Best Place for a Rowdy Group Chowdown: Best Little Restaurant
If ever there was a place to do as the local chowhounds do, it’s Chinatown. If ever there was a place to do it with them, it’s Best Little Restaurant (13 Hudson Street, Boston, 617.338.4988). Here’s how: 1) log onto chowhound.com’s Boston Area board and propose a meeting time. 2) sit back and let ’em at it: in no time you’ll be chomping on squab, head and all, fried to a glistening dark brown and sprinkled with spiced salt and lemon juice; deep-fried spare ribs the size of staplers (if only real office supplies were so porky!); saucy pan-fried noodles; and much, much more. 3) spend a pittance for the privilege. 4) Repeat.
Best Restaurant Fad: Shabu-Shabu
It’s fresh, it’s delicious, it’s got something for everyone, and it’s a hoot with a group of friends. And boiling meat, seafood, and vegetables in a savory broth, thereby turning it into tasty soup for the end of dinner, yields a healthier communal meal than that pot of cheese fondue. The only problem is that even with all the shabu-joint openings of the past few years (Toki, Shabu Quincy, Osaka Shabu, and Shabu Village), we still can’t get a table on Saturday night.
Restaurant We Most Hope Starts a Trend: Highland Kitchen
Spring Hill was long a good-restaurant virgin but finally got lucky with Highland Kitchen (150 Highland Avenue, Somerville, 617.625.1131). This casual bar/restaurant is friendly, reasonably priced, and retro-cool but not self-consciously so. Chef/owner Mark Romano pays skillful tribute to Yankee and Southern US comfort, while his wife, co-owner/manager Marci Joy, brings the same sassy hospitality she cultivated at the East Coast Grill. The bar turns out lovingly-crafted classic cocktails in the spirit of the B-Side lounge, and the jukebox boasts a killer mix of classic R&B and Americana. Here’s the neighborhood restaurant every neighborhood needs more of. Aspiring restaurateurs, pay heed.
Win dinner on us! Text FEED, followed by a space, followed by the name of your favorite restaurant, to 22122.
