Cambridge, MA

2016-05-31


My first adult home

There's something special about the first place you earn an income and learn how to fend for yourself.

Favorite spots to eat, by area

Cambridge

Of course, my local stomping grounds. These are the best of the best!

  • Alden & Harlow - My favorite restaurant in Cambridge, amazing New American food. Decently sized plates and excellent cocktails.
  • Puritan & Company - New England inspired cuisine, the chef Will DeLoach had an old restaurant called Garden at the Cellar on Mass Ave that made the best burger I ever had. Unfortunately, the burger isn't as good anymore, but worth trying.
  • Craigie on Main - Tony Maws' flagship with an excellent, expensive burger.
  • Oleana - Ana Sortun knows what she is doing. Go in the fall, it's out of this world Mediterranean mezzo plates. The Baked Alaska is really good.
  • Bondir - Quieter place and small, very good for a solid dinner night out.
  • Giulia - Excellent Italian food.
  • Orinoco - Truly amazing Venezuelan food. I was only introduced after leaving Cambridge, but it is worth going to whenever you visit.
  • Area Four - Fun pizza spot. It's not the same as a New York pie, but they do have some good stuff. The olive oil chocolate cake is very good too. And Barack Obama has been seen here.
  • Cafe Sushi - Super fresh fish for the price. Rolls are okay, but go for sashimi.
  • Baraka Cafe - Tunisian food, really well done, ethnically different and very interesting to try. Super cheap. Tiny spot though.
  • The Helmand - Excellent Afghani food that is affordable and amazing
  • Life Alive - Amazing smoothies, really good green bowls
  • Clover - Vegan local chain
  • flour bakery - Joanne Chang's chain of great baked goods. Also has good sandwiches. Lots of locations, one of which is down in the seaport area.
  • Tatte Bakery - one of the best bakeries in Cambridge, IMHO
  • Toscanini's - best ice cream in Cambridge, IMHO. JP Licks is a Boston classic, and Christina's is very solid
  • Sofra Bakery - Ana Sortun again with Turkish breakfast. Best breakfast I've had anywhere in the world (except maybe breakfast crepes and soup dumplings in China). My. Auburn Cemetery is supposed to be nice, it's across the street.
  • Green Street - good for cocktails
  • Brick & Mortar - loud, but good cocktails
  • The Field - great chill bar, cash only
  • Meadhall - two story hall with 100+ different beers on tap
  • Moody's Falafel - late night falafel spot with solid falafels

Somerville

A quick walk north and you get to some excellent food as well.

  • Sarma - Ana Sortun's Mediterranean eats. She's a great chef in the area
  • La Brasa - Local Mexican, Peruvian, and Middle Eastern type food.
  • Casa B - Tapas restaurant with really high quality food, and there's a living wall downstairs so you should definitely check it out :).
  • Highland Kitchen - Southern inspired food, great for brunch, but there's always a line so go early and get in line!
  • Union Square Donuts - Excellent donuts, less yeasty than Dough donuts. Bourbon sea salt was the flavor I was forgetting I liked a ton.
  • backbar - best cocktails I've had in the area

Boston

  • Sweet Cheeks Q - BBQ, Texas style. If you go, you MUST get the biscuits. They're HUGE and they come with really good honey butter
  • Neptune Oyster - Another classic, but definitely worthwhile. AMAZING oysters, great seafood dishes.
  • Island Creek Oyster Bar - Famous for its oysters, but also one of the best meals I've had in the Boston area
  • Row 34 - From the same team at Island Creek Oyster Bar, but focused on more seafood
  • Eastern Standard - good seafood and new American food
  • The Gallows - Solid new American in the South End
  • Mei mei - Very good Chinese inspired food, a bit eccentric in flavors but well done. Check out their menu ahead of time and go when they have hand pulled noodles!
  • Bon me - Thai food truck with dependably good food
  • Hei La Moon - Best dim sum in the city](IMHO), and a must if you want dim sum.
  • Taiwan Cafe - Good Taiwanese food, right in the heart of Chinatown
  • Pho Pasteur - Very good Vietnamese. I haven't found as good Vietnamese in NYC
  • Saus - Yummy place to stop by for a snack near Faneuil Hall. German small eats like curry wurst with good fries
  • jm Curley - Really unique and creative dishes that really blend well together. Low key, has a bar, but makes great food.
  • Drink - one of the most popular cocktail bars in Boston
  • Yankee Lobster Co. - Little fish market-like space, but awesome chowder and crab cakes
  • The Barking Crab - This is the place I take everyone who comes for clam chowder. It's a staple of mine. However, don't go to the one in Newport, RI... just not the same.
  • James Hook & Co. - No frills, solid lobster roll. Very delicious. Also a fish market-like space, some nice outdoor seating by Fort Point
  • Mike's Pastry - Unique cannoli flavors, always a crowd
  • Modern Pastry - Solid basic flavors for cannolis

Once you've finished eating, here are things to do

  • Sailing - If you have MIT friends who are sailing club members, they can take you out on the water! Or you can go to Community Boating
  • Kayaking - Charles River Canoe & Kayak rents them out for $15/hour.
  • SoWa Open Market - Really cool market, open on Sundays from May til October. There's a food truck market, farmer's market, vintage market, and art market. If you can get past the fact that they blatantly attempted to copy New York's SoHo/TriBeCa/etc type nicknames, it's pretty awesome.
  • Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum - A Boston specialty. Isabella Stewart Gardner made her house a residence for artists and also converted it into a museum. There's also a nice Renzo Piano addition to the existing building that holds the bookstore and a restaurant.
  • mfa - Free admission for BofA customers! Our scaled down version of the Met (and SERIOUSLY scaled down) but more personal, in a sense.
  • Kendall Square Cinemas - Landmark cinema, mix of indie films and some more well known films. Bonus - if you eat at Hungry Mother by 6pm, you can do a combo with movie tickets at Kendall for only $8, and they pick up the tickets for you!
  • Boston Commons - pretty park. Our version of Central Park. There's a park side, and a garden side. The garden is really beautiful, and there are swan boats that are touristy but cute. You should definitely take a photo with Make Way for Ducklings"!
  • Freedom Trail - If you have a day to kill, you should check out the freedom trail. Boston is a historical city at its core, and the trail is cool to follow. You can also just do part of it.
  • New England Aquarium - Beautiful museum; there's a giant cylindrical tank that you can walk up and see the aquatic life. There's also some whale watches near here.
  • Rose Kennedy Greenway - A ribbon of parks, including the pavilion entrance to the Boston Harbor Islands which was done by SGH. The islands are also a day type excursion, but if you're looking for some outdoorsy type stuff then they're a great choice.
  • Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market/Government Center - Touristy place, but since I've already got some things up there that are touristy, this fits. Cheers is here too, if you ever saw that TV show.
  • Newbury Street - Shopping mecca of Boston, along with the Prudential Center. If you need anything at all, you can find it here.