Forklift
Mediterranean, Asian, classic American—this Union Square caterer will happily hop from cuisine to cuisine for your wedding spread, incorporating vegan and gluten-free menus with ease. Chefs Dennis Tourse and Jamie Rogers are tight with local farmers, which translates to personalized menus featuring natively sourced ingredients whenever possible. Top requests include avocado beggars' purses and fava-bean crostini with wild mushrooms. 5 Sanborn Ct., Somerville, MA 02143, forkliftcatering.com.
La Bonne Maison
BK&B No generic pasta bowls here: La Bonne Maison appeals to foodies with creative fare such as buttermilk-chicken sliders with hot--pepper jelly, and stuffed apples, baked to perfection. Opt for the team’s full-service catering or easy drop-off meals, and don’t forget the cocktails; the “Flower Child,” for example, blends tequila, orange blossom honey, and hibiscus. 367 California St., Newton, MA 02458, labonnemaison.com.
Season to Taste
Season to Taste’s creative farm-to-table menus make a big impact at wedding receptions without creating a big carbon footprint. Chef-owner Robert Harris is passionate about sustainability in catering, showcasing the season’s bounty in ever-creative ways: take his summer heirloom-tomato bar, which offers six or seven varieties prepared to order with mozzarella, basil purée, balsamic-cider reduction, and crusty bread. Staffers will even deliver leftover food to a homeless shelter upon request, making sure absolutely nothing goes to waste. 2447 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 2140, seasontotastecatering.com.
East Meets West
As challenging as combining two families may seem to a bride and groom, the caterer has an equally tough job: feeding them. East Meets West's creative menus promise to keep both sets of in-laws happy—chicken stuffed with mozzarella and pesto for his Mediterranean clan, mushroom ravioli with sun-dried tomatoes for her vegetarian relatives. Now, if only there were a way to get everyone on the same page about the reception music... 212 Old Colony Ave., Boston, MA eastmeetswestcatering.com.
Hamlet & Kenn
Primarily a caterer, their cookies and petits fours are unrivaled. 123 Appleton St., Boston, MA .
Fifth Avenue Limousine Service
Caters to corporate high rollers as well as rock stars. 484 Prospect St., Revere, MA .
Carrie Rickey, <em>Boston Herald</em>
Witty, entertaining, consistent—a breath of fresh air in that paper.
John F. Kennedy Library and Museum
A marvelous collection, including both Robert Kennedy's and Ernest Hemingway's papers. Columbia Point, Dorchester, MA .
Today's Bread, Ltd.
A neighborhood secret, already discovered by top caterers. Get here early, or it's gone. 701 Centre St., Jamaica Plain, MA .
Museum of Fine Arts
Original art, hand-pressed paper. When you care enough to really send the best. 465 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA .
Charles Pierce, <em>Boston Herald</em>
He has become the most consistently engaging and entertaining sports columnist in any Boston paper.
Vers
Stock Image via Shutterstock This Chatham spot, which operates out of two spaces in the Orpheum Theater, is a chameleon of sorts: In the morning, the downstairs restaurant and patisserie turns out sausage-flecked " hangover muffins" and fresh-baked croissants; during the day, the upstairs eatery serves fish tacos and cured salmon salads to the lunchtime crowd. But chef and owner Jonathan Haffmans really shines in the evening, turning out gorgeous dishes like ibérico ham paired with beet sorbet, and Cape Cod capon with pork belly and pinot noir sauce. The restaurant’s name is Dutch for " fresh," a nod to Haffmans’s heritage. It also describes the perspective he’s bringing to the Cape dining scene. 637 Main St., Chatham, MA 2633, verscapecod.com.
Arthur Friedman of the <em>Cambridge Express</em>
When Friedman was at the Real Paper, he was quoted all the time. Now he's invisible, but just as good.
Toucan Chocolates
Recycled paper, vegetable-based ink, nuts from the rain forest in Brazil. PC never tasted so good. 31 Wyman Street, P.O. Box 72, Waban, MA .
Museum of Fine Arts
Even the merest trifle takes on special significance when wrapped in one of the beautiful gift papers form the MFA gift shop. 465 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA .