Boston Dines Out

How to Use This Guide

When persons set about the task of deciding which restaurant to patronize, the first question is almost inevitably, "What are you in the mood for?" or, "What would you like to eat?"  If the dining experience is to tie in with another activity, the question may be, "What restaurants are conveniently located?"  The answers to these questions may be "Something inexpensive" or "Italian food" or "Something near the theatre" or "seafood" or a host of others.

The authors have tried to identify the most popular dining moods and needs, and this book lists restaurants accordingly.  Your first step in using the guide, then, is to recognize your general mood or need.  Then turn to the listings on Pages 13 to 18 to find the choices in your selected category, and finally read the descriptions of the recommended dining spots.  They are listed and described in alphabetical order on Pages 21 to 72.  Suburban restaurants are shown separately and categorized by location only.

You should then be able to select a restaurant which is in keeping with your mood of the moment, your state of economic solvency, and whatever other limitations need to be considered in selecting just the right dining out experience for yourself and friends.  If this happens, the authors have achieved their aim.

At your leisure, we hope you will read the introductory sections.  These have been added with the purpose of helping you to enjoy dining out in Boston as much as the authors do.

What Have We Done and Why Did We Do It?

Of course, we're provincial in Boston!  You wouldn't have much respect for us if we didn't think our city was the best, now would you?  If we have a fault in Boston (How's that for modesty?), it is probably that we take our greatness for granted and don't do enough tub-thumping to help others understand why we love our city.  This book, therefore, is an attempt on the part of the authors to tell you about one segment of Bostonia in the hope that you may enjoy our home town.

Since the authors have more than a casual fondness for eating (there goes another inch on the waist) and because we know something about the city's restaurants and about Boston dining attitudes, we decided several years ago to do what we could to help visitors and natives alike to experience pleasurable dining in the Hub.  Human nature being what it is, most of us tend to pick two or three favorite dining places and return to them repeatedly, thus failing to experience the many other restaurants that would pamper our palates if we would give them an opportunity.  We, therefore, constantly research restaurants in Greater Boston in the hope of locating those citadels of gastronomy which we can confidently recommend for pleasurable dining.  This is our third edition of the book.

Did we leave out your special favorite?  If so, we're sorry.  It is inevitable that the particular rendezvous of some persons will have been omitted.  Not everyone agrees on any one subject; why should we expect them to agree on restaurants?  We can only say we have honestly tried to be as fair and objective as possible.  If you think we're amassing huge fortunes from this enterprise, forget it!  This book merits a classification of labor of love.  Let us assure you that no fees or bribes have been pocketed by the authors for any listing here.  Only a handful of the restaurant owners even know who we are.  If we omitted your favorite restaurant, it may be because we do not consider it, for one or more reasons, to be in the top categories.  There is a possibility, however, that we may have overlooked it; and since we are constantly endeavoring to find those places which provide pleasurable dining experience, we would appreciate hearing from you  We promise to give your pet rendezvous fair consideration for inclusion in the next revision of the guide.  Our mailing address is 294 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115.

Because of their proximity to Boston, both Cambridge and Brookline are treated as if they were a part of the city.

All listings are alphabetical.  We have not attempted to rank the establishments for a number of reasons.  In the first place, persons differ in their tastes.  At our last physical checkups, we were found still to be human, so it's quite possible you would rank them differently, and who is to say you're not just as good a judge as we.  If you have a congenital dislike for steak (pity!), you would never understand our high ranking for a steakery.  Also, a person's reaction to a given place may be conditioned by his physical and mental state at any given time.

Let us not forget that restaurants and their products are a result of human behavior also, so their standards of food and service may vary from night to night.  The waiter may have just lost his shirt at Wonderland or the chef's wife may have just accordioned his new red Ferrari.  There is a sign outside a small Texas town which reads, "This town has 300 friendly citizens and two or three grouches."  Well, Boston has a few grouches, too, who unfortunately could find something wrong with everything.  We have, therefore, given you our favorites; we'll let you make the rankings.

We have not attempted to classify the restaurants by cost.  What's expensive to a person with a $5,000 income may be entirely different from the person with a $50,000 income.  We have, however, included representative prices as a cost guide.  Ala carte in Boston usually means that salad, potatoes, vegetable, and bread and butter are included.  There are a few exceptions.

Since the emphasis in this book is on dining as a social experience, we have given little attention to luncheons.  Many excellent downtown restaurants specializing in luncheons have, therefore, been omitted.

Prices are, of course, subject to change.  The ones quoted here are late 1965 vintage.

By popular demand, we have included in this edition a hint as to the appropriate manner of dress.  Since women are better able to draw conclusions from little evidence (they're prettier, too), we have stated dress in terms of men's clothing.  Women can then judge whether this means for them, basic black, tweeds, or slacks (must you?).

All this is by way of saying we have dedicated ourselves to the task of helping you to find pleasure in dining out in Beantown.  If this book accomplishes that objective, then all has been worthwhile.  If not, we shall try next time a book on Tiselius Electrophoresis (whatever that is).

Bon appetit!