Cognac Bistro

A little on the expensive side but most ‘Bistro’s are… It’s a nice little place in an unassuming area. It’s no where near Coolidge Corner where I thought it was. But it was worth the jog to get there from the intersection.
Their menu highlights a little bit of everything and there is something for everyone I suppose… But the prices are not for everyone. My risotto/​paella (it definitely was more of a paella) was… $ 14? my friend’s mushroom salad was $ 8. But those are technically appetizers, although the portions are good enough to be an entrée, especially with the complimentary bread and delicious butter to go with it, and great conversation.
I’d say it’s worth a stroll in if you’re in the area.

Please don’t close!!!
My girlfriends and I are obsessed with Cognac Bistro!!! Do you ever have the urge to frequent a Parisian café, but don’t feel like flying Air France (or dropping $$$$$)? Then head over to Cognac Bistro.
Adorable outdoor café seating with bistro chairs (just like in France!), excellent ambience, not too loud inside, and always such an awesome wait staff. Similar to eating in Europe, they never rush you, so you can really enjoy your dinner.
The wine selection and cocktails are fantastic. The oysters — - $ 1 and they are so amazing! The wait staff is great about advising about which oysters to order (large and meaty or small and delicate?). The mac and cheese is delish, as is the Croque Monsiour. My absolute favorite meal? Ordering oysters and then the Frisee Salad with Poached Egg atop Brioche. This salad is insane and out of this world. I literally wait all week until Thursday or Friday night in anticipation of this salad— frisee with pancetta, beets, and goat cheese in a vinaigrette, with a poached egg atop a brioche. I literally don’t know what I will do when this place closes at the end of the year.
Perfect for a night with the girls (which we do weekly here!), and a date night, too. Wish there were more places like this in Boston.

I heart the Cognac Bistro so. Have been twice now, once for dinner and once for brunch, both times spectacular. Specializing in seafood primarily, the dishes are just large enough to make you comfortably plump, and are well spiced and well cooked all-​around. Whether it is a fried appetizer or a fish main, Cognac’s chefs are well-​versed in that perfect temperature point and you can expect easily to have a well-​cooked meal.
Brunch today was awesome. The fresh baked bread that accompanied the meal were ridiculously good, and the omelette I had was super fluffy and very yummy. Plus, the filling was great, roasted button mushrooms and huge drool-​worthy chunks of bacon.
There is no low point at Cognac Bistro… at all.

My friend and I actually went there for their Blue point oysters cause it’s really cheap and really good. And beside that we order two desserts, one is Bread Pudding and the other one is not on the menu. Both of them are really good. Girls who like dessert should definitely try it. I would definitely go back for their oyster, dessert and trying their entrees for sure. And do make reservation before you come here.

Dont know if its under new ownership or not but I hope NOTHING CHANGES.
I like this place for what it is down to the minor details
Change the amazing warm baguettes, bluepoint oyster supplier, or bar and I cant promise coming back.
BEST BREAD, OYSTERS, AND BAR AROUND
Please don’t change. I love Cognac Bistro!
One of my top 3 favorite places to eat in Boston.

Came for dinner one evening and had an excellent server.
Yummy baguette warm from the oven with sweet creamy butter.
Cheese puff appetizer has a confusing texture, but good flavor.
Warm frisee salad (with the poached egg add-​on, of course) was awesome.
Cognac burger was tasty despite being the weakest of the items ordered; side of black olive aioli (mayo) was very flavorful. Good fries.
I’ll be back.

It was pouring rain and I had to go crawling back to Cognac because everywhere else was too far to walk in a storm. It’s such a beautiful little bar and nice spot to enjoy the rainy night. Problem is you’ll never want to leave so be sure and eat a grand dinner while you are sitting there enjoying your drink or you’ll be crawling home. Humbly confessing (after my last review) that the service was excellent.

Let me make it clear at the start… they are looking for a buyer. Hopefully, the newbie will be as ‘French’ sensitive as the current owner. It really is a French bistro with as excellent breads, oysters, foods and wines as you’d find in the Loire. Wines may be ordered in a variety of sizes … totally cool. Oysters sold by variety — Bluepoints are $ 1 the rest a little more. Menu well balanced fresh and local including pre-​fixe options all of which original and exceptional, especially, if you are there before 6:30 for their ‘early bird’ pricing.
Also, cool — the atmosphere literally and figuratively. Like the French… nobody warms to you too quickly. Trust me… you’ll appreciate not knowing your wait person’s name. They just do their job. May seem curt but, they do it well. It took 2 –3 visits for dinner and brunch to even warrant a smiling glance… totally cool — they do their job. All in a cozy setting, as in a little tight — remember France. Sitting at the bar one may expect to get slightly tussled by the locals looking for their drinks… remember, it’s cozy.
Relax, enjoy, savior. You’re paying for the French café experience.

Such an amazing place! This is my second time eating here and the meal was even better than the first. Last time I had the boullabaise and my boyfriend had the steak. This time boyfriend had the lamb burger and I had the trout. D. I. E. D.
The cocktails, oysters, and general ambiance just make this place incredible. I love that it is such a hidden gem in Allston. Bottom line — if you want to seriously impress a date bring them to Cognac. You won’t regret it.

Came to this small restaurant for brunch and all the tables were full, but we were promptly seated at the bar. Our waitress was very friendly and timely. The restaurant is kind of small so I recommend making reservations if you want a table for brunch.
Lobster Hash: It sounded great on the menu, but it wasn’t really what I had pictured in my mind. They give you half a lobster (with the shell on), topped with a poached egg, sprinkled with a small amount of potato hash, and drizzled with hollandaise (and lemon?). Not much texture involved as the hash was sorta soggy. I wouldn’t order this again.
Lamb Burger: If you want a good lamb burger, definitely get this! It was so juicy I got a stain on my shirt to prove it. If you want a good lamb burger, you should definitely try this! The onion rings were more like onion strings and were delicious; I only wish they had gave us more.
Smoked Salmon McCognac: Didn’t get to try it, but I tried a piece of the English muffin that comes with it and some of the cream cheese. Nice and crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. I will definitely order this next time I come.
Will definitely come again! I also want to try their $ 6 bar menu next time.

I’ve been here a few times and it’s always been really good but my most recent visit takes the cake. I made a reservation for my one year anniversary dinner here and under ‘notes’ I mentioned the occasion. I didn’t really expect anything out of it — sometimes I just can’t resist ruining blank spaces — but Cognac definitely helped make the evening special.
All night our server was really nice and super attentive but even better, he also kept depositing surprise food items on our table. How could I not like him? After greeting us and wishing us a happy anniversary he brought us two glasses of champagne. Then, while the bf and I were still poring over our menus, he returned and placed their fig and burrata tart on our table. IT WAS DELICIOUS. I’m a big fan of things that are both savory and sweet so my bf had a hard time getting any tart for himself. The cress on top also gave it good acidic balance.
As much as I enjoyed the champagne, I was getting raw oysters so I ordered a glass of the muscadet. The oysters were really fresh and sweet and the wine went perfectly. I also ordered the mussels escargot which were a nice twist on the dish. The boyfriend got the lamb burger and thought it was delicious.
At this point we were pretty full so we weren’t going to order dessert but the waiter had other plans and appeared bearing crème brûlée. Being a not so secret glutton, I ate that as well. It was good, ok? Whatever, I have no regrets. Come to this place if you like food and good service. I do so I will be back.

Came here for Sunday brunch on a lovely summer’s day, mainly because of the outdoor seating.
I was leaning towards the prix fixe because I’m a sucker for a good bread basket, but I wasn’t much in the mood for an omelette (basically the only kind of entrée options). I went with the lobster hash, which was good, but in my opinion not as mind-​blowing as other reviewers thought, and also on the smaller side (I was still hungry after finishing)… I couldn’t help but wish I was eating Lineage’s lobster omelette, which amazingly delicious and by far my favorite seafood-​based breakfast item. The lamb burger got a solid review though from my dining companion.
Service was standard, and I loved being on the patio under an umbrella but the tables were a bit tilted, and were also latticed so there were gaps (meaning you had to be careful where you put your glass or fork). I’m more partial to Gaslight or Petit Robert, but Cognac is a good option if you don’t want to venture downtown and/​or don’t want to wait forever for a brunch table.

I was really not impressed… at all… and after the Unilocal reviews that is disappointing. The best thing were the cheap oysters and everything else was only average. This was especially annoying because the meals were on the pricey side. The menu looked good but our group ordered a lot and it was not good. The lobster mac n cheese was not good, the wedge salad was not good, just overall weak food.
On the good side, it has a small parking lot in the front, service was good, and ambiance was nice. With good company I could go back here but wouldn’t want to.

Four our six month anniversary, my sweetie treated me to the 8 course tasting dinner. We enjoyed prosecco and house red, and had a wonderful time. The breakdown:
DInner:
Oysters — fresh and a delicious start
Frisee salad with lardons — also delicious and warm
french onion soup — very good, a little sweet
buttery gnoccis — my favorite, handmade and so tasty
seafood risotto — a little too al dente for me, but very flavorful
grilled quail — grilled to perfection
hangar steak — yum
dessert — very, very tiny (even the staff admit it) but the crème brûlée was enjoyable
The service was spot on, everything was served in a timely manner, and drinks were kept flowing. Our server was funny and attentive.
The only thing I was disappointed with was the atmosphere — it still looks like a gas station, the restrooms are in the dining room, and clientele were very noisy including a child behind me watching movies and a couple (who I think were having an affair) were also very noisy including iPhone video viewing. Yikes.
I would go back, but would probably sit at the bar and have snacks

So it would seem that I was one of a slew of folks who jumped on the Gilt City deal of an eight course tasting menu for two for $ 60. Sounded like a good deal at $ 3.75 per course per person, and a great way to taste my way through a new-​to-​me restaurant, so why not?
The menu —
Six oysters
Two onion soups
Two warm frisée salads
Two herb gnocchis
Two seafood risottos
Two grilled quails
Two daubes of beef with bone marrow
Choice of any two desserts
The only hiccup in service was when we were left without utensils with which to enjoy the risottos (which were more paella than risotto in texture, but were chock full of seafood and sausage bits). Several times, my water ended up getting filled just as I was about to reach the bottom. There were two servers on the weeknight of our visit.
I particularly enjoyed the warm crisp french bread served with soft butter, and the slightly sweet cup of onion soup served hot and heartily covered with a thick layer of cheese, with a goodly amount of onions hidden in the broth within. We filled up rather quick and ended up taking nearly half the meal home in an aluminum foil tin.
«Whoa, that’s tiny!» was the exclamation from our neighboring table at the presentation of their dessert. Yes, each was but 2 inches in diameter. The pear peach crisp was warm and tasty, but while the flavor of the crème brûlée was good, the texture was more pudding.
The bathrooms are individual and they open right into the dining room, so make sure you lock the door behind you or you may find yourself unexpected exposed. The dining room consists of about 10 tables in the left half of the building, while a bar area is separated by the entrance through the use of curtains.
The dining room filled up twice during our 2.5 hours of leisurely dining. Their small parking lot was filled, but we managed to find a spot out on the street.

You can probably defer to Andrea B. for descriptions of the courses that comprised our 8-​course tasting menu at Cognac Bistro (although I’d be a little more generous in my assessment of some of the dishes, including the french onion soup, which I found delicious), so I’ll instead focus on the value of the deal, purchased through Gilt, which really couldn’t be beat.
Two 8-​course tasting menus for $ 60? That’s $ 30 per person, and less than $ 4 per course. In. Sane. True, the food was not the best (and what does it say about the restaurant when everything we had was from the regular menu, and people must routinely pay top dollar for substandard dishes), but for that price, you won’t catch me complaining too much.
Dessert, however, was simply comical. It may as well have been an amuse bouche it was so tiny. And this wasn’t a tasting menu-​sized portion, mind you, it was the real deal. And when I asked the waiter why they don’t make bigger desserts, he simply said, «I don’t know, I don’t make ‘em,» and walked away. What a peach.

Don’t believe the hype. If you are looking to try Cognac Bistro based on the hopes of dining on fine French food that is affordable and dollar oysters, there are a few things you should know. First, Cognac Bistro used to be a gas/​service station. No big deal right? Wrong. The main dining room is where the service garage was. The street-​facing wall is actually a garage door that does not do the best job of trapping heat. Hence, if you are hoping to dine at Cognac Bistro during the winter months, be prepared to possibly wear your coat the whole time.
One of the major draws of Cognac Bistro is the promise of dollar oysters. Buyer beware. The oysters at Cognac Bistro were some of the smallest I have seen at a supposed «fine» oyster bar. They had Wellfleet, Blue Point, and Duxbury Bay oysters. All very small and presented with miniscule amounts of mignonette and cocktail sauce.
Another major draw is the promise of fine French bistro cuisine without paying South End prices. While the pricing may be slightly lower than South End French Bistro food, be prepared for a commensurate decline in food quality. For example, the golden beet and frisee salad had a total of MAYBE 5 pieces of beets. The flavor of the salad itself was forgettable at best. The duck breast (a marquee dish in French cuisine that should be one of the highlights of any worthy bistro menu) was dry, tough, and flavorless. The appetizers and main courses were so bland that we did not stay for dessert.
Regarding the service, our experience was marginal at best. One of our friends had the simple request of getting a salad without dressing. Our server forgot and brought the salad with dressing first. When reminded about the request for no dressing, the server shrugged and brought the salad back to the kitchen. The salad then returned with dressing on the side. The service was neither friendly nor prompt. The small kitchen seemed slow and ill-​equipped to handle the modest volume of a small dining room and a scant Sunday night «crowd.»
Finally, the pricing is somewhat cheaper than other local French bistro options. As mentioned above, you will not get the same quality of food as you might at one of Boston’s fancier French dining options. Beware that the prices here are not that much of a bargain. 2 people will still spend close to $ 80 without any alcohol or dessert.
Boston and the local suburbs are blessed with many options for good French bistro cuisine. While I had heard positive things about Cognac Bistro, I cannot say that we had a positive experience. If you are reading this, you may be considering dining at Cognac Bistro based on similar recommendations from friends and family. Consider this review as an alternative to many of the «good» reviews out there. We could have spent a nicer Sunday evening somewhere else if we had known better. But if you are like us, you may want to try Cognac Bistro once. We did and now we know better. With all of the other superb dining options in Boston, Brookline, and the surrounding towns, we will not be back to Cognac Bistro.

I hope no one ever spoils this hidden gem. Dollar oysters all day, everyday? WHAT? Does it get any better? YES.
The drinks are delicious. The food is consistently good — especially their daily specials. My friends and I come here MUCH too often… I swear half my paycheck usually goes to Cognac Bistro… because once I bring a friend here, they keep asking to come back, and I could never deny them that, could I? ;)
I feel like sometimes the waitstaff don’t like me… maybe because I’m here too often… but I’m not going to stop coming anytime soon! Make sure to book a reservation, even on weekday nights, as I’ve come here at 7:30 on a Tuesday to a full house!

My meal at Cognac Bistro was good but I will never drive out to Brookline just to eat here again. The space was nice and the bar area was a bit crowded. Everything on the menu sounded delicious and the wine menu was very reasonably priced. I tried each of the four different types of oysters on the menu and they were all nice.
French onion soup needed pepper and the broth had a texture to it that made me think the kitchen may have used a roux. A starter of venison was cooked perfectly but the dish lacked any depth of flavor. The best item of the night was a duck breast with red cabbage and potatoes. It reminded me of a meal in Prague or Bavaria. Since I have been to a few places lately that do not know how to cook duck I was pleased to see that the breast was rendered and the skin on the crispier side. Herbs added a depth of flavor to the dish.
The deserts were pretty much bite size, but, that was all I needed.
Service showed a lack of maturity.
Cognac Bistro provided a solid meal but not one worth going out of your way for.

Cognac Bistro is located on Harvard St, conveniently where the havoc of rowdy college students fades into serene stroller-​central.
Friend 1: Are you sure we should eat raw shellfish in… Allston?
Friend 2: We just passed TJMaxx. It’s «Brookline.»
We missed brunch (ends at 3pm on Sat and Sun), but the waitress happily introduced us to their bar menu. She noted that both the Grilled Beef Slider w/​Fries and Clam Roll w/​Onion Rings were sizeable portions. We ordered both, Narragansett beer ($ 2 a can), plus oysters to boot.
(Refer to photos) The slider, done medium, exploded with juicy goodness with each bite. Clam roll was piping full of fried clam strips in a generously buttered and toasted slab of brioche bread. They are definitely not shy with the butter here… our lips were glossed by the end of the meal. Fries and onion rings were also plentiful. At $ 6 per dish, you’re hard-​pressed to find a better deal in Boston or Brookline for such quality bites.
Raw oysters (on this day, ranging from $ 1 to $ 2.50 a piece) were shucked in front of us and served promptly. Smooth, fresh, and delish — they were slurped up in no time. The staff was attentive and allowed me to photograph gratuitously, even entertained me by posing. We’ll definitely be back to try their brunch.