The Palm - Boston

So let me start by saying that I love the Palm and have had tons of great experiences visiting the New York Midtown location many times. Being in Boston this week I figured I would try this location during lunch time. The restaurant is beautiful inside and it was packed, the negative was it took about an hour to get my food then when it came the steak was so heavily seasoned that I couldn't eat it and sent the whole dish back. (I rarely ever do this) As I mentioned, I've had so many great experiences at the Palm in NYC both uptown and downtown that I'll chalk today's negative experience up to bad luck.

In short, great steaks, but you can go elsewhere for the seafood. The meal was fairly slow, but I blame that in part to a large holiday party The Palm was hosting that evening. It was just difficult at times flagging a waiter or getting water. To go through the courses: bread was fine. I liked the breadsticks the most. I started with the wedge salad, which had a great amount of toppings, but I wasn’t the biggest fan of the dressing. Next time I might ask for it on the side. I ordered the surf & turf and my dad got the ribeye. Ribeye was excellent. My petit filet was also enjoyable. Having not ordered it with any sauces, the flaky sea salt on top was perfect, bringing out the best in the steak’s tenderness and warmth. However, the lobster was lackluster. It had very little taste, even when dipped… and then smothered, in butter. I ate it with the mashed potatoes, and it was significantly improved. Lastly, the chocolate cake was great to share. All in all, I really appreciated the portion sizes. I wasn’t overly hungry, but I didn’t feel that I was given an insane amount of food.

Located in the financial district, The Palm is an upscale steakhouse chain popular for business meetings and for elegant dinners. I initially wasn’t planning on taking a visit, but their lunch deals seemed too good to pass on. We started off with some fresh oysters and clams. Oysters were almost sliced into small pieces and with the absence of their texture and flavor, they were certainly the worst I had so far in Boston. However, the clams had a nice meaty texture that I really enjoyed. Our appetizer was also a tad lacking as shrimp bruno came with a bland sauce and with unremarkable seasoning. The highlight of the meal was obviously the center-cut filet. Nothing special, but as expected from a steakhouse, everything was executed flawlessly. I usually prefer medium rare for filet, but it tasted better as a medium than a medium rare. We then finished our meal with the key lime pie and the junior cheesecake. Both were good, but the key lime pie was more decadent and the better choice among the two. Overall, this place seems to be one of the top places to grab steak for lunch in the area. Their service could be better, but they are still worth a visit.