Beehive and first impressions

Beehive

541 Tremont Street

Boston, Ma 02116

Menu: Eclectic upscale American fare

Prices: Reasonable for the area

Kid Friendly: I know I know we never go to kid friendly places sorry!

Beehive in the South End is a place we have checked out before, but we have never made a conscious effort to eat there. Last week during a long period of not eating and wandering around, we found ourselves outside Beehive at 5 0'clock and thought, we would try it.

As we looked at the menu outside along with another couple, a gentleman approached us from inside and said, " We also have a prix fixe menu so keep that in mind, it is a great deal." Lou and I decided to try it.

This is the part of my story that anyone working for Beehive should pay close attention to. We walked into the, then completely empty restaurant, and said to the two hosts standing there. "Two for dinner." They asked if we had a reservation, which a lot of restaurants in the South End do, no problem there, but the next statement from them was, " Just so you know, we are VERY busy tonight with reservations" Really Beehive? Your completely EMPTY restaurant at 5 o'clock is that busy that you can't offer two people a table for dinner? or suggest a seat at the bar to eat? and do you realize there is a guy outside your door barking people in for the prix fixe menu? The tone of the two hosts was annoyance as they began to look through their list of empty tables to see if they could "fit us in". I immediately said, "No problem, we will go somewhere else." What I was thinking was, "You have got to be kidding me with this first impression." We started to walk out, and if we had made it out the door, I doubt I would have ever returned.

Lucky for Beehive they had a third hostess who realized what was going on, and as we went to exit said, "Wait, we can sit two now."

What do I think they should have done differently? How about looking to see if they could seat us first, then if they were in fact that busy with reservations, saying, " I know it sounds crazy because the restaurant is empty, but we have a lot of reservations at (insert time), so we have to put you on a (insert time frame) wait."

Ok, so obviously our first impression was not good, but as soon as we were sat, the atmosphere and our server completely changed my initial opinions.

Beehive is two floors, our server told us it used to be the boiler room of the Cyclorama, which is home to the Boston Center for the Arts, and located next door. The structure is completely unique. It is as if a large building was cut into sections, and Beehive was left with this section to create a dining experience with. They have done a great job. The top floor has a large seating area with a bar A balcony overlooks the bottom floor where seating faces a central stage for performances. The walls are exposed brick. Small crystal chandeliers light the dining area throughout, and a tapestry, artifully hides the host stand and stairs to the bottom floor from diners. We sat across from the railing of the balcony which overlooks the bottom floor. There is an interesting area across from this railing where Beehive continually broadcasts a reel of burlesque type movies from what looked like the 40's or 50's. The wall looks as if there may have been two windows to the outside at one point in the past, and now the windows have been removed. The area between these two windows is approximately a 10x5 foot brick area where the movies are shown. I was thoroughly amused at the movies and what was considered risque for the time.

After we were sat, our server, Corey, approached our table. Corey was laid back, friendly, accommodating and had a hospitality that was noticeably not a result of growing up in the NE. Lou being the inquisitive guy he is, asked, and we found out Corey was from TX.

I started off dinner with a glass of Two Worlds Pino Noir from Germany. The wine list was extensive and this glass was very good.

Despite the prix fixe menu, Lou and I opted to order ala carte. We couldn't resist the Sage and Garlic Frites for an appetizer. It was a generous portion of fresh cut fries smothered in sage and garlic. We ate them all in about 2 minutes, and although we were really hungry, I think we would have finished them just as quickly anyway. They were delicious.

For dinner Lou got the Chicken Piccata with sage gnocchi and asparagus. Sage must be a favorite flavor of the chef as it was in several dishes. I got the Sole with mashed potatoes over a bed of wilted spinach. Both dishes were just as good as the fries and we had no problem finishing them off.

After a delicious meal like that, we had to try to dessert. We opted for the Maple Walnut icecream atop of warm maple bread pudding. At this point, or server Corey was starting to wonder where we were putting all this food. I also got a cappuccino which was perfectly prepared.

In the end Beehive redeemed themselves from the first impression of making me want to walk away. The prices were reasonable. With an app, two dinners, one glass of wine, and dessert, our bill came to $73. The atmosphere was unique and fun. There was no band playing while we were there, but could see they were setting up for a show, and our server Cory was excellent.

I forgive you Beehive hosts, we'll be back:)