THE COTTAGE RESTAURANT CHESTNUT HILL, MA.

THE COTTAGE
escape the every day. every day.

47 Boylston Street
Chestnut Hill, MA.   02482
617-916-5413

The first "COTTAGE" was established several years ago in La Jolla, California.  It rivals the more well known "IVY" where you see all the celebrities dining and being, well,...celebrities.  Upon entering the Chestnut Hill location, my lunching companion Nancy,  and I, were greeted by young hip hostesses. (there were 3).  The full bar to right was beckoning with it's gleaming bar top, uplit back bar and very comfy seats.  A few Captain's tables were strategically placed for maximum people viewing.  We were promptly seated at a table in the large and kinda noisy dining room. It was 1:30- ish p.m. , and the place was rather full...a good sign.  Because of the high ceilings and exposed mahogany flooring, there was no acoustic cushion, so you could clearly hear other people's conversations.  Which meant, they could also hear mine. The chairs were big, padded and had wide arms. Very comfortable indeed! The atmosphere and motif were most definitely Californian in style and color.  The aquatic prints that adorned the walls were very soothing...serene...calming.  The table placement  allowed  a smooth flow for the servers to expedite quickly and smoothly.  The interior reminded me of a local restaurant on Cape Cod.  White painted wood, funky light treatments and big windows allowing plenty of light to pour through. We did have to wait about ten minutes before being acknowledged by our server, whom we shall call Tom.  Although he was very friendly, he was not well versed in menu items and specials. 
The lunch menu had many items to pick from, and there was a noticeable fusion and influx of Californian ingredients.  The descriptions on the menu were thorough and understandable. Nothing too fancy or difficult to pronounce.  I ordered a Blood Orange Margarita rimmed with raw sugar, and Nancy had a lemon infused iced tea.  Both libations were excellent, mine deriving from fresh squeezed juices.
We both selected the "Killer Tuna Melt", $13, came with yummy home made shoe string fries.  Tom also brought us freshly baked pizza dough rolls with a tubby tub of butter.  The MELT was white meat albacore tuna salad, Vermont cheddar cheese melted, tomato, Avocado and Bacon on Sourdough toast.  It was simply fantastic as all the ingredients were supremely fresh and the bread was to die for.  We were only able to finish half of our sandwiches as the portion was quite ample. But the fries...so hot and delicately salted with chunks of Gray Sea Salt, too good to be true.  We also had iced waters with lemon slices as our secondary beverage. 
 Now, the Ladies Room.  It was state of the art auto sensor soap and faucets, and a Dyson hand blower called the "slicer". Your hands never touched anything.  How nice. 
We asked for the check and take away containers as the MELT was too good to leave behind.  Total check $41.00.  The COTTAGE serves Brunch and Dinner as well. It is handicapped accessible with plenty of on sight parking. I am giving this restaurant, after considering food, service, price and value, a solid 8.
The other MA. location is 190 Linden Street, Wellesley, MA.   781-239-1100

Enjoy my BITS and BITES!    ciao.