Craigie On Main

This was one of the best dining experiences I’ve had. To simply this review I’m going to break down various aspects of the restaurant.
Service:
Top notch service which seems like a team of servers attending your table. Chef provides us with some small bites and samples which were all truly amazing. Very friendly people and great environment
Drinks:
Talk about a proper drink in Boston. This isn’t your basic bar these folks know what they are doing. Cocktails are roughly 11 – 14 $ but are actually made properly. I ordered an old fashioned and it was phenomenal had the big ice cube right amount of bitters just great.
Food:
We ordered the pig tails to start and boy are those things great. They are super fatty and a melt in you mouth texture with an Asian fusion sauce topped with hand battered onion rings. These were the true star and would come back for these alone. The burger that everyone raves about is fairly good I would rate it 8.5÷10 as it was heavy on the pepper but had a nice meat blend and a lot of hand crafted components. We didn’t try any of the entrees as they are priced fairly high but the burger is only 18 $ which is good consider its quality of components. You need to come early as they have a limited supply and it seems everyone waiting in line prior to opening is getting one.
Will definitely come back for the experience, a great spot to celebrate the new job!

One of the most over hyped over rated restaurant I have been to. I eat out a lot and based on the hype I was really looking forward to my meal. It was very expensive and really just ok. Based on the value I give this place 2 stars.
On top of the just ok food, I asked the hostess for change for the parking meter (I didn’t know they had valet so I parked on the street) and she has the nerve to tell me they don’t have any Quarters, not even sorry we need our quarters, no we don’t have any move your car to valet. So charge me a ton for mediocre food and then rudely treat me like an idiot. I wont be back and wouldn’t recommend it.

Have you heard about the burger? If you have, why haven’t you had it yet? They only make 18 a night and if youre not outside the restaurant by 5pm waiting in line (they open at 5:30), then youre not getting one. Seriously, they sold out in a record five minutes. Only sold at the bar though and not on the menu! It was $ 19 when I came and you can add bacon and an egg for an extra charge but honestly, why mess with the classic.
The meat itself is a combo of three different meats and bone marrow which makes it extra juicy. It has some great spices in there too that made the patty definitely unlike something youve had before. Not your average burger! They suggest you order medium rare which is the sign of good quality meat. It comes with lettuce, onions, and homemade ketchup which is seriously good and I’m a ketchup snob. It has a touch of sweetness to it and I ended up asking for more. There’s also red wine pickles and celery root slaw served on the side. I used the slaw as refreshing thing between bites instead of on the burger.
It also came with huge steak fries and a side salad and the salad was honestly the meh part of the meal. I ain’t ordering a burger to eat a salad but hey, that’s just me. The service was so nice, the manager was very friendly and the bartender, Kim, was personable and attentive.
They also give you bread and butter which was so nice and a little almost chocolate dessert with your check.

The best Restaraunt I’ve been so far in Boston area. Maybe, Smith & Wallensky can compete with it. It’s all about user experience. When you are in Craigie, relax and enjoy the tasting menu — you there will be nothing you won’t like or be worried about.

My husband and I wanted to try the burger for the longest time. We went there during a rainy day 15 min before opening time to get it. It was so yummy. Everything is greasy and flavorful. Our hands got messy fast. The salad suddenly taste so good to cut the heaviness of the burger. The fries were fried in burger juice or something, it also tastes wonderful. We got full quite fast too. My husband stays up late last night and ate both of our leftover. I got up and wanted the burger for breakfast (dont judge me please) My husband told me with his innocent face that he ate it all.

Review of just the burger: First off, ordered it medium rare. It came closer to rare than medium rare cause the middle was still soft and not warm. The bartender said that was how they normally do medium rare so if that’s not how you roll I suggest ordering medium. For me, the rarer parts of the burger did not have flavor and just reminded me of flavorless tartar. The parts of the burger that were more cooked I didn’t taste any bone marrow cause all I got was black pepper. I did like the cheese and the onions that accompanied it. The fries were big thick steak cut ones which can’t complain about that. I can’t say that I’d order this again, but the bread basket I very much enjoyed and the service was 5 stars so I’d come back to check out some other stuff.

This is hands down one of the best dining experiences you will find anywhere. Unpretentious with a subtle elegance Craigie offers the freshest ingredients with the most creative dishes. Put yourself in the Chefs hand and go with the tasting menu. My wife and I do not drink alcohol and when ordering non alcoholic beverages we were not shamed into feeling like second class citizens (which happens frequently at high end establishments unfortunately) This is also our litmus test for the waiter to see if he earns a 35% tip. I am happy to say Craig passes the test on many levels!
Staff is friendly, food is fantastic. Atmosphere is perfect. Don’t hesitate to spend your hard earned money here!

I’ve been here a few years ago and remember that i really enjoyed my meal. So when my husband and i were visiting Boston, i wanted to take him here to try it. We were so excited about our date night and dinner at Craigie on Main and at the end, we were left so disappointed.
Our server did not come to our table for at least 15 minutes after we sat down. Someone came by and said she’s busy, and that she’ll be right there… and we just kept waiting and waiting. finally, we had to flag down someone else and ask for our server again. This other waiter took our drink order… but we just sat there waiting.
After the server came to our table and explained the 6 course tasting menu. My husband and i both decided to try it. I did the seafood version, and his had meat. My first course was ceviche, then there was a fish, a pasta, the next was scallop, a granita and a dessert. All the courses were very small and it’s never happened that i left a tasting menu feeling hungry afterwards. We were also disappointed that they try to pass a granita off as a course — most restaurant serve that as a palette cleanser.
We also received our granita before our main entrée… the person just dropped it off. and then another server, not ours, came by and just took it back. The whole night’s service was off and it certainly did not live up to our expectation. The entire dinner also took more than 2.5 hours because our server was so busy/​slow.

We wanted to love this place. Close from our house, we were hoping that we could make it our «special occasion» place. Unfortunately, we were more than disappointed by our experience.
In short, the food is well executed but lacks creativity and you leave hungry even after a 3-​course meal. At the price you’re paying, we were at least expecting one or the other…
We had a salad as starter, which was small and simple, the kind you make at home. Not impressed. We then shared the pork 3 ways and the chicken. Both dishes were perfectly executed, the meat was perfectly cooked… but there was really nothing interesting going on in either dishes. The chicken especially was very blend. The pork was a little bit better, but neither dishes felt like something I couldn’t make at home. We finished with the spiced chocolate tart, which wasn’t spiced at all, and generally heavy.
All this for what was basically a small fortune… $$$$$
The only plus was the wine, which was surprisingly ok priced and turned out to be excellent.
We won’t come back.

This is one of those restaurants that was overhyped for me. I went in with really high expectations because all of my friends were telling me how good it was here. I spent about 200 dollars here for a 5 course tasting menu that didn’t blow me away.
The courses were as follows:
1: sardine on a ritz cracker
2: two pieces of sashimi
3: monkfish with one shrimp
4: two pieces of lamb with 2 bite size lamb sausages and 2 bite size potatoes
5: dessert
The portions were small but you have to expect that from an upscale restaurant. I was hoping the next dish would be better than the last but I found myself expecting more from the next dish every time and was never satisfied. I can’t say the dishes were bad, but they were not amazing, especially for 200 dollars. The best dish was probably the lamb (even though I don’t like lamb and ended up giving the dish to my bf), however, it was pretty tender for those who do like lamb.
I was hoping the tasting menu would be a small snapshot of what they serve on their regular menu but none of the dishes served were on their regular menu. The presentation was great but I go for the taste, not the looks. Maybe I’ll be back one day to try out the normal menu but probably not anytime soon.

WHAT TO DO ON A COLD, WINDY & SNOWY CAMBRIDGE NIGHT IN EARLY MARCH???
Hang out in the bar at Craigie on Main, of course!
I always like to get to Craigie right when they open at 5:30PM to grab a seat in the bar. But on a night like last night, I guess most of the after-​work crowd decided to head straight home, so the bar was pleasantly deserted (although the restaurant did fill up by the time we were leaving).
The burger/​fries/​salad were perfect. They still only make 18 burgers a day, but they even on a slow night they sell out.
Eric Books knocked our cocktails out of the park, and we also had a nice little glass of Barolo Chinato (a spiced Italian dessert wine) at the end of the meal. Passed on dessert (but who could do it justice after such a rich burger?)
Service, as usual at Craigie is always perfect.

I’ve been here so many times for the burger, which is excellent. I’ve also come for dinner/​drinks/​dessert and always been pleased… but now things have changed!
The tasting menu sounded like it would rival No.9. NOPE. I was not a happy camper.
Course 1 — Trio of Amuse Bouches — Clams, smoked mackerel (too salty), and monkfish liver (good)
Course 2 — Hamachi sashimi — this was the only thing I truly enjoyed, it was super fresh and delicious.
Course 3– Monkfish with rock shrimp and celery purée. Overall this was fine but I’m not a huge fan of celery purée and there was not enough flavor/​pop to the dish.
Course 4– Two cod fish heads! I was excited about this dish because I have fish head a lot but unfortunately it did not have a lot of flavor. It was fun to eat and it was okay… but for a tasting I would expect higher quality fish/​meat. There isn’t much on the heads but it was fun presentation wise.
Course 5– Black Trumpet mushrooms with pasta. This was aright and came as a replacement because one of the previous dishes was extremely salty. Originally we had a dish of house made pasta with uni butter and clams but it was inedible.
Course 6– Pheasant three ways. The sausage (with liver/​heart) was way too salty but the confi pheasant itself was very good. Presentation was quite nice.
Course 7– Pre dessert was amazing. A little pumpkin with marshmellow + ice cream. The actual dessert course was spiced chocolate tart which was fine.
Also our waitness had asked if we were celebrating something (we were) and suggested a toast. We asked for prosecco and received two glasses. Later on we found out that it was 17 per glass. I don’t usually check on price for suggestions for a glass but now I will? Overall I was disappointed and our bill was higher than No.9 :(.
I’ll come back for the burger but no more tastings.

Best burger in town! And I’ve tried other good places. Must order with some of their nice drought beers.
Should arrive early because they make only 18 burgers per day… and they run out quickly!
All ingredients are made in house, including of course their outstanding signature meat putty, but also the bread, and even the side ketchup.
The burger is not cheap, but it’s worth every penny…
If you go by yourself, I recommend sitting at the bar. With your significant other a table might be better.
Of note, I don’t think this is a place to go with children.
I still need to try their legendary 6– or 8-​course dinner.

Trekked here on that snowy night last weekend and surprised to find the place still quit packed despite the road outside, always a good sign.
They offer prix fixe tasting as well as a la carte menu. But seeing that the prix fixe require the entire table’s participation, we decided to order separately.
The octopus appetizer was probably the biggest hit of the night, and I dare say 1 of the best I’ve ever had. Large pieces of tentacles, perfectly cooked, the speck and kale accompaniments were great as well. A+
I opted for the phytoplankton pasta with uni sauce and a few other things I don’t remember. It is actually much tamer than it sounds. Green pasta with a creamy sauce, not really «oceany» and couldn’t taste the uni at all. B
Since we’re not going to be frequent visitors, decided to go all out and get the half pig’s head, which is the famous dish here. This is true head to tail dining (especially if you order the pig’s tails for appetizer) and it’s certainly not for the faint of heart. Even if you’ve been to a pig roast, digging down into the head, revealing the jaw bone and the teeth underneath, was quite something else. It is served Peking duck style. It’s incredibly fatty, not too much meat on the head. So imagine pork belly but even fattier. It was certainly delicious but I was full/​overwhelmed by its intensity quickly. Thankfully our waiter recommend the pinot noir for me. Even though I didn’t like it too much on first taste, it really help cut through all the fat and paired perfectly with the pig’s head. B+
Coconut sorbet was a nice refreshing end to the dinner and I had to start thinking about working out the next day after this…
Overall a very nice and adventurous meal. Will be back some other time.

I came here for a birthday dinner. I had high expectations of the place given that it has been rated one of the best burgers in Boston, and to be honest, I was a little disappointed. We arrived early (around their opening time of 5pm) to make sure that we could get a burger since apparently they can sell out by 6 or 7pm. We were seated immediately by a very nice server. We wanted to try a variety of dishes so we ordered a duck confit and mushroom ragout appetizer, Vermont pork 3 ways (roasted loin, spice-​crusted rib, and country sausage), the famous Craigie burger, and a salted chocolate mousse with espresso ice cream for dessert. They also had a special side of bone marrow that evening that we ended up trying.
Duck confit and mushroom ragout appetizer: delicious! The ragout was flavorful and the duck pieces were tender and moist. It was served with an over easy egg on top and the runny yolk mixed with the ragout and added to the creaminess. I was very impressed.
Craigie burger: unfortunately I didn’t like the burger very much — maybe my expectations were set to high with the hype. The burger definitely has a unique flavor profile with the mace ketchup and? horseradish but I felt that the spices were too overpowering. At $ 18 for the burger I didn’t think it was worth it, but I’m glad I tried it.
Vermont pork 3 ways: I was also disappointed by this dish. None of the ways that the pork was cooked stood out to me. I didn’t think the flavors worked together very well, and there was too much meat on the dish that wasn’t balanced by anything else.
Bone marrow side: this was the highlight of the meal. For $ 5, we received two huge slabs of bone marrow in the bone. The marrow was gelatinous and fatty and melt in your mouth, perfectly cooked for fatty buttery heaven.
Dessert: this was excellent as well, although I wish the portion was larger for the price. The mousse was lightly salted, balancing both sweet and salty. The espresso gelato paired very well with the mousse, adding coffee notes to the chocolate.

We came back to give Craigie on Main another try, and we were not disappointed.
Although we did not order burgers this time, we were seated in the bar area without a reservation at 5:30, right when they opened.
Since we were sitting in the bar area, they definitely pushed getting drinks on us. We were planning to get drinks elsewhere afterward, so we opted not to get cocktails. However, there was a «punch» available that was almost like a pre-​cocktail, so I went with that. They called it the Burning Bush, and it had bright citrus flavors.
food
+ RAGOUT, locally foraged mushrooms & forked potatoes: This is a great starter with a fresh farm egg, Brussels sprouts, and other light greens.
+ PORK THREE WAYS: There are three cuts of pork with a spice crusted rib, pork belly, and sausage. This is a great way to try pork in a way you have never had before! I personally love small plates of food to try as much as I can, so having three different types of cuts and flavorings was just what I wanted.
+ LOCAL SWORDFISH: The swordfish was already cut and plated so that putting your knife into the fish broke it apart. The flavors with pesto, seafood, and fennel worked really well together.

Second time coming here and it was just as delectable as the first. No flukes here people! It’s definitely in the ballpark of 4.5−5 stars depending on the little nuances. We started off running 30 – 40 minutes late for our reservation but right away, they were happy and ready to take us to our corner table. 5 stars on our first impression when greeted.
On a coin toss, we ended up getting the 6 course Craigie Experience and here’s what our spread was for that night:
Course 1 — Trio of Amuse Bouches — Beautiful presentation with razor clams, smoked trout and mackerel. Each little bite sized morsel was excellent and got us excited for what was to come. When I say I was excited, I mean I ate the whole thing before I remembered to take a picture of it and that NEVER happens.
Course 2 — Hamachi sashimi — Clean, high quality and delicious.
Course 3 — Monk fish — Ah the Monk fish. One of the things that I love about Craigie (this time and last) is that they know how to cook fish. Delicately flavored and cooked perfectly; flakes right off your fork; no knives needed.
Course 4 — Orecchiette with tomatoes — Cooked Al Dente; Love the chewiness and bounciness of the pasta.
Course 5 — Trout with polenta. Again, fresh, clean and simply prepared but cooked perfectly.
Course 6 — Chocolate mousse and corn bread — Both were awesome sweet endings to a nice and light tasting menu.
Overall, a fantastic place. Ambiance is upscale and romantic without being pretentious. Service has been impeccable both times. You’re never looking around for anyone and the staff is extremely knowledgeable of the menu. I loved how they presented each course and took time to explain how each was prepared and with what ingredients. This is and will always be a great treat.
Also see Sylvia C’s review for our first time at Craigie (ROTD); Also 5 stars.

Disclaimer: I came here for the Sunday «Chef’s Whim» special, in hopes that we could get an awesome dinner for an inexpensive price.
This wonderful restaurant went above and beyond my expectations (and my expectations were pretty high to begin with). I dined here with my sister and brother, and while my sister eats anything like I do, my brother has a long list of dietary restrictions and other than that tends to be a picky eater.
Our server was awesome, very down-​to-​earth but still very professional. Our meal lasted about two hours, but it didn’t seem too long because the courses were evenly spaced out. Presentation for the courses was amazing, and honestly everything was delicious. I had never had squid ink before and after this visit, I wish I could put that stuff on everything. It was life-​changing.
Only con was the girl that was coming by to sometimes give plates or drinks. She had a uncaring attitude and seemed like she didn’t know what was going on and was flippant when we asked her for more information.
I highly recommend the Chef’s Whim — we also watched the improv show around the corner at Boston Improv to kill time and it was great!

Let me tell you, I’m all about riding the hype train. When I found out about the burger at Craigie, I knew I had to try it. As a quick primer for anyone who is not aware, Craigie serves 18 of their off-​the-​menu burgers every night. The 8 oz grass-​fed patty is made of three different cuts of beef with bone marrow and suet, seasoned with dehydrated miso, and served on a homemade bun with mace ketchup, lettuce and onions cooked in the beef juices, and a slice of yellow tomato.
Our group of three got to Craigie at 5PM thanks to my persistent nagging and we were successfully the first ones in line. While waiting for the doors to open, I did some reading on the burger to kill time and by the time we were let in at 5:30PM, I felt slightly bad for coming just for the burger (Eater article that I read, for reference:
)
Regardless of my slight guilt, our group of three was graciously let in and I made what, at the time, seemed like a grave mistake of telling the hostess that we wanted to sit in the bar area (instead of just sitting at the bar). I then proceeded to freak out as the 11 other people (yes I counted) who were lined up behind me filled all the bar seats as we stood to the side waiting for our table to be set up. There was no way I just waited 30 minutes to not get a burger – nuh uh. I would’ve moved heaven and earth for the burger at that point.
We got seated shortly after my mini panic attack and our waiter was swift to take our order. We said we were interested in the burger and he told us he’d put in a hold order for us, but strongly urged us to look at the actual menu. We did, but didn’t end up getting anything else (this coupled with that Eater article caused me to feel even more guilt).
I ordered a Hotel Street Punch, which came out quickly and was very strong and very delicious. The service at Craigie is absolutely amazing. Our water glasses were never more than half empty before someone came over to refill our glasses (mind you, the bottle of still water was on our table and we would’ve happily refilled the glasses ourselves). The attentiveness of the wait staff is beyond anything I expected.
We didn’t need to wait long for our burgers, and despite being seated after everyone at the bar, we got our food first (perks of being seated, perhaps?). So on to the burger!
The burger, in complete honesty, lived up to all the hype. The ingredients tasted so fresh – the salad served on the side was delicious and I don’t even like salad. The patty was perfectly seasoned, incredibly juicy, and cooked to a nice medium rare. This was literally the most flavorful burger patty I’ve experienced. The mace ketchup added a nice kick as well, and I’m a sucker for yellow tomatoes so that sold me completely. I do have to admit that the burger is so dense with flavor that I had trouble finishing the last bite or so. I was very grateful for both the side salad and the amazing home fries that came with, as they balanced out the burger when the flavor felt overwhelming.
By 6PM, the burgers were sold out, so definitely get here early if you’re looking to try the burger. You must sit at the bar or at the bar side of the restaurant to order the burger. At $ 18 per burger, this was definitely the most I’ve ever paid for a burger, but the first time experience was well worth both the price and the wait. I don’t think I would come back frequently due to both these points and how heavy the flavor was. If you have a palate for heavier flavors though, this burger would be perfect.
Now go forth, young padawan, and experience the burger at Craigie on Main for yourself!

I was here for the prix fixe — an appetizer, entrée, and dessert for $ 67. The items were all innovative and mostly delicious, although the service took forever (especially in the beginning with ordering) — it ended up being a 3.5 hour business dinner where the people ran out of steam before the food!
— Little taste — I’m not sure if this is a regular tradition, but the chef gave us a little experimental taste (mine was prosciutto on a fried pork something). It was tasty and I always enjoy those little culinary surprises.
— Squid ink pasta — amazing! The flavors are wonderful and the razor clam is a nice touch.
— Stuffed chicken — the texture of the chicken was wonderful and tender, but the stuffing and sauce didn’t have great depth to it.
— Chocolate foie gras mousse — this was delicious and the foie gras added good creaminess to the mousse without adding liverness. That being said, I would have liked to see more unique options beyond the obvious mousses and fruit tarts in every other fancy restaurant.
The waitress also had good wine recommendations that matched the food well.
Overall, this is delicious food and this place is famous for a reason. But some little aspects of the food or speed of the service could be improved a little.