Sunday, November 14, 2010

Boston Restaurant: Myers + Chang

Posted by Katie

What: Myers + Chang
Where: 1145 Washington St in the South End
Honeys Heart: Pork Belly Buns

For Kel's last night in Boston, we decided that we should try someplace new to both of us. We considered making our way out to Cambridge, but we were on a bit of a tight schedule so we ended up choosing the South End.

I am so tired of American cuisine, so Myers + Chang's fusion of "Chinese, Taiwanese, Thai, and Vietnamese specialties" sounded perfect.


Since it was a Saturday night and we didn't have reservations, we were in for a bit of a wait. To help pass the time, we decided to order some drinks and an appetizer at the bar.

Myers + Chang's cocktail menu has a number of innovative Asian-inspired drinks, some of which use saki and soju, a distilled liquor similar to vodka, in the place of more familiar spirits like tequila and rum.

Kel and I tried the St. Shar Pei made from soju, sake, St. Germain, green chartreuse, and grapefruit. We went for the cafare ($25) which holds about 3 cocktails.


Nothing sweet about this cocktail, but we liked this fresh take on a greyhound just fine.

For our appetizer, we ordered the Braised Pork Belly Buns ($9) with bao, brandy hoisin, and house pickles.


Just thinking about that brandy hoisin sauce makes my mouth water. It was so flavorful with the perfect amount of saltiness. And then the pork belly. Kel's East Coast trip was the first time either of us tried it and these buns just reinforced what we learned when we ordered pork belly in Brooklyn the weekend before: it's heavenly.

Once we were seated, it was time to make some more decisions. Everything on the menu looked so good, so we turned to our friendly waitress for advice.

She said that the Beef and Broccoli Chow Fun ($15) with coulotte steak and fresh rice noodles is a customer favorite...


...and we could see why. This was our second favorite dish of the night. We loved the thick chow fun noodles and the beef and broccoli had a great, if traditional, flavor.

We also tried Mama Chang's Pork and Chive Potstickers ($11).



These were nice and crispy, but we both agreed we wouldn't be opposed to nixing them to try a different dish the next time around.

Our final dish was the Asian-Braised Soft Tacos ($13) with pear, radish, and chili-sesame salsa.

We liked the idea of Asian tacos but unfortunately, they were a miss for us. I didn't like the favor of the meat and the tacos were pretty messy as the juices made the tortillas soggy and nearly impossible to eat with our hands. Oh well. 4 out of 5 ain't bad.

I should also mention that the service was amazing. The hostess chatted with us about cocktails and our waitress wasn't shy about sharing her preferences, which we appreciated.

We also liked the atmosphere of the restaurant. It was funky and fun without a drop of pretension, which can be hard to find in the South End. 

I'm already thinking about what restaurants to bring my family to in May when they visit for my graduation, and Myers + Chang now holds a place on that list. So glad we tried something new!