The complications of balancing innate dichotomies could be very real ones for an ambitious gastropub like Foundry On Elm. Contradictory forces are already manifest in the blend of "gastronomy" and, well, "pub," but this upscale tavern faces a bigger challenge than simply providing customers with delicious food and equally delicious beer.
While a quality meal and brew are of course priorities, a gastropub must strike the right atmospheric balance between spirited and refined, cozy and extravagant. Everything from the decor to the friendliness of the servers plays a role in defining this delicate equilibrium.
Luckily, Foundry's got the whole atmospheric harmony thing down pat, and the food's not half bad, either.
Even with six flat−screen televisions around the room and clustering at the bar, Foundry is still a pretty romantic place to meet a special someone for dinner or a drink. The black−and−white marble bar adds a hint of luxury and makes that Boddingtons (or, if you're under 21 like me, that glass of lukewarm water) taste just a little more special. Maybe it's the soft, flattering lighting that gleams dimly off the red leather booths and dark wooden tables.
If the lighting doesn't seal the deal for Foundry as your next date locale, one look at the menu probably will. The dinner menu is filled with buzzwords like "aioli" and "gruyere," and although the prices are a bit too high for food that's only slightly gourmet, footing the bill will make you look good. Shelling out $14 for Foundry's most expensive appetizer, a housemade charcuterie plate, is significantly classier than swiping a sweetie into Carmichael — yeah, even if it's stir−fry night.
Foundry offers a respectable variety of dressed−up drunk food, like a croque monsieur sandwich ($10) and poutine ($9), a popular Canadian dish of French fries topped with cheddar curds and beef gravy. For its more sober clientele, there's a raw bar that culminates in a $45 seafood tower that includes oysters, clams, crab claws, shrimp and tuna tartare.
The menu almost lives up to its high−falutin' promises. Though some dishes have a few nice twists, like the fried slices of lemon topping the calamari appetizer ($10), they also serve a few disappointments, like the bland basil aioli alongside the calamari. The excellent crust on the roasted garlic, exotic mushroom and tallegio flatbread ($12) elevates it one shade above the calamari, but the cheese−to−mushroom ratio is a little off, and the flavor profile isn't particularly subtle or developed.
The Foundry Burger ($10) is good, especially complemented by a surprisingly green and fresh pickle wedge, but who can screw up a burger?
To put it simply, the cuisine is good but nowhere near mind−blowing. The major problem is that, while above−average and sometimes flat−out yummy, the food is missing a bite, a kick or even an enhancer.
This is where the establishment's dualistic nature steps in. Not to advocate that drinking is the only way to enjoy a meal at Foundry, but it's true that one of the first things alcohol influences is perception. Plus, Foundry has a well−stocked bar and an expansive list of cocktails with fun names like Old Granddad's Cherry (house−infused bourbon, sweet vermouth and bitters) and Ginger Smash (Maker's Mark bourbon, mint, lemon and ginger).
Their beer menu boasts a lot of local Massachusetts beers — naturally, Sam Adams is on the list, but so is Pretty Things "Baby Tree" from Cambridge and Clown Shoes "Eagle Claw Fist" from Ipswich.− And Foundry's Sunday special brings glasses of wine down to $5.
End the meal on a sweet note with the pineapple upside−down cake ($7), topped in caramel, coconut ice cream and toasted coconut. That is an order, not a request, although the chocolate−crusted Bailey's cheesecake ($7), drizzled with chocolate mint sauce and Bailey's Crème Anglaise, may be an acceptable alternative.
One final great thing about Foundry: Its menus aren't strictly limited to the dinner, bar and booze varieties. The restaurant has a lunch menu and, more unusually, a brunch menu, which has an entire section set aside for poached egg dishes (all $12). Other eye−catching offerings include Grand Marnier French toast ($10), which comes with a seasonal fruit compote and maple syrup, and the Mediterranean scramble ($10), a hearty, savory dish filled with chorizo, peppers, scallions and tomatoes.
Compared to other gastropubs, Foundry isn't too special. It has a nice atmosphere and better−than−decent food, but nothing worth writing home about. Its sultry setting and interesting culinary medley, however, set it apart from other establishments in Davis Square, making it definitely worth checking out.
