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Type: Eclectic
Hours: Sun.-Wed. 11:30 a.m.- 11 p.m.; Thurs.-Sat. 11:30 a.m.- 12 p.m.
Credit cards: All major cards.
Access: Fully accessible.
Other establishments
listed in this review:
OLIVES
10 City Square, Charlestown
(617) 242-1999
Hours: Mon.-Fri. 5:30-10:30 p.m.; Sat 5-10:30 p.m.
Reservations for 6 or more.
Credit cards: All major cards.
Access: Fully accessible.
FAVA
1027 Great Plain Avenue, Needham Center
781-455-8668
Hours: Tues.-Sat. 5-10 p.m.
Credit cards: All major cards.
Access: Fully accessible.
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CASABLANCA
40 Brattle Street, Cambridge
(Harvard Square)
(617) 876-0999
Restaurant reviewed 07/16/98 by Sheryl Julian
Kim Marden, of Captain Marden's Seafoods, retailers and wholesalers to the restaurant trade, told me that the moment the commercial striped bass season opens - it was midnight on July 5 this year - local fishermen are poised, rods in hand. Wild striped bass are in that much demand. True to form, when Marden pulled into his Wellesley shop at 5:35 a.m. on July 6, fishermen holding the first stripers of the season were waiting for him. The arrival of wild striped bass is more than an annual event. It's a signal that the floodgates are open and the fruits of summer - from New England's fields and waters - will begin pouring onto restaurant tables. For now, that means native bluefish and bluefin tuna, Wellfleet oysters, Cape quahogs, and a host of other clams and shellfish, Maine crabmeat, lobsters, field greens and arugula, peas, leeks, and berries. Much more follows when the fields burst forth with tomatoes, green beans, and corn. New Englanders can eat like kings for four months.
I ate like a queen for a week, beginning at Casablanca, where Ana Sortun treats striped bass almost reverentially, celebrating its briny sweetness. It wasn't good just because it was fresh. It was Sortun's restraint. Her wild striper was almost airy, mildly briny, and remarkably sweet. She set it on a compote of thin, snappy green beans studded with corn and zucchini, bathed in olive oil, anchovies, and garlic flowers. Minutes before it arrived at the table, she told me, she ran the fish under the broiler so a crust of thin plum tomatoes sank into the flesh to form scales.
Strong, dark-fleshed native bluefish had been butterflied, rolled up with pinenuts, fresh mint, and breadcrumbs, twisted into a spiral, and set on its edge on a bed of cool arugula, dressed with mint oil, garlic, and lemon. Cod, countneck clams, and mussels, plumped in a gentle, oregano-scented tomato broth, were studded with tender beads of Sicilian semolina couscous.
Farmer Steve Parker had delivered tangy, baby greens, which Sortun tossed with roasted green peas and a lively lemony vinaigrette. A bright yellow Spanish gazpacho, made from Sun Gold tomatoes, Chardonnay vinegar, olive oil, and breadcrumbs, was garnished with two ovals of Maine crabcake, a kind of sophisticated crab salad, held together with softly whipped cream, seasoned with mint, chives, and basil.
Desserts were just as fresh-tasting, especially an old-fashioned summer pudding, a delightful update of the homespun English dessert. Layered berries and brioche formed a little round pudding slipped on a pool of dark caramel infused with port.
Todd English of Olives shows no restraint (never has). His striped bass was roasted in foil, along with crunchy bacon, tiny countneck clams, potatoes, and creamy leeks. Not rich enough? At the table, the waitress poured a small pitcher of red wine and veal stock glaze onto the fish. It gave everything a striking taste, but in the end, the fish might have been better off without it.
The richness continues, or maybe it was just the amount of food. I slipped into Olives unnoticed but English was greeting customers and spotted me. To orders of creamy five-clam chowder with mashed red Bliss potatoes; raw paper-thin bluefin tuna; tiny tomato-filled ravioli with green-garlic pesto; and a light cucumber gazpacho studded with Wellfleet oysters, English sent over samples. There was a tiny bowlful of intense, soupy lobster risotto with favas and peas; the Tuscan bread soup ribolitta with lobster and shell beans; and wood-grilled porcini on a cheesy polenta. English used to suffer from too many components on one dish. That's no longer the case. Now a powerhouse of flavors and textures has replaced it.
Some dishes are perfect in their simplicity - and sing. A bouillabaisse of monkfish, sea bass, lobster, and clams, in a rusty broth, looked just like Marseilles. Sous chef Joseph Brenner told me that the cooks take the Pernod-and fennel-scented saffron broth and froth it with rouille, a hot-pepper mayonnaise that lends the liquid its ruddy color.
Before we rolled out, we tasted a luscious indigo-colored blueberry ice cream and the signature falling chocolate cake, a seductive confection, on a pool of fresh pureed raspberries.
Olives protege Paul Booras of Fava falls somewhere between Sortun's confidence and English's bravado. His spunky summer gazpacho began with pureed tomatoes, infused with strong, fresh flavors, including horseradish, hot chili oil, and red onions pickled in vinegar. It had bite and mellowness at the same time. Crunchy fried Ipswich clams, presented in a peak, came with a spiked tartar, a shaved mixed-cabbage slaw, see-through slices of rutabaga, and a lemony puree of potatoes hiding on the bottom of the dish.
Booras's striped bass with sesame seeds had too many elements, though I liked each one. A jasmine rice cake with coconut milk, which sat beneath the fish, tasted hot and limey. Tempura of vegetables, as garnish, were crisp and lovely, especially broccoli florets. The rice cake and vegetables went together nicely, though the striper, moist and flaky, lost some of its integrity with the onslaught.
Native bluefish had just as many components but each loaned the dish some crunch, richness, and smoke. Seared first, the bluefish fillet was set on a corn and poblano-pepper relish, dabbed with mayonnaise made with the same smoky poblano pepper, and garnished with Maine crab fritters. Booras gets extra credit for offering this dark, strong fish, one of the glories of our coastline. Sadly, its reputation has suffered for years. That Booras knew how to tame it speaks to his skill.
Tips & hits
