Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About
    • About Me
    • Tiny Urban Kitchen’s Favorite Equipment
    • Press
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • Asian
      • Chinese
      • Taiwanese
      • Thai
      • Malaysian
      • Japanese
      • Korean
    • Appetizers
    • Soups
    • Salad
    • Pasta
    • Noodles
    • Rice
    • Vegetarian
    • Meat
    • Sweets
      • Baking
      • Ice cream
      • Cookies
    • Misc
    • Kawaii (Cute)
  • Travel / Restaurants
    • United States
      • Boston
        • Jen’s Picks
        • Boston
          • Allston
          • Back Bay
          • Brighton
          • North End
          • South End
        • Cambridge
          • Kendall Square
          • Inman Square
          • Central Square
          • Harvard Square
          • Porter Square
          • North Cambridge
        • Somerville
          • Davis Square
          • Union Square
        • Greater Boston
          • Brookline
          • Arlington
          • Belmont
          • Watertown
          • Newton
          • Lexington
          • Concord
          • Burlington
          • Natick
        • Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Berkshires
      • Vermont
      • Maine
      • New York
      • Washington DC
      • Philadelphia
      • Orlando
      • Chicago
      • Las Vegas
      • California
        • Los Angeles
        • San Francisco
        • Napa
        • Sonoma
      • Seattle
      • Hawaii
    • Canada
      • Montreal
      • Canadian Rockies
      • Toronto
    • Argentina
    • Europe
      • United Kingdom
        • London
        • Oxford
      • Italy
        • Rome
        • Piedmont
      • France
        • Paris
        • Bordeaux
      • Spain
        • Madrid
        • Barcelona
        • Catalonia / San Sebastian / Girona
      • Germany
      • Belgium
        • Brussels
      • Switzerland
      • Greece
      • Finland
      • Norway
      • Denmark
    • Japan
      • Japan Guide
      • Tokyo
      • Osaka
      • Kyoto
    • China (Mainland)
      • Beijing
      • Chengdu
      • Shanghai
      • Shaanxi
      • Shenzhen
      • Xiamen
      • Yunnan
    • Singapore
    • Hong Kong
    • Malaysia
    • Taiwan
    • Thailand
    • Australia/New Zealand
  • Michelin
    • Formerly had a star
    • Michelin Recommended
    • 1 Star
    • 2 Stars
    • 3 Stars
  • Jen’s Eating Guides!
    • Boston Restaurants
    • Boston Dishes
    • Tokyo
    • Hong Kong
    • Las Vegas
    • Napa / Sonoma
    • Taiwan (night markets)
    • Taiwanese (casual eats)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part I)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part II)
    • Kitchen Equipment
  • Trip Reports
    • All trip reports
    • Around the World Trip Report
    • New England
    • New York
    • Washington DC
    • Las Vegas
    • California
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Florida
    • Japan
    • China

Scampo

September 12, 2011 by Jennifer Che 11 Comments


There are at least two reasons to visit the Scampo if you’re in Boston.

First, it’s housed in the storied Liberty Hotel, a former prison that’s rich with all sorts of history. The former Charles Street Jail housed prisoners from 1851 to 1990. The US district court ruled in 1973 that the jail violated the constitutional rights of the prisoners because of terrible overcrowding.

Massachusetts General Hospital now owns the property and opened a luxury hotel in the space in 2007. They have maintained some of the original architecture, so it’s quite fascinating to see the former jail decked out in luxury finishes.

Of course, architecture and history alone would not be enough reason to visit a restaurant. The second reason to visit Scampo is that it’s another restaurant by Lydia Shire, probably one of the most well known chefs in Boston. A driven woman who worked her way to the top during a time when male chefs dominated the industry, Lydia Shire continues to wow us with her current empire, which includes the venerated classic Locke-Ober, the trendy Towne Stove & Spirits (opened this past year), and Scampo – the ever so popular restaurant inside the Liberty Hotel.

It’s hard not to be impressed by your surroundings right when you enter the Liberty Hotel. The high ceilings of the former jail fill you with a sense of wonder and fascination at the same time. Scampo is in the lower level of the Liberty Hotel, which also houses the new American restaurant Clink.

The space at Scampo is trendy, lively, yet cozy and warm at the same time. A huge open kitchen sits at the center of the restaurant. You can watch chefs preparing pizzas in the brick oven or baking their homemade naan.

The restaurant is decidedly Italian, although it draw influences from both the Mediterranean region as well as the Middle East.

For example, we enjoyed an interesting edamame (? or was it pea?) puree with Italian breadsticks. Naan-like bread is also cooked in tandoori ovens.
We started with this lovely lobster appetizer that came with fresh avocados, thinly sliced radishes, and a fried plantain chip on top.

Razor claims with house made gnocchi, potato chips, and basil were sweet, fresh, and perfectly seasoned.

Roasted Suckling Pig
A special only available on Fridays, the generous portion of the “roasted suckling pork” was juicy and had perfect crispy skin (not unlike Peking duck!). It was served with fresh handmade pasta (Bryan’s favorite!) and asparagus.

For dessert we tried the “house made cookie plate – chef’s whim” and the tiramisu. The cookies are great because you can easily take them home if you can’t finish them. 
We definitely enjoyed our meal at Scampo. In fact, we could definitely see the resemblance between Scampo and Lydia Shire’s other restaurant that we’ve tried, Towne Stove & Spirits. Everything we tried was solidly executed and had great flavors. Ingredients were top notch, and overall the meal was quite enjoyable.

The menu is quite interesting, and there are still so many things we haven’t tried. For example, they have a mozzarella bar full of their house made mozzarellas. You can even try a mozzarella tasting where you sample burrata, buffalo, house made, and quark mozzarella. I’m so curious to try that. There are also many types of pizzas, including Lydia Shire’s famous lobster pizza (named best pizza in Massachusetts by the Food Network).

All in all, Scampo has excellent food and a great atmosphere. I’m looking forward to my next visit, hopefully soon!

Scampo
215 Charles St
Boston, MA 02114
Scampo on Urbanspoon

©2009-2014 Tiny Urban Kitchen
All Rights Reserved

Filed Under: Boston, Italian Tagged With: Italian, Restaurant, restaurants

« All Things Taiwanese
Blue Asia Cafe »

Recent Posts

  • Summer Palace Iconic Wine Lunch – Hong Kong April 29, 2022
  • Lucciola – Italian food at The Hari Hotel in Wan Chai March 22, 2022
  • Studio City by Cali-Mex Causeway Bay Hong Kong March 17, 2022
  • Petrus Hong Kong March 8, 2022
  • Ichiran Tonkotsu Ramen Hong Kong March 6, 2022
  • James Suckling Wine Central – Hong Kong March 2, 2022
  • Birthday at Roganic Hong Kong February 23, 2022
  • Caprice Hong Kong – Four Seasons February 19, 2022

Latest Chinese recipes!

Comments

  1. Lauren says

    September 12, 2011 at 7:06 am

    My in-laws stayed at the Liberty Hotel a while back, which gave my husband and me the perfect excuse to finally try out Scampo (as well as Clink the next morning for brunch) and both restaurants served up delicious food. I love the feel of the hotel, and I know we will be back soon!

    Log in to Reply
  2. feedthebf says

    September 12, 2011 at 9:05 am

    This place looks amazing!  Hard to believe it used to be an old jail house!

    Log in to Reply
  3. In and Around Town says

    September 12, 2011 at 10:14 am

    Huge fan of Scampo – been for brunch/lunch a number of times!

    Log in to Reply
  4. Anilou62 says

    September 12, 2011 at 5:06 pm

    I may never get to Boston (I live in Australia) but out of all the restaurant reviews that you have posted since I subscribed, this one really really appeals to me. I absolutely love the interior and that copper canopy in the kitchen looks sensational. The food looks pretty great as well. Nice story. Thanks.

    Log in to Reply
  5. jentinyurbankitchen says

    September 12, 2011 at 5:25 pm

    Isn’t it a fantastic open kitchen? I definitely love the vibe/ambiance there. You’ll have to try to make it out to Boston someday! I also really really hope to visit Australia some day. 🙂

    Log in to Reply
  6. jentinyurbankitchen says

    September 12, 2011 at 5:25 pm

    I’m hoping to try Clink next!

    Log in to Reply
  7. Krafted by Kelly says

    September 13, 2011 at 4:30 pm

    That entrance hall is epic! Great post, as usual. 🙂

    Log in to Reply
  8. Elina (Healthy and Sane) says

    September 14, 2011 at 12:02 pm

    Although I’m not a fan of her other restaurant, Towne, I’ve sampled Scampo pizza before and it was one of my favorites in Boston. The Liberty Hotel is definitely a gorgeous space!

    Log in to Reply
  9. jentinyurbankitchen says

    September 14, 2011 at 12:26 pm

    I’ll have to try the pizza next time! I’m curious what you didn’t like about Towne. We tried it, and it sort of reminded us of Scampo, actually. Or maybe it’s the Jasper White influence you don’t care for? 🙂 Just curious. I’ve only been there once so I only have that one experience.

    Log in to Reply
  10. Sandi says

    September 15, 2011 at 10:41 am

    Very cool! Just another reason to visit Boston. 
    My husband & I are on a quest to visit all the baseball parks, & the Big Green Monster hasn’t been marked off yet 😉

    Log in to Reply
  11. Bianca Garcia says

    September 15, 2011 at 10:45 am

    I still have yet to try Scampo! I’ll definitely want to try the roast suckling pig, yum! Great review and awesome pics.

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Categories

Awards

Saveur
PFB

BostonGlobe

Most Recent Posts

Summer Palace Hong Kong Iconic Wine Lunch

Summer Palace Iconic Wine Lunch – Hong Kong

Lucciola The Hari Wan Chai

Lucciola – Italian food at The Hari Hotel in Wan Chai

beef quesadilla

Studio City by Cali-Mex Causeway Bay Hong Kong

Petrus Hong Kong

Petrus Hong Kong

Ichiran Hong Kong Ramen

Ichiran Tonkotsu Ramen Hong Kong

James Suckling Wine Central Hong Kong

James Suckling Wine Central – Hong Kong

Roganic Hong Kong

Birthday at Roganic Hong Kong

Caprice Hong Kong

Caprice Hong Kong – Four Seasons

Majordomo Los Angeles – David Chang’s Foray into the West Coast

Playa Amor Los Angeles

France!

Restaurant Le George Paris
Yam'Tcha Paris
David Toutain Paris
Divellec Paris
Breizh Cafe Paris

Kawaii! (Cute)

Norway!

logo
Food Advertisements by

Chinese Recipes

Okra with Chicken
logo
Food Advertisements by

Shop & Support us!

Spain!

Girona Spain
Amelia San Sebastian

Japan!

Bulgari Il Ristorante Luca Fantin
Sukiyaki Imafuku Tokyo
Sushi Ishimaya Tokyo
Disney Sea Tokyo
Tempura Fukamachi Tokyo
Shinjuku Gyoen

Cambridge restaurants

logo
Food Advertisements by
Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2022 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress