Shore Leave — Restaurant in Boston

TL;DR - Despite being below sea level, Shore Leave is a nice quaint place with great service, good food, and fantastic drinks. You won't be disappointed here. Kudos for the humor in the drink menu.

Service -

We were sat very quickly and our server was very down to earth and kind. Sydney put in our orders and the food arrived no less than 5 minutes later. Fantastic speed coupled with a great server is definitely a good way to start. Sydney will definitely get a good tip.

Food -

Grilled Shiitake: Very flavorful vegetarian nigiri, despite being a bit overpriced.

Karaage Chicken Sandwich - One of the best chicken sandwiches that I've had in the area. (Suggested by Sydney)

Spicy Avocado Roll - Just as one would expect, this was a fantastic display of a great vegetarian "sushi" option.

Okonomiyaki Tater Tots - We ordered this dish without the bonito, since my partner is allergic. But this was still a great dish, definitely made possible by the katsu sauce. While the cheese is a bit like Velveeta, and I'm sure some people like that, I would have preferred a more homemade solution. But this is still a great dish. Don't skip it!

Gyoza (vegetarian): Just as one would expect, this dish came out perfectly cooked and very flavorful. It's rare that I have so few complaints.

Drinks -

Haymaker Punch: A subtly flavored cocktail with a prominent ginger flavor. This is a very nice and relaxing drink, similar to a Moscow Mule made with rum. Don't skip this one.

The Shore Leave Cocktail: Being the most popular cocktail on the menu, I definitely expected more. While it is quite tasty, I found it to be too acidic and heavy in tart flavor. Don't get me wrong. I still drank it. But it seemed more like a lime punch, which won't be nice for anyone with heartburn.

Plantation Peru: This drink has a slight licorice taste due to the bitters but it's not overpowering. This is a refreshing twist on an Old Fashioned.

Query's Rum Manhattan: With a slight taste of spice, the fluff really makes this drink...

So lame. Even after you get past the rude staff and deep into the contrived kitsch pseudo Asian tiki speak easy sub-sub-basement, the drinks just aren't that good. As noted in other reviews, we were unapologetically stopped at the door and couldn't join our friends. As the bridge troll told us they were at capacity so none shall pass, two people left so I thought that would solve that but no! Then a new story was told that we still couldn't enter because they were reserving space for people in the future with reservations. A few text messages later we explained our friends were already down there and had a table and we were allowed to pass, immediately. Guess we were done with the second story about reserving capacity. At the bottom we had another aggressive host asked us if we needed help (did not) and we made our way to our friends to enjoy a couple of mediocre cocktails in a not even close to capacity space.

Cocktails were generally okay but they didn't warrant the effort or the price. We did our best, waited over 90 minutes for a table for 4, saw white bread sandwiches with the crusts cut off coming out of the kitchen, and with no hope in sight, we gave up figuring we were better off going to a place with real food anyway. They get one star for doing a great job with the decor which very quickly makes you forget you are a few floors under the sidewalk.

There are a lot of places with way better drinks and service. Some of them practice this kind of traffic control and the degree of authenticity varies. The best ones not only have amazing bartenders (mixologists, whatever) but they maintain their exclusivity and increasing popularity while still keeping a high level of respect and courtesy for their customers even when they need to turn them away. Shore Leave is a cheap attempt to capture that greatness and buzz without respect for actual quality of service...

Shore Leave in Boston is a vibrant restaurant offering Asian-inspired dishes and an array of tiki cocktails, all served in a fun and lively atmosphere.

The friendly and attentive staff add to the welcoming environment, though the cozy size of the restaurant means you might find yourself in close quarters with other diners. However, the inclusive vibe, particularly their support for the LGBTQ+ community, creates a warm and inviting ambiance which is great.

We started with the Dan Dan Noodles, which though not quite traditional, offered a peanut-infused twist. Might have called this dish Peanut Noodles or something though. The Tuna Tartare was not bad, but it was the Okonomiyaki Tater Tots that was incredible! The Karaage Chicken Sandwich was delicious and shareable if you ask!

For dinner I opted for the Shore Leave Roll, a combination of shrimp tempura, hamachi, pickled pineapple, serrano, cilantro, and aji amarillo. While the sushi was good quality, it is slightly on the higher end at $20 a roll. The Eggplant Dragon Roll was very creative and tasty. Only thing is we would have liked more sushi options to choose from for the menu.

As for the cocktails, they're as colorful as they are creative, with themed options changing with the seasons and holidays. We enjoyed the experience and look forward to returning to sample more of what Shore Leave has to offer! Thanks for a...