A Guide to Parent-Approved Restaurants

If you were lucky enough to have your parents visit for Parents’ Weekend, then you know how challenging it can be to find a restaurant nice enough for dinner with the folks: most mothers scoff at UBurger; there’s probably a Bertucci’s or Cheesecake Factory in your hometown anyway; and all your friends went to the North End with their parents last weekend. For you and most other college students, this is the one good restaurant meal you’ll have this semester, and you want to find a place fun enough to have your parents reminisce about their college days, but which is still too pricey for you to go to without them. If you get a chance, take your family outside of Kenmore Square! (Petit Robert is boring, and Eastern Standard

is just another Cheesecake Factory.) So here are my picks for places that you’re dad will call “nifty,” and that you can brag to your friends about when they tell you how Warren ran out of forks.

Gaslight, 560 Harrison Avenue

This South End brasserie could be a hassle to get to on the T, but in dad’s car, it’s only 20 minutes away. The atmosphere is lively, always crowded, emulating an early 1900s hot spot in Paris, with bronze lighting illuminating the red leather booths. The food is satisfying French peasant fare with a sophisticated twist, as evidenced by the Croque-Monsieur ($15.75), a fried ham and gruyere sandwich, essentially a fancy grilled cheese. The desserts are fun and rich (especially the molten chocolate cake, $6.95), and the wine list is extensive (but that’s just for parents).

Audubon Circle, 838 Beacon Street

If you live in South Campus, you’ve probably walked by this upscale pub, located amid BU residences. Though the bar scene picks up after 9:00 on the weekends, Audubon Circle stays quiet through the dinner rush. The tables are black, no tablecloths, with crème colored brick walls, and staggering wood cabinets all the way up to the ceiling. The cuisine is New American, epitomized by the delectable tomato bisque with grilled cheese ($9), but the desserts leave something to be desired, as there’s only one—a chévre (goat cheese) cheesecake ($8), which is sufficient. On an ambiance note, the music is quite good for the college crowd, and it matches the restaurant’s vibe perfectly.

Trattoria Toscana, 130 Jersey Street

If you insist on taking your family out for Italian, try his tiny, family owned spot right next to Fenway. The menu changes seasonally, and fall brings about some real winners; chickpea and tomato soup ($8), and pumpkin ravioli ($16), to name a few. Décor-wise, it’s pretty cheesy (no pun intended), with murals of Rome on the walls, but trust me, the food makes up for it. The place is on a quiet residential street, and it will convince your mother that everything at BU is this quaint.

Sportello, 348 Congress Street

Sportello is restaurateur Barbara Lynch’s “affordable” restaurant (the outrageous Menton, is located downstairs). Its name is a reference to Italian lunch counters, but the décor is sleek with its winding white bar twisting throughout the space. The pastas are, as expected, wonderful. There are two marvelous gnocchi dishes; Roman gnocchi ($22), which are not dumplings, but lamb ragu laid over polenta, and potato gnocchi ($20), served with mushrooms and peas. For dessert, the ice cream sandwich ($5) is perfection. This isn’t your average red-sauce and mozzarella restaurant. It’s unique, and worth the trip out to the Waterfront. (For a day full of culture, take your family to the ICA, then stop by Sportello for brunch.)