Sweet and Sour in Boston

For my 30th birthday, Abby took me out to a restaurant we've been dying to try: Craigie On Main. (As a side note, after we found parking a few blocks away from the restaurant, we walked in and gave our name for our reservation. The lady at the front looked in her book and told us that there was no reservation with our name on it. I tell her that I got a call that day from the restaurant confirming the reservation. She tells me she is sorry, but she can seat us when something comes available. Then I look onto my phone and show here the number that called me...yup, not their number. Apparently we walked into another restaurant instead of Craigie on Main. Awesome...we looked like idiots.)

Anyway, once we walked the extra block to the restuarant that actually says "Cragie on Main" on it's windows, we were seated right away. I knew immediately that I would love this restaurant. The open kitchen is almost larger than the entire dining area. There were bar seats right at the kitchen, but we were seated around the corner at a nice two seat.

Our waiter came over and asked us if we had any questions. We said no, that we were both going with the Chef's 10 course tasting. Then the waiter asked us if we had any likes and dislikes. He told us that Craigie on Main is a "head to tail" restaurant and pondered if we were ok with eating items like sweetbreads. Of course we are fine with it. We told him we love pig cheek and he said he'll definitely try to see if we can get some pig head's in our meal. (Each chef's tasting is catered to each table apparently. Though throughout our meal, I did notice other tables getting some similar dishes, but that's ok.)

I will now recount what we ate, thanks to the printed menu we received at the end of the meal. I told our waiter we were food bloggers (he noticed us taking pics of everything) and he said he'd get us a menu. That was nice of him.

#1. Three Chilled Seafood Preparations
"fresh uni, lime pickle vinaigrette", "foid de lotte au torchon, sea trout roe", "lobster salad, hackleback caviar"




Right off the bat I'm freaking excited. Monkfish liver, something I've been dying to try for the last couple of years. I'm so glad we get to try something new. First the uni. It tasted like most uni I've ever had, which is to say smooth and creamy and very good. The lobster, which Abby absolutely loved, had a tiny dab of caviar on it that made the dish for me. And the monkfish liver...it was everything I had hoped it to be. Foie gras from the ocean is the best way to describe it. So good...so rich and decadent.

#2. Salad of Big Eye Tuna Sashimi


Laying on top of a red onion-shiso salsa that was so good, Abby used bread to soak it all up.

#3. Grilled Hawaiian Walu


One of my most favorite plates of the night. Walu, a fish I've never heard of before, was meaty and very flavorful.

#4. Red Chile and Sesame Marinated Salmon Kama


The collar of a salmon. Again, something I've never had before. Other than the small bones that hid inside the piece we were given, this was a fantastic dish. The crispy skin and the delicate flesh were perfect together. The bones though, could not be ignored. One of the only knocks during our dinner.

#5. Pork Belly and Cepe Tortellini



My least favorite plate, mainly because I didn't like the pumpkin puree too much. The pork belly was very good and I was wishing we had a little bit more of it...

#6. Grilled Pork Belly


Ask and you shall receive. The pork belly was perfectly cooked and I enjoyed the pomegranate seeds that accompanied the meat. I did not, however, care for the glazed chestnuts. No matter, the pork belly was scrumptious.

#7. Vermont Organic Lamb 3 ways: Roasted Loin, Braised Belly, Crispy Confit


Abby hates lamb. If there's one protein that Abby refuses to eat, it's lamb. She liked the lamb at Craigie on Main. Nuff said. (An incredible dish, though the sausage was just ok, the braised belly and roasted loin were unbelievable.)

#8. Jasmine/Rooibos Tea Infused Panna Cotta



Let's just say we didn't like either and leave it at that.

#9. Olive oil and Taza Chocolate Mousse or Long Island Cheese Pumpkin Parfait



My chocolate Mousse came with a little candle for my b-day. That was nice. The mousse itself was very rich, but was a good size portion that I wasn't hit with too much sweetness. Abby loved her pumpkin parfait. Abby also ordered a cup of tea, that came with it's own pot.



#10. Chilled Peach Mousse


A very nice way to end the dinner. Very light and refreshing.

Overall, a fantastic meal. Other than the bones in the salmon, nothing to really complain about. The service was at times slow, especially when we were waiting to pay the bill and leave, but since we weren't really in a hurry it didn't matter. Water was refilled in a timely manner, and the waiters were very knowledgable and friendly. I give Craigie on Main a 4 1/2 out of 5.