. We had our first date here over a year ago and on this visit they somehow managed to seat us at the same table. Spirited Quarterly Magazine in Print and Online, by Main content starts here, tab to start navigating. Everything was delicious. LOVE Overpriced menu and drinks. I know they get busy on weekends, but I wish the waiters wouldn't rush the food out quite so fast. While taking orders, the waiter never remembered who orderedwhat, food was brought and put randomly didn't know who ordered it. Theyre not keen to discuss it, other than to say that the legal fracas cost us more money than wed ever made at Lolita up to that point, according to Jamison. Our waitress, Caroline, knew the menu and made great recommendations. The Library is formidable and a fantastic option for any type of function. In general, I do not recommend this place, except for the interior, which is beautifully presented on Instagram have nothing to do there. Large-scale (i.e. Definitely not worth your time. The restaurant was famous for its perfectly prepared steaks and other hearty foods, including its signature dish, Lobster Savannah, a slightly spicy, Southern twist on a classic New England delicacy. Personalized Group . The place had a cheeky flashiness; it looked like a million bucks. A restaurant was located at the same location starting in the early 1860s. COJE is the parent company of Yvonne's, a modern supper club in Boston's Downtown Crossing; Ruka, a Latin-Asian fusion spot also in the downtown area; and Lolita, a . Definitely recommended for cocktails, but could get better food for the same price elsewhere. Great atmosphere, food, service, and value. Cant wait to go back. To be sure, Boston has seen other successful dining and nightlife impresarios beforeSeth Greenberg and Patrick Lyons both come to mindbut this time its in response to the market and in step with the citys metamorphosis into a so-called New Boston, one that COJE accelerates with each new opening (including their latest, the seductive French spot Coquette, which debuted in the Seaport in September). But for two young, fledgling restaurateurs, it was a terrifying, if exhilarating, gamble. Many of the dishes at Yvonnes are meant to be shared by everyone at the table. Some dishes played tribute to its predecessor, such as Berrys oyster-anchored spin on Locke-Obers signature lobster Savannah. Imbibing such cocktails seated at the long, wooden mahogany bar, the glory days of Locke-Ober dont seem that long ago. Worlds Great Restaurants Bostons Yvonnes Restaurant, Paris Restaurant LArpege, where Vegetables Take Centre Stage, The Monarch Beach Resort & Bourbon Steak Offer a Killer O.C. Subscribe to e-licious for weekly updates on Boston's culinary scene. Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information. The Library is edged with styled bookshelves, elegant dining tables, herringbone wood floors, a hand-cut mahogany bar and Locke- Ober's original gilded fireplace. In typical speakeasy fashion, this restaurant is hidden in an alleyway in the Downtown Crossing area. The restaurant group behind three well-known Boston dining spots will be opening a new place that may just include something that is mostly gone from the local landscape. Ruka Resto Bar | Peruvian Restaurant in Boston, MA. In the end, the checks were split and we were even given dessert. We offer a discounted validation at the Hyatt Regency, 1 Avenue De Lafayette. The restaurant is ideal for a romantic dinner and the service was fast. These guys are ahead of the curve, for sure, says Boston chef-restaurateur and food-TV star Jason Santos, who knows a thing or two about sizzle as sous-chef to Gordon Ramsay on Hells Kitchen. Id love to eat there again but would need to work up the courage to go back. Yvonne's is rated 4.7 stars by 1175 OpenTable diners. we grabbed a drink at the bar while waiting which was fine. I missed out on the top-notch tapas that chef Steve Johnson, a future James Beard Award nominee, turned out at Mercury Bar in the 90s. Can a vegetarian person get a good meal at this restaurant? Oustanding venue matched by clever dishes. The message was loud and clear: Giving provincial Boston an urbane makeover would not be easy. The national foodie mag also honored Thomas John for his cooking at Mantra, a voguish French-Indian fusion restaurant that became a downtown disco after dinner. Mission: well-accomplished. 617-267-0047, Supper: 5:00 PM 11:00 PMBar: 4:00 PM 2:00 AM. But would diners accept the new look, feel, and taste? COJE is the parent company of Yvonne's, a modern supper club in Boston's Downtown Crossing; Ruka, a Latin-Asian fusion spot also in the downtown area; and Lolita, a tequila bar in the Back Bay. Thanks! Excuse me? He is wearing the only thing that really matters here: a big grin. But it didn't make up for the overall impression. Featured Restaurants . Courtney Myers: (617) 267-0047. 2/15/2023. At the same time, a waitress came up to take a couple to their table, and said to the gentleman "just say no".. For some reason, the guy asked for our ID's, so we showed him our ID's he then proceeded to tell us that they had no tables and that next time, we needed to bring our passports, as our IDs were not acceptable. Cart0 AboutConceptsGift Cards Contact BackAbout Barbara Memoir Magazine Well, they did return the purse, but with no wallet. If you're a scraper, please click the link below :-) Shes doing just fine, looking hale and lively on a school night in a part of town where tumbleweeds blew through the streets just a short social-distancing era ago. Its ambiance can't be matched. In 5 minutes, she came back with my bag, weird she returned me my bag saying that her employees found it in a lounge. 617-267-0047, Supper is served daily from 5:00pm-11:00pm. Mariel cocktails: Trogon, and Santiago Mojito. Everything was wonderful. Such a great place, dishes were delicious and well thought out. No TVs in a restaurant in Red Sox Nation? The lighting is dim and comfortable and plenty of room at the table. Skeptics of such claims simply need to go to Yvonnes nearly any night of the week, when the packed restaurant feels almost like a nightclub. Skews fancy. Adjacent to the dining room, Yvonne's lounge similarly strips down a once-ornate room to its unvarnished brick walls and tin ceiling coffers revitalized with ornate and opulent furnishings for informal business gatherings and celebratory cocktail parties. Somehow it doesnt matter that much as the food is the star and when youre spit out into the street 90 minutes later you are happily full and happy to flee the madness. The women's bathroom smells like poo, and it feels like it's not ventilated at all. Great atmosphere, amazing cocktails & terrific food! Upon request to turn it off or make it warmer, the waiter in an unfriendly manner said that he would convey our request to the manager. Slide 1 of 5; Slide 2 of 5; Slide 3 of 5; Slide 4 of 5; . Food was overall pretty good and great to share. / Photo by Richard Cadan. By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. Our server was the best, had great recommendations for both food and drinks. Nothing but a pretty picture on Instagram. Jamisons father was an anesthesiologist; his mother, meanwhile, encouraged her sons business savvy by buying him boxes of Snickers so he could bring them to school to sell for a profit. Theyve updated their Downtown Crossing dining room so you can socially distance yourself appropriately and theyve added delivery and pick-up through UberEats. Fans of the former bastion of robust food served in subdued surroundings were skeptical. For more than a century, this three-story building on Winter Place housed Locke-Ober, one of the oldest old school Boston restaurantsa place where women werent even allowed to eat or drink until 1970 and the menu seemed frozen in time. Were busier than weve ever been because we deliver more than just a meal, and after everything weve been through, people are hungry for energy and intimacy, says Jamison, sipping his drink while Malatesta soaks up the scene, including chic women at the bar across from stylishly dressed guys digging into dinner. The folks at Little Leaf Farms and Kens Dressing have three Read more, Keep that whole NOLA vibe going post-Mardi Gras and head to Chickadee in the Seaport on Monday, February 27th for Read more, Who better to teach you the magic of baking than the pros at Joanne Changs beloved Flour Bakery + Cafe? Read more. When my friends come to town, says Demetri Tsolakis, former general manager of Mantra and co-owner of the Seaports snazzy, Euro-vibe-y Committee, Im always taking them to one of the COJE restaurants to show them what Boston has become.. Dont change a thing! Under Shires tenure, Gourmet magazine ranked Locke-Ober the 18th best restaurant in the country. Perfect for a special night out! There is no better place to have a special holiday dinner. this has become a tradition for four of us the food is spectacular in taste and presentation and everyone from entering the restaurant to wait staff is super nice. unpretentious and great people thank you ! The food is, as always, creative and delicious! Thanks. Full review. In the coming weeks, lunch service will begin. We wanted to blur the lines between dining and nightlife is how Jamison puts it. We never received an answer, and the air conditioner kept blowing on our heads as a result my friends and I caught a cold. Prices at this restaurant claim to be average. All of my cards were stolen. Your Read more, A dip, a dressing, a drizzleranch does it all! Its true that Jamison, Malatesta, and the teams other major playersBerry and director of operations Michael Adkins, an experienced showrunner of Hub hot spotshave perfected a formula for marrying upscale dining to fun and fizziness. Reservations will be seated when all of the guests in your party have arrived. And throughout the restaurant and the restrooms, cheeky paintings featuring Elvis, Clint Eastwood, and other well-known celebrities dressed as Napoleon adorn the walls. When the gilded institution finally closed with a century-and-a-half-held sigh in 2012, it was after clinging to a strict dress code that lasted nearly until its dying breath: dinner jackets for gents; appropriate (as in sensible and elegant) attire for womenyou know, once they were finally admitted inside Locke-Ober, which was originally only for men. The food was way over priced and very over spiced. The restaurant is ideal for a romantic dinner and the service was fast. For starters, Yvonnes has saved what matters: the 19th-century mahogany bar and the same clubby ambiance. I had indicated that it was our anniversary on opentable and take gave us some complimentary champagne to start off the night. I have only been to Yvonne's once and I tried to return just a week later but they were already booked! I sat at the bar, when it was time to pay, I turned around, but my bag was nowhere to be see. They started shopping the idea to investors. I think Yvonnes was genre-bending, Jamison says now, glancing around the busy, buzzy room and sipping on his usual drink, a tequila-spiked cocktail dubbed the Grande Dame. Its an appropriate pick: Yvonnes, after all, is named for the painting of a woman that hung throughout the years at Locke-Ober, where tradition had it that whenever Harvards football team lost to Yale, her exposed breasts were to be covered in mourning. I left my purse in a bathroom (I have not left the bar area).