Places like Cafe Louis make a traditionalist like me wonder if the classic 3-course meal will become a dark shadow of the past. Think Back Bay Grill where for a $108 prix fixe 3-course menu one can dine beautifully with civility at every turn; it’s where tables and location matter (everyone wants that corner table, which I think is called #7) or any other spot along its banquettes and large round tables.
Sharables and small plates have been with us forever now, but I miss the single first course like a velvety soup starter or a main course like rack of lamb with two side vegetables such as potato gratin and mousseline of peas and a finale-worthy dessert.
Cafe Louis is a Costa Rican Caribbean style dining hangout offering such classics as carne asada and patacones (fried plantains); these two dishes, among others, were beautifully presented but not without inherent faults. But my biggest gripe about dining there on a particularly humid, hot evening was the riveting noise level over the sound system. Besides huddling in some very close quarters in stifling heat, the percussive beat of the music playing rivaled the blare of 21 trombones. I was also a bit befuddled at the closeness of the tables while Delta rages all around us like an insipid fog. This place definitely speaks to the requirement that all restaurants should mandate that you show either a fully vaxxed card or recent Covid test. Who knows? The dowdy couple sitting next to us in their Sunday best might have been raging carriers.
Crab ceviche
