Z Square: Restaurant Week

For two weeks a year, Boston-area restaurants run a special:  Three-course fixe prix meals at approachable prices.  For much of the year, these restaurants will out price the majority of the populous of the city, unless it is a special occasion.  However, for two blessed weeks, the tides turn and the common man can try a restaurant without too much financial risk involved.  This is how I happened upon Z Square.

Z Square is a trendy new restaurant in the middle of Harvard Square in Cambridge, on JFK Street.  They have a street level bistro, and an underground restaurant, and my wife and I visited the latter.  We had comp tickets to see a local performance of Turandot, a classic opera by Puccini, and we wanted to make a night of it.  Z Square was right around the corner and it was restaurant week, so we made a reservation.  When we got there, we went down the stairs to a dimly lit bar and restaurant, with several of the staff wearing a uniform of jeans and black tops.  The décor was an attempt at a hip restaurant, with some funky lights and tables, but it wasn’t anything special.  We were seated at a table, and introduced to the menu.  The waitress checked with the chef and told Liz how the menu could be altered to suit her dietary restrictions.  We had the choice between two appetizers, two entrees, and two desserts on the fixe prix menu, and both Liz and I had the same appetizer and entrée, but our desserts differed. 

Before we get to the food, however, let’s talk about the wine.  We had looked over the drinks and decided that we were planning on a long dinner, so a bottle of red wine was in order.  I picked a 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon from California called Louis M. Martini.  Aside from our waitress breaking our cork in the wine bottle, the wine was a nice choice.  The dark fruity flavors of cherry were accompanied by spicy notes of black pepper, and the wine was smooth with a moderate tannic body, though not overly fumy.  It was nice throughout the meal.

The appetizers came out next.  Both Liz and I had ordered the littleneck clams with chorizo, but mine came with cornbread as well, as Liz could not have the gluten.  The flavors of the clams with the sausage were nice, but unfortunately, the clams were overcooked.  They had a rubbery texture, and it was unfortunate because the rest of the dish was nice, though I would have liked more than four clams.  If there had been 6 clams cooked properly, I would have been a happy camper, but alas, the execution of the dish was lacking.

Next, Liz and I had spice-rubbed flank steak on a bed of garlic roasted greens with feta cheese and sage, and a side of sweet potato fries.  The presentation, like the previous dish, was very nice.  Also, similarly to the appetizer, the flavor combinations were interesting and enjoyable.  Unfortunately, where this dish shared positive aspects with its predecessor, it also shared similar negative aspects.  The fries were soggy and the steak was rubbery.  Though the ideas were there and were good, the execution by the kitchen staff seemed to be lacking.  I was glad I had a bottle of wine because it took me an hour to gnaw my way through that steak.

For dessert, Liz had a trio of sorbets, while I had a banana tart with rum walnut sauce and vanilla ice cream.  My dessert was quite nice.  The flavors of vanilla, walnut, banana, and rum combined to make a fantastic combination.  Liz had a combination of mango, spiced apple, and cinnamon sorbets, of which the cinnamon was her favorite.  I tasted them as well and was quite pleased with the flavors.

All told, our visit to Z Square was good for a couple of reasons.  First off, we were able to go to a new, trendy restaurant without spending too much money to sample the cuisine (only $33.08 for the Prix Fixe menu at any Restaurant participating in restaurant week).  Secondly, we were introduced to some nice flavor profiles that we may not have tried.  Finally, I did not feel it was necessary to send our overcooked meals back to the kitchen when we paid such a decent fixed price.  I would think twice before returning to this restaurant.  While their ideas were good and the plating was exquisite, the execution in the kitchen left much to be desired.