Clink at the Liberty Hotel and a Diploma

My whirlwind week is over. I have not showered since Sunday and I have nothing on the agenda besides seeing my roommates before I move out of my house. This past weekend was jam packed full of events, family, friends, food, and drinks. I now have a diploma with my name on it in a fancy folder, funny that this small piece of paper is what I came to this place four years ago to get. Now I have it. Now what do I do?

 The weekend was amazing, but one high-light was dinner with my family, grandpa, and family friend and brother Spencer's college roommate, Sam. We went to Clink at the Liberty Hotel in Beacon Hill. The Liberty is a renovated jail, and was open for business until the 1990s. Now it is a trendy hotel with bars and restaurants, all with prison-related names; Clink, Alibi, The Yard, The Cat Walk.
We came early to our reservation and hung out in the bar area of the lobby, admiring the old brick insides, and feeling a bit creeped out that these walls held prisoners not that long ago. We had a couple drinks then moved inside to our table.

 For starters we ordered a cheese plate, with four different types chosen by my sister, Isa, the family's resident cheese connoisseur. Each cheese came with a paired garnish such as sugared nuts, fruit compote, or honeycomb. We ate these with bread, plain and cinnamon raisin. We also ordered oysters from the raw bar. Homemade cocktail sauces, lemon, and Tabasco gave these some serious zing.
Before we even had a chance to order wine, a waitress came by giving samples of cocktails from their menu, of course we opted in. Spencer and I tried the Hot Mess, something akin to a dirty martini with a pickle floating around in it. My mom and Sam choose the Evolve, something more fruity with acai berry.
Holla for free samples!

 For salad, several ordered the burrata and beet salad with arugula. This dinner was turning into a cheese extravaganza, but there was just really nothing to be done about it. Burrata is a special cheese like a very fresh mozzerella with a firmer outside and a soft inside. Eaten with nuts, arugula, and red and yellow beets, it was heaven.
For my entree, I ordered the scallops in an appetizer portion, considering there had already been about four courses to this meal. The came with a sauteed butternut squash, fennel, and smoked salmon. The combination of flavors was perfect. The complexity of the squash, fennel and salmon mixture gave notes of smoke, spice and sweet, while the scallops were left plain and simple on top.
Spencer ordered the special leg of lamb dish while Isa went with the Salmon. No one was disappointed.

 Since it was a celebration, (all about me, don't forget it!) we had to order a couple of desserts. The apple and rhubarb cobbler with vanilla ice cream and the chocolate tart. These were great choices because everyone at the table got to try bites of rich, decadent chocolate and fresh fruit and cream without feeling stuffed to the gills.

We lingered over coffees, cappuccinos, and the last bites of the chocolate tart. We rested our stomachs and thought about the day ahead, packed full of speeches, and clapping, and pomp and circumstance. Clink was the perfect place to stop, relax, take a minute to just enjoy each other amongst the brouhaha.

Clink
215 Charles Street
Boston, MA