I have a confession to make- I have never had a super expensive meal in France. Not even when I went with my family post graduation.
Part of the joy that I take in French food is eating it at a little, cozy affordable restaurant, which is usually a little hole in the wall.
I have had some great French food in Boston, but it has all been pretty pricey. Miel as no exception. It’s not as expensive as La Voile or L’Espalier, but it’s more than Bar Bolud, Petit Robert or Ma Maison (our original choice, but closed on Sundays).
Miel has been around for over 10 years, at the back of the Intercontinental. It occupies a huge space, and over the years, it has been made smaller with a bar area in front.
Miel has Provencal decor, which is fitting for how it is billed- as a brasserie Provençal.
Apart from the mussels, which they were out of, much to my friend’s dismay, none of the appetizers seemed very Provençal. They seemed more Boston oriented. I ordered a couple of oysters, as I remembered from used back that they had a good raw bar.
My dining partners skippers the appetizers. And we all ordered wine- Sancerre for me, a decent pour, but pricey at $16 a glass.
Dinner had more of a French vibe. One friend ordered the Swordfish Provencale with roasted tomatoes, Nicoise olives, capers, red peppers, oregano and garlic potatoes (sans olives). Since we are both Pescetarians, we always do a little tradesies. Her Swordfish was really good, although a mon avis, it would have been better with the olives. But that’s okay. We all have foods we hate- for me, beets and avocados!
My meat eating friend ordered the duck confit cassoulet with sausage, smoked pork belly, tarbais beans, roasted tomatoes and chicken jus. The portion looked generous, and she liked the duck, but the accoutrements kind of meshed together and ruined some of the flavors for her.
I ordered the seared diver scallops with cauliflower purée, pine nuts, fried capers, golden raisins and crisp parsnips. It all went together really well, and I liked the presentation.
Take a look at the dessert menu. I can maybe say that the Pot De Creme is a somewhat French dish (although it was accompanied by a cherry biscotti), but the others were not at all. Pumpkin cheesecake? It sounded great, but not French. And I could have gone for the cheeses, except that they were from Vermont and New Hampshire. Nothing against those great states and their cheese, but I couldn’t overpay for cheeses that I can buy at Whole Foods. Couldn’t there have at been one French cheese?
We all enjoyed the food that we ate, but we left wanting to have a future meal with a more French feel, and terribly missing the more authentic French dining experiences of restaurants past.
Is there just not the market for an intimate, authentic French dining experience in the Boston area? The search continues.
A la prochaine fois.
Xxoo, PF
