Stuff to Eat in the Suburbs: Waltham—Joe Sent Me

The first time this Bostonist saw Joe Sent Me it was winter. It looked like just another bar from the outside, pubby and cave-like in the winter snow. At the time we were worried about being cold and were doing much of our drinking inside our own house to avoid having to interact too heavily with outside’s frigid temperatures and piles of snow. However, a couple of weeks ago Joe Sent Me located on Main Street in Waltham got another look. Always on the lookout for any restaurant with outdoor seating to take advantage of the brief months of lovely Boston weather, we noticed a chalk board outside of Joe Sent Me proclaiming in bright red letters Patio Open. Immediately intrigued we vowed to try it before the climate turned south again. Well, we did just that last week with a friend for a late lunch.

The patio is open, airy, and pleasantly decorated, a little gem hidden in the back of this fine Waltham pub. You wouldn’t even know it was there if you didn’t notice the sliver of sunlight peeking through the back of the pub.

Joe Sent Me is your typical pub, benches and barstools abound on the inside and it’s a great place for trivia or an after-work drink with co-workers or friends. Their beer selection is varied and they even have Magner’s on tap for those of us who prefer their bubbles with a little apple flavor. Their mixed drinks are also quite tasty and well balanced. Not too much mixer or alcohol so you feel like you’re getting your money’s worth while sipping at something that doesn’t taste like jet fuel. The real surprise here was the delicious food menu.

We ordered a burger with bacon and caramelized onions and a pressed chicken sandwich with red peppers, cheese, and ranch dressing. The burger was juicy and perfectly cooked. And the saltiness of the bacon and the sweetness of the onions really complimented the juicy umami of the burger. The pressed chicken was a solidly put together sandwich with bread that was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The chicken was sliced, white breast-meat, well trimmed and juice with a lot of flavor. The red peppers, cheese and ranch dressing balanced each other out to create a truly deliciouscombination of flavors. None of the flavors were particularly overpowering by themselves but together they created a sandwich that was truly hard to put down.

Each sandwich came with a delightfully sour dill pickle wedge, the accompanying fries were appropriately crispy and salty, and we were pleasantly surprised when offered a set of condiments that included malt vinegar for the fries. Prices are reasonable and the food and drinks make Joe Sent Me a great place to hang out for an evening, in the winter or summer.

Joe Sent Me also has a location in Cambridge. You can find directions to either location and a menu on their website.

This Post first appeared on the Bostonist