26 Best Restaurants in Boston, Massachusetts

At the far eastern end of the city and tucked into the Innovation and Design Building, Chickadee is a restaurant you'd wish to stumble over. Make the trek on the Silver Line or simply walk to sample chef-owner John daSilva's curated seasonal menu, rife with unique preparations and locally sourced ingredients. The idea is to order a selection of smaller sized plates and share amongst the table, and, after a look at the Mediterranean-inspired offerings, you'll want to. As for cocktails, they're intentional, well-crafted, and laced with unique ingredients. 

This new addition to the Seaport District has personality in spades, with pastel purple and bright red chandeliers, plumes of feathers in floral arrangements, and pink napkins on the table. The menu, too, is inspired, featuring French cuisine informed by global flavors meant to be ordered in abundance—two to three plates per diner. The hummus, which takes four days to make, is a must, as is the merde dé can (yes, that does translate to "dog shit") spinach dumplings, which beat Bobby Flay. Cocktails are gorgeous and delicious, and if you win over your server, they may just bring over the gratis Stinger digestif service (coconut butter–washed cognac with crème de menthe, absinthe, and verjus blanc) to end your meal. 

Comfy armchairs and a grand, high-ceilinged dining room give diners a heightened sense of self-importance, beginning with lunch when the city's power elite stop in for great pastas (half portions are available), prime aged steaks, and oversize salads. For dinner, some patrons snag quick, pretheater bites at the bar while others opt for a more leisurely experience, lingering over sophisticated Italian dishes like tagliatelle Bolognese and succulent grilled veal chops with creamy potatoes and port wine sauce. Gluten-free and children's menus are available, along with a killer Sunday brunch with such options as poached eggs and beef tenderloin with a popover and truffle hollandaise.

Pinstripe suits, dark paneling, Persian rugs, and waiters in white jackets give this single-location steak house a posh tone, and the kitchen places a premium on seasonal, organic ingredients and sustainable and humanely raised meats; the divine coconut cake is worth saving room for dessert. Two bars, a big, buzzing one overlooking Berkeley Street and a quieter, smaller one on the second floor by the cozy fireplace, serve excellent drinks, specialty Scotches, and bar bites, along with the full menu.

Once a favorite of former Cambridge resident Julia Child, this sophisticated shrine to New England cuisine has been a perennial go-to spot for Harvard students when their parents are in town since 1975. The seasonal menu could feature Cape scallop crudo, fresh pasta with braised veal and pesto, or fresh Cape lobster with lemon hollandaise. The restaurant also serves lunch and à la carte brunch (cinnamon buns on the pastry board are worth the visit alone). In addition to the elegant dining room there's a lush outdoor patio (with fans as well as blankets and an outdoor fire place to accommodate any season).

Since 1997, Boston's fashionable set has flocked to this long-popular South End restaurant with polished service and upscale yet unpretentious French-Mediterranean cuisine. While seasonal tweaks do occur, fail-safe favorites like Burgundy-style escargot, parfait of Hudson Valley foie gras, tuna tartare, duck with cranberries, and Dover Sole Meunière are part of a menu that rarely changes—but no one's complaining.

Welcome to the first and now flagship restaurant in acclaimed chef Barbara Lynch's empire. Even after 25 years, No. 9 Park continues to win rave reviews for Lynch's stellar, unique interpretation of fine French and Italian cuisine. The wine list bobs and weaves into new territory, but is always well chosen, and the savvy bartenders are of the classic ilk, so you'll find plenty of classics. This is Boston's fine dining at its best.

The Italian word "scampo" translates to "escape" in English, and that's what this restaurant at The Liberty hotel—the former site of the Charles Street Jail—is: an escape into chef-owner Lydia Shire's delectable, buttery take on Italian-American cuisine. Everything is made from scratch, down to the bread, and including a dozen different exceptional pastas and nearly as many crusty pizzas. Entrees are heavy on meat and fish, and it stretches beyond standard items to lamb chops, duck, suckling pig, and Dover sole. The creative menu is complemented by a sleek orange bar, curved white-leather booths, and one of the city's most connected crowds. Gluten-free menus are available.

Snug quarters and no desserts can't quell the stream of diners pouring into this uptown enclave eager to savor oysters and seductive seafood combinations like salmon crudo with pistachio oil, Maine lobster cabbage-kale Thai salad, and blue prawns à la plancha. With 70% of the restaurant's catch coming from New England, plus a thoughtful libations list and polished service, you have all the ingredients for a good time, whether you're sitting at the bar, at the front communal table, or in the three-season alfresco area out back.

Featuring floor-to-ceiling windows and sweeping 270-degree views of the Boston Harbor waterfront, this sophisticated and lively restaurant serves up midsized plates that are meant to be shared—two to three per person. The well-curated menu features meat and produce from the owner's 360-acre New Hampshire farm, as well as handmade pasta and sustainably sourced seafood. Diners with specialized diets can choose from many gluten-free, dairy-free, and/or vegan dishes. 

Just off bustling Charles Street, this cozy neighborhood gem is filled to the brim with New England charm in the form of antique-chic decor that celebrates Boston's history. The menu of elevated American classics, from wedge salad to lobster rolls and filet mignon, is well curated, and the cocktails shine.

A sophisticated but unpretentious enclave of nouveau Italian, Bricco has carved out quite a following, which is no wonder because the handmade pastas alone are reasons for reservations, not to mention the buzz-worthy stuffed zucchini flowers just like nonna used to make. Simple but well-balanced main courses, such as veal osso buco, roast chicken marinated in seven spices, and a brimming brodetto (fish stew) with half a lobster and a pile of seafood, may linger in your memory. You're also likely to linger in the warm room, too, gazing through the floor-to-ceiling windows while sipping a glass of Sangiovese from the Italian and American wine list. The signature bread pudding and caramelized bananas is rivaled only by the warm chocolate cake with molten center and hazelnut gelato.

While the sweeping Back Bay views and neoclassical–meets–art deco decor are something to behold, the menu is just as captivating at this new crown jewel atop the luxurious hotel The Newbury. Fanciful dishes such as melt-in-your-mouth squash carpaccio, spicy lobster capellini, and a signature 40-oz. dry-aged bistecca fiorentina are as dazzling as the crowd, a blend of well-heeled locals, city socialites, and trend-seeking singles (mostly at the buzzy bar). Designed like a conservatory with a glass roof and retractable panels for open air dining, this is one of the few year-round rooftops in Boston.

This popular Boston-born restaurant splits its focus between grilled all-natural steaks and chops and hearty, Italian-inspired dishes. Diners can't get enough of Davio's signature spring rolls, stuffed with Philly cheesesteak or chicken parm, and pasta is made in-house. The kitchen offers special menus, including healthy eating and gluten-free. While this location isn't Davio's first in the city, it is its newest, and it has beautiful real estate right on Boston Harbor, which the dining room makes a point to showcase through floor-to-ceiling windows.

When a restaurant's very name conjures up images of the ocean waters, its menu choices should follow suit. Mare does exactly that, focusing on a locally sourced oyster program, fresh and innovative crudo dishes, and simple yet elegant entrées highlighting the natural flavors of its fresh, sustainable seafood. The Italian seafood restaurant has stepped out of tradition and moved into nouveau Italian, trading heavy seasonings for the simplicity of grilling and poaching seafood and meat dishes, which makes the place a simple but delicious option among its red-sauce-heavy neighbors. The outdoor patio features lounge seating, fire pits, and a retractable awning that made its way across the sea to Boston from Florence, Italy.

Barbara Lynch's luxurious, France-meets-Italy-inspired eatery is arguably the best restaurant in town (and also Boston's only Relais & Châteaux–awarded property, a prestigious honor). Named for a French town near Italy's border, Menton features just two multicourse menu options: prix-fixe or chef's tasting (with wine pairings if you so choose). Think caviar, Wagyu beef, and black truffle, although dishes may change daily. You can also up the ante by reserving the 12-seat chef's table in the kitchen, an enclosed area with a glass wall offering a sneak peak into the restaurant's inner culinary sanctum.

Do dress nicely for a visit to Mooo...., a luxurious, refined steak house inside the swanky XV Beacon hotel that remains civilized despite the restaurant's somewhat whimsical name. Prime, dry-aged steaks are served à la carte, and, although the Japanese A5 Wagyu sirloin will set you back $190, portions are as exaggerated as the prices. The menu also features a few seafood dishes and a poultry option; vegetarians and vegans are easily accommodated by request. The impressive, award-winning wine list boasts more than 500 entries, including a few very special bottles.

Boston has plenty of great seafood restaurants, but this sophisticated option near the Theater District turns out delicate and exquisitely prepared catches of the day fit for a king (and some say costing a king's ransom). Settle in with a seasonal cocktail in the sleek, pearl-white dining room before tucking into any one of the caviars or glistening raw fish tartares followed by a simply prepared entrée, whether it's a grilled sea bream in trevisano leaf or broiled Maine twin lobster. The kitchen has not left carnivores stranded at sea: In addition to sirloin carpaccio to start, you'll find several grilled steaks, along with luscious game hen and pasta preparations.

Perched between Central and Harvard Squares, this New American trattoria was created by husband and wife team Chris and Pam Willis. The rulebook goes out the window here as the menu takes traditional Italian flavors and turns them on their tails in a prix-fixe menu (à la carte is available only in the bar/lounge area), with items like Hiramasa crudo, 45-day–aged steak tartare, and sablefish with forbidden rice at the ready. The cocktail presence is strong (so are the drinks), and the natural wine list features small-batch wines from vineyards off the beaten path. Known for its romantic and intimate nature, Pammy's dual-opening fireplace, dramatic floral arrangements, and hand-drawn peacock mural add to its well-known charming nature that brings in foodies from all over Cambridge.

Chef Anthony Caturano pays homage to his Italian grandmother at this warm, convivial eatery by naming it after the tiny Abruzzese village where she was born and then putting a modern twist on the rustic dishes she would have cooked. An emphasis on garden-fresh ingredients means appetizers like baby gem salad with soppressata and roasted red peppers and wood-grilled squid and octopus with white beans, while "Gravy Sunday" specials translate to heaping plates of traditional dishes like homemade meatballs and gnocchi bolognese. And, of course, you can expect friendly service, delicious food, and excellent wine selection (more than 600 wine labels and 6,000 bottles in storage) that's largely Italian.

Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay’s newest venture within the Mandarin Oriental hotel offers a taste of his most well-known dishes along with a few local twists. While his famous beef Wellington sits front-and-center as a no-brainer choice entrée, he also gives a properly placed nod to local seafood with jumbo lump crab cakes and lobster, as well as clam bouillabaisse, Boston lager-steamed mussels, crispy skin salmon, and fish and chips. Should a lobster roll be served cold or warm? He appeases all by offering both versions.

Diving head first into dishes like cuttlefish ink spaghetti, rare tuna steak with roasted eggplant, and salmon with pork belly and spring peas, chef Robert Sisca pays homage to New England’s long-standing fishing tradition. While the ocean's bounty is its main theme, he doesn't leave landlubbers stranded; there are a few chicken and turf dishes as well. A first-floor raw bar offers stellar crudo, oyster, and caviar selections. The Banks Lobster Bake is a pricey feast worth every penny, and the Fisherman's Feast is a heaping plate of fried cod, shrimp and clams.

A carnivore's utopia awaits within the clubby, dark-wood walls of this beloved steak house favored by those on expense accounts. Adjust your starched napkin and tuck into such staples as lobster and crab cakes, a massive shellfish platter, and succulent meats such as the 24-ounce dry-aged porterhouse. The crowd-watching is as tasty as the food: VIPs in striped suits make deals over dessert, and women in Manolo Blahnik heels sip martinis.

Inside the tasteful boutique Eliot Hotel lies an innovative izakaya (informal Japanese gastropub), owned by Boston star chefs-partners Ken Oringer and Tony Messina, who offer boldly flavored renditions of Asian street food—Sai Oua lettuce wraps; Mai duck carnitas; Wagyu beef dumplings; shrimp teriyaki fried rice; and dozens of tempting sashimi and nigiri choices. Although the bites can add up price-wise, the menu has a sprinkling of inexpensive dishes, like fried chicken bao bun and blistered shishito peppers. Cocktail aficionados will appreciate the creative and sophisticated offerings, and it's worth checking out the extensive reserve sake menu.

For a big, brassy, bountiful night out in an iconic Boston building, head to this reimagined supper club inside the ornate former 1862 Locke-Ober restaurant. The buffed and beautiful sink into plush chairs in the book-packed library or at the original mahogany mirrored bar to swill down ice-cold martinis and large format drinks. Should cocktails morph into dinner, white-clothed tables glowing with votives provide a cushy place to share plates of globally inspired comfort food or dig into a few "feasts."