This week Ani and I decided we wanted to give East Coast Grill a try for Brunch. We had been there before for dinner and I was particularly interested in visiting this Inman Square legendary establishment - ECG is consistently ranked as one of Boston's best restaurants - to enjoy the mother of all meals. There was one main reason for my unbridled enthusiasm. If you've been to Inman Sq. before you might think this was the fact that there is always a line outside or that they are solidly fully booked every night of the week. This was not the reason. Every time I walk by ECG, while on my Quest for the Perfect Brunch, I can see the most wonderful thing through their windows. It is a perfectly set up Bloody Mary self service bar with dozens of different ingredients to choose from to make the perfect eye opener. If this is not a reason to pick a Brunch spot, what is? But I am getting ahead of myself here... We'll get to that.
East Coast Grill is a pretty cool restaurant that serves a type of Latin-Southern fusion food where dishes are mostly (but not only!) seafood based. Culinary examples of what you might find in the menu go from fish tacos to southern style BBQ, making a quick detour through a raw bar where solid oysters are served. Also popular at ECG are their special events held around the year, the most popular of all being Hell Night. Truth to be said, the common denominator found in all dishes here is the fact that they tend to be rather spicy. I guess that is not a surprise in a latin-southern restaurant, but what is particular to ECG is that they make a statement out of it. Hell Night is just the main date in the calendar where this aspect is enthusiastically celebrated.
So, what about our brunch? While Ani went with her usual Grape Juice / OJ combo and coffee, I could not resist from venturing deep into the Bloody Mary bar described above. I decided to go with it head in first. When you order the drink, you get a tall glass filled with vodka and ice, topped with a lime and rimmed with hot spices. Then, off you go to the self service area where the sky's the limit. I decided to try a few things so I could have a general idea, but not too many so I could make out the particular tastes. I went with: Heart of Palm, Mango and Avocado fresh mix, Garlic and Chile sauce, Pickled Jalapenos, Olives, Tabasco sauce and Celery. Good, ain't it? If you think that's a lot, well... it was just a very small fraction of all options possible. Now, that does not make a Bloody Mary. There is one crucial ingredient left: Tomato juice. ECG offers three different options: standard tomato juice, Bloody Mary Mix and Clamato. Wonder what this last one is? It is tomato juice mixed with just the right amount of clams juice which makes the drink saltier and tastier. Of course, I decided to go with this last, more adventurous, option. The result was just amazing. Brunch perfection in a glass. I can hardly wait to come back and try a different combination.
What about the food? We opened with three oysters from the raw bar. They were meaty and tasty. Very solid, indeed. Ani is not a big fan of raw prehistoric animals in shells, so she asked for some cornbread croutons as a snack. Here we have to take our hats off to our waitress, as she agreed to serve us 3 oysters (while 6 is the norm) and the croutons (that were part of some other dish). After this prelude, and while I kept sipping from my self-made Bloddy Mary, we got to the entrees. Ani went with the Amilcar's Omelette, which comes with avocado, black beans, jack cheese, salsa verde, salsa roja, queso fresco and guava paste. I thought it was pretty good and I especially liked the salsa verde. Ani thought it was too much of a fusion dish (she confessed she is not very much impressed with latin fusion food, as all dishes tend to contain way too many ingredients) and did not like the fact that the black beans where inside the omelette and not mixed with the cheese. Not a complete success. I, on the other hand, nailed it. I got one of the specials. Salmon and Chorizo Cakes with fresh tomatillos and beans. It was just out of this world. The cakes where golden crispy and spicy, but very well complemented by the tomatillos. It was a perfect dish to pair my clamato based Bloody Mary.
I have to say I had a great time at East Coast Grill. Making my own Bloody Mary was fun and their ingredients were fresh and tasty. Oysters were a great way to start our meal. On top of that, my dish was remarkable. Maybe Ani, was not a 100% pleased with hers, but it might have not been the strongest dish in the menu. Furthermore, her complaints about latin fusion food made me feel she may have not been unbiased in her judgement. :)
East Coast Grill is an Inman Sq. classic and you will not be a local until you've visited it. What better time than Brunch to do so?
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