Black Lamb Is Now Open from the Bar Mezzana Team

Here's your first look at the South End's cool, comfortable brasserie from Best of Boston chef Colin Lynch and partners.

By Jacqueline Cain· 7/15/2019, 6:22 p.m.

Photos by Reagan Byrne

To Whom it May Concern: a culinary “love letter” to the South End is arriving to Tremont Street. Black Lamb, an American brasserie, opens on Tuesday, July 16—and it’s the latest, highly-anticipated project from restaurateurs Colin and Heather Lynch, the married couple behind nearby Bar Mezzana, Shore Leave, and No Relation.

The Lynches also live in the South End, and say they want their guests to feel equally at ease in the neighborhood where they’ve chosen to make their home and build their empire. At Black Lamb, expect the “consistent, convivial environment” of American brasseries—think comfortable, French-inspired spots like Eastern Standard, Explorateur, and New York City’s Balthazar, which proffer modern updates on casual tavern fare and cocktails. Black Lamb also has a fresh raw bar.

The Lynches’ business partner Jefferson Macklin is also an owner of this latest endeavor, and Ben Kaplan joins the group as a managing partner of Black Lamb, too. Like at all of their concepts, talented bartender Ryan Lotz is beverage director. The leadership team all met while working for venerable chef Barbara Lynch (who, by the way, is not related to Colin and Heather).

Colin Lynch just became the newest Best of Boston: General Excellence Chef. For day-to-day operations of the Black Lamb kitchen, he’s tapped chef Chris Drown; previously, he was at O Ya, Hojoko, and Hamersley’s Bistro. The opening menu features a tavern burger with dill pickles, Cabot cheddar, special sauce, and lettuce; a New England lobster roll; duck breast frites with orange béarnaise; and a fully stocked raw bar with fresh oysters, shrimp cocktail, littlenecks, Jonah crab claws, chilled ½ lobsters, and a daily-changing crudo inspired by Bar Mezzana.

Weekly specials—like Saturday night prime rib with potato gratin—deal in the nostalgic realm of classic brasseries, while the dessert menu, executed by Bar Mezzana pastry chef Christina Larson, is inspired by illuminated refrigerator cases: Slices of Key lime and peach pies, 17-layer chocolate cake. There are also indulgences like European café-inspired corn madeleines baked to order, and lemon sorbet with frozen vodka.

Black Lamb will serve daily lunch, beginning on Wednesday; alongside sandwiches like a chicken club and the Black Lamb burger, the mid-day meal will feature protein-packed salads like a grilled tuna steak Niçoise. Weekend brunch will begin on Sunday, July 28.

Lotz is updating standby cocktails, such as his dirty martini with black pepper and a slick of olive oil; a gimlet with grapefruit and house-made salted lime cordial; and a mojito with added tang from house-made rosé syrup. The wine lists features 25 bottles, and there are four draft lines for beer.

Black Lamb is a quick changeover from the space’s former life as Stephi’s, which shuttered in February. The Lynches’ team again worked with Hacin & Associates—the local architecture firm that led the buildout of Shore Leave and No Relation, among other projects—and is going for comfort and contrast with light-gray walls, wooden finishes, deep greens, and rich earth tones. Muralist Massimo Mongiardo, who painted the tropics-to-Japan transition wall, did some whimsical black and white lambs inside the space, as well as accents on the historic building’s exterior. The dining room seats 46, and there’s a 14-seat bar, as well as a five-seat raw bar. The 25-seat, Tremont Street-side patio will return to No. 571 sometime in August.

Black Lamb opens at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, July 16. Going forward, the hours are Monday-Wednesday from 11 a.m.-10 p.m. (bar until midnight), Thursday-Saturday from 11 a.m.-11 p.m. (bar until 1 a.m.), Saturday from 10 a.m.-11 p.m. (bar until 1 a.m.), and Sunday from 10 a.m.-10 p.m. (bar until midnight).

Welcome, little one.

571 Tremont St., South End, Boston, 617-982-6330, blacklambsouthend.com.