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 Talking
to Grapevine's co-owner and chef Kate Hammond after eating her food reinforces
the perception that a true believer cooks here. What was once an upscale
Italian menu has evolved over the years because Hammond says ''there so
much available to cook with,'' so much going on.
Hers is an evolved
and exciting cuisine with lots of unexpected grace notes. Where else have
you been served a side dish of okra and chick peas with a touch of balsamic
vinegar and raved about it. A case of okra was delivered instead of a box,
Hammond says, hence her delicious solution, and she spins off into describing
beautiful leeks from an organic farm. Those showed up in a frizzly pale
cloud of fried leeks served with rabbit and olives in an intense red wine
and tomato.
Each element in a terrine
of roasted vegetables, the eggplant and red peppers was distinctive, but
the whole harmonized, balanced by a bit of goat cheese on toast. The terrine
also had the virtues of being completely vegetarian, with no egg or cheese
filling, and yet the basil and pinenuts gave it texture and plenty of flavor.
Gutsy aroma greeted
the nose from littlenecks sauteed with garlic and white wine even before
one tasted the dish, one of those times when it's crucial to sop up all
the sauce with crusty, firm bread. The depth of the tomato sauce with black
and red rigatoni with squid and octopus reverberated in the mouth, simple
yet beautifully composed. A few other dishes lacked this strength, such
as swordfish sauced mildly with tequila-lime sauce and some mundane black
beans and rice and a lunch special of lentils on greens with grilled tomatoes.
The Grapevine has a
devoted clientele, and so some dishes have permanent positions for fans
such as the chicken spring rolls, pleasant with a thin crunchy shell and
lots of finely chopped vegetables, but not as spectacular as a fond fellow
diner enthused.
Desserts were more
restrained than at some suburban spots, although the bread pudding of banana
and strawberries with butterscotch-caramel sauce didn't quite work. A chocolate
truffle cake, moist and dense but not too sweet, was much more satisfying.
This is a place where
the customer's wishes are clearly paramount. Co-owner Stacey Ray Fraser
coordinates the front of the house, and the service is not only smooth but
solicitous, making up for a sort of slapdash decor in the dining room. The
small bar area actually has a more appealing look, with lots of light and
liveliness, explaining why Hammond says regulars vie to eat at the bar.
Our waiter recommended
dishes with authority, answered questions and suggested an alternative wine
-- a '91 Murphy Goode Fume Blanc -- that was delicious and cheaper than
the first selection. There's a wide selection of imaginative food for vegetarians,
sauces are made to order or varied according to needs, and the wine list
has lots of reasonable and seductive offerings.
The vibes of the Grapevine
uphold its North Shore reputation -- reasons to return again and again.
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