Clio

370-A Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, MA 02215
617-536-7200

In 1997, Clio took up residence in the Eliot Hotel, turning a basic neighborhood watering hole (the Eliot Lounge) into an elegant Parisian-style supper club that quickly earned a national reputation.

Chef Ken Oringer’s unique contemporary French-American cooking, done with a more-than-occasional Asian twist, continues to captivate – as does the restaurant’s leopard-spotted carpet, a favorite focal point for reviewers. Expect décor that is chic and service that is indulgent. As Boston Magazine put it “Whatever your state of mind when you go in, you’ll feel pampered when you leave.”

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Ken Oringer

Chef at Clio

New Jersey native Ken Oringer's career began inauspiciously; washing dishes in a local restaurant as a teen. He caught the kitchen bug, however, and went on to study restaurant management at Bryant College in Rhode Island and then received a degree from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, where he was voted Most Likely to Succeed by his classmates.

After graduation, Oringer's first position was at David Burke's River Café in New York, followed by a pastry chef position at Providence's legendary Al Forno, and sous cheffing under Jean Georges Vongerichten at the Marquis de Lafayette in Boston. Next, he briefly operated Terra Trattoria in Greenwich, Connecticut, which won three stars from The NY Times.

In 1992, Oringer moved to San Francisco and became chef de cuisine at Silks in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. There, his distinctive, Asian-accented style and flair with cutting-edge ingredients began to get noticed. Conde' Nast Traveler magazine listed Silks as "one of the top 20 restaurants in America." Raves followed in Gourmet.

In 1995, Oringer returned Boston, and won praise for his work at Tosca in suburban Hingham. Within a year, the restaurant was dubbed "Best on the South Shore," and Ken was profiled on CNN. In 1997, he and a partner opened Clio in Boston's Eliot Hotel, with a contemporary French/American menu that married skilled technique with an artful, Asian-inspired approach.

The restaurant's phenomenal success catapulted Oringer's reputation into the stratosphere, and the accolades never stopped. Clio has been a Gourmet magazine Top Table, and has been lauded in most national magazines and daily metropolitan newspapers. Oringer has also appeared on several Food Network shows, as guest, cook and winning contestant. After nominations in 1998 and 1999, he won The James Beard Foundation's Best Chef - Northeast Award in 2001.

Intellectually restless and an enthusiastic traveler, Oringer eventually sought new outlets for his culinary curiosity. In 2002, he opened Uni, an intimate sashimi bar in Back Bay. In 2005, he opened Toro, a Barcelona-inspired tapas bar in Boston's trendy South End. In 2007, he opened La Verdad, an authentic Mexican concept located adjacent to Fenway Park, and lent his name and knowledge to KO Prime, a modern steakhouse in Kimpton's Nine Zero Hotel on Beacon Hill.

Diversification aside, Ken is known to be a hands-on kind of chef who can often be found manning the stove at Clio, procuring farm-raised beef for KO Prime at local farms, mixing margaritas at La Verdad, or creating surprises for the patrons at Uni.

Dinner

First Courses

"LN2" Gazpacho
with avocado, strawberry, ventresca and Sicilian pistachio $18.00

Creamy Corn Soup
with tarragon blossoms, brown butter powder and Maine crab $18.00

Marinated Yellowtail and Yellowfin Tuna
with opal basil, ginger and garlic $19.00

Cassolette of Sea Urchin and Lobster
with parsnips, crispy shallots and candied lemon $19.00

60° Egg
with jamon broth, coffee, black truffle vinaigrette and vadouvan spices $16.00

Foie Gras Terrine
with wild blueberries, basil and frozen horseradish $25.00

Lacquered Foie Gras
with dehydrated yogurt, apricots and smoked whiskey $25.00

Salad of Fresh Hawaiian Hearts of Palm and Grilled Lobster Mushrooms
with chrysanthemum greens, botarga and spruce vinegar $18.00

Salad of Heirloom Tomatoes
with crispy Ipswich clams, minus 8 vinegar and green goddess dressing $18.00

Salad of Mesclun, Crisp Vegetables, Herbs and Flowers
with fresh goat cheese and vinaigrette $14.00

Entrees

Buttermilk Braised Organic Chicken
with foraged mushrooms, caramelized artichokes and wild rice $34.00

Sweet Butter Basted Maine Lobster
with chanterelles mushrooms, fava beans and "vin jaune d'Arbois" $44.00

Crunchy Sautéed Atlantic Halibut
with fragrant citrus ginger broth and spinach $39.00

Hot Smoked Wild Ivory King Salmon
with granny smith apple, jasmine tea and white asparagus $40.00

Black Licorice Roasted Muscovy Duck
with fennel bulb, rutabaga and candied pomelo $37.00

Porcelet Pig
with braised roma beans, tomato jam and black cardamom jus $38.00

Green Peppercorn Braised Veal Cheeks
with creamed sorrel, cauliflower and spiced pineapple $38.00

‘Surf and Turf'
Wagyu Striploin and Maine Lobster with rose petal wine, allium, lilly bulb and barrel aged shoyu $30 per oz

Dessert

Sweet Fried Coconut Milk
with watermelon sorbet, black sesame and elderflower granité $11.00

Frozen Capsule of White Peach and Condensed Milk
with hibiscus, rooibos ice cream and ginger crumble $11.00

Honey and Poppy Macerated Strawberries
with lemon curd, poppy ice cream and compressed sablé $11.00

Croustillant of Raspberry Sorbet
with white chocolate meringue, passion fruit cream and shortbread $11.00

Dark Chocolate and Caramel Biscuit Coulant
with salted peanut ice cream, chocolate sauce and saltine tuile $11.00

Cheese Selection

"Plateau de Fromages"
with "traditional and untraditional" accompaniments $24.00

PLEASE NOTE: The items, ingredients and prices on all menus are subject to change. It is recommended that if you are interested in a particular dish you contact the restaurant directly to determine its availability.

Dictionary

Basturma: 1. noun Armenian cured and spiced meat.

Chanterelle: 1. noun A wild and nutty mushroom with a trumpet-shaped head.

Chèvre: 1. noun French for "goat," as in cheese.

Chorizo: 1. noun Crumbly, spiced pork sausage.

Foie gras: 1. noun Expensive, silk-textured goose or duck liver that has been enlarged by a process you don't want to read about if you're going to eat this dish.

Gazpacho: 1. noun A Spanish soup served chilled, originally a puree of cucumber, tomato, onion, bell pepper, celery, vinegar, breadcrumbs, olive oil and garlic.

Hummus: 1. noun Mashed chickpeas flavored with lemon juice, garlic and oil.

Jus: 1. noun French for juice, jus also refers to the unthickened juices from a piece of roasted meat.

Niçoise: 1. noun Dishes typical of cuisine from the Nice, France, region, where garlic, black olives, anchovies and tomatoes are nearly always part of the mix.

Ragu: 1. noun Tomato and meat sauce from Bologna.

Skordalia: 1. noun Potatoes, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar, parsley and possibly breadcrumbs or nuts, blended into a sauce or dip.

Sorrel: 1. noun A sour, buckwheat-related herb.

Terrine: 1. noun An earthenware container, or the dish cooked therein.

Tuile: 1. noun A thin, crisp, French cookie.

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