Farfar's Danish Ice Cream Shop

The real ice-cream aficionado's conundrum: Once you've gone Danish, you'll never go back. If that Danish is Farfar's, however, you'll go back repeatedly. This isn't your over-the-top carnival of crazed flavor and obnoxious and undiscriminating mix-ins. Farfar's is about amazing, rich texture and simple but intense fresh flavors. The cinnamon is a coup de cremerie. The peanut butter reaches deep into the nut's truest flavor. And the sweet cream tastes like innocence itself. 272 Saint Georges St., Duxbury, MA farfarsicecream.com.

Andrew Zona Studio

It's not just that stylists here can take your hair from bed head to pin-straight in a friendly flash—though that would certainly be enough. Nor is it only that you'll find an international dream team of products, from Kérastase to Bumble and Bumble to Kiehl's. It isn't even that the helpful, affable counter staff goes out of its way to avoid the fabled Hingham hauteur. It's the intersection of all of the above—which is precisely where you'll find Andrew Zona Studio. 65 South St., Hingham, MA .

Reed's Country Way Nursery and Florist

On a bucolic pond in Hingham, you'll find the answers to every horticultural question you've ever thought to ask—and some you probably haven't. Reed's employs a team of garden experts to educate customers with thumbs of even the palest green about hanging baskets (a particular specialty) and their assortment of more than 600 varieties of perennials. If your car isn't already loaded down with flats, stop at the garden shop on the way out: With a selection of candles and pottery, you can't go wrong. 387 East St., Hingham, MA .

Woodman's of Essex

This is what you might call seafood in the rough: You stand at the counter, shout your order, eat it, and leave. But paper plates and plastic cutlery aside, there's very little that's actually rough about Woodman's, which offers some of the smoothest fried seafood around. The breading isn't a disguise for a small and salty chunk of meat, as it is at lesser seafood shacks, but a crispy golden complement to the tender bivalves beneath. 121 Main St., Essex, MA woodmans.com.

Interlocks Salon & Day Spa

These stylists just might be more obsessed with your hair than you are. Blowouts, cuts, color—you name it, they'll do it, and do it well. The Interlocks team of 15 clip artists (some of them—gasp—Newbury Street defectors) is well schooled, having traveled to Milan and London to learn from the best in the trade. Nervous about switching stylists? Stop in for a complimentary consultation. This spa is so certain of itself, it offers clients a free follow-up appointment if they're not completely happy. 58 Merrimac St., Newburyport, MA interlockssalon.com.

Red Rock Bistro & Bar

The food at Red Rock Bistro & Bar is a bonus. The beautiful view of the pounding Atlantic surf and Boston skyline is filling enough. On the other hand, we would never give up chef Allen Bohnert's brunch menu of fluffy mushroom-, cheese-, and spinach-stuffed omelets; challah French toast with ruby-red strawberries; or blueberry flapjacks with cassis butter. It's worth setting the alarm clock on a Sunday. Ease out of your postbrunch food coma with a long walk along the soft sand beach below the restaurant. 141 Humphrey St., Swampscott, MA redrockbistro.com.

When toungue-tied former state representative Roger "Sparky" Goyette turned in his long-awaited 65-page report on the "marine biota," on April 1, 1988. Sparky, a former mechanic, has been hired at $30,000 a year by the House to research the environmental "project" after New Bedford voters threw him out at the polls.

Anna Cherkasska, Salon Capri

Anna Cherkasska takes her work seriously, which means clients take her work vigorously. Expect lots of effective pressure that goes deep tissue, gets right to the middle of the muscle, and leaves you ache-free and loose as a rubber band. Cherkasska is charming, diligent, and not at all shy; don't be surprised if she jumps on your back to face down a knot. The salon itself provides a slew of other top-notch services and a serene but sophisticated setting. 31 Lincoln St., Newton Highlands, MA saloncapri.com.

Royal Jewelers

Royal Jewelers is to David Yurman addicts as Massachusetts is to Mitt Romney—a second, and maybe first, home. There's good reason for that: The family-run, gem-packed store literally holds the largest and most complete Yurman boutique outside his Madison Avenue shop. And it hardly stops there. Royal also houses case after case of delectable works by other highstyle designers, including John Hardy, Kieselstein-Cord, Luca Carati, Michael Beaudry, Doris Panos, Elise Rosenstock, and Charriol. 58 Main St., Andover, MA royaljewelers.com.

Grettacole

Push through the glass and wood storefront, past the bright pots of Trish McEvoy cosmetics and rows of neatly packaged Molton Brown potions (you can hit all of the above on your way out), and head straight for the heart of this operation: the spa. The intimate setting in back serves as the stage for some world-class pampering—whether it's a custom-designed massage at the hard-working hands of Amy Nicalek or a soul-saving pedicure. The entire staff works at the expert level. Better yet, they're downright sweet. 300 Boylston St. (Rte. 9), Atrium Mall, Chestnut Hill, MA grettacole.com.

F1 Boston

Forget Schwarzenegger films, mini golf, and laser tag. Once you've felt your own adrenaline spike through you from one mere inch above the ground at Braintree's indoor "Formula 1"-style kart-racing complex, just about everything else seems lame. NASCAR lovers, take note: This is, by any standards, a luxury establishment, with conference rooms, cafés and lounges, billiards, and exhibitions. 290 Wood Rd., Braintree, MA f1boston.com.

Periwinkles

Glowing candles and a well-scrubbed interior may keep it more refined than your average fish shack, but Periwinkles' sea fare is straight-off-the-boat fresh. The crabmeat pie is a sweet and thick bit of retro revelry; the fresh lobster pizza on sourdough crust is tangy, filling, and scrumptious. Sitting on the deck perched over the Essex River at sunset, with an Ipswich Ale and a plate of grilled swordfish, provides an experience with which few places on earth can compete. 74 Main St., Essex, MA periwinklesrestaurant.com.

Jennifer Harvey, The Wellesley Center

With years of teaching under her belt, and a style that's at once soothing and energizing, it's no wonder Harvey has such a huge following. Her phenomenally popular neuromuscular integrative action class feels like MTV-meets-dance-therapy; it's a great workout regardless of your fitness level. Harvey is also great at modification, offering a class as challenging for advanced students as beginners. 140 Great Plain Ave., Wellesley, MA .

Kendall Square Cinema

It's not the fresh popcorn, hot cappuccino, or high-gloss neon that draws the crowds to this megaplex arthouse near MIT. Sure, those things don't hurt. But even if the seats weren't plush and the parking weren't plentiful, crowds would still flood to this theater for one of the largest selections of eye-sprinting subtitles on the East Coast. With nine screens of foreign and indie flicks, this is the place to catch an obscure tearjerker while boning up on your Czech or Urdu. 1 Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA .

Mighty Mighty BossTones

Ska may come and ska may go, but the BossTones are forever. Going on 20 years, the band is forcing listeners to again Pay Attention with a best selling new studio release. Notwithstanding some catchy hooks, the album features a more melodic side of the plaid-bedecked eight-some, or, as frontman Dicky Barrett says, songs that are "thought out, not just half-assed." Get your tix for the Throwdown now! bosstones.com.