Enjoying the Sun on the Rattlesnake Roof Deck

This past Saturday Nick and I were heading out and running errands that brought us to both Downtown Crossing and Back Bay.  While we were expecting the weather to be gloomy, it turned out that the day had something much nicer in store - warmth and sun (go figure!)  I will take it for the few short hours it was here.

Around lunchtime we were hungry but had no destination in mind.  We originally thought we could go to Parish Cafe, but of course it was packed.  Instead, we decided to check out the roof deck at Rattlesnake Bar.  Turns out we hit it only a few minutes after it opened so we immediately headed up.  This isn't just some thrown together area - there is a legitimate bar, complete with seating and standing room, as well as a number of tables for any number of people.  There are plenty of umbrellas in order to keep the sun at bay for those of us who are not used to the sun quite yet.

Deciding to indulge in this weather, we got ourselves a Sam Summer (my first one of the season) and a Harpoon IPA.

Perfect on a sunny day!

The bar upstairs is completely full service and the longer we sat the more drinks we saw go out: sangria, mojitos, beer, etc.!  All of them looked pretty refreshing on a warm sunny day.

The menu offered a wide variety of food - plenty of tacos of all sorts, and sandwiches with plenty of toppings.  I think the menu has been completely revamped in the last year or so, and it seems like they did a really good job with it.

I decided to order the taco salad, which had sundried tomato tortillas with refried beans, cotija cheese, avocado, corn, onion and aqua fresca vinaigrette.

Taco Salad

Each bite offered something new and different.  I just kept eating the different layers finding new and fun things to eat, like a little treasure hunt!

Nick went with the Hudson Valley Duck Tacos (one of the many varieties), which had molasses and cola marinated duck breast with cranberry-rosemary risotto and a truffle cranberry glaze.

Tacos!

While a bit crazy sounding, Nick thought these were fantastic!  Once again the flavors were fantastic and the taco shell was thick and had a good crunch, even with all the fillings.

Our completely unplanned lunch turned out to a be a great way to spend our afternoon enjoying the sunshine we were finally treated to in Boston this weekend.  The next time you are looking for somewhere outside to grab a bite, be sure to check out the roof deck at the Rattlesnake.