Visiting Boston from LA 6/1 - 6/3: Help with food itinerary

[Tony]

Hello Fello Chowhounders,

My wife and I (we are in our late twenties) will be vacationing in the East Coast (New York, Boston, Maine, Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, and Hamptons) We are from the Los Angeles and Orange County area and wanted some help with a food itinerary. I have been searching the boards and found some restaurants that might fit into what we are looking for. Please feel free to suggest otherwise.

We are looking for recommendations on some restaurants while we are in Boston.

We are not looking for any Asian or Mexican recommendations.

I have read some great things about Antico Forno, Trattoria Toscana, and Giacomo's Ristorante. I know that I may hear a lot of differing opinions on this, but I would like to hear what you everyone thinks.

I would like to go to Neptune's Oyster for Dinner or Lunch one night.

Is Legal Seafoods another good option for seafood?

Planning to go to Toscanini's, Modern Pastry, and possibly Burdick's for light snacking.

Sunday 6/1
Dinner: Italian Place. You guys help me decide.

Monday 6/2 off to Maine

Tuesday 6/3
Breakfast: Doesn't have to be breakfast. Good food.
Lunch: Pizzeria Regina?
Dinner: Neptune's Oyster

I would greatly appreciate any help, as I am relying completely on the palates of my fellow chowhounders.

[ghostcat]

Hi again-- There are really no must eats in Quincy Market, but I head to the bar at McCormick & Schmick's at least one a week for a decent burger for $1.95 from 3:30 to 6:30. There are other options on the bar menu, so if you are looking to unwind and enjoy a decent drink and an inexpensive bite, give it a try.

[Cheffrank]

I was pleasantly surprised by how good (if expensive) that Kingfish Hall was for lunch last week. I had business associates who wanted to go to a Todd English restaurant and so I reluctantly settled on KH and it was really very good, Ditto on the M&S recommendation for happy hour but stay away from the hummus...it had to be the worst I have ever had!

[Tony]

Thank you again everyone.

I believe that we are going to go with Giacomo's for the Italian dinner. I will make sure that I call for to make sure they are open on Sundays.

I appreciate everyone giving me tips on transportation. I am currently in New York and had quite a time figuring things out. Everyones tips are great.

[Hambone Willy]

I have lived in the North End for a while so I would highly reccomend Antico Forno and Pizza Regina (get it well done) as I have been there dozens of times and am always happy. I have recently had some good meals at Monica's on Richomond St. in the North end and their specials list is extensive and always interesting. Piccolo Nido in my opinion is probably one of the worst 3 restaurants in the North End and I would never go there, but i have friends that swear by it. Santarpio's is a great choice for local color, also, I have ahad good standard italian at Rino's in East Boston by the airport.

Off topic but advice for a tourist anyway: If you are staying in East Boston out by the airport beware of cabbies who will try to tack on the $$ for "their return toll to Boston". I travel from downtown to the airport frequently and this is a common trick the cabbies like to try and pull on you (also be sure to specify the Callahan/Sumner tunnell when going to N. End or they'll take you the long way through te Ted Williams.

[Joanie]

Or avoid that problem and hop on the blue line if at all possible or take a hotel shuttle.

[Tony]

A big thank you to everyone for their help so far.

I am still indecisive about which Italian restaurant to go to for Friday dinner. It seems as though most of the board is very torn on Italian resaurants as well. Not looking for a place that is a wallet buster. I don't care if the place is fancy or not, just great food. It seems as though Antico Forno, Giacomo's, and Trattoria Toscana all are about the same price range and same dining level. Is this correct? I have one Italian meal and Boston and would like to make it a great one.

We will be arriving on Sunday afternoon and plan to go check out Cambridge area.

Monday we will be taking a day trip to Maine

Tuesday we plan to do the freedom trail, Quincy Market, and Waterfront. Any must eats in the Quincy Market?

Please forgive my ignorance about the geographical locations of your city and transportation. I was thinking about driving to a lot of these places or a friend of ours is staying in a hotel that offers shuttle service.

Is driving around Boston a horrible idea? As Owades mentioned about not driving if I want to be able to get out of the car in the North End? Could you please clarify?

Thank you Hambone Willy and Joanie for your transportation tips.

Thank you again to everyone. I appreciate everyone guiding me in the right direction.

[ritcey]

To address one aspect - driving? good lord, no, don't do it to yourself. We're quite compact - to give you an idea:

http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&a...

you can walk from one side to the other in well under an hour. Freedom Trail, Quincy Market, Waterfront and North End are all encompassed by that map. You'd spend more time trying to find parking than anything else =

)

That said, the airport is out there aways - if you can get a shuttle downtown, I'd take it, otherwise you can take the Blue or Silver lines right downtown. Or take th eWater Shuttle - It's not the cheapest thing, but great views and a cool experience.

Other than walking, the T (subway) is your best bet - Red Line from Park Street will get you to Harvard Sq. w/in 15/20 minutes.

I'll let other chime in on which is your best bet for Italian eats (though if you just want a snack, Volle Nolle in the North End does great sandwiches, albeit not Italian per se).

Hope you enjoy your stay.

[CookieEater]

I've read practically every post about Giacomo's and it seems to get the best reviews out of those 3, on average. I'd choose Giacomo's, but it's up to you which of their 2 locations you select.

Boston is definitely a walking city with a small, compact downtown area. Trust me, not like L.A. at all. Your destinations are walkable once you get into the city or if you get tired, the subway is great. Unlike the subway in L.A., it actually goes somewhere!

Quincy Market has mostly mall food court fare from what I recall. Durgin Park is there, I liked their clam chowder when I had it. But Quincy Market is only a 5-min walk from the North End, I would just walk over there if you really have to stay in that area.

[Joanie]

No driving! Take advantage of our tiny-ness and not having to drive EVERYwhere like you do in LA.

Get iced coffee at the Red Barn in the other building at F. Hall. Also in Quincy Market is the Salty Dog which isn't bad for fried clams and such. Or better yet, walk over to Chararero on Province St. and get their famous Chilean sandwich. It's a 5 min walk from F. Hall.
http://chacarero.com/

I still haven't been to Garden at the Cellar but they have a Sun. deal for small plates at $5 I think which would be tasty, just outside Harvard Sq. Too bad Bartley's Burgers is closed on Sun.

I personally wouldn't stand in line at Giacomo's but to each his own.

[Hambone Willy]

I second the water taxi to/from the airport, I forgot about thart but it is cool, I think it is $10 each way maybe and it lets you off right at Long Wharf in the North End/Waterfront. My advice on the Italian meal would be that keep in mind int he North End despite what some people tell you (not on this board though) you actually CAN go wrong there. There are a ton of restaurants (50 maybe) in a tiny area so I would suggest trying to decide between the places that have been reccomended here.

[Alcachofa]

To further complicate things, another Italian place in that price range is Grotto. I think Tratorria Toscana is slightly better, at least based on my few experiences, but Grotto is in a MUCH more convenient location. Also, Grotto takes reservations. That said, if you go early enough, the wait at Giacomo's shouldn't be bad. I'm not 100% sure if any of these places are open on Sunday. They may all be, but check first.

Pizzeria Regina is a stone's throw from Quincy Market and the Freedom Trail. Lunch would be a good time to go there. Volle Nolle is also recommended for a sandwich.

(Yes driving is a horrible idea. Take the T or cab it when necessary. The T is frequently faster than a cab.)

[pollystyrene]

For breakfast, Soundbites in Somerville is popular with hounds--and many others who form a line out the door--however, you shouldn't have to wait on a weekday.

My pick for Italian would be Mamma Maria or Prezza in the North End, or Trattoria Toscana. I'm not a fan of Antico Forno. Mediocre food, brusque service, tables crowded together, and they'll take your reservation over the phone but don't seem to understand that means there should be an open table for you when you get there.

You're right on track with Neptune and Pizzeria Regina. If I were coming from L.A. and liked pizza, I wouldn't miss Regina's (remember: only the original in the North End).

I can also get firmly behind Toscanini's. Go all the way and get their hot fudge, too. I prefer Mike's to Modern. You could get something from both--they're a couple of blocks apart on the same street--and do your own taste test. I recommend cannoli and lobster tails.

[Tony]

Thank you ghost cat, joanie, and pollystyrene for your recommendations and insight.

Joanie - We are staying near Logan Airport, but have no problem traveling anywhere in the Boston vicinity.

Please keep the recommendations coming.

[CookieEater]

I'm from L.A. and going to be in Boston myself a few days after you, and have been doing a lot of reading on this board.

I have planned a dinner at either Antico Forno or Giacomo's (only if Giacomo's has no line - they don't take reservations) mainly because my fellow diners are trying to save money. If you can afford to spend more, I would remove Antico Forno from the list to be safe. I've heard even better things about other North End Italian places. But Giacomo's sounds to be generally good.

I'm also planning a special trip to Santarpio's Pizza near the airport. It's not just that the pizza is supposed to be good, but that it's one of those neighborhood places filled with local color. This is close to where you're staying, I suspect.

I admit you can find better, but I'm going to Legal Seafoods, mostly for nostalgia as I used to live in the area. It's a chain so there are the usual complaints from people on this board, but I always loved their clam chowder. But if you're going to Neptune for sure, Legal probably won't fare well in the comparison.

One of the things I plan to try is Portuguese food. This is something L.A. doesn't really have and there are several Portuguese restaurants in Cambridge. These are the ones I'm considering: Portugalia, Casa Portugal, Con Sol, Atasca

I posted a question about breakfast places yesterday, you can keep an eye on that.
In between, I plan to try Dunkin Donuts coffee (I keep hearing about it from people who used to live in Boston), Toscanini's, and hopefully a return trip out to the Hyde Park bowling alley ice cream place, Ron's. A friend took a very skeptical me there 7 years ago (she doesn't eat sweets and when I ask for ice cream she takes me to a bowling alley? seriously?) and I have not stopped thinking about that Coffee Madness ever since.
Coffee ice cream, brownies, almonds, oreos AND a ribbon of fudge. YUM

-----
Ron's Gourmet Homemade Ice Cream
1231 Hyde Park Ave, Hyde Park, MA

Santarpio's Pizza
111 Chelsea St, Boston, MA 02128

[continuum]

Hopefully the only thing you've heard about Dunkin Donuts coffee is that it's brown awful water. Anything different and that person had a cleaning sponge for taste buds.

Crema, Vittoria Caffe, Café Paradiso & Graffiti all have good coffee.

[CookieEater]

I figured it's mostly nostalgia that make people miss Dunkin Donuts, but I still want to say that I tried it. What says Boston more than a Dunkin Donuts everywhere you turn?

[Joanie]

Graffiti is closed isn't it? As far as DD goes, some people like it and it won't hurt her to have one cup to see just how good/bad it is. Not like you have to go out of your way to find it. Just be forewarned that they tend to put in lots of cream and sugar if you don't watch them.

[continuum]

Yes and no re: Graffiti. It's reopening any minute now where Martignettis used to be at the end of Hanover.

I'd say try DD at your own risk. :)

[CookieEater]

Dunkin Donuts coffee wasn't so bad--though I had the iced latte instead of reg coffee. It was so $%*&$ hot this weekend. I had it only half-sweetened and it didn't have the off taste that the McDonald's iced coffee has. Just wish I hadn't later dropped it on my all-white outfit! But anyway,
also tried the cappucino at Vittoria and it was sooooo good. I usually add sugar but didn't have to for this. Perfect!

[ntrivedi]

I agree! Last I heard Cafe Paradiso was no longer in Harvard. Sad, because they made a nice cappuccino. Vittoria is wonderful even if you get caught be the crazy accordion player.

[CookieEater]

aw, I missed a crazy accordion player? I would have *loved* that.

[ghostcat]

As I'm probably the only Chow on line this late, I'll be the first to offer some suggestions, and I'm sure you'll get loads more tomorrow. There are many very good Italian restaurants, but for a Sunday night I'd recommend Rocca's in the So. End. I've been there many times and have always enjoyed myself. I live in Brookline and like Pomodoro very much. Great food, good staff and a cash only establishment. I'm not sure that Carmen's in the No. End is open on Sunday, but it's a gem of a place. As for Legal's, it's fine, but not exceptional. I'd save the seafood option for someplace in Maine. Regina's is great for pizza, but I think you'd do better having lunch at Neptune Oyster and trying some Italian place other than in the No. End, like La Morra out on Rt. 9 or Sage's in the So. End. I think breakfast would depend upon where you are staying. Have a great few days in town. I'm another Tony

[Joanie]

Knowing where you're staying for breakfast helps with suggestions. I wouldn't go all the way to Soundbites, out of the way. Maybe Charley's Sandwich Shoppe on Columbus Ave., easy to do on a Tues. Try to hit Piz. Regina at an off time, maybe mid afternoon. I agree w/ Pollystyrene about Prezza but you don't want to spend all your time in the north end if you're also going to Neptune. Rocca isn't a bad idea and they have cheaper Sun. suppers ($22 for 2 courses and a sweet after 4 I think). While it's not as good as Prezza, I always think the south end should be included on a trip to Boston. La Morra is good and a has a nice 4 course for $35 option but the area isn't as exciting as the south or north end which are both very non-LA.

[pollystyrene]

Yeah, the OP's itinerary is heavy on the North End, although it's certainly convenient to the airport. In addition to the NE location, there's a Giacomo's in the South End for a change of scenery, and that location takes reservations, unlike the NE one.

[owades]

I just hope he isn't planning to drive to the North End. An LA native might expect to be able to get around by car, but I wouldn't advise bringing a car anywhere near Boston's North End, especially if you want to get out of the car when you arrive!