The
Breakdown:
- Occasion: Date night or dinner with 1-2 friends. (It's tiny!)
- Attire/ambiance: Casual/dressy; dim, cozy interior with rustic brick walls.
- What to order: For the appetizer, beef tenderloin tips with cheese fondue. For the entree, gnocchi with short ribs. And dessert, the caramel-drenched banana bread pudding. So good.
- Reservations? Yes. Go for dinner - they have an incredible daily $38 prix fixe menu.
- Occasion: Date night or dinner with 1-2 friends. (It's tiny!)
- Attire/ambiance: Casual/dressy; dim, cozy interior with rustic brick walls.
- What to order: For the appetizer, beef tenderloin tips with cheese fondue. For the entree, gnocchi with short ribs. And dessert, the caramel-drenched banana bread pudding. So good.
- Reservations? Yes. Go for dinner - they have an incredible daily $38 prix fixe menu.
Grotto is
an inconspicuous little Italian place nestled away on the back side of Beacon Hill, MA. For being #1 on Yelp’s “romantic restaurants in Boston”
list, it’s surprisingly hard to find and pretty cramped inside. Luckily, the food / ambiance more than compensate for that.
Below is a view of this historic New England neighborhood known for its colonial-style brick row houses, gas lamps, and narrow red brick
sidewalks. Today, Beacon Hill is widely regarded as prime (and very pricey) real estate in Boston.
We started
off with a spinach and beet salad with spiced walnuts, goat cheese, and raspberry vinaigrette. Loved the fresh ingredients, with a nice mixture of fruity and savory flavors.
The next appetizer
was amazing - juicy beef tenderloin tips and portobello mushrooms dipped
in a creamy, aromatic cheese fondue with aged balsamic and truffle oil.
My entree was heavenly - the best gnocchi I've EVER had, with melt-in-your-mouth short ribs and a rich mushroom and gorgonzola sauce. The clear winner of the night.
Another
great entree was the Fra Diavolo, or butter poached lobster linguine in a creamy, spicy tomato sauce. It was slightly lackluster though, compared to the gnocchi.
For one of the desserts, we got the Cioccolato - a decadent molten chocolate cake, served warm and dripping with melted chocolate, paired with vanilla ice cream and a fine layer of mocha powder.
For the other dessert, we got the Budino - banana bread pudding, caramel ice cream, and spiced walnuts, drizzled all over with a rich caramel sauce. I was already too full, but this dessert was too good to resist.
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed the entire meal. Every dish was on point, and beautifully presented. Definitely can see how they earned their #1 Yelp rating.
