The Best Places in Boston
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The awards
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Rank 201. Bay Sweets Market
Middle Eastern
The bakery tucked into the basement of this West Roxbury Middle Eastern grocery has been an old-school institution for Lebanese-style sweets, pies, and breads. Baklava, za'atar manakish, and spinach pies come out daily, and you can pair a pita sandwich with hummus or baba ganoush while stocking up on groceries and house-made kibbeh. The kind of market where the list of things to grab keeps growing the longer you browse.
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Rank 201. Boston Sail Loft
New England
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Rank 201. Bova's Bakery
Italian Bakery
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Rank 201. Clear Flour Bread
German Bakery
The shop occupies a small residential corner in Brookline with room for maybe three customers inside, which explains the line of thirty-plus people stretching down the sidewalk on a Tuesday morning. This old-school neighborhood bakery turns out French and Italian classics alongside German specialties like soft pretzels and Vollkornbrot. A next-door coffee counter now handles grab-and-go for anyone with a low tolerance for waiting in the cold.
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This is a narrow natural-wine bar near Downtown Crossing, the sort of place that introduced a lot of Boston to tinned fish and has been quietly smug about it since. The list is long and a little nerdy, but the bartenders will talk you through it without making you feel graded. Half bottles of nearly everything let you change your mind twice. It was a James Beard semifinalist for its wine program, and on Wednesdays there are fancy hot dogs.
The awards
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Bars In Boston
- Eater Eater: The Best Bars Around Boston
- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
- The Infatuation The Best Bars In Boston
- Eater The Best Bars Around Boston
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
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Rank 201. Le Foyer Bakery
Haitian Bakery
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Rank 201. Rosenfeld’s Bagels
Bakery
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Rank 201. Salt patisserie
French-Brazilian
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Rank 201. Third Cliff Bakery
French Bakery
A sun-filled corner bakery in Jamaica Plain where the croissant menu changes often enough to keep regulars guessing. Third Cliff built its following at a farmers market cart before settling into its permanent spot, and the French pastry classics get unexpected company here, kimchi cheddar croissants alongside vegan cardamom morning buns. The espresso is taken seriously. Neighborhood coffee shop energy, pastry-destination ambitions.
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The awards
- Boston Magazine #10 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Jamaica Plain Restaurant · Best of Boston
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · Jeremy Kean and Philip Kruta
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- Bon Appétit Bon Appétit: America's Best New Restaurants
- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · Yahya Noor
- Bon Appétit America's Best New Restaurants
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · Yahya Noor
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #47 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · Tico Huynh
- Boston Magazine #47 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · Tico Huynh
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- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurant
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Rank 221. Vida Cantina
Modern Mexican
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- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Chef · David Vargas
- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · David Vargas
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Chef · David Vargas
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · David Vargas
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Rank 223. Grace by Nia
Soul Food
The broad blue doors open onto a jazz-age fantasia: gold-accented walls, live music, and soul food in a Seaport dining room that feels like a speakeasy that upgraded its permits. Restaurateur Nia Grace runs this dinner-and-show spot, where oxtail and grits share the menu with easy cocktails and the band is not background noise. Boston Magazine named it one of the city's top fifty restaurants, and gave it Best Dinner and a Show.
The awards
- Yankee Magazine Yankee Magazine: Best New Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #38 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Dinner and a Show · Best of Boston
- Yankee Magazine Best New Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine #38 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Dinner and a Show · Best of Boston
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Rank 223. MIDA
Italian
The awards
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Chef · Douglass Williams
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Northeast · Douglass Williams
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Yemeni Restaurant · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #33 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Yemeni Restaurant · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine #33 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best New Bar · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Brunch · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best New Bakery-Cafe · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #45 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Back Bay Restaurant · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine #45 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Back Bay Restaurant · Best of Boston
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- James Beard Awards James Beard Awards: 2022 · Semifinalist · Emerging Chef · Chris Viaud
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Rank 231. Mistral
Mediterranean
Duck on white tablecloths, no apology. Mistral is a full-service French-Mediterranean restaurant in the South End that has been around forever and still packs the room with business-casual regulars alongside tourist groups, both of whom tend to end up with the signature grilled thin-crust pizza in front of them regardless of what they planned to order. The bread is warm and crusty, the service is attentive, and the portions are substantial enough to quiet anyone who finds elegance unsatisfying.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #40 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #30 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Allston/Brighton Restaurant · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine #30 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Allston/Brighton Restaurant · Best of Boston
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Rank 231. No Relation
Sushi
Nine seats, seventeen courses, and Johnny Cash on the speakers: No Relation is a sushi omakase tucked inside the South End's tropical bar Shore Leave, which you pass through to get here. The team behind it takes the fish seriously, mapping each source on the wall, while keeping the room loose enough that smiling-cat sake cups feel completely right. A caviar supplement exists for those who want to go further.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #20 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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Rank 231. Puritan & Company
New American
Parker House rolls with cultured butter arrive at the table early, which tells you something about where this New American restaurant's priorities lie. Will Gilson's Inman Square spot reworks New England staples with local ingredients and the occasional global detour, the kind of cooking that makes baked scrod feel like it had a bad publicist. Comfortable and neighborhood-rooted, it draws regulars who treat the bread course with appropriate seriousness.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #37 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #35 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #35 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Seafood · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine #35 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Seafood · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #35 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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Rank 231. Saigon Babylon
Modern Vietnamese
Five floors above Central Square, this modern Vietnamese restaurant rewards the climb with vintage furniture the team refurbished themselves and a room that feels like someone's very stylish living room went rogue. The cooking runs to turmeric rice with squab and lemongrass carpaccio, and the cocktail list has a gin drink with salted lime and tingly pepper that earns its place on the bill.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #34 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Vietnamese Restaurant · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine #34 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Vietnamese Restaurant · Best of Boston
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Michael Schlow, the chef behind the late Radius and Via Matta, runs this polished seafood restaurant inside Encore Boston Harbor. The move is the deluxe seafood tower, which arrives before a menu of composed, elegant entrées. Make time for Old Wives' Tale, the nautical speakeasy tucked inside, where cocktails come dressed in mermaid sculptures and scattered seashells, as if the bartender and a prop department struck a deal.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #50 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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Rank 231. Table
Italian
A server once warned a full room of strangers, "It's a marathon, not a sprint," and they were not wrong. This tiny North End prix-fixe seats guests at two long communal tables for six courses of Italian comfort, the kind that leans into abundance rather than elegance. Staff T-shirts reading "Come hungry, be friendly" set the tone before the focaccia even lands.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #49 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Sandwich · Best of Boston
- Boston Magazine #49 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Sandwich · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: #29 · Top 50 Restaurants in Boston
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Rank 245. Abuela’s Table
Oaxacan
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Mexican Restaurant · Best of Boston
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The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Casual Sushi · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Chinese Takeout · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Chocolate · Best of Boston
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Rank 245. Citrus & Salt
Mexican
Chef Jason Santos runs this Mexican-inspired brunch spot in the Seaport, where the mimosas arrive with a swirl of soft-serve sorbet and the street corn gets a dusting of Flamin' Hot Cheetos. The room is draped in pink flowers, which is either a design choice or an elaborate content strategy, and probably both. Come with a group, order widely from the tapas-style menu, and accept that your phone will not stay in your pocket.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Girls' Night Out · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Listening Lounge · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Bagel · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Fried Chicken · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Korean Restaurant · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Hot Chocolate · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Hot Chocolate · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Hot Chocolate · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Clam Chowder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Cookie · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Cookie · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Vegan Restaurant · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Vegan Restaurant · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Viral Opening · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Dubai Chocolate · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Dubai Chocolate · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Dubai Chocolate · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Casual Steak Tips · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Fusion Restaurant · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best African Market · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Classy Burger · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best New Market · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Lobster · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Indian Restaurant · Best of Boston
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The biscuits at this Fenway barbecue joint are built to soak up the drippings from brined, smoked chicken, which tells you something about the kitchen's priorities. Tiffani Faison of Food Network fame runs the place, and the slow-smoked ribs and charred brisket have kept regulars coming back for years. Coleslaw and picnic sides fill out the heavy trays. Boston Magazine named it the city's top barbecue in 2025.
The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Barbecue · Best of Boston
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The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Casual Burger · Best of Boston
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The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Casual Burger · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Casual Burger · Best of Boston
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The awards
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Casual Burger · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Empire Builder · Best of Boston
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- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Pizza · Best of Boston
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Trina's is a pinup-flavored Somerville dive where the corners are dark, the beer runs from local IPAs to buckets of High Life Ponies, and the staff has been pouring so long they're basically load-bearing. Bartenders from other bars turn up for the Monday industry brunch, which is the closest thing to a seal of approval a bar can get. There's mac and cheese with a buttery Ritz crust and a mango margarita with a BBQ-spiced rim.
The awards
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Bars In Boston
- Boston Magazine Boston Magazine: 2025 · Best Non-Seafood Tower · Best of Boston
- The Infatuation The Best Bars In Boston
- Boston Magazine 2025 · Best Non-Seafood Tower · Best of Boston
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