Best of Boston

In a city full of bars with loud music, weak drinks, and meat-market mentalities, the Oak Bar is an oasis of refinement, elegance, and call brands. No sneakers, please. And do not, by any means, forget your jacket and tie. Or your martini preference—at last count, there were 21 varieties on the cocktail menu, including the 007, the Barbie-tini, and the Engaging Martini (which, for a modest $12,750, comes complete with a platinum and diamond engagement ring from Shreve, Crump & Low). But good martinis aren’t all it takes. Rather, it is the quiet piano music, soaring gilt-covered, vaulted ceiling, plus chairs, and skilled bartenders—who will do so little as pour you a beer and so much as mix your margarita the way you like it— which put the Oak Bar into a category all its own. And the burgers aren’t bad, either.