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Bouchee

159 Newbury St.
Boston, MA

Phone: 617-450-4343

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Website: boucheebrasserie.com

We’d heard great things about Bouchée, Newbury Street’s new French brasserie. It would be Boston’s Balthazar, with authentic bistro dishes. A chef’s chef, Tim Partridge, would run the place. At last! A Newbury joint that would value substance over style. Well, sort of. The two-story, honey-lit room filled with bejeweled socialites has echoes of Balthazar…and T.G.I. Friday’s. (Hi! Welcome to Bouchée! My name is John and I’ll be your server tonight!) And the food—including mac and cheese, spaghetti carbonara, and hamburgers—wouldn’t fly in gay Paree. Though the salads and an appetizer of brandade (creamy cod and potatoes) were solid, many of the classics were lost in translation; the “steak frites,” for example, was actually a Boston-size sirloin served with slightly soggy fries. Still, the fare is superior to much of what’s available in the neighborhood. At buzzy Bouchée, you’ll get a fine meal and great people-watching—which is probably what we should have expected.