1. Home
  2. Eat/Dine
  3. Restaurants
Foursquare

Clio

French, Hotel, Bar
$ $ $ $
370 Commonwealth Ave (at Eliot Hotel)
Boston, MA 02215
Get Directions
(617) 536-7200
cliorestaurant.com
Monday
5:30pm - 10:00pm
Tuesday
5:30pm - 10:00pm
Wednesday
5:30pm - 10:00pm
Thursday
5:30pm - 10:00pm
Friday
5:30am - 10:30pm
Saturday
5:30am - 10:30pm
Sunday
5:30am - 10:30pm

There are chefs who represent a city to such a degree that it’s hard to picture them anywhere else. Along with Barbara Lynch, Lydia Shire, and Ming Tsai, there is maybe no other chef whose name is so synonymous with Boston as Ken Oringer. And while he has branched out to New York City with a Chelsea extension of his popular South End tapas spot Toro, if you want to experience vintage Oringer, you need to visit the restaurant that kicked off his reputation as one of the city’s most notable and respected chefs: Clio. Two tasting menus (five courses or nine) feature Oringer and Zach Watkins’ wildly inventive dishes. You might find combinations like a slow-cooked egg with togarashi chicharrónes or roasted beets with huckleberry, umeboshi, and boudin noir set down before you. A don’t-miss dish? The butter-basted lobster with yellowfoot chanterelles and sweet onion (you can order it off the à la carte menu). Speaking of don’t-miss, Oringer’s restaurant within a restaurant, Uni, helmed by chef Tony Messina, is regarded as one of the city’s best seafood spots. Tucked away in Clio’s lounge, this sashimi bar offers seafood from Tokyo’s Tsukiji fish market (they do a wonderful omakase), and late night ramen every Friday and Saturday.

— Arthur Bovino, 101 Best Restaurants, April 1, 2015

Lists & rankings

The Daily Meal Says

Chef Ken Oringer Is Closing Clio and Turning it Into a New Japanese Concept
Clio, Ken Oringer’s flagship restaurant in Boston, will close at the end of the year and reopen as an entirely new concept next

Tips

  • Midsummer Cocktails At Clio with Todd Maul, Clio's gifted bar manager. Tickets are $35 & include passed hors d'oeuvres by Clio & 3 drinks. July 18th, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
    AskMen | 2010-07-14 17:03:35
  • The flagship of one of Boston's busiest chefs, French-American restaurant Clio offers luxurious fare in an opulent setting.
    Epicurious | 2010-08-24 15:00:00
  • Ken Oringer is a tinkererone of just a handful of local chefs to toy with techniques like spherificationwhich makes for some intriguing plates. Great for date nights and business meetings.
    Boston Magazine | 2011-11-15 08:31:23
  • This week the relatively staid room reopens, with a new focus on the bar and a reinvigorated cocktail program from head barman Todd Maul.
    AskMen | 2012-02-01 16:08:33
  • Best martini gimmick: made with liquid nitrogen, it arrives w/ steam coming off it, then the top layer freezes over & you have to poke a hole in it so you can drink it.
    sheri | 2009-07-26 13:49:30
  • splurge on the chef's tasting menu
    Eric | 2009-06-15 17:22:24
  • Uni (the sashimi bar) is to die for.
    danah | 2009-07-23 22:20:09
  • Savor fine dining at this "world-class" treat in the Back Bay's Eliot Hotel, where chef Ken Oringer "stretches your imagination" with "exquisite" "layers of flavor"
    Mashable | 2014-03-20 14:18:37
  • Todd, the best bar manager with impressive gun selections; He makes the best dry martinis in town.
    W. Vincent | 2012-05-04 23:06:56
  • For the best value, order the $49 market menu in the dining room, or small bites and excellent cocktails at the bar.
    The Feast | 2011-06-13 11:33:29
  • Please RT!! Thirsty? Stop by @Clio for a Polaris! It's a mix of gin, grapefruit juice and St.Germaine- oh, and it's only $2 TONITE!!!
    Korsha | 2010-07-08 16:58:48
  • Check out dinner at Clio.
    Eric | 2009-06-10 08:56:25
  • Had breakfast here. Scrambled egg with lox, asparagus, and caviar. Not a cheap place.
    Michael | 2015-07-22 15:32:35
  • The 65-seat restaurant with its taupe banquettes, faux-leopard carpet, and dramatic flower arrangements is a chic setting for such luxurious fare as batter-basted lobster and allspice-crusted venison.
    Epicurious | 2015-01-27 10:14:02
  • Unimpressed. Bad service. Eh food. Stuffy
    sara | 2014-11-24 16:11:26
  • Butter-basted lobster with chanterelle mushrooms.
    Joshua | 2014-10-28 13:16:50
  • Jamie Bissonnette, chef of Coppa, eats here on his nights off. He loves the Cassoulet of sea urchin & lobster.
    Chefs Feed | 2014-08-05 18:15:16
  • The miso marinaded cod is amazing!
    Shannan | 2014-06-02 23:51:44
  • Note that famed mixologist Todd Maul is no longer at Clio, so keep that in mind if you are expecting the same stellar drinks.
    Crystal | 2014-04-23 07:23:30
  • 1 of the best if not the best restaurant I've eaten at in Boston. Todd Collins, Bourbon Smash + Tree Line are my fav cocktails. Foie Gras, cassolette, short rib + duck are not to be missed.
    Roxanne | 2014-03-03 12:44:58

Nearby places

UNI Sashimi Bar
370 Commonwealth Ave (at Massachusetts Ave)
Island Creek Oyster Bar
500 Commonwealth Ave (at Kenmore St)
The Hawthorne
500A Commonwealth Ave (at Kenmore St.)