Last Tuesday night after a long day of meetings and a reception with John Ruggie, UN Special Representative for Business and Human Rights (yes sometimes my job is pretty cool), I was ready for a relaxed dinner. I grabbed Nadira and Kate (are you sick of those girls because I know I am… JK!) and a couple of other colleagues headed out to dinner.
There were 6 of us total and we decided to head to Eastern Standard, a restaurant that I believe opened just as I was moving back from Boston nearly 7 years ago and had always wanted to try.

We were having an unseasonably cold day in the northeast so we were all excited when we arrived at the restaurant to find that they had a heated outdoor patio. Score! I love eating outside and being under the heat lamps kept us warm and toasty.

Before we ordered I handed our waitress my allergy card as, as I’ve come to expect in Massachusetts, the waitress assured me she’d let the kitchen know and they’d take care of me and they did!

Saison Du Buff

After such a long day and in anticipation of another one to follow, we all needed a drink. Eastern Standard has a fairly impressive craft beer list and, after some consideration, I ordered the Dogfish Head Saison Du Buff. I had never tried that particular beer, but I generally really like Dogfish Head beers and I love saisons. My educated bet paid off and I was rewarded with a crisp refreshing drink. According to beeradvocate.com the Saison Du Buff is brewed with “parsley, sage, estate rosemary & thyme,” which gave it a lovely slightly herby flavor. Yum!

The moules

Since I’d indulged in so much meaty, bbq-ey goodness the night before I was in the mood for some lighter fare. I noticed the Moules Provencal with tomato, fennel and white wine on the appetizer menu. I love mussels,  but you can’t have mussels without fries so I ordered a side and made my own moules frite.

The frites

The dish totally hit the spot. The mussels were fresh and plump and the broth was rich and flavorful filled with bits of perfectly tender fennel. The fries were crispy and lightly salted just the way I like them and complemented the mussels perfectly.

The sweet corn ice cream was definitely the star of the show

When it came time for dessert, we were all intrigued by the selection of ice cream; dulce de leche, basil and sweet corn. We all got some combination of these flavors with me deciding to try one scoop of each. The dulce de leche was yummy as dulce de leche always is. Everyone agreed it was delicious; fresh, bright and clean, just as you’d expect from something basil flavored. Then there was the sweet corn ice cream. Now that was divisive. Four of us went crazy for it, declaring it far and away the best, but Kate and her friend Lisa who had joined us hated it. If Kate reads this she will comment that, “you could just buy a $.59 can of creamed corn, stick it in the freezer and get the same effect.” At that point I’d remind her she was outnumbered 4-2. The  sweet corn ice cream complex, sweet, earthy and I’d love to have it again.

All in all it was a lovely meal with a great group of people.

The verdict:

Food rating: B+

Service/food allergy accommodations: A

Overall rating: Super Yummy