Anthony Rose's Schmaltz at Night trades bagels for lobster rolls and queso wieners
The Dupont Street chef launched a summertime dinner service built on "extreme high-low food"—cold lobster on warm potato rolls, all-beef wieners buried in cheddar queso, and nostalgia sundaes.
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Anthony Rose tried bagels at night. It didn't work. So this summer, the chef and owner of Schmaltz Appetizing on Dupont Street pivoted to something bolder: a dinner service called Schmaltz at Night, built on what Rose calls "extreme high-low food."
"If you look at all these New England and Connecticut-style lobster places, they're selling the greatest thing in the world—a lobster roll—but then they've also got chicken fingers and hot dogs," Rose told the source. "I love that." Schmaltz at Night borrows that playbook, mixing upscale seafood with casual indulgence—and pulling favourite dishes from Rose's earlier restaurants, Rose and Sons and Big Crow.
The quarter-pound New England lobster roll ($45) arrives cold, just sweet East Coast lobster with mayo, lemon and salt on a griddled potato roll, butter on the side. For those wanting more, a half-pound version ($79) requires a fork. The all-beef wiener from the Butcher Shoppe gets buried under a cheddar-queso blanket ($9; also available sans cheese, though Rose's menu leans toward indulgence). Pastrami chili–loaded nachos ($17, plus $8 for the chili) stack fried corn tortillas with house-made queso, jalapeño rings, onions and cilantro—the chili made from smoked pastrami scraps.
The Nordic shrimp options pull Matane shrimp from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, poached and flash-frozen to lock in their briny character. The cocktail cup ($21) serves them over lettuce with a horseradish-heavy sauce. The shrimp salad roll ($21)—the lobster roll's less ostentatious cousin—piles them on a griddled potato bun with romaine, pickle mayo and drawn butter. Side dishes include a Big Crow throwback coleslaw ($4), chunky Yukon Gold potato salad with sour dills and buttermilk ranch ($4), and a Tymek's naturally fermented pickle ($2.50) for cutting through the butter and queso.
Dessert leans nostalgic: the rotating sundae lineup includes a triple-chocolate fudge brownie, but the Purple Nurple ($8)—vanilla ice cream, grape Jell-O, condensed milk and whipped cream—reads as pure potluck memory.
Schmaltz at Night runs Thursday to Sunday through at least the end of September.
Good to know
What is the New England lobster roll at Schmaltz at Night?
The quarter-pound New England lobster roll costs $45 and features sweet East Coast lobster with mayo, lemon and salt on a griddled potato roll, served cold with butter on the side. A half-pound version is also available for $79.
When is Schmaltz at Night open?
Schmaltz at Night operates Thursday to Sunday through at least the end of September.
What are the shrimp options at Schmaltz at Night?
Schmaltz at Night offers Matane shrimp from the Gulf of St. Lawrence in two preparations: a cocktail cup for $21 served over lettuce with horseradish sauce, and a shrimp salad roll for $21 with romaine, pickle mayo and drawn butter on a griddled potato bun.
