I needed a lighter lunch than I had yesterday, so I popped
over to a restaurant that came up in some of my food research near the hotel.
Bukowski’s is a down and dirty slightly better than dive bar in the Back Bay
area. It’s a cash only place, so be ready for that. The restaurant is in a
corner of a parking ramp so, it’s about 15 feet wide and 150 feet long.
I was bummed to find out they don’t have the same menu items
as the Cambridge location, but I was only bummed because I wanted to get the
Poe Tots (pork belly tater tots) that sounded amazing. I got over it pretty
quickly when I looked at this menu. I found plenty of burgers and dogs and
sandwiches to not starve during my quick lunch break.
I went with a Chili Cheese Mad Dog and I even upgraded my
side dish to some sweet chili glazed brussel sprouts. I also ended up with a
Anderson Valley Boont Amber to drink. Sometimes that happens.
Obviously, it doesn’t take long to pan cook some brussel
sprouts and cook a hot dog, so the food arrived really quickly. The brussel
sprouts were cooked perfectly, so they still had some body to them, which I was
thrilled about. I wished they had more chili glaze on them, but I know that isn’t
always as easy as it sounds. They were still delicious and I was glad I got
them. I just love super coated sprouts – it’s a weakness of mine.
The Mad Dog was really tasty. The new England style buns
never seem to hold up to the juicy dogs, like a traditional bun would, but the
flavor of the NE buns are almost always better, especially when they toast it
with butter like this one was. The chili was a pretty good ground beef and bean
chili, though it didn’t have much heat. Still delicious, especially with the
shredded cheese on top. The bun fell apart while eating it, so once you pick it
up, you really aren’t going to put this thing down – structural integrity, and
such. Thankfully, I really enjoy a sloppy hot dog, so I didn’t complain one bit.
I ate the entire thing. And, now I know why they ask you if you want two dogs.
I assume they mean a second entire bun and dog, not just a second link on the
same bun, but I’m not sure. I absolutely could have done a second dog, but I’m
glad I didn’t – otherwise, I would have gone back to work and fallen asleep.
This is a great little divey bar with some fantastic food.
They also have some really craft-y beer taps. All of the food looked really
appealing that I saw come out of the tiny kitchen, so I’m guessing there aren’t
a lot of bad food items here. It’s
definitely worth a check-out.
Top 5 things about Bukowski’s Tavern
1. Chili Cheese Mad Dog
2. Sweet Chili Glazed Brussel Sprouts
3. Really interesting menu, complete with hilarious swearing
and tell-it-like-it-is sass
4. For such a small place, I was surprised how many seats it
had
5. The staff were extremely nice and helpful
Bottom 5 things
1. No pork belly tater tots at this location
2. Cash only – not really that big of a deal
3. Except it isn’t a cheap place – I ended up paying $24 for
lunch (including tip)…
4. I’d say there’s no parking, but it’s IN a parking ramp
5. Wish there was more spicy glaze on the brussel sprouts
