These days, Kenmore Square seems to be all things to all people. On any given night, sweatshirt-clad BU students mingle freely with stumbling Red Sox fans and high-heeled partiers. It was with this mixture in mind that Eastern Standard Kitchen & Drinks opened its doors this summer.
Luckily for this newcomer, it's not in danger of getting lost in the crowd.
Situated next to the entrance of the Hotel Commonwealth, the restaurant is impossible to overlook. Most obvious is its massive red awning, visible from hundreds of yards in either direction. The awning isn't purely form -- beneath the behemoth canvas sits perhaps the hippest sidewalk patio in central Boston.
The interior of the restaurant is as visually stunning as its exterior. Dominated on the left by an enormous oak bar with 30 foot high mirrors and columns and sporting absurdly high ceilings, stylish fans, and a wide staircase that leads to the hotel and bathrooms, the dining room feels like the movie set of a 1920s nightclub: in other words, ultra cool.
As such, many people will quickly recognized Eastern Standard as one of the coolest places in the city to sip on a gin and tonic, either at the bar or on the patio. Despite its location in the heart of provincial Boston, the place stays packed from early dinnertime until midnight most nights, as Kenmore's various inhabitants wander in and out.
Fittingly for a restaurant of such hipness, the owners have a story unto themselves. Teamed with conventional owner-type Garrett Harker, proprietor of No.9 Park and B&G Oysters, is the much less conventional general manager, Gwen Butler. The story of Eastern Standard's inception is almost as breathtaking as its decorating scheme. While bartending one day in 2000 at the Federalist, the restaurant inside the Hotel XV Beacon, Butler struck up a conversation with a foreigner, telling him of her dreams to run a restaurant. The man, who turned out to be a Swiss investment banker, promptly gave her the biggest tip in bartending history: $2.5 million, to do just that.
The food, unfortunately, does not quite live up to the rest of the restaurant's aspirations. Befitting the restaurant's "everything for everyone" attitude, Chef Jamie Bissonnette's menu is as diverse as they come.
Appetizers range from typical restaurant fare (think salads), to salt-cod fritters, roast bone marrow, and the truly unusual Offal (assorted animal brains and innards). The clear winner among the appetizers is the full raw bar, from which $2-a-piece clams were a solid choice.
Entr?©?? were more standard and less interesting. The burgers were good (but at $12 they'd better be outstanding), as were the steak frites. The lamb shank was a definite winner, as was the spaghetti carbonara.
The fish, however, disappointed. Both the salmon with mashed potatoes and the gray sole with couscous were a bit bland, and the side dishes too heavily spiced. Sandwiches, meant for the patio, are good but not great.
Likewise, dessert options, beyond being limited, are good but not great; among them, the Boston cream pie and chocolate mousse are clearly the best.
Not quite a bistro and not just an eatery, Eastern Standard defies simple labeling. Although the food leaves something to be desired, the restaurant is definitely a great place to have drinks, either with friends or a date. Although a little bit pricey, it could be a perfect pre- or post-Sox game treat.
And who knows, maybe Ms. Butler will feel the need to pass on her good fortune.
