Rubato

If you build, they will come to eat. 

“He just thought about what he would want to eat if he goes out and something like that didn't exist. So he just made it.” 

“That's the driving factor of all this.  Sure, like a lot of the food is from my own identity. It's what I want to eat. But just to see that reciprocated across people who look different and are different ages. It's amazing to see people.. come together here and enjoy the same things.” 

And no matter who you are, there are so many reasons you too will want to go to Rubato. 

Set in this small unassuming spot in Quincy, Rubato is the brainchild of Chopped Champion and James Beard semifinalist, Chef Laurence Louye, who along with his wife Rary Ratsifa created a Hong Kong style cafe in his mother’s longtime bakery.  

“This used to be Contempo bakery, which was my mom's old school Cantonese bakery for 22 years.  My mom did many things in her life. One of the things is having a Chinese rock band, and so she and her lead singer decided to open a bakery in Quincy.  During the day, it'd be a Cantonese bakery at night time it would be a practice studio. So after taking over we wanted to honor her legacy.  And so Rubato is a musical term for change of tempo. So we felt like this was an appropriate name for a new spot.” 

Having traveled the globe, working in world class kitchens, Laurence longed to bring the dishes he grew up on, with his own personal touch.  

“He pours a lot of love into what he does. What I've learned from being around him is that to make food is a very big sign of love in his culture.  And you can see that in the food he is making.” 

The star of the Rubato menu is most definitely their Fried Chicken Bolo Bao.

But what exactly is a “bolo bao”?

“Bolo boa is similar to a brioche, and on top we put a thin, slightly sweet cookie crumb.  It's been a classic in Cantonese baked goods, and a big part of my childhood.”

And the sandwich that brings the masses to Rubato most definitely is their Fried Chicken version.   

“Inside of it, we have what we call our tasty sauce and then we have our fried chicken, which is marinated in tofu and buttermilk, and that combo really gives it enough protein  to be really flaky and really fluffy. And then we top it with a sesame slaw.  It’s an explosion of flavors.  You have sweet.  You have savory.  You have a little bit of acidity and you have the crunch from the chicken, but also the top of the boa. You have the interesting texture of the slaw, you have the richness from the sauce.  It is really nicely balanced. You can't go wrong with it. And people seem to love it.” 

People also seem to love the Chili Chicken Bolo.

“It's our fried chicken but we dunk it into a chili sauce and then we douse it with a sour cream and onion dressing.  When you bite into it, it's umami, its sweetness, its spiciness, it literally is every single like piece of your taste bud, just like being punched. And I think people love it”

And since Rubato opens at 8am, a breakfast bolo seemed in order.

“So for breakfast, spam bolo bao. It’s spam. It's not, we don't make it in house. We get exactly the classic spam in the can.  We do a really delicate steamed egg on top, and then we put a Kraft single in it. So it's kind of like this mix of artistry, but also just nostalgia and fun.

The other star of the Rubato menu is their Hong Kong French Toasts.   But these go above and beyond anything you’ve ever had with house made bread, stuffed with various sweets, fried in egg batter and then topped with condensed milk and cookie crumbs.  And while the peanut butter is a classic, the Rubato fan favorite has to be the lava egg yolk version. 

“The lava egg yolk French toast is unctuous.  When you cut into it, the custard kind of just lavas out  So it's sweet, it's a little bit of savory.  It's very rich. It's really nice balance of textures and flavor.”

 For a quick bite, Rubato hand makes their bao daily. 

“We make our boa dough in house every day and we have four different types. So we have barbecue pork. We have a beef brisket.  We have the lava egg yolk custard, and then we have a Sichuan veg Bao. It's a nice snack. My mom that's the thing that she takes all the time. So if I don't keep count of my boa, sometimes I'm like, why am I missing six boas? Usually it's my mom.”  

There’s the Rubato Fun Fun- a rice noodle dish with beef brisket, curry seafood, and herbs.  Traditional style congee served with fried dough for dipping.  And the flavor packed Salt and Pepper Chicken.  

“The salt and pepper chicken tastes slightly spicy. It's definitely got a punch of kind of umami and salt, and then there's kind of these notes of garlic, onion, fresh and fried as well.  It's just like umami to the max. And it's really simple. It's nothing too crazy. And I think it's just a big hit on rice.” 

And from sandwiches to sweets, for Laurence, there’s nothing better than cooking food from the heart.   

“I wanted to cook food that meant a lot to me. That meant a lot to my upbringing and my identity as a Chinese American.  The questions I ask myself when I'm cooking is. Does this feel right? Is this authentic to something that I would want to eat? Is there a reason behind it?  I think there's kind of a deeper element to it and I think it speaks to people like me and beyond. And I think we were fortunate enough to find success in it.”