Sam’s at Louis Boston

Happy Marathon Monday! Tis the season for long walks outdoors and unplanned Sundays. Yesterday was one of those blissful days where we left the house for a walk which ended up being about 10 miles. We made our way through South Boston, to Flour Bakery for a large iced coffee and then to the Boston waterfront where we decided we were hungry. Eating at Sam’s at Louis has been at the top of my list for some time now, and with it being smack on the waterfront, it was an obvious choice for a gorgeous, sunny spring day.

If you are a fellow Bostonian, you might remember the Louis Boston building being part of the Volvo Ocean Race where it was a Puma store. I had the opportunity to participate in Volvo Ocean Race festivities both in Boston, where I saw an old friend visiting from the Netherlands, and in Galway Ireland, and I loved it. The ocean race is returning (to Galway, not Boston) in 2012, and I can’t wait. But in the meantime, the Boston waterfront has grown, and I am excited to see Sam’s as a new addition.

Sam’s is the upstairs restaurant at Louis Boston, and it is a modern, comfortable space. We walked in and saw that there was no host or hostess, but one of the wait staff told us we could have a table that was being cleaned right then. Score!

There was a little confusion when we arrived about getting a table. It turns out there were people waiting in front of us, and some of the staff didn’t know. I learned later that the owners are doing everything from managing the restaurant to seating guests on their own, and since the place was buzzing with people, there was just a minor misunderstanding. The rest of the service more than made up for it.  After sitting at the bar, we realized the outdoor seats were empty and asked the bartender if we could sit there. He was super friendly and brought us outside with menus.

The sun was just coming out, and strong, and our friendly server soon brought us water and our Jonnie Law’s Jumbo Bloody Marys. I love me a spicy Bloody Mary, and these had quite a bit of black pepper and horseradish blended in making them perfectly spicy.

Sam’s menu had a mix of sweet brunch items and lunch items. It was well past 1:00, and I decided on the club sandwich with fries, while the husband had the oyster po’ boy with warm potato salad.

My sandwich was fabulous, with crispy bacon, thick slices of turkey, ripe tomato, and buttery, fresh bread. My husband’s potato salad was something I want to recreate, warm potatoes with a mustard dressing, paired with a French roll, topped with plump oysters and spicy sauce.

The views were as blissful as the food. We stayed for quite a long time, turning our winter-weary faces to the sun and watching boats and planes while talking about our own future boat. To be continued. . .

Because I didn’t want to leave, I ordered a shot of espresso and more water and sipped away for a few more minutes.

We were absolutely delighted with our experience, minus the hostess snafu, and would return to Sam’s at Louis again soon. The views are probably some of the best in Boston, and it was laid back yet still a very cool place to be.

*Edited to add that following this post, I received a very sincere apology from Sam’s regarding the initial confusion about the wait list, a very nice touch and a sign that they really do care about customers’ experience. I appreciate when businesses do this!

We followed our brunch with a walk home via the Harbor Walk, past some new businesses including DelFrisco’s Steakhouse, Legal Harborside, and the new Jerry Remy’s. FINALLY Boston is using its waterfront for the people.

Are we turning into San Francisco? I hope a little bit. . . I feel like it has been a long time coming for this city of ours to use our natural beauty to our business advantage.

Do you have a favorite city? San Francisco is definitely mine, with Boston in the mix, but I also love Halifax, Nova Scotia for the way they use their gorgeous waterfront for the people.