Servia – Boston, MA - Life As A Maven

All you need is “e amore e cibo”. – Executive Chef Claudio

How do I fully describe the experience we had at Servia without writing a small book? It is one of the best dining experiences we have had this year; no exaggeration.

We went on a chilly, windy Boston evening. Located in Boston’s financial district it is easy to get there and on the night we went quite easy to find parking ( PHEW). The restaurant has a couple of levels and is set up in a unique way. There is a bar area with seating, and then a dining room above that. The decor is comfortable and sets the mood. We set next to a window and I loved looking outside at everything that was happening.

Servia has a lot of history behind it. Both in the location, it is in and the history of the food. The name itself is a nod to the maritime history and a ship called the “Servia”. I LOVE THIS. Read more here.

Serving up Modern Eastern Mediterranean food, they have food that you may or may not be familiar with and its EPIC. One of my favorite stories of food that evening was about the Ancient Grain Pitza’s. It is like a pizza, but the dough is an ancient grain. When the Ottoman Empire took to burning fields and such, the farmers then took the “burnt” wheat (Grano Arso) and decided to still make food with it. The Pitza has a blueish tint to it as they use this grain and let me tell you they are incredible in every way. Really cannot be missed.

Executive Chef Claudio Cavalleri is a phenomenon. With years of experience behind him, he is forward-thinking in the way he presents the food at Servia. Where all Eastern Mediterranean cuisine meets and out of it is created a beautiful mesh of cultures. His take on food is to create dishes where “tradition marries innovation.” Read more here

After we had our meal, the Chef stopped by to chat. My husband was born in Italy and speaks Italian fluently and Chef Claudio is Italian and speaks both Italian and Spanish fluently so our conversation with him was long and had a vibrancy to it that will not be forgotten. The way he talks about life and food is how I aspire to be when it comes to sharing all my food experiences with you all, you who follow me on this journey as a Maven, because what does Maven mean? “Someone who is experienced or knowledgeable” therefore as I learn more about cuisine and culture I then in turn share that with all of you. His quote above came while we were talking and literally means “all you need is love and food”.

He then told us a cool story about the dessert we had that night and the idea behind it. “Gilded Pash PIllow” a beautiful creation based on baklava but taken a step further and meant to inspire thoughts of the silk trade route. It really was so incredible and besides how beautiful everything looked, the food was beyond good and flavorful. I just wanted to keep eating everything. Alas, my stomach got full and I had to chill a bit. 😀

Here is what we had:

Cocktails

Smoke Show Kate | mezcal, blood orange soda, lime juice, thyme, burnt sugar orange garnish
Marrakesh Express | mezcal, pomegranate juice, harrisa, rose water, aquafaba, lemon

Plates

Mediterranean Sampler
- Muhammara Spread |roasted red bell peppers, aleppo pepper, ground walnuts, garlic, lemon, breadcrumbs, yogurt
- Hummus | chickpeas, tahini, za’atar, paprika oil
Four Cheese Ancient Grain Pitza | kashar, feta, talum & gorgonzola cheese, sumac, chive
Clams & Merguez Sausage
Lamb Shank Meal (at the time was not on the menu)
Instanbul Style Grass-Fed Burger | grass-fed beef hamburger, kashar cheese, red onion jam, pickles, lettuce, tomato, house-made buns.

I could have eaten the freshly made pita and spreads all night.

The cheese combination on this was incredible and the dough ( Chef’s secret recipe) was delightful

These clams. PHEW Merguez is a pork free sausage ( made from lamb)

Delicious. The triple cooked fries were DIVINE

The lamb was perfectly cooked and the side dish was beyond flavorful

Desserts

Gilded Pash Pillow |marzipan, white chocolate, pistachio foam, edible 24k gold, edible rose petals, orange blossom water
One, not one the menu.

Heaven in a dessert

Derek & Patrizia who hosted us were so incredibly nice. They were attentive throughout the night, explained dishes to us and made us feel incredibly welcome. It took me too long to write about this experience but now that I have, I hope you will go and try it and just be as happy as I was when I left.