Sesuit Harbor Café
Sure, seafood is easy to come by on the Cape. But you're reading this magazine, so you’re looking for the best. Pack your cooler and sunscreen and snag a picnic table at Sesuit Harbor Café: Yes, you’ll wait in a line out the door, sit outside rain or shine, and BYOB, but once those heaping trays of lobster rolls, fried scallops and clams, and Cape Cod Bay oysters are in front of you, you’ll understand. sesuit-harbor-cafe.com.
Queeraoke at Midway Café
Covered in vinyl stickers and rainbow string lights, J.P.’s Midway Café looks like a classic dive bar, but it’s also the spot to sing your heart out every Thursday starting at 10 p.m. A favorite of Boston’s younger queer crowd—but welcoming to everyone—the evening starts with regulars crooning to ’90s and early-aughts hits and ends with wild dance parties. 3496 Washington St., Jamaica Plain, MA midwaycafe.com.
Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club
Spend one evening lounging around a fire pit on the water-view terrace with your family, and you just might decide to make a stay at this Brewster retreat, centered around a Victorian-style mansion, an annual tradition. And why wouldn’t you, when there are enough amenities here—a Nicklaus-designed golf course, bar-adjacent private beach, luxe day spa, and full-service tennis courts—to make it so you never have to leave? oceanedge.com.
Meredith Bonner, Barneys New York
Bonner is like the fashionable friend you wish you could bring along on every shopping spree: patient; quick with a joke to enliven fitting-room tedium; and known to go great lengths to find the perfect pair of jeans. The best part? Getting whisked away to her cozy office to try on your haul in blissful privacy. Copley Place, Boston, MA barneys.com.
Mandarin Oriental
COURTESY PHOTO Looking to rub elbows with your favorite A-listers? Chances are if they’re in town, they’ve snagged a room at the Mandarin Oriental. It’s no surprise when you consider the hotel’s dedication to discreet yet over-the-top service, helmed by charismatic GM Philip Knuepfer: Whether you’re dropping by the sprawling spa, the on-site restaurant, Bar Boulud, or the check-in counter, you’re bound to get the star treatment. 776 Boylston St., Boston, MA mandarinoriental.com.
M.F. Dulock
This neighborhood meat market specializes in ethically sourced, hormone-free meats—all raised on pasture within 250 miles of Somerville—and nose-to-tail butchery. That means you’ll see hard-to-find proteins such as livers and blushing lamb’s hearts, along with house-made sausages, pork cutlets, chicken, and slabs of brisket. Want to try them all? Subscribe to M.F. Dulock’s meat club and take home new cuts every month. 201A Highland Ave., Somerville, MA mfdulock.com.
LexRX
If you’re curious about next-level skin care but aren’t quite ready to make the leap to injectables, this new line of products has you covered. Created by the nurse practitioners who founded LexRX, a local cosmetic dermatology practice, the cleansers, serums, moisturizing creams, and detox masks are all packed with a proprietary combination of skin-boosting natural ingredients (activated charcoal, chamomile extract, lavender essential oil) and exfoliating acids to bring out your natural glow—no needles required. 121 Charles St., Boston, MA lexrx.co.
Lekker Home
You already know this South End boutique for its modern furnishings and home accessories. Now discover Lekker Home’s softer side, courtesy of a luxe linen collection with everything you need for a lifetime of pampering: Sasawashi scrub towels to keep your skin looking fresh, a super-soft Blacksaw throw for movie nights, and a crisp set of Area bed sheets to sink into later. 1313 Washington St., Boston, MA lekkerhome.com.
Kate's Table
Too busy to whip up a dazzling meal for your next dinner party? Just call Kate’s Table. An alum of some of the city’s top restaurants, chef Kate Papaleoni and her team prep dishes in small batches before artfully displaying them in a curated collection of vessels and custom display pieces. And if you want to pretend you did it all yourself, they also offer a drop-off service. katestable.com.
Kashmir Asvaraksh, Hair by Kashmir
She may have mastered the runways of New York Fashion Week, but Kashmir Asvaraksh truly shines while styling a bride’s hair. Asvaraksh’s updos look effortlessly chic (read: not overly stiff with hairspray), while her curls are reminiscent of Old Hollywood. She trains hairstylists around the country, too, so you can dance the night away knowing that she’s expertly pinned and coiffed your locks. 297 Newbury Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, hairbykashmir.com.
Joppa Flats Education Center
Mass Audubon’s Joppa Flats Education Center offers wildlife educational programs designed to make nature fun—and a trip to the beach a (gentle) teaching moment. Kids and adults alike can explore marine touch tanks and art exhibits at the center, then set off on guided tours across the refuge’s 52 acres of salt marsh and mud flats, home to more than 300 species of birds, including bald eagles and snowy owls. massaudubon.org/get-outdoors/wildlife-sanctuaries/joppa-flats.
Island Creek Oyster Bar
NINA GALLANT. STYLING BY ELLE SIMONE For Ethel’s Lobster Roll, named for his beloved grandmother, chef Jeremy Sewall sources delicate, ultra-fresh meat from his Maine fisherman cousin, then classes it up with a rosemary-imbued bun, crème fraîche, and the perfectly calibrated blend of celery salt and pickle. Your favorite seafood shack can’t compare. 500 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA islandcreekoysterbar.com.
Greentail Table
Dream dinner parties start at this design-forward tabletop shop. Curated by owner Linda de Valpine—a seasoned retail vet who gave up a decades-long career in merchandising to open Greentail Table in 2014—the covetable array of locally made Caskata canapé plates, shapely glass decanters, acacia-wood serving boards, Ekelund table runners, and other chic must-haves will have your guests asking, “Where did you find that?” 343 Watertown St., Newton, MA greentailtable.com.
Forty Winks
No matter what underpinnings your wedding attire calls for (or doesn’t), this Harvard Square favorite Forty Winks can provide. Need support but want to avoid panty lines? Grab high-waisted thongs from Chantelle, Commando, or Hanky Panky. Going backless? Try stick-on seamless cups from NuBra or a lacy Samantha Chang halter bodysuit. And as for after the wedding? We’ll let Else’s collection of sheers speak for itself. 56 JFK St., Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, shopfortywinks.com.
For Now
If you’re a budding small brand, how do you get your products into the public’s hands when you can’t afford Boston’s high rents? Connect with For Now, a shop that acts as a revolving showcase for indie labels, with about a dozen lines—from soaps to shoes—displayed at any given time. 68 Seaport Blvd., Boston, MA itsfornow.com.