Clio - Ken Oringer's Fine Dining Establishment!

For Christmas each year my mother makes a reservation at a fancier restaurant in town.  In years past we have gone to L'Espalier, Market, and Aujourd'hui (now closed).  We have tried to go to a couple of the nicer Barbara Lynch restaurants, but getting reservations can be tough during the holidays.  This year we decided to go to a restaurant that seems to fly under the radar a bit - Clio.  While it is the brain child of Ken Oringer, his other restaurants seem to steal more of the spotlight than this cozy fine dining establishment tucked into the Eliot Hotel.  Between the pedigree of Oringer and the recommendation of one of co workers who knows her way around fine dining in Boston, I knew this was a good selection for our fancy holiday meal.

Upon arrival at Clio, Nick and I met my mom and brother in the bar area, grabbed a drink and got settled while our table was prepared and we checked our coats.  Nick was convinced to order the freshly made egg nog that was truly delicious.  It was filling, but good enough to order a second glass.

Egg Nog

While my brother and mother went for glasses of wine, I chose a cocktail that was garnished with a bit of toasted coconut - how could I resist?!

Cocktail with toasted coconut.

While enjoying my drink, I was struck by how small the restaurant was.  This was not an overwhelming space by any means.  The clean and contemporary decor made for a nice eating experience, but since our dinner, Clio has undergone a substantial renovation, so I cannot speak to the current style.  When we we sat at our table we were quickly greeted by our server who also brought over a nice amuse bouche for us to enjoy.  The ingredients included a foie gras - definitely a fun and tasty ingredient.  The amuse did exactly what it was supposed to - got us excited for the meal to come.

Amuse Bouche

Shortly thereafter we were given some wheat rolls and some baguettes accompanied by salted butter.  We were lucky to have so much to enjoy before dinner because the extensive and detailed menu required a lot of thought.  There just seemed to be so many amazing choices!  The combination of techniques and ingredients was impressive.  Luckily we had an extremely knowledgeable server who went over almost every dish on the menu so that we felt comfortable in the our choices.

Bread!

With so many delicious plates, here is my best attempt at covering all of the food!  To begin, the four of us split a plate of marinated yellowtail and yellowfin opal basil, ginger and garlic.  There was so much fresh fish on this plate with a flavorful sauce that it was perfect for each of our group get a good share of the dish.

Yellowtail and Yellowfin

After a good sale by the server, Nick and I both ordered the cassolette of sea urchin and lobster made with a parsnip milk, crispy shallots and candied lemon.  This was my first experience with sea urchin and I really enjoyed it!  The cassolette was flavorful and with so many textures in one dish it made each mouthful so interesting and fun.  Not having much experience with foam dishes other than seeing them on Top Chef, I was excited to give it a go, and if I had to guess, this was foam done right as it was added so much dimension to the dish.

Cassolette

My brother, a big foie gras fan, ordered the Foie Gras Laquee with milk and honey puree, cornichons and pickled onion berries.  The presentation of this dish was so striking, with the hardened honey that almost looked like a shiny piece of fabric.

Lacquee

My mom ordered the most fun dish, which was really more of a dish within a dish.  She ordered the Fall Squash Soup, which had five different treats at the bottom of the bowl including a pistachio croquant, orange and poire Williams.  I love table-side pouring of soups, but this took it to a whole other level.  It really was like having a new surprising mouthful in each bite.

Soup - Pre Soup Pour

Post Soup Pour

After a delicious first course, it was onto the main dishes.  My brother and I ordered the Duet du Boeuf, which had grilled Pineland Farms skirt steak and root beer braised short rib with a parsley root brulee, charred cippolini, and a lemon balm "diable." I was sold on this dish with the brulee and the root beer braise - two totally different ingredients that somehow totally worked in this dish.  This combination seemingly should not have worked, but it came together so well and and was a tasty dish.

Duet du Boeuf

At the suggestion of our server, Nick went with the Buttermilk Braised Organic Chicken with a parisienne oak gnocchi, golden raisins and a black truffle creme.  Nick thought this dish was delicious - the gnocchi had a great depth of flavor and the black truffle accent provided a great accent (naturally!).

Buttermilk Braised Chicken

My mother had the Sweet Butter Basted Maine Lobster with chanterelle mushrooms, fresh soy beans and "vin jaune D'Arbois." Even with all the accompaniments to this dish, the lobster was the star and there was plenty of it (enough that we even got some bites!).

Sweet Butter Basted Lobster

After such a great meal we were all so full, but the dessert menu had so many tempting options that we HAD to indulge.  First we had a bit of a palette cleanser with some cappuccino - nice and frothy.

Cappuccino

Reed ordered the French Butter Pear with malt walnut creme and labne ice cream.

French Butter Pear

Nick surprisingly went with a chocolate dessert!  I must admit, the reason is because it was accompanied by banana ice cream.  The cake was a Miso Dark Chocolate Cremeux and in addition to the banana ice cream it had a golden miso cashew butter.  The miso was a surprising accent flavor that made for a fun combination with the dark chocolate.

Miso Dark Chocolate Cremeux

I ordered the Chocolate Coulant, which toke 20 minutes to prepare, but with the coconut cocoa nib ice cream on the side I could not resist!  My brother had called ahead to the restaurant and told them that Nick and I were getting married at the end of the week so they made the dessert a bit more special!  This had to be one of the best desserts I ever had - the chocolate and coconut combination was simply amazing.  I would seriously go back to Clio just for this dessert.  I cannot think of one dessert that tops this.

Chocolate Coulant

Molten Coconut oozing out

Unfortunately, the first time they made this it fell over before it made it out of the kitchen, so it ended up taking about 40 minutes.  While the server apologized for the delay, when the bill came I was surprised they actually charged us for the dessert.  I did not argue, but was just surprised because the service was amazing in every other aspect of the meal.  Even with the extra time, the dessert was worth it.

This holiday meal at Clio was exactly why my mother started doing this each year - it allowed us to go out and enjoy a phenomenal meal somewhere we would not normally go.  Clio had such an innovative menu with dishes unlike what you see at other restaurants, white table cloth or not.  Even though it is a foodie menu, the dishes are not overly complex and come together really well that even people who typically would shy away from the more complex dishes would find more than enough options to satisfy.

The smaller dining space provides such a lovely intimate dining experience.  Whether you are looking for a special date night or are in the mood for a great meal with friends, Clio should be at the top of your list.

Thanks, Mom!

Tower of London

Happy Travel Tuesday. (Are you sensing a theme?)

The Tower of London is an iconic landmark situated on the north bank of the River Thames, home of the Historic Royal Palace and The Crown Jewels as well other prominent and powerful entities through the years since it was built in 1078. Tricia and I embarked on a tour lead by a spirited Beefeater, wandered the green (noting the legendary ravens) and explored the Royal Armory. We were engrossed in tales of beheading among others told of London's past, and fascinated by the visual displays of all that accompanied a life of majesty.

The tower is worth a visit especially (or specifically) for a glimpse of the jaw dropping collection of Crown Jewels. The sheer beauty of these gems - among them diamonds, rubys and emeralds to name a few, set in regal purple crowns and gold encrusted wands with their perfectly cut shapes, massive size and intense sparkle factor, is unreal. (Too bad you can't photograph them.) What you can photograph is just about everything else, as shown in the Instagram collage below.
The majestic Tower Bridge can be seen from atop the fortress walls and around the outer perimeter of the area. This famous landmark is commonly mistaken as London Bridge, which is actually further down the river and not nearly as poignant. We didn't have time for a tour of the bridge on this trip, but to marvel in its presence felt like enough.

Buffalo Chicken Stromboli

Super Bowl Sunday is almost here! I'm sure you're all busy planning your menus, so I thought I'd share this awesome Buffalo chicken stromboli recipe. You start by simmering chicken in Buffalo sauce, then you mix it with cheese, fold it inside some puff pastry, and bake the whole thing. It's sure to be a crowd pleaser, and it's really easy to make.

I made two versions, one with cheddar cheese and one with cheddar cheese and blue cheese. And then I whipped up a blue cheese dip on the side, which was a great partner for the stromboli as well as Buffalo Wing Pretzel Crisps and celery sticks.

Buffalo Chicken Stromboli (adapted from Cook's Country and allrecipes.com)
Printable version
Makes 2 stromboli, serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds), trimmed and cut in 1-inch strips
1/2 cup Frank's RedHot Sauce, plus more to taste
3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese
1 (17.3-ounce) package puff pastry, thawed
Blue Cheese Dip, optional (recipe below)
Celery sticks, optional

Preparation

Melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in chicken and 1/2 cup hot sauce. Reduce heat and simmer for 6 to 8 minutes, until chicken is cooked. (I would err on the side of under- or just-cooked as the chicken will continue to cook in the oven too.)

Shred chicken and toss with sauce.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Drain chicken and divide between two medium bowls. Stir blue cheese and 2 tablespoons cheddar cheese into one bowl of chicken.

Stir remaining 1/4 cup cheddar cheese into other bowl of chicken. Stir in additional hot sauce if desired (I know some of you are braver than I am).

Unfold one pastry sheet on lightly floured countertop. Roll pastry into 10- by 14-inch rectangle.

With short side facing you, spoon one bowl of chicken mixture down center of puff pastry. Fold the long sides to the center over the chicken mixture, and press to seal. Tuck and seal ends. Then place stromboli seam side down on one side of large baking sheet.

Repeat with remaining sheet of pastry and remaining chicken mixture and place stromboli seam side down on same baking sheet.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until puff pastry is golden brown, turning halfway through.

Let cool 5 minutes. Cut each stromboli into 1- to 2-inch thick slices.

Serve with Blue Cheese Dip and celery sticks, if desired.

Blue Cheese Dip (adapted from Saveur)

Ingredients

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
2 scallions, trimmed and sliced thin

Preparation

In medium bowl, whisk together cream cheese, sour cream, and heavy cream. Using rubber spatula, fold in blue cheese and two-thirds of the scallions. Transfer to serving dish and top with remaining scallions.

What are you making for the Super Bowl? Let's go, Pats!

january weekend.

It was 45 degrees and sunny this past Saturday in Boston. In other words, it felt like early April as opposed to late January. We cooked meals at home, strolled through Beacon Hill, had a drink in Back Bay and visited our favorite baby in the South End. It was leisurely paced and perfectly relaxing. How was your weekend?