Now on Resy: Lone Star Taco Bar, Cha Yen Thai Cookery, Maguro, and More Local Favorites
From a taco destination in Allston to a Watertown favorite for Thai cuisine, these are just a few of the beloved Boston spots that are now bookable on Resy. Right this way.
Note: This list will be updated regularly with new additions each month, so be sure to check back often. For Boston’s newest restaurant openings, head here.
Lone Star Taco Bar – Allston Allston
Newly added!
Because some of Boston’s best tacos can be found at this Allston gem. And the carnitas tacos at Lone Star are worth the trek alone (if you don’t live close by), but you won’t want to miss Tex-Mex classics like Frito pie and “Texas cook-off” style chili (no beans), alongside an impeccable lineup of Mexican street foods. Wash it all down with their signature “Lone Star Happy Meal” — a shot of blanco tequila, a sangrita sidecar, and a can of Mexican lager.
Cha Yen Thai Cookery Watertown
Newly added!
When Manita Bunnagitkarn moved her extremely popular Watertown Thai restaurant across the street a few years back (she also owns Kala Thai Cookery in Boston proper), it got bigger and better than ever. Go deep on specialties like shrimp donuts, tom yum soup, and Panang curry, and truly, save room for dessert as you can’t possibly miss her much-celebrated housemade ice creams.
La Stalla Osteria & Bar Stoughton
At this handsome Stoughton osteria, seafood is always a good idea. Don’t miss any of the pizzas, the Caesar salad, and a definitive Bolognese for that matter.
Sakabayashi Sushi Tavern Back Bay
When the group behind Japan’s leading sushi conveyor belt and izakaya chains opens a place in Back Bay, you pay close attention. And Sakabayashi delights with its modern izakaya fare (mack — as in mackerel — n’ cheese bruschetta, anyone?), first-rate sashimi and nigiri, rolls, and more.
El Tacuba Medford
You won’t go wrong at this Medford Mexican spot from brothers Alvaro and Andrés Sandoval, famed for the tortas at their fast-casual Tenoch restaurants and food trucks around the Boston area. This one’s a sit-down-and-linger-awhile kind of place, with no tortas but plenty of tacos, tostadas, seafood dishes, and Mexican brunch specialties.
Shaking Crab (Newton) Newton
Because what is now a nationwide chain first saw light in this Newton restaurant space in 2015. Kevin Duong and Nick Wu opened Shaking Crab to satisfy their craving for Cajun-spiced crab boils, and the dining public obviously liked the idea. Alaskan king crab is the star, but the seafood choices go on forever, and the fried options are as good as the boiled ones.
Check out their Foxborough location, too.
Sushi by Bosso Ramen Tavern Back Bay
Here’s one you’ll definitely want to try — a handsome Back Bay extension of Harvard Square’s always-busy ramen, sushi, and Japanese bar-food Bosso, on the site of the former Double Zero vegan pizzeria. There’s ramen here, too, but the selection of sushi, sashimi, and other raw-bar fare takes the spotlight.
Maguro Brookline
Narumon Jenkitcharoenchai’s Sweet Rice is a Thai standard in Charlestown, but at this urban-rustic Brookline spin-off, the ample Thai menu takes second place to a wealth of sushi, ramen, and grilled izakaya fare. Don’t miss the signature maguro roll, combining spicy tuna, tuna belly, caviar, truffle, cucumber, spicy mayo, and eel sauce.
Tres Gatos Jamaica Plain
Food, music, and books are the themes at this neighborhood charmer in Jamaica Plain from David Doyle and Mari Perez-Alers (of Casa Verde and Tonino). The food is Spanish, with tapas the specialty. The music is both live and for sale on vinyl. The books, also on sale, are an eclectic variety. The takeaway? Eating, listening, and reading go together really well.
Da LaPosta Newtonville
Chef Mario LaPosta knows just what you like: real Italian appetizers (the housemade ricotta with orange honey wins raves), Neapolitan-style pizzas with a variety of toppings both classic and original (plus the next-level cheese-filled focaccia di Recco), a few perfect pastas, craft beers on tap, and well-chosen wines from southern Italy and beyond.
The Sea Hag Restaurant and Bar Harvard Square
Oysters, updated pub fare, and signature salads (the “Messy Cobb” is topped with a fried egg); unusual wines from Croatia and other coasts; vibrant cocktails … These are some of the many reasons to find your way to this beautifully illuminated restaurant in Harvard Square, sister to the popular Grendel’s Den.
Brick & Mortar Cambridge
Beware: There’s no sign outside, so you’ll have to choose the right blue door. Once in, you’ll step into one of the best cocktail spots in New England, known for its genial vibe, its curving copper bar, its sound system playing vinyl records, and of course its exquisite cocktails (try the DTO or four daiquiri shots to get the fun started) and delicious small plates.
Folio Boston
Library-chic is the best way to describe the cafe adjacent to the historic Boston Athenaeum. Leather-bound menus, book-lined wallpaper, and a worldly aesthetic abound. It’s just the spot for a glass of wine (the list is extensive) and a bite.
Josephine Somerville
Beware, you might just want everything on the menu at this stylish restaurant. Located in Somerville’s Cambria Hotel, chef Michael Scelfo (of Alden & Harlow and Waypoint) serves everything from dry-aged meatballs to deep-dish Margherita pizza to spaghetti with clams in a wood-and-marble-accented dining room with a fire-pit patio outside.
Deuxave Back Bay
The team behind dbar and Boston Chops has turned their attention to next-level French bistro fare (think lobster gnocchi fricassée and duck confit) at this seductive venue full of dark wood and candlelight, and you’ll want to come with someone special to share the experience.
Waypoint Cambridge
Seafood lovers, rejoice: At this instant Cambridge classic from chef Michael Scelfo (Alden & Harlow, Josephine), the menu teems with oysters, shellfish towers, and crudos; lobster pasta and chopped clam pizza; seared and fried fish (plus a steak and a burger if you insist) — and the wine list is brilliantly chosen and best of all, fairly priced.
Baleia South End
The fishing motif is subtle, but it’s there (baleia means “whale” in Portuguese), which makes sense: The sibling of superstars The Salty Pig, SRV, and Gufo leans on seafood, and no one can fault a great raw bar selection. Ever.
Lehrhaus Somerville
Here’s a true original — a combination tavern and “house of learning” (or lehrhaus in German) dedicated to Jewish culture. That means classes and book clubs, but also a savory kosher pescatarian menu (the pastrami is made from beets, the “chopped not-liver” from eggplant and nuts) that goes way beyond deli fare.
Noah’s Kitchen Brookline
Within a handsome wood-rich interior, this Brookline sparkler serves uncompromising, hard-to-find, traditional Sichuan dishes full of heat — many of them involving offal and other uncommon ingredients, but all of them guaranteed to please.
Super Bien Brighton
Don’t miss this one: an Argentinean-flavored specialty market and wine bar at Brighton’s Charles River Speedway, where the wines are all-natural (and all from South America), and the empanadas, salsas, and other specialties are the real deal.
dbar Dorchester
Is this former Irish pub in Dorchester a clubby tacos-to-falafel-to-cavatelli gastropub, or an LGBTQ-friendly nightclub and lounge, complete with drag shows and show-tune Tuesdays? The answer is yes to both — and the two identities meld seamlessly together, to everyone’s delight.
The Washington Square Tavern Brookline
A Brookline staple for a quarter of a century, this is just the kind of place you wish every neighborhood had. A wide-ranging American menu based on regional produce; big, comfortable tables (communal and otherwise); a friendly bar with perfect cocktails (and lots of great whiskey and wine) … Nothing’s missing here.
Naco Taqueria Charlestown
Culinary lightning strikes again with this follow-up to the original Cambridge Naco. Settle into the riotously colorful dining room and dig into antojitos, tacos, and tortas galore. Pro tip: Finish with dulce de leche churros and a house-infused Tequila espresso martini, and go happy out into the world.
Shaking Crab (Brookline) Brookline
Born in Newton almost a decade ago, Shaking Crab has grown into a red-hot chain with locations all over New England, New York, and as far away as California and even Shanghai. The draw? Spicy, buttery, Cajun-style seafood boils, featuring not only crab but also shrimp, clams, crawfish, and more — and it’s all-you-can-eat Monday through Wednesday.
Dear Annie Cambridge
There’s a lightness to this Cambridge wine bar, and it’s not just because of the effervescent natural wines on the list. Maybe it’s the fresh-cut flowers and greenery, the shimmer of cut glass or the neon signage. It’s more likely the fun and frolicking menu, snackables like pickled mussels or spicy seafood fumet, plus enough wines by the glass to try to keep things interesting.
Nosh and Grog Restaurant The Village Shoppes of Canton (Cobbs Corner / Shaw's Plaza)
The Canton iteration of this gastropub brings the same flair and farm name-dropping as the original, albeit in a modern space with exposed brick walls and punches of earthy sage green. There are cocktails and snacks, like lobster bao, for the peckish. Or boards (Meat! Cheese! Butter!) for sharing amongst friends. And a great chicken sandwich when it’s needed. Point is: You can’t go wrong anywhere you point on the menu.
Mae Asian Eatery Cambridge
You’ll definitely want to reserve a table at this 20-seat jewel box of a place, where chef-owner Yuri Asawasittikit draws on her mother’s recipes to produce a treasury of traditional Thai dishes, along with a scattering of Japanese and Chinese treats.
Bogie’s Place Downtown Crossing
Bin 26 Enoteca Beacon Hill
If a dazzling list of wines (more than 150 bottles, with about 50 served by the glass) accompanied by savory snacks and homemade pastas in a warm environment sounds like your kind of thing, you’ll definitely want to enjoy this longtime Beacon Hill institution run by brother-and-sister team Babak Bina and Azita Bina-Seibel (who were also behind the sorely-missed Lala Rokh).
