The wine list is quite good and quite expensive. If you want to spend $55 on a bottle of pinot grigio, Livia Felluga is certainly the best-known high-end producer. Wines by the glass are not sold in bottles and seem like lighter choices, judging by our glass of 2004 Burton bonarda ($9) — an Argentine red like a bigger merlot, but almost as soft. Given the Asian flavors, you should look at the extensive sake listings or think about beer. A large glass of Whale’s Tale Pale Ale ($8) from Nantucket was actually a dark amber color with a dry, hoppy finish ideal for this food. Poochi-poochi sake ($12) is sparkling, like Champagne, and a little sweet, with aromas of pear and apple. It’s as fun as Maffeo’s food. Decaf ($4) and cappuccino ($5) are excellent. Teas ($6) are served loose-leaf.
Dessert is a surprisingly light course. Our favorite was Boston goat-cheese cake ($8), which was actually a ball of white cheese with lemony sauce, more like rasgulla than cake. Chocolate panna cotta ($8) works by being a little lighter than the fallen chocolate cakes served everywhere else — it’s gelled and only slightly bitter. But an ice-cream sundae ($8) tastes more of walnuts than the reported butterscotch (on vanilla and coffee ice cream), and a trio of sorbets ($8) wasn’t lychee, lime, and watermelon as the menu says; it was berry, mango, and maybe lime/maybe lemon. The tiny complimentary dessert was back to the future: a coconut-flavored froth on a bit of raspberry sauce, served in a Chinese spoon.
Servers are dressed entirely in black and do a fine job. The atmosphere is refined and the crowd young and youngish. Obviously, you dress up for dinner at Louis Boston, and the room, the lighting, and even the food are designed to make you look better.
Restaurant L | 234 Berkeley Street (Louis Boston), Boston | Open Mon, noon–3 pm; and Tues–Sat, noon–3 pm and 6–10 pm | AE, DC, DI, MC, VI | Full bar | Free valet parking | Wheelchair access via store | 617.266.4680
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Robert Nadeau: RobtNadeau@aol.com
