The Independent

I see the last review written for the Indy, as we affectionately call it, was posted in 2007 and it was about no football on Sunday? Um, the Indy isn?t that kind of bar. It?s a traditional Irish pub with an upscale feel. This restaurant/bar has some of the most creative food I?ve ever scene on a bar menu! Appetizers feature things like fried almonds and deviled eggs among standards. There actual dinners are so creative using items like lentils, fennel and cauliflower! And the last time I went, I tried their clam chowder. Absolutely phenomenal! It is served to you in a crockpot ? you open up the lid to find whole steamers amid a whole cream and broth base with fresh scallions and whole baby red bliss potatoes, lightly smashed into the bottom of the bowl. It was fantastic ? truly! And their French fries ? lightly salted, shoe-string fries I have literally dreamed about!\r \r All those who wrote bad reviews, go back to the Indy to experience it again, and get something different this time ? order one of the creative entrees and I guarantee, you will be happy! Pros: Food, drinks, location, ambience - staff is very friendly! Cons: Sit in the bar - same menu, better experience more

I was in the bar there for the thursday night football game. I was happy that somebody in town had the nfl network and was showing the game. But about halfway through this irish band starts playing. Not what i was looking for when i wanted to watch some football. So I tried to go to the other side of the place. Of course, it was packed with all the other people from the bar who wanted to watch the game, and the bartender was running around like crazy. So rather than deal with this mess I just left. Disappointing. And I had called to see if they were going to play the game. more

I've always like the Independent as a good cocktail bar while I lived down the street, but the food has taken a turn down a heavy greasy path since the new cook took over.\r \r I had gotten one of their breakfast sandwiches for brunch with their bacon and it was the greasiest fattening food I've had since I had bbq down south. \r \r The crossant tasted good at first, but that was also slathered in butter & the eggs were mostly milk.\r It maybe authentic, but I got sick from it and was up from 11pm to 3am; which is uncalled for. \r That is why I'm warning those of you that like your food crisp or light, this is on pare with the heaviness of Red Bones; which makes me long for the days when they were just like the Joshua Tree's food.\r \r My wife got a BLT that she had to take the bacon off of, the bread was slathered in butter and the french fries were like ""Potato Sticks"".\r \r Mind you this is not a one time experience, I had just forgotten about my last and it may just be the bacon ""rashers"" that is almost all fat. The kind of fat you make Lard out of and how they do their bread.\r \r I will say the Staff was attentive\r The attmosphere is good\r The Drinks are great\r The food kept me on the toliet all night. Trust me when I tell you; you know when & which food does this to you. I'm still a little queezy today.\r \r So beware and still go for the Cocktails and if this is truely Authentic Irish food; then pack sandwiches if you head to Ireland. Pros: Cocktails and casual hip atmosphere Cons: Food is about as greasy and buttery as possible- made me sick more

This place had a nice atmosphere and looked like a fun pub. Great burgers and good service. It also had a nice size bar to accomodate a large party. more

My friend and I went to the Independent for brunch one Sunday and being the only people in there should have given us a clue. \r \r I ordered the Eggs Benedict, which arrived almost a full hour after ordering, and to my surprise, instead of bacon, there was a 2"" thick slab of BACON FAT. There was seriously no red to this bacon, it was all, and I mean the ENTIRE piece was clear, greasy, bacon fat. There is no way the chef could have not known that this was inappropriate. When I tried to send it back, I was told that fatty was the way it was served, for flavoring. \r \r I will never return. Pros: there are huge windows Cons: everything but the windows more

To my surprise, my hands down favorite restaurant in the Boston area and I don't live anywhere near Union Square. The food is absolutely delicious, and my only complaint is that they don't change the menu more often (which they very recently did). I've ordered every item on the menu, and my favorites remain the clam chowder, fried grits, and braised pork. The pub side of the restaurant is also fun, and they have board games and pretty good djs on Fridays. Pros: Great food, atmosphere and people Cons: Nowhere near a T more

I really enjoyed my meal here. Our waitress was friendly but not overbearing; the atmosphere was relaxed; the food was good, especially the artichoke dip, which was very garlicky but delicious. Pros: good service, good food Cons: a little drafty more

I went with my boyfriend for a nice dinner. The decor was modern and stylish. The menu was small. We both got the grilled pressed chicken sandwiches. There was NO flavor! The chicken was supposed to have been seasoned with herbs, but it was bland. Then, I think they forgot to put the mayo or sauce inside because it was dry and tasteless. I would go back again, but only for drinks at the bar. The food was terrible. more

With a group of seven arriving at 7:30 on what appeared to be a slow Saturday night we started with appetizers which were fair to good but slow to arrive. We began to have the suspicion they were attempting to make up for the lack of business in the dining room by pushing drinks from the bar and delaying the food. They sure were attentive in the drinks department. Once our dinner was served close to 2 hours later, our salad was not washed well and was ""explained"" their salad is organic and is supposed to be gritty. Walked out of there feeling like we were swindled. Pros: no wait Cons: Service more

My girlfriend and I went to the Independent on 12/22/2003. We were 10 minutes late for a 7pm reservation and we were told (not asked) to wait for ten minutes. The restaurant was maybe 1/4 full. We were directed to the bar to wait where it took 7 minutes to get a glass of water. There were 5 people sitting at the bar INCLUDING US. Once we were seated it took another 15-20 minutes to get bread, after we asked for it. The only good thing was the food. more

I went to The Independent for dinner last night, a Friday night. The atmosphere was romantic- candles at all of the tables, yet comfortable. The service was great! The dinner was tasty- I had the salmon and my boyfriend had a shrimp dish. Though,there were not many dinner options on the menu. I also thought is was a little pricey for the amount of food we received. The drinks were decent. For dessert we had the apple cobbler, big enough to share. Expect to spend around $100 for dinner, 2 drinks, and dessert for two (including tip). Pros: Service, Parking Cons: Expensive more

From the road, you're thinking rough-hewn English country house, so you might be thinking meat pies or bangers and mash. Not at all. We dined in the bistro, but didn't have time to visit the pub. Fabulous pressed pork sandwich with capers on the most remarkable cheese bread. My fiancee had an arugella salad, enjoyable enough, though she would have preferred to have someone in the kitchen de-stem the arugella before it got to her. Fine, creative cocktail menu. Can't wait to come back to the bistro, but next time, we'll make sure we have time to try the pub as well. I know the community lives with the influence of Tufts and Harvard, but it's strange to dine in such a nice place, filled with patrons in shorts and sandals. Pros: Atmosphere, Great food, Drink menu more

I agree with some of the other ratings that the Independent is a lot of buck for the bang, but the food is good, the menu is balanced between traditional, safe options, and some on the daring side. Their wine list is small, but it's easy to navigate, and every option is good. this is an Irish pub - wine isn't a priority. I've only eaten here, but the bar was packed for a Wednesday night. I'll be heading there for a drink in the near future. Oh, and the ""Two Chocolate Mouse"" dessert is awesome. Pros: Comfortable Atmospher, Quality Food Cons: Sketchy service, tough parking more

Spacious yet cosy,the contemporary country decor was inviting.So too were the staff.My first disapointment was the wine list.Only two wines were priced in the twenties.The broth of the mussell appetiser tasted like watered down milk,not the spicy coconut broth that was promised.The flavour of the spinach ravioli was lost amid a creamy sauce drenched in brown sugar.The independant need too jazz up their bland dishes. Pros: spacious dining area, attentive service, comfortable booths Cons: bad wine list, bland food more

If there wasn't such a difference between the small size of the portions and the large size of the price, then I might go back. They could probably make even more money if they had waitstaff that actually came back to the table to ask if you want something else. I actually had to go into the bar to get myself another drink becuase it seemed our waitress wasn't interested in waiting on us. more

I've been going to The Independent ever since it first opened, and have always liked the food and ambiance, but until recently, the service ranged from tolerable to pretty bad. In the last few months it's improved a lot, and the food is the best it's ever been. Pros: parking, comfortable, usually not crowded more