KO Prime
Gazillion-thread-count sheets aside, a hotel is really only as good as its bar. And chichi steakhouse KO Prime has admirably elevated the one at downtown's Nine Zero Hotel over the past year. Adjacent to the restaurant's sweeping dining room, the loungelike space caters to an in-town audience as well as trysters and overnight guests with a smart by-the-glass wine list and wowza cocktails such as the green tea-calamansi gimlet (chilled with liquid nitrogen!). For travelers with work to attend to, the combination of wireless Internet and tush-pleasing seating banishes the memory of sterile hotel business centers. 90 Tremont St., Boston, MA 2108, .
Bakers' Best
The increasingly popular sit-down service is good, too (especially for Saturday and Sunday brunch), but it's the takeout that sets this Newton Highlands institution apart. The friendly staff will wrap up anything to go, from a cup of coffee to a multicourse gourmet dinner for as many guests as you can gather. Big orders like those require one day's notice, but Baker's Best makes it easy with a quiet catering office and a convenient check-off menu. There are also freezers full of ready-to-cook meal components in the main store, from hors d'oeuvres to entrées. And that food—it really is the best. 27 Lincoln St., Newton Highlands, MA bakersbestcatering.com.
Dessert Works
Kristen Repa has seen (and made) a lot of wedding cakes: Before launching her own bakery more than a decade ago, she honed her sweet skills at local institutions like Konditor Meister and the Catered Affair, and even trained at the renowned Konditorei Gerstner, in Austria. Whether you want your cake to match your theme, your personality, or your gorgeous gown, Repa and her team of pastry chefs will turn out an exquisite confection that tastes as good as it looks (dulce de leche or lemon—summer berry, anyone?). 302 Providence Hwy., Westwood, MA 2090, dessertworks.net.
Sarma
It’s the restaurant that launched a thousand meze plates—and it’s still the one to beat. Culinary sorcerer Cassie Piuma infuses warm, traditional flavors with whimsy, whether it’s in pork schnitzel brightened by mustard-and-caper brown butter, escarole, and rosemary za’atar, or burnished quail shish kebabs balanced with earthy walnut sauce and chanterelles. Somewhere in the swirl of those blue lanterns and dim sum–style trays gliding through the dining room, you forget you’re in Somerville and just embrace the magic of it all. 249 Pearl St., Somerville, MA 02145, sarmarestaurant.com.
Harvest
The three-course prix-fixe menu is everything brunch should be: a selection of sweet and savory breakfast and lunch dishes and an assortment of chilled seafood (Wellfleet oysters, countneck clams, shrimp) with a Bloody Mary or mimosa to wash it down. Dine inside for a plush, low-lit and serene atmosphere or outside on the secluded patio. Start with roasted oysters with mascarpone, pancetta, and spinach; granola and fresh fruit; or a Caesar salad with—hallelujah!—white anchovies. Move on to crab cakes with perfectly poached eggs, hollandaise, and ossetra caviar; French toast with spiced apples and sausage; or a smoked-salmon sandwich on toasted French bread with tomato, red onion, and parsley-caper egg sauce. Then prepare to nap away the afternoon. 44 Brattle St., Cambridge, MA .
Long's Jewelers
The 900-pound, umpteen-carat gorilla of the region's jewelry scene, Long's caters to North Shore treasure-hunters with 12,500-square-foot showrooms in Burlington and Peabody—and that's on top of five equally brilliant locations elsewhere in New England. With the 130-year-old company growing strong, customers reap the benefits in the form of a dazzling array of designer jewelry (John Hardy, Marco Bicego), rock-solid Swiss timepieces, and gifts that now include the famed Shreve gurgling cod. 35 Cross St., Peabody, MA 1960, longsjewelers.com.
Ski Market
Year after year, we find new winter gear we can't live without. So year after year, we revisit Ski Market. The store caters to everyone from bunny slopers to the black-diamond crowd with snowboards, snowshoes, and skis from A-list manufacturers like Salomon and Rossignol. It also carries sleek wear from the North Face, Burton, and Nordica that will keep enthusiasts looking cool—no matter how often or hard they fall. 860 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 2213, skimarket.com.
David Vendetti,
Aching for downward dog? Eager for a sun salutation? Stop by this frills-free Boylston Street studio. Yogi David Vendetti transforms himself from teacher to comedian to storyteller to motivator, all while delivering precise, clear instructions. His 90-minute classes cater to both beginners and advanced students. Every body leaves Back Bay Yoga in balance. 1112 Boylston St., Third Floor, Boston, MA backbayyoga.com.
Wine Galley
Wine stores tend to cater to either experts or idiots. If, like most of us, you're somewhere in between, head to the Wine Gallery, a shop as welcoming to neophytes as it is to Robert Parker wannabes. The knowledgeable staff will happily guide you to a hard-to-find amarone or the best 10-buck malbec. And if you still can't decide, try before you buy at the store's 'wine jukebox,' which dispenses free half-ounce samples of 32 reds and 16 whites. 375 Boylston St. (Rte. 9), Brookline, MA 02445-6007, wine-gallery.com.
Met Back Bay
In a sea of nondescript restaurants catering to shoppers and office workers, Met Back Bay consistently impresses with its comfort-food-with-a-twist fare (think: rotisserie jerk chicken and head-on trout with shaved zucchini). Then there's the ham-and-cheese bar, where a multitude of potential pairings—prosciutto with Great Hill Blue, or hickory-smoked ham with Cabot clothbound cheddar?—support lingering at the bar with a glass of rosé. 279 Dartmouth St., Boston, MA 2116, metbackbay.com.
Wolfers Lighting
Lighting makes a room, and the selection at Wolfers can give any home a welcoming glow. The Allston gallery has fixtures for every space—indoor and out. It caters to a variety of styles and budgets with fixtures including ornate chandeliers and funky kitchen pendants. The savvy salespeople can always shed light on any illumination problem, whether you need help changing a bulb or lighting an antique barn. 103 N. Beacon St., Allston, MA wolfers.com.
Boston Public Library
Matt Teuten Photography The gurgle of the cast-bronze fountain in the Italianate open-air courtyard. The glow of the green glass lamps on Bates Hall’s long reading tables. Set the scene for your own epic love story at the BPL. With an array of dramatic party spaces and creative, personalized cuisine from the Catered Affair, the Renaissance Revival treasure is less library and more fairy-tale romance in the making. bpl.org; thecateredaffair.com/bpl. 700 Boylston St., Boston, MA .
Winnetu
This beachfront resort is located just a short bike ride away from Edgartown. Not that you'll ever need to trek into town. The family-friendly property offers myriad accommodation options to suit everyone from couples to cousins, and has a bevy of amenities—tennis, yoga, pools—to keep the crew happy all day long. The Dunes, the Winnetu's restaurant, caters to a diverse crowd, including the kiddos. 31 Dunes Rd., Edgartown, MA 02539, winnetu.com.
Jamaica Mi Hungry
The fiery, hearty, soulful fare of Jamaica has a cozy home in Jackson Square, where chef Ernie Campbell uses skills honed as a caterer and food-truck operator to serve heaping helpings of jerk chicken, coconut shrimp, oxtail, and curry goat. Bonus points for the prime location next to an MBTA Orange Line stop and bus hub, which makes these good eats accessible to a broad, underserved swath of the city, notably a nearby section of Roxbury with few sit-down or takeout restaurants. 225 Centre St., Jamaica Plain, MA 02130, jamaicamihungry.com.
December Thieves
When Lana Barakat decided to rethink her two Beacon Hill clothing-and-gift boutiques, she envisioned one store catering to home décor and another specializing in apparel and accessories. This divide-and-conquer strategy created more room for something Boston has been sorely lacking: high-end women’s footwear. Handcrafted by European and American designers, Barakat’s collection includes everything from metallic leather boots with an offset heel to cheetah-print loafers to sneakers with a velvet knot tie—perfect for navigating the cobblestones in style as you stroll up Charles to check out what other treasures await at the December Thieves home store. 51 Charles St., Boston, MA decemberthieves.com.