of a small starter course, two half-appetizers, two half-entrees, a cheese course, and two desserts (perhaps smaller than normal). This ran to around eighty-five dollars, and was available with matching wines for another forty-five or so. I like this notion: sit back, make no decisions, and let the chef pick what he thinks that he does best and pairs with appropriate wines. But this required the assent of the entire party, which was not forthcoming on our visit. As a result, we had the three-course prix fixe, with a bottle of Grgich Sauvignon Blanc for around fifty dollars (a slightly steep mark-up, but perhaps standard for restaurants these days). There were two different appetizers featuring foie gras, one a pate composed entirely of foie gras (no added chicken livers, in other words), and one consisting of grilled foie gras in a vinagrette. I had the chance to sample both, and they were both extraordinary. I heard favorable reports back about the other appetizers as well. I chose the special as my entree: elk, on a bed of orzo, with some roasted beets, in a berry sauce. It was extremely good, but surprisingly salty. The others at the table agreed that the elk was too salty, but this flaw was not present in the other dishes. We split a side dish of asparagus, mushroom, and prosciutto risotto, which was much better than typical North End risotto. On the other hand, as a member of our party observed, at these prices, one should not need to order a side dish of starch. Indeed, the entrees featured large amounts of proteins and vegetables, and perhaps not enough starch (though we were constantly offered more bread). L'Esplalier is famous for its cheese course, so we asked for a small cheese sampler before dessert. I recognized only one or two of the fifteen or so cheeses on the large tray, and the three that we picked were all extraordinary. Much to our surprise, we were not charged extra for this small extra course. Desserts were all wonderful, with a daily special of home-made banana bread with banana and poppy seed ice cream (a description which doesn't begin to do justice to what was on the plate) the consensus favorite. I would return if someone else were paying, but I'm not sure that I found this to be more enjoyable than Maison Robert or Salts or Anago, and those places are all substantially less expensive (though hardly cheap). I would recommend L'Espalier ahead of Aujourd'hui, but I think that the others in my party might have come to the opposite conclusion. Both are very fine places to enjoy a special occasion.--Rob
Boston, MA