A Little Bit About a Lot of Things

This one has been sitting in my to-blog pile for some time now. Mid June, early dinner, around 6pm-EMPTY. I had seen Tico everywhere, it was getting some really good press. Tico is brought to you by Michael Schlow, you may know him from Via Matta, Radius and Alta Strada. Tequila bars seem to be the new “it” thing going around these days. It features modern, simple tapas style dishes.

A pretty chill interior with an open bar in the back looks as if it could really get going as the night goes on. For this early bird dinner though, there are only a few other tables being sat. Our waitress is training someone new, but seems like she can’t be bothered with him or us. She brings us a bottle of sparkling water ($6) to start.

Mushroom and Cheese Quesadilla with Black Truffle Salsa ($10) Pretty tasty, I do love mushroom quesadillas- this one was meaty and had a nice crunch to it.

Tico’s Mac ‘N Cheese with serrano ham amd crunchy bread crumbs ($8). Excellent mac and cheese, we even ordered some to go it was that good-I love the crunch from the bread crumbs and there was a really nice blend of cheeses-not too overwhelming.

Chorizo Risotto with pasilla chiles, scallion and parmigiano ($11). I have to say that we both didn’t enjoy this dish. They say you eat with your eyes, and our eyes took one look and said, “it looks like vomit”. Ok, maybe that’s a little harsh, but this dish seemed a bit too soupy to be considered risotto, and we just weren’t  fan of the flavor.

Crunchy Edamame, tomatillo & cucumber ($8) Crunchy edamame just means fried edamame fritter-not bad, but a little bland.

The “Chocolate Gelato-Peanut Butter Mousse-Over The Top-Caramelized Banana Split” with Mexican Chocolate Sauce and Crushed Peanuts ($10). We just weren’t sure what made this dessert “over the top”. It was a deconstructed banana split-where each individual part was good, but we wished that there was something to bring it all together. Sometimes, you shouldn’t mess with a good thing.

I liked the vibe of this place-the decor was great and I could see myself coming here for a few drinks after work. I think that I prefer Schlow’s other restaurants to Tico….I think that the quality of food at his other restaurants are better.

The good news is that if you love tequila, they have a club here for that…although even in my ‘glory days’ I’m not sure I could drink 88 tequilas in 8 months. Here’s the lowdown:

We love Tequila.

There, we said it. We used the “L” word and we’re not regretting it, not even for a moment. Join us in our passion for this special elixir of life.

In fact, why not join the club? Drink 88 tequilas in any given 8 month period and you have special privileges and gifts coming your way. Other than your friends thinking you’re super cool and being a little jealous of your new-found status, some of the many perks of being a tequila lover and member of the Tico Tequila Club are:
• Exclusive Tastings and Seminars
• Etched Tequila glass with your name on it
• Tasting Dinner for 4 at Tico (extra tequila not included…)
• Special Tico Tequila Club Shirt
• Special Tico Tequila Club Hat

Tico

22 Berkeley Street Boston MA

617 351 0400

http://www.ticorestaurant.com/