Suzanne and I took my buddy Sam out for dinner to celebrate his birthday. Suzanne suggested Range, and since she has yet to steer me wrong, that’s where we went.

We started with cocktails. Suzanne had a Bottle Rocket (pueblo viejo tequila, strawberries, chile, ginger, yellow chartreuse, lemon). Sam and I had what ever the special cocktail was … so I don’t have a reference as to what was in it. I recall rum & pineapple juice. And there was a dusting of nutmeg. It was tropical, spicy, and good.

On to appetizers! I had seared massachusetts dayboat scallops with cactus gazpacho, mint and olive oil. Nicely done. The cactus gazpacho was brilliant.

Suzanne chose the cured steelhead with crème fraîche, fennel and chioggia beets.

And Sam had a goat cheese ravioli.

Entres. I kept with the seafood theme and had california bass with corn chowder, pancetta, fingerling potatoes and chives. This was fall apart tender and good. The chowder is velvety and rich. Suzanne noticed that someone at a neighboring table had this dish and just ate the fish, leaving the chowder. What a sin … it was at least as good as the bass.

Suzanne opted for the slow cooked duck breast with creamed hominy, dino kale and marinated spring onions. The waiter commented on it being done in a sous vide style. Indeed, it was moist & oh so tender.

Sam had fava bean cassoulet with lentils, arugula, meyer lemon and pistachios which we didn’t take a picture of as the dish was served topped with greens, and so looked rather like a salad before digging in.

I was told that a meal at Range was not considered complete without staying for dessert. And so we we did. I had cornmeal crêpes with roasted strawberries, crème fraîche ice cream and pistachios. I love crepes, and while quite different than the classic French version, these didn’t disappoint. Crisp and sweet, they complimented the blackberries so well. Just delightful.

Suzanne had a classic, but extremely well executed strawberry shortcake.

Sam’s dessert was quite nice looking: raspberry ice cream puffs with regina peaches. Thanks to Sam, by the way, for thinking to use the candle to light the dessert photos, as the light was waning by this point and my iPhone is a pre-flash model.

In summary, Range was a big win. I’d love to go back. It’s definitely not cheap, earning it’s Yelp! rating of $$$, but the food and experience is top notch if you’re looking for casual, comfortable fine dining.