By Jon Palmer, News Correspondent
When I hear the words “taco night,” my mind goes back to the childhood dinner table and the make-
your-own-taco kits my mother would bring home from time to time. It also makes me think of the more recent efforts of my roommates and I to recreate these memories on a larger, spicier scale. In light of these past amateur efforts, I was not ready for the awesomeness that was Taco Tuesday at Tremont 647.
Since the restaurant’s chef and owner, Andy Husbands, wrote the book “The Fearless Chef: Innovative Recipes from the Edge of American Cuisine,” I expected something a bit off the beaten path – and I was right. The restaurant’s regular dinner menu includes 647’s famous lobster mac ‘n’ cheese and buttermilk fried chicken wings, for example. This isn’t a “stuff-your-face” taco venture – the selections are small but creative and packed with flavor. Nothing of the rice, beans and Mexican three-cheese variety here; think wild ingredients. Bottom line, this is upscale taco night and these are some avant-garde tacos. This is taco 2.0.
The taco night list may have been shortened because the restaurant was focusing on Restaurant Week, but I’d love to go back in a week when it includes the duck chimichanga, fried plantains and Andy’s signature banana cream pie. The menu changes weekly – I heard rumors of a specialty tongue taco featured a few weeks ago. Their website currently boasts the chicken chorizo “from HELL!” as part of next week’s installment, something I’m guessing wouldn’t be too easy going down.
I sat down at 647 with another member of The News staff Tuesday. We had reservations for 5:30, right when they open, as space fills up quickly. They seated us at Sister Sorel, their neighbor and sister restaurant. A darker, more casual spot, the room features seven small, two-person tables, a long curved bar that seats 10 and some very eye-catching art. Both spots also have outdoor patios.
Checking out the special Taco Tuesday menu, we were elated to see that each taco cost only $2, so there was absolutely no reason not to try all four varieties. First, however, our waitress suggested a basket of warm chips ($3) and side of guacamole ($4).
I’ve had all kinds of guac, from the fast-food, Qdoba variety to some excellent homemade ones, but I have to say that this was the best I’ve ever had. The bar was out of Dos Equis, which is what I had my heart set on, so I ordered a Tecate ($3.75) in keeping with the south-of-the-border theme.
We dove into a plate with two of each taco on it. I think the stranger they were, the more I liked them. Up first was a ground turkey selection, which was probably the most conventional of the four – like a simple ground beef taco, but leaner.
Next came the dreaded fish taco. Fish tacos tend to get a bad rap, but then the average fish taco doesn’t have delicious, juicy, fresh mango pieces inside. The fish pieces were lightly breaded. This was the best of the four – the taste of the fish and fruit mingled together was exotic and fantastic.
After that, the chili taco put a nice new twist on the old model, with smokey baked beans and shredded cheese. Rounding out the meal was a veggie taco, with corn, onion bits and various greens. I had always thought a taco sans meat was blasphemy, but this one was delicious.
Taco Tuesday at Tremont 647 is a great offering from a South End spot with a quirky yet appetizing menu.
647 Tremont St. (617)266-4600, www.tremont647.com
