The Boston Restaurant Recommendation Thread
 

I see a lot of scattered restaurant reviews in various threads, as well as recommendations for restaurants outside of the city.

I'm hoping this thread can be the start of a consolidated listing of restaurants located in the city of Boston for both tourists and residents alike.

I was torn on whether to break-up the listing by food type or location, however, I think location will be a deciding factor so I chose this option. I'd like to keep this list limited to high quality options (both affordable and high-end) that would make anyone delighted. If the list grows too large, it can make choosing very difficult. Please feel free to PM me any suggestions of recommendations of your own! :)

*Note: this will be an continuously updated thread
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Back Bay

- Grill 23: Hands down the best steakhouse in the city of Boston. Sometimes refereed to as "G23", this place has some of the best meats in New England. They have a high tech aging room in their kitchen that allows for them to do a standard 21-day aging to a 100-day aging process. This is the place where you often will find corporate businessmen blowing their expense account amongst the dark wooden paneled walls and oriental carpets. One dish that is a must try is the Kobe Cap Steak. ($$$$)

Bay Village

- Erbaluce: One of the best kept secrets in all of Boston. This Italian restaurant has some of the most creative dishes in the city. The chef sources his ingredients from local farmers and his own organic herb garden. One little know fact of this place is that if you go on a slow night (Sunday or Tuesday-Thursday) you can request the Chef's Tasting Menu of 5-7 courses with an added on wine paring for each course...all for about $100/person - this is a GREAT deal, especially when most tasting menus and wine pairing options cost upwards of $200 at any other restaurant. ($$$)

Beacon Hill

Chinatown

- Gourmet Dumpling House: Situated in the crowded streets of Chinatown, this restaurant has a line out the front door starting at 4:30 pm most days. Don't let the decor fool you: this place has the best dumplings outside of China. Make sure to order at least one portion of the "Soup Dumplings", which will be called Mini Juicy Dumplings with Pork on their menu. ($)

Financial District

- Sam LaGrassa's: If you're in town during lunch (11am-3pm), this sandwich haven is a must try. Their slogan as the World's #1 Sandwich is not far fetched. Try the homemade pastrami or New England Clam Chowder. ($)

Fenway/Kenmore Square

- Island Creek Oyster Bar: Places like this give New England seafood the great reputation it has today. From their massive raw bar selection, to their infamous "Fried Oyster Sliders", ICOB is making headlines throughout the city. One of the best parts of the restaurant: the interior decor. Unknown to most, the back wall of the restaurant is lined with cages that are filled with over 100,000 empty oyster shells. ($$$)

North End

- Neptune Oyster: A well established seafood spot located in the heart of the Italian district. They have a great selection of oysters and also offer a hot butter Lobster Roll that is a stand out on the menu. Get there at least 15 minutes before opening as they do not take reservations and the wait can be upwards of two hours on the weekend. ($$$)

South End

- Toro: An authentic Spanish tapas restaurant with a hint of New England flavors. Toro does not take reservations, so line up early, or put your name on the list and grab a glass of wine across the street. Toro serves a plethora of very tasty and reasonably priced tapas. From classic Elote to their take on razor clams, everyone can easily find something they will enjoy on the menu. ($$)

Copley Square

Allston/Brighton

East Boston

- Rino's: There is a good reason that this local joint was featured on the Food Network show, Diner, Drive-Ins, and Dives. The kitchen produces some of the best Italian in the city (don't tell this to anyone in the North End). One of their specialties, Lobster Ravioli, is homemade with so much fresh lobster that the pasta almost bursts open upon contact with a knife. If you aren't a lobster lover, don't worry. Rino's serves up many of the well know classic Italian dishes we all know with a fantastic home cooked flair. ($$)

If your goal is "to keep this list limited to high quality options (both affordable and high-end) that would make anyone delighted," it's destined to fail. The thing about restaurants is that people don't always agree. Grill 23 is "[h]ands down the best steakhouse in the city of Boston"? There are lots of Abe & Louie's patrons who would beg to differ. (I'm not a steak guy, so don't have a view on that one.) Island Creek Oyster Bar is the type of place that "give[s] New England seafood the great reputation it has today"? Actually, the city has been starved for most of my life for a real high quality, high end seafood restaurant. I love B&G Oyster and Neptune Oyster, but both have somewhat limited offerings. Based on what I read about Island Creek -- and I agree that it generally has been getting raves -- I thought we finally would have the seafood restaurant that this city deserves. But when I finally went for the first time last month, I was somewhat disappointed. (That said, I definitely will give it another chance. I hate to write off a place -- particularly one as well regarded as Island Creek -- based on a single visit.)

My point, I guess, is that there's a reason why sites like chowhound.com provide a forum where people can debate the merits of different restaurants, as proposed to pretending one can compile an objective list of only the bests. And given how comprehensive chowhound is, I'm not sure it's worthwhile to try to recreate that forum here.

I'll go ahead and link this thread in the Master Thread as it could be beneficial to someone looking for food by area instead of by food type.

One suggestion though would be to not have a paragraph with each establishment, but rather one sentence or so depicting what each place has to offer. If the list blossoms (and I hope it does), a paragraph for each place might be a bit too much to "digest" (pun absolutely intended ;)).

Thanks for the idea!

Adam, NE Ambassador

You make some points that make sense (people are bound to disagree, and yes Neptune is fantastic - I'll add that to the list) and others that are irrelevant. My goal is to grow a list of dining options that offer something unique to Boston or something special that would delight most people. Trust me, I've been in the business long enough that I know what makes people happy. I get the 80/20 rule - I know that the above options will make the majority of folks happy. Should you choose to side on the minority and disagree, please go ahead and voice your opinion below with concrete observations that will allow others to come to their own conclusion. Considering that in previous posts you say that, "Some of the best seafood is being served up at Island Creek Oyster Bar...", and here you say you disagree, I'm not sure what to think.

At the end of the day, people come to FT for a wide array of recommendations: flights, hotels, shopping, dining, etc. Why not make it that much more valuable and offer a concise listing of options based on location. Lists that grow to massive proportions lead to confusion.

Valid point. I'm thinking I'll keep it as it is for now however. Once a few more places are added, I will absolutely cut it back for all the dining options listed.

Also, I don't believe the link in the Master Thread is working.

Obviously people will disagree. Some like the Ritz-Carlton while others prefer the Four Seasons. Some like United while others prefer American. When asking for recommendations on a forum such as this I would certainly take any suggestions with a grain of salt and do my own research and follow-up. There are ample restaurants in Boston many good ones and some not so good ones.

Excellent research! I made the Island Creek recommendation based on the overwhelmingly positive reports I read on chowhound. But when I went myself, I just wasn't impressed.

One suggestion: since some of the best food in the area is now being offered in Cambridge, and since most visitors to Boston spend time in Cambridge as well, I see no reason to limit this thread to Boston restaurants. Craigie on Main, Bondir (based on what I've read; I have not been personally), Rendezvous, Oleana, Rialto, Bartley's, Russell House Tavern, among others, all deserve to be on an objective list of the best Boston-area restaurants (IMHO, of course! ;) ).

Fixed, sorry about that! :)

Adam

Does anyone here have an opinion on Indian? We have so many great restaurants but I have yet to find a good Indian place. So far the best I've had is India Quality in Kenmore Sq near ICOB or Tamarind Bay in Cambridge. Neither of which are anything great, just acceptable.

I've found that Punjab Palace in Allston/Brighton is very very good. Don't let the area it is in fool you.

Don't generally venture in that direction but I'll keep it in mind. Looks like its the same owner as IQ:

http://www.punjabpalace.com/about-us

How might that area fool one?

It is in an area surrounded by run-down corner stores and student-ridden housing.

Exactly the kind of neighborhood where I'd expect to find a good Indian restaurant. I don't think anyone is being fooled!

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From someone local, I'd recommend Yankee Lobster near the waterfront for seafood, and the Elephant Walk in Cambridge or Brookline for a great atmosphere and delicious French-Cambodian fusion food at a reasonable (for Boston) price.