A Summertime Feast At Post 390 - Celebrating The Cape And The Islands - The Haute Life

We want to be responsible, really we do. But, we also want to have lots of fun! At times, this combo can seem impossible to master. (Tequila, you might be responsible for the occasional failure.)

Well, all we have to say is thank goodness for Post 390! The awesome team at one of our favorite spots demonstrates the idea of responsible fun through their “Farm-to-Post” dinner series. We cannot applaud loud enough for the message the Back Bay restaurant sends during these conscientious dinner series.

Post 390’s philosophy is to create meals using local food, grown and raised by honest purveyors, which then helps to support a sustainable and responsible food source. Bravo! Not only is this good for our own little local food chain, but the fresh seasonal food tastes pretty fabulous! Not a bad bi-product of doing the right thing!

At the latest dinner, held on the evening of the summer solstice, Owner Chris Himmel and Executive Chef Nick Deutmeyer, focused on quintessential New England cuisine- fresh seafood. The well-planned and plated meal celebrated and showcased seafood and farm goods in “The Best Of The Cape and The Islands“.

For each dinner series, the team visits the vendors and farms, gets to know (and care for) the owners, and brings back a bounty of responsibly raised and grown food. For this beautiful summer dinner Chris, Nick, and staff collaborated with Grey Barn Farm, Spearpoint Oysters, MV Mycological, Coonamessett Farm, Snappy Lobster, as well as a few other locally foraged items.

We were particularly excited about this dinner, as we had the huge privilege of going behind the scenes to see the talented culinary team at work! It’s no wonder the food is so good; Nick and staff truly love what they do! We watched as appetizers were carefully created for the reception, as well as the assembly of the first course.

So, what qualifies as the “Best Of The Cape and The Islands”? Enjoy (and try not to drool) as we walk you through the meal! Get ready for some fun food pics!

Reception

Passed hors d’oeuvres and a fresh raw bar set the tone for the meal that would kick off our summer! Nothing says Cape Cod like a good old-fashioned fried clams stand. The classic food got an upgrade for the reception. The tasty fried nuggets were dolloped back into their shells with sweet corn relish and old bay aioli.

Lobster nestled in between B&B pickles, chive mayo and celery leaves, all on top of buttered toast – Yum!

Of course, you know we wouldn’t forget to address the cocktail! Beverage manager, Jason Percival, created a summer drink we would love to sip at the end of every day! The “Vineyard Rose” comprises Privateer gin, lillet rose, amaro nonino, and a lovely beach rose for garnish. Good looking and tasty- there’s a winning combo!

First Course

If you’re a foodie and are not lactose intolerant, then you pretty much love to taste cheese in every course. But, to see it as the lead in a dish gets really exciting! Grey Barn Prufrock Cheese sat center stage on the plate, surrounded by a number of different players, including whole wheat lavash, cape-foraged sea arugula, sorrel, fig, and pink peppercorn. This was one of the dishes we got to see being created in the kitchen. Take a look at the careful process of creating this pretty dish, we love the edible sea roses that added a dash of color!

One thing we have to address is the beverage pairings. Everything was simply perfect – and different! We loved trying the Oud Beersel, Oude Geuze Vielle. We would never normally order the Belgium Lambic style beverage. But, we’re glad we did; it fit the dish perfectly and was delightful!

Second Course

Next up on the menu? How about a summertime favorite -lobster tail! Plated with homemade spaghetti, cultured butter, charred tomato, and toasted sour dough bread all melded together to remind us of a deconstructed version of the classic lobster and tomato sauce dish. Just look at that beautiful combination! It was so tasty that Post added it as a special on their menu. Smart move Post, very smart move. 😉

As for the wine pairing, this was another new one for us, and a big hit! Elvio Cogno, Nascetta di Novella from Piedmont, had such a delightful and unique flavor. We think it tasted a bit like cake! We’d love to add this to our Sunday Funday line-up.

Third Course

Ah Cape Cod, you give us so many wonderful things- sunsets over the water, taffy, and a beautiful bounty from the sea! Blue fish is one of those gifts and we were grateful to see it made it onto the menu. The third course was a fresh dish and beautifully presented!

Grilled Cape Cod Bluefish, Smoked heirloom porchetta, log-harvested shitake mushrooms, wild sea beans, potato leek puree, picked mustard seeds

A lovely french red wine (Jean-Luis Dutraive, Close de la Grand’Cour) complimented the dish and the pretty rose petals that decorated the table.

Fourth Course

Okay, so we love cheese; that has been well-established over the years. So, you can imagine the feelings of joy that overcame us when we saw a generous hunk of Grey Barn Bluebird Cheese as the 4th and final course. Marinated strawberries, beer chips, fried quinoa, strawberry agrodolce, honeycomb, and micro greens created a dish that capped off a wonderful dinner!