Restaurants in Boston
Due to its shared cultural roots with greater New England, clean
briny flavours from the sea dominate Boston's regional cuisine,
along with a large emphasis on rum, salt and dairy products.
Ideal for a takeaway lunch by the harbour or a quick bite to
eat, Faneuil Hall still comes out tops with a fantastic
cross-section of the city's cosmopolitan cuisine and manages to be
a wonderful tourist attraction simultaneously.
The North End is a firm favourite with locals and features
wonderfully intimate cafés, bakeries and eateries with
enough gastronomic treats to get just about everybody's mouth
watering, while the South End boasts some of the most elegant
restaurants in Boston's dining scene.
Most restaurants in the North End don't accept reservations, and a
few accept credit cards, but dining here is well worth the wait.
Those hoping to eat dinner in Boston's South End are strongly
advised to make a booking.
An tiny unpretentious Italian restaurant with hard working staff
and authentic Italian cuisine, Pomodoro is one of those
neighbourhood restaurants that is frequented by locals and
foreigners who keep coming back for more. Situated in the Northend,
Pomodoro serves a wide range of Italian cuisine from traditional
linguine marinara with lots of garlic and fresh herbs to seafood
wonders like tiger shrimp. The affordable prices and quality of
food make up for the simple décor, with most patrons being
mesmerised by the activity and aroma escaping from the open kitchen
and the food on their plate. Reservation recommended. Open Tuesday
to Sunday for lunch and dinner.
Address: 319 Hanover Street
Telephone: (617) 367 4348
| The Capital Grille |
$$$$$ | American |
The succulent and large proportioned steaks, served in style at
The Capital Grille, send carnivores into raptures, particularly the
enormous 24-ounce (680g) dry-aged porterhouse that is the
restaurant's speciality. Steaks are hand cut and perfectly seasoned
before being grilled and served along a choice of more than 350
bottle wine list. Seafood entrées are also on offer, and the
desserts include a tempting homemade cheesecake. The décor
is sophisticated and clubby. Open for dinner daily.
Address: 359 Newbury Street
Telephone: (617) 262 8900
| Max and Dylans |
$$$$$ | American |
This new hip low lit and sharp angled venue is half bar and half
restaurant perfect for casual dining or big gatherings of friends.
The food is unpretentiously delicious with an array of meals that
mom used to make, only better. Mac & cheese and meatloaf take
centre stage alongside other deceptively simple dishes that will
have even food snobs sneaking in bites.
Address: 15 west street, Downtown
Telephone: (617) 423 3600
| Hamersley's Bistro |
$$$$$ | International |
One of Boston's great chefs presides over his own bar,
café and dining room in a baseball cap, turning out his now
famed signature dishes. The menu changes seasonally an this spring,
for example, features spicy halibut and clam roast with bacon
braised greens, white beans and black trumpet mushrooms. The
atmosphere is relaxed, but the food is serious. Open for dinner
daily. Reservations recommended.
Address: 553 Tremont Street
Telephone: (617) 423 2700
| Pho 'n Rice |
$$$$$ | Asian |
The Boston area's eclectic heritage is best appreciated through
its foods and nowhere better than at Pho 'n Rice. For the
uninformed pho is deceptively simple traditional Vietnamese soup
consisting of light but strong broth and noodles with pieces of
meat and vegetable that continue to cook in the bowl. Pho 'n Rice
has added great variations to the traditional meal along with some
Thai style dishes that promise to be both light on the wallet and
waistline.
Address: 289 Beacon Street, Somerville
Telephone: 617 864 8888
| China Pearl |
$$$$$ | Chinese |
The jewel of Boston's Chinatown district is the China Pearl,
renowned with both locals and visitors. The extensive dinner menu
is rather daunting, but each dish, from General Gau's Chicken to
Lobster Chinese style, is equally delicious. The restaurant's Dim
Sum menu (a variety of savoury snacks made of minced meat wrapped
in dough, shium mai or thin wonton and cooked in various ways) is
award winning and much sought after. Open daily for breakfast,
lunch and dinner.
Address: 9 Tyler Street, Chinatown
Telephone: (617) 426 4338
| Durgin Park |
$$$$$ | American |
'Your father and grandfather probably dined with us' says the
advertising slogan for this Faneuil Hall market restaurant, which
has been feeding the hearty appetites of locals for well over a
century. Today the restaurant is a tourist attraction simply
because the cuisine it serves is still authentic old style New
England. The food is unpretentious, honest and good, including
favourites like clam chowder, fish chowder, fish cakes and beans,
chicken pot pie, prime rib, roast turkey, cornbread, Indian pudding
and apple pie. Open daily for lunch and dinner.
Address: 340 Faneuil Hall Market Place
E-mail: seanadpark30@aol.com
Telephone: (617) 227 2038
| Speed's Famous Hot Dog Wagon |
$$$$$ | American |
This completely local haunt would be a shame to turn nose at as
one should never underestimate the pure pleasure of an American hot
dog from a hot dog stand. This particular unassuming stand sets the
bar for all others and is consistently listed as the best in the
country. These behemoth dogs undergo an intricate cooking and
marinating process only taste buds can understand.
Address: 54 Newmarket Sq. Roxebury
Telephone: (617) 839 0102
| Barking Crab |
$$$$$ | Fish |
It's just a shabby little shack with a deck overlooking Boston
Harbour, but it is renowned for serving the best clam chowder in
town, not to mention other seafood delights, and even roasted
chestnuts in winter. It is a little raucous at the best of times
out on the deck, and the indoor dining room is little quieter and
extremely casual. Live bands entertain while customers crack and
peel shrimp and crab claws and slurp pitchers of beer. Fried clams,
shrimp, scallops, oysters, calamari, lobster, fish and of course
crab are available in a variety of guises, from battered to
steamed. Open daily for lunch and dinner.
Address: Fort Point Landing, 88 Sleeper Street
Telephone: (617) 426 2722
| Silvertone Bar and Grill |
$$$$$ | American |
The trendy subterranean lounge of the Silvertone has a retro
vibe where the food is as comforting as the prices. The menu offers
solid meals with a few fancy touches, like meatloaf and mashed
potatoes, tasty macaroni and cheese, spicy Caesar salad and
marinated steak tips. Cool cocktails, like the signature
raspberry-infused vodka martini, and a varied wine list complete
the picture, offered with friendly service. Open for dinner Monday
to Saturday, and lunch on weekdays.
Address: 69 Bromfield Street
Telephone: (617) 338 7887
