M & C Cafe

When Mr. Draft entered M & C for this session, Mr. Mix and Mr. Merlot were already seated at the bar, sharing a bottle of Portuguese red wine. Mr. Draft quickly surveyed the draft selection and opted for a Narragansett Bock and was pleasantly surprised by the subtle chocolate
undertones and understated hoppiness, giving reason to celebrate the comeback of Narry, a Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts beer legend. Soon, we were joined by Mr. Cork, who, if memory serves, also ordered the Narry Bock. M & C is an old school, north end bar, perhaps better renowned for its' food, which include an array of local seafood and Portuguese specialties, such as linguica, chourico, cacoila, favas, and the like. There is a separate dining room, which was adequately busy (for a Wednesday night), but the bar itself was quiet and overly lit. Frankly. Mr. Draft and his colleagues left that particular Wednesday night, and Mr. Draft felt it was a difficult bar to review as there nothing particularly distinguishable about it, in either a positive or negative vein. The barmaid was friendly and efficient, the rest room was clean, the bar was large and inviting...but, somehow, it just registered as bland. As the Barflies' unofficial leader and official reviewer, Mr. Draft was in a quandary...so a decision was made. Several day later, Mr. Draft returned, not with the usual suspects, but with Mrs. Draft. It was early on a Saturday evening, and things seemed a bit busier, both in the restaurant and on the bar side.Despite the engaging conversation proffered by Mrs. Draft, and the distraction of her compelling physical beauty, Mr, Draft was on a mission from God (to borrow a phrase from The Blues Brothers)--- to more deeply explore M & C, with a critical eye and palate. The bartender was Mike (the "M" of M & C--- still don't know who "C" is...) and he was gregarious and chatty. Of note was the greater than previously seen draft selection, which included not only the aforementioned Narragansett Bock and the to-be-expected macro-breweries, but also Blue Moon Belgian Wheat, Samuel Adams Winter Lager, Killian's, Smithwick's, and a selection from Buzzard's Bay Brewing. Not too shabby... Mr. Draft ordered a couple of stuffed quahogs, one for himself and one for Mrs. Draft, and they were quite good...hearty, spicy, and ripe
with decent-size chunks of q-hog...much better than the ones at Freestone's.... All in all, the second visit opened Mr. Draft's eyes a bit. Yes- it is too bright, it is a little on the unremarkable side in terms of decor, it is family-friendly (either a good thing or a bad thing depending on one's parental status and mood) but the better-than-average draft selection and the selection of bar munchies help it receive a 6.

Addendum:
M&C's had a fire and we wish them well with their renovations. We will raise a glass in honor of you and hope you come back soon.

Mr.Mix