What an amazingly fun night we had at Blue Inc. 

There has been a quite a bit of hype going on around Boston for this little place so I was excited to try it.  I was even more intrigued after watching Jason Santos (Chef at Blue Inc.) being interviewed on Phantom Gourmet on Saturday morning.

Jason hails from quite a few Boston restaurants such as Tremont 647 and the soon to be closed Gargoyles and now Blue Inc.  You may also remember him from Top Chef.  He seems to have a bit of thing with liquid nitrogen, which is featured in a number of the cocktails and dishes at Blue Inc.

The restaurant is small; about 10 tables, a long bar with some high table seating and a very cool vibe.  The décor is minimalist, clean lines, exposed brick and a bit of an institutional/jail feel. 

The menu is small, which I like.  Just six appetizers, entrees and desserts and an amazing cocktail list. 

Kathleen wore this studded little dress that was basically losing large studs throughout the evening.  She also left an imprint on the chair and I will not be surprised if she left quite a few stud marks on her ass.  I know she was in quite a bit of pain throughout the evening.  This was absolutely a stand up only dress.  I honestly could not stop laughing, which may have been a little mean.

Our waitress came over to describe some of the cocktails and they all sounded very intriguing but being a creature of habitI opted for my usual non menu cocktail of an Espresso Martini (dark), Kathleen picked the Strawberry Fields Forever and Luisa ordered a simple Prosecco.   We all tried the Strawberry Fields and I have to say none of us were overly impressed.  It was okay but not fabulous – sadly.  My Espresso Martini was delicious!

I was excited about a number of choices on the menu.  For our appetizers we decided to share a couple of things with the Calamari “Spaghetti” and the Hand-Rolled Potato Gnocchi. The most fantastic preztel bread was then brought over and my goodness was it good!  Soft, warm, salty, fresh!

The Calamari appetizer was outstanding and so unique.  The calamari was thinly sliced to look like spaghetti and was soft and light.  The bolognese was so incredibly tasty and full of flavor.  The pureed garlic bread around the plate added an interesting flair and flavor to the dish. It was a bit like baby food.  I loved it! 

The gnocchi was AMAZING!  Truly a delicious dish of melt in your mouth hand rolled gnocchi and lightly salted lamb.  I loved every single bite of this dish.  We were literally fighting over the last forkful.

We then decided to order a bottle of Cote du Rhone to share, which took some time to get to us.  Our waitress seemed to be very busy, but needed to slowed down a little because every time she poured our water or wine, she spilled it everywhere.  We literally had splashes of red wine on our dinner plates and around the table.  It was causing a little bit of anxiety for my friend, but we tried to ignore it and just have fun.  Everyone was really friendly so it was easy to enjoy the evening.  I just decided to pour the wine for the rest of the evening myself. 

For my entrée I decided on the Signature Honey & Hoisin Glazed Duck Confit.  After watching Jason talking about this dish on the Phantom Gourmet I was excited to try it.  It was very very good, however, not truly outstanding.  Beautifully presented, delicious sticky sweet hoisin glazed duck that was perfectly cooked and not fatty.  I loved the rice.  I think I was just expecting something that would blow my mind.  I would still order it again through. 

Luisa decided on another appetizer dish of Spicy P.E.I. Mussels.  This was a lovely dish with an interesting spicy sauce of tangy lemon and lovage, which is a root vegetable that tastes like celery.  I would actually enjoy the sauce as a soup with lots of bread.Kathleen picked the Brandt Farms Grilled New York Strip Steak, which she said was superb.