Harvard on the Hill

I stopped by Harvard Gardens for an end-of-week drink after work a few weeks back. I don't know what this place has to do with Harvard: it's across from MGH on Cambridge Street and I don't think any Harvard students venture this far from the Square. In any case, here's the run-down:

Harvard Gardens seems to be going for the Dresden look a la Swingers, but I think it falls a little short of a real lounge. For one thing, after work in the summer, their venetian blinds let in too much light, which spoils the effect, especially since we were sitting at the bar facing the windows.

I had a dirty sapphire martini and my friend had a ciroq on the rocks with a twist. The bartender gets points for asking if my friend wanted a twist, but loses them for no check-in again after we ordered our drinks. The bar selection is decent, but not stellar at Harvard Gardens. On the upside they have a deceptively deep catalog of liquor that is spread across the various shelves behind the bar (e.g., look up to find the good tequilas). They have some interesting stuff: Ciroq for one, Christiania vodka for another, but overall the selection didn't wow us. In addition, we didn't see a drink menu and we certainly were not offered one! That combines with the not-so-attentive service to get a mediocre score in my book.

I didn't have a beer, but I did check their taps, and Harvard Gardens hits all the must-haves: a wheat beer, Sam Adams, Sams seasonal, Bass, Guiness, Stella Artois, etc. Decent selection, but again, nothing too outlandish that caught my eye.

All in all, this is an reasonable, but not great bar. You can get a decent drink here, but for a place with good atmospheric potential, Harvard Gardens falls short as a credible lounge. That said, I hear it has a good Thursday night scene, so it may get another chance to redeem itself.

drink'm

Beacon Hill Birthday Crawl

A friend of mine who lives in Beacon Hill had his birthday on Monday. Good excuse to go out. We set out from his apartment to the 21st Amendment. It wasn't my first time, but it's a great place. This place has character: it's right next to the State House, it has dark wood panelling, but it feels like a pub. Not a lounge, not a frat house, just a solid unpretentious bar. Plus they have good food. Especially their sliders, which have the right balance of cheese, russian dressing, pickles and onions (rings and caramelized). Unfortunately for me, because I didn't eat dinner, they stop serving food sometime around 9. We didn't spend enough time here to really grok their drink selection -- a shot of so-so tequila and we were on our way to the next place.

Luckily, the kitchen at the next place, Emmet's Pub and Restaurant, is open later. Emmet's is bigger, has a little less character than the 21st, but is probably a better bar for a big group. My guess is that they generally cater to State House staff and other office workers in the area. They have tables where you can drink, eat, and make a lot of noise without bothering anyone. I'm pretty sure we did all three, but I'm not sure about the last one. We got appetizers and beers, which seems to have been the right choice. Though I don't think that Emmet's has a signature dish like the sliders at the 21st, it's hard to go wrong with their buffalo wings, potato skins, etc. This place has got its routine down pat: they have a reasonable number of safe beers on tap and they make appetizers that are tasty and good for sharing. Of note, the mini-pancake appetizer was surprisingly tasty, something like latkes served with barbecue sauce.

With some food in my belly, I was ready for a down and dirty bar -- it was a birthday after all and we had a reasonably big group. We wandered down towards Faneuil Hall, went by Bell In Hand, but ended up around the corner at The Point at the Boston Stone Pub. Everywhere around here is quiet on a Monday night, and this place was no exception. Not so many people, but a sufficiently loud jukebox to keep us entertained. This is not a connoisseur's bar, this is a sticky floor, frat house style bar. We went with a couple pitchers of Sam Adams (Boston Lager and Summer Ale). And then a couple more. And then those I-should-know-better 3 Wise Men shots. The bartender didn't blink at any of this. The bouncer didn't look twice at our arm-wrestling tournament. A cute, random girl sat down and challenged the birthday boy to arm wrestle. It's clear to me that The Point is used to rowdy 20-somethings who are out for a good time and aren't so particular about the drinks, ambiance, or service.

The summary -- I had a lot of fun, but it was that guilty kind of fun that you don't associate with "great bars". The 21st I would recommend, especially when they are serving food. Emmet's gets a nod as well. The jury is still out on The Point: the night wouldn't have been the same without it, but I bet it is a lot less fun if it is the first place you stop in an evening. Until next time,

drink'm