WHERE WE WENT:
Bosco's Squared
2120 Madison Avenue
Memphis, TN
38104
WHAT WE ORDERED:
Baked Lasagna Bolognese, Bosco's Burger, Garlic Parmesan Fries
WHAT WE THOUGHT:
Atmosphere - 8
Menu - 7
Presentation - 6
Taste - 6
Price - 6
Service - 7
Overall - 6.5
Atmosphere - As it is with many places in the midtown area, the first word that comes to mind when you walk into Bosco's Squared is "cool." You get the feeling that you've walked into something
both warm and sophisticated and much more interesting than its unassuming exterior would suggest. A long, dark bar is the central focus of the restaurant with two sections of seating, one down either side. The atmosphere is sophisticated without feeling stuffy and is a great gathering place for people of all sorts.
Menu
-Bosco's sports a menu that is diverse but not cumbersome. There are plenty of choices for people of all tastes. They offer soups, salads, pastas, sandwiches, and flatbreads. One of the more interesting looking options is the Black Bean & Goat Cheese Tamale. The overall best part of the menu hands don is the beer selection. Boscos goes a step beyond offering local craft beers and actually brews their own. Their year-round offerings include The Famous Flaming Stone, Midtown Brown, Bosco's Bombay IPA, and Isle of Skye Scottish Ale. On top of those they have seasonal specialties available. They offer $11 half gallon growlers. Unfortunately we were unable to try any of the beers because we were sick during our visit, but our research has led us to the conclusion that it's the best thing about Bosco's.
Presentation
- Presentation at Bosco's was not bad at all. Plain white dishes that gave off an air of class accompanied all the dishes. We have definitely seen worse, but the low score derives from the fact that we expected something more from a place with such a vivid personality.
Taste
- One word: underwhelming. Nothing was bad per se, but nothing really jumped out and grabbed us either. Maybe it was because people had hyped up Bosco's to us too much beforehand, but it just didn't live up to our expectations. The Baked Lasagna Bolognese was bland. The cheeses did not stand out and the sauce was something that could have come out of a jar at Kroger. The signature burger was not much better. It was just a burger with no distinguishable traits.The garlic parmesan fries were the most
unique tasting thing we ordered, but were unfortunately drowned in garlic.
Price
- The price was not good. The lasagna was $15 dollars and was much to small and lacking in flavor to be worth it. The burger and fries were $13. We've had bigger, better burgers for less in many places in the city.
Service -Our service was just fine. Our server was polite, but with zero personality and was a bit slow.
WOULD WE GO BACK?
Yeah, but only for the curiosity about the beer.
Here's a link to their website:
http://boscosbeer.com/memphis/story/
WHERE WE WENT:
Fox and Hound
847 Exocet Drive
Cordova, TN
38103
WHAT WE ORDERED:
Hot Honey Boneless Wings, Sausage & Peppers, Blackforest Sandwich
WHAT WE THOUGHT:
Atmosphere - 7.5
Menu - 8
Presentation - 10
Taste - 8
Price - 8
Service -6
Overall - 8
Atmosphere - Fox and the Hound certainly has a flair all it's own. With deep red walls and dark wooden booths, and the bar as the central focus point, the main room could easily be something out of a 1920's novel like Gatsby (minus the TVs of course). Smoking is allowed and there is a space where cigars are encouraged. The first impression you get is a mix between a speakeasy, a cigar bar, and possibly a gentleman's club. It wouldn't have surprised me at all if burlesque dancers would have suddenly appeared.The lighting was dark, like everything else in the place and you almost feel like you're doing something devious just by sitting down. Walk about 50 feet to the left and you enter a room with a completely different feel. Pool tables are lined up, TV screens are layered along the walls, and beer/sports paraphernalia are rampant. Classy or brassy you can have a good time at Fox and Hound, as long as you don't mind being in a indisputable Man Cave.
Menu
-The menu is comprised of literally everything you would expect from a man's sports hideaway. Jalapeno poppers, wings, onion rings; check, check, and check. There is a myriad of artery clogging fried goods including all the traditional pub fare. One of the more interesting options that jumps out are Dog Bites, mini corn dogs. You can't find that everywhere. There are also more unexpected options like delicious looking salads, substantial entrees such as grilled salmon and even a build-your-own flatbread option. The menu was organized really nicely with catchily named subsections and a minimalist black and white design. There was one really disappointing aspect. They have a great beer selection, but there was almost no local brews. If you want a real meal or just some game-time munchies, you can find it at F&H, as long as you're not a vegetarian.
Presentation
-Presentation here was a pleasant surprise. From looking at the inside, you expect that your food will be served in those boring red baskets sitting in a pile of grease...but that just isn't so. There were indeed baskets, but they were trendy, made of wire and lined with wax paper printed to look like newspaper, a very British touch. The celery with our wings had its own little metal holder and sauce bullet. The fries came in an asymmetical cylinder. The presentation was much more akin to that of a gastropub rather than a sports bar, and we really appreciated the way it was classed up.
Taste - We got the hot honey boneless wings to start out with because we had heard good things about them for people at work.
They did not disappoint. The chicken was crispy on the outside and moist and tender on the inside. The hot honey sauce was a perfect balance of sweet and spicy. Size-wise, they were respectable. The sausage and peppers looked nice, and we thought were definitely gonna be a value with two brats and fries for $7.99, but it turns out that you get what you pay for. The sausages and the buns both had a cheap taste to them. For a dish advertised as a stadium brat, it brought back more memories of the grocery store sale aisle than the ballpark. The fries were delicious, and we wished there had been more. The Blackforest Sandwich stole the show. Everything about this sandwich worked.
The turkey was moist and the flavored paired perfectly with the applewood bacon and Jack cheese. The pretzel bun was a little overpowering, but it didn't get too dry with the Dijon honey mustard. It was a messy sandwich, but totally worth it.
Price
- Modern gastropub food at sports bar prices. Definitely worth your while.
Service - Our service wasn't awful, but it wasn't excellent either. Our waittress came by frequently enough, but she wasn't very friendly. We had to ask multiple times for refills and she always looked as if she had somewhere better to be.
WOULD WE GO BACK?
Yes. The hot honey wings were amazing and it would be great to try some of the other flavors, especially the Sweet Chilli.
Here's a link to their website:
http://www.foxandhound.com/
