Sage Restaurant

The food at Sage is probably 3.5 stars. It’s pretty good, but if you are going to the S. End for modern/​Italian type food, you should just go to Stella down the street.
2 stars because I found a giant shard of glass at the bottom of my wine glass that I almost swallowed. I told my waitress, who apologized, and walked away. The manager found me later and apologized again, but did not offer to take my $ 9 glass of wine off the check. It would have been a really easy solution, but because of their apathy toward me nearly slicing my esophagus with their broken glass, I will definitely not be returning.

This review is for drinks only. I came here after Seiyo (yes, my girls and I were restaurant hopping!) as a last stop for girls night. We happened to walk by not knowing where we wanted to go and I remembered wanting to try this restaurant. We were still full from dinner so we settled for drinks at the bar.
They were very accommodating by switching out tables in order to seat the 6 of us. I ordered their white sangria and like another reviewer wrote, it did taste a lot like peach schnapps. I didn’t mind it though since I like fruity drinks anyway. I didn’t get to try my friends’ raspberry bellinis but I did try my friend’s drink, Sage Ghost. It’s a martini of sage infused vodka, cointreau, and green Chartreuse. My goodness, I’m not a fan of martinis but this was really good.
I’d have to come back to check out their food and order a Sage Ghost for myself. Yum!

Sage offers a $ 22 Sunday Supper menu from 5pm — 10pm that consists of 2 choices for appetizers, 2 choices for entrees, and their ricotta zeppole for dessert. Call for the day’s choices.
Tonight, we were the third and final party in their dining room area. The rest of their customers outlasted us in enjoying themselves out in the brighter lit bar area.
We were started off with a basket of rosemary bread and some kind of tomato spread.
I really liked the appetizers. The pair of prosciutto wrapped figs with gorgonzola were juicy and hot, sweet and salty, while the pile of mixed greens beside them were just fine, but nothing special. The twin fat slices of Buffalo mozzarella were moist yet confused me slightly — were they mozzarella or burratta? Tomato ‘jam’ was a misnomer, but quite tasty with the mozzarella and the arugola salad. Perhaps it would have been better called a chutney?
The entrees weren’t great… The crispy confit duck leg was indeed crispy skinned and moist meated (heh heh), and added some saltiness to the cold tuscan bean salad it was served upon. I didn’t care for either side dish — neither the bean salad, nor the tomato panzanella salad that came with the braised short rib. The cubes of bread in the panzanella salad were super-​moist which did not do anything to help with the texture of the side.
For dessert, the ricotta zeppole were three balls of fried dough sitting amongst a scattering of fresh berries. Served hot and crispy with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, the zeppole were soft on the inside and went well with the juicy berries.

passed sage many a times but didn’t have interest to stop. one night i thought if we could snag a table by the front window, then it was time. and there it was.
cool dining room & bar and the view of the lighted cathedral from our table was striking. menu is «designer» italian, similar to quite a few in boston. the arancini with truffled aioli was good. but the quality, taste & portions of the rest of the meal were subpar compared to the price. my scallop dish was prepared with ultra-​spicy green & red peppers that ‘killed’ this tender shellfish. WHY would you do that? and the servers seemed… solemn.
so there, my instinct about sage was right-​on.

Drinks review!
Went here with friends recently & was pleasantly surprised with their offerings. We decided on Strawberry Mojitos in honor of the finally fabulous weather… and unfortunately, the first round we were served just weren’t quite right. However! The awesome bartender was really responsive when we asked for more simple syrup to be added… he did us one better & made us all new drinks! which was totally unnecessary because its a painstaking process, but was totally appreciated… the second round were FAB! Sweet, Limey, Minty, Starwberry… yum! I liked the vibe of Sage and looked like the menu has a lot of good things to offer… plus as Sara S. pointed out, they have a late night menu.
I’d def like to head back to Sage for more cocktails & perhaps some nosh, too!

DRINK REVIEW
I went to Sage after a nice dinner at Phở Republiquoe. Sage has a nice, spacious bar area with ample seating, as well as a nice cocktail and wine/​beer menu. The bar area overlooks Washington Street, so it’s fun to watch people walk by and general city life.
My three friends and I started out with the Strawberry Mojito… we were disappointed with it initially, as there was no detectable simple syrup. It really didn’t taste like a mojito at all. We ask JP, the bartender, to have some simple syrup added to our drinks. He actually remade all three mojitos (they are a pain in the butt to make) and they were PERFECT the second time around. We all appreciated his extra effort to make us happy.
The second drink I had was a Ginger Rogers, made with cachaca (although not my favorite Beija, which I was disappointed about), homemade ginger syrup, lime, simple syrup, and rose. The flavors all melded perfectly and I would highly recommend this drink.
JP was a very accommodating and friendly bartender and I would go back to Sage for drinks if I were in the area.
They also have a late-​night food menu at the bar… looked good!

I was never lucky enough to experience the North End Sage, but dinner last night at South End Sage was great. The moment we walked through the door, the smells from the kitchen made my mouth water. The night started with the Sage Ghost, their house «martini,» which was strong and flavorful with hints of the sage-​infused vodka. The asparagus appetizer was to die for. The lamb was tender and delicious. The duck was cooked perfectly with a hint of fig sweetness and the homemade gnocchi was out of this world.
The service was excellent. Our server was very detailed, informative and charming. The restaurant had a modern but cozy atmosphere. The prices were on the high end but all in all it was a great meal.

I went to Sage last night for Restaurant Week with 6 other girls. Although it’s not very convenient to get to (the bus dropped me off a block away, but it was a long, circuitious route to get there), it’s worth the trip. I immediately loved the marble-​topped bar and the martini glasses sitting in ice. The décor is comforting but very modern. We were sat as soon as the girl who made the reservation showed up, and ended up waiting a while for everyone else to arrive.
We started with some drinks. I treated myself to some Prosecco, as I’d had it a while ago and really enjoyed it. One friend got the Bacio — a sweet concoction she downed almost immediately. Another friend asked for an Espresso-​Martini and loved it.
The bread is divine. Fluffy on the inside with a nice, oily (but not to the point where your fingers come away oil-​slicked) outside and a pleasant herb flavor. They bring just some plain oil to go with it. I would have preferred a bit of garlic or some other flavor, or even butter. However, the bread is so flavorful, it doesn’t really need it.
For our food (the descriptions online are slightly different than what the in-​restaurant menus said):
I went with the Mixed Green salad with Blue Cheese and Shallot Vinaigrette. It’s hard to mess up this type of salad but they excelled! There were lots of nice greens, crumbles of tasty blue cheese and the vinaigrette. YUM! So great.
For my meal, I treated myself to the Grilled Steak «Fiorentina» with Broccoli Rabe. The steak came already sliced (I think that’s what Fiorentina means) on top of the broccoli. This was a very plain, basic dish and was quite tasty. The steak was cooked exactly how I like it and, while the broccoli was a bit mushy, it was still great.
For dessert, I — along with almost everyone else at the table — went for the Ricotta Zeppole, Berry Compote. OH YUM. These were basically fried ricotta balls, served with berries (black, blue & straw) and some powdered sugar for garnish. The berries provided a nice sauce to dip the Zeppole. I gobbled up all 3, leaving my plate clean.
Some other meals that were sampled:
— Potato Gnocchi, Basil, Butter & Cherry Tomatoes: apparently amazing. Both girls said «is there more?» when they finished.
— Spicy Braised Calamari, Shaved Fennel, White Beans: I don’t eat Calamari but the 2 who got this said it was divine and they were happy the Calamari wasn’t fried.
— Baked Veal, Fontina & Spinach Fazoleti, Basil Butter Sauce: Having never had veal before, my friend let me taste this. We were both surprised that it was ground veal (rather than breasts or whatever) and it was sort of an Italian Haggis… The veal was inside the Fazoleti (which is a large square of pasta) and was really tasty!
— Chicken Breast Milanese, Arugula, Parmesan & Truffle Vinaigrette: my friend let me try this as well. It had a nice, crisp coating and was so flavorful. She was the one person unable to finish her dessert as her meal was big and she ate it all.
— Crispy Duck Leg, Escarole, Sicilian Potatoes: the friend who ate this loved it as well.
— Today’s Catch, Tuscan Bean Salad, Lobster Aioli: this wasn’t actually a Lobster Aioli — it was something else on the menu. The friend who got this cleaned her plate as well and said it was great (it was salmon).
— Espresso-​Chocolate Mousse: Again, both friends who got this cleared their plates. So I think they really enjoyed it!
Over all, Sage gets an A+ for presentation — very clean and pleasant; an A for service — nice, helpful, knowledgeable; an A for flavor — both food & drink; but a B– in my book for location. Too hard to get to!

The place is very handsome. I remember it from when it was Umbra, and it doesn’t feel much different, but it fits the restaurant well.
Service was very polite, and we started with a bottle of white wine for the table. Bottles are pretty reasonably priced here, which is nice for South End.
Chestnut apple soup is hearty yet light and a bit fruity, perfect for a cold day. It’s comforting but not too heavy or rich. Pastas and mains were executed well, with decent portion sizes and very solid preparations of Italian dishes.
I’m glad this place is now in South End and more accessible to me. It was perfect for a double date.

Had an amazing dinner, from appetizers to entrees to desserts… seared scallops and mozeralla wild mushroom tart were awesome. Lobster gnocchi was amazing — truly the Best gnocchi i’ve ever had in my life. Zeppolete and lemon cake were delicious. My best meal in Boston– Ever. Bad acoustics though. Oh, and the Valet service was Very slow– took them 30 mins to get our car. Hello? It wasn’t even that busy at that time!

Consistently excellent, modern Italian food in the South End, better in the bar than the dining room.
Tony Susi is a gifted chef who’s been turning out creative, modern Italian food for many years. I loved his old postage-​stamp-​sized North End place, but having to walk through the kitchen to get to the bathroom, endure cold drafts from the front door in the winter, and stop somewhere else for a pre-​dinner cocktail were drawbacks. Moving to the South End gave him a lot more seating, a full bar, and some elbow room in the dining room and kitchen.
I find his food consistently excellent in its mid-​high price range (most antipasti around $ 10, pastas around $ 20, entrees mid-​high $ 20s, contorni $ 5). The wine list is mostly Italian, thoughtfully chosen, and a decent value; the option to order half-​carafes and glasses from many bottles is helpful. Cocktails in the very comfortable, attractive bar have improved lately, with more focus on old-​school cocktails and less on those candy-​flavored vodka-​based abominations that so many bars feature these days.
Standout dishes include pretty much any of his pastas (also orderable in half-​portions so you can try more), notably a superb carbonara made the way it’s supposed to be but rarely is anymore (i.e., with raw egg yolk and no cream); rice-​smoked duck breast (a fascinating presentation rarely seen outside of Chinese restaurants); and a rabbit cutlet on saffron risotto.
But I’m likelier to sit at the bar and just graze from his stuzzi menu (small plates, all $ 4 – 8), which boasts terrific salumi (like great speck and sopressata), caponata of eggplant or chickpeas, short-​rib stuffed arancini (maybe my favorite gourmet version of this ubiquitous app in town), and panzeroti (fontina-​stuffed tater tots for grownups). He also does a superb thin-​crust Margherita pizza here, a steal at $ 10.
My only complaint is the dining room décor, which strikes me as amateurish and ugly for a South End place with food at such a high level: one wall is hideously covered with cheap-​looking stock photography. One more reason to favor bar dining here. I also miss some of the opening staff, which featured some of the best waiters in the South End, but has experienced significant turnover in the downturn. Overall, though, a pillar of my neighborhood dining rotation, far better than many more skillfully hyped and prettily decorated restaurants in the South End.

I have not given any establishment 5 stars until now, and even so Im reluctant to do so but this one is well deserved.
Sage is one of those places in the South End where an overall excellent dining experience is their forte The staff, especially the GM, goes above and beyond to make every guest feel like family. The bartenders are talented mixologists and knowledgable wine-o’s. They just re-​did their cocktail menu to accommodate these rough economic times (a few bucks cheaper). I try to get to this place once a week for a bite and drinks… thats how awesome this place is!
Consistency, neighborhood ‘south end’ feel, classy, and delicious are what makes this place stand just a notch above the rest of the south end eateries.

I came here on a Sunday night and the restaurant was pretty quiet, but it was beautifully decorated, dimly lit, and had the perfect relaxed but intimate atmosphere.
The food was amazing! I had the spicy stuffed calamari appetizer with braised escarole and white beans. The portion was small but not too small, just the right size that an appetizer should be. It was bursting with flavor and I liked the nice contrast in texture of the soft stuffing, chewing calamari, crunchy beans, and fresh vegetables, and the hearty flavor of the slightly spicy tomato broth.
For my entrée I had the potato gnocchi with rabbit and mushroom braise. I absolutely loved how it tasted, wonderfully salty and hearty. The rabbit was very tender and the gnocchi had a nice texture.
To end, I had a cheese plate with Tomme Crayeuse, Pecorino, and Romano Pradera, which were recommended to me by the waitress. The three cheese had different textures, from creamy to hard, and very enjoyable, served with thin slices of toasted bread and a berry compote, honey, and orange marmalade.
Overall, it was a delicious meal. Probably one of the best restaurants I’ve tried in Boston so far. I can’t wait to go back!

Just enough whelm: gnocchi pasta dish, stuffed calamari appetizer, sage signature cocktail, ambiance, service better than what I expected based on some of the Unilocal reviews
Underwhelming: main entrée of lemon picatta sole, champagne elderflower cocktail, 3 tiny scoops of sorbet dessert, empty restaurant on a Friday night

Went in on a Friday night, and walked right in and were seated. After deciding on the tasting menu at $ 65 a person, we were prepared to get our chow down. Eh, not so much. First course was not bad, I had the calamari (not fried) and he had beef carpaccio. Tasty. Second course, was shrimp risotto, and some veal/​greens/​pasta. Also not bad. Third course, was a joke. The cheese course consisted of 3 tiny pieces of cheese for us to share. It was good, but barely a bite each. The accompanying «sauces» were good. The Dinner course was on the small side, I had the duck, and he had Rib-​eye. Dessert was an apple bread pudding (delicious) and some type of chocolate mousse/​tart (very rich) Overall, the experience was nice, and I used a gift certificate with no problems.

Second stop for restaurant week and what a disappointment. Met a couple friends here for dinner last night and I can easily say this is a place I will not be returning to.
First course I got a salad. It was good, but nothing special. I expected something a bit better. Friend got the gnocchi, which I will say was really good and probably the highlight of the entire dinner.
For the entrée two of us got the pasta with basil pesto. The pasta wasn’t just al dente, it almost wasn’t cooked at all. Like there were strands that wouldn’t even curl around my fork. On top of that the bottom of the bowl was just swimming with butter. Yuck. The person who got the steak said it was ok, but for an $ 8 up-​charge it should have been more than ok.
Dessert time, I get the crêpe. Part of it is burnt, and the part that isn’t is just overloaded with sugar. One friend got the canollis, they were soggy. Other friend got the chocolate cake and seemed unimpressed.
I don’t see how the restaurant week price was even a deal for this as I could easily get better food elsewhere for less. On top of that it was so loud in there we couldn’t even carry on a conversation. Yeah, there are too many resturants in this area for me to consider going to Sage again.

I agree with Vivian that the service and atmosphere leaves much to be desired. We went for their Wednesday night gelato bar, which sounded tempting with various toppings, etc. Our group of 25 was excited about the event!
The server was bossy and flip, and totally did not appreciate our business. He kept asking if we’re there for gelato or other things? Like, what other options? Bring a menu over, perhaps?
They stood at the bar and made our party walk up to pick out our two teaspoon scoops and tiny drippings of toppings. And then they had the nerve to charge a 20% gratuity to the bill! We did all of the work, getting up and walking across the room!
I love the South End and the idea of a gelato bar, but I would say skip this and skip Sage. Thanks :)

I had the fettuccine with truffles and lobster — Very good. Server was excellent. Hostess and Manager were friendly and polite. Very pleasant experience.
Only con is the overpriced wine. I mean really overpriced.

Question: What do you get when a restaurant serves «fennel crema» then doesn’t provide its hapless diner with a spoon?
Answer: The waiters laughing their asses off in the kitchen.
Aren’t we a laugh riot, Sage. Maybe if you had less of an attitude and better attention to detail your restaurant wouldn’t have been virtually empty on Thursday night at 7:30 pm. This dining experience was a major major disappointment. I’d heard good things in the past about Sage… but boy. There must have been some major shift in management or culinary leadership because this experience was about as inspiring as a Mel Gibson movie. But beyond just the food, the service and ambiance were downright bizarre.
One of my dining companions is a vegetarian and inquired as to whether they could make the gnocchi with a plain tomato-​based sauce. The waiter indicated that they couldn’t. Fine, right? The chef has his rules and we as diners must respect said rules. Whatever. But then, the waiter brought bread with a delectable tomato-​based sauce. We were perplexed and can’t quite figure out why that sauce could not have been used on the gnocchi. My vegetarian companion ended up ordering the risotto and was ultimately able to get said sauce on the side. Even more strange was our waiter’s emphatic insistence on addressing my dining companion as «Vegetarian» for the totality of the evening. She refrained from addressing him as «Asshole» but only because she’s a lady in addition to a vegetarian.
I ate the rice smoked duck and it was fine… but at that price point I’d just as soon pass on something «fine» and go for a facial. I note as well that the restaurant does have a peculiar habit of omitting some of the ingredients in their dishes from the menu. For example, as an appetizer, I had the prosciutto plate and discovered that (SURPRISE!) it had canteloupe on it. I loathe canteloupe– it’s the dominant melon and spreads its flavor to all other foods indiscriminantly– so I wouldn’t have ordered the dish if I had known that it had canteloupe. The joke’s on me again, Sage. You comedian, you.
Aside from the flawed service and less-​than-​stellar food, I found it hilarious that the restaurant was playing Bob Marley over the speaker system. It was as if the random and incongruous food pairings were reflected in the music. The parallel was fascinating. And though I love Bob Marley… DUDE… It’s an Italian restaurant at a high-​falutin price point. «Get up, Stand up» does nothing for my enjoyment of my fine Mediterranean fare. Another knee-​slapper, Sage! You slay me with your funny funny jokes!
Want some «sage» advice? Just go to the North End and Fuhgeddaboutit.

Superb food. This was easily the best food I had on my recent trip to Boston.
The meal got off to a very promising start when the bread arrived — fresh and warm foccacia bread with a scrumptious and light tomato dipping sauce. Really delicious.
Our server, though attentive, was not warm. She got the job done but was not really friendly. We asked for a wine recommendation and went with a carafe of the pinot noir. Unfortunately, the wine was pretty bad. And when she served it, she did not have one of us sample it first; instead, she immediately filled our glasses. The bad wine recommendation and somewhat chilly service are two reasons why I did not give Sage five stars.
Drew W. and I then had the Kobe beef carpaccio. This dish was absolutely wonderful. The beef was flavorful but light, and perfectly accented with mushrooms, arugula and olive oil.
We next had the buffalo mozzarella crostata and the roasted shrimp and fava bean appetizers. The buffalo mozzarella was on top of toasted bread and also came with sauteed eggplant. Drew wasn’t crazy about the combination of the mozzarella and eggplant simply beause the cheese was cold and the eggplant warm. I didn’t mind this contrast and found the flavors excellent. The roasted shrimp was perfectly cooked and seasoned and was well balanced by the fava beans and light sauce.
For entrees, I ordered the duck and Drew got the rabbit milanese. Sadly, my duck was a little overcooked and was not as good as the other parts of the meal. This is the other reason why I rate Sage as a four rather than a five. The duck was tough and rather flavorless. It needed a lot of sauce. Because the spinach absorbed a lot of the sauce in the dish, the duck tasted pretty good when eaten with the spinach. The dish also came with a piece of cold corn custard. The custard had nice flavor but I was not crazy about the combination of the duck with the almost dessert-​like cold custard. Overall, the duck was disappointing.
In contrast, Drew’s rabbit milanese was stupendous. The rabbit was incredibly tender and flavorful, with a light breading surrounding the meat, and plated with delicious saffron risotto and green beans wrapped in pancetta. The meat and risotto went together wonderfully and were perfectly seasoned and cooked. A truly spectacular dish.
As a whole, the meal was excellent. If we had gotten a better wine recommendation, a slightly friendlier server, and the duck had been better, I would definitely have given Sage a solid five stars.