Thanksgiving is a culmination of autumn harvest and flavors – a final celebration before warming winter spices and flavors settle in. If you’re not in the mood to cook before Thanksgiving, consider treating yourself and celebrating the bounty of the season at Seasons 52. Seasons 52 made dining seasonally easy by creating The Harvest Menu – a 3-course prix fixe featuring many seasonal fall veggies and flavors. Catch it before it’s gone: the Harvest Menu ends Wednesday November 21. As Seasons 52 says, “Better is always in season.” Read on for our full dining experience.
Eating Seasonally
Eating seasonally an aspiration I’ve currently been working towards. It’s true – food that is out of season or from far away doesn’t usually taste as good as locally-grown or produced. It’s all about the ingredients.
When I eat out in Boston, many of the places I go pride themselves on working with local farms or in creating menus that reflect the season. Seasons 52 was kind enough to invite me to dine with them and experience the Harvest Menu, which took the pressure off of making a meal and allowed us to have a nice night out.
Harvest Menu – 3 Course Menu
For those of you with food allergies, I found the kitchen and staff to be accommodating and knowledgeable about the ingredients. Managing partner, Jonathan, stopped by to check on how our meal was and even Sous Chef Brian came by to chat about favorite fishes – his is a nice cod or sea bass – a dish he recommends from the Seasons 52 menu.
First Course
Options:
Butternut Squash Soup
Porcini Mushroom Bisque
Spinach and Caramelized Bosc Pear Salad
Organic Field Greens
Our selections:
Butternut Squash Soup
The soup was smooth and flavorful, and, because the quality of bread matters to me, the mini baguette served alongside the soup was warm and had good flavor.
Organic Field Greens
toybox tomatoes, savory granola, white balsamic vinaigrette
topped with house granola made with quinoa, caraway seeds, almond, and farro
The first course options are full size, and the salad could have easily been a full lunch for me! It was good and fresh, and it was all devoured.
Second Course
Options:
Mediterranean Style Australian Lamb Shank
Cedar Plank Roasted Salmon
Venison Chop
Wood-Grilled Filet Mignon
Short Rib Lasagna
Our selections:
Cedar Plank-Roasted Salmon with Roasted Seasonal Vegetables (Caulilini, crushed potatoes, yellow beets, carrots), dill mustard sauce, grilled lemon
The cedar plank upon which the salmon was served was a clear highlight for me on the Harvest Menu. When the plate arrived, the aroma was simply divine and it made the salmon extra fragrant and flavorful. The scent reminded me of the inside of a sauna, adding to a relaxing ambiance for the meal. The salmon was served medium, and I enjoyed it best with generous squeezes of grilled lemon that brought out the flavor from the cedar plank.
Cedar Plank Salmon with Seasonal Vegetables – Caulini, Potatoes, Carrots, Beets – Harvest Menu – Seasons 52 – Where the BlueBoots Go
Wood-grilled Filet Mignon with Caulilini, Yukon Mash, Brussels sprouts, red wine sauce
Filet Mignon with Caulini, Yukon Mash, Brussels Sprouts – Harvest Menu – Seasons 52 | Where the BlueBoots Go
I enjoyed tastes of the Filet Mignon and wanted more. It was seasoned well and cooked to temperature. The filet was soft and marbleized and flavorful. The red wine sauce went very well with the filet.
Caulilini is a vegetable that I became acquainted with for the first time last night! A cross between cauliflower and broccolini, this vegetable strikes a good balance: it has the structure of broccolini with a toned-down and pleasant flavor, without bitterness I often notice with broccolini.
Third Course
How to choose a dessert from these?
Options:
Pumpkin Pie
Poached Pear Cheesecake
Additional desserts not on the Harvest Menu: Key Lime Pie, Pecan Pie, Belgian Chocolate s’mores, Mocha Macchiato, Raspberry Chocolate Chip Cannoli.
Our selections:
We were in a chocolate and coffee mood, so we went with two other desserts from their selections: Belgian chocolate s’mores and Mocha Macchiato.
Although, I also wanted Pumpkin Pie! The desserts are small (portion control!) which is a welcome sight to offer a little more than a taste, but not too much to overdo it after a nice meal. They’re perfect for a little dessert cheers!
Wine
I like trying reds in particular. Wine is not included as a part of the prix fixe of the Harvest Menu, but I found their glasses affordable on the whole and with good variety. They had a section called “Interesting Wines” and “Wines you should try before they become famous.” I tried the 2016 Bibi Graetz Casamatta Sangiovese from Tuscany. 
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We enjoyed a relaxing, seasonal meal and left satisfied. Additionally, from a health-conscious perspective, the ratio of vegetables to meat was about 50% or more. I’m still thinking of the cedar plank salmon and caulilini!
If you don’t manage to catch the Harvest Menu before it is gone for the season, you may still see some ingredients and dishes available on the Winter Menu!
Which of the courses looks the best to you? Would you try something other than our selections?
Thank you very much for hosting us, Seasons 52, and thank you to our server, Nadia!
I have eaten there twice -both times for lunch meetings with colleagues- and really enjoyed it too! The presentation on rectangular plates made it fun and lovely at the same time!
How nice! The hospitality was great. I haven’t been there for lunch yet, but I spotted a number of other items on their menu that I would like to try (before the season is over.) Thanks for sharing your experience there!