Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Boston Restaurant Weeks
During Boston Restaurant Week, dozens of terrific spots serve a three-course
prix-fixe
lunch for the decimal equivalent of the year—in 2009, $20.09—and
many offer dinner for just $10 more. The third week of August was the original
Restaurant Week; it's now 2 weeks, as is the March incarnation. I find the latter
less enjoyable because late winter's seasonal ingredients are, to put it nicely,
dull, but the price is right. Popular places book up quickly, so plan accordingly.
The Convention & Visitors Bureau (
&
888/SEE-BOSTON;
www.bostonusa.com)
lists names of participating restaurants and individual numbers to call for reser-
vations. Ask whether the menu is set yet, and seek out restaurants that really
get into the spirit by offering more than just a couple of choices for each course.
If you don't, you're going to experience more chicken, salmon, and begrudging
service than anyone deserves.
Tips
famously cranky waitresses, people have poured into Durgin-Park since 1827. A
tourist magnet that attracts many locals, it's everything it's cracked up to be. Approxi-
mately 2,000 people a day join the line that stretches down a flight of stairs to the first
floor of Faneuil Hall Marketplace's North Market building. The queue moves quickly,
and you'll probably wind up seated at a long table with other people (smaller tables
are available).
The food is wonderful, and there's plenty of it—prime rib the size of a hubcap,
lamb chops, fried seafood, huge salads, and juicy roast turkey are sure bets. The cooks
broil steaks and chops on an open fire over wood charcoal. Fresh seafood arrives twice
daily, and fish dinners are broiled to order. Every meal starts with a square of dense,
rich cornbread. Boston baked beans are a signature dish, and this is the best place to
try them. For dessert, strawberry shortcake is justly celebrated, and Indian pudding
(molasses and cornmeal baked for hours and served with ice cream) is a New England
classic. So is backtalk from the waitresses, but don't be disappointed if your server
doesn't deliver—everyone has an off day sometimes.
340 Faneuil Hall Marketplace.
&
617/227-2038.
www.durgin-park.com. Reservations accepted only for parties of
15 or more. Main courses $7-$11 at lunch, $10-$25 at dinner; specials $19-$40. Children's menu $8-$9. AE, DC,
DISC, MC, V. Mon-Sat 11:30am-10pm, Sun 11:30am-11pm; lunch menu daily until 2:30pm. Validated parking avail-
able. T: Green or Blue Line to Government Center, Green or Orange Line to Haymarket, or Blue Line to Aquarium.
INEXPENSIVE
Così Sandwich Bar
SANDWICHES/ITALIAN Flavorful fillings on delectable
bread make Così (inexplicably pronounced “cozy”) a downtown lunch hot spot. This
location, right on the Freedom Trail, makes a delicious refueling stop. Italian flatbread
baked fresh all day—so tasty that it's even good plain—gets split open and filled with
your choice of meat, fish, vegetables, cheese, and spreads. Soups and salads are good,
too, and pizzas with flatbread as the crust are tasty, but for me, this place is all about
the sandwiches. The more fillings you choose, the more you pay; the total can really
climb, so don't go wild if you're on a budget. Tandoori chicken is sensational, as is
roast beef with wasabi mayonnaise. For dessert, order s'mores, and a staffer will bring
you a contraption that holds an actual fire.
Other branches are at 14 Milk St. (
&
617/426-7565
), near Downtown Crossing,
and 133 Federal St. (
&
617/292-2674
), which has patio seating in warm weather.
