Dining Out: Outlook Kitchen & Bar

Last year the Envoy Hotel opened in Boston's Seaport neighborhood, adding to the district's ever-growing list of new arrivals. In addition to a stellar location and harbor views, the hotel also boasts a roof deck and a restaurant named Outlook Kitchen & Bar. 

Back in February Outlook Kitchen & Bar kicked off a Sunday series called "Brunch, Bloodys & Beats" featuring savory and sweet menu items, a wide variety of Bloody Marys and a DJ. 

Two weeks ago I decided to check out this weekly brunch event with a friend. I hadn't been inside the Envoy Hotel yet, so I was excited. 

The lobby is illuminated by the floor-to-ceiling windows and the oversized chandeliers. The look and feel reminds me of the Jonathan Adler store.

As you walk across the lobby you'll see a lounge area, perfect for reading or working on a laptop.

Outlook Kitchen & Bar is just behind the reception desk and the very first thing you'll notice is the funky light fixtures on the wall. 

The booths in the restaurant have a bit of a nautical theme, likely a nod to the hotel's waterfront location.

In the center of the space is a large, oval-shaped bar. Over the course of the 90 minutes we were in the restaurant the bar completely filled up. 

Once seated, our first order of business was to choose cocktails. There were so many tasty options, each with fun, cheeky names.

I went with a drink called "Single & Ready to Mingle" (appropriate) which was a traditional Bloody Mary with a pepper cilantro salt rim. 

The drink was delicious and a rather generous size. My only complaint is that the straw they give you is not long enough to reach the bottom of the glass, even if you tilt it! I wanted those final sips!

My brunch date went with the Smokehouse Bloody Mary which was made with mezcal, jalapeño pineapple Bloody Mary mix and a charcoal salt rim. The photos below are actually of her second one, which came with a different kind of salt on the rim - a mystery! 

She had the same gripe that I did, her straw couldn't reach the bottom! Leaving behind those last drops is a tragedy.

With drinks in hand, it was time to decide on food. We were both torn between savory and sweet, and thankfully I was able to convince her to get one sweet thing to share (my ongoing brunch scheme with friends). 

For her savory item my friend chose the BELTA breakfast sandwich which was shredded maple bacon, fried egg, lettuce, tomato, avocado and aioli on sourdough bread. When she placed her order I said, "It has bacon and avocado. How could you resist?"

The sandwich was stuffed with fresh goodies. My friend commented, "All the components go really well together. The flavors meld perfectly. However, I have two complaints - first, it was too much bread and second, it's really messy to eat. This is definitely not date food." Good to know!

I went with the Greenway Hash, named for Boston's public park that runs through downtown. It was advertised as spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes and a poached egg with sourdough toast. While the dish that arrived was bright and beautiful, the hash did not have a single potato (not one!) and the sourdough toast was so overdone it was hard to bite into without pieces flying everywhere. 

For our sweet treat, we shared the Nutella French toast. After being spoiled by places like Cafe Luna in Central Square, I expected this French toast to be covered in Nutella. There was one spoonful on the very first piece and that was it. The menu description said the dish included brown sugar caramelized chai rum bananas, which I was looking forward to trying. There were exactly four tiny banana slices on the plate. To add insult to injury, the toast was super dry. 

Though two of our three dishes were lackluster, we were really enjoying the DJ. He was spinning everything from Michael Jackson to Nelly to Justin Timberlake to Kid Cudi. 

As we were settling the bill we decided to pop outside and check out the restaurant's outdoor patio. It was a bit too windy for it that day, but it's going to be hopping in the summer. The patio faces one of Boston's most famous seafood restaurants, the Barking Crab. 

Rather than do brunch at Outlook Kitchen & Bar, I would recommend starting your morning at their bar with a Bloody Mary (and enjoying the tunes) then moving on to somewhere else in the neighborhood for food. As I walked home from this meal I passed Committee and Babbo, both Seaport restaurants on my list of places to visit. If anyone would like to join me on those outings, leave a note in the comments!