What's Your Absolute Favorite Restaurant in Boston?

I live here, but I%26#39;m curious what others have to say. Wonder what gems I%26#39;ve missed!

What's Your Absolute Favorite Restaurant in Boston?

Wow, do I have to limit it to one? :)

Well, I%26#39;m not generally the fancy/trendy/must-be-seen type when it comes to restaurants. My absolute favorite in Boston is Peach Farm chinese restaurant in Chinatown. They have an extensive menu of dishes and it%26#39;s all fresh, not overly greasy, delicious and the portions are doggie bag heaven.

For a more ';upscale'; experience (and much more expensive, too), I love Sage restaurant on Prince St. in the North End. The food is wonderful...fresh, inventive and delicious.

So what are YOUR favorites, WheninRome? :)

What's Your Absolute Favorite Restaurant in Boston?

I%26#39;m from Boston and visit frequently. I love Casa Romero in back bay and the Daily Catch in the North End.

Mmm. All sound great.

I%26#39;m with you, Beantown - I hate limiting it to just one... and tend to favor the more casual thing.

Let%26#39;s see... a couple I love:

- Fugyaku when I%26#39;ve got a hankering for sushi

- Pour House when I%26#39;m hung over and need a good, cheap fix. =)

- We live around the corner from Cityside in Cleveland Circle and

go frequently for after dinner dinner/drinks.

- Love the Publick House in Washington Square (formerly Anam Cara)

- Matt Murphy%26#39;s in Brookline Villiage

- Bamboo for Thai

- India Quality in Kenmore has the best Indian I%26#39;ve tasted in the city

- The Enormous Room in Central is always a good time

- Tappas on Comm Ave is also yummy

- RJ O%26#39;Sullivan%26#39;s in Cambridge, according to my husband amongst others, has the BEST burgers in town. (I%26#39;m a vegetarian who eats only fish)

- For pizza, I love the Upper Crust

How%26#39;s that for a start? LOL

Ok, this may not actually qualify, given that it%26#39;s outside of Boston city limits, but I adore Thai Thani, a wonderful Thai restaurant on the main drag in Swampscott. It%26#39;s a family-run affair, and they have a tremendous menu. The service is efficient and very friendly, and after you%26#39;ve gone a few times they remember you on sight. The restaurant is across the street from the public landing with quaint ocean views.

PJ O%26#39;Sullivan%26#39;s absolutely does have the best burgers in Boston.

For Mexican food, I love Tu Y Yo in Somerville, near Powderhouse Sq. There%26#39;s also a place in Teele Sq. called Sabur, which is a Croatian restaurant. It%26#39;s wonderful.

Since you live near Brookline, have you tried Nicks Family restaurant on Harvard Ave.? It%26#39;s a tiny family-owned Greek restaurant with great food. I go there for dinner all the time before shows at the Coolidge Corner theater.

Also, there%26#39;s a new Brazilian BBQ Rodizio place in Allston, on Brighton Ave., called Green Fields. I%26#39;ve been there twice so far and the food is delicious.

Bistro 5 in West Medford is truly a hidden gem. While not actually in Boston, it is not very far -- even across from a commuter rail stop -- 12 minutes from N. Station. The decor and atmosphere is very nice and the food is consistently as good and creative as many excellent restaurants downtown, but it is a bit less pricey.

We%26#39;re just back from our first trip to Boston. Ate a different type of food every night for the week. Our favourite was Monica%26#39;s on Richmond in the North End. Good lively atmosphere. We had a really good waiter who made us feel welcome and relaxed despite the place being really busy with people standing waiting for tables.No pressure to eat up and leave. I had the day%26#39;s special which was linguini with lobster in tomatoe sauce. An excellent dish. Wish we%26#39;d left room for dessert.

Will definitely be back to Boston and Monica%26#39;s.

P.S. Most disappointing was Bonfire steakhouse in our hotel. By no means bad but nothing special.

Hello WheninRome,

You know, I was thinking and thinking about this one for a few days. I%26#39;m in a dinner club and I was racking my brains trying to think of my favorite restaurant in Boston that I had dinner at in the last several years, thanks to you and this great question!

I love every single one of the restaurants that we%26#39;ve had dinner at in the North End, they%26#39;re all fabulous over there, I couldn%26#39;t pick one from there at ALL! BUT.....

At Christmas every year my friends and I pick a place in Boston that gets unbelievable reviews and we take turns each year picking out THE spot where we all will go and we head to the establishment (all decked out and raring to go, if you can picture us, mind you!). We pick places that we of course wouldn%26#39;t ordinarily go to, they%26#39;re our special ones....

We were JUST talking about this the other day because it%26#39;s time for us to make reservations for our Christmas thing very soon before it%26#39;s too late.

I have to tell you....my favorite favorite restaurant in all of Boston is hands down the ';Oak Room'; at the Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel. It is positively wonderful there. The ambiance, the staff that work there were just incredible, the food was without a doubt positively the best I%26#39;ve ever had. There%26#39;s absolutely no question that it gets my vote for being my absolute favorite restaurant in all of Boston all around. I%26#39;d go there again in a heart beat if the crew mentioned it again, with NO questions asked. The ';Capital Grille'; was wonderful too? But there%26#39;s something about the ambiance at the Oak Room that was just amazing. I%26#39;d say it%26#39;s that famous wood paneling and the mirrored walls, the 30 ft high ceilings and that gorgeous twin waterford crystal chandelier; that old style of Boston that I fell in love with! I don%26#39;t know, but to me it does circles around the Capital Grille and it gets my vote over and over again!

This year we%26#39;re trying Barbara Lynch%26#39;s #9 Park; IF we can get reservations, we%26#39;ll see what happens. We%26#39;ll try around November (according to the website), to see if we can get in there. We are dying to try her place! We%26#39;ve heard so so much about it, especially where Barbara Lynch the Chef is from Southie, she%26#39;s got such a following all around the globe and here some of us that want to go to her place are right from her old neighborhood and hopefully will get IN here to try her unbelievable cuisine! In the mean time? We made reservations for Rialto%26#39;s at the Charles Hotel; JUST in case we can%26#39;t get in to #9 Park. So we%26#39;ll see what happens in a few months, stay tuned!

Loaded question... sure to get a wide variety of responses.

My personal faves...

Overall: Franklin Cafe on Shawmut Ave in the South End

Seafood (casual): Barking Crab on Sleeper St

Seafood (upscale): Legal (at Park Square, only)

Steaks/Chops: Flemings (anticipating visiting Ruth%26#39;s Chris soon)

Italian: Cantina Italiana on Hanover St.

Chinese: Hong Kong Cafe on Boylston near Fenway (believe it or not)

Indian: India Samraat on Mass Ave

Sandwiches: Flour on Washington St, in the South End

Brunch: Doyle%26#39;s on Washington St, in Jamaica Plain

Pizza: Anchovie%26#39;s on Columbus Ave in the South End

Desserts: Finale in Park Sq, or Mike%26#39;s Pastry on Hanover St.

Asian: Jae%26#39;s on Columbus Ave (haven%26#39;t tried other locations) or Pho Republique on Washington St.

Cheap Eats: Tim%26#39;s Tavern on Columbus Ave

BBQ: East Coast Grill in Inman Sq (Cambridge)

Oh my gosh. Y%26#39;all rock! So many terrific responses! I%26#39;ll write as soon as I get get a break here at work.

Becca

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