Beat Brasserie

Love the vibe here! Even though it’s located in a basement, it feels big and open. The cocktails are delicious and change seasonally. A fun spot for brunch — the lemon pancakes are amazing! The buffalo cauliflower is delicious BUT there are only THREE pieces! For $ 10 you would think you get a bit more

This is the sister restaurant to the Beehive, but I prefer this location because the bar area doesn’t feel as cramped at peak hours. Service was great and the Bowl Azteca with shrimp that I ordered was filled with healthy and delicious ingredients. Also, they have live music, which varies in genre (it went from Neo-​Soul to Reggae in the time that I was there last night), but all of the artists were very entertaining and talented.

I don’t like this place at night. It is so loud and very crowded. So I was reluctant to go there for brunch. But I was pleasantly surprised, because they are amazing for brunch! Service was great, the environment was nice and quiet. One of the best in Cambridge for brunch. Especially the omelette with veggies was delicious.

Love the Beat. Excellent cocktails, appetizers, and atmosphere. Eclectic spot w unique offerings. Prices are a bit steep but I’m willing to pay. Try the mezcal cocktail & buffalo cauliflower.

Blues NYE was a blast! Big band swing perfect for a festive atmosphere. The venue is wide open and spacious, consisting of two large bar areas and formal dining section.
LOVED my bartenders — friendly, witty, attentive. Totally made my NYE! Made sure I was taken care of the entire night, helped me feel right at home flying solo. Had a delicious Last Word and Aviation. The Blood and Whiskey is a bit strong on the passionfruit, be forewarned Blood and Sand seekers. Will perch at the bar anytime. Has 36 wines on tap from local small-​batch vintners and a strong whiskey selection.
Buffalo cauliflower was delish! Duck liver pâté was decent, but esp loved the proper accoutrements — stoneground mustard, balsamic cherries, cornichons and a lightly dressed frisee.
Highly recommend Beat Brasserie for the live music and the bar staff!

My fiancé and I had such a wonderful experience at the restaurant tonight. We just popped in for a drink — never even knew this spot was there!– and ended up staying for a few more drinks, oysters and dinner. I was amazed at the professionalism and team work of everyone around me. I commented to my fiancé that the place operated like a Swiss watch. No one was ever just standing around doing nothing. Everyone was incredibly polite, courteous and always smiling. I want to to commend you on your staff and their professionalism, especially our waiter, Joel. He was exceptional. I’ve never been so overcome by a positive experience at a restaurant… I knew I had to email someone when I got home!
We have found a new favorite spot ! I can’t wait to come back. The manager/​owners should be commended for their hard work in running such an awesome and delicious venue. Bravo!

This seems like a great restaurant. It’s a hip atmosphere and everyone seemed to be having a good time. All the neighboring foods looked good. Unfortunately, my group just ordered the wrong thing. We opted to order the $ 74 seafood platter of oysters, shrimp, «and more». The «and more» was either the small clams or the simple salsa. The platter ruined the entire experience for us, as it was entirely overpriced. But it was our fault for ordering it, so I am willing to give this restaurant another try next time I am in the area.

Nice live music on some nights, yummy house wines — the long list of those, actually!
Good service, interior is arty and cosy.
The food is the reason I didn’t put 5 stars: sea food plate isn’t that good especially for that price. I’d recommend mushroom tacos and onion soup.

I loved this bar! Came here on a Friday night and it was really packed and there kind of was no where to stand but it was so cool in there I didn’t care– they had a live band and the drinks were delicious! I’ll deff be back again to maybe try the food!

On a cold, autumn night, the Beat is worth a visit. You’ll feel comfortably tucked away from the bustling streets with an underground lounge with great, soulful music; warm, stiff drinks; and good food to cure what ails you.
Definitely try a Fig Newtowne and the Gnocchi with Lamb if you are looking for a good cold-​weather combination.
What’s Good
– atmosphere
– live, soulful music
– craft cocktails
– great staff

The short rib tomato grilled cheese is really good. The Fig Newtowne is strong! Nice ambiance with live music.

Bar staff struggles during peak hours. Three different people took our order, then we got sassed because three different people took our order. Hm. Strawberries on chocolate cake tasted like onions. Everything was expensive, drinks were OK.
Went back for brunch. Quite delicious. Not a «true» jazz place, sound is lacking. Of course, cats looking for a «real» place to go will be around Berklee.

Great atmosphere, with live jazz music in the background and not too loud either. Food was great, especially the lemon pancakes. Really appreciated the friendly service and were very accommodating to fit our 30 guests. Service was quite quick, thank you!

I went for a walk in Harvard Square strictly to take a photo of CarTalk Plaza. I saw this place, but decided to head way back out to my Marriott in the ‘burbs to crash for the evening.
The next night, I was in the mood for some live music. Beat Brasserie showed as having live jazz so I decided to give it a shot. After an evening of wonderful music and wine on tap, I decided my next trip to Boston would be based around coming back to this place.
Fact. This place has the best french fries in the world. Once you’ve been here, you’re ruined. It’s been months since I’ve been there, and I still rank these fries as the best. Get them.

There’s always live music, the place is huge, and the ambience/​environment is super chill but lively and fun. Great place for a date! Their drinks are generally pretty good (not amazing) and in line with the rest of the city.
Food is pretty good too, but overpriced. I’ve only been for dinner.
They can be notoriously difficult if you’re out of state (multiple IDs) or not a U.S. citizen (I’ve had them refuse a friend’s Canadian license and backup IDs, claiming he needed a passport).

I’ve never eaten a full meal here, but I’ve gone here a number of times for drinks. They can get a pretty long line out the door, especially if there’s live music. The live music is always good and never so loud that you can’t talk. I’d consider this as the most NY bar Boston has in how its decorated and has a spunky character — def unique to the area.
Service can be slow, but they’re very friendly
Drinks — When they first opened, I thought their drinks were GREAT. Think craft cocktails, made generously and with delightful fusions of flavors. However, I do think they’re not as good as they used to be – more watered down. Go for the environment and don’t expect Eastern Standard/​The Hawthorne level drinks
Brussel sprouts — although it took 45 minutes to get this side order, it was really yummy!

Since we were lucky to land a parking space in Harvard Square on a Friday night, I checked on OpenTable which restaurants had a last minute opening and Beat Brasserie happened to be one of them. When we got there, the hostess told us that they couldn’t sit us until the whole party was present and that we would be placed on a waitlist (with an unknown wait time) but I mentioned on OpenTable that there was an opening so they sat us right away. I liked how restaurant was dim setting. However, the tables were placed so close together, often times we’d bump into each other when exiting the tables. The live music playing in the background made it difficult to hold conversations.
Tonight, we ordered a variety of items off the menu, mostly appetizers. I ordered the Squid Ink Pasta which was topped with crabmeat, leeks, and roasted tomatoes, and garnished with basil leaves. I did manage to find a lonely english pea in this appetizer. The sauce resembled a mildly spicy Fra Diavolo sauce with a strong lemon juice flavor. I specifically requested the dish not to be spicy due to a dietary restriction but the chef ignored it. I also ordered the entrée version of Steamed Maine Mussels, which was cooked in a tomato based beer broth and topped with old bay. I requested it to have no spicy red flakes and I’m glad they followed through with this request. I didn’t like how the broth had a bitter after taste. However, it was supposed to come with toast points or fries but our server must have forget them because it never came. My mom ordered the Crispy Tuna Spring Roll, which consisted of deep fried, wonton wrap filled with avocado, tomato, wasabi, rice, and soy, sliced in half, and served with a sesame oil infused soy sauce. She also ordered a Harvard Beet Salad, which consisted of roasted golden and red beets around a bed of arugula served over herbed yogurt and topped with thin, crispy potato strips. My brother ordered the Nantucket Fluke Ceviche, which consisted of chopped fluke, diced cucumber, and diced tomato, drizzled with lime juice, and topped with jalapeño and cilantro. He said the ceviche was spicy, just the way he likes it. My dad ordered a Prime Natural Beef Burger, which consisted of lettuce, tomato, thick beef patty, slice of cheddar cheese, crispy fried onions, and port wine aioli between a sweet, toasted, buttery bun. It came with a dill pickle (sliced in half) and hand cut fries. Sadly, it was probably my favorite item of the night.

The atmosphere is 5 stars. Very jazzy, kind of funky, a bit speakeasy, with a mile long bar and a stage at the back which is visible from pretty much any of the tables.
The service definitely rates 5 stars as well. My waiter was personable, helpful when we asked for suggestions, and chatty without being overbearing.
5 stars for the Grapefruit Julep, the only summer cocktail you’ll ever need.
The Buffalo Cauliflower gets 6 stars because it was one of the best things I’ve ever put in my mouth. Seriously, I could never eat buffalo chicken again and if I had this I wouldn’t care. Plus, everyone knows vegetables=health. Even if they’re breaded and smothered in buffalo sauce. Don’t quote me on that.
The rest of the food… meh. 2 stars. I got the Luxe Nachos. Luxe? I asked about it and the waiter described the nachos in a way that had my eyes glazed over and my mouth snapped shut so no drool would come out. The guy said the word «marbled» to describe the double-​baked cheese. He was a professional. I’d hire him just to stand there and describe my meals to me while I ate them. Unfortunately the nachos themselves didn’t live up to the description. Not enough chips for the toppings, and way too much juice in the bottom of the dish, so that more than half the chips were getting mushy in Soggsville. The pulled pork didn’t taste like it had any kind of flavoring on it, and other toppings were few and far between. The only thing luxe about them was the price tag at close to $ 20.
My friends also didn’t love their brisket, it was kind of fatty and the sides were small and heaped underneath the meat.
The music gets 5 stars because the sound system wasn’t too overpowering on any instrument, something even a layman such as I can sense, especially with jazz. The talent was good and I liked that they actually had brass instead of just piano, singer, bass.

This place is just not for me. Beginning with the music and overall style and ending (most importantly) with the food, I’m just not into it. I’d been in once before for a drink but most recently had some food that was EXTREMELY disappointing. I ordered the tuna spring rolls & vegetarian nachos. Both sound delicious and decadent but they were equally bland.
The tuna spring rolls barely had any tuna but most notably, they were filled with lettuce and soggy/​poorly cooked RICE. Why on earth would you stuff a spring roll with rice? I wonder if they were kind of mimicking the burrito concept? Whatever the case, it just didn’t work. And even if it did work, at LEAST cook the rice properly! The lettuce was disconcerting as well. I don’t like the concept of typically crisp/​fresh veggies like lettuce or cucumber being cooked in hot oil. Finally, the rolls were not fried at a proper temperature because they were soggy and oily instead of crisp. Ah, and they came w/​a side of napa cabbage slaw that was also poorly seasoned and unflavorful.
The vegetarian nachos looked promising. I loved the quality of the chip & the overall quality of the ingredients (namely, the cheese), but they were totally dry (no guac/​pico de gallo or anything moist). Also, they had some unseasoned/​plain cabbage on them which seemed like a missed opportunity (for flavor and moisture. wish it was pickled cabbage, for example). Wasn’t impressed.
If I never come back here again, I won’t mind at all-​!
Important to note however, that my dining companions had a burger and really enjoyed it. I figure it only fair to report this part since maybe it’s a good place for particular menu items but not all. Try it at your own risk!

Stumbled across this place while looking for a quick drink or two before dinner. It’s downstairs underground and maybe a bit tricky to find. We weren’t sure what was down there but we found a large room with two bars, a stage and live music at only 6pm. On our visit there was a trio playing laid back bluesy jazz with a young lady scatting (?). It was nice background to our conversations at the bar.
They have a good selection of beers on tap and an even better one of wine on tap as well. They had this twelve or so spigot device for dispensing an eclectic selection of wines. Folks were eating oysters next to us but we were just there for liquids. Our bartender was a lovely young lady with a bright smile who took a few minutes to explain to us the story behind the place that is not a hotel at all.