The Perfect Bite

I’ve been to Masa once in the past, possibly 2-3 years ago for Restaurant Week. When I looked at the menu last week it was nothing like what I remembered from the RW menu on my first visit. Offering South Western cuisine with a contemporary American flair, Masa‘s Executive Chef Philip Aviles has created an inspired menu with twists and classic favorites.
The restaurant is dimly lit with chandeliers and sconces, and the dining room holds booths, banquette seating, and free standing tables while the bar seats about 10 and has high-tops for apps or dinner reservations. We’re led to a high-top banquette in the bar area, closest to the open windows so we could feel the cool spring breeze.

Bread: Country bread and corn bread were served with molasses- honey butter, red pepper cream cheese, and habanero hummus. Both breads were great but the corn bread was amazing, especially with the molasses-honey butter. The hummus was my favorite to pair with the country bread. Really great bread basket and accompaniments, I just wish they gave you more than a tablespoon size of each spread.

Menu: The Tapas menu (served only in the bar area) offers $1 bite-size tapas and $5-$14 Picaditas which are more of an appetizer size dish. The Dinner menu consists of First Course, Main Course, and Sides. Luckily we were seated in the bar area so we had access to the Tapas menu, which was a blessing and a curse b/c it provided too many sections to choose from! Do I go with 3 Tapas and an Entrée? Or maybe a Picadita and a First Course dish? There were a lot of possible combinations which made for an interesting meal.

Food/Presentation:
Shredded Chicken Taquito with Chipotle Aioli (tapas menu)
I decided to order a couple of tapas items to start, one being the chicken taquito. If you order tapas it is presented family-style on one plate; the taquito can be seen in the back of the photo. The chicken was wrapped in a tortilla, fried, and placed on a dollop of chipotle aioli. I could have eaten many more of these, but there was more food coming!

Tuna Tartare Taco with Chile Lime & Avocado (tapas menu)
Along with the taquito I ordered 2 tuna tartare tacos (the other 2 were for Matt). Chopped rare tuna and avocado always pairs well with a crispy taco shell and chipotle aioli. I enjoy small bites and this was a great way to start the meal without leaving me prematurely full before the entrees.

Negra Modelo Braised Pork Shoulder & Sauce Borracha with Port & Fig Jam, Baby Arugula, & Garlic Whipped Potatoes
A small mound of pork shoulder sits on a scoop of whipped potatoes and is topped with the arugula mix; three spoonfuls of fig jam were dotted around the plate. The pork was excellent and fell apart nicely with zero fatty parts in sight. I adore anything fig but for me it felt like an unnecessary addition to this savory dish. I enjoyed it with the pork every other forkful but didn’t love when it mixed with the potatoes. A minor criticism for this truly enjoyable entrée.

Chipotle Chocolate Ice Cream, Papaya Sorbet, Hibiscus Sorbet
One small scoop of each came dusted with powdered sugar, the two sorbets together and the ice cream in a separate ramekin. The sorbets were excellent, with the Papaya’s strong fruity flavor stealing the show for me. The ice cream was different but we knew it would be when ordering Chipotle Chocolate. It had a somewhat cakey consistency, and didn’t seem to be cold (although I’m pretty sure it was) b/c after each bite my mouth was pretty much on fire. The chipotle chocolate was a confusing contradiction of hot & spicy ice cream, something I’ve never experienced before! It was interesting, great for a small taste, but I’d never be able to eat an entire bowl/cone.

Bathroom: Mirror, mirrors, on every wall! Maybe I’m obsessed with full length mirrors b/c I don’t have one at home, but I always appreciate seeing the full picture, head to toe. Besides seeing my reflection every where I turned (I swear I’m not a narcissist), the women’s room had 2 stalls and 2 sinks, and a couple of decorations to match the restaurant’s décor.

Service: We were seated at a high-top in the bar area, which I originally was slightly disappointed about, but it worked out for the best b/c this section was a bit more upbeat and it allowed us to order off of the Tapas menu. Our waitress was friendly, informative, and delivered everything in good time.

Overall: When we arrived at 7pm Masa was lively and energetic with a packed bar. As the night went on it emptied out a bit by the time we left a little before 9pm. I love Masa’s multiple menus, and would from now on request to sit in the bar in order to have Tapas as an option. I’d like to also note that the Tapas are 50 cents on Thursdays, and every other night from 4pm-7pm and 10pm-close. Makes for a great happy hour spot, especially with their tasty beverages like the Raspberry Mojito. I am looking forward to returning; there are so many tapas, picaditas, and apps I need to try!

The Perfect Bite: It’s hard to beat a tuna tartare taco when it’s done right.

www.masarestaurant.com

For more photos & descriptions of what everyone in my party ate, visit my Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/ThePerfectBiteBoston

If you weren’t looking for The Butcher Shop you’d walk right by and probably never know it existed. Marked only by an unassuming pig sign, the restaurant is located across from B&G Oysters (another Barbara Lynch eatery) on Tremont Street in the South End. We walked in and were greeted by the hostess clutching an iPad that held the reservation info; there’s no room for a stand or computer as the place only holds a bar and about 8-10 high tops. A wooden butcher’s table is located in the back where customers are brought to order a glass of wine while they wait for their table. This giant chopping block is illuminated by a refrigerator containing a variety of different cuts of meat, pates, sausage links, and small containers of soup, pulled pork, hummus etc that you can purchase. Doubling as a meat market, The Butcher Shop is small restaurant but has a lot of character with a clear culinary message.

Bread: Three pieces of soda bread and six pieces of white bread were delivered on a small plate with a mini ramekin of salted whipped butter and a side of honey. The bread was decent but was clearly just a vehicle for the spreads; sweet honey and salty butter made for a great pairing.

Menu: The Restaurant Week menu was limited with 2 appetizer options, 3 entrée choices, and 2 dessert selections. I convinced that my mom, that while there were only a couple of options, I was confident that we’d enjoy any one of Barbara Lynch’s creations. There was also a hand written Artisanal Cheese menu waiting for us on the stone table top.

Food/Presentation:
Lamb Carpaccio – quail egg, pickled baby artichoke, shallot mousse
Seven small thin slices of lamb were topped with artichokes leaves, quail egg, and shallot mousse in a perfect linear presentation. I first forked the egg to determine the runniness of the yolk; after seeing that it was in fact poached, I immediately ate the egg and piece of lamb in one big bite. I’ve never had lamb prepared that way and I really enjoyed it. I wish I had spread out the mousse into multiple bites, but thinking it was another egg I popped the entire thing into my mouth. Not a terrible idea though… it was soft, smooth, and melted on my tongue.

Shepherd’s Pie – parsnips, cauliflower, curry
An oval cast iron baking dish came overflowing with a blanket of pureed potato. Hiding beneath were large chunks of lamb and scarce pieces of cauliflower. The mashed potato was indeed smashed and whipped into a smooth topping. This entrée was pretty good, a smaller portion size, and had a bit of a spicy kick to it.

Chocolate Mousse
Typically mousse is light and fluffy but this version was dense and thick. Topped with a dollop of whipped cream, I actually enjoyed this more solid mousse which made for a richer dessert after a somewhat light meal (my Shepherd’s Pie wasn’t necessarily light, but the size wasn’t exactly overwhelming).

Bathroom: Located down a narrow stairwell in the basement, there’s 1 unisex room/stall that created a little bit of a line. The wall was adorned with a round mirror and framed drawings of different types of meat. A large scale was in the corner, clearly not intended to tempt/torture customers as it was “zeroed” at 150 lbs.

Service: We arrived on time but the couple at our table was just paying their bill, so we were escorted to the butcher’s chopping block in the back where we ordered a glass of wine. We sat 5-10 minutes later and ordered shortly after. My only complaint is that our first course came out 30 seconds after the bread. I like to enjoy my food, and never like being/feeling rushed; this wasn’t a huge deal, but give me a minute to enjoy your delicious bread before you clutter our small table with more plates!

Overall: One of the high lights of the evening was the wine; I wasn’t familiar with any of their offerings but told the server I liked a dry red. I ended up with the Bordeaux which was excellent. As the restaurant only had bar and high top seating it wasn’t necessarily the most comfortable/cozy spot, but no restaurant can compare in terms of décor and the actual butcher shop atmosphere. The regular menu is limited and specific, so just know what you’re getting yourself into before reserving here. I’m glad I tried The Butcher Shop but I won’t rush back for dinner, only because I generally like hearty meals/portions and more of a variety (as do the people I typically dine with). Although if I’m looking for an evening of apps and great wine this may be the first place I turn to! I look forward to trying the other restaurants in the Gruppo (I’m looking at you No. 9).

The Perfect Bite: Lamb carpaccio with quail egg and a piece of pickled artichoke.

http://thebutchershopboston.com

For more photos & descriptions of what everyone in my party ate, visit my Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/ThePerfectBiteBoston