stuff@night

Sunday School: Watch out, Saturday — there’s a new restaurant night in town
Posted Oct. 17, 2007
by Louisa Kasdon

The Rendezvous' Steve Johnson explains that he first decided to offer his three-course $38 Sunday prix fixe "as a marketing thing, a way to let people know that we were open seven nights a week - and make a gesture of hospitality for our neighbors, letting them know they could still eat here, even if they couldn't get a table on Saturday night." Johnson says the "deal works both ways: it allows the chef to have a little more fun, more latitude in the menu, to try out a new dish, or cook bluefish instead of striped bass." Sunday, he adds, is now his favorite night to work, and he's always there to meet and greet. "It's a gentler vibe, a different crowd, full of neighborhood people and people who do fun things on a Sunday afternoon, see a movie, take a walk, and artsy types who've just been to a play, a gallery opening." Johnson also offers this entire menu  a la carte on Sundays as well, so “if people only want a steak-frites and a glass of wine then that’s fine with us, too”.

 


 the Restaurant Guide

The eat-local philosophy really caught on this year.
So for 2007, our nationwide dining guide takes a look at restaurants, hotels, and inns whose chefs are taking locally sourced ingredients in new and exciting directions.
In this online exclusive, check out additional restaurants and longer reviews that aren't available in print.

Urban:
RENDEZVOUS IN CENTRAL SQUARE

Long a mover and shaker in Boston's farm-to-table efforts—he originated the Fresh Sheet, a broadsheet sent biweekly to city chefs to let them know what local farmers have on hand—chef-owner Steve Johnson puts it all to work at Rendezvous.
Located in Cambridge's somewhat gritty Central Square, it is a convivial oasis where faculty and students from Harvard and MIT join neighborhood residents and area foodies to swoon over a menu featuring the flavors of Italy, France, Spain, and North Africa.

502 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA (617-576-1900)

   MVP, large parties division:
Rendezvous in Central Square
    by Ruth Tobias and MC Slim JB   8.24.2007

A New American menu focused on local ingredients that doesn't pander to middlebrow tastes; adept bartending at a bar designed for dining; an airy space not too swanky for the neighborhood; a well-considered, affordable wine list; the irresistible hospitality of Steve Johnson and his well-trained crew: we love Rendezvous in Central Square (502 Mass Ave, Cambridge, 617.576.1900) for many reasons. But it's especially valuable when you're hosting a large crowd and have to please both the adventurous and the timid, vegetarians and carnivores, without killing your credit line. In this challenging scenario, Rendezvous will make you look like a hero.