Boston - April 20, 2005

How's It Hanging?

Gourmet Boutique

Isn’t it excellent how your kitchen is always stocked with such a diverse assortment of gourmet goods? How you always have just the right osetra caviar, Spanish fig spread, and truffle oil?

Yeah, sure. Right now all you’ve got are a jug of Gatorade in the fridge (great for hangovers) and a bottle of Grey Goose (great for the cosmos that cause the hangovers).

Whatever. Why bother keeping all that stuff on hand anyway? You’ve got better things to do with your time, and you know you’d just scarf it down without appreciating it — sometime between drinking the cosmo and feeling the hangover.

Instead, when you’re hankering for something of the epicurean ilk, point yourself toward the Gourmet Boutique. The name may be basic, but it says it all: The closet-size shop is loaded with specialty foods from around the globe. That means handmade marrons glaces. Truffles — black or white. Bizac pate de foie gras. A world-class selection of teas.

So you can offer finicky guests something other than sports drinks and liquor.

Gourmet Boutique, 10 Huntington Avenue, Westin Copley Mall, Back Bay (617-266-2906).