Thursday Sips & Nibbles

I am back again with a new edition of Thursday Sips & Nibbles, my regular column where I briefly highlight some interesting wine and food items that I have encountered recently.
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1) For Valentine's Day, consider The Beehive which is presenting “3 Days of Lovin’!” A 3-day long love fest of Valentine’s Day inspired dinners accompanied by romantic live music, drink specials from Svedka Vodka, Domaine Chandon and Moët & Chandon as well as menu specials including: “My Heart Beets Crab Salad” with beets, hearts of palm & sugar snap peas, Rack of Lamb for Two with salsa verde, roasted potatoes & blood orange salad, and Roasted Sea Scallop with spinach & truffle pommes puree, to name a few. Pair the dinner of your choice with delicious cocktails from Svedka, or toast your love with a glass of Domaine Chandon or Moët & Chandon to set the mood.

Reservations are highly recommended, and can be made by calling 617-423-0069.

Performance Schedule:
Wednesday, February 13:
--Valentine's Day 3 Days of Lovin’ featuring Alex Brown Piano Trio, 7pm-12am
Thursday, February 14:
--Romantic Early Jazz Set featuring Fernando Huergo, Yulia Musayelyan and Nando Michelin: 5pm-7pm
--Valentine's Day 3 Days of Lovin’ featuring Gabriela Martina: 7:30pm-9:30pm
--Valentine's Day 3 Days of Lovin’ featuring Sissy Castrogiovanni: 9:30pm-1am
Friday, February 15:
--Romantic Early Latin Jazz Set: Gilson Schacknick Trio, 6:30pm-8:30pm
--Valentine's Day 3 Days of Lovin’ featuring Wishes and Thieves: 10pm-2am

2) Ashmont Grill’ will host its first stemmed glass wine event on Monday, February 18 at 7:00 PM. Winemaker Rodney Schatz of Hybrid Wines, an offshoot of Peltier Station, will host a communal dinner for a maximum of 20 guests. Cost is $55 per person (including tax and gratuity) and you can RSVP to tara@ashmontgrill.com or call them at 617-825-4300.

Over five courses of seasonal cuisine, Schatz will chat with diners about how top-rated, sustainably grown grapes from his family’s 1,200 acre vineyard in Lodi, California were meticulously blended to make a new breed of affordable, food-loving wines. Blends to be poured include Hybrid’s pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, pinot noir and petite sirah. Vintages span 2007 to 2011. Menu will be posted online soon.

Ashmont Grill will now also be open for lunch every Friday at 11:30 AM. A 10-item menu of salads, sandwiches, pasta and soup will be available, and lunchtime will segue into dinnertime, so that the Grill’s famous Super Turkey Burger, Pearl Hot Dogs, and Cobb Salads can be enjoyed anytime until 5 PM on that day. Lunch items range from $7-15.

Desserts, always a top draw at Ashmont Grill, will also be available at the new Friday lunch. Pastry Chef Clare Garland’s lineup for January includes:
Chocolate Crème Fraiche Cake with Roasted Pears
Parfait of Banana Cream & Butterscotch Pudding with Pecan Crunch
French Apple Tart with crème anglaise

3) Chef Brian Poe is bringing the Tip Tap Room’s first Valentine’s Weekend to Beacon Hill. For three nights, Chef Poe will serve up The Love Game menu which features a series of bold – and aptly named – dishes. In addition to the regular menu, “The Love Game” is offered as a five-course prix fixe or with the items available a la carte:
--Wicked Tuna: Tuna tartare in soy vinaigrette with wasabi and pickled ginger sorbet ($10.95)
--You Had Me at Carpaccio:  Cayenne-dusted buffalo carpaccio, horseradish, truffle & rosemary vinaigrette and a touch of caviar ($11.95)
--Mixed Emulsions:  Peppercress, celery root chips, seared foie gras, apple-cider-champagne vinaigrette ($12.95)
--Wildly in Love:  Kangaroo in peppercorn, antelope in cranberry gin, elk in rosemary-sage marinade, rutabaga puree and parsnip-parsley salsa ($28.95)
--Hot Sticky Mess:  Hazelnut & chocolate waffle with white chocolate chip-marshmallow butter and chocolate caramel maple sauce ($11.95 – for two people)

Cost: Five-course prix fixe: $75 per person (individual items are also available via a la carte pricing)
For reservations, please call: 857-350-3344.

4) On Tuesday, February 12, from 5pm-12am, 75 on Liberty Wharf will get decked out in festive décor for a special Mardi Gras-inspired night in celebration of this year’s Creole carnival. In addition to the bayou-themed embellishments, Corporate Chef Markus Ripperger has assembled a selection of Southern-inspired dishes featuring an array of the region’s most iconic ingredients - think succulent crawfish, spicy andouille sausage and zesty Cajun flavors - that promise to make your taste buds shout, “Holy Trinity.” And, inspired by the Big Easy’s chief customary cocktail, 75 will offer a line-up of Hurricane-themed sips ideal for those really looking to get in the spirit.

75 on Liberty Wharf’s menu of Mardi Gras-themed cuisine will feature the following specials:
Louisiana Seafood Burger (homemade burger with fresh halibut, Atlantic salmon, center cut swordfish, toasted croissant, lettuce, tomato, spicy aioli, field greens) $14
Jambalaya (crawfish, shrimp, chicken, spicy andouille sausage, peppers, tomatoes, steamed white rice) $19
Crawfish Étouffée (crawfish, garden vegetables, tomatoes, Cajun spices, white rice) $19
Shrimp & Chicken Gumbo (shrimp, chicken, bell peppers, okra, tomatoes, Cajun spices, white rice) $19

75 on Liberty Wharf’s Mardi Gras specials will be served in addition to the regular New England-centric menu.
For reservations, please call: 617-227-0754