Foundry on Elm

It was one of those weeks.

It was one of those harried weeks where I felt like I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Bryan had been out of town on business for almost two weeks straight, and I was starting to feel the effects of him being gone. The house was slowly getting messier and messier; I was taking care of all sorts of stuff that we usually do together; and I was tired.

Really, really tired.

So when I received an invitation to come and try out the new menu at Foundry on Elm, there was a part of me that just wanted to go home. It was cold, rainy, and wet outside, and I’d had a long day.

But I was curious about this place that I’d heard so much about, so I went.

The moment I walked through those doors, it all melted away.

There was something really warm and inviting about the space at Foundry on Elm. It was cozy and relaxing. I felt like I could just be myself. It was earlier in the evening, so the place was reasonably quiet.

And then there were the amazing people who I met there: a few bloggers I recognized; a few new faces I had the pleasure of meeting; and the staff at Foundry on Elm.

I had a lovely time dining at Foundry on Elm, and it was fun to finally get a taste of this popular neighborhood restaurant. I can see why it won Best of Boston for Best Neighborhood Restaurant. The food is good, the drinks are great, and the menu changes seasonally.

We began with a creative cocktail made with muddled golden beet, fennel bitters, cava, rose water, herb d’Amalfi (a lavender liqueur), lemon, honey syrup, and gin.

As an amuse, we tasted this lovely pork croquette, which was filled with potatoes and dressed with balsamic vinegar and herb infused oil.

For our first appetizer, we tried the Goat Cheese Fritter, which was creamy, just a bit tart, and slightly sweet but very balanced.

I loved the love beet jam with which it was served. On the right, we had a refreshing salad of golden beets, salad greens, and fresh orange segments. It was bright and refreshing, a good complement to the heavier fritter.

For our next course, we had a Sugar Pumpkin Butternut Squash Risotto, which was mixed with chives and tons of Parmesan cheese. I loved this dish. It was creamy, cheesy, and perfectly seasoned. I liked the textural contrast that came from the pieces of pumpkin and squash inside.
We paired it with a lovely English brown ale from Rogue Ales called Hazelnut Brown Nectar. The ale is aged with hazelnuts and tasted dark and caramely. I can’t imagine a much better beer to pair with the pumpkin/squash risotto.

Overall, Foundry on Elm has a solid beer program, with 32 beers on tap (with many of them local brews), a rotating cask ale, and 20 brews by the bottle.

The person sitting next to me was vegetarian, and thus they gave her this beautiful looking pan fried gnocchi with Brussels sprouts for our next course. To be honest, I was just a tad jealous of her meal – it looked fantastic.

The rest of us had a nicely seared cod filet served with new potatoes, lardons, and a painted parsley soubis. I thought this dish was very well executed. The lardons added a lovely, smoky depth, and the dish paired extremely well with the bright Chardonnay with which it was served.

For our final course, we had a beautiful crispy Pork Belly served with frisée, which was solid. This was paired with a nebiolo.

We were pretty stuffed at this point, but it was hard to resist the comforting call of this warm gingerbread spice cake served over whipped cream cheese. We had this with a beautiful sherry Lustau Pedro Ximenez Jerez.

It had been a lovely meal. All that comfort food plus nice wine was most definitely putting me in a slight food coma.

At least it was a relaxed food coma.

I went home just a bit more calm, with a slight smile on my face. Yes it was raining. Yes, it was still cold. However, I’d enjoyed some great food with some great people in a warm and cozy space. To put it all in perspective, it really wasn’t so bad.