Alden & Harlow

Alden of the Above

Fried Rabbit and Scotch on Tap in Harvard

None 9 Photos Alden & Harlow
Alden & Harlow.

That used to be the name of an early-20th-century architectural firm in Boston.

But now it’s the name of the long-awaited new Harvard restaurant starring Michael Scelfo, chicken-fried rabbit and draft scotch cocktails that happens to open tonight.

Our tale takes place in what could be Ron Swanson’s oversized garden shed if it weren’t this restaurant instead. You’ve got walls made out of bourbon barrels, antique signage from an old Arkansan BBQ joint and a long granite thing where scotch-and-punch drinks flow from taps under twinkling Edison bulbs. That thing would be a bar. And that feeling would be you getting excited about it.

Soon, you’re holding court with a band of merry comrades at the marble chef’s table. The shared-plates menu sparks a heated debate. Group orders are pitched and rejected. Re-pitched and re-rejected. Until finally, the adjacent open kitchen wills mesquite tortellini and chicken-fried rabbit into existence. And just like that, all is right in the world.

Nothing left to do but tap into near limitless reserves of housemade draft aperitifs back at that bar. Which is when you’ll learn that the full menu is available until 2am every Thursday through Saturday.

Great food-eating nights.

Elsewhere on the Daddy

More Food in Boston