$$$ - French - Back Bay West
Earlier this year when I was with family in Boston, we had a special event to celebrate and were looking for a good restaurant to commemorate this event. We came to Deuxave, an upscale French restaurant in the trendy Back Bay area. It has a great location on Commonwealth Ave and is surrounded by beautiful brick buildings.
The space is fancy yet understated and has a very sleek and modern feel but is also pretty cozy. There are both metal, granite, and brick surfaces with wine bottles and maps giving it both color and a lived-in feel.
THE VISIT
As we were a group with something to celebrate, we went big and ordered a bunch of different plates.
Firstly, we were given some bread rolls (having lived in France and being European, I'm definitely into my bread) with copious amounts of butter. We were also given a delicious
Salmon Tartare with Cucumber Gazpacho as an amuse-bouche.
As starters, we ordered the Duet of Prime Beef Tartare & Wagyu Carpaccio with herb-encrusted Wagyu beef, Hanley Style Prime Tartare, Quail Egg Yolk, mushroom Escabèche (marinated/served cold), potato gaufrettes, cornichons, and rosemary-mustard aioli.
We also got the Mozzarella House Burrata with summer squash & zucchini salad, spiced “tomato water” basil oil, and croutons (currently with winter vegetable panzanella, roasted baby beets, focaccia crouton, and a cider Rosemary Vinaigrette), and the Snap Peas with green garlic aioli and crispy pancetta.
We also got some fried foods - the French Fries “Au Canard” cooked in duck fat with Herbs & Parmesan and the Crispy Duck Confit with champagne mango, baby fennel, meyer lemon, black sesame and passion fruit purée (currently served with heirloom cranberries, shaved Brussels sprouts, mushroom salad, bacon vinaigrette, marinated Trumpet Royale Mushrooms, and spiced cranberry purée).
For the main course, there were 3 seafood dishes;
1) Pan-Seared Atlantic Halibut with wheat berry tabbouleh, avocado & sorrel purée, charred spring leek, and Meyer lemon emulsion (currently served with Chili Carrot Purée, Savoy Cabbage, Chantenay Carrot, and Shiitake Mushrooms).
2) Spring Tuna Nicoise with seared Ahi Tuna, spring vegetables, pea tendrils, Castelvetrano olives, marble potatoes, 6-minute crispy egg, and green goddess aioli
3) Baker River Wild Sockeye Salmon with Scarlet Runner Beans, Chorizo, Fennel, English Peas, Lemon Verbena Purée, Oxalis.
We also got the Spiced Colorado Lamb Loin & Lamb Bacon with summer squash ratatouille, baby artichokes, and fennel pollen jus and an English Pea Agnolotti pasta with snap peas, Portobello mushrooms, Vidalia spring onions, and green almonds. Finally, as we were celebrating, we got delicious lemon + poppyseed meringues with truffles.
WINNERS
Carpaccio: As a fan of beef tartare, wagyu beef, and carpaccio, I was very happy with this dish. The meats were delicious and an interesting combination I would not have thought of. In addition, the potato gaufrettes (mini waffles) added some crunch to the soft meats.
Duck Confit: I order this pretty much every time I go to a French restaurant (both in France and elsewhere). It did not disappoint - a crispy outside while melting in your mouth, a great recreation of a French classic outside of France.
Fries: Similar to the duck confit, these were delicious as they were soaked in duck fat and herbs. It's an indulgent and mouthwatering flavor - just make sure to have water nearby and don't order too many other heavy foods as there's quite a lot in here!
COULD BE BETTER
Value for Money (main course): It is a pricey restaurant, which is fine if you know that going in. On the other hand, the main courses are good but nothing special and could have had a bit more oomph, particularly for the price you're paying.
FINAL VERDICT
Definitely a great place to get a nice dinner if you're in Boston. There are definitely some gems on the menu and you'll have a good time.
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