Seasons (not Four)

[cinghiale]

It's not my party, but I'll cry if I want to.

Very little on this Board about Seasons (who came up with this name?) at the Millenium (ibid). I generally avoid hotel restaurants, even if they're praised for excitinginventiveclassiccreative cuisine, because it's typically way too pricey and invariably underwhelming. Tuxedo-ed waiters? Quiet? Place parents take their college grads for a big dinner? Mobel gives 'em *** (I know). Plus, it's my first visit to Boston in decades and I wanna try all the other suggestions from y'all.

Be that as it may, we're 15, ranging from age 18 to 70. It's gf's mom's 65th. It's a Saturday night. The party came together last minute. I tried Sibling Rivalry (good price point + can accommodate large groups + enjoy Kinkead's cooking), but they're booked. Other suggestions here are either too small, too far, or too funky to accommodate the diverse palates. Oh, and Millenium's website doesn't even list the restaurant, menupages doesn't publish any dinner entree prices, and Beard said last year they were closing to move to "private dining".

So:

(1) Any suggestions for this "American comfy food" place? Does pork really cost mid-30s? Is is worth it? What should one order?

(2) Any other proposals for last-minute "nice" but less stuffy places for our group?

(3) I was gonna cook a tapas/gazpacho/paella meal for the fam, now I'm off the hook. I can sample Boston street fare during Saturday. We're staying in either JP or Cambridge. Tell me where to go for, say, Ipswich clams or fish anything. Markets. Cheese shops (what's the name of that one in Cambridge? We've got DiBruno's here and I wanna compare).

Hit me.

[ekaim]

I had a similar set of specs for a Cambridge friend's birthday last fall. Looked into a number of the Boston/Cambridge restaurants I knew -- including a few of the city's best. But we also wanted a place for a party, where we could eat well but also be relaxed, have a little privacy (not have to scream to hear one another), yet get good but not stuffy service.

To make a long story short, having crossed off virtually everything on my initial list for one reason or another, we wound up reserving the private dining room at the Elephant Walk in Cambridge (not the one in Boston). This turned out to be a choice I can highly recommend. The food was very good -- not haute cuisine, but good, unusual dishes with fresh and interesting ingredients, prepared with care and skill, very nicely presented. Our group on the whole was fairly discerning and demanding, and everybody found choices they liked on the private dining menu and everybody was exceedingly happy with their meals.

The private dining room at this restaurant was very private -- a largish room on the floor below the main dining room. It's a fine size for a party of 15. You'd have your own server(s) and would probably have to limit yourselves to the special menu for the private rooms -- but, as I said, we found plenty of appealing choices and had a wonderful dinner. Service was attentive and accommodating. The manager, with whom I met just before everyone else arrived, was happy to help me work out a configuration of the tables in the room that suited our group.

So they get my recommendation. If you're interested, you can take a look at the two top photos in this web page, then speak with the manager of the Cambridge location.

Good luck!

[Margo]

I'm useless for the rest of your queries, but here's the Cambridge cheese shop you're thinking of:

Formaggio Kitchen

It's a 10-15 minute walk from Harvard Square.

Enjoy!

[Peter Green]

I'm useless for the rest of your queries, but here's the Cambridge cheese shop you're thinking of:

Formaggio Kitchen

It's a 10-15 minute walk from Harvard Square.

Enjoy!

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That's Ihsan Gurdal's place isn't it? He ran some of the best classes I've ever done, covering cheeses, olive oils, and balsamics. If you go there, please write about it!

(and if he's got the Tristar goat cheese, with extra fat worked in, have some!)

[cinghiale]

Missed Formaggio, though I wasn't staying far away. Ended up cooking for the family. Got seafood from New Deal and Courthouse Seafood on Cambridge, plus tasty chicken from Fresh Killed Live Poultry across from New Deal.

Man, I went early Saturday to Faneuil Hall and Quicy Market, expecting to find an actual market, much like we have at Reading Terminal Market here in Center City Philadelphia. Wow. I was surprised to learn that it's a pure tourist destination, opening at 10AM. I tried navigating along the waterfront, looking for seafood purveyors, but I found only one lobster wholesaler/retailer. Upside is touring Boston by car at 8AM on Saturday morning -- it's easy to get around. The areas along the river (North End and the neighborhood next to it?) look pretty lively. Still, it's amazing that there are so many restaurants yet an apparent dearth of markets.

Thanks for your help. Look forward to a return visit soon.