Visiting Boston, help
Greetings
My wife and I will be in Boston (Back Bay area) in May for my son's graduation from Berklee. I want to take him out for a really nice dinner to celebrate. Steak is very high on the list. I would also like to go to Chinatown one night for authentic Cantonese and maybe sushi another night. My wife and I have spent many years in Asia so we want the real deal at any Asian places. All recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!
By blindbat67
on Apr 1, 2007 10:15 AM
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I'll leave the steakhouse recommendations to other local Hounds.
For Japanese, a couple of places I like include Douzo, a handsome, modern-looking, upscale restaurant in the Back Bay with a broad Japanese menu. I also enjoy the similarly-broad menu at Fugakyu in Coolidge Corner, Brookline. If you want to go the more exotic route, with unusual items flown in from far away, consider Uni, a high-end sashimi bar in the Eliot Hotel (which I can recommend), or Oishii Boston in the South End, a big-ticket sushi place in the South End (which I have not tried).
I quite like our Hong Kong style live-tank seafood places in Chinatown. I recently had sea raven (an awesomely frightening looking fish -- see photo) in a very simple soy-ginger-scallion preparation at Peach Farm: wonderful. Another worthy, similar place is Jumbo Seafood. For Beijing cuisine, the tiny, divey King Fung Garden is excellent: call a day ahead to order Peking Duck. I'm also a fan of the Taiwanese cuisine at Taiwan Cafe.
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Second on Jumbo Seafood (technically, they're now known as New Jumbo Seafood, although as far as I can tell, nothing has changed but the sign and a slight sprucing up of the decor): Jumbo and King Fung Garden are my two favorite places in Chinatown, but if you're only doing one CT meal and you've got your mouth set for Cantonese seafood, it's Jumbo all the way. Nothing against Peach Farm, which is justifiably revered around these parts, but I have simply NEVER had a bad meal at Jumbo Seafood.
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If you're willing to spend $$$$, Oishi is special for sushi. Look it up here to see.
As for steakhouses, Berklee is almost next to Abe & Louie's, Morton's and Capital Grille. Boston now has essentially all the big steakhouses - from Smith & Wollensky to Ruth's Chris. Also has locals like Grill 23 and Davio's, which combines Italian and steak. If you have a favorite, it's here. You can search for any of these by name here.
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As far as steakhouses go you're in the right city. The Oak Room at the Fairmont Copley Plaza is outstanding. I also like Grill 23. There are also numerous high-end steqkhouse chains such as S&W, Ruth's Chris, Morton's and Plaza III. As far as Chinese goes, my preffered cuisines are Sichuan and Shanghainese so I couldn't steer you well on Cantonese but others will. Japanese abounds too with favorites like Oishii mentioned a lot.
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I'll be in Boston in June for a week-long meeting and my colleagues have planned a group dinner at the Oak Room (we're staying at the Fairmont), so I'll try a steak there...even though I didn't have it pictured in my head as a steakhouse...thanks. Any suggestions for the neighborhood...especially for good (read inexpensive) breakfasts and lunches?? I have a feeling that eating at the hotel all the time would get pretty darn pricey, and my meal reimbursements are somewhat limited. That meal at the Oak Room will probably be the only steak I want that trip...but would love some hints for good seafood (crabs?), Indian, and any other ethnic.....
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http://www.rachelskitchenboston.com/
Get a breakfast sandwich on brioche. If you're in a hurry, call your order ahead, they take forever but worth it. About a 10 minute walk from the Fairmont.
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Thanks! I forgot to ask: what about cheap eats near the Hymes Convention Center? (Since I'll be attending a convention there part of the time....)
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I think highly of Steve's Diner on Newbury. Solid diner-style breakfasts and Greek favorites for lunch and dinner.
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Bukowski is a bar on Dalton St, which is the back side of the Hynes.(Go out thru the Sheraton.)
Great beer selection and cheap (but not great) food. They used to have a burger for a buck special on weekdays, but I'm not sure if they still do.
Don't plan on any intimate conversations there. The music is always on 11. Fun place though.
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I can vouch for Oushi in Brookline, fabulous - but haven't done the new Boston location. I've heard great things about Fugakyu too.
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I have always enjoyed a steakhouse meal at Grill 23. I'm not really one to order steak out at a restaurant, and so i usually have fish when i go there, but others who i have dined with rave about their steak dishes. The sides are great too, as is the dessert!
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Hi
For Chinese in Chian town my choice would be East Ocean City. I have always had very good and authentic meals there. I also have lived and been travelibng to Asia for over 20 years and appreciate truely authentic Asian food and I agree with the others that New Jumbo, The Peach Fram and East Ocean are all very good. At East Ocean City I love the Giant Clam (if they have them) served first as sashimi and then the other parts served deep fried. Their clams with black bean sauce and the whoile steamed fish are also very good.
For high-end and very unique Japanese there is a new place called O-Ya that gets very strong reviews on this board.
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We have had some memorable meals with our son at Davio's. It's an Italian Steak House as opposed to an Italian Restaurant and the restaurant itself is quite elegant. My husband almost always gets the steak no matter where we go and he prefers Davio's to the other steak houses we have eaten at (Morton's, Capital Grille, Grill 23) for the side dishes and the option (he doesn't always get the steak!) of something else. The wine steward is one of the top in Boston and very helpful. All the staff are. No attitude at Davio's.
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Thanks to all for your recommendations. I always like local places instead of chains so we will probably go to Abe & Louie's for steak. Then, Jumbo or Peach or East Ocean for Cantonese, I'll try to get their menus. So many restaurants, so little time.
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The swordfish chop at Abe & Louie's is great, if they have it.
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Second that - love that swordfish chop too. If that's not available, the Lobster Savannah is my second choice. E always starts with the crab cake and orders the filet with Abe and Louie's sauce.
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They have such yummy crabcakes. Need to hit brunch there when it's a relative bargain.
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uh...isn't Abe & Louis a chain? I'm pretty sure it is. Davio's, on the other hand, would be considered a "local place..."
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There's only one Abe & Louie's, but it is owned by the Back Bay Restaurant Group, and its restaurants all have a corporate, chain-like feel to me: Papa Razzi, Charley's Eating & Drinking Saloon, Joe's American Bar & Grill, Atlantic Fish, Bouchee, the Coach Grill. Not my favorite places.
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There's an Abe's in Boca Raton now too (opened sometime last year, IIRC)
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Grille 23 is local and has been there for years -- much longer than the recent steak-house chain invasion. I have never been there, but I think there was a recent newspaper article that said their steak was the best. I would like to try it myself, but I am somewhat resistant to going out and splurging specifically for steak. I have been to the Oak Room. You can't beat it for its elegant decor. The food is good (typical upscale steakhouse fare) and the service was good, but I was very surprised when our waiter asked me "Are you still working on that?" Really out of place for a restaurant of that caliber -- and he was an older guy that should have known better.
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Hello to all that gave their recommendations
I finally decided on Grill 23 for dinner on Saturday night. Yes, it was noisy but I knew that going in. To make up for the noise, I had one of the best steaks ever. Their Kobe Cap steak was outstanding! Cooked a perfect MR, it was tender, juicy and so flavorful. For an appetizer, my wife and I split an order of capaccio, it was OK. My son had the mushrooms with truffle oil, fantastic. Sides of hash browns were good, gingered beets, OK. A wonderful bottle of Petite Syrah and the world was good.
Mother's Day dinner at Jumbo was also good. Clams with black bean sauce, ginger/green onion lobster and baby bok choy were all good although I think we were missing a few lobster parts. It was jammed and we were sort of hurried out but there were 25 people waiting for tables so, OK.
A very nice time in Boston, even the weather cooperated.
Thanks again.
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Glad you had the Kobe Cap steak there. It's the best steak I've ever eaten in Boston, though you pay dearly for the experience.
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Wow, I just looked at the Grill 23 menu and it looks great! I'm intrigued by the 25 dollar meatloaf, anyone ever try it? I love meatloaf, but I'm trying to imagine just what would make it worth $25 (besides the setting, of course).
Cheers!
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Friends swear by Locke-Ober in Boston for some of the best steaks & seafood..a real special place to celebrate a myriad of occasions.
I will be there in September and I can't wait..
www.lockeober.com
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