Spectacular Seafood Lunch

The Jonah Crab Cake with lemon-chive emulsion.

It's true. Turner Fisheries in Copley Square is serving lunch again. On a recent beautiful day we stopped by to satiate a seafood yen and were not disappointed. Turners is one of those places that's been here for years so you often forget about both how good it is and the convenient location, right inside the Westin Copley.

One picture is worth one thousand words, so the proverb goes. It started out as lunch with a friend. It ended up being a total photo-shoot. Thank God I have such understanding people (and restaurants) in my life.

We started out with the Jonah Crab Cake ($12). It was solid, filled with tasty white crab and golden fried in a light bread crumb crust. I have to highly recommend this one.


Seafood Dip starter with Taylor Bay scallops and Laughing Bird shrimp.

Our second appetizer was the Seafood Dip ($10)which came with perfectly grilled rustic bread and toasted pita wedges. The dip included scallops and shrimp in a thick, rich sauce with boursin and tarragon, ideal for splitting two or three ways as it might be too heavy for one as a starter.


Wild Alaskan Salmon - work of art on a plate.

My companion went with the Wild Alaskan Salmon as her main served with fried rice, mango papaya slaw and a tamarind reduction ($16).Artfully arranged and presented, the generous portion was perfectly done. The crispy slaw and sprouts and light sauce made for the perfect combination of flavors. This is exactly how I would serve salmon at home'. If you like salmon you can't go wrong here.


Wild Alaskan Salmon with Fried Rice, mango-papaya slaw and tamarind reduction.



Classic Maine lobster salad on brioche roll.

I could not resist the Lobster Roll ($17), my first of the Spring season. Chunks of Maine Lobster and mayonnaise, simple. Although I prefer a buttered, grilled roll myself the brioche is always a good alternative although the roll could have been a bit fresher. There are some places that pad the roll with lettuce but not here. Lettuce was served on the side with a nice, sweet chunk of claw meat.


Herbed french fries served with the lobster salad roll.


Mango semifreddo dessert.

Dessert for me was the semifreddo ($7), which I'd enjoyed at a Turners dinner a few months back. The menu description of the ten cane rum reduction with pineapple compote makes it sound overly sweet but it was not. The coconut tuile was extraordinary. The soft, cool marshmallowy cubes dissolve in your mouth and finish with a flourish of sweet crystals like palatable fireworks. Very good.


Raspberry-coffee creme brulee.

The much anticipated creme brulee ($7)hit all the coffee and raspberry notes, as promised. The sugary caramel crust, however, proved a heavy-handed blow torch technique, a bit more burnt than I would have cared for. This is quite often the problem with creme brulee - a few seconds too long with the torch. If it wasn't for that detail and the brioche rolls this very good lunch would have rated an overwhelming excellent.

Scrod, Fish and Chips and Sugar-Cane Rum Infused Chicken were other entree offers. You can view the full menu on the website. And although we recommend the dining at Tuner Fisheries visitors to the area may like to stay at The Fairmont Copley Plaza Boston, just across the street for true Boston elegance and luxury at a very affordable price.

Turner Fisheries
10 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02116
(617)424-7425