Tupelo has been on my short list of restaurants to visit in Cambridge for a while now. So when a great deal popped up on Groupon I had to buy it. Krystal and I tried to get a table there a couple of times before but there was always an hour or longer wait. We finally got a table this weekend and it ended up being one of the best meals in recent memory.

Friday night, we managed to get out of the house early and arrived at Tupelo at about twenty past seven. After a few minutes hanging by the door we were greeted and told the wait was about 45-minutes. We grabbed drinks at the bar: I had an ABITA Amber beer which is brewed in Louisiana and was pretty good though nothing remarkable. After only a 20-minute wait we were seated at a nice window-side table near the bar.

The menu at Tupelo is dead-simple: Five appetizers, six entrees and a few each of sides, specials and desserts. For starters we decided to split the Watercress Salad with Roasted Pear, Goat Cheese and Candied Pecans. The food came out almost immediately, it was pleasantly prompt service all nice.  The salad was great, dressed with nothing but EVOO and lemon juice, a nice light start to the meal.

For entrees we ordered the Red Wine Braised Brisket and the PEI Mussels special. The beef was amazing. It was slow cooked, tender and flavorful. It was topped with a very light drizzle of freshly-grated horseradish sauce and was a perfect sharp counterpoint to the savory meat. There were also piles of a simple mashed potato and braised collard greens. The greens had a smoky barbecue quality to them that was fantastic. Overall it was a deliciously savory dish and I probably could have eaten two of them. I didn’t try the Mussels but Krystal was very happy with both the quality and quantity of them.

Tupelo keeps their southern theme for the dessert menu as well, offering up Brown Butter Pecan Pie and Red Velvet Cake. We opted for the Pecan Pie with a scoop of Bourbon ice cream, instead of the normal vanilla. The pie was great, not too gooey, packed with pecans, a reasonable portion. The Bourbon ice cream was great also and had enough bite to offset the sweet; they should keep it on the menu.

Overall, I was extremely happy with the whole meal. The restaurant is small, cozy and simple which makes the food stand out. Tupelo is the best restaurant I can think of in Inman Square and I’m glad to have it just a few minutes down the road: I will definitely be heading back.