Elite Event at Darryl’s: Hello 2011, Goodbye Chillax!

Jazz, cocktails, appetizers, and Elites! Unilocal knows how to start off the new year. This is my 3^rd year as Elite and it never gets old. How can it get old when events are so lively and I leave with a hearty buzz for the freezing walk back to the T? Exactly!
Just like events, our CM Damien is quite memorable. I was honored to witness (and video record) that he can tie a cherry stem in a knot with his tongue in 22 secs. True talent.

I have to say, I really love Elite events where it’s just us. La crème de la crème of Boston’s Elite crew.
Big ups for Damien for putting together a great event at Darryl’s and HUGE props for the staff at Darryl’s for dealing with the frozen pipes crisis without letting us see them sweat.
I am so glad I got over the plague in time to drink (a few too many) Bulldog Gin Mules, eat (a little too much) beet salad, and say goodbye (not soon enough) to the word «Chillax».
I got the chance to talk Darryl, and he is the nicest guy in Back Bay. Super gracious, super friendly… the consummate host.
As always, it was great to see friends, both new and old. I love you all, and I look forward to more awesome Elite events in 2011!

Although my arrival was once again delayed by my for real-​real life intruding on my Unilocal-​yelp life, when I finally walked in the door, saw Damien standing there smiling in his purple sweater, asked him to move aside and caught sight of my real best friends — pulled pork and fried catfish — my heart skipped a beat, my spirits were immediately lifted and I knew my travel hassels had been worth it.
And now for the BREAKDOWN:
Ambiance: Great space for meeting and mingling with ample seating and SRO depending on your preferences/​nervous tendencies/​food and bevie accesibility needs.
Bar: You can’t go wrong with Sam Adams, and Darryl and his barstaff did a nice job of building on the Bulldog base to create some innovative and enjoyable cocktails. Gin n Gingerbeer? Yes plz.
Cool Jams: Elevation Theory was a jazzy addition to an already swingin’ evening.
Darryl: Bean Boots with a suit and a smile. We can stay ’til 8? You had me at, «Please come by again soon.»
Elites: Once again, I came away feeling like our time together was too short. Great to see some new faces and a lot of familiar faces. Don’t be strangers! UYE it up!!! Love2love2loveY’all.

Is it possible to have a good time at a Unilocal Elite Event without partaking in the complimentary cocktails and beer? Absolutely! It wasn’t easy though, the gin mule looked mighty tasty and Sam Adams doesn’t disappoint. So what else is there, you may ask? Well there’s the food. We’re talking two kinds of chicken wings, pulled pork and slaw sandwiches, cheese and fruit trays, bite size crab cakes, breaded cat fish fingers, and beet salad. Well not crazy about the beet salad, but there were plenty of Unilocalers raving about it. We have some cool jazz playing, and amazing service. They were quick to clean up after eating, brought drinks to you right quick, and find out that they completely cleaned the place after having a flood from pipes bursting the prior evening. Wow!
The dessert was seeing all of the beautiful Unilocalers :) Oh, and of course our handsome CM, Damien ;)

I always hold true to solemn vows made over fried food and Sam Adams and thus will use none of the retired words in the following review.
L*******y the most fun I have had in a long time! Fantastic event all around. Typically I tend to be more excited about the booze than the food at these things (shocking I know) but after perusing Darryl’s menu, I developed a solid food crush and the treats at the event certainly fulfilled my fantasies. The chicken wings were amongst the best I have had, the fried shrimp and crab were sinfully awesome and the beet salad? Well beet salad, go beet salad.
Speaking of beats, the jazz band was an excellent touch, and set the vibe for the entire night by providing the perfect music to c*****x to with fellow elites.
My old friend the drink was quite frankly amazing. The bartenders quickly served potent and delicious bull mules, and after a few of those suckers, things got a little r*********s.
Darryl and his crew made me feel like kind of a big deal and I like that. What a guy for letting us stay late! (did anyone else feel like our parents let us stay up an extra half hour? pllleeeasseee Darryl? Just 30 more minutes?) I will certainly be back to this great little neighborhood place for both food and drinks!
Plus I always appreciate a good cheese platter. Damien, what can I say? You t**s rule.

Before nomming began, the food here looked so great I thought my fellow Unilocalers might toss me under the table and my camera out the window for making them wait!
Still, totally understandable as those Mini-​Crab Cakes are worth fighting over. The relish spiced aioli was perfect. I was looking forward to the Catfish, very moist with super crunchy batter very much like New England Fried Clams. Genius! I was expecting Country Fried goodness, but it was out of the park!
Bulldog Gin Drinks served up Darryl’s great staff and Sam Adams beer kept the night going, as well as smooth tunes by the 3-​piece jam band. Thanks again to 2011 Elites looking fab as always.
Check out some drool worthy food pics and tag your friends on Facebook!
Also check it out high-​res on flickr!

It was awesome! Best part of the week so far.
I haven’t been to this space since it was Bob the Chef’s but I liked it a lot. The live music, lighting, bar, and two room set-​up works really well. Even though I sat by the door, I didn’t feel cold at all.
The food was scrumptious: loved the glazed chicken, catfish, beet salad, and gin drinks.
Had a good laugh at the party favors: tangerine UnilocalTICK.
The company was great – got to put some faces to names from the Talk: Tatsu, Walter G and Alyssa.
Props to Damien and Andrew R for chatting me up with food in my mouth.
And if there is a monthly spicy food outing, I’m in! Can’t wait for Floating Rock to open in Central Sq (shout-​out to Nurah for the tip).

Despite the dark entry-​way on the ever-​changing corner of Columbus Ave and Northampton Street (still can’t believe Darryl’s accomodated our crazy asses after their basement froze), the Sam Adams selection, the Gin drinks, and the excellent nibbles certainly brightened my day! But not as much as seeing all you smiling, welcoming, and fun group of Unilocalers: both seasoned and n00b.
David M., Angel M., and Michael … P??, I will not forget our longwinded conversation about the best pickles around, falafel king, and pizza topped with … peanut butter. Virginia Sue and Walter G., — all I can say is THE CAT IN THE HAT COMES BACK!
And, of course, Damien, great gathering to get the year off to a boozey tasty and musical start. Thanks for introducing us to Darryl’s!

First Elite event in Boston and it was amazing! :) Good job Damien!
Awesome venue though a bit small, but it was good enough for our size group! The music was great and props to the band! I enjoyed the food especially the crispy chicken wings! YUM! The catfish with the sauce was also delish! Props to the bartenders, servers and general manager for their accommodating and wonderful service! Thank you to Darryl for letting us have an extra half hour!
I haven’t been to an elite event in awhile, but I’m glad I went to enjoy great food, drinks and company!

Stellar event put on by the wonderful Damien and fantastic Darryl’s.
I was digging the beats and those mini crabcakes are welcome on my plate any day.
Oh, and lots of gin? So wrong it was just right. That mule was fantastic and I was pleasantly surprised at how on top of everything the bartenders were.
Nice work Darryl’s. I will definitely be back!

A solid evening with great live music and a very welcoming staff.
Props to Darryl’s for recovering from a busted water pipe and hosting the event (and for the extra 30min of music and drinks).
Both gin cocktails were solid. Both bartenders were friendly and quick, as was the waitress who not only continually cleared off tables but also took drink orders and kept coming back to make sure we were all set.
I liked the buffet-​style nosh for a change as it’s good to try everything at once instead of wondering what mysterious treats may have passed you by on a silver platter. Didn’t love the pork slider as a whole but the meat itself was very good (and they were free of course, so I don’t want to be negative at all). Moving down the line, I scooped up a plate of chicken fingers. Lemon wedges? Who puts lemon juice on their chicken fingers. I later realized that a) they were not chicken but instead fried catfish and b) they were delicious. Beet salad was great. Topping it off with some grapes made me feel like I was eating healthy (though honestly it was a pretty healthy spread for late-​night food)
Apparently I started a new handshaking fad while I was there so I guess I accomplished something while skipping the gym to drink on a Wednesday (edit: Tuesday) night.
Welcome and congrats to the new 2011 Elites, looking forward to meeting you.
Props and thanks as well to Damien for putting together another great event.

This was a wicked fun Unilocal Elite event and I’m sure the first of many to come in 2011.
I know it’s been said a lot in other reviews, but Darryl’s deserves major recognition for hosting our party despite the pipes bursting the night before. They handled it so well, that I was shocked when Damien announced what had happened, so we could all cheer for the staff.
I was initially a little hesitant to attend an event without a plus one, so I talked my friend Joe B. into attending too. (It was his first Unilocal Elite event.)
We were having fun catching up (haven’t seen each other since my May ’10 wedding) when the amazing Laura K. came over to introduce herself. That lead to a meeting a few other friendly Unilocalers including Walter G.
Damien called me a «wall leader» when I was waiting to jump into a conversation and introduce myself, but I did end up jumping and and meeting some great people.
The food was outstanding and I heard the drinks were great too, but I only had water. (I know. It’s considered insanity to not partake in the delicious free drinks at Unilocal events but I’m not a big drinker so I didn’t want to stumble back to the T after 1 drink.)
The band was wonderful and I enjoyed listening and dancing (a little) to their tunes.
I can’t wait for the next Unilocal Elite event because I’m not sure how this can be topped.
I’ll wear the Unilocal pins and Unilocalstick from this event to the next one.

A top shelf event, a top shelf staff, and a top shelf restaurant, Darryl’s showed the kind of class and dedication that it takes to truly be an outstanding restaurant in 2011. Despite a flood the night before, the folks at Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen put on a fabulous affair of delicious food, amazing cocktails, with a great jazz combo that really classed us up.
Whatever you do to those gooey wings… never stop doing it. Just make sure that I don’t eat them all every day.
Thanks again to the owners and the amazing staff that made us feel so welcome and happy!

My first Unilocal Elite event and it was amazing! Thanks Damien, Darryl and crew for putting on a great party. I loved the food, especially those tiny crabcakes. They were like little nuggets of JOY! And free gin… oh boy that is the way to my heart.
I look forward to the next event!

What a way to kick off 2011 with great people, great drinks, great food at a great place!
Catfish was melt in your mouth and here in the North Wowza!
Wings were big meaty and saucy
Mini melt in your mouth crab cakes. The dipping sauce was good but I didn’t need it since the taste of the cakes were stand up on their own.
The pork sliders were amazing. Usually I am not a fan but these were moist and delic.
The drinks were strong… ooh ooh baby! The Bull Gin Mule was a fav and the Bull Gin itself was ooh strong or did I say that with a slur.
The staff was amazing. As mentioned, the place was crystal clean and didn’t look like a drop of water had touched the place much less a flood.
Darryl made his way around to welcome us. The bartending and staff were quick and made there way all around with ample tastings. Having the cheese and fruit platter was also a nice touch.
The place was cozy but contemp with lots of move to either sit or mingle around. The side room made it nice for talking a bit away from the music but then it was fun to be close to feel the beat.
Made my way around to meet new to me Unilocalers and those I have only «talked» to on talk and hugged all my friends.
Shout out to Walter G for being an awesome friend and getting me to Parrish! The night never stops after an Elite event. The after party feels like a must.
Big shout out to Damien for kicking off the New Year!

I never eat chicken wings on a first date for a reason — zero restraint. Country fried or chili lime, you couldn’t lose. I could eat a pound of those, easy. I did need to save a little bit of room for fried catfish and beet salad, tho. For the beet-​fearful, you have no idea what you were missing.
This place was super cute. The jazz was nice, the waitstaff was not only friendly and well put-​together, but their service was completely outstanding (all this after their pipes burst the night before)!
Good food, great drinks (between the mule and the hound I just can’t pick a favorite), nice atmosphere, stellar service. This event was an all-​around win, and I got to meet some extra cool new (and old) Unilocalers! Damien hasn’t let us down yet, and Darryl’s is a South End secret I’m glad I’m in on.

Thanks Damien for the great time!
The music got my head bopping. I loved the fried chicken (both plain and the peach chili versions), catfish fingers, and cute little crabcakes. Darryl’s servers were absolutely wonderful! Whisking away our emptied glasses and plates, and bringing us plates of food right to our tables! Don’t worry, they’re finger food!
And thanks Darryl for the extra time you tacked on to the end of our evening!