Balans Organic Spa
No need to choose from a menu of froufrou facials at Balans, Boston's first all-organic spa. Here, each 60- or 75-minute session is completely customized to your skin, targeting concerns ranging from acne to aging with a selection of plant-based products from Maria Հkerberg. Need an extra boost? Try the brand-new roseroot-stem-cell treatment, which promises to stimulate collagen production and reduce wrinkles. 216 Newbury St., Boston, MA 02116, bostonbalans.com.
The Times Bar and Restaurant
To hell with baked beans. Clam chowder is Boston's crowning food—not potato, not flour, but clam. That's a distinction understood at the Times, an otherwise largely undistinguished beer hall within a stone's kick of the waterfront. Each spoonful of the chowder here is heaped with clams so fresh they carry a signature nip of sand and the odd crunch of shell. It's dense but not gluey, and the flavor is emphatically shellfish. Other chowders boast fancier bisques or gourmet crackers, but this barroom stew wins out on the strength of the defining mollusk. 112 Broad St., Boston, MA timesirishpub.com.
2129
It seems that Boston cream pie is the tiramisu of the '60s—once ubiquitous, now vanished from most restaurant dessert cards. But chef Billy Boudreau has salvaged the once august reputation of what should be a hometown fixture. He bakes individual Boston cream pies—soft and silky minigems—using the same skill at 02129 that he once exhibited at the Bostonian Hotel and Mirabelle. 9 Austin St., Charlestown, MA .
Phoenix Landing
It's time to change up your sports-bar rotation. Head to the Phoenix Landing, where soccer—er, football—is almost always on the telly. This pub is Boston's official Liverpool FC clubhouse (the Red Sox's John Henry owns the team). Of course, all fans are welcome here ... as long as they're willing to drink Guinness while belting out, "We'll fight for the boys in Red, We'll fight, we'll fight for Liverpool, The team that Shankly bred." 512 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 2118, phoenixlandingbar.com.
Michael Schlow of Cafe Louis
Schlow put the newly renovated restaurant at Louis, Boston on the culinary map just a few weeks after his arrival from New York. A protege of Manhattan restaurateur Pino Luongo, Schlow and pastry chef Paul Connors, who worked at Aurora, in New York, and the four-star Ryland Inn, in New Jersey, have brought simply prepared but elegant and sometimes surprising cuisine to Boston, featuring notably fresh produce and other ingredients. Try the tasting menu.
Lynn Woods
Scenic and easy to find, Lynn Woods covers 2,200 acres with a maze of single-track and fire roads for bicyclists—all easy to intermediate—plus advanced trails such as Steel Tower, which has great views of Boston's skyline and the vast Atlantic. For new visitors, the park has easy-to-read grid-coordinated trail markings that match the map, making it a breeze to bike off-road without fear of getting lost. 106 Pennybrook Rd., Lynn, MA flw.org.
Great Scott
A terrific core of rock clubs anchors Boston's music scene, places like T. T. the Bear's, the Middle East, and the Midway Café. But if you're into discovering emerging bands, Great Scott is the finest; it's been booking the best new talent for years (including early concerts from Of Montreal and MGMT). What's more, the sound is exceptional, and the place is so tiny there's no backstage area, leaving musicians little choice but to mingle with the crowd. 1222 Commonwealth Ave., Allston, MA 2134, greatscottboston.com.
Courageous Sailing
One way to minimize your exposure to E. coli is to sail on Boston Harbor instead of the Charles River, and Courageous Sailing is the best way to go for the bucolic-urban experience. Courageous offers easy access to Harbor Islands State Park, where with a little advanced planning you can even go camping. The only year-round sailing center in Boston, it merits its name because of its iceboating events and other cold-weather adventures. 1 First Ave., Charlestown, MA .
Machine Age
Okay, so 20th-century goods aren't exactly antique. But if you're simply seeking exquisite items with a storied past, you'll find them at South Boston's Machine Age, a 9,000-square-foot warehouselike store overflowing with the most iconic furniture and lighting from the past century, plus rare Danish modern pieces that have never been stateside until now. 645 Summer St., Boston, MA 2210, machine-age.com.
Bernard Toale
Toale wins this year not just for his keen eye but for his moxie. When all five gallery owners at 11 Newbury Street were forced to leave in April because of an outrageous rent hike, all but Toale went across the street to 14 Newbury Street. He boldly chose to move to the South End, adding his adventurous style to a handful of galleries that are trying to turn this area into Boston's version of SoHo. 450 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA .
Eliza Dushku and Peter Palandjian
The hush-hush August wedding of Buffy the Vampire Slayer actress Eliza Dushku, a Watertown native, and local real estate exec Peter Palandjian started with the bride and groom joining the Boston Bike Party and ended with a bash (and this sweet photo) at deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln. The dreamiest part of the festivities, though? Their intimate ceremony in the courtyard of the Boston Public Library, where the couple swapped vows.
Get Konnected!
In a town where the power to convene is more valuable than gold, public relations pro Colette Phillips’s cross-cultural networking group is priceless. And with some of the biggest-name partners around, including Eastern Bank, Wayfair, State Street, and the Boston Foundation, plus a business or multicultural celebratory event offered nearly every month, there’s no one in Boston who helps busy professionals make meaningful connections like Get Konnected! 529 Main St., Boston, MA 02109, getkonnected.com.
Bob Lobel on WBZ <em>Sports Final</em>
Bob Lobel on WBZ Sports Final where you can find the best of Boston's sports critics waxing eloquent. Warning, the egos here can activate a seismograph.
The Victoria Restaurant
The perpetual presence of Dodges, Macks and International trucks attests to the popularity of this pit-stop. The occasional Harley choppers prove that Boston's finest recognize "Good Food. Cheap Eats" too. 1024 Massachusetts Ave., Dorchester, MA .
The Regattabar
Yes, it's noisy. Yes, it's expensive. Yes, the taste is mainstream. No matter. Any club that can survive five years on Boston's anemic jazz scene must be doing something right. The Charles Hotel, Cambridge, MA .