282 Best Restaurants in Massachusetts, USA

Don't let the no-frills decor fool you; what this family-owned restaurant lacks in style it more than makes up for in bold flavors, especially at dinner. Enjoy a menu of fresh and flavorful Peruvian favorites ranging from ceviche to plantains, and don't forget to grab a caramel custard for dessert.

This Mexican restaurant reflects the culture of many of the people living in the neighborhood, and its eponymous cook re-creates dishes from her native Puebla. Locals love it for its authenticity and extensive selection of small plates (mmm, queso fundido) and hearty main courses (chilaquiles, mole poblano). It's definitely worth the trip from downtown, or if you're staying by Logan Airport.

Anna's owner moved to Boston from San Fran's Mission District in the mid-1990s and opened shop. This West Coast--style Mexican takeout restaurant has been a hit ever since, especially with Boston residents, current and former. Diners can select from 10 meat and veggie fillings for burritos, tacos, quesadillas, and bowls.

Many of the menu choices here come from the eponymous wood-burning brick oven, which turns out surprisingly delicate thin-crust pizzas simply topped with tomato and buffalo mozzarella or complicated combos like pistachio pesto, fresh mozzarella, and sausage. While the name, which translates to "old oven," gives the pizzas top billing, Antico excels at a variety of Italian country dishes that harken back to the Old Country, like veal parmigiana, osso buco with pork shank, chicken saltimbocca, and handmade pastas; the specialty, gnocchi, is rich and creamy but light. The joint is cramped and noisy, but also homey and comfortable—which means that your meal will resemble a raucous dinner with an adopted Italian family. Its rustic decor of large tiles, huge rectangular bar, and imposing brick archway add even more authenticity as you fill your belly.

French macarons with an Asian spin (think flavors like lychee, taro, Thai tea, and Hong Kong milk tea), fresh strawberry and mango cakes, and many layered crepe cakes (order by the slice), are all stars of the menu at Bao Bao. Grab-and-go baked goods include many types of buns from savory (curry beef) to sweet (pineapple with custard), and taro paste loaf bread. Milk teas, Ovaltine, iced tea drinks, and smoothies round out the offerings. The only con we can find is that there's no place to sit. 

Airy and classic in atmosphere, this modern restaurant focuses on two things: food and local history (it is, after all, situated in a historic 1902 building). The menu features elevated takes on comfort food; at lunch expect more sandwiches. Who wouldn't want to dive into a tater tot poutine or a bowl of house-made onion dip with potato chips, while chatting up your dining partners and enjoying the occasional live music? Social describes the vibe on most nights, more so later into the evening.  Bostonia gets busy, so it's a good idea to make a reservation.

At this all-you-can-eat churrascaria, waiters continually circulate through the dining room offering more than a dozen grilled meats—beef, pork, chicken, sausage, and the beloved Brazilian chicken hearts—on large, swordlike skewers. The massive buffet is laden with soups, salads, and side dishes, including plantains, rice, and beans; vegetarians could happily eat from the buffet, but the smell of grilling meat does permeate the restaurant.

This romantic roadhouse near the Chatham border, adorned with tiny white lights, wine bottles, and warm-hue walls, might just transport you to Italy—and if it doesn't, the fantastic food certainly will. There are always excellent specials added to the menu; in the fall and winter, look for value-priced entrées, and in summer, their hot dog cart (in the parking lot) serves the best wieners on the Cape.

People come to Boston for certain things—colleges, Irish pubs, Fenway Park—and Polish food isn't usually one of them. But, if you do land here, this authentic Polish restaurant in Southie is a must-stop. The menu is rife with an Eastern European culinary heritage in plates like pierogi, beet soup, stuffed cabbage, and kielbasa, and there are some tasty Polish beers. You'll be glad you ventured to Andrew Square.

This casual spot specializes in classics like grilled cheese sandwiches, hand-cut fries, and local seafood in a lively spot. Order at the counter, then grab a seat inside or at one of the several outdoor seating options; there's also a large beer menu with New England offerings, a good selection of wines, and fun cocktails. Weekend brunch features dishes like sticky buns and egg tacos. Dinner is served on Friday and Saturday.

Set in a 19th-century sea captain's home, this chef-owned gem with distant sea views uses what's locally available as the inspiration for an ever-changing and creative menu. There are also generous wine, martini, and drink lists.

At the far eastern end of the city, Chickadee is a restaurant you'd wish to stumble over. Make the trek on the Silver Line or simply walk to sample the curated seasonal menus that have been James Beard award nominated multiple times. Order a selection of smaller, Mediterranean-inspired plates and share amongst the table. As for cocktails, they're intentional, well-crafted, and laced with unique ingredients. 

Shaped like a giant fried-clam box, this small roadside stand is the best place in the region to sample Ipswich's famous bivalves. Since 1935 locals and tourists have been lining up in droves for clams, oysters, scallops, and onion rings.

This elegant dining room 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 merde dé can (yes, that does translate to "dog shit") spinach dumplings, which beat Bobby Flay, are a must. Cocktails are gorgeous and delicious, and if you win over your server, they may just bring over the gratis Stinger digestif service to end your meal. 

The best Mexican food in the Berkshires can be found at this unassuming spot where traditional cuisine meets local ingredients. The menu is small but every item is done well, and often served with side dishes in cute little tortilla cups.

You've just got to love this newly renovated shoebox-size place—for the noise, the intimacy, the complete absence of pretense, and, above all, the Sicilian-style seafood, which proved so popular, it spawned two other locations (one in Brookline and another in Boston's Seaport area). With garlic and olive oil forming the foundation for almost every dish, this cheerful, bustling spot specializes in calamari, black squid-ink pastas, and linguine with clam sauce, all served in the skillets in which they were cooked, hot from the stove. Check the chalkboard, which is always loaded with freshly caught specials, but consider the Lobster fra Diavolo for two—lobster chunks, shrimp, calamari, littlenecks, mussels in a "spicy" seafood tomato sauce served over linguine. Compact and brightly lighted, this storefront restaurant has been a local staple for over 50 years and for good reason.

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.

A dark, intimate wine bar and restaurant with hardwood floors and richly colored banquette seating, Détente serves more than a dozen wines by the glass as well as numerous half bottles. Even if you're not much of an oenophile, it's worth a trip just for the innovative food, much of it from local farms and seafood purveyors. Owned by a husband and wife, the menu reflects their travels; think of it as Europe-meets-New England on a plate.

At the corner of two avenues (Commonwealth and Massachusetts), which is how this restaurant got its name (deux is French for "two"), you'll find this snazzy, dark-wood enclave serving sophisticated dishes like spice-crusted ahi tuna and braised pork belly, pan-seared Atlantic halibut, and organic chicken with parsnip and foie gras agnolotti. Make sure to pair your meal with a bottle from the thoughtfully crafted and surprisingly affordable wine list served by an attentive staff.

Delicious food and good wine keep this small restaurant packed most nights. This gem can almost be missed just off busy North Street, but couples looking for an intimate date night or professionals grabbing after-work drinks have made it a hot spot.

When folks need coffee, a great sandwich, or an irresistible sweet, like a pecan sticky bun, lemon tart, or double chocolate cookie—or just a place to sit and chat—they pay a visit to one of owner Joanne Chang's 10 Flour bakeries, including this one in the South End. A communal table in the middle acts as a gathering spot, around which diners enjoy morning pastries, homemade soups, hearty bean and grain salads, and specialty sandwiches, which change seasonally.

Chef-owner Karen Akunowicz steps up with hearty, traditional Italian food inspired by her time as a chef and pasta maker in Italy. Locals love it so much that in order to score a table, especially on the weekends, you have to book a reservation about a month or so out. But once you get in, you'll realize it is worth the wait to dig into this carb-heavy fare, like warm focaccia, handmade pasta, pork Milanese, braised lamb, or whole fish. Plates are on the smaller side, so make sure to order with abandon, although your wallet won't thank you for it. At the bar, order the flight of Amaro varieties. 

With exposed-brick walls and soft lighting, the heart and soul of this charming Italian restaurant is its communal pasta table at which chef Michael Pagliarini spends hours hand-rolling superlative pastas for dishes like buckwheat pizzoccheri and pasta alla Bolognese. Plates such as house-made lamb sausage, monkfish piccata, warm semolina cakes, grilled barramundi, and Sardinian flatbread are original, generous, and, of course, delicious. Known for its romantic nature, it's the perfect place for lovers to linger over a chocolate terrine and cappuccino.

The ambience at this cozy Southie wine bar is artful and welcoming. Small-producer and unique natural wines are available by the glass or bottle and are meant to be paired with a well-edited menu of small plates and snacks that highlight ingredients from the New England region.

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 fireplace to accommodate any season).

The area's first Afghan restaurant, named after the country's most important river, welcomes you into its cozy Kendall Square confines with Afghan rugs, a wood-burning oven, and exotic yet extremely approachable food that reflects the motherland's location halfway between the Middle East and India. Standouts, beyond the chewy warm bread, include magical names from a faraway land like aushak (leek-stuffed ravioli over yogurt with beef ragù and mint), chapendaz (marinated grilled beef tenderloin served with cumin-spiced hot pepper–tomato puree), and a vegetarian baked pumpkin platter. The warm atmosphere, courtesy of a small fireplace and a wood-burning oven that provides heat for the restaurant's famous flatbread, gives off the comforts of home while maintaining a world's-away vibe.

Options are endless at this food hall, so if you can't agree among your traveling partners what to eat where, this is your place. Every single one of the 20 vendors hails from the Boston area—Tenderoni's Pizza, Mamaleh's Delicatessen, and Pennypacker's are just a few of the options. Our favorite, though, remains Bubble Bath, a champagne bar that pairs bubbly (including a Moét & Chandon champagne vending machine) with gourmet hot dogs.

Yuji Watanabe, chef--owner of the Cape's best Japanese restaurant, makes early-morning journeys to Boston's fish markets to shop for the freshest local catch, and the resulting selection of sushi and sashimi is vast and artful. The serene and simple Japanese garden out back has a traditional koi pond.

This sweet little white-washed taverna serves authentic Greek cuisine, with many ingredients imported directly from the Mediterranean, such as the feta, fish, and octopus. Order some crisp white wine off the hard-to-find Greek wines and liquors list to sip with a parade of home-style dishes, from tasty meze plates to entrées like grilled lamb chops. The tables may be tight and the wait a bit long without a reservation, but you'll forget about these tiny inconveniences once dinner arrives.

Northern Italian and Mediterranean cooking distinguish this upscale, popular place. Make sure to come hungry—portions of classic favorites here are huge. Live music adds to the festive vibe on Sunday afternoons year-round. An excellent wine list pairs perfectly with the food.