Dinner at Asana
Dinner at Asana at the Mandarin Oriental is a very pleasant experience. As soon as we walked in, we were enveloped by its soothing and sophisticated atmosphere. We were greeted warmly by the servers and ushered to our table, and we sank into the plush seats. It was almost like an oasis away from busy Boylston Street.
My girl friend Val and I had come from a long day of shopping and found ourselves hungry for dinner. Usually, my go-to places for post-shopping bites are Sel dela Terre and Braserrie Jo, but on this night we decided to try something new. I didn’t know what to expect at Asana – in fact I thought it was Japanese food – but upon looking at the menu, I realized they serve local, New England cuisine.
We decided to split a couple of appetizers and small plates:
the bread basket came with cranberry jelly and pickled papaya
asparagus and poached quail eggs
Confession: I ordered this only because of the quail eggs. I wanted to try them poached, and there is something so incredibly cute about them, so it was just an added bonus that I happen to like asparagus too.
braise veal cheeks and sweet breads
Val and I are both from the Philippines, and this dish reminded us of all the good food there. Veal cheeks, especially when cooked correctly, are succulent and this was no exception. It was so tender, we didn’t even need a knife to cut it. And the sweetbreads, along with the earthy mushrooms, fava beans and squash puree, provided textural contrasts and added more flavors to the dish.
tempura squash blossoms with baby vegetables
This dish was so pretty and delicate, we took us a whole minute admiring it before digging in. The squash blossoms were stuffed with a little bit of fresh mozzarella, not ricotta which is what I normally associate with squash blossoms. And the vegetables were cooked perfectly, soft but with still some fresh crispness.
fries and truffle mayo
This wasn’t particularly remarkable, and we only ate a small portion. I should’ve just made green been truffle fries at home!
Of course, no date night dinner is complete without dessert. We shared a wonderful one:
coffee semifreddo with caramelized hazelnuts
During the whole meal, service was impeccable – almost like well-orchestrated dance between the hostess, the servers and the sommelier. And the whole atmosphere is just so relaxing and chic. I had a really nice time having dinner at Asana and will plan to come back soon.
happy diners
Have you tried veal cheeks or sweetbreads? Where?
Hi! I’m Bianca Garcia. I love food, running, yoga, sangria, and my job. I'm an advertising professional, social media enthusiast, blogger, freelance writer, and obsessive list-maker. I think about dessert constantly. 
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I haven’t tried them, since I eat meat very rarely! Your resto experience looks great – will have to look into it the next time we’re in Boston!
Great review! All those dishes look insanely good. Sorry the fries werent remarkable but at least everything else was.
So the tartare at Mistral?! Never tried it. We should plan a date!
The quail egg is adorable… and that dessert looks fabulous!
I have not tried veal cheeks or sweetbreads… not sure I’m brave enough.
And I agree with Daisy above… I haven’t tried Mistral’s tartare either.. I haven’t even been to Mistral yet! We should definitely plan something!
Haven’t tried them! How nice to find another good dining option. I love finding new places that are good.
I love sweetbreads! I had fried sweetbreads with mini waffles at L’Espalier. AMAZING!
Great review! I’ve never had either of those dishes. We should get together sometime and eat veal and bone marrow!!!
Oooh everything looks so well-presented and delicious! I’ve never had sweetbreads, but have always been tempted to try. I need to check out Asana! :)
I like quail eggs, I’ve eaten them poached and also with stir-fry.
My dad cooks a lot of filipino dishes when we have filipino parties so I’m sure he has made veal cheeks before but I just didn’t know it at that time. Filipino food is so flavorful and I forget to ask sometimes what is in the dishes.
Everything you ate looks good, but the dessert takes the cake for me (no pun intended)… glad you had a great meal!
The food looks amazing. I’m glad you had such a good time.
Plan B