In light of Row 34 grabbing some national attention in the news due to the bombshell article dropped about Jim Koch earlier this week, I figured it was a good time to share a few snaps from my experience there a couple of weeks ago. Not gonna get too wordy with this one, but let’s dive into the pics.

Food
Let’s start out with the food here since that was the primary reason for my visit. (The beer list was quite good but we’ll get to that in a bit.) I’ll admit, I don’t go out for seafood often. There aren’t too many places in the Capital Region for it. Some old world stuffy fine dining joints on one end of the spectrum and fish fry kind of places on the other end. So a visit to Row 34 was quite a refreshing change of pace.

I’ll just put this out there: everything I had was amazing. All super flavorful, all clean, bright and fresh, but this was my first time having uni (which was something new on the menu that week) and that dish alone is something that would have me coming back.

Tuna Tartare sesame, cucumber
Uni Custard brown butter lobster
Lettuce Cups crispy oysters, pickled vegetables
Ethel’s Creamy Lobster

Beer
The beer selection at Row 34 was a talking point of the Jim Koch article linked above. Clearly, Sam Adams Boston Lager was not on tap. What was available however was remarkable for a venue I wouldn’t consider a strictly craft beer bar. Selection ranged from classic Belgians, big west coast IPAs, a surprising amount of sours, and a handful of roasty, malty offerings. This was an very well thought out tap list that went extremely well with the fare. With Trillium back in action we should start to see their beer showing up back on tap, too. My first two beers of the night were of the wild variety and I ended the night with a big Russian Imperial in lieu of dessert.

OEC Brewing | Artista Zynergia: Artamas
Gueuzerie Tilquin | Gueuze Tilquin (Draught Version)
Grimm Artisanal Ales | Double Negative

Row 34 comes highly recommended from friends at Tree House, Armsby Abbey and Trillium. It’s no surprise to see why. Beyond how great the food and beer were, this was one of the best hospitality experiences I’ve ever had in Boston. Both the bar manager Maggie and beer director Megan went well out of their way to be accommodating on my first visit and I couldn’t have been happier with the experience. Row 34 will go on my list of must hit recommendations for friends heading to Boston (its proximity to Trillium doesn’t hurt here, either) and I cannot wait for my next meal here.


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