Boulevard Blah

Admitting to dining at Boulevard typically elicits a response along the line of “oooh la la!” or “arrrenn’t we special!” or something similar with the same mocking tone. Boulevard has an elitist reputation and they know it and I’m sure they love it. Old, rich people eat there. Willie Brown hangs out at the bar. Well, if I’m ever the mayor or old and rich – it won’t be my go-to spot.

Both my visits were for lunch, so I can buy the argument that dinner is what makes it truly special. Maybe so, but the best restaurants nail both lunch AND dinner. I still remember when I ate there about two years ago and ordered the ravioli ($21). My jaw dropped when THREE bite-size ravioli came out. It was the size of a small snack for the price of a nice dinner entrée at a normal restaurant.

I wasn’t disappointed with the portion or the price this time around. I ordered the burger (always a safe bet at a frou-frou place like this). Simply put, there was no “wow” factor. Bun and beef patty: that’s it. It comes with a thin, forgettable slice of cheese, and the standard slice raw onion and tomatoes. The two teaspoons of ketchup clearly wasn’t going to save it, either. A good burger has to have some competitive differentiator (mouth watering bacon, unusual cheese, avocado, house-made sauce – to name a few) and Boulevard’s burger had none of it. The fries have incredible potential, but were cold by the time they got to me.

I had a few bites of my mom’s pork loin and was even more underwhelmed. It didn’t taste like something any normal person couldn’t prepare. I felt like I wanted to run to the microwave to heat it up and dump a pile of salt on it.

The mint chip ice cream cake dessert saved the day: easily one of the most creative-without-being-weird-and-inedible desserts I’ve ever had. I can still taste the mint ice cream; I remember marveling how real mint leaves went into this ice cream. I love me a good scoop of Dreyers ice cream, but the ingredients in this ice cream make a mockery of store-bought cartons. The ice cream hardened the chocolate cake base to create a denser, moister version of normal chocolate cake. The cake and ice cream are engulfed in a layer of meringue which has a neutral affect on the overall taste but makes for great presentation. Lastly, three people can each have a few hearty bites so the $10 price tag is quite reasonable.

Killer desserts are great but they can’t save an otherwise average meal.