Deuxave review - Boston Herald

The Boston Herald
Deuxave on the right road
By Mat Schaffer | Friday, November 19, 2010 | http://www.bostonherald.com | Dining Reviews

DEUXAVE: B+
Deuxave is an ambitious new restaurant from Christopher Coombs and Brian Piccini, the guys behind dbar in Dorchester.

Named for its location at the intersection of two avenues, Massachusetts and Commonwealth, Deuxave is epicurean light-years beyond gastro-pub dbar. This is a serious, higher-end dining experience that intends to go mano a mano with the city’s finer eateries.

Executive chef Coombs relishes the challenge. The 26-year-old Culinary Institute of America grad has worked at Troquet, Blue Ginger, Toppers at the Wauwinet on Nantucket and The Inn at Little Washington in Virginia. Deuxave aspires to that level ofculinary competence.

The menu of French-inspired American Nouveau Cuisine exhaustively itemizes virtually every detail of every multi-layered dish. Coombs’ cooking islabor intensive. It’s also delicious - if occasionally too busy.

Scituate lobster with gnocchi ($17), comes with mushrooms, grapes, curried walnuts and pearl onions. It flirts with overindulgence, but the pillowy gnocchi and buttery citrus sauce ultimately anchor and unify the other ingredients.Ceviche of Hawaiian Big Eye Tuna ($15) is more like cucumber-studded tuna tartare, slathered with guacamole and strewn with shredded carrots, radishes and cilantro.

A duet of prime beef tartare and Wagyu carpaccio($14) will appeal to raw meat lovers - especially the tartare, which you mix with a quail egg yolk. Nine-hour French caramelized onion soup ($10) with a bone marrow rubbed crouton and lots of melty comte cheese is heavenly, fortified with splashes of sherry and Port.

A paper-thin, fried potato cylinder crowns a fall vegetable salad ($13) of local greens, radishes, pickled cauliflower and pumpkin seeds tossed in boutique balsamic vinaigrette.

Entrees average in the upper $20s - several dollars less than you’d pay elsewhere for comparable eats.

I loved the crisp skin and moist flesh of pan-roasted, line-caught Atlantic halibut ($27) with sunchoke puree and a seasonal succotash of butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, turnips, Okinawa yams, chanterelles and diced guanciale. A swath of pureed pomegranate adds sweetness and sass.

Less would have been more with seared local sea scallops ($28) with potato rosti, dill creme, leek and parsley fondue, roasted tomatoes and gingered cumin carrot emulsion. Were lemon-vodka syrup and shaved black truffles even necessary?

Duck liver mousse-stuffed, Port-soaked prune French kisses and honey-glazed turnips make fab accompaniments to slices of seared Long Island duck breast ($28) atop stewed lentils and wilted arugula and mustardy sauce Robert.

cw0 Perfectly pink Moroccan-spiced lamb saddle ($29) encrusted with pistachios is wonderful with aromatic Persian-style tabbouleh, roasted baby root vegetables and mint and cucumber raita.

I’m a longtime fan of Deuxave general manager Jason Irving, a former sommelier at the Four Seasons’ Aujourd’hui. No surprise that: 1. I was recognized on both visits; and 2. the Deuxave wine list is supersmart and superaffordable.

Pastry chef Olivier Maillard (who’s worked for Joel Robuchon, Alain Ducasse and Barbara Lynch) specializes in NC-17 desserts for adult palates: deconstructed lime cheesecake ($12) with basil and strawberries, horizontal chocolate Napoleon ($14) with chocolate phyllo, cherry compote and sea salt, and carrot cake ($13) with Earl Grey cream cheese frosting and carrot sorbet.

Deuxave is a chic-looking space of brick, glass and gunmetal gray slate with a gas fireplace. You’d never believe this was once a White Hen Pantry. The first evening after I was identified, they switched my initial waiter for a more experienced server and sent out a gratis dessert.

As a restaurant critic, I have several, nagging, pet peeves. Among them, multiple menu misspellings. Deuxave may want to consider investing in a French-English dictionary. Brussles (sic) sprouts?

371 Commonwealth Ave. 617-517-5915; deuxave.com.

Price: More than $40

Hours: Sun.-Wed., 5-10 p.m.; Thurs.-Sat., 5-11 p.m.; Bar open nightly until 1 a.m.

Bar: Full

Credit: All

Recession Specials: No

Accessibility: Accessible

Parking: Valet, on street, nearby lots

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