Boston Date Night Series: French Cuisine at Marliave + Miss Saigon at the Boston Opera House
For date night this week, Darren and I did one of our favorite things: dinner and a musical. We tried out a restaurant we’ve never been to before in Downtown Crossing then headed over to a place we’ve frequented many a time, The Boston Opera House. Keep reading for a review of our night and Broadway in Boston’s production of Miss Saigon!
Tucked away on a side street in Downtown Crossing, Marliave is the oldest chef-owned restaurant in Boston. Henry Marliave, a French immigrant from Paris, opened his namesake restaurant in 1885. It was later reopened by Grotto chef/owner, Scott Herritt, (check out our experience there in a past date night post) and the two are considered sister restaurants. Our time at Marliave was so enjoyable, with great ambiance, excellent service, and delicious food. We were seated on the upstairs dining room with a beautiful view. Our meals were served under silver plate covers, which I’ve never experience before, and the incredible dishes underneath were revealed perfectly cooked and hot from the kitchen. It was an all-around lovely dining experience, as you can tell from our smiling faces below.
Hope you didn’t think I would leave you hanging on the food… I was very excited to see zero proof cocktails on the menu, so I started off by ordering the Hibiscus Fizz, a mixture of hibiscus, orange, and soda water. We skipped appetizers because we knew we had some amazing meals ahead of us. I selected the Ravioli which were house-prepared with ricotta, tomato, basil, and Parmesan. It was SO yummy and I ate them all! Darren went for the Chicken prepared “under a brick” style with risotto and mushrooms. For the first time in a while, we were both members of the Clean Plate Club!
Once dinner was finished, we headed over to the Boston Opera House for Broadway in Boston’s production of Miss Saigon. I knew very little about the show going in beyond the fact that it is set during the Vietnam War, written by the team who created Les Mis, and involves a reportedly spectacular helicopter scene live on stage. At 2 hours and 40 minutes, this show is a long one and the dramatic, emotional nature makes it feel longer. The set design, lighting, acting, and singing were all phenomenal. The voices on main characters Kim (played by Emily Bautista) and Chris (played by Anthony Festa) are *incredible*. I was blown away by their range and stamina during this entirely sung-through production. However, if I’m being honest, it was a little too “lament-y” for me. The show is so heavy and the songs started to blur together as Kim cried over and over about the tragedies in her life (which are tragic, but also a bit too much). The last two songs , “The American Dream” and “Little God of My Heart”, are also such stark contrasts that I got emotional whiplash and was unable to connect with the heart-wrenching final scene. The fact that I, a cry-at-an-insurance-commercial type of person, didn’t cry at this show says something (to me at least). Long story short, Miss Saigon has amazing production value, but is a bit to long and dramatic for my taste. Still worth a viewing while it’s at the BOH though!
What are your favorite date night/night out activities? Let me know in the comments below or on Instagram!
