When I first graduated from college I lived in Inman Square, right on the border of Cambridge and Somerville. At that time most of my friends lived just two neighborhoods away in Davis Square. Those first few years out of school we always hung out in Davis - dinner at Orleans, pie at the Rosebud, ice cream at JP Licks, drinks at Joshua Tree and/or late night pizza at Mike's.
In 2008 I moved to Brighton where I lived for the next four years. Last summer I moved back toward the Cambridge and Somerville side of the river when I bought my place in Watertown. All these years later, Davis Square has some incredible new additions - Posto, Painted Burro, Foundry, M3, Five Horses Tavern and Saloon.
I'd been hearing about Saloon for the last year or so. When it first opened friends would routinely text me, "I'm at Saloon. Have you been? You would love it here!" Well, this week I finally made it there.
Saloon is one of those places that you have to know about. Like Lucky's Lounge in Southie, if you don't know about it, you'll never find it.
The entrance is marked by a single lamp with the restaurant's name branded across it in small black script.
You walk down a set of stairs into the basement, hang a left and then this is what you see:
It almost feels like you are doing something sneaky hanging out down there.
We were interested in both drinks and dinner. Once you're seated you can unfold the paper menu that sits atop your napkin.
The cocktail, wine and beer list is quite extensive. I couldn't help but laugh at the beer category names.
My friend decided to order a glass of cider which came with a shot of fernet. I'd never heard of fernet but our waitress described it as, "Made from fruits and herbs, but has a medicinal, almost Absynthe-like after taste."
I was petrified to try this, but our waitress advised, "First take a small sip of the fernet, then wash it down with the cider." With trepidation I did exactly that and I have to admit, it was actually really good!
For my drink I selected a cocktail called the green thumb. I can't explain it, but lately I am really into cocktails that are garnished with sprigs of savory herbs - thyme, rosemary, sage.
The green thumb is tequila, cucumber, lime, rosemary syrup and ginger beer. It was cool and refreshing and I could have had six more.
For dinner we started by sharing the panzanella salad. My dad makes a killer panzanella, so my expectations were high.
The best part of Saloon's version is the green goddess dressing. I wish the bread had been crunchier and that there had been some type of crisp vegetable like a pepper or a green bean to add that snap.
As her entree, my dinner date ordered the New York strip steak which came topped with shallot jam and served with a side salad and a pail of French fries.
I stole quite a few French fries and they were awesome! That was my favorite thing we ate all night.
There were two vegetarian entree choices and I went with the wild mushroom risotto. I was a bit nervous the dish would be too heavy, but it was perfect. The risotto was well cooked, the dish was overflowing with mushrooms and the bitter greens added a really nice contrast.
Though the food menu at Saloon is quite small, it has several vegetarian-friendly dishes.
By the time we left around 9:30pm, the bar area was completely full. I would imagine on weekends Saloon gets wall-to-wall packed.
After years of hanging out in Davis Square it was fun to come back and try somewhere new.
Have you been to Saloon? Which of the new Davis Square spots is your favorite?
