Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
"Booze In Boston"
Neighborhood: Beacon Hill
Address: 75 Chestnut Street
Website: http://www.75chestnut.com
Date of Visit: Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Server Name: OsmarThe Vibe
Situated just off of Charles Street on quaint and romantic Chestnut Street in Beacon Hill, 75 Chestnut is truly a neighborhood treasure. Owned by the same fine folks that oversee the Hampshire House and Cheers, the family atmosphere was apparent as soon as you walked through the door. Chestnut is a small yet cozy restaurant with low lighting and a casual yet classy feel. The other patrons enjoying dinner or drinks on Valentine’s Day were all friendly and chatting with one another and the restaurants staff, all while nibbling on a community cheese and fruit platter situated near the door. 75
The servers were quite knowledgeable about both the menu (despite it being altered for the occasion), as well as the wine and cocktail list. Our waiter was able to offer quick suggestions to us upon request, and was quite attentive throughout the entire evening. The food here is reasonably priced and quite frankly, delicious! There were only a few things that we were even somewhat put off by. The first bring the annoying telephone that rang constantly throughout our dinner, and the subsequent answering machine recording that played each time the hostess/manager/maybe owner missed it. The other aspect that we were less than enthused by was the “Yule Log”-esque fire being displayed on one of the television screens, and the weird assortment of music. We’re not sure if these are common to the everyday operation of 75 Chestnut, so we’ll give them the benefit of a doubt. Another great thing about 75 Chestnut is that many of their cocktail and wine are “green,” and they even host Green Thursdays weekly – check out more info here (along with other special events). We will definitely be back!
The Drinks
Valerie’s Drink of Choice: St. Germain & Pineapple Cosmo
Ingredients: Homemade pineapple infused vodka, St. Germain, pineapple juice, fresh lime juice
Cost: $12.00Review: Although perhaps not the best pairing for the amazing steak I ordered, this Cosmo was very good! You can definitely tell the difference with the homemade infused vodka as the flavor was much sweeter and natural. The vodka, paired with the pineapple juice gave this drink a distinct pineapple flavor, but when cut with the St. Germain (an elderflower liqueur) it was well rounded. I would order it again, but there were also other drinks on the menu I’d love to try! Also…I loved the glasses.
Cheers:
Eric’s Drink of Choice: Local Flavors Martini
Ingredients: Berkshire Ragged Mountain Gold Rum, New England Corn Whiskey,apple cider, local maple syrup, fresh lemon juice.
Cost: $12.00Review:
This cocktail was loaded with layers of flavor, each one developing as I held the first sip in my mouth. The flavor profile was simple, but the way the flavors seemed to come in waves made this yummy libation oh-so-complex. The maple syrup paired with the lemon juice and cider gave the drink a smooth, sweet flavor with a bite at the end, which offset the whiskey. The local rum was surprisingly good (I don’t know why, but I don’t usually think New England as a rum haven), but seemed to lack the usually spice or sweetness I’ve come to expect. My only wish was that the bartender used a bit of simple syrup (or a bit more), just to level out the mouth feel a bit. Other than that, this cocktail was a pleasant surprise for a bar not widely known as a cocktail haven!Cheers:
The Stats
Wine Prices: Twenty one whites and thirty red wines are available. Most are by the bottle only for $26 to $95, but select varieties are offered by the glass for $7.50 to $11 each. Six champagnes & sparkling wines are also available. The full wine list is online here.
Beer Prices: We didn’t see any beers listed on the menu in the restaurant or online, but we did see some diners drinking it…unfortunately we don’t have any information to provide!
Other: 75 Chestnut has 14 drinks on their cocktail menu (they also have eight brunch drinks!). While the prices were not listed on the menu, our guess is that they’re mostly around the price of our two, which was twelve dollars. Other options include the “Boston Dirty Water,” a Chai Toddy, and a Rye Manhattan. While their “green cocktail” list seems to stay the same, the martini list changes seasonally. The full cocktail menu is online here.
Here’s a picture of the DELICIOUS Raspberry Creme Brule Cheesecake we had for dessert:
75 's Spring Martini Lists
SPRING MARTINIS
TEA N’ HONEY
Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka shaken with Barenjager Honey Liqueur and lemon juice.
BEIJO TROPICAL
Cruzan Guava Rum and Beija Cachaça shaken with coconut water, orange-mango juice and lime juice.
MANGO MARGARITA
Jalapeño infused tequila mixed with mango nectar, orange liqueur, lime juice and mint simple syrup.
RED GRAPEFRUIT MARTINI
Our own raspberry infused vodka shaken with fresh grapefruit juice and topped with lemon-lime soda.
ST-GERMAIN & PINEAPPLE COSMO
Our own pineapple infused vodka mixed with St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur, pineapple juice and fresh lime juice.
75 WINDOW BOX MARTINI
Our house made Buddha’s Hand Citron infused vodka shaken with freshly squeezed lemon juice and Monin natural lavender syrup..
SPICY & DIRTY MARTINI
For those who like spicy martinis we mix Absolut Vodka, pepperoncini brine, olive juice and garniish with blue cheese stuffed olives and Pepperoncini..
STRAWBERRY MOJITO
Cruzan Strawberry Rum mixed with muddled fresh mint, simple syrup and lime juice.
Topped with carbonated water, italian vermouth and orange bitters.
GREEN LIBATIONS
“THE PATH TO A MORE SUSTAINABLE LIFE CAN BE DELICIOUS”.
*Liquors which are either certified organic or made with organic products.
AÇAI MARGARITA
Casa Noble Organic Reposado Tequila* mixed with Veev Açai Spirit*, açai juice and lime juice.
SPICED GINGER MOJITO
Muddled fresh mint, lime juice and Crusoe Organic Spiced Rum* topped with ginger beer.
BLOOD ORANGE BLOSSOM
Hangar One Mandarin Blossom Vodka* shaken with St-Germain, blood orange juice and lime juice.
GARDEN MARTINI
Hangar One Blueberry Vodka* , Thatcher’s Organic Cucumber Liqueur* and Izze all natural Sparkling Blueberry.
FARMER’S SPRING
Farmer’s Organic Gin* mixed with lemon juice, freshly squeezed tangerine juice and 03 Premium Orange Liqueur.
THE GREEN LINE
Bully Boy Boston Organic Vodka* shaken with muddled basil and lime juice.
BOSTON DIRTY WATER
Bully Boy Boston Organic Vodka* shaken with organic pickles brine.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Beer Tastings at the Cheers Set Bar
Special Cider Tasting
Hosted by
Woodchuck from Vermont
Wednesday, March 7th
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Cheers Set bar
Cheers to Beer Tasting Tuesdays
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Cheers Set Bar
Schedule:
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Smuttynose Brewing Company
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Troegs Brewing Company
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Magic Hat Brewery
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Sam Adams Brewery
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Fisherman's/Cape Ann Brewing Company
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Brooklyn Brewery
If you would like to reserve a spot, please call 617-227-9605. Walk-ins welcome, space permitting.
The Set Bar will remain open after the tastings, to allow you to refine your new-found knowledge.