Garden at the Cellar

Too pricey for mediocre food. I also don’t like that they try to be too creative as opposed to just focusing on serving excellent staple dishes. What does it help me when French fries are made in truffle oil but they are greasy and soggy. If you want simple dishes that just taste great, this is not the place for you.

Chef changed and quality went down significantly. Poached lobster, my favorite, is not served anymore. Wouldn’t go back.

This restaurant used to be a favorite. Now, after the underhanded way the owners treated their amazing chef, Brandon Arms, locking him out and keeping him from claiming his own kitchen equipment, this place is a shadow of its former self. I’ll never set foot in this place again. I can’t give it «no stars», so I’ll settle for one.

CLOSED! Apparently problems with the landlord who owns the bar downstairs. Sad! Hoping they work something out :(
A wonderful brunch spot! Good food, really cute place.

⁴⁄₅ of the things that we got here were absolutely spot on. My mom had the mushroom polenta, which was spectacular. My boyfriend had the duck confit, which he loved, and I had the fried chicked with collard greens. The chicken was crispy yet moist, and the collard greens were as they should be: cooked in bacon fat with bacon bits in them. yum! Finally — as many have mentioned, the truffle fries are to die for.
The only thing that was a dissapointment here was the seasonal taco, which happened to be a fried mussel taco. I love seafood, and I love experimentation, so I gave them a shot even though I’d never really heard of a fried mussel. The presentation was great, all the sauces and salsas were spot on, but the mussels themselves were just past their prime. Very fishy, very tough, and they kind of ruined the whole dish. I love mussels, and was so excited to try these, but unfortunately they were a big miss.
All in all, I understand that a special is something you try out and maybe this one you don’t try out again :) The rest of the meal was great, our server was attentive and polite, and the price for the food was not bad at all. I’d definitely go back, I feel like this is still such a hidden gem!

So I totally tried this place last minute had no idea what it was. The food is fantastic. The mushroom crostini, lobster sliders and bacon rapped dates were my favorite. Burgers are also an amazing choice. Drinks were also very good. Casual place and comfortable. I would definitely recommend

This place is a must try! The tater tots, bacon wrapped dates and mushroom crostinis are my absolute favorites.
I also tried the seasonal taco which had tempura lobster in it and it was delicious.
Oh and I can’t forget the rosemary truffle fries. How can you not love truffle?

Overall wonderful. A pleasant little restaurant to meet friends and have drinks/​good small dishes. Not too fancy but still very decent for all occasion.
I’m not a fan of the bar downstairs though. Only the one on the first fl.

I’m in town for a conference and was staying at the nearby Hotel Veritas (which I would recommend – very cute, clean, great staff). I found this restaurant on Unilocal and went there for dinner based on reviews. I would not give it 5 starts, three at its best. Its a decent neighborhood bar but not deserving of 5 stars.
First the good — the bartender was great, even though his 2^nd night on the job and quite busy with lots of customers. Thumbs up for not getting stressed out and staying focused on your customers. He did a great job.
I had the pork belly bun, good but really needed salt (I know, how does pork belly need more salt???)
I also had tater tots, yummy but it nearly impossible to make bad tater tots.
Mushroom flatbread, very good but not great.
The Bad – I almost looked around for Jon Taffer, from Bar Rescue because I felt like this place should be so much better but was experiencing neglect. This became more evident when the owner/​manager came around the bar to mix her own drink and then pour another hefty wine pour for her friends. She was obviously intoxicated. (for Bar Rescue fans – this is the typical story of less than great places rescued on Bar Rescue.
The place is loud, good use of deep cleaning, and simple updates to more modern finishes. I only stayed at the upstairs bar so can’t comment on other parts of the place.
Its in a great location and seems to have loyal customers. The food is pretty good but other details, likely left to front house management have been overlooked.
If nearby, its a good place to walk to but I wouldn’t go out of the way to eat there.

Cellar in the Basement, said the boy. Decided to come here for a lunch date one sunny afternoon. Parking was hard, but we found it. Menu for lunch was a bit small, salad and sandwiches. The boy got the Ruben sandwich and I got the Cuban. He was happy with the heaping amounts of meat. All sandwiches came with a side of rosemary and truffle fries. They were good, hot and fresh. Maybe a little flavor lacking but good. My sandwich came with pickles, so gave them to the boy. Otherwise, it was alright. Expected more. But maybe another go for dinner next time around.

Just came back for my second time and both times I was pleased overall. I love all the interesting small plate options. The rosemary truffle fries are a very tasty and big enough to share with a few people. The duck steamed bun, street corn, and truffle mushroom flatbread were standouts for me as well. A few people I was with got the burgers and thought they were good as well.
My main complaint is how painfully slow the service is. Whatever you do, don’t say you one more minute to decide what you want because the waitress won’t come back for 15 minutes. And forget trying to make eye contact and flagging them over. And get some fries to snack on while you wait for the food to come out cause it’ll be a while. I also wish they had desserts.
It’s a good idea to make a reservation because it fills up regardless of the day of the week.

Place fills up quickly on weeknights. Try the pork belly bun. Real treat. Cilantro and crispy pork fat!
Tater tots are meh.

Great burger!
I had the animal-​style with pork rind and foie gras on it. Their tots were tasty too.

Arrived at 8pm on a Sunday with two friends, got seated at 8:50pm. Thankfully I enjoyed the conversation so much because I wasn’t expecting such a wait.
Then they were out of many things, including the gnocchi and duck… I asked for the animal-​style burger and was told they were out of the pâté, but if I wanted they could top it with an egg instead.
At that point in time, the meal really was looking under the weather, but excellent food saved the day. The burger was meaty and tender and tasty (though I don’t know that I’d get the chicharron on it again because I wasn’t such a fan of the texture). The fries were delicious. The pork bun was exquisite and delicate and intense and altogether excellent. The tater tots were quite nice and very scarf-​able. The lobster and the octopus were both so very tasty, and the presentation of getting one big octopus tentacle was striking. The octopus’s sauces were intense, with the flavor shifting from vegetal to tangy and then a long mellow finish. I recommend it all. A Pimm’s cup and a couple of friends and it was a delicious evening.
The one downside for me was that at times conversation was a bit difficult due to the other patrons being a bit loud… a few more sound-​dampening materials would be nice, but for the most part it wasn’t an issue. Oh, and one of the three entrees got lost in the kitchen. We waited 10 – 15 minutes then asked the waitress what happened. She checked and explained and apologized, with the last dish coming out just ~10minutes later.
The total bill was $ 100 before tip and with food so good I can easily excuse a hiccup or two in the experience.

It’s a quaint little restaurant. I really enjoyed the food and the atmosphere. The food was definitely much better than I had expected for a neighborhood-​like type of restaurant, and with the fair pricing, it was a done deal. Lots of items to try, although I’d like the portions to be larger. But, that’s just me. I eat… a lot.

This is literally one of my favorite Cambridge restaurants. You can go upscale at the restaurant or casual at the basement bar. The food is fantastic and the staff is beyond friendly.
You must eat (order doesn’t matter):
1) The Pork Belly Bun (make sure you eat it hot!)
2) The Cellar Burger w/​Truffle Fries
3) The Egg Sandwich
4) The Lamb Gnocchi
5) Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup (a childhood favorite!)
Go the bar, sit by yourself, read a book and order dinner. Or go with friends and celebrate a special occasion. It doesn’t really matter, just go!

A group of four of us came here on a Tuesday at 8 pm and we had a bit of a wait — that’s how well-​known the good food is here. The split-​personality restaurant/​bar serves its full menu both upstairs at the tables, and downstairs in the bar area, though for whatever reason the downstairs bar is cash-​only. Cards are accepted upstairs.
You’ll want to come with a group that likes to share, because there are a ton of things on the menu worth trying. Our favorite app was the mushroom and goat cheese bruschetta, but the hand-​made tater-​tots, made of mashed taters and lightly breaded and fried, are great as well.
In addition to the app menu, they have a great «smaller plates» section — which I put in quotes because a $ 10, giant leg-​and-​breast fried chicken «small plate» is anything but small! The entrees are killer as well — the duck breast is tenderly cooked, the spicy lamb gnocchi is a great blend of texture and flavor, while the steak frites could have used a little more tenderizing — it was a tad chewy.
Wine selection is good, pours are relatively generous by the glass. Bottles of Kronenbourg are $ 4.00 — an excellent value for a very good French lager that you don’t see everywhere.
The waitstaff are SUPER friendly, and plenty of laughs and smiles were traded freely back and forth!
We had a great time at Garden, and I’ll definitely be back.

I came here for my birthday a year ago since I had been hunting for the best burger in town for a while and I had been trying to find a reason to cross the river and try this place.
Long story short. Yes, the best burgers I’ve had in MA — the mini burger that is — and I’ve tried the lot. Get them with some truffle fries and a tall german beer with a couple of buds and you’ll leave swooning.

We came to get a quick bite in the afternoon on a Friday and it was pretty empty. We decided to sit downstairs since it was more casual and just ordered at the bar. Just keep in mind that this place is cash only!
We ordered the tater tots, pork belly bun, mini burger, and a mussel dish. I think their menu changes each season so they offer different things year round. I thought overall the food was decent, but nothing blew me away. The food is similar to other gastropub food. I like that there is both a downstairs area that’s more causal and an upstairs dining room so you can choose where to dine depending on your mood.
They’re across the street from a bus stop so that’s also really convenient. Overall, it’s an ok place and if I was in the area I may stop by, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to go.

A culinary delight during lunch while I sat and did some studying at the bar. Stopped by at around 1:30, the place was pretty quiet but then again it was a late mid-​week lunch. The bartender was great and very friendly.
Beet Sliders — I’ll stick with the beef ones please, but vegetarians will love these. As a matter of fact, I thought they were pretty damn good myself
Bacon Wrapped Dates — If you’ve never had the pleasure you really have to try these. You know what they say «Anything with bacon…»
Tater Tots — I chose these over the truffle fries, not sure if I regret it or not. These little guys were basically fried mashed potato balls not the lunch-​lady variety.