Channel your inner Boston Brahmin and party like the elite at the Seaport District’s newest nightlife offering, The Social Register.
Located at the Aloft Boston Seaport hotel across the street from Lawn on D, the restaurant and lounge is the latest venture from Ed Brooks and Russ deMariano, the restauranteurs behind The Brahmin American Cuisine & Cocktails. Similar to their popular Back Bay hotspot, the duo hopes to make The Social Register a place where anyone can feel like a “one percenter.”
“We wanted to provide a very elegant, comfortable, social elite-type of feel, but for all walks of life,” says deMariano. “Anybody from any background can come in and feel like the social elite for the night.”
While The Social Register derives its name from the famed directory of debutants, politicians and other members of American’s upper class, the establishment hopes to offer an eclectic vibe to attract a wide swath of people.
The 7,000-square-foot space features two bars, black tablecloth seating in the dining area, high-top lounge tables, black banquettes, plus tufted couches and aristocrat chairs. There’s also a 1,000-square-foot, 50-seat seasonal outdoor porch that overlooks Lawn on D, as well as an elevated, indoors DJ booth that will alternate between soft sounds for dinner and more energetic playlists for the late-night crowds.
“We like to be a one stop shop,” says deMariano. “You can come here with a group of friends, a date, have a nice dinner and go to the lounge area and relax, then crank it up and go to the dance floor, all in one house.”
Conceptualized by cocktail connoisseur Dan Bacigalupo, the drink program features an array of libations that should satisfy all kinds of taste buds. Highlights include the Raspberry Lime Thorndike, crafted with house-infused raspberry-lime vodka, ginger beer, fresh limes and raspberries ($11); the Coolidge Old Fashioned, made with Bulleit bourbon, muddled orange and Luxardo cherries along with old fashioned basics like a sugar cube, bitters and a touch of soda water ($11); and the spicy Hot & Dirty Ketal One martini, created with a special house-bottled olive and pepperoncini juice and garnished with two blue cheese-stuffed olives and a pepperoncini ($13).
On the food side, chef Sean McCabe has shaped a food program geared towards those who like to share. The menu feautres offerings ranging from the Harborside Calamari, made with deep fried pineapple, cheery peppers and tossed with a spicy aioli and lemon-garlic ($12), to the Sliced Beef Tataki, consisting of ponzu, cucumber, scallion and served served rare ($13).
“It’s not tapas, it’s not appetizers, it’s somewhere in the middle,” says Brooks. “We encourage the sharing.”
Brooks and deMariano believe that The Social Register will help the Seaport area grow its nightlife scene.
“It’s the up-and-coming neighborhood in the city,” says deMariano. “The Seaport has unbelievable dining, great restaurants, but there’s no place that really gives a fun nightlife atmosphere as well. That’s what we do.”
If you go:
Open daily, 4 p.m. – 2 a.m., 401 D Street, Aloft Boston Seaport, Boston, socialregisterboston.com
