$150 Troquet challenge (Boston)

I’ve been given a $150 gift certificate to Troquet. I’ve never eaten there and frankly, it probably wouldn’t be in my top 10 list of upscale places to try. Looking at the menu, it seems clear that $150 for dinner for two is not going to get us very far- a $60 dover sole entree?! So, here’s the game: take a look at their website and come up with a sample order staying within the budget. Obviously, wine is not going to play a big part of the meal at that price point but assume at least one glass for at least one of us. We generally prefer seafood when eating out, but eat everything except foie gras. I’m curious to see what anyone who’s eaten there would recommend, especially with the budget being a consideration. Of course, if there’s any stellar must-trys we can supplement and tip would be additional. Thanks for your suggestions!

Having eaten there a few times over the years, and given the $150 gift certificate, this would be my order,

Diner 1
Yellowtail Kampachi Crudo $20
glass of 14-16 $5.75

East Coast Halibut $42
Glass of wine suggested $5.75

Diner #2
Ricotta Cavatelli (small) $21
Glass of suggested wine $5.75

Roasted Duck $42
Glass of suggested wine $6.75

Total = $149 Or substitute the Venison Saddle for $48 total is $157.

Plus tip and taxes.

I really like their fish preps, and the Ricotta Cavatelli is always quite nice. Also, they have some of the best butter in town for their bread.

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Thanks! That looks perfect- might very well do almost that exact order! We would probably substitute two of the glasses of wine for a dessert to share, but the wine prices by the glass are more reasonable than I would have guessed- hadn’t gotten past the food menu…

Nice problem to have! We’ve eaten there perhaps 4 times, but we’ve invariably enjoyed the food. Not sure why but it hasn’t landed in our “rota” - other than the fact that the competition is pretty fierce in Boston these days. Let us know about your experience.

I’d just hit the high spots: fill up on the bread service with the Normandy butter. Then oysters, wine, and then dessert. You might have to order all the desserts to kill the $150. Tongue in cheek, this post.

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Definitely an awesome dinner! Thanks to kimfair’s suggestions- here’s what we ended up with

apps- Yellowtail crudo, crabmeat chitarra pasta
mains- halibut, duck
dessert- hazelnut extravaganza
1 split cocktail
1 4oz pour of pinot noir to pair with the duck
at least 2 helpings of bread and butter…

Absolutely loved everything- only small critique is that I felt the sauces with the duck were overly sweet and the endive on the side was kind of watery and didn’t add much. The duck however, was the most beautifully cooked medium rare breast with exquisitely rendered skin that either of us had ever had.

Service was friendly if a bit weird- several different servers helped us, and one of them was quite the chatty gent who kept discussing details of the old place and the move and how he was getting lost. One of the other servers mentioned he was learning about the wine I ordered and would be able to tell us about it soon, which apparently did not mean that night, as that was the last we heard. No real complaints, but not exactly the seamless professional service I would expect at this price point.

Now, as to the prices. Well, the dessert was $18 which put us over by about that much. It was truly a delicious plate of assorted textures of hazelnut and chocolate, which in my opinion is exactly what a dessert should be. But to be perfectly honest, it’s hard for me to justify spending $170 for dinner when I’d be equally thrilled with a dinner for half that price at Sarma or Little Donkey. I guess that’s what gifts are for…

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Glad you enjoyed it. I know that waiter, he was a chatty Cathy at the old space as well. I dream of that butter.