not quite appropriately rated
the place: sibling rivalry, 525 tremont st, south end
the date: wednesday, 04.29.09
the plan: post-meeting cocktails
you might be surprised to know that the board meetings of the boston ballet volunteers association can get a little testy from time to time. a lot of delightful ladies, very very committed to serving the ballet, all quite pleasant really. but, from time to time there are the occasional power struggles and disagreements over the way things really should be done. this month’s meeting was actually calmer than they have been of late, but afterwards, I was most definitely in the mood to unwind with a cocktail. or four. it didn’t take much convincing to get m to come with and when she suggested sibling rivalry, I agreed, despite not being a huge fan.
the thing is,sibling rivalry has a cool concept (dueling fraternal chefs!), and a great location (that corner is one of the more perfect spots for a restaurant ever). and I always hear great things about it. but, when I went there, I was kind of disappointed. which, when I actually talk to the people who tell me great things, tends to be a relatively common sentiment. the thing is, there are places you have a bad time at and you never want to go back, and there are places you want to give a second chance and sibling rivalry has always seemed like the second kind of place, so off we went and grabbed two seats at the bar next to a gentleman drinking what appeared to be a very dry martini and reading the new yorker. I started to worry immediately.
drinks, of course: my hesitance about the place was not lessened by the fact that it took our tom-selleck-stached bartender quite some time to bother with us despite not seeming to be that busy. once he finally stopped by, m requested a menu and we both ordered a white cosmo. the cosmo was sweet-tart and, I will admit, made me feel better immediately. as the evening wore on (yes, spoiler alert: it was actually enjoyable), I switched to something I think was called a pom 575 that consisted of pomegranate juice and sparkling wine. mmmm…bubbly and full of anti-oxidants.
to start: I was just there for the cocktails, having prepped myself for the potentially aggressive meeting with a burger and fries earlier, but m needed food. sibling rivalry had apparently extended the restaurant week concept into april, so there was a 3-course meal special. once m confirmed that everything could be ordered a la carte, she chose a salad which I urged because I wanted the fiddleheads that came with it and which she disliked (I wasn’t hungry, but fiddleheads! I knew I wouldn’t have a chance at those again this spring), and the tuna tartare (which looked quite delicious). the bartender then condescedingly went on about several items on the menu involving shellfish (m can’t eat that) and more duck (I don’t like duck). I found the whole spiel irritating, but it somehow convinced m to get a special involving duck (a perogi-esque item, I believe). I still can’t really judge the food as all I ate were the fiddleheads, but they were utterly fantastic— cooked just enough, tender, and peppery— so at least there’s that.
so, early on in the evening, I wasn’t impressed with the clientele or the service. but, after we’d settled in, the bartender suddenly became much friendlier (possibly he overheard m say she wanted to sleep with him?) and even taught us how to make the little lemon curls in our drinks.* also, we had some wonderful chats with the customers that came through — peter dubois, newest artistic director at the huntington came in for a quick drink during intermission of his play at the cyclorama and was beyond fabulous and I’m pretty sure his sheer existance talked me into subscribing to the upcoming season, a lovely older man who chatted about the sox and old-time boston stories, and even new yorker dude proved more interesting than first glance. all-in-all, I’m still not sure my opinion of the restaurant (overrated) has changed very much, but I will definitely have more positive feelings about the place from now on due to a fun night and some decent cocktails.
*(a clever shortcut I’d never heard before— boil the lemon, cut off the ends, hollow it out completely, fold it up in a curl-shape, toothpick it and chill it, then slice to get perfect curls. as the selleck-a-like noted, this doesn’t work when you actually want a lot of lemon flavor due to the boiling, but it definitely works for a simple garnish.)
