What if Evacuation Day never happened? Would Boston, and by extension the rest of the country, be overwhelmingly British? For other cities, being more British wouldn’t be too bad. I think, however, it sounds odd for Boston because it’s so synonymous with Irish culture. But imagine eating plum pudding and tea and crumpets on a daily basis? After going to Cornwall’s Pub in Kenmore Square, I’m beginning to reevaluate the British.
Cornwall’s, a spacious British pub, serves up nearly 80 bottled beers and another 20 on draft. Beer aficionados will take delight that the majority of them are obscure British ales, like Fullers ESB, Old Speckled Hen, Belhaven Scottish Ale and Boddington's. The taps pour an excellent beer, albeit expect to pay anywhere from $4-$5.50 a pint.
With ample table and bar space, most nights you won't have to worry about finding a place to sit. The waiters work hard, but the service was fairly poor throughout the evening I was there. If you’re sitting at a table there is nothing worse then to wait and wait and wait for your server. On a few occasions I got fed up with waiting and went to the bar to order another pint. In the end, I can look past that frustration because it was a busy night.
Like many pubs, Cornwall’s has the requisite selection of pool tables and dart boards—and not the fake plastic kind you might find at other bars either. But, what separates Cornwall’s gaming selection is a wall-high shelf of board games in the rear abutment. That's right, I said board games! Get a group of mates and grab a board game or two and spend the night sipping pints and laughing over Simpsons Clue, Taboo, Scattergories, Trivial Pursuit, Battleship, and yes, even Candy Land!
When you get to a certain age, you can forget just how much joy it was to scream “Sorry” as you bump a competitor’s piece back to start, to crack a sly smile when it becomes obvious it was Colonel Mustard with the rope in the Study, or the satisfaction of listening to your friend sheepishly admit, “you sunk my battleship.” Those were the days.
So, the next time some one tells you Irish eyes are smiling, tell them the British are coming, not by sea or land, but by beer and board game.
Cornwall's Pub
654 Beacon St. (map)
Boston MA
617-262-3749
Jim Furbush
can be reached at jfurbush@theoysteronline.com
03/15/2006 | Permalink
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