We’re at the end of Dine Out Boston, where epicurious eaters can get great prix fixe deals in Boston and Cambridge. Far more alluring to me have been pop-up concepts like Vinal’s burger night and the recent vegan feast at Season to Taste: varying concepts intrinsically baked with passion around a cuisine, season or specific occasion. Another option I love is Sam’s clam shack menu at Möeca (officially, the summer bar menu), launched last month and running Tuesday through Thursday nights, but only at the bar.
It’s a smorgasbord of small seaside noshes and all about the clam. The Sam is chef Sam Hadley, and on the slate there’s the essential cup ’o chowda, baked stuffed clams and fried clam bellies to go with a Rum Runner or a $6 Narragansett (Ganny!) tall boy. It’s an affordable menu, too, especially considering Moëca’s a Michelin tagged eatery.
The stuffed clams were a treat I had not had in some time, with generous chunks of clam, a moist, rich, flavorful stuffing that boasted smoky accents — use the lemon wedge generously to give the New England comfort classic a zesty zing to bring it all home. The chowder, too, had smoky hints, a pleasant and surprisingly thin cream broth with perfectly al dente cubed potatoes (overcooked and mushy can ruin your chowder experience) and tons of chopped clams. The clam bellies (it’s appetizer sized) came in a well-seasoned batter (similar to the one Moëca uses on its monkfish) that was crisp and not greasy, although that’s a feature I love about the batters at the typical roadside shack. The creamy and smooth deconstructed tartar sauce with a mound of freshly chopped scallions atop it made for a subtle and pleasing dipping companion.
Moëca’s bellies are really good, but now I have a jonesing for a classic (greasy) basket or box form somewhere up on the North Shore. No matter, if you’ve still got room, you can close out your clam shack experience with an ice-cream cookie sandwich — I couldn’t do it but wished I could.
Moëca
1 Shepard St., Neighborhood 9, Cambridge
$$ (out of $$$$) for the clam shack menu
Have a favorite dish or dine out spot that we’ve not covered, and you think we should? Email Tom at tmeek@cambridgeday.com.
A stronger
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