Address: | 129 South St, Boston, MA 02111, USA |
Phone: | +1 617-542-5108 |
Site: | winebar129.com |
Rating: | 4.1 |
Working: | 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–11PM 5:30–11PM Closed |
BR
brian sullivan
Quick Summary: Tacky decor, loud bad music and expensive mediocre food make this a dining experience to avoid. Went here on a week night, not very crowded and was seated quickly in the main dining room where they have a live "jazz" band. The band really wasnt much to my liking, mostly cheesy covers that they tried to make "jazzy". Mediocre or bad music isnt usually a death knell though unless the music is deafeningly loud, which it was. At times you couldnt even hear people talking from across the table. Second thing I noticed was the decor. Whoever decorated this place seems to think that throwing up posters with french words will miraculously turn your establishment into an authentic french bistro. Unfortunately the lack of detail and attention shows and makes it feel tacky all around. Finally got around to ordering dinner, opted for the prix fixe option which isnt a bad deal at $44 for appetizer, dinner and dessert, but it should be noted that they limit your choices. Started with a french onion soup and escargot. The soup was fairly mediocre, not very hot, and Ive made better at home with little effort. The escargot were tasty, but its just garlic and butter and snails, so its fairly hard to mess this one up. Had the fish and steak frites for dinner. The fish was completely tasteless, was tempted to send it back, but just ended up not eating much of it. The steak was underdone, still raw in the middle on a medium rare request, however, the sauce they made to accompany the steak was good. The dessert selection was extremely limited and most items were some variation of ice cream. We had the creme brûlée and a chocolate cremeux. The chocolate was passable, but nothing to get excited about. The creme brûlée was underwhelmingly mediocre and, although it was served cold, they clearly got a little too close with the propane as there were random warm spots of custard. To top it all off our waiter was abysmal, vanished for most of the service and this was when there were three tables in the entire restaurant. The busboy did a better job servicing our table and I was tempted to slip him $10 if only I had some cash on me. Zygomates was a complete disappointment through and through. Maybe they should do away with the loud live music and spend the extra cash on better food. At more than $50/head this place isnt even close to being worth the money.
MI
Michael Collins
So apparently Zygomates is under new ownership with a new chef and I was lucky enough to be invited to taste their menu and besides for a few small misses the meal was a hit. The staff was phenomenal and did a great job explaining the dishes as they were dropped off to the table, which in my opinion doesnt happen enough in higher end restaurants. Les Zygomates is also in the middle of a renovation and from what was completed it looked pretty sharp. Here is what I tasted: Charcuterie - Great little board with a focus on duck. Duck pastrami and the pate were great House made duck confit nuggets - I was just able to try one of these. Great concept, as someone who loves duck I think these were spot on. Crunchy on the outside and flavorful on the inside Smoked Salmon - This was a highlight of the meal and Im not usually a smoked salmon fan. It was served on top of a chip and I found it very flavorful Poached Shrimp - This was also served on some type of chip, it was good but I thought it was just good shrimp on a chip southeast Asian Mussels - Another highlight of the meal. I think the whole table was caught off guard at how good these tasted and the presentation. The curry and coconut flavors were perfect but not overpowering. Gnocchi in a Garlic Cream Sauce w/ Escargot and Lamb Bacon - This was hands down my favorite dish. I wasnt sure if I would dig the lamb bacon but it helped perfect the complex flavor profile. The fresh gnocchis were almost slightly crispy which I enjoyed. Lobster Bisque - Ive never had lobster bisque with a puff pastry on top but it was a welcome addition. There were a few chunks of lobster in there as well. Bone in Veal - While I wouldnt normally order giant hunks of meat while at dinner if this is your style then this is a killer dish. The veal had a great crust that was just crispy enough and flavorful. It was cooked perfectly medium rare. Creme Brulee - Not much else to say other than it was a perfect rendition of this classic dessert Lemon Souffle - I never tried a lemon souffle before but I really enjoyed the tart and fruity flavors of this dish. Seems like a great palette cleanser to end a meal. Baked Alaska - One of the best presented dishes of the night. They lit it on fire tableside. As far as taste goes I found it a little too boozey and thought the chocolate ice cream inside wasnt a good fit
LA
Laura M
Enter at your own risk. They tried to scam me out of $130.00 My boyfriend and I went here for New Years Eve dinner. At first everything was great, good food, good music, etc. The problem occurred when we paid the bill, my boyfriend paid with his credit card but when the waiter came back with his receipt the total was drastically lower than the original bill. The manager explained that theyd charged 130.00 to the card I used to secure the table. Their opentable dinner reservation page did not state that they would automatically charge the card, nor did the reservation confirmation email state this. I asked for the money to be refunded onto my card and was told the refund would happen in 20 minutes. I was very upset about my card being charged without my authorization or signature and the managers’ response was completely unprofessional, she spoke to me as if trying to calm down a difficult child. I asked for a receipt for the refund and was told that I couldnt have one. The whole process took almost 45min and we asked for the included gratuity to be removed from the bill and was told that also wasnt possible. As of today the charge is still on my debit card with no refund pending. I’ve had to file a fraud claim with my bank.
DO
Douglas Housman
Horrible service and many missed opportunities to improve the meal. The food was good for the most part. Unfortunately the waiter was missing in action for most of the night. We really wanted to enjoy the night and unfortunately left in disappointment. We spent over $500 on our meal and had a miserable experience that we will never repeat. Shauna the manager failed to act to improve the situation. She came to the table after we asked to speak with the manager, she then ask what happened with an attitude. Total failure. The fish came out raw without apology. They did not take the meal off the bill before tax. They served a bottle of rotten wine without apologizing. Horrible experience. Never did Shana come to the table and apologize to the failures of the staff to meet our reasonable expectation of a good experience. I will never come back to this establishment. We gave Shauna the manager an opportunity to discuss the meal and apologize and she did not. She slammed the door of her office without apologizing after giver her an additional opportunity. Such a disappointment. We will never come back. And they had the nerve of adding 20% gratuity to the bill. Horrible meal, horrible service, unacceptable management.