Peachy's Picks Boston: Durgin-Park in Quincy Market 340 Faneuil Hall Marketplace - Its Origins Are Pre-American Revolution Since 1742 - Our Coverage Sponsored by Fresh Origins
Patty and Peachy
The famous Yankee cut Roast Prime Rib of Beef.
Peter Faneuil orders this from heaven, surely.
Patty Reyes, Regional Operations Manager of Ark Restaurants in New England and Executive Chef of Durgin-Park, Roberto Reyes (also, they are married!)
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The origins of Durgin-Park and its fantastic historic Yankee recipes go back to pre-Revolutionary days. In 1742, Peter Faneuil (surely you've heard of Faneuil Hall...) -who in his time was considered to be a top merchant- built a market house near the waterfront. Soon after a warehouse, which is the current location of Durgin-Park, was built where the second floor was an eating establishment catering to marketmen and crews of ships anchored in the harbor. In 1742 this venue which would be considered a restaurant by today's standards was not formally named, but if it was it would be the oldest named restaurant in America. Around 180 years ago it was named Durgin-Park, after the owners then. Today it is officially Boston's second oldest restaurant. It's the only place Peachy Deegan has eaten before a Bruins game, so it is a tradition for her. She first went around the age of ten or eleven before Boston Bruins/Hartford Whalers games (she can't do that anymore but she w
as able to interview Kevin Dineen after the game). Of all of the restaurants we've reviewed, Durgin-Park is the first one we've reviewed that we FIRST went to on a non-review basis in life (we went to others later). Before your visit we'd say Bunker Hill and Revolutionary Summer are required reading.
When we saw the sign we were excited.
And we got closer.
If you noticed the
Yankee cut Roast Prime Rib of Beef, visions of that were dancing in Peachy's head like sugarplums. She's had it before and it is excellent.
Not only is the history alive and the Yankee cuisine the best around, but also Durgin-Park has achieved a feat that few restaurants, even restaurants that are far younger, have achieved. It has been consistently excellent and committed to its roots. Since it started, it has only four owners. The third owners took over in 1976 and the 4th owners are Ark Restaurant Group, and they say they would not change a thing and not changing a thing is key to their success.
The atmosphere of history is in a word incredible. You need to witness it for yourself.
Welcome to carnivore heaven:
There is quite a lot of space at Durgin Park. We could not do a dinner review at dinner time as it conflicted with the opening faceoff, so we went in the middle of the afternoon and had the place to ourselves. It seats 240 people over three rooms.
Here is the red room:
There is also the mid-hall inbetween, and then there is the white room:
Peachy picked the white room. There is not a bad seat in the entire house, and also there is seating a floor above for 45 more in the Peter Faneuil room.
We were greeted with hot piping cornbread and creamy butter.
Thanksgiving, right around the corner, will also make you nostalgic for this kind of food....
The menu is going to make you so proud to be a participant in the current history.
...and yes it's a clearcut possibility that your ancestors ate here as well.
Though we love Manhattan, we do not love Manhattan clam chowder. Peachy Deegan absolutely could not wait for proper clam chowder which means NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER. Uber-rich and super creamy, this was exactly what we had been waiting for. The fresh clams hit the spot and the seafood arrives fresh daily from Ipswich and Gloucester. If you are reading us from the UK and these town names sound familiar it's because you settled us, silly! Your ancestors probably ate here too however you know how the revolution wound up...we're all friends now so you need to go to Durgin-Park.
So, although we were so tempted by some of the amazing seafood selections on the menu, Peachy Deegan absolutely had to go for beef as an entree. The Roast Prime Rib of Beef is absolutely LEGENDARY and it is available three ways:
*Durgin Cut, 32 oz, this has a bone in it and is Flinstonesque
*Yankee Cut, 16 oz, shown above, boneless
*Boston Cut, 10 oz, if you are less hungry than Peachy, also boneless
Words cannot describe just how succulent and juicy this Prime Rib is and we suggest ordering it medium rare as it is just perfection. Peachy ate as much as she could, and then ate the rest at about midnight looking out her window at the Westin Copley Place after the Bruins game and it was just as good then. The herbed butter is killer as well: fresh scallions, thyme, oregano, garlic, tarragon and parsley will wow you as an accent.
The parmesan spinach is a must as a side. Popeye would be pleased and it is pure decadence. If you don't like to eat your vegetables, trust us, your mind will be changed by this winner.
Executive Chef Roberto Reyes is the current talent of a historied line of Chefs at Durgin-Park and is a relative newcomer. Roberto is the fifth chef at Durgin-Park EVER; Tommy Ryan was the fourth chef and he started as a cook and stayed for 63 years.
Herbed butter on the left, and fantastic fresh mashed potatoes will make the smile on your face even bigger. If you are a meat and potatoes girl like Peachy, you will not want to leave. Unless you're going to the Bruins game...
What was new to us was the John Durgin ale! It was started eight years ago by Harpoon and is brewed locally of course. John Durgin Ale is an interpretation of a traditional British pale ale.
A vibrant amber, John Durgin Ale boasts a medium malt body and cheerful hops that add character. It would go with anything, and is an essential to your Durgin-Park experience. You do not simply eat or dine at Durgin-Park: you experience it. It would be cliche and trite to say it is unique and one-of-a-kind but it would also be true. We think it should be a verb-forget about selfie being the new word of the year-what's old is new and hip again. As in:
Peachy Deegan: "I'm Durgin-Parking before the Bruins game!"
The Yankee Cut insisted on some headshots.
We also toured the property and the spot is huge. On ground level/first floor there's a bar:
In the cellar (below ground level), there is also a bar:
We showed you the second floor first as that is where we dined.
Here's the Peter Fanueil room on the third floor:
Here's the Peter Fanueil room on the third floor:
You won't believe it but we even got to see the LAUNDRY. We've never seen this before and we don't know of another restaurant doing their own:
The uniforms:
Patty Reyes is a legend in her own right and we loved her right away. Patty rocks. Today she is the heartbeat of Durgin-Park as the Regional Operations Manager in New England. We won't reveal her age but we will tell you that like Peachy she is a bit older than she appears. She doesn't really iron there: she's being a bit of a ham at our request.
For all of you New Yorkers-you should know Patty is one of you. Since she was 16, she has worked for the Ark Restaurant Group. She started at Columbus Bakery at 1st avenue on 52nd/53rd, she was a hostess at Bryant Park Grill and Metropolitan Cafe and by age 19 she was Assistant General Manager at Columbus Bakery and by 21 she was a General Manager. A graduate of CUNY-City College of New York- Patty then moved to Connecticut where she was both a General Manager and Senior Manager of Operations at the Ark restaurants in Foxwoods for many years.
Patty arrived at Durgin-Park in December 2012 and she's genuinely interested and committed to upholding the illustrious tradition here. Everyone we met is pretty much a lifer at Durgin-Park: Laura Seluta who like Patty and Roberto is a total peach-has been there 22 years so perhaps we've seen her before!
Peachy pretended to fold as well...obviously we wore our Red Sox hat!
We couldn't leave without sharing some Boston cream pie and coffee!
The cherry on top of the sundae, so to speak.
We are honored to work with Durgin-Park and it has earned our highest recommendation.
We miss it already.
This picture is captioned: "The two most important things you can do for somebody is to feed them and to make them laugh."
Just a Boy
Get to understand the lad,
He's not eager to be bad.
If the right he always knew,
He would be as old as you.
Were he now exceedingly wise,
He'd be just about your size.
When he does things that annoy,
Don't forget he's just a boy.
Could he know and understand,
He would need no guiding hand.
But he's young and hasn't learned,
How life's corners must be turned.
Doesn't know from day to day,
There is more to life but play.
More to face than selfish joy,
Don't forget he's just a boy.
Being just a boy he'll do much,
You will not want him to.
He'll be careless in his ways,
Having his disobedient days.
Willful, wild and headstrong too,
He'll need guidance, kind and true.
Things of value he'll destroy,
But reflect - he's just a boy.
Just a boy who needs a friend,
Patient, kindly to the end.
Needs a father who will show him,
The things he wants to know.
Take him with you when you walk,
Listen when he wants to talk.
His companionship enjoy -
Don't forget he's just a boy
A final note on the Beanpot-it belongs to the Boston College hockey team we say!
