The Boston Herald
Join the Club
By Mat Schaffer | Friday, November 5, 2010 | http://www.bostonherald.com | Dining Reviews
BACK BAY SOCIAL CLUB: B
Former nightclub czar Patrick Lyons’ Lyons Group continues its ambitious expansion into the restaurant biz. Last week I reviewed Towne Stove and Spirits at the Hynes convention center. You only have to walk directly across the street to dine at Back Bay Social Club - both are newly opened Lyons Group properties.
Back Bay Social Club is a comfort-food gastro pub blessed with a smart chef who pays attention to details: He’s Tim Raines, who did prior stints at Sonsie and Via Matta. His food is strategically safe, solid and satisfying - a surefire gastronomic antidote to the unsettled times we live in.
From the bar/snack menu, order a small cast-iron pot of “meat candy” ($7), a glazed treat of sliced kielbasa and pineapple cubes braised in pineapple juice and brown sugar. Plump pumpkin ravioli ($12) are tossed in lemony butter and strewn with fried sage.
“Everything is homemade every day,” boasts our server. Including all the pasta.
Savory apple & cheddar pie ($12) is more sweet than savory, and not really a pie. Nonetheless, it’s a tasty starter of apples, melted cheese and bacon bits on flaky puff pastry. There’s little to differentiate marinated beets with goat cheese and pine nuts ($10) tossed in champagne vinaigrette from the gazillion other beet and goat cheese salads so prevalent this time of year.
BBSC’s $21 burger has been sparking conversations around town.
“It’s a steak on a bun,” says our server, about this 10-ounce patty of dry-aged prime, rib and skirt, seared in clarified butter on a hot grill before it’s plopped onto a warmed bun and garnished with onion jam and melted cheddar. The sandwich is 4 inches tall - I measured - and accompanied by a brown paper bag of crisp fries.
Is it worth the price? That’s up to you to decide. But I can tell you the burger is intensely beefy, with great accoutrements, and certainly rates as one of Boston’s best.
So does BBSC’s Bolognese sauce ($16), a delicious blend of sausage, beef, veal, chicken livers, tomatoes, carrots and onions on pappardelle noodles. I like the slight accent of rosemary - you can see the diced, needlelike leaves flecked throughout the thick sauce.
Roasted and sliced leg of lamb ($22) is nicely done, perfectly pink and garnished with pickled mint. But a side of gruyere-, parmesan- and cheddar-laced gratin potatoes suffers from too much nutmeg and cheese.
Several spears of al dente broccoli rabe grace the lamb entree, but, for the most part, BBSC isn’t much on green vegetables. Oh, there are a few leaves of garlicky spinach alongside the roasted cauliflower florets and celeriac puree that accompany a tender fillet of butter-roasted cod ($21). But otherwise there’s a pronounced absence of green on the dishes we tried.
Half a roast (hormone- and antibiotic-free) Giannone chicken ($18) comes with roasted fingerling potatoes and maple-glazed carrots. The chicken has crackling skin and juicy meat.
For an establishment with bars on two floors, BBSC’s beer and wine lists aren’t as extensive as you’d expect. But I loved the tart Hemingway daiquiri ($12) of Flor de Cana rum, maraschino liqueur, brandy and fresh grapefruit and lime juices.
Save room for the freshly fried beignets ($7) with hot fudge sauce. Sticky toffee pudding ($8) was unhappily cold in the middle.
With its well-trained wait staff and dark woods, mirrors, white linen tablecloths and burgundy leather banquettes, Back Bay Social Club is a clubby upgrade from previous tenant Vinny T’s.
I want to come back and try one of the daily specials, such as chicken & waffles ($14) on Monday nights and paella for two ($38) on Thursdays.
867 Boylston St. 617-247-3200; backbaysocialclub.com.
Price: $20-$40
Hours: Daily, 8 a.m.-2 a.m.
Bar: Full
Credit: All
Recession specials: No
Accessibility: Accessible
Parking: Nearby lots, on street
Article URL: http://www.bostonherald.com/entertainment/food_dining/reviews/view.bg?articleid=1294069
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