Forum

Last week I won a gift certificate to Forum. I’m not sure how because I don’t remember signing up for their mailing list. I was excited though, because I’ve been wanting to try it ever since it opened, about 2 years ago. So I decided to take my dad. 

It was a hot and extremely muggy day and we weren’t overly hungry so we decided to share a salad and entrée and a side and call it a meal.

The Grilled Shrimp Salad ($12) is now one of my favorite dishes in Boston. It comes with four decent sized grilled shrimp on top of a coleslaw-like jicama, avocado, and mango with a chimichurri dressing. It was to die for! It had a great kick from the cilantro – in the chimichurrti – beautifully presented and not overly dressed. The table next to use, the only other occupied table outside, ordered the Steak and Tomato Salad, which also looked to die for! 

The drink list looked really interesting, but seeing I had just walked 3.5 miles with my dad all I really wanted was an ice water and iced tea.

As an entrée we ordered the Salmon, I called that one the second I looked at the menu. My dad orders salmon 99% of the time we eat out. It had a crispy skin and was served on a bed of mixed pan roasted vegetables – brussel sprouts, green beans and carrots. Very oily. It was topped with an harissa sauce; hot peppers, garic, coriander, red chili peppers, and carway. Our waiter explained this to us, we had no idea what harissa was, and it was not spicy at all. I have a very low tolerance and I didn’t find it spicy, and it was so just so so, kind of bland. The salmon was cooked almost to perfection, I like mine a little bit more on the rare side. It was good, don’t get me wrong, but was it worth $26? No. For $26 I expected a delicious, savoring, full of flavor, melts in my mouth, piece of salmon. 

We also ordered a side of fingerling potatoes. Why? I don’t know, ask my dad. These were way over salted. And cost $5, really? I thought it was going to be a substitute for the couscous the salmon dish originally comes with, but we were wrong. My dad ate them so not all was lost. 

We left feeling full but not that gross overly stuffed feeling. I hate that. Would I recommend Forum? I would recommend having a drink and the Shrimp Salad. I’m glad we had the gift  certificate because I do not think it was worth as much as they were charging, especially with Atlantic Fish right next door, who knows how to cook a piece of fish. 

On the other hand, they do have gf buckwheat pancakes on their brunch menu. If I ever feel like paying $13 for pancakes - maybe a special occasion - I would like to try these.

Website: http://forumboston.com/index.php

Location: 755 Boylston Street, Boston