Joe's American Bar and Grill

The second installment of REVEALED! takes a look at a long standing Boston institution, Joe's American Bar and Grill.

Don't call it American Joe's--its just Joe's (Joe's on the waterfront or Joe's on Newbury Street if you are getting specific). The restaurant is owned by the Back Bay Restaurant Group which also owns Abe & Louie's, Atlantic Fish Company, Charley's, Papa Razzi, The Coach Grill (in Wayland, Mass.), and the newest addition, Bouchee. All of these restaurants usually provide a solid dining experience....but as wise, informed restaurant consumers, it is important to know that all of these restaurants are managed centrally.

Its location on longwharf, a touristy area of the city, means the restaurant is prone to out-of-town visitors. This was the case on the day we were there, and an obnoxious couple was seated next to us. The woman carried her own SmartWater into the restaurant along with a snobby attitude (even though she was wearing Sketchers!) towards the whole experience. They ordered two shrimp cocktails after being told that 3pm was too late for brunch. During the remainder of the time they sat there, the woman talked the entire time on her bluetooth headset, while the man stared off into space.

Our server was not very "into" our table--on a beautiful Sunday for lunch the restaurant was crowded (as I'm sure it usually is) and the food didn't come for a very long time. Other tables were being served that had been seated after us--I'm not sure what that was about--maybe it was because Marco ordered a garden salad to start (see the picture of brown iceberg lettuce below). I have had great burgers at Charley's, so I was expecting something similar here. I was disappointed that the burger was small, even tough it tasted fine. All of use who had ordered burgers were interested to see that our lettuce garnishes had wilted--indicating that *perhaps* our food sat under a heat lamp for a long time. Marco's steak tips were cold--he should have sent them back--but he ate them anyway. It took us an eternity to get the check, as we watched the table with the obnoxious couple morph into a table of even more obnoxious drunk guys (this was at like 3:30pm on a Sunday....come on, there was no need for these men to be pounding down beers at an overpriced tourist trap).

Fortunately the food and service did not ruin the experience of sitting harborside on a great September weekend day. If it is people watching and a view you are in search of, Joe's delivers. If good food and attentive service is your aim, I would try Joe's other Boston location on Newbury Street or another restaurant group all together.

Joe's American Bar and Grill
We sat outside with a view of Boston Harbor

Marco's salad....which may or may not have thrown
off the timing of all of our meals...most likely not.

Steaktips

Joe's American Bar & Grill
(617) 367-8700
North End
100 Atlantic Ave
Boston, MA 02110
www.joesamerican.com

The Butcher Shop

Join me as I begin a new column on Les Gourmands: REVEALED! A weekly inside look at my adventures at restaurants and eateries throughout Boston.

Our first restaurant is Barbara Lynch's shop/wine bar/bistro, The Butcher Shop. I had always wanted to go into this place while simultaneously being so intimidated to step foot inside it. I had previously conquered Lynch's flagship, No. 9 Park, with a nine course meal paired with delicious wines. While the price could be considered slightly intimidating, No. 9 Park offered a more enjoyable atmosphere and experience than Aujourd'hui (Boston's other exquiste French restaurant). So, despite already eating at the more serious of her restaurants, I don't know why I still remained scared to step into Butcher Shop---perhaps it is the size of the place and the way it is set up. There are windows on two sides and you can see tons of people always standing or sitting right up against the windows. Plus, I always wondered, what do you do when you go inside?....there is no host station, what will I do? (not to create another tangent, but I am also intimated by B&G Oysters, another Barbara Lynch restaurant!)

Finally putting the fear aside I made plans to go The Butcher Shop (being invited to meet someone there for a drink made the idea of going inside much easier...however we decided to meet there--now what? do I wait outside or go in? eeeek!). I planned to be late--very late by my standards, however, it seemed my dining companion had simliar ideas and was not waiting for me outside as I had hoped. So, taking a deep breath, I decided to step inside. My fears of not knowing what to do were put to rest immediately as I was greeted as soon as I walked in. While I waited, they suggested I have a drink over at the butcher block--this was getting fun already! When I moved into my apartment in Beacon Hill, I wanted to have a big butcher block that could serve as a counter (since there was limited space) but also as a serving table where 2 or more could sit or stand around and have drinks or dinner. Real butcher's blocks are more expensive than I wanted, so I settled for a tall dining bar with a butcher block-type top to it---but this restaurant had the real deal and I loved it!

The walls were filled with that day's specials written in chalk and behind where I was standing was a huge refrigerator full of excellent meats (it is a real shop--you can buy cuts of meat there). All of this really added to the feel of the place--I didn't realize this butcher block part of the restaurant even existed because from Tremont Street all you can really see is the bar at the front. So I had a glass of wine while I waited--the wine list was very European (I had know idea what I was looking through since I really only know things about California wines), but I had a lot of time to thumb through the selections since Ryan thought we were meeting a half an hour after I did. Once he finally got there, the butcher (yes, there is a real-live butcher there) enjoyed overhearing the conversation that we had about Ryan's lateness while he (the butcher, not Ryan) chopped different meats and wrapped them--it was actually fascinating to watch.

The wine was delicious and we had a little bread to nibble on. We did not, however, stay there for dinner. I am seriously looking forward to returning there both for drinks around the butcher block and to actually sit for dinner! I definitely recommend you take the plunge and venture in--the entire staff was very friendly to me (even while I was just standing alone waiting). Barbara Lynch is 2 for 2 in my book--I look forward to B&G!

The Butcher Shop
552 Tremont Street
617.423.4800
thebutchershopboston.com