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Category: American (New) [Edit]
Neighborhood: East ArlingtonTue-Thu. 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Fri-Sat. 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
I went to the rent raising party at Prose today. The funny thing is, that even though I've been aware of the place for ages, I've never been.
It's people like me who aren't keeping her in business, I guess!
Anyway, it was really good. The buffet was a revolving pot luck style table with grilled baby octopus, pork with kimchee, stewed chicken with sundried tomatoes, olives, pickles and pickled garlic scapes, lentils and more.
I am sorry it took a rent raising party to get me in the doors- I most certainly will be heading back for dinner. Oh, and when I go I hope she is still there!
Prose makes me sad that I no longer live in the Boston area so that I can't go their regularly.
After years (7 to be exact) of hearing friends rave about the goodness and glory that is Prose, I FINALLY had occasion to make it there one recent night when they were featuring a beer-paired, 5 course dinner.
Words that could describe this meal (if inadequately) would be:
Amazing, Stellar, Fantastic, Delicious, Mouth Party, Yummy, Wondrous, Magnificent, and Phenomenal.
This is a fantastic place to take a group of friends or a significant other when you want to talk and laugh and linger over outstanding chef preparations and ooh and ahh over every mouthful. Each bite is more exceptional than the last, from the crepe appetizer with fresh local blueberries and a horseradish creme fresh, to the bitter melon greens salad to the chicken curry (I seriously wanted to lick the plate!) to the cheese selection and house-made pickles. Each beer was lovingly paired with honor and respect for ingredients in both directions.
Our meal lasted hours by choice, but this is a place to go when the meal is the main event-- not the quick fix before a movie or show. Honor your food, and eat with gusto among foodies who know this little known treat is a gem!
Bon Appetite!
I had the pleasure of finally trying out Prose this past weekend, and can safely say - it's really solid. I love the laid back atmosphere -and it's a treat to be able to know the person serving you is also cooking your food. The pace is slow - but the food is excellent. I had the house made pickles - awesome. Also - the main dishes were also quite good. Since we ordered 3 apps (the stuffed crab apples also amazing) - I thought dessert was out but we got a maple flan - so yummy.
I suggest trying Prose out and knowing it's going to be a totally different dining experience. In the end Prose made me feel as if I was in Italy or somewhere where the pace was slower, but the food amazing and then you get to savor the entire experience instead of being rushed. It's also nice to be able to interact and chat with the Chef.
Expect time to slow down to a very European dining cadence at Prose. I suggest accepting the zen that will accompany this timewarp. The food is fantastic and worth it. If Prose was transported downtown, or to Malibu, or to the West Village NYC, we would be reading about it in national reviews. I'm happy that it is on a random Mass Ave corner and that I don't have to wait in line with Lindsay Lohan to get a table.
I used to date a girl who thought she was smarter than me. She wasn't, but the one I'm dating now just might be, her suggestion of Prose is one of the reasons. There are plenty more, but let's talk about this one. My gf heard about this woman-owned restaurant that uses local ingredients in creative and delicious ways. Sounded great, but it was 9pm by the time we made it to the restaurant and I wasn't sure they'd be open. Luckily, they were open until 10, hooray! The menu that night was small plates, $6-8 each or 4 for ~$22 depending. We split 4 small plates, which was a little too much food, but excellent for indecisive people like us. Each dish was impressive and extremely tasty. They were fresh and unique, we were both completely floored by the quality of the meal. Additionally, we ordered a bottle of hard cider which was brewed (is that the right term?) by local folks here in MA. It was possibly the nicest cider I've ever tasted.
The service was excellent, the server/owner knew a ton about the menu and answered all of our questions. We didn't know what one of the cheeses was, and wanted guidance on which variety of cider to order. She described the cheese in great detail, comparing it to more commonly known cheeses, and explained the differences between the ciders (dry vs. sweet) so we knew which was best for us. And even though we rolled in late, we didn't feel rushed in the slightest. Quite the opposite actually, it felt so comfortable that we kind of felt like we *should* stay later.
This place nailed it. Excellent food, welcoming environment, and a place you can really feel good about patronizing.
it is such a lovely place. very personable and down to earth. the food is delicious and the home-y atmosphere is really nice. I am much happier going out to dinner here than fancy places in east arlington like Flora or Olivio. I am always a little worried about the small number of patrons, but it gives the place an intimate atmosphere. They also have many vegetarian and gluten-free options. I would strongly recommend this restaurant to anyone.
I went to prose for their St. Patrick's day James Joyce themed menu and prix fixe paired with porter beers. The menu sounded interesting enough and reviews weren't too bad, so we were excited.
This place is ultra-casual, to the point of being a turn off. Plates, glassware, and flatware all look like they are from a garage sale and one of the water glasses was from Newbury Comics.
So all of that would have been forgivable if the food was good, but it wasn't. Here is the run down:
Gorgonzola sandwich with homemade brick bread and dried pineapple
- Too much bread - totally overpowered everything else and very dry/wheat-ie.
Spicy Pork Belly
- Way too spicy and served with nothing else as a way to cut the spice - presentation looked like it was scooped out of a pot and put onto a plate.
Oxtail and Beef Short rib
- This was served with boiled potatoes which were underdone and the oxtail and short rib were indiscernible from one another. Once again, it looked like these two were prepared together and just thrown on a plate.
For dessert I had a selection of cheeses, which were good, but I ordered that because I knew it couldn't be screwed up. My Fiancee had a pudding which was served in a plastic 1-cup measuring cup.
The beers were good for the most part, but ambiance was too casual for me and service left something to be desired. This was 45 w/ the beer and 35 w/o - but for that price range we could have gone to TW Food, Craigie on Maine, or any number of places with weekday prix fixe menus rather than this place. We will not be going back.
I finally got around to eating at Prose, and was overall pleased with the experience. The service and ambiance were very friendly, and the European-inspired food was delicious. Definitely make sure that you have plenty of time for a leisurely meal, however. As several other reviewers have noted, the food is cooked from scratch and does take awhile.
Linger. Relax. Chat with the customers seated around you. Savor your food.
Prose is a unique and creative place, with a standard of craftsmanship you wouldn't expect in a ten-table restaurant that is one woman's show. Each dish is art fashioned from well-balanced, unusual combinations of ingredients, with an emphasis on that which is fresh, delicious, and locally grown.
Go for the experience. Expect to spend time there, and you won't be disappointed. I hope to return often.
I went here last night on a whim after having thought about going there for about six months, and it was really quite good. I would definitely go back.
The place is pretty small, with quirky decor. For some reason, I tend to prefer restaurants and kitchens with warm, yellow walls. If you're looking for a lot of privacy, though, this is probably not the place for you.
I had a cornmeal pizza with raw milk cheese, roasted cauliflower, and other fresh tasty things. My friend ordered a saffron flan with roasted shallots, brussels sprouts, and other various vegetables in a savory reduction. I wish I had been hungrier because I would have gotten the truffled winter squash bisque, but I was amply fed with the small plate. It's unusual that I see more than three of my food keywords (i.e. shallot, bisque, raw milk cheese, roasted, baked apple, maple, etc...) on a menu in any give night, but this menu hit about ten or so. She clearly cares a lot about what goes on your plate.
The wine list is pretty extensive, and they have some appealing beers and teas, as well. I like the individual teapots which she's chosen, very homey.
I think that the same woman probably owns the place, works as the server, plans the menu, and prepares the food. She's probably not for everyone, but I like her. She was very attentive, friendly, and accommodating, though perhaps a little too attentive for some? I get the impression that she has a lot of return visitors. One of the people at the next table had a wheat allergy and the server improvised something tasty-looking quite quickly. We spent a while there and never felt rushed.
I'm not sure whether Prose does take-out, but they do cater. I took a look at their list, and it looked very nice.
Not many choices.
The wait is long.
I remember being so hungry waiting for food, I wanted to just leave.
The home-baked muffins were nice.
The whole place is homey feeling, chipped plates and junkyard furniture.
I didn't like my choice of omelet-- more spinach and cheese than egg! (not a problem if you're into that sort of thing), but my husband enjoyed his pick. So voila! three stars.
Ready to give this place another try. I'll return.
Today's Mother's Day brunch at Prose was so lovely. First, we had a Mimosa made with freshly squeezed O.J. Then a nice basket of homemade bread arrived along with two platters - one filled with banana bread, bread pudding, Greek yogurt, fresh berries and prunes soaked in honey, while the other had a nice crispy pile of homefries. It was so pleasant to leisurely indulge in these lovingly made baked goods. Our entrees came soon after - and they were very inventive (in a very good way!) My egg salad had truffle and chives, and was served on a bed of watercress and pea shoots. The other entrees were great too - a ham & potato gratin, roasted veggies in a harissa marinade, and buttermilk glazed chicken thighs with swiss chard. Everything was healthy and well-made. I've been to Prose before and expected a long wait, but we were in and out within an hour but never felt rushed. I have to go back for dinner again!
We arrived right on time for our 8:15 reservation and were a bit disappointed to find ourselves seated right by the door, but if that was the available table, then that was the available table. The waitress took our order somewhat spacily. We decided to have our complimentary glasses of Proseco with our dessert, which in retrospect was a mistake. Bit of a wait for the appetizers, but it was worth it, as they were pretty amazing. I had leek-cabbage-chestnut sachets in browned butter sauce with caraway, and M had some kind of caviar sampler. Soup came along at a reasonable time after that, and I was very pleased with my cauliflower-porcini puree, and M with his lobster pho. Then, we waited. And waited. And waited. And shivered. It was literally almost an hour before our entrees showed up. We're quite sure the waitress was ignoring us on purpose, as we ran out of water, weren't asked if we wanted more drinks, weren't given any kind of update on the ETA of our meals. She only acknowledged us when she had the good news that our entrees were coming up next from the kitchen. Granted I ordered a savory flan which might have taken some time to cook, but our order had been put in easily 2 hours before the dishes finally arrived. I wouldn't expect a flan of that size to take more than 40 minutes or so in the oven. The waitress sounded quite insincere in her apologies for the lateness and basically avoided us for the rest of the meal. We asked for our desserts to go just because we were freezing and were sick of being there, and as I predicted the waitress didn't even ask about our glasses of Proseco. On a separate note, the vegetable sides that came with my saffron flan were entirely too salty to eat, so my entree wasn't even particularly satisfying. Usually their food is quite good, so this was very sad.
I know Valentine's Day is probably about the busiest day of the year for most restaurants and you don't go to Prose for speedy meals, but that still does not excuse this kind of service from either the kitchen or the waitress. If the kitchen was that backed up, the waitress should have just told us, and offered more bread, or perhaps the Proseco--at the very least kept our water glasses filled! I have to say too if it were my restaurant, I would have comped our drinks as a courtesy gesture. Between us we had one glass of wine and one glass of cider, so it wouldn't have taken much off their bottom line (esp. since we didn't get the Proseco we paid for with the meal) but would have gone a long way towards making us feel better. Our dinner taken as a whole was not worth what we paid for it. We've always looked at the restaurant as our neighborhood treasure, but this experience has really soured us on them. We're thinking of writing them a letter not so much to berate them as to say hey, we care about your restaurant so we want you to know how badly you screwed things up, please don't do it again.
When I reviewed another Arlington restaurant, I told a long story about taking a train trip through Brittany with my daughter and finding a wonderful little neighborhood restaurant in Quimper.
I first ate at Prose in 2001, shortly before my daughter graduated from college, and, immediately, was taken back to Quimper. I loved the mismatched decor, which is more common in France then most Americans can imagine. I loved the way Debbie came and out and talked with her guests. I loved the food. I invited my daughter and her boyfriend to join me there a few weeks later. She saw how much it was like the restaurant in Brittany.
I have been back since and always loved the meals. I discovered one of my favorite wines while there. BEst of all, is the pleasure of eavesdropping. Debbie attracts the most intelligent customers and listening to their conversations -- unavoidable in this intimate place -- is as good as the food. Well, almost!
This is a very unique restaurant. Where else can you find Elk meat served on the menu? There are some drawbacks though: Be prepared to spend long hours since the service is painfully slow and the food is salty. If you're in a hurry, this is not the place and if you can spare a few hours with a friend, chatting over interesting food, then you'll have an unusual experience. Let's face it, most restaurants in Boston, depending on what price tier they are, serve very similar food but not Prose.
This is a real find. The menu is inventive and changes daily depending on what the chef finds at the local farmers' market (organic & local produce is always featured). The decor is simple and a little quirky, but it's not why you should come -- the food is simply wonderful. There's hearty soups, homemade pasta, grilled steak or chicken, terrific mashed potatoes, yummy sides (sometimes features unusual things like fiddleheads or sunchokes) and the best sweet potato fries. It's like gourmet comfort food that's cooked to order. Which means it can take a little while to get to you, but at least you know it was really cooked, as opposed to microwaved.
The food was excellent. This is one of the very few 'must visit' restaurants in Arlington. The ambience is relaxed and the food is superlative. While the chef herself is very good and courteous (I mention this since I have seen some reviews panning her, but I did not share their bad experience :) ), the service has scope for improvement.
Neighborhood: East Arlington
Category: American (New)
Neighborhood: East Arlington
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Category: American (New)
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