If you’ve lived in Boston for at least 15 years, you may remember the “old days” of the city’s Seaport District, whose sprawling parking lots, hulking industrial buildings, creaky wharves and piers and dusty, wild west-feeling commercial area toward the eastern edge gave it all a somewhat menacing, end-of-the-world vibe.
Starting around 2010, much of this waterfront area started seeing rapid development where the surface lots and old buildings were replaced by glitzy office towers and luxury residential complexes – though for a while, anyways, the actual community part of this developing neighborhood struggled to catch up as it was mostly devoid of restaurants, bars, stores and community facilities. Upholstered Dining Chairs
Today, the Seaport District is still in need of the latter, though a lot of options for food, drink and shopping have sprung up and parts of the area are indeed starting to feel a bit more like actual neighborhoods, including Fan Pier along the western edge by Fort Point Channel. And while much of Fan Pier leans toward trendy and chic, you can also find some laid-back and unpretentious places as well, including one of the most pleasant outdoor bars in the entire city which is part of a popular restaurant called Committee, though it almost feels like its own place in a way.
Committee first opened in 2015, quickly becoming a popular spot in part because, at that time, there still weren’t a ton of dining options in the Seaport District, and especially the Fan Pier area. The restaurant’s focus from the start has been on Mediterranean small plates (leaning toward Greek fare) along with cocktails, and its interior space is warm and welcoming, combining rustic and modern touches while also using wood that was recovered from Anthony’s Pier 4, a landmark restaurant that shuttered in 2013.
The inside space is indeed quite attractive and a nice escape from all the steel, glass and concrete that dominates the Seaport, but the vibe outdoors is much different, so much so that it really needs to be talked about separately.
While Committee’s address is technically Northern Avenue, an increasingly bustling road lined with skyscrapers and looking not unlike some streets in the nearby Financial District, the outdoor section of the restaurant sits along the much quieter Fan Pier Boulevard. Because this road doesn’t really go anywhere and basically peters out at the water, it gets relatively little traffic, so the patio is a quiet oasis that also gets some extra privacy from its location within a covered walkway with thick columns; an abundance of planters adds some attractive greenery.
The centerpiece of the patio is a bar that includes several seats and is backed by beautiful wooden shelves that display a variety of spirits and some knick-knacks like vases and artwork. To the left of the bar are a handful of low-top tables that extend toward Northern Avenue and to the right are some high-tops as well as a side entrance to the interior of Committee.
Not everyone likes to sit at a bar to eat (or drink), preferring tables where they can face their fellow diners and have a bit of room to spread out, but the outdoor bar at Committee may change some minds, in part because it’s such an intimate little spot where you can chat with the folks behind the bar, who are more than happy to do so, especially when the patio isn’t busy.
Sitting at the bar also allows you to peruse the aforementioned bottles of alcohol sitting on the shelves, and this being an ouzeri (loosely defined as a Greek tavern that serves ouzo and lighter fare), it is almost a must to order a glass.
Ouza is a beloved anise-flavored liqueur that is often considered the national drink of Greece. It’s a little like a lighter version of sambuca, and like that popular Italian drink, it is usually ordered as an aperitif to begin a meal.
In a place such as Committee which focuses on meze (a style of dining somewhat similar to tapas, where small plates are shared), ordering ouzo is a perfect complement to the food on the menu. Committee has a few options for ouzo, including Ouzo Barbayanni, Ouzo of Plomari and Ouzo Giokarini.
If you want to expand beyond ouzo, Committee also offers tsipouro, a brandy that is similar to Italian grappa, and mastiha, which is made with resin, imparting a piney taste. Plenty of beer, wine and cocktail options are available here as well, and the wine list is quite extensive and includes a number of wines from Greece.
The full dinner menu for Committee is offered on its patio, though the more-casual vibe outside makes it the perfect place for snacks and, on weekends, brunch items, and there is certainly some overlap between the dinner and brunch menus. Highlights include a simple but delicious sesame-crusted piece of feta drizzled with Greek honey; warm Peloponnese olives with orange zest, garlic and a mix of herbs and spices; the brunch-only breakfast gyro, which tastes as good as it looks, combining scrambled eggs, grilled halloumi, Greek sausage and roasted red pepper sauce all placed in pita and served with home fries; the spanakopita grilled cheese and tomato soup, which is another brunch-only item and is a wonderful take on this classic comfort food dish, including feta cheese and sourdough; a plate of fried calamari with a velvety caper leaf tartare and banana peppers adding just a bit of heat; and a hearty onion and tomato pie with manouri, a mild cheese that is a little like a less salty and creamier version of feta.
Too many people tend to write off the Seaport District as a soulless place with little in the way of interesting dining and drinking spots, but there are actually a wide variety of good options here, including Committee and its friendly and inviting patio. Assuming that there are several more weeks of decent weather before the cold, dark days of late fall and winter set in, there is still plenty of time to check out this intriguing outdoor bar hidden away near the water.
Vintage Rattan Patio Furniture Committee, 50 Northern Avenue, Boston, MA, 02210. committeeboston.com