Elephant and Castle, Boston

Elephant and Castle.  Two items I don't normally put together.  Why is there an elephant with the castle?  I have no idea, but I do know that Elephant and Castle is a chain of British inspired pubs (ok, I do know, it is a neighborhood in London that they named it after).

"Get your Brit on."

Yes, that is really their slogan.  The menu at Elephant and Castle is pretty much what you'd expect from a British pub: sausage rolls, meat pies, wings, bangers & mash, burgers, fish & chips, even the Sunday roast, plus, uh, hummus and veggies and a veggie wrap.  To satisfy the non meat eaters.

I tried a few items, and was ... highly underwhelmed.  On the plus side though, the staff were really quite friendly, even remembering me by name the second time I visited!

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I placed my orders in advance on Seamless, and they were ready in <5 minutes each time.  Very prompt.

Setting

I visited the Boston location.

Bar.

Since I visited for takeout only, so I didn't get the full pub experience, but it is a large space, with plenty of bar seating and regular tables, and seemed to be a decent place to gather over a pint, if that is your thing.  +1 point for ambiance.

Outdoor Seating.

They also had outdoor seating, I think makeshift because Covid, as it didn't exactly have the pub ambiance of inside ...

Cuisine

Mashed Potatoes.  $3.50.

"with fried onion garnish."

Well, this wasn't quite what I was expecting.  I was in the mood for creamy, smooth, yellow, mashed potatoes, and these were skin-on, hunky, red skinned mash.  At least I knew it wasn't instant?

My order was ready in ... literally one minute, so clearly just scooped into a container to go.  The mash was cold, lumpy, not creamy ... just, really not very good at all.  It had some garlic in it.

The crispy onion pieces I was excited for, but, uh, they were soft, and tasted kinda stale, and were clearly not freshly fried crispy onions, but rather, something from a package.  They looked so promising!

And finally, the gravy.  Also cold.  Also not the consistency I wanted ... just kinda thick and congealed.  No real flavor.

So, meh, meh, triple meh.  Nothing really positive to say about these.

*, I'll give credit for having the topping and gravy included for only $3.50 ...

Onion Rings.  Side.  $4.

"Panko crusted onion rings. served with chipotle aioli."

I was excited to see that the onion rings, like the sweet potato fries, came with a chipotle aioli.  Unlike the potatoes, they were freshly cooked, hot, and crispy.

But, uh, not panko crusted as advertised, rather they were crispy battered.  Kinda greasy.  All a thinner style than I like.  Highly mediocre.

The chipotle aioli was nothing special either, likely just from a Sysco bottle.

The onion rings are available as a side for $4, or a share plate for $8, presumably the difference is just portion size.  

**+, nothing exactly wrong with them, but, just not very good either.