Good food, good feel, good drink. A Scituate surprise.
Galley is essentially a small plates tapas place in a storefront space wedged (approximately) between a yogurt shop and an optometrist on Front Street in what is known as "the harbor" of Scituate. The actual harbor is over a block away, across the street and behind the strip of stores (anchored by CVS) on the other side of a large municipal parking lot.
This is to say that although Galley is very close to the water, it isn't a waterfront restaurant. Scituate already has two direct waterfront eating/drinking/gawking establishments where diners can nosh and oh-gosh the view of boats and lighthouse and sky and water, a view that is gorgeous. But those places serve tired uninspired food. The menus are boring, the execution worse. Not gonna name them, but suffice it to say the view is the allure.
Not that I don't love a view -- I do -- but maybe I love Galley because there's no view. The owners -- also of Tinker's Son in Norwell and Bia Bistro in Cohasset -- have carved out a space where residents go to eat and drink and relax (and sometimes listen to live music). I'm avoiding the term townies lest you think this is a hack for locals. It's not. Galley could hold it's own in the city. These owners took a space that has failed many a proprietor -- poor Finn -- and re-imagined it in context of the larger world. Thank you!
The restaurant is small -- think of that optician's office -- but makes such clever use of the space that it feels sufficient and comfortable and efficient and leisurely and all at the same time. The whole front is floor to ceiling windows. They open in warm weather and close in cold with options for partial openings or early closings depending on weather and mood. There's nothing quite like eating and drinking in the salt air in summer.
Along the wall to the right is a full bar with beautiful layout of bottles and lacquered wood. It angles so there are plenty of seats and a couple of TVs for those inclined but the TVs are never the focus. Galley is designed for socializing. All over there are plenty of tables for diners. In the center, there's an island hightop with seating on both sides. Toward the back, a booth-like table for six or more diners, in a cubby space, in case you want quiet. On the left, more tables, both low and high. And then to the far left, a raw bar, with seating for maybe 8 to 10. And to the left, again, more bar-like seating against the wall, all with clever decor. A space that could seem small or uninteresting has been fully utilized so that every nook feels comfy, so that there's something for every taste, which brings me to the menu.
It has evolved as it adapts to success to avoid failure. The duck flatbread is good. The lamb is good. The last taco I had was really good -- but these change so pay attention to ingredients and price when ordering. The potato skins are just okay, kinda pricy. The pork slider good, the pickled vegetables really good. The food variety is hard to exhaust -- I'd be surprised if you couldn't find something you like -- really like -- but I hope that the menu keeps evolving without devolving to fried bar food (which is easy to get elsewhere). The beer selection is great, including Dale's Pale Ale on draft. They serve good wine (or so I hear!). They make excellent cocktails consistently, one drink to the next, one bartender to the next, one day to the next. The Whiskey Sour -- really a Boston Sour -- is to die for. Sunday's Bloody Mary bar is legendary.
Easy parking on the street -- this is a small town -- or in the municipal lot behind the CVS.
I've resisted Yelping the Galley even though I've been here at least a dozen times. Maybe because it's so close to home. Maybe because I like it so much, despite its flaws. Maybe because I really want it to succeed and succeed and succeed forever and ever. read more