That Somerville is now a hot dining destination is due, in large part, to Keith Pooler. In his kitchen at Bergamot, the chef takes the ubiquitous farm-to-table theme and runs with it. Read more.
When chef Barbara Lynch opened this South End boîte, she proved that slabs of fat-streaked, air-cured meats and stylish Bostonians make an excellent, if unlikely, pairing. Check the stellar wine list. Read more.
Is it worth an hour wait? Put it this way: We’d stand in the February cold for the whipped lardo crostini. We’d get pelted with hail for the cavatelli with chicken sausage. Read more.
Few chefs do both upscale and low-key fare as well as Craigie’s Tony Maws. Nor do many offer them side by side, as he does at his Cambridge restaurant. Read more.
This Kenmore Square stalwart is a lot of things to a lot of people. It excels on all fronts — which is why we can’t stay away for very long. Don't miss the steak frites. Read more.
Peter McCarthy was doing farm-to-table before practically anyone else, and his “Home Grown” menu, annotated with a list of the producers, is still an example of local sourcing done right. Read more.
A rooftop garden. Colorful paintings by the chef. A globe-spanning menu. No, it’s not the latest city restaurant — it’s 51 Lincoln, the tiny Newton eatery. Read more.
The folks behind the gastropub understand that people go out for fun, but when it comes time for more-serious eats, they don’t mess around. Try their wedge salad and Fluffernutter dessert. Read more.
If newer spots are like overdyed designer denim, Hamersley’s is the classic pair of jeans you cannot do without. Great for date nights. Read more.
Shrimp and grits. Boiled peanuts. The menu might sound like it’ll more warm your soul than blow your mind. But blow your mind, it will. Read more.
Like any good Italian grandson, chef Dante de Magistris gives all the credit to his nonna. But only de Magistris could make them somehow elegant and unfussy, rich and restrained. Good for groups. Read more.
Duxbury’s Island Creek Oysters are so ubiquitous locally, we’ve come to consider them the gold standard. (Sorry, Wellfleets.) Read on for ordering tips. Read more.
Thank heavens it was only two months after a fire that La Morra was cranking out tagliatelle anew. Start with a handful of cicchetti, such as fried olives, before tucking in to the bigger plates. Read more.
Getting out of the city can do wonders for clearing the mind — and, in the case of L’Andana, filling the belly. The wood-grilled steaks are pure, elemental pleasure. Read more.
Our testers are constantly on the lookout for signs they’ve been noticed—too many “gifts” from the chef; a suspiciously good table. At L’Espalier, though, we can never tell. Read on for why. Read more.
Finding a restaurant not hawking locavore fare these days is tough, but at Lumière it’s no gimmick. Read more.
Yes, it’s Market by Jean-Georges, as in superstar chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. But it’s not just celeb-chef good, it’s good good. Don't miss the five-course “Market” menu. Read more.
What hasn’t already been said about the highest of high-end Boston restaurants? Just go. Go for the experience of being waited on hand, foot, and glass. Read more.
Warm rolls in a cast-iron pan. Steaks with bone-marrow butter. These details make Mooo not just an excellent steakhouse, but also a lovely place to dine. Especially check out the wine list, too. Read more.
Chef Joanne Chang’s people-pleasing tendencies extend to Asian fare at this funky diner, where the vibrant décor and über-cheerful staff combine to make even Tuesday nights feel festive. Read more.
You’ve waited patiently for those hot fried clams, that butter-drizzled lobster roll, that flaky grilled whole branzino. You deserve that scallop ceviche. Read more.
Every now and then, grownups need to be romanced. They need to feel giddy, and special, and starry-eyed. And there’s no surer path to that feeling than a date at No. 9. Read on for what to order. Read more.
The hard part is finding your way into this barely marked sushi destination. The rest is easy. We head straight for the specialty rolls. Read more.
If it were up to us, we’d craft our entire meal here out of the first courses; they’re just that satisfying. Read more.
They say man cannot live by bread alone, but for Posto’s bruschetta, we’d be willing to try. Read more.
Chef Anthony Caturano is a guy’s guy. He’s a big-game hunter, a fisherman, a carnivore to the core. So it’s no surprise that some of Prezza’s best stuff comes from the wood grill. Read more.
Long before the skinny-jeans crowd claimed Central Square, chef Steve Johnson made it a cool spot to dine. Read more.
Poor Charles Hotel. How many people pass through its lobby nightly, ignoring its staffers’ smiles and glazing over its décor? Blame Rialto: The second-floor restaurant has such pull. Read more.
It’s hard not to be annoyed when great local chefs decamp to other locales. So we’re ecstatic that when Carolyn Johnson left Rialto, she stayed within our sphere. Read more.
Salts has an atmosphere of such genuine warmth that it’s the destination for special-occasion dinners. Ultracool platings make for dishes that delight you even before they hit your lips. Read more.
There’s no theme to Lydia Shire’s Liberty Hotel restaurant, other than “tasty.” Read more.
When a restaurant’s culinary substance matches its style, as Jamie Mammano’s eatery manages, that’s a beautiful thing. Read more.
It isn’t for everyone. You sit next to strangers, it's bright and noisy, but those are the reasons we luuuuurrve Sportello. It’s quirky. Read more.
The chef’s impeccable technique turns simple dishes like a soft-scrambled egg with trumpet mushrooms into something you’ll dream about for days. Read more.
With food that capitalizes on the season’s bounty, chef David Punch reels in a cross section of Cambridge. Arrive a few minutes early to share a snack or two. Read more.
There’s a reason owner Krista Kranyak was able to open two more Ten Tables locations after this one: It’s the kind of smashingly successful indie restaurant that everyone wants in the neighborhood. Read more.
Show up about 40 minutes before you want to eat, because unless it’s 5:30 on a Monday, you’re going to wait. Luckily, that’s just enough time to order and drink one of Toro’s excellent cocktails. Read more.
There are restaurants for food lovers who like wine, and there are places for those who have a deep love for small-batch burgundies, and want something lovely to eat with them. Troquet is the latter. Read more.
Chef Michael Schlow isn’t exactly a quiet-suburbs kind of restaurateur; the guy’s got an eatery at Foxwoods, for Pete’s sake. But Alta Strada is amore on a plate. Read on for what to order. Read more.
Harvest has a problem. We can never decide when to go: enjoy the dinner? Sunday brunch? If only every conundrum were this tasty… Read more.
There are few restaurants in Boston our staffers recommend to friends more frequently than Provence-inspired Bistro du Midi. In its favor: location, vibe, versatility, and of course, the food. Read more.
Jason Bond doesn’t proclaim anything, so when you go to his petite, year-old restaurant, the experience will catch you off-guard. Read more.
Despite being part of the popular Ken Oringer restaurant club, this tiny sashimi bar in the Eliot Hotel still feels like a secret. Read more.
It’s been 13 years since this French-Asian spot opened, but a meal here still delights. Get the garlic–black pepper lobster with lemongrass fried rice. Read more.
Ken Oringer is a tinkerer—one of just a handful of local chefs to toy with techniques like spherification—which makes for some intriguing plates. Great for date nights and business meetings. Read more.
The name says it all: This tiny Inman Square spot cooks up Chinese-style dishes with New England ingredients, to delicious effect. Read more.
Like most steakhouses, Grill 23 is full of mahogany, martinis, and expensive suits. Unlike at most steakhouses, the food is actually worth the ridiculous prices. Read more.
The raw bar here is one of the city’s best, the drink list superb. Perfect spot for cocktails and group gatherings. Read more.
When you finish dinner, you won’t want to return to that neon-lit madness outside. But leave you must. Otherwise, how can you come back? Read more.
