Scollay Square

I recently had the chance to have my employer pick up the tab at one of Boston’s more impressive upscale eateries. Having just concluded a company meeting, and a successful year, my coworkers and I were very eager to reap the benefits, so to Scollay Square we went. Scollay Square is tucked away on 21 Beacon Street near the State House and is a favorite of Boston’s celebrity politicians when they’re looking for some comfort food. The dining room is a bit narrow, but it doesn’t seem overcrowded with tables and booths, that in mind, reservations are recommended.

The menu is a bit unsettled, with some standard American fare, Asian fusion, Italian, and French present in surprising combinations, nothing which sounds even remotely unappetizing, just a bit hard to imagine until it’s on the plate in front of you. Chef Chris Damian puts together some very creative dishes which, for the most part, are true culinary masterpieces of gourmet comfort food.

I started with a Tom Collins, my mixological bellwether of any bartender as well as my favorite cocktail. It was tremendous and was followed by three more of the same as the night wore on. The waitress was very easy to work with, highly communicative, and kept the gin flowing, I only hope that my boss gave her a healthy gratuity.

Our party of ten ordered appetizers, of which I tried the Kobe beef sliders (delicious, but a terrible waste of Kobe beef), the Philly Cheesesteak Spring Rolls (these could have been relegated to an Applebee’s Menu if it wasn’t for the superb pairing of chipotle ketchup),

the Oven-Roasted Oysters (Spicy and good, with a much-appreciated hit of toasted parmesan cheese), and the raw Oysters Mignonette (my first time having raw oysters on the half-shell, the light sherry & vinegar Mignonette sauce with a splash of lemon, plus the fresh ocean taste of what I am told are some of the freshest oysters you can get, had me reaching for seconds, surprising even myself).

For the main course, I opted for the “All Natural Prime Hanger Steak, Crispy Potato Sticks, Red Onion Marmalade, Shallot Glazed Spinach”. The steak was delicious and tender, which shows the skill of the chef as this cut can be one of the toughest and driest cuts of beef found on a cow. The spinach was very nice, but I was a bit put off by the crispy potato sticks, I feel they had no place on that plate, their crunchy texture and crass potato-chip-like flavor made clumsy what should have been a gracefully seasoned dish. I can only hope that the Chef will rethink this superfluous addition and either replace or remove it completely in the future.

As a side dish, I ordered the polenta with walnuts and gorgonzola cheese. While visually unimpressive, this was one of the best tasting dishes I have ever had the sublime pleasure of enjoying at any restaurant. The texture of the polenta was light and fluffy, smooth as a cloud, studded with toasted walnuts, embracing the scattering of piquant gorgonzola. Even though it is merely a humble side dish, this is a true masterpiece.

For dessert, as a nod to Connoisseur Michael, I ordered the white chocolate bread pudding with berry sauce and Chantilly cream. The dessert arrived beautifully plated, the berry sauce was tangy and delicious, but the bread pudding itself was disappointing. It tasted like a run-of-the-mill vanilla bread pudding, only with the moisture and consistency of a standard Betty Crocker cake. This was no bread pudding, it seemed a pity to end dinner on a down note so another round was called for and I left with a smile on my face, my belly full, The Connoisseur in me satisfied, and the poor schlep in me psyched that I got a free gourmet meal.

I would, without a question, go to Scollay Square again, but as it is rather expensive, it may be a while. Scollay Square truly does dish out top-level comfort food, as well as creativity, and, even though it occasionally falls flat, culinary ingenuity in a town in dire need of just that.