The Fireplace
Elizabeth and I were looking for a restaurant to celebrate our 1-year anniversary, and so we started looking in the usual place. There is a list of Celiac-friendly restaurants put out by Beth-Israel Deaconess Hospital, so we usually start there and see where it takes us. On that list, there was a place in Brookline called The Fireplace, which has won several awards for being a romantic restaurant. The Fireplace had the reputation that fit the billing, and so we made our reservations.
The Fireplace is conspicuously located on Beacon Street in the heart of Washington Square in Brookline. There was plenty of on-street parking, and also a parking lot designated for restaurant patrons directly behind the building. The amount of street-front visibility must be a huge draw for the restaurant, as it is directly on the corner of Beacon and Washington Streets. The many windows and warmly-lit script lettering of the restaurants name were inviting, as were the fenced-in sidewalk café tables along the Beacon Street side of the restaurant. We walked in, and were greeted by a modern-looking industrial sheik décor. There were a lot of medium-dark woods and metal, along with support beams and a multi-level seating area. Toward the door was a bar area with a television and a fine selection of liquors displayed, as well as several tables and chairs. Up a wide set of stairs was the restaurant dining area, with tightly packed tables, many windows, and a door to the outside seating, along with warm lighting and antique kitchen utensils adorning the walls as a sort of modern art. In the dining area, you could watch the exposed kitchen, busy with line cooks and orders. The kitchen served two purposes, both as food preparation and as entertainment.
The hostess came out from behind the bar and showed us to our seats in the dining area. After we sat down, we had to wait only a minute for our waitress to appear. Upon arriving, she quickly fixed a menu snafu (we only had one food menu, but two wine menus), and gave us a minute to look over the menus. When she returned, we ordered our food and drinks. I ordered a glass of Whale Tale Ale, a stuffed quahog appetizer, and a scallop dish, while Liz got the Fireplace Punch (served in a Hurricane glass), and their signature half-chicken dish.
Our drinks came out in good time. I was noticing a trend, in that this restaurant was on top of their timeliness. Not once did I find myself looking for someone to fill my water, or wondering what was taking the kitchen so long. All the waiters, runners, and cooks were wearing jeans, which I found odd at first for the style of restaurant, but which surely increased the quickness and ease of movement throughout the staff. Back to the drinks, the Whale Tale was a dark amber color, not boasting much head at all. It had a floral nose of hops, and a sharp and cleansing bitter edge on the front side, though not much doing after its initial attack. Its bitter sting lasted for a decent amount of time, almost making up for the beers lack of further character. It was a passable IPA, and accompanied my seafood dishes well. The Fireplace punch was reminiscent of beverages I have had in Chinese restaurants, being very fruity with a mix of rums. Liz enjoyed it thoroughly.
When the beverages came out, there was also the bread for the table. Because Liz cannot eat standard bread, I got to eat both triangles of warm bread. It tasted like it was fresh out of the oven, chewy in the inside and a slight crisp on the outside, with a mild flavor and a small ramekin of butter.
My appetizer came out shortly after the drinks, stuffed New England quahog with linguica and Vermont cheddar. The quahog was presented in two halves side-by-side on separate beds of herbed sea salt. Thankfully, the runner told me not to eat this, as it looked good, but would have ruined the food. The flavor was very nice, and quite savory, with the flavors of the sausage and quahog marrying nicely. The texture was that of stuffing, and it was quite good. My only complaint is that this dish had a few cold spots in both halves of the shellfish, which surprised me. Another minute of warming would have served this dish nicely.
Then our main courses arrived. Mine was Caramel Popcorn-Dusted Sea Scallops with Corn Sauce, Mashed Potato, Sautéed Corn & Scallions. The corn was the real star of this dish, boasting crispy freshness and sweetness that only comes in this season of the year, not to mention it was displayed in many ways throughout the dish. The scallops themselves were good, but not the best I’ve had, as they were a bit on the tough side, and had a few grains inside the meat. All together, though, it was a decent dish.
Liz had the Fireplace Signature Spit-Roasted, Maple Glazed Half Chicken with Mashed Potatoes & Sage Brown Butter. By its description, I expected this dish to have very dark and savory flavor combinations, but it was a bright surprise. The chicken was topped with a healthy garnish of watercress, which infused a sweet lemony flavor into the potatoes and chicken. That with the sweetness on the maple glaze and the creamy butter sauce made a very tasty combination that Liz was pleased with.
After we finished our meals, we were presented with dessert menus, and we each got a dessert. I got the Cranberry Crisp Cobbler with Cinnamon Ice Cream, while Liz had Warm Spiced Pears with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Dulce de Leche. Both desserts were very nice, and bigger than we were expecting. We could have just shared one, but instead, we stuffed ourselves. The star of my dish was definitely the cinnamon ice cream, boasting a healthy amount of spice and creamy texture, while the pear dish was nicely balanced and rich.
After that, we got our check, paid our bill, and left with a warm send off from the staff. The total for two drinks, an appetizer, two entrees, and two desserts was $106 after tip, which is not bad for the amount of food and the upscale nature of the place. We both left feeling well-cared-for and well-fed. The Fireplace is definitely a quality restaurant, with good service and a fine menu. Their wine selection was quite wide, and they also have a gluten-free menu for those with Celiac Disease to order from, which is always a plus. There were a few problems with the food quality (cold quahogs and tough scallops) but they were not glaring, and were overshadowed by the implicit greatness of this Brookline mainstay. If you want to impress a date, and satisfy your need for fresh and tasty food, look no further than The Fireplace.
-Connoisseur Jon