What can top a dinner of burger and crispy pig tails, sitting at the bar of Craigie on Main? How about another luscious dinner of farro risotto, cod cheeks, veal with sweetbread, and bacon-wrapped pork knuckles, sitting at one of the best tables of the same restaurant?
Craigie on Main is known for its “refined rustic” French-inspired, seasonal, and locally-sourced dishes. Chef Tony Maws prepares dishes that generate a cult following (I’m not kidding, people line up outside for the Craigie Burger; some are downright devoted), and peppers his menu with less traditional offerings like pig tails, frog legs, cock’s combs, lamb tongue, and many more. However you don’t have to be all into exotic and adventurous foods to enjoy Craigie on Main. The food is undeniably, mouth-wateringly, lavishly GOOD.
My latest Craigie on Main dinner was with Jacki and Meesh, Emily, and Dan. We were seated at one of the high tables right near the open kitchen, so we had a great view of the action!
it was like watching a show
there were also some "ringside" seats (I think you have to request this when making a reservation...)
We decided to order a bunch of items and share everything family-style, and it took us a while to decide what to get. While we were debating, the nice folks at Craigie sent some complimentary amuse-bouche:
squid noodles topped with crispy garlic
guanciale on top of potato slices
I’ve never had squid noodles before and it was pretty interesting: I thought it might be rubbery but it did have the consistency of al dente noodles. It was served chilled, and for some reason I don’t like the idea of eating cold squid, so one little bite was enough. As for the guanciale, which one of our servers actually proclaimed was “better than bacon,” it was exactly what I expected it to be: soft, melty, and slightly salty. Guanciale by the way is a type of Italian bacon that is made with pork jowls (while regular bacon is made with pork belly).
The our table feast started! We shared several appetizers:
tempura cod cheeks with black aioli
farro risotto with chorizo (my favorite dish of the night)
crispy pig tails
grilled Spanish octopus
We also shared a couple of entrees and sides:
roasted brussels sprouts (guess what it was roasted in? duck fat. yup)
braised veal served with sweetbreads
the special of the night: pork knuckles, deboned, stuffed with a ham/sausage mixture, and wrapped in bacon
have you ever had pork knuckles before?
As tasty as it was, we joked that we could feel our cholesterol levels rising with each bite! We all like pork but this was a little too much. The texture of the skin wrapped in bacon was too fatty – if it was crispier, it would have been much better, like the crispy skin I tried from Taranta at Burrito Bowl. At this point, I made a comment that all I really want was a grapefruit, to cut the fat and all the richness we just ingested. And then like magic, this palate-cleanser arrived:
a tiny scoop of grapefruit sorbet!
Notice that I said palate-cleanser and not meal-ender, because (of course) we ended the meal with dessert 
caramel flan with a ribbon of caramel brittle
It was heavenly.
We all left happy (albeit heavier and with semi-clogged arteries). Our dinner was over-the-top rich but we enjoyed each dish. To say that we ate cheeks, tentacles, tails, sweetbread (in case you didn’t know, sweetbread is made from a young calf’s thymus gland and pancreas), and trotters in one sitting is pretty impressive, even for a jaw-eating, liver-loving foodie like myself. Let me repeat that: cheeks, tentacles, tails, sweetbread, and trotters. In one sitting.
I’m eating vegetables for the rest of the month.
What was the last indulgent meal you’ve had?
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
OMG. Brussels sprouts in duck fat?! I still have not been to Craigie and seriously need to go. That’s probably where I’ll go to celebrate the big 3-0 in September unless I end up there sooner.
I love squid. I would’ve housed those noodles! The knuckles look interesting. Talk about using the whole animal. Amazing!
I felt my arteries clogging up as I read this…and yet I was drooling at the same time! I think the last indulgent thing I ate was the truffles from Beacon Hill Chocolates.
I love the Brussels in duck fat at Craigie! I haven’t had too many indulgent meals; since I am only working part time we have been doing a lot of cooking and eating at home!
When i lived in Boston I tutored for a woman who RAVED about Craigie on Main and I always wanted to go, but never got the chance to before I left Boston. You are absolutely fueling that desire!
Wow you guys were so adventurous!!! I am so sad I missed this- I ended up working late that night anyway and would have missed it no matter what : ( You know advertising!
Next time, I am sooooo going!
I feel fat just recalling what we ate
Only kidding, it was so much fun. And I love your kitchen photos!
Looks like an indulgent but really special dinner! My husband and I did a 10-course tasting at Momofuko in NY and that was pretty intense. Definitely not a regular night out!
Everything looks FABULOUS!! I’ve always wanted to go to Craigie on Main!
Hi Lauren, a Momofuku tasting will definitely be on my next NY itinerary!
Hey Joanne, you should definitely try to go if you’re back in town! So worth it
That flan looks heavenly. I must get that
So much fun! What a great night. However I will definitely be staying away from pig feet for…probably the rest of 2011
Oh that is one place I’ve been wanting to try for so long!
I’m so not adventurous when it comes to eating!!!! That would be a cool place to try out though!
That grapefruit sorbet looks so refreshing – yum! You were able to try a lot of unique foods…what a great experience!
Was this the blogger dinner that you rescheduled? Wish I’d known about it, I’ve been wanting to head to Craigie on Main. Looks like you had a great time!