Best of Boston

Ferreting out a well-made cocktail and inventive cuisine—minus the pretense—can be a tall order anywhere. Find them in a North Shore beach town at 11 p.m., and it’s like striking gold. Discriminating night owls flock to the Franklin Cape Ann, northern sibling of the South End’s much-loved Franklin Café; for hearty, affordable (read: under $25) dishes like pan-seared cod with oyster mushrooms and ginger, as well as a killer lineup of old-fashioned drinks.