RESTAURANT REVIEW
Burning Bright From island cocktails to crudo, oysters to late-night burgers, Paper Tiger’s menu mixes local ingredients with far-flung flair.
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shrub dominant. The name is also the title of an album by Bug Hunter, a Seattle band co-owner Marcus Alcantara played the drums in when they were “torn between a couple” of names for their album. The Funky Cold Mojito ($12) comes in a coupe filled with pure, shivery cold, astringent mint and cachaça. Our pleasure soared highest with the fan of lush bluefin tuna curving across a small plate, each fat, dark slice pure magic on the tongue. Dots of wasabi emulsion and scattered pea shoots were bit players alongside that triumphant fish. Nace Cohen, the executive chef, knows the right local places to get the freshest fish, and Alcantara, who was also our enthusiastic server, got the kudos it deserved. The Tiger Salad ($10.50)—shredded green papaya bright with lime juice and made savory with a touch of fish sauce—was not
marred by candied peanuts, and slithery slices of Japanese eggplant ($10) in a dark, sweet, garlicky oyster sauce also speak well for the kitchen. The specials menu suggested fried monkfish with hot sweet peppers, but we wanted to venture beyond Maine. The tender, whole roasted sea bass stuffed with creamy rice and served with mild green curry sauce pooled around its length was more in keeping with the wallpaper, deboned except for the spiny fins. A burger, poutine, or a side of house fries on the menu beckon late-night drinkers. But the non-alcoholic Good Day DEMA ($7)—from the band 21 Pilots’ conspiracy paradise—made with the house ginger syrup, pineapple, and tarragon bites the mouth that drinks it, sharp-toothed like the tigers prowling up the walls. Otherwise, vivid flavors and appealing textures amply rewarded us in dishes and drinks. n
MEAGHAN MAURICE BAILEY
T
he neon words “Paper Tiger” glow a soft red, glimmering on the wet pavement below like a patterned carpet spread out along Fore Street. Inside, the dark walls recede into exotic shadows behind the exuberant cursive sign in the front window as we settle into a painted fern booth and contemplate the jungly wallpaper with tigers climbing trees toward peacocks perched above them. Your adventure starts off smoothly with the first sip of a cocktail called a Southern Drawl ($12): a more complex, less sweet riff on Southern iced tea with peach, cognac, aged rum, and black tea. The Swizzle Me Timbers ($13) with gin, falernum, bitters, and pineapple is almost as good, but even better is Torn Between a Couple ($7), the alcohol-free version of the Fort Gorgeous ($11), with lively kiwi and strawberry
B Y N AN CY EN G LISH
